September 17, 2017
Constable Grants for 2017-2018
Media Release
The Episcopal Church
Office of Public Affairs
Application process now open
for Episcopal Church Constable Fund Grants
 
Deadline the the Constable Grant Committee is November 1
 
[September 13, 2017] The application process is now open for the Constable Fund Grants for the 2017-2018 cycle.
 
The Constable Fund provides grants to fund mission initiatives that were not provided for within the budget of the Episcopal Church,< http://publicaffairs.cmail19.com/t/r-l-jldttun-xihjhout-n/> as approved by General Convention< http://publicaffairs.cmail19.com/t/r-l-jldttun-xihjhout-p/> 2015.
 
The Rev. Canon Tanya Wallace, Executive Council < http://publicaffairs.cmail19.com/t/r-l-jldttun-xihjhout-x/> member from the Diocese of Western Massachusetts and chair of the Constable Fund Grant Review Committee, noted recent Constable Grants have ranged from $5,000 to $200,000
 
Applications can be submitted by: (1) a program office of the Episcopal Church; (2) one of the interim bodies of General Convention; or (3) one of the Provinces of the Episcopal Church.
 
Specific guidelines, suggestions, application form and timetable are available here.< http://publicaffairs.cmail19.com/t/r-l-jldttun-xihjhout-m/>
 
Grants will be reviewed by the Executive Council Constable Fund Grant Review Committee and recommendations will be presented to the Executive Council for action at its January 2018 meeting. Recipients will be notified at the close of that meeting.
 
For more information contact Wallace at revtrwallace.gc@gmail.com<mailto:revtrwallace.gc@gmail.com>, or the Rev. Canon Michael Barlowe, Executive Officer and Secretary of General Convention, at gcsecretary@episcopalchurch.org<mailto:gcsecretary@episcopalchurch.org>.
Attention Province VI applicants!

Please be aware, that any grant submitted through the provincial structure must be approved by the Provincial Council. Only one grant request may be submitted by each province.  Therefore, grants need to be submitted to Coordinator Ellen Bruckner, ellenwb@mchsi.com for distribution to the Council members. This deadline is October 15 . This allows time for the Council to read and make a decision as to which grant request will be forwarded to the Constable Grant Committee. 
  Please pay particular note to the following:

• The Constable Fund was established for work not provided for within the regular budget of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society and with a stated preference for work in the areas of religious education.

• Religious education for the purposes of the Constable Fund is defined as follows:
Religious education forms Christians for active service through a process of critical reflection on the events of daily life in light of the Gospel. It is also a procedure by which we examine and reflect on how faithfully we engage in that service and in formation. By learning to see more clearly God’s living presence in the world—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—a Christian is prepared for Christ-like, loving service to God, neighbor, and all creation.
Adapted from Called to Teach and Learn, a catechetical guide for the Episcopal Church.

• The following areas of the Episcopal Church’s mission and ministry seem particularly relevant for funding consideration related to religious education. This list is meant to be descriptive and not conclusive:
  • Priorities of the General Convention and Executive Council
  • Unfunded religious education resolutions from the General Convention
  • Adult education initiatives
  • Initiatives involving strategic review and/or planning for religious education
  • Initiatives that examine the larger picture of religious education in the common life, mission, and ministry of the church
  • Resolutions and initiatives involving children, youth, and young adults (with the understanding that some of these initiatives will be addressed by the fund established by the General Convention and Executive Council for these purposes)

 
Historical Spotlight
Named for Miss Constable
The Constable Grants are named for Miss Mary Louise Constable, who was a visionary philanthropist. In 1935, in the midst of the Great Depression, Miss Constable made a monetary gift to the Episcopal Church to establish the Constable Fund. Her desire and intent to add periodically to the fund during her lifetime was realized and culminated with a very generous final gift at the time of her death in 1951. The language of Miss Constable’s will states that the fund exists “in perpetuity … to apply the net income for the purposes of the Society, preferably for the work in religious education not provided for within the Society’s budget.”