4

Gifts to FOCUS May 16—September 15

We Need Your Help

The FOCUS Interfaith Food Pantry is now providing a

7-day supply of groceries to an average of 314 families each month.

The FOCUS Breakfast Program now provides a year-round meal service

Your contributions help feed hungry families in Albany. Please help

us by giving:

___ $ amount

___ $ amount — In honor of/in memory of (circle one) _______________________

___ Please send me information about volunteering in FOCUS programs.

Name ____________________________________ Phone _________________________________

Address ___________________________________ E-mail ________________________________

Please return to: FOCUS, 275 State Street, Albany NY 12210

Individual Donors: Jane and George Allen, Nick

Alesandro, Joe Kenyeres and Jim Amanatides, Bien and

Joe Baez, Keith Barber, Susan and Floyd Barwig,

Richard and Peggy Becker, Elizabeth Berberian, Mary

Bitel, Diane and John Bossung, John Bossung, Sr.,

Carolyn Bradley, Wesley and Barbara Bradley, Leslie

Bristol, Martha Brown, T.J and P.M Burch, James

Cameron, Pat Campbell, Dorothy Carpenter, Ellen

Carruthers, Virginia Colorito, Kenneth Comfort, Hon.

Richard Conti, Felicia Copeland, Janet Cornell, Priscilla

Crago, Lynn Czerw, Sandy Damhof, Timothy Dodman,

Kathy Donley, Kevin Dulin, Frederick Eames, Kathryn

Eastman, Linda English, Eleanor Fabe, Debbie and Eric

Fagans, John Fedele, Joy Alice Ford, Cheryl Gelder-

kogan, Janet Gelzheiser, Arlene Gilbert, Joan Given,

Gary David Gold, J. Kenneth Graham, David Hannay,

Judith Hanson, Katharine B. Harris, Virginia Hayes,

Lorelei Heidenstrom, Janet and Arthur Hengerer, Jo-

sephine Hennessy, Ray and Katherine Henrikson, Ann

and Ben Hill, Gail and Sam Hill, Dorothy Hortkotte, Pat

and Bob Hunziker, Deb Jameson, Louise Jameson, Jim

and Mary Kalas, Carole and Rit Keith, Karen Kendall,

Virginia King, Jaquelyn King, Margaret and Steve King,

George Kleinberger, Paul Kolberger, Alison Kurtessis,

Robert Lamar, Edith Leet, Lawrie Lierheimer, Michael

Lounsbery, Barbara and Chuck Manning, Julie and

David Martin, Jeffrey Matthews, William and Margie

Mayer, Linda Mayou, Lorna McCartan, Elizabeth and

David McMillan, Tom McPheeters, Ellen Messina, Mar-

cia and Bob Meyer, Richard Moneymaker, Shirley and

Rudy Nelson, Nancy Ost, Mark Barth and Sylvia Pirani,

Harvey and Iteke Prins, Margaret and Paul Randall, Jim

Reisner, Mary Rogers Ryther, Frances W. Rosenau, Peter

and Nancy Schiff, Alice Schrade, Martha Schroeder,

Deborah Schultze, Robert and Pamela Selover, Sandra

Shapard, Alfred and Barbara Simpkins, Edie Simpson,

Elizabeth Sipe, Irving and Diane Smith, Margaret Sny-

der, James Southgate, Robert and Linda Stevens, Sybil

Stock, Dorothy Storms, Christine Strebel, Allan and Mary

Jean Tedrow, James R. Thompson, Joanne Thompson,

Robert and Lois Thomson, Robert and Gail Van Kuren,

Ray and Barbara Warner, Alice Wehr, Lora Wesner,

Robert and Leslie Westphal, Margery and Michael

Whiteman, Pat Willey, Pat Wilcox, Harold Wilson, Lois

Wilson, Nigel Wright, Bill and Amy Yates, and Margaret

Zettle.

Faith Communities and Organizations: Albany Spring

Service, Inc., Congregation Beth Emeth, Delmar Reformed

Church, Emmanuel Baptist Church, Feinstein Family

Fund, First Presbyterian Church, Fort Orange Club,

FUUSA, Hannay Reels, MAZON: A Jewish Response to

Hunger, New Covenant Presbyterian Church, St.

