UTO Awards Largest 2013 Grant to the Diocese of the Dominican Republic
Posted June 11, 2013

A collection can for the United Thank Offering on the altar rail of Misión San Juan Evangelista in Bonao. UTO collections are regularly taken up in the Episcopal churches in the Dominican Republic.

The United Thank Offering has announced the award of US$162,817 to the Diocese of the Dominican Republic for the construction of the Santa Cruz Vocational School in San Pedro de Macorís. The school will train young men and women in the vocational skills needed in construction, electrical wiring, plumbing, refrigeration, sewing, cooking and baking, secretarial work, computer and information systems, and foreign languages. The UTO funds will be used to add a second floor to a vacated school building, creating a sizable two-story space for the vocational program.

According to a press release from the Episcopal Church Office of Public Affairs, “The United Thank Offering of the Episcopal Church has awarded 48 grants for a total of $1,517,280.91 for the mission and ministry of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion. The 2013 grants were awarded to projects in 38 Episcopal Church dioceses, six international provinces and the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society (DFMS) Mission offices. Known worldwide as UTO, the United Thank Offering grants are awarded for projects that address human needs and help alleviate poverty, both domestically and internationally. The awards ranged from $2000 to the Diocese of Mississippi to $162,817 to the Diocese of the Dominican Republic. A total of 86 grant applications were received. The awarding of the 2013 grants focused on two (of the five) Anglican Marks of Mission: To respond to human need by loving service; and to seek to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and to pursue peace and reconciliation.”

The complete press release is available on the Episcopal News Service website, here:

http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2013/06/11/uto-awards-1-5-million-for-episcopal-anglican-mission-and-ministry/

The complete list of all 2013 UTO grants is available from the United Thank Offering’s website, here:

http://www.utochange.org/page5/page22/index.html