RSSPresident's Column
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On a recent trip to Ghana, I arrived in one village and came upon a group of 12 women in brightly colored clothes, tilling a field and joyfully singing as they planted groundnuts. To them, their hard work was not drudgery but a celebration of friendship and community.
They were participants in an Episcopal Relief & Development revolving seed bank loan program. Women borrow the seeds they need to plant their field and then repay the loan by giving even more seeds back after harvest. The women are using the income they generate to send their children to school. Everyone benefits.
Because planting groundnuts is exceptionally labor-intensive, the women banded together, and each day, all of them worked on one woman’s farm, rotating among the group so everyone was covered. To have these women come together is one of the most powerful things I have ever seen and their joy was infectious.
Their cooperation shows how when we share what we have, we multiply our impact many times. In many respects, they reveal Episcopal Relief & Development’s work in microcosm. For when you and other generous donors come together to support our work, the abundant life spreads exponentially from our prosperous part of the world to those who until now have been left behind.
As we enter the season of Advent, let us hold these lessons close to our hearts. Let us share our bounty, no matter how small or how hard that may seem in these difficult times. And let our commitment to healing a hurting world grow still further.
Yours faithfully,
Robert W. Radtke
President