Andrew's Episcopal Church, Trinity United Methodist

Church, Westminster Presbyterian Church.

In Memory of: Corinne K. Blair, mother of Fran Kamp,

by Fran and Bob Kamp; Dottie Ann Kite by Jim and Peg

Miller; Drs. Elmer and Grace T. Green by Annie

Greenlee; Eloisa Perez Spencer by Alan Spencer;

(continued on page 3)

FOCUS

Looking Ahead

October 4—Breakfast

Express Begins,

7:30–8:30 a.m., T & W,

Westminster Pres.

October 29—

Orientation for

Breakfast Volunteers,

Noon, Westminster Pres.

November 1—Winter

Breakfast Begins,

7-9 a.m., T—TH

Westminster Pres.

November 4—

Fundraiser for pantry and

breakfast programs:

7:00pm

Capital Area Irish

American Center

375 Ontario St., Albany

“AFTER MIDNIGHT WITH

COURTNEY SHANE-

A PATSY CLINE

EXPERIENCE”

(ticket info. at FOCUS

website)

November 21—

Thanksgiving Action

Against Hunger Press

Conference

Vol. 6, No. 3 September 2011

IN FOCUS

275 State Street

Albany, NY 12210

Breakfast Program Expands to Offer

Year-Round Community Meal Service

A long-time desire and plan of the FOCUS community

to provide a community meal year-round will become a

reality in October, as the Breakfast Program expands into

a 12-months-a-year soup kitchen open to anyone in the

city who is in need of a breakfast meal and a take-away

lunch. On October 4, Breakfast Express will begin

serving a cold buffet breakfast two mornings a week,

Tuesday and Wednesday, from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. at West-

minster Presbyterian Church on State Street.

In November, the Winter Breakfast Program will

resume for its 28th year. It will serve a hot breakfast

three days a week, Tuesday-Thursday, from 7 to 9 a.m.

Traditionally, the Winter Breakfast Program has ended

in April. Next year, however, Breakfast Express will

start again and will provide its cold breakfast buffet two

days a week throughout spring, summer and fall 2012 .

Volunteers are needed. If you are interested and have

the gift of rising early and cheerfully in the morning, we

want to talk with you. Please call Paula Hennessy at the

FOCUS office, 443-0460, or email: info@focuschurches.net.

FOCUS will provide a lunch and orientation for Break-

fast Program volunteers on Thursday, October 27, at

noon at Westminster Presbyterian Church.

FOCUS Names

Coordinator

of Volunteers

FOCUS welcomes

Paula Hennessy as

she takes on the new

position of Coordinator

of Volunteers and Spe-

cial Events. Paula will

be working 12 hours a

week through Decem-

ber. She brings excel-

lent people skills from

her 30 years at the

NYS Office of Children

and Family Services

and her experience

with special events.

Paula also works

part time at the New

York State Labor-Reli-

gion Coalition and has

been volunteering in

our Food Pantry for

the last year. Paula

can be reached at

info@focuschurches.net

or at 443-0460.

Paula Hennessy

7th Annual Golf Outing Raises $5,000

A summery September Tuesday at Orchard Creek

Golf Course in Altamont was the backdrop for a round of

golf, raffle prizes, good food, and good company. Spon-

sored by Advanced Physical Therapy, Adirondack Bever-

ages, and Advocates for Human Potential, the seventh

annual FOCUS Golf Outing brought together seven golf

foursomes and a number of FOCUS friends. By the end of

the day, they had raised $5,000 for FOCUS food pro-

grams.

Nick Alesandro, Hal Wilson, Michael Lounsbery,

and John Fedele captured First Place with a round of 61

(10 under par!). Second Place, with a round of 63 was

Peggy Becker, Pat Willey, Peter Broderick, and Deb

Jameson. Longest Drive belonged to Tom Corneil, Clos-

est to the Line – Kirt King, and Closest to the Pin – Allan

Tedrow.

FOCUS is the collabo-

ration of six covenanted

churches, joined by

six other faith affili-

ates, united in a com-

mon calling to serve

our neighbor's needs

in Albany’s Capitol Hill

and beyond as God’s

servant people in a bro-

ken and hurting world.

Calling All Mugs!

