April 5, 2001 | Read Time: 1 minute
By JANINE E. GUGLIELMINO
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation last week pledged $100-million over the next seven years to its Faith in Action program, which supports religious groups that mobilize volunteers to provide social services.
The money will enable the program to make 2,000 additional grants to coalitions of religious congregations or to coalitions of volunteer groups, social-service, or health-care organizations that work with faith-based organizations. The Faith in Action program makes grants to local volunteer groups who provide care and support for the chronically ill, the elderly, and the disabled.
The coalitions must represent more than one denomination and must offer care to the homebound regardless of religious affiliation, race, or sexual orientation. Volunteers may not proselytize.
Robert Wood Johnson officials said that the release of the money was not related to the Bush administration’s effort to encourage faith-based groups to expand their social-service programs. A spokesman for the foundation said plans to expand the program were in the works long before President Bush took office.
The foundation has budgeted approximately $40-million to Faith in Action since establishing the program in 1993, awarding start-up grants of $35,000 each to more than 1,000 newly created faith-based coalitions nationwide.
The $100-million “represents our deep belief that faith-based volunteer efforts are an effective way to address the growing needs of people with serious chronic conditions,” said Steven A. Schroeder, president of the foundation, in a statement.
Information about Faith in Action grants can be obtained from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, College Road, P.O. Box 2316, Princeton, N.J. 08543; (877) 324-8411; http://www.interfaithcare.org.
