Each day this week, we’ll highlight a major accomplishment in the fight against poverty that ONE members helped achieve in 2011. Today, ONE Blog Editor Malaka Gharib discusses some of the major achievements from ONE’s faith-based efforts.
Earlier this year, we launched Lazarus Sunday, a nationwide event to help raise awareness for HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. More than 1,000 faith communities took part. Faith leaders aired “The Lazarus Effect,” a documentary about AIDS, at church services, and touched on ONE’s issues during their sermons.
We traveled with the David Crowder*Band, a Christian rock group, on their final tour to recruit anti-poverty advocates. For weeks, ONE Organizer Seth Philpott and his volunteers tabled at shows to spread the word about our mission. Their hard work paid off — they signed up nearly 10,000 new members from the tour!
To remind ONE members about the famine in the Horn of Africa during the holiday season, we launched our ONE Sabbath Thanksgiving event. More than 200 faith communities from across the world signed up to help combat the devastating drought. Before the event took place, USAID Administrator Raj Shah participated in an exclusive conference call with ONE members of faith to discuss the Horn of Africa situation.
What else happened this year? We recruited 40 new regional faith leaders, distributed faith action guides for the Ramadan and Sukkot holidays, and launched a lovely series of essays on Thanksgiving from ONE members of all faiths.
To those who participated in Faith at ONE events and activities this year, thank you. We’ve got lots more in store next year, so stay tuned!
