Lutheran Leaders Responding to AIDS in the USA

Are you currently involved in HIV and AIDS ministry, or interested in learning more about how you can create a ministry in your own congregation or community?

The Lutheran AIDS Network (LANET) is organizing a study tour to Central City Lutheran Mission (CCLM) in San Bernardino, California (www.cclm.org). Founded in 1998 by ELCA Pastor David Kalke, CCLM offers a Supportive Housing Program for people living with HIV and AIDS, a community health clinic, and outreach and rehabilitation for people who have been homeless and drug users.

Come learn about this unique ministry, share with other Lutheran leaders from around the country interested in social justice, and develop action plans for responding to the HIV epidemic in your own community.

When: January 15 – 19, 2010

Where: San Bernardino, California

Who: ELCA Bishops, LCMS District Presidents, College and Seminary Students and Faculty, Parish Pastors, and Lay Leaders

Program Highlights:
¨ Experience a homestay with residents of CCLM’s Supportive Housing Program
¨ Listen to personal stories of those who have been homeless and HIV- positive
¨ Talk with people serving in AIDS service organizations
¨ Field trip to Palm Springs, California to learn about the HIV response in an affluent community
¨ Participate in CCLM’s annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Cultural Celebration
¨ Morning devotions and evening prayer & debriefing each day

Participants in the immersion experience will be asked to develop a personal action plan for how they will engage with people living with or affected by HIV and AIDS in their own communities, upon return from San Bernardino. Participants will also be asked to write and submit a one-page reflection of their experience in January 2010, July 2010, and January 2011. Select participants will also be invited to participate in a panel discussion at LANET’s Biennial Conference in Spring 2011.

Interested in participating? Please complete the attached application form and return to Becky Johnson, LANET Coordinator, at baj531@yahoo.com no later than September 15, 2009. Questions about the immersion experience may also be directed to this e-mail address. Prior experience in HIV/AIDS outreach is not required.

Cost: $300 registration fee covers room and board in San Bernardino, and all travel while in southern California. Participants will be responsible for arranging their own travel to California.

Scholarship support is available! Four (4) full scholarships will be awarded to college and seminary students (registration + transportation to California). Additional scholarships may be available to other interested participants to offset their participation in the immersion experience. Please don’t let money deter you from applying! Participants are also encouraged to seek financial support from their own Congregations, Synods and Districts.

The Lutheran AIDS Network (LANET) is an independent organization that brings together Lutherans from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod (LCMS), but is not officially related to either church body, nor does it represent official positions or doctrinal perspectives of either church. The ministry of LANET is HIV/AIDS prevention, caregiving and advocacy in the Lutheran community, with a special emphasis on the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States. Membership in LANET is open to any individual or organization wishing to share in efforts to fulfill its stated purpose. Visit us on the web at www.lutheranaids.net.

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