Alliance of Baptists

BRIDGES OF HOPE MISSIONPARTNESHIP APPLICATION 2011

Thank you for your interest in the 2011 Bridges of Hope Mission Partnership Application. Please answer the following questions clearly and succinctly. Return your completed application by September, 2010 to [email protected]. If you do not have access to email, please mail your application to the address below.

PART I: GENERAL INFORMATION

Program or Project name: Address: Telephone: Fax: Organization’s Web Site:

Contact Person: Address (if different): Daytime phone: Fax: Email Address:

Amount requested: $ Total cost of program: $

Estimate the number of persons or groups to be served in the coming year:

If approved, where should payment be sent? Are there special instructions for payment?

3939 LAVISTA ROAD, SUITE E-122 | ATLANTA, GA 30084 | 866.745.7609 | ALLIANCEOFBAPTISTS.ORG PART II: QUESTIONS FOR ALL APPLICANTS

1. How did you learn about the Bridges of Hope Mission Partnership?

2. What is your personal connection to the Alliance or to Alliance members?

3. In what way is your organization presently connected to the Alliance of Baptists or to our affiliated congregations?

4. What specific problem or need are you seeking to address through your program/project?

5. How will this program/project address the problem or need identified?

6. How do the stated goals of your program/project affirm the principles of the Alliance of Baptists Covenant and Mission (see attached)?

7. Please include the following:  A budget summary for your program  A list of all other funding sources  A copy of your organization’s mission statement  A list of board members and/or advisory board

In January all recipients will receive an invitation to share the good news of what God is doing in and through your ministry. If you receive funds from the Bridges of Hope Mission Offering, please gather photographs, video, as well as stories and personal narratives about the impact that you are making through your work.

PART III: QUESTIONS FOR RETURNING APPLICANTS In order to maintain a strong working relationship with you, we would like to know how your work is progressing. This information helps us to promote your good work and distribute our limited resources responsibly.

8. How did the Bridges of Hope Mission Offering allocated to your program/project last year, or in any previous year, help you to meet your stated objective(s)?

9. In 2011 the Alliance will again offer Summer Communities of Service. Would you like to be considered as one of the mission partners to receive young adult summer volunteers? If so, what kind of role would the volunteers fill in your ministry? The Summer Communities of Service volunteers are hosted by a local congregation. Is there a congregation that supports your ministry that would host summer volunteers? What kind of support could be provided (housing, meals, supervision, mentorship, transportation, etc.)?

2 PART IV: GUIDING PRINCIPLES & PROCEDURES

Alliance of Baptists Strategic Plan The Alliance will become ever more a missional people with partnership as our working model – domestically and internationally, ecumenically and in interfaith relations, and in our public witness to peace with justice – to the end that we will be intentional about our possibilities for service in and to the world around us.

Alliance of Baptists Covenant In a time when historic Baptist principles, freedoms, and traditions need a clear voice, and in our personal and corporate response to the call of God in Jesus Christ to be disciples and servants in the world, we commit ourselves to:

(1) The freedom of the individual, led by God's Spirit within the family of faith, to read and interpret the Scriptures, relying on the historical understanding by the church and on the best methods of modern biblical study;

(2) The freedom of the local church under the authority of Jesus Christ to shape its own life and mission, call its own leadership, and ordain whom it perceives as gifted for ministry, male or female;

(3) The larger body of Jesus Christ, expressed in various Christian traditions, and to a cooperation with believers everywhere in giving full expression to the Gospel;

(4) The servant role of leadership within the church, following the model of our Servant Lord, and to full partnership of all of God's people in mission and ministry;

(5) Theological education in congregations, colleges, and seminaries characterized by reverence for biblical authority and respect for open inquiry and responsible scholarship;

(6) The proclamation of the Good News of Jesus Christ and the calling of God to all peoples to repentance and faith, reconciliation and hope, social and economic justice;

(7) The principle of a free church in a free state and the opposition to any effort either by church or state to use the other for its own purposes.

Alliance of Baptists Mission To keep faith with our Covenant, we: (1) Make the worship of God primary in all our gatherings. (2) Foster relationships within the Alliance and with other people of faith. (3) Create places of refuge and renewal for those who are wounded or ignored by the church. (4) Side with those who are poor. (5) Pursue justice with and for those who are oppressed. (6) Care for the earth. (7) Work for peace. (8) Honor wisdom and lifelong learning. (9) Hold ourselves accountable for equity, collegiality, and diversity.

3 PART V: FUNDING GUIDELINES  We seek a balance between U.S.-based and international projects.  We give preference to projects that take risks and reach out to the marginalized and forgotten.  We give preference to projects with limited funding from other sources.  Most of our grants are small, typically ranging from $1,000 to $5,000. Amounts granted are determined upon review of applications received and available funds. By Alliance Board of Directors policy, if the offering goal is not reached in a given year available funds are granted on a pro-rated basis to all grantees. If the goal is surpassed, excess funds flow into the following year’s offering.   Grants are made to organizations, not to individuals. Grants are not made for educational scholarships.  Grants for pastoral support are limited to no more than three years, and follow a decreasing scale from $3,000 to $1,000.

PART VI: FUNDING PROCEDURES

 Offering funding decisions are made by the Board of Directors upon recommendations of its Mission and Ministry Partnerships Committee.  Applicants will receive written notice of the Board’s decision following the fall meeting of the Board of Directors.  Funds are distributed in increments as they are received.