InterFaith Aurora will be host to its 12th annual Thanksgiving Celebration of Music and Friendship from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 24, at Society 57, 100 S. River Street in Aurora.
The public is invited. Street parking is free. A free-will collection will benefit the Neighbor Project in Aurora, a nonprofit dedicated to helping low to moderate income families reduce debt, build credit, save and ultimately buy their first homes.
Songs and religious praise from diverse congregations throughout the Aurora area will be featured. The theme is “One Aurora: Community. Diversity. Empathy.”
“This celebration is the consummation of our year-long activities where different faith communities work to bring understanding, inclusion, awareness and friendship of each other in order to work toward a more harmonious and just community,” said Tammy Helfrich, the organization’s coordinator.
The celebration will include readings from members of the Baha’i, Jewish, Sikh, Muslim, Hindu and Christian communities, music from the choir of the St. John African Methodist Episcopal Church, and a multi-community choir. The celebration is open to the public.
Light refreshments will be served after the event, and offerings raised from the celebration will be donated to the Neighbor Project in Aurora. Its vision is to see healthy, strong and stable neighborhoods by positioning working families to be the primary drivers of community growth.
Prior year recipients were: In 2018 Jesse Torres Boxing Club; 2017 CASA Kane County; 2016 Marie Wilkinson Food Pantry; and 2015 Family Counseling Service of Aurora.
Participants in this year’s event include the following: Aurora Jewish Renewal Congregation, Temple B’nai Israel, St. John African Methodist Episcopal Church, Wesley United Methodist Church, The Orchard Community, The Sikh Community, Al Aqsa Mosque, Hindu Community, United for Peace, Baha’i Community, St. John UCC, and St. Joseph Catholic Church.
InterFaith Aurora, a non-profit organization, has been in existence for approximately 20 years.
The organization’s mission is sharing and connecting. We believe that building understanding, acceptance, and love within the community in which we make our homes will help transform and heal the world in which we live.
The group meets monthly. For more information, contact Tammy Helfrich, tammy@theorchardcommunity.com, or 630-862-9621.
—Al Benson