Surprised? A Post By Sjdawg That Isn'T Negative About The Church

[sjdawg]

http://www.edmontonsfoodbank.com/news/city-wide-food-drive-oct-15-2011/

This is a very nice event by the LDS Church in my community. They did the same thing in Calgary a couple of years ago and set the world record for largest food drive (I think. My memory gets worse as I get older)

To me this is much more important and meaningful service than cleaning the chapel, attending PEC meetings, and other (in my opinion) busy work with limited impact .

[KevinG]

To me this is much more important and meaningful service than cleaning the chapel, attending PEC meetings, and other (in my opinion) busy work with limited impact .

Well you tried to stay positive...

In my experience people volunteer to clean the chapel to save funds that otherwise can be used for greater purposes like welfare and mission work. PEC meetings when done correctly help keep tabs on families and provide for their needs, often times if the home teachers are doing their job correctly it means the families get help early on in any problematic situation rather than letting it get desperate.

[ERayR]

http://www.edmontons...ve-oct-15-2011/

This is a very nice event by the LDS Church in my community. They did the same thing in Calgary a couple of years ago and set the world record for largest food drive (I think. My memory gets worse as I get older)

To me this is much more important and meaningful service than cleaning the chapel, attending PEC meetings, and other (in my opinion) busy work with limited impact .

Well you almost made it. Don't start patting yourself on the back yet though. Maybe with a little more practice??

[ldsfaqs]

"Limited impact"..... I think you underestimate that the effect of sacrifice and service has on an individual, society, etc.

All service has an important impact on society. One is not "better" or more important than another. A Teacher at a school is not "more important" than a Janitor at a school.

[Calm]

. A Teacher at a school is not "more important" than a Janitor at a school.

That would depend on how well each did their job and went above and beyond it. There are likely plenty of completely worthless teachers and janitors out there....

[Sky]

This is a very nice event by the LDS Church in my community. They did the same thing in Calgary a couple of years ago and set the world record for largest food drive (I think. My memory gets worse as I get older)

Sjdawg:

Thanks for saying something nice about the LDS Church. It was a nice gesture of you, and not something I’m used to seeing from critics.

To me this is much more important and meaningful service than cleaning the chapel

Well, somebody has to do it. Who wants to go to church with crumpled up pieces of paper and cheerios on the floor?

[sjdawg]

"Limited impact"..... I think you underestimate that the effect of sacrifice and service has on an individual, society, etc.

All service has an important impact on society. One is not "better" or more important than another. A Teacher at a school is not "more important" than a Janitor at a school.

That wasn't my point. My point is that the majority of the service work done within the LDS church is focused on serving church functions first and foremost. This type of community service (food drive in this example) is benefitting the community as a whole and give the LDS Church visibility within the community.

[sjdawg]

Well, somebody has to do it. Who wants to go to church with crumpled up pieces of paper and cheerios on the floor?

I agree, but I think the LDS Church may be better off spending some money on cleaning staff and then focusing service efforts on work outside the church building. I think more of these type of projects could be more effective than the PR efforts we see such as the "I'm a Mormon" campaign. If you want your community to recognize and respect you then you need to be part of the community.

[Sky]

I agree, but I think the LDS Church may be better off spending some money on cleaning staff and then focusing service efforts on work outside the church building.

Cleaning a church building is no picnic, but try to look on the bright side. At least we take the initiative to clean our buildings ourselves rather than expecting somebody else to do it. We made the mess and we all pitch in to help clean it up – regardless of our position in the Church.

Also, it might be one of the few places where you will see white people doing custodial work. For free, no less. I think that says something about our work ethic and that we show respect for our places of worship.

[cdowis]

To me this is much more important and meaningful service than cleaning the chapel, attending PEC meetings, and other (in my opinion) busy work with limited impact .

That wasn't my point. My point is that the majority of the service work done within the LDS church is focused on serving church functions first and foremost.

It's called participating in church activities. Don't know anyone who calls this service.

[ERayR]

That wasn't my point. My point is that the majority of the service work done within the LDS church is focused on serving church functions first and foremost. This type of community service (food drive in this example) is benefitting the community as a whole and give the LDS Church visibility within the community.

I would question your assesment. LDS service includes but is not limited to cleanup and providing vital commodities to areas hit by natural disasters and famine, community and highway cleanup, yard work and house cleaning for the elderly and disabled, helping in the local food kitchen, cleaning and painting at the county fairgrounds,etc. I could go on with a long list of things. Most of this is done very quietly, without fanfare. These things are part of the lives of a good portion of the LDS community. So yes I do question your assesment.

[sjdawg]

What percentage of service work would you say is done within the church vs general community service?

[ERayR]

What percentage of service work would you say is done within the church vs general community service?

I would say that probably the majority of service is done within the LDS community simply because we must take care of our own. However, that being said there is a large percenntage that is community oriented. If we did not take care of our own members we would be severly faulted for not dong so, and rightly so. However a lot of our members find the time to help out with projects in the community. In fact we organize some of these projects on a ward basis. I enumerated some of the community projects above but did not provide an exhaustive list.

