•Issues

The Faith & Freedom Dinner was a Great Success!
The First Annual "Faith and Freedom" Dinner was held in Lafayette on Saturday, April 22, 2006. About 115 people gathered to celebrate and affirm our commitment to reproductive rights and religious liberty. It was an energizing, enlightening, encouraging and truly magical evening!

RECEPTION A fun reception was held before the dinner. People enjoyed socializing, playing the "Jellybean Challenge," visiting the information table, and humming along with the wonderful music provided by Hunt and Gail Wiley.

Above: LOTS OF WONDERFUL PEOPLE! Many friends and members of several local congregations, as well as family groups, reserved whole tables. Congregations represented included Trinity United Methodist (Lafayette), Temple Israel (Lafayette), Unitarian Universalist Church (Lafayette) and Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (Kokomo).

CLERGY Local clergy led us in prayer and reflection, as we re-affirmed the faith foundation of our dedication to reproductive choice.

MUSIC! The beautiful harmonies and rousing rhythms of "Sapphonia," ensemble of the Indianapolis Women's Chorus, electrified the crowd.

Above: VIPs Dignitaries from several state-wide organizations were present. Starting at the left: leaders of Indiana National Organization for Women. Center: leaders of the Indianapolis Chapter of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. At right: Barb Avery, Director of the Ohio RCRC, standing with IRCRC Pres Kaye McSpadden (on the left) and two members of the Ohio RCRC Board (seated).

GUEST SPEAKER Guest speaker Rev. Paul Simmons captivated the audience with his presentation, "The Anti-Choice Crusade: Reclaiming the Bible from Fundamentalist Distortions." Rev. Simmons is an ordained Baptist minister and Professor of Medical Ethics at the University of Louisville. At far right, the guest speaker with IRCRC President Kaye McSpadden.

Above: AWARDS PRESENTATION! The 2006 Faith & Freedom Award for Advocacy was presented to Rabbi Dennis C. Sasso of Congregation Beth-El Zedeck in Indianapolis. George Kelley (upper left), Director of Religious Education at Beth-El Zedeck, accepted the award on Rabbi Sasso's behalf. The 2006 Dr. Stella Boyd Award for Service was presented to Carolyn Meagher and Sue Ellen Braunlin from First Congregational Church, UCC, of Indianapolis. At upper right, Carolyn and Sue Ellen show their awards along with Mr. Kelley. At the lower left, the grandson of Dr. Stella Boyd and his family, who traveled all the way from southern Indiana to attend the event. At the lower right, Carolyn and Sue Ellen with the Boyd family, descendants of the remarkable woman after whom the Award for Service is named.

Above: Winners of the Jellybean Challenge Who guessed the number of jellybeans in the jar? Above, the three winners with their prizes donated by local artists— a beautiful wood vase, a fused bead jewelry set, and a framed photograph.

The Dinner Planning Committee says THANK YOU to everyone who came and everyone who helped make our 1st Annual Faith & Freedom Dinner such a big success! See you in 2007.