Christ Church Easton Shares the Gift of Helpful Animals for Families in Need
By Terri Jennings
On Friday, October 28, at 6:00pm Christ Church Easton will host an International Dinner and Talent Show to benefit Heifer International’s Passing on the Gift Program. Proceeds from this fund raiser will go toward the purchase of a baby animal that changes lives in communities around the world.
Find out what's happening in Weston-Redding-Eastonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
It all begins with a chosen “Heifer family” in a village or town—from Nepal to Uganda to Poland to Ecuador. Families who receive the initial gift of an animal, seeds, and training share the animal’s first-born female offspring—along with the proper training and information—to another family in the same community.
Charles Stewart, interim CEO of Heifer International, explains how exceptional Heifer’s program has become in the form of holistic, self-sustaining aid to communities in need. “We work with families for years, not weeks or months, and over time, as each family Passes on the Gift of their animal’s offspring and their education, an entire community benefits,” said Stewart. “So much so, that in time, when the project work comes to an end, the community is self-sustaining, growing its own food, tending the soil in earth-friendly ways, and raising healthy and helpful animals that provide milk, income and nutrition.”
Find out what's happening in Weston-Redding-Eastonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Heifer’s success is borne out in a five-year study by Western Michigan University that concluded, “It is beyond doubt that in all 20 of the countries we have examined, Heifer has brought large overall benefits to very large numbers of low-income rural families.”
Last year, there were more than 200 Passing on the Gift celebrations in towns and villages around the world. Heifer families shared the gift of dairy cows, dairy goats, alpacas, water buffalo, as well as worms and trees and bees and other creatures to help new families start on their road to self-reliance.
As a community-wide event, Christ Church Easton welcomes all to its International Dinner and Talent Show on October 28 to bring a talent, an international dish representing the many countries Heifer International serves, or to just come and join in the celebration. As part of the Episcopal Church, Christ Church welcomes everyone from any religious or non-religious background. It is located just off Stepney Road (Route 59), one-quarter mile north of Route 136. For more information, go to www.ChristChurchEaston.com or call 203-268-3569. For more information on the work of Heifer International, visit www.heifer.org.