[sjdawg]

I apologize if I let this thread get away from me. My intent wasn't to criticize areas of the LDS Church I disagree with but simply to praise an activity I find very commendable.

The event was a success and supported by many (including me)

http://blogs.edmontonjournal.com/2011/10/16/a-note-of-thanks-from-the-food-bank-of-edmonton/

[ERayR]

I apologize if I let this thread get away from me. My intent wasn't to criticize areas of the LDS Church I disagree with but simply to praise an activity I find very commendable.

The event was a success and supported by many (including me)

http://blogs.edmonto...nk-of-edmonton/

Thank you.

[Garden Girl]

I knew it was too good to be true... that you could give a straight-out compliment without some qualifying... but you did try and that is a good thing.

Keep in mind that you are generalizing... various wards have different levels of means and opportunities for community service. For instance, my ward here on the Oregon coast where we are subject to natural disasters, for instance, tsunamis, and "high winds" (read that category 1 hurricanes every winter), we are very much a part of the community preparedness and sit on committees where we use Church-oriented principles of preparedness and self suficiency in developing action plans, etc.

Every year we hold a community blood drive in our ward cultural hall where ward members volunteer and assist the Red Cross... I volunteer for RC blood drives generally, and when I told one of the regional RC organizers that "we" hosted a drive every year and she found out it was the LDS Church she was most complimentary and appreciative, stating the RC always knew they had nothing to worry about when we hosted... that our volunteers were there to set up and take down, manning the "canteen" and providing juice/cookies... that the drives at the LDS Church were recognized as being some of the best.

Last month I participated with 44 ward members in the "Day of Service" where we went in and cleaned up a State Park nature trail (cleared weeds and cut back overgrowth, new gravel and bark dust for paths, placing new picnic tables, etc). The state organizer expressed his gratitude for the number of volunteers and how well organized we were, and that we actually finished the full job in one day.

Every year there is a Statewide beach cleanup where we have numerous volunteers from the ward participating... the cleanup extends from the Washington state border, down the coast to the Calif border. Tons of debris is cleared from our beaches...

My former bishop was the chief of police for Lincoln City... and ward members participated in numerous community outreach and safety programs.

Another ward member is a Sgt with the state police, and every couple years puts on a "self defence for women" program for the community, held in our cultural hall as part of a Relief Soc activity. Tables of literature, etc are set up to provide information for women regarding various safety issues including info on resources and where to go for assistance.

I could name a few other such activities where we are a part of community and church-sponsored activities where ward members volunteer... but you get the idea... Not all wards are able to do all that we do, but every ward does have some level of participation in these types of activities.

from the beach on a beautiful fall afternoon... GG

[KevinG]

Humanitarian Service: http://www.providentliving.org/project/0,13501,4607-1-2009,00.html

Community Service section is coming soon... http://lds.org/coming-soon/community-service?lang=eng

[Stargazer]

I knew it was too good to be true... that you could give a straight-out compliment without some qualifying... but you did try and that is a good thing.

Keep in mind that you are generalizing... various wards have different levels of means and opportunities for community service. For instance, my ward here on the Oregon coast where we are subject to natural disasters, for instance, tsunamis, and "high winds" (read that category 1 hurricanes every winter), we are very much a part of the community preparedness and sit on committees where we use Church-oriented principles of preparedness and self suficiency in developing action plans, etc.

[snip /]

from the beach on a beautiful fall afternoon... GG

Hey, GG! You should get yourself a Ham radio license and help out with emergency communications! It is not hard at all to get the Technician license, and no more requirement to learn Morse code. Our stake has a pretty healthy emergency communications organization, and it's kind of fun, too.

[Calm]

What are the costs like for the equipment? And how portable is it? (In GG's case, for example, iirc she sometimes has to evacuate as she lives so close to the beach.)

[Garden Girl]

Hey, GG! You should get yourself a Ham radio license and help out with emergency communications! It is not hard at all to get the Technician license, and no more requirement to learn Morse code. Our stake has a pretty healthy emergency communications organization, and it's kind of fun, too.

Hello Stargazer...

We have several people in our ward who do have their Ham licenses... I think it would be not only useful but fun, i.e., being able to connect to others in various locations of the world. I don't foresee actually becoming a Ham, but the idea is nice to think about.

And Calmoriah is right, I was evacuated last year during a tsunami watch because I'm 1/2 blk to beach. I grabbed my 72-hr kit, my scriptures, my cat in his carrier (with his supplies) and headed for high ground just up the highway a couple miles.

GG

[Stargazer]

Hello Stargazer...

We have several people in our ward who do have their Ham licenses... I think it would be not only useful but fun, i.e., being able to connect to others in various locations of the world. I don't foresee actually becoming a Ham, but the idea is nice to think about.

And Calmoriah is right, I was evacuated last year during a tsunami watch because I'm 1/2 blk to beach. I grabbed my 72-hr kit, my scriptures, my cat in his carrier (with his supplies) and headed for high ground just up the highway a couple miles.

GG

While talking to people a long way away requires a bit more equipment investment than local communication, a hand-held or mobile (like for a car) can cost as little as $150 or so, brand new. Used equipment is always available, as well. Ask your local hams what might be available. They're always willing to be of assistance .