The United Thank Offering (UTO) was founded in 1883 by Julia Chester Emery as a way to empower women to undertake innovate missions and ministry across the church. Today, UTO is a ministry of gratitude for the whole church as well as the largest Episcopal granting organization. Still funded by "blue box" collections and ingatherings from across The Episcopal Church, UTO distributes every penny raised the prior year in grants across TEC and the Anglican Communion. The Grant focus in 2024 comes from Matthew 28 and seeks to serve the stranger: those who society has left out and left behind. Learn more about UTO here. Rev. Rowan was on the UTO board before coming to St. James and was delighted to see the deep connection we already had to this fantastic organization. 

Episcopal Relief and Development (ERD) is the international humanitarian aid agency of The Episcopal Church. Founded in 1940, ERD focuses responding to disasters across the world as well as three main priority areas: women, children, and climate. By partnering with Anglican entities on the ground, especially in Africa, ERD is able to do community-level work to make the world a better place.