Texas Impact Information

November 9, 2019 — Rio Texas MFSA

San Antonio Interfaith Advocacy Training

You are invited to Texas Impact’s San Antonio Interfaith Advocacy Training Sunday, November 17 from 2-5pm at First Unitarian Universalist Church in San Antonio.

Register online at https://texasimpact.org/texas-impacts-san-antonio-interfaith-advocacy-training-registration-page/.

Registration is free, but helpful in event planning.

Join us for a faith leader panel, Advocacy 101 training and breakout sessions.. Policy presentations will focus on immigration reform, public education/literacy, and health policy.

Additional topics, speakers and event sponsors will be listed here as they become available.

Email scott@texasimpact.org if you are interested in supporting the event or have ideas/suggestions to share.

Elgin Interfaith Advocacy Training

You are invited to Texas Impact’s San Antonio Interfaith Advocacy Training Saturday, November 16 from 10am-12pm at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Elgin. Register online at https://texasimpact.org/elgin-interfaith-advocacy-training-registration-form/. Registration is free, but helpful in event planning.

Join us for a faith leader panel, Advocacy 101 training and breakout sessions.. Policy presentations will focus on public education/literacy and rural health policy.

Additional topics, speakers and event sponsors will be listed here as they become available.

Email scott@texasimpact.org if you are interested in supporting the event or have ideas/suggestions to share.

Courts & Ports: Faithful Witness on the Texas-Mexico Border

Witness the Crisis First Hand

The Texas Interfaith Center for Public Policy/Texas Impact invites you to participate in Courts & Ports: Faithful Witness on the Texas-Mexico Border.

This 2-day immersion experience engages people of faith to witness first-hand the legal and law enforcement processes related to immigration, detention, and deportation occurring in South Texas.

Click here for the: Courts & Ports One Pager

Posted in Advocacy, Immigration, Newsletter. Leave a Comment »

Ministry at the Texas-Mexico Border

November 9, 2019 — Rio Texas MFSA

Thanks to a team from Trinity Church in Austin that went to the Brownsville to work with Team Brownsville to feed over 1,000 asylum seekers in Matamoros on November 2.  Teams of volunteers do this every evening.

This note was posted to Facebook by Janet Cook, organizer of the Trinity Church group: “Just returned from the border after my Trinity Team Brownsville mates and I prepared and cooked casseroles at Good Neighbor Settlement House in Brownsville for 50 homeless, next did the same for 500 asylum-seekers trapped in Matamoros, took the meals across the border by pulling wagons, and served the food with another team that cooked for 700.

The migrants are living in donated tents touching other tents and are generally dependent upon others for food, water, clothing and bedding.  Healthcare primarily comes from volunteers.  There are thirty pregnant women and five newborns.  All this leads me once again to look deeply at the root causes of this humanitarian crisis and how to help change things for the better.

This weekend, I also saw much love in faces and actions.  I saw the needs and benefits of working together with others on levels that are both spiritual and material.  Am very grateful for this experience.”

You can help by donating to Team Brownsville on the facebook link below.  They provide breakfast and dinner at the bridge each day, provide a sidewalk school for children on Sundays, assist asylum seekers at the bus station, and provide for non-potable water to be hauled into the camp.

Thanks to Team Brownsville and thank you Trinity Church of Austin!  You can follow Team Brownsville on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TeamBrownsville/.

Posted in Immigration, Newsletter. Leave a Comment »

Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty

November 9, 2019 — Rio Texas MFSA

Upcoming events

October 29 to November 14, 2019: The Texas tour of “The Penalty” continues this week, with public screenings in San Marcos, San Antonio and Houston. http://www.thepenaltyfilm.com/screenings

November 13, 2019: TCADP San Antonio chapter meeting, 6:30 PM

February 29, 2020: TCADP 2020 Annual Conference.  Registration now open!

Click here for details on these and other upcoming events.

Executions in 2019

Scheduled (4)
November 6: Justen Hall
November 13: Patrick Murphy Contact the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles
November 20: Rodney Reed – Sign this petition by the Innocence Project
December 11: Travis Runnels

Executed (7)
January 30: Robert Jennings
February 28: Billie Wayne Coble
April 24: John King
August 21: Larry Swearingen
September 4: Billy Crutsinger
September 10: Mark Anthony Soliz
September 25: Robert Sparks

Stays Granted/Dates Withdrawn (10)
January 14: Blaine Milam (execution scheduled for 1/15/19; stay granted by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals)
March 28: Patrick Murphy, Jr. (execution scheduled for 3/28/19; stay granted by the U.S. Supreme Court)
April 8: Mark Robertson (execution scheduled for 04/11/19; stay granted by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals)
April 30 and August 14: Dexter Johnson (execution scheduled for May 2 – stay granted by a federal judge; execution rescheduled for August 15 – stay granted by the Fifth Circuit on August 14)
September 23: Stephen Barbee (execution scheduled for 10/2/19; stay granted by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals)
October 3: Randall Mays (execution scheduled for 10/16/19; date withdrawn by trial court)
October 4: Randy Halprin (execution scheduled for 10/10/19; stay granted by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals)
October 22: Ruben Gutierrez (execution scheduled for 10/30/19; stay granted by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals; an earlier date of July 31 also was withdrawn

Read More

Posted in Death Penalty, Newsletter. Leave a Comment »

Central Texas Interfaith (CTI)

November 9, 2019 — Rio Texas MFSA

The CTI Delegates Assembly is Sunday, November 10th at 3pm at St. David’s Episcopal Church.  In this gathering of 400 leaders, we will ratify a preliminary agenda of issues we’ve been working on to guide our efforts as we head into the new year.  We will also ratify our 2020 nonpartisan electoral strategy and celebrate our launch as Central Texas Interfaith!