With the opening of

Breakfast Express and the

Winter Breakfast Program

just around the corner, staff has

been busy performing an inventory

of supplies. Unbeknownst to us the

mug supply is greatly diminished.

We’re putting a call out for

mugs! We’re looking for 8-12 oz.

mugs with handles. We ask you to

clean out the back of your cupboard

and bring your extras to us. They

can be any color, with advertising

and/or graphics. Ask your FOCUS

Executive Council representatives

about collection sites.

2 3

State Employees: Please remember FOCUS

in the SEFA campaign.

FOCUS’ number is 50-00147 All gifts go directly to the

FOCUS Interfaith Food Pantry and Soup Kitchen

by Rev. Deb Jameson, FOCUS Community Minister

In my first year with FOCUS (1999) I found

myself, a rookie community minister, face-to-face

in an escalating conflict with an angry, aggressive

person at the FOCUS Winter Breakfast Program.

It flashed through my mind again, ―Is it safe for

me to be doing this kind of work, considering the

addictions, illness, and instability of some of the

guests who frequently come in for a meal?‖

My question was answered immediately as seven breakfast

guys jumped up from their tables and surrounded me in a circle

of protection. No harm was done, and the situation was defused.

From that day on, I knew I was with a group of people who val-

ued the peace that the breakfast volunteers, guests, and staff

provided―and who sensed more deeply the particular holiness of

that space and community. This story has sustained me all these

years and has reminded me again

of the gospel’s call to seek the wel-

fare of the most vulnerable among

us―encircling the poor with care

and justice. Do we do this? What

might it look like?

Many of us are disturbed to

see what’s happening at the state

and federal levels with suggested

budgets that neglect, blame, and

punish the poorest of our country’s citizens. What do we make of

the federal debt deal carved out this summer? The actions that

Congress and the ―Super Committee‖ will take now will affect us

in the coming decade as they reduce the deficit by $2.1 trillion.

So what’s being put on the line? Almost everything if you are

poor in this country. Many of the anti-poverty and anti-hunger

programs are in grave danger of being reduced or eliminated,

with disastrous consequences to those Jesus calls ―the least of

these.‖ These programs include SNAP (previously ―food stamps‖);

free and reduced-price school meals; low-income childcare and

health care, Medicaid, health insurance for children; shelters;

and child abuse prevention, to name a few.

We can be gratified that our church leadership is speaking up

at such a critical juncture. Denominations represented in

FOCUS have weighed in on ―what’s next‖ in our country’s

attempt to move out of recession and debt. Along with hundreds

of other people of faith representing large constituencies, Bap-

tist, Reformed, AME, Methodists, and Presbyterians have signed

on to ―A Circle of Protection: A Statement on Why We Need to

Protect Programs for the Poor.‖ It is an important proclamation

that reminds us of who we are in community. I invite you to read

it (www.circleofprotection.us) and challenge us all to continue to

find ways to encircle the most vulnerable of our human family.

Circles of Protection

Essential for the Poor

FOCUS is proud to once again be

a recipient of a grant from MAZON:

a Jewish Response to Hunger for use

in our Interfaith Food Pantry and our

advocacy work at the state and feder-

al level.

MAZON is a leading national

nonprofit organization dedicated to

preventing and alleviating hunger

among people of all faiths and back-

grounds. It continues to be a stead-

fast partner in our collective effort

to alleviate hunger.

Founded in 1985, MAZON,

which means ―food‖ or ―sustenance‖

in Hebrew was the first national

organization to rally the American

Jewish community around the issue

of hunger. It remains as the only

national Jewish organization dedi-

cated exclusively to that same cause.

…the gospel’s call (is) to

seek the welfare of the

most vulnerable among

us―encircling the poor

with care and justice.

Do we do this? What

might it look like?

School Supply Project Called ―Major Success!‖

IN FOCUS is a publication of the FOCUS Churches of Albany, Inc.

Rev. Debra Jameson, Editor. Graphic design and production by EHL

Editorial Services, Albany NY. The FOCUS Churches of Albany, Inc.

is a not-for-profit 501(c)3 organization covenanting with Delmar Re-

formed, Emmanuel Baptist, First Presbyterian, First Israel AME, Trini-

ty United Methodist, and Westminster Presbyterian. Affiliates of the

FOCUS Interfaith Food Pantry Program are Congregation Beth Emeth,

First Unitarian Universalist Society of Albany, New Covenant Presby-

terian, and St. Andrew’s Episcopal.

