The President's “Innovations in Effective Compassion” conference selects Siyafundisa video as one of top ten
SIYAFUNDISA … (see-ya-fun-de-sa) … the unusual, song-like word is Zulu for “Teaching Our Children,” and has also become a word that is synonymous with hope for many thousands of young people in South Africa. Siyafundisa is the name of a coalition formed in 2005 by Jacksonville-based FreshMinistries, the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, D.C. and the Anglican Church of the Province of Southern Africa to combat HIV/AIDS.
Working in South Africa, Mozambique and Namibia, Siyafundisa, with funding support from USAID, is beginning to make dramatic and quantifiable strides in HIV/AIDS education and prevention. For example, during the semi-annual reporting period from October 1, 2007 through March 31, 2008, approximately 1200 individuals were trained to provide prevention education to the masses. By recruiting and training these youth outreach workers who, in turn, recruit and train others, literally thousands of children and young adults are being reached. Siyafundisa is truly living up to its name.
On June 26, Dr. Bruce R. Grob, Vice Chairman of FreshMinistries and Executive Director of Siyafundisa, was among the approximately 1,000 attendees at the White House Faith Based Conference in Washington, D.C., where President Bush and other top government dignitaries recognized and celebrated the effective work of faith-based organizations in healthcare, education and economic development at home and abroad.
“We were gratified that our Siyafundisa Video was one of ten selected, from hundreds of submissions, to be shown at the Conference,” said Grob. “While there is a tremendous amount of work still to be done, we are proud of our program’s success to date and the literally thousands of lives we are working to save.”
“Innovations in Effective Compassion” was the theme for the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives (OFBCI) National Conference where President Bush recognized and congratulated the many groups represented, calling them “Armies of Compassion.”
“I’d never heard that term until the President said it, and it excited me,” declared Jackie Perry, who attended the Conference in her capacity as Executive Director of Beaver Street Enterprise Center, Florida’s only core-city business incubator and another FreshMinistries initiative. “Army of Compassion so aptly describes FreshMinistries,” added Perry. “Admittedly, we’re a small army, but very powerful in that we have reached out and made a difference in so many of the challenging areas that were being addressed at the Conference. FreshMinistries has been on many different front lines over the past decade and launched many good programs that are still effective today.”
Maintaining its front line position in the economic development arena as a highly successful business incubator for inner-city entrepreneurs, Beaver Street Enterprise Center was one of several public/private partnerships featured at the Conference on a panel titled “Great Human Needs.” As a panelist, Perry shared with the audience that the beautiful, modern professional facility that is Beaver Street Enterprise Center was built five years ago thanks to an Economic Development Administration Grant. “Our government partners have had a great deal to do with the success we’ve achieved,” said Perry. “The Conference reinforced the fact that while government can’t cure the ills in communities, it can empower the communities to work toward the cure,” said Perry. “And, with the help of God and the government, we are empowering communities around the block and around the globe.”
Founded in Jacksonville in 1994, FreshMinistries has been reaching out to help people locally, nationally and globally for nearly 15 years. “Whether it is Siyafundisa or summer jobs for the children of East Jacksonville, our goals have always been wrapped around building hope and changing lives,” said founding Chairman and CEO, Dr. Robert V. Lee, III. “At this crucial time in history, it has never been more necessary for faith-based and community organizations to reach out to others with love and compassion.”