VeNews — Vesper Society’s Newsletter

Vesper Society Launches YouTube Channel
July 2010
Vesper Society has a new way of sharing our stories with you: We are pleased to announce the launch of our YouTube channel.

Vesper Society Celebrates the Life of Co-Founder Robert B. Cummings 1922–2010
March 2010
It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Robert B. Cummings, a pioneering social entrepreneur who, in the mid-1960s, co-founded Vesper Society.

Vesper Society Celebrates the Memory of Colleague Steve de Gruchy 1961–2010
February 2010
The Society joins others around the globe in mourning the loss of ARAHP co-founder Prof. Steve de Gruchy.

Vesper Society Launches Incubator Fund, Supports Reporting Fellowship in Oakland, and Continues Interfaith Dialogue and Action
September 2009
In addition to our multi-year programs, this issue profiles additional projects that reflect the Society’s efforts to build bridges and foster public dialogue.

Vesper Society Book Explores Roots of Global Laity Movement and New Project Highlights Religious Pluralism as Strategy for Social Change.
January 2009
The story of Mark Gibbs and Vesper Society’s collaboration and impact on the laity movement is documented in a newly published book.

Vesper Society’s Oakley Youth Empowerment Program, Expansion of Masangane HIV/AIDS Program to Second Site, and Additional Program Support
December 2008
Oakley Youth Empowerment Program is creating a Youth Master Plan of services and programs that support youth in their community.

Vesper Society Partnership with The Oslo Center-US Foundation, Expansion of Services at Sutter Delta Urgent Care Clinic, and Board Update
November 2008
Vesper Society co-sponsors a panel discussion on how cultural and religious differences affect the political relationship between Iran and the West.

South African Project Aims for Big “LEAP” in Economic Development
September 2008
Vesper Society partners with SaveAct in a new economic justice program in South Africa’s Eastern Cape, creating financial services for the poor by forming savings and credit groups.

Vesper Society Names New Vice President
July 2008
An accomplished leader in the arts, education and civic collaboration, Sabrina Lynn Motley has been named vice president of Vesper Society, a faith-based private operating foundation.

Exploring Vesper Society’s Work with Laity
October 2007
Research is being conducted in preparation for a publication that will narrate the role of Vesper Society in relationship to ecumenical laity movements, both in its programs and its leadership.

Society Partners with Global Peace Center to Strengthen African Health Care Systems
September 2007
Vesper Society is collaborating with The Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights, founded by the former Norwegian Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik in 2006 to combat global poverty and disease and to promote interreligious dialogue.

Working for a Better World: Reflections on the 2007 Kirchentag
July 2007
Mary Baich, President of Vesper Society, reports on her trip to Cologne, Germany, for the biennial gathering of the German Protestant Church, an event known as the Kirchentag.

Vesper Society Launches Network to Connect Leaders with Faith-Based Organizations
May 2007
Connecting people of faith with faith-based, not-for-profit organizations needing assistance is the mission of Vesper Service Network, a recently launched joint venture of Vesper Society and KDM Consultants, Inc. of Milwaukee.

Religious Health Assets Key to Fighting Aids in Sub-Saharan Africa
March 2007
Vesper Society, WHO, and ARHAP are calling for greater collaboration among ministries of health, health agencies, donors, religious entities and their partners in order to provide universal access to HIV prevention, care and treatment by 2010.

Vesper Society Helps Youth Succeed
November 2006
In the Adolescent Health Initiative, three agencies are coordinating services to meet the physical and mental health needs of students at an alternative school in Hayward, California.

Gifted by God in the Mission of Health and Well-Being
September 2006
An interview with one of our partners: the Rev. Dr. Steve de Gruchy, South African theologian and leader in the African Religious Health Assets Program (ARHAP).

International Training Program Equips Peacemakers
June 2006
Vesper Society’s work in Dialogue for Peaceful Change, an international project, is equipping leaders with the skills to understand and resolve conflict.

ARHAP Participates in the 9th General Assembly of the WCC
March 2006
Vesper Society’s African Religious Health Assets Program (ARHAP) participates in the ‘Mutirao’ sessions of the Ninth General Assembly of the World Council of Churches held in Porto Alegre, Brazil, February 9–24, 2006.

Vesper Society Celebrates 40 Years
November 2005
Vesper Society’s 40 years of devoted service to communities around the world were celebrated on Sept. 24, 2005, at the Stanford University Faculty Club in Palo Alto.

Faith Leaders Train in Domestic Violence Prevention
July 2005
To help strengthen lines of communication between secular and faith-based organizations, the Community Healing Network and Vesper Society sponsored an interfaith workshop on domestic violence prevention.

Lives Can Be Saved . . . AIDS Is No Longer a Death Sentence
May 2005
Vesper Society support the Masangane HIV/AIDS Treatment Program in rural South Africa. The program pairs those who are HIV positive with family members or friends trained as treatment supporters.