Planted by the Water: A Reflection on Our Fall Fundraising Dinners

“They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream.” (Jeremiah 17:8)

This fall, Episcopal Charities tried something new. In place of our Autumn Soirée, we gathered in friends’ homes to hear how Episcopal Charities has nurtured life across the Diocese of Chicago for decades. In September, Olivia Elliott and Michael Paik welcomed guests to their Bucktown home, and in October, Elisha and Nina Gray opened their home in Winnetka. Together, the two evenings raised over $50,000 at little cost.

Guests at these two dinners enjoyed the intimacy and the chance to get to know one another in a quiet, informal setting. We were also joined by the CEOs of two of our Nonprofit Partners, who shared how Episcopal Charities’ grants have sustained their work. They spoke so passionately, too, about how our Inner Capacity Building Program deepens the impact of those grants by shaping them as leaders.

Twice each year, our Inner Capacity Building Program brings the leaders of our 17 nonprofit partners into daylong retreats on character, emotional maturity, and the practice of the spiritual life with expert facilitators. In addition, the same leaders gather for a bimonthly CEO lunch to cultivate relationships, learn from each other, and support one another in work that can often be lonely and challenging even as it is meaningful and important.

The Episcopal Charities’ family of Ministry Partners is a living ecosystem. Outward-facing projects seeded through our Parish Partner Grants Program and through our Catalyst Project Fund can grow into Nonprofit Partners, and those partners mature into strong, steady trees through ongoing grant support. Our Inner Capacity Building Program feeds the roots of healthy leadership, and the roots of relationship hold it all together. And you, our donors and friends, are the stream that nourishes it.

A number of people came together to make these dinners happen: our hosts and speakers; our staff, Uziel Hernández and Jacob Sierra; Ida Butler, Jane Schenck, Julie Flood, and the Events Committee of our Board of Trustees. Special thanks to all of them.

It’s not too late to give. Every gift goes entirely to support our grant programs. Use the button below.

In gratitude,
Matt Berryman, Executive Director