Harleysville's Mitzvah Circle Foundation is Recognized as a Zone of Peace by Philadelphia Religious Leaders Council

Harleysville-based nonprofit Mitzvah Circle Foundation has been recognized as a Zone of Peace by the Religious Leaders Council of Greater Philadelphia for its “exemplary efforts in addressing the root causes of violence in their community and beyond.” Representatives of the Religious Leaders Council (www.interfaithcenterpa.org/cp/rlc) presented a “Zones of Peace” banner to the Montgomery County-based nonprofit organization at a special ceremony Sunday, October 4. The banner signifies the gratitude of the Religious Leaders Council for the Mitzvah Circle Foundation’s efforts to meet the material and emotional needs of people in this region and beyond. (Photo: left to right, Sister Gloria Coleman, SHJC, board member emeritus of the Interfaith Council of Greater Philadelphia; Jordan Hurley, son of Mitzvah Circle director of Community Engagement Rachel Hurley; Ben Lyddy, son of Mitzvah Circle program manager Karen Lyddy; Fran Held, Mitzvah Circle executive director; and Rev. John B. Hougen, Ph.D., Zones of Peace initiative coordinator, who represented the Religious Leaders Council and Zones of Peace. Volunteers from the community were also, working in the warehouse sorting donations and packing boxes of personal necessities for in-need individuals and families. “Mitzvah Circle Foundation (www.mitzvahcircle.org) has responded to the Religious Leaders Council’s ‘Call to People of Faith to Stop Violence,’” said Rev. John B. Hougen, Ph.D., who coordinates the Zones of Peace initiative (www.interfaithcenterpa.org/si/zop/). ”This ‘call,’” he emphasized, “asks us to transform our homes and neighborhoods into Zones of Peace, free from fear, filled with respect, and marked by deeds of kindness.” “We are profoundly moved by recognition as a Zone of Peace,” said Fran Held, founder and executive director of Mitzvah Circle Foundation. “Our organization was founded with a mission of meeting the needs of people in crisis,” she emphasized, “creating lasting relationships and providing material support, without judgment or bureaucracy, and doing it with a fierce dedication to improving the lives of those in need and uplifting those who give – creating a circle of kindness, hope and generosity.” Mitzvah Circle Foundation gives high-quality clothes, shoes, toiletries, household goods, school supplies, baby gear, diapers, toys and more to families in need throughout southeastern Pennsylvania and the tri-state area. The organization is on a pace that will see it in 2015 serve more than 40,000 people in the Greater Philadelphia region and beyond – supplying, for example, more than a quarter-million diapers to area families. “It is an effort” said Ms. Held, “made possible by the hundreds of volunteers who will provide over 30,000 hours of service this year.” With the support of the Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia (www.interfaithcenterpa.org), the Religious Leaders Council was formed in 2006 and three years later launched its Zones of Peace initiative. The thirty-plus senior leaders on the Council, who represent Baha’i, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, and Judaism with combined constituencies of over two million people, are united in their hopes for a reduction of violence in this region. The Mitzvah Circle Foundation is the 48th organization to be recognized as a Zone of Peace since 2009. Previous recipients include congregations, schools, community-based organizations, museums, and a government agency, each with a unique understanding of how to foster peace in its sphere of influence. “Mitzvah Circle Foundation meets the needs of families in this community with sensitivity, compassion, and care; honoring each person’s dignity; and providing them with the emotional and material support they need to rise above the challenges they are facing at the moment,” added Rev. Hougen. “Their work helps families in crisis mitigate the anger and relieve the frustrations that so often lead to violence.”