Let’s demonstrate the strength, diversity and power of our institutions!

RSVP NOW

We need YOU to RSVP AND work with your institution to bring a strong delegation so that we can increase voter turnout and make an impact on issues we care about from homelessness to climate change to wages, immigration and more.

Many of you made commitments for turnout to this assembly, ranging from 5 to 60.  Reach out to others in your institution to encourage participation and tell your organizer/or regional leader how many you are expecting.  Be bold and make announcements in PTA meetings, house meetings, and other gatherings!  Include the flyer in your bulletins!  Below are links to the latest flyer, sample announcement/bulletin insert and sign sheet. =)

DOWNLOAD FLYER

SAMPLE ANNOUNCEMENT

SIGNUP SHEET

With faith, much is possible.  Let’s make this launch a success!

Carlota García | Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic | 512-522-7565

Posted in Advocacy, Newsletter. Leave a Comment »

Western Jurisdiction Summit in November

November 9, 2019 — Rio Texas MFSA

Western Jurisdiction to host ‘Fresh United Methodism Summit’ in November

What will the future of The United Methodist Church look like in the coming years? Who is shaping that vision, and what are the most important values?

From November 14 to 16, 2019, the Western Jurisdiction (WJ) Mission Cabinet is hosting a Fresh United Methodism Summit consisting of the WJ Leadership Team, WJ Workgroup Leaders, 2020 General Conference delegates from the WJ, and other emerging leaders. Beginning with reports from each Annual Conference and several WJ workgroups, attendees will be listening for areas of alignment and opportunity so that the jurisdiction can collaborate for broader impact. Then, participants will go through a process of envisioning and innovation around the next steps for the Western Jurisdiction and The United Methodist Church.

The Western Jurisdiction is known across The United Methodist Church for its diversity and justice-seeking spirit. With this event, we hope live into that reputation more fully by bringing together institutional leaders and some of the emerging voices that we need to hear today.

How will this event shape the future of the Church? We don’t know but we are convinced that this is a season where we need to hear new voices, fresh ideas, and perspectives.

United Methodists and friends beyond the denomination are excited about the possibility of attending this event. But the event facilities limit the number of participants and observers. For that reason, a formula mirroring the delegate allotment for General Conference was used to designate seat allotments for each WJ Conference. Respectively, a limited number of observers will be determined through a random name draw. Significant sessions of the Fresh United Methodism Summit will be live-streamed.

Go to www.westernjurisdictionumc.org/fresh to find details about the groups selected to participate, how to apply to be an observer, details about the location, and details about the live stream.

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Media contacts for each Conference in the Western Jurisdiction are available at http://westernjurisdictionumc.org/leadership/communications-contacts.

Posted in Church Conferences, Newsletter. Leave a Comment »

Bazaars and Gift Markets

November 9, 2019 — Rio Texas MFSA

 

Buda UMC – UMW Christmas Bazaar

November 23, 2019

9:00 am – 1:00 pm

Fellowship Hall

302 Elm Street, Buda, TX 78610

Oak Hill UMC – Agape Christmas Market

December 8, 2019

9:00 am

 

 

 

 

Saint John’s UMC, 2140 Allandale Road, Austin, TX

Hours: Saturday 9:00 am – 3:00 pm

Sunday 12:00 noon – 3:00 pm

HOLIDAY GIFTS, VENDORS FROM AROUND THE WORLD, LOCAL ARTISANS, GIFT CARDS BENEFITING NON-PROFITS, HOLIDAY BAKE SHOP, and more.

16TH ANNUAL WOMEN & FAIR TRADE FESTIVAL

Date: November 23 & 24, 2019

Time: 10:00 am  to  6:00 pm

The Women & Fair Trade Festival is an annual Austin marketplace, now in its 16th year, invites women’s cooperatives to come from all over the world to tell their stories about globalization and to sell their handmade items.

The event is sponsored by Austin Tan Cerca de la Frontera. More information on the Facebook event page.

Location: First Unitarian Universalist Church, 4700 Grover Ave., Austin 78756

Posted in Gift Markets, Newsletter. Leave a Comment »

Texas Gun Sense

November 9, 2019 — Rio Texas MFSA

Texas Gun Sense is very proud to release our new four-part video series

Surviving Gun Violence

https://www.txgunsense.org/articles/video-profiles-2018

Posted in Gun Violence, Newsletter. Leave a Comment »
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