The FOCUS office is located at 275 State St., Albany NY 12210.

Phone: 518-443-0460 FAX: 518-443-0461

Email: info@focuschurches.net

For those of you who participated in or donated to

the FOCUS School Supply Project, Thank You! Our

final count of students and schools served for the

2011-2012 school year shows:

160 Students from our neighborhoods received

a backpack full of school supplies!

91 Students living at the Schuyler Inn (an over-

flow shelter for homeless families) received

backpacks full of school supplies!

29 boxes of extra supplies went to the City

School District of Albany for distribution to

children in need! In a thank-you note, Superin-

tendent of Schools Dr. Raymond Colucciello

wrote, ―Our students will definitely benefit by

having the essential tools for their studies,

thanks to the kindness of spirit and generosity

of all those who participated in this endeavor.‖

We thank Coordinators Becca and Edith Leet and

Mary Jean Tedrow for their cheerful, super-organized

leadership, along with their hours, days, and weeks

volunteering for the project.

KUDOS to ―crunch week‖ individuals for sorting,

counting, packing and distributing supplies, and/or

providing monetary donations: Barb Bemis, Abby Be-

mis, Danny Bemis, Sammy Bemis, Nancy Benedict,

Glenda Bennett, Patty Burch, Ellen Carruthers,

Elaine Clawson, Freda Gardner, Louise Jameson,

Elizabeth Leupold, Margaret Leupold, Miriam Law-

rence Leupold, Katie Myers, Lore Scurrah, Barbara

Simpkins, Edie Simpson, Rachel Smith, Margaret

Snyder, Linda Stevens, Mary Stohlecker, R. Tearoe,

Tristan Tearoe, Tammy Tearoe, Allan Tedrow, Pat Wil-

cox, Lois Wilson, Nan Zajac, and Val Zajac.

Last, but not least, Thank You! to our fabulous con-

gregations, who shopped, found bargains, collected,

stored, and delivered school supplies (and monetary

donations) to the project: All Saints Catholic Church― Angels To Each Other, Beverwyck Worship Community,

Cathedral of All Saints, Congregation Beth Emeth,

Delmar Reformed Church, Emmanuel Baptist Church,

First Presbyterian in Albany, FUUSA, Journey United

Church of Christ, New Covenant Presbyterian, St. An-

drew’s Episcopal, Trinity United Methodist, and West-

minster Presbyterian. (Note: The list of contributing individ-

uals and congregations was compiled from in-kind donation

sheets when materials & supplies were dropped off at FOCUS.

Apologies if we missed anyone—please let us know.)

Gifts to FOCUS May 16−Sept. 15

(continued from page 4)

Frank E. Martin by Shirley Martin; Linda Spoor

Kwong by Elaine and Walter Spoor; Lee Cameron by

Diane Symansky; Miriam Lounsbery by Michael Louns-

bery; my mother and father by Carol Bullard; the Riley

family by Mary Kay Riley; Lewis Carver and Maria

Kirchoffer Carver by Andrea Carver.

In Honor of: Lois Wilson by Lorraine Plauth; Deb

Jameson by John Kinum; FOCUS Breakfast Program

Volunteers by Kathy Linhardt; Food Pantry Chair

Mary Jean Tedrow by Lois Wilson; Paula Sipple by

Katherine Enockson; Phillip Riddle’s birthday by Fre-

da Gardner, Don and Judy Mark; Rezsin Adams by

Albany Opportunity Housing; Richard and Joanne Gas-

coyne's 50th wedding anniversary by Don and Judy

Mark; the dedicated FOCUS voluneers by Paula Hen-

nessy; the marriage of Jill Farnham and Karha Us

by Marilyn and Tony Malone; the volunteers who do

the food pantry and school supplies by Irene Econome;

my mother, Geneva Long, on her 105th birthday by

Ginny Hayes.

Grateful for: Edith Leet by Ed Stringham; FUUSA

(First Unitarian Universalist Society of Albany) by P.M.

Burch; Nancy Sokil and all she does for Westminster

by Linda Becker.

MAZON Funds Pantry