Aurora held its second quarter update for faith leaders on Thursday morning at the Belle Salle Banquets in Aurora. Aurora Interfaith Alliance (AIA) comprises faith leaders across Aurora who meet quarterly to discuss interfaith initiatives to move Aurora forward, with a goal of cross-collaboration.
The AIA comprises faith leaders across Aurora who meet quarterly to discuss interfaith initiatives to move Aurora forward, with a goal of cross-collaboration throughout the year.
•AIA recognized faith milestones in the community that have happened in the past quarter, including the 80th anniversary of Greater Mount Olive COGIC Ministries , the 15th anniversary of Impact Church Aurora, and the 25th pastoral anniversary of Pastor Jamin Becker. We also recognized the City’s proclamations for Ramadan and April as Sikh Awareness and Appreciation Month.
Interfaith connections recognized during the quarter, included:
•An education, awareness, and unity initiative between members of the Hindu and Sikh communities, where 60 Hindus, adults, and children of Balagokulam Aurora visited the Illinois Sikh Community Center to understand each other better and to remove any societal and generational barriers between the communities.
•The new partnership between Main Baptist Churchand Deaf Welcome Ministries, where Deaf Welcome Ministries provides sign language services to the church during services, and Main Baptist has opened its doors for Deaf Welcome Ministries to use its sanctuary every Sunday at 2 p.m. for a full-service for the deaf and hard-of-hearing in our community.
The breakfast also provided an opportunity for faith leaders to hear from community partners about resources that can be taken right back to congregations. The community partners that provided vital information were;
•The Aurora Financial Empowerment Center provided information about its services to help community members strengthen their financial outlook.
•Comcast provided information on affordable internet packages for families and zones in the community where free internet is provided.
•Fox Valley Habitat For Humanity provided information on affordable housing opportunities, including its upcoming Faith Build initiative, in which members of the faith community come together to build a home for a local family.
Faith leaders closed out the breakfast with ‘For the Good of the Alliance’ announcements about upcoming events and initiatives.
•The 3rd Quarter Leadership Breakfast will be held on Friday, Sept. 20, in honor of the International Day of Peace on Sept. 21. Visit www.aurora-il.org/InterFaithAlliance for more information.
—Al Benson