BREAD

Building Responsibility, Equality And Dignity

Mission

People of faith building power to do justice.

Past Accomplishments

• Played a critical role with the Ohio Coalition for Responsible Lending to win state legislation that reduced the interest that payday lenders could charge from 391% to 28%;

• Recruited Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O'Brien to spearhead the development of a comprehensive truancy reduction plan that was implemented in the 2007-8 school year with dramatic reductions in the number of unexcused absences for almost 300 students;

• Got the City of Columbus and Franklin County to establish the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. In 2006 and 2007 alone, the Trust helped create more than 1,200 units of affordble housing.

• Got Franklin County to invest $1.2 million in the Columbus Neighborhood Health Centers leading to provision of primary health care for more than 2,000 people annually for the next three years.

Year End Report

BREAD's 2008 Nehemiah Action was attended by more than 2,170 people and resulted in commitments to:

• Support legislation (signed into law four weeks later) to reduce interest on payday loans from 391% to 28%;

• Increase enrollment in the ELI (pre-school program for low-income children) by 200 students in the next year;

• Invest $100,000 to expand local IDA programs;

• Strengthen the Franklin County Drug Court and expand utilization to 50 by the end of 2009 and to 300 by 2011.

Current Membership

50 member congregations representing a broad range of congregations from inner-city, suburban and downtown locations. Religious traditions represented in BREAD to date include: Catholic, Pentecostal, Apostolic, Jewish, Baptist, Lutheran, Episcopal, Presbyterian, Methodist, United Church of Christ, Reformed, Church of Christ, Mennonite, and others.

Benefits to Membership

• Be a part of an effective vehicle for living out the biblical commandment to do justice (Micah 6:8; Amos 5:24; Matthew 23:23, et. al.)
• Develop skills to be an effective leader in the public arena
• Build relationships with people from other traditions, communities, and backgrounds.

Contact Info

BREAD Office
404 S. 3rd St.
Columbus, OH 43215

(614) 220-9363

email: jaeschbury@sbcglobal.net