Social Justice
Find Us at:
730 25 Road
Grand Junction, CO 81505
970-242-3947
koinonia@koinoniagj.org
Our growing spirituality leads us naturally toward awareness of what social justice means, and propels us to address social injustice, where ever we find it. This information page describes some of the most important work and values that Koinonia does and holds dear. Activities past and present, information, possibilities and opportunities at Koinonia concerning social justice issues include:
- Peace and Justice group
- Koinonia partnership with ESNA Village Network/El Salvador
- Koinonia Community Garden
- Links to Peace and Justice blogs
- Links to Social Justice organizations
Links on this page:
click the Koinonia
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Peace and Justice Group
Its purpose is to give direction and focus to the social concerns of the Koinonia community. We discuss and explore issues of peace and justice together, seeking understanding and compassionate responses.
In the past we have held Family Peace Gatherings at Koinonia. We have sponsored community forums on the ethics of military recruitment in the high schools and on health care reform.
We've worked for human rights globally and locally through our support of:
Habitat for Humanity, Heifer International, Homeward Bound, Catholic Outreach, CROP, Church World Service, Foundation for Cultural Exchange, Seeds of Learning, and ESNA Village Network.
Our concern for a sustainable future is reflected in our community garden.
Building a High-School in Rural El Salvador....
Service Learning for Women (SLW) is creating positive social change through New Mexico State University (NMSU) scholarships to women from developing nations. Its purpose is to empower these women to achieve their highest potential and be catalysts for positive change in their home countries, especially in agricultural careers. The program was spearheaded by Linda Stout, a Koinonia member, Koinonia Inspired Speaker, NMSU alumnus and devoted advocate for the human rights of women everywhere. Her initiative is inspired by Nobel Peace Prize winner Maathai, the founder of the Green Belt Movement in Kenya. The successful program has transformed the lives of several African working women, and it continues to grow. The program actively seeks additional support for expansion, so please check the SLW website for more information or to make a donation to the program.
SLW fellows Chikondi Chadvata, Meaza Abawari, Anabela Manhica
SLW participants with Linda Stout
Koinonia Community Garden
Our Community Garden is located at the south base of the hill on which Koinonia is located on 25 Road. It is located in a semi-wetlands area next to a major irrigation channel. Its dual purposes are
(1) to offer plots for rent to local people for growing gardens during the summer months, and (2) to grow larger quantities of healthy vegetables to support the local soup kitchens and outreach programs for the disenfranchised people of our community. The Garden is a new activity at Koinonia, only two years in the making. Initial funds were raised by holding an event called A Taste of Western Colorado, and then the initial digging of the plots began. The Community Garden was up and running in the summer of 2011.
Community plots are offered to local gardeners, who bring their own garden tools, seeds and labor, and Koinonia provides the fertilized soil and irrigation water throughout the growing season. The funds from this activity are used to support the Community Garden itself, the irrigation system and the landscaping needs of the Koinonia lands. The Koinonia plots produce several hundred pounds of swiss chard, onions, potatoes, tomatoes, squash, pumpkins and many other food vegetables. Almost all of this produce is provided to the Catholic Outreach Soup Kitchen, the Homeward Bound Kitchen, the CSU Extension Service, and other local organizations in the Grand Junction area with food service programs for people in need. Our volunteers enjoy the garden work through the warmer times of the year, and feel a sense of satisfaction on being able to help the GJ outreach programs.
During the summer months, Wednesday on the Patio is offered. This is a meeting and fellowship time on the Koinonia patio for anyone who wants to attend, held late in the day on each Wednesday. Healthy snacks and drinks are offered, new and old friendships are fostered, and everyone is invited to spend a few moments down the hill doing a bit of weeding or other work needed in the garden. There is no better feeling in this world than being close to the land on which we live. Those of us who have worked the Koinonia Community Garden have grown to love this place, the plants that grow, and the wildlife that lives nearby. You're always welcome in the Community Garden !
In the Beginning, the Community Garden was Created.....
Today the Community Garden produces large quantities of high-quality organic nutritional vegetables..... check out this gallery of pictures ! (click on the first one and proceed....)
Links to Some Peace and Justice Blogs:
Links to Some Social Justice Organizations:
(Centro de Intercambio y Solidaridad)
Koinonia partnership with ESNA Village Network/El Salvador
Koinonia supports cross cultural experiences and creates partnerships for sustainable change.
Between 2006 and 2011 more than 40 people from the Grand Valley have traveled to El Salvador and participated in cross-cultural experiences. (More than half of these travelers have been from Koinonia.) These travelers have had the opportunity to partner with communities and experience transformation through relationships and purposeful work. Visit www.esnavillages.org to learn more about how ESNA Village Network is creating sustainable social change through effective partnerships between people in rural El Salvador and North America.
Working through ESNA Village Network, Koinonia has helped to bring educational opportunities to rural El Salvador by building classrooms, providing scholarships for students, and sponsoring teachers. Other efforts have included supporting health clinics, dental care, ecological stoves, and disaster relief.
Contact deballerton@gmail.com if you are interested in traveling to El Salvador in July 2012 or have an old laptop to donate. One of this year’s projects is to deliver restored laptops and offer computer access to rural high school students in Copapayo.
On December, 10, 2011 Koinonia sponsored a special event in honor of
World Human Rights Day. Alvaro Carias, a passionate human rights advocate
visiting from El Salvador, was a featured speaker. Those attending had the
opportunity to learn about ESNA Village Network and United Nations
Millennium Development Goals.
Together we can become informed and inspired. We can make sacred choices for food, shelter,
healthcare, educational opportunity, the economy, and the planet. We can choose to create
hope.
Building a High School in Rural El Salvador...together
Family Peace Gathering at Koinonia...
The central task of the new spiritual community is to unveil the bonds that bind each to all. There is a connectedness, a relationship discovered amid the particulars of our own lives and the lives of others. Once felt, it inspires us to act for justice. It is the community that assures us that we are not struggling for justice on our own, but as members of a larger group. The community is essential, for alone our vision is too narrow to see all that must be seen, and our strength too limited to do all that must be done. Together, our vision widens and our strength is renewed.
- Mark Morrison-Reed -
