From The Bangkok Post
(hat tip to Cougarfan.com)
ROYAL VISIT: HM Queen Sirikit and HRH Princess Chulabhorn in Salt Lake City
About 1.5 kilometres west of central Salt Lake City is a large piece of land owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also known as the Mormon Church). On the land are a cannery, a milk processing plant, a storehouse, an employment centre and silos where wheat and other grains are stored.
Known as Welfare Square, all its facilities are designed to help people help themselves, based on the Mormon Church’s principle of self-reliance.
The programme has been in operation since 1938 and is run almost entirely by volunteers, says manager Jim Goodrich.
The system is supported by the generous “fast offering” donations of 13 million church members around the world. Mormons fast, or skip two meals each month, and give the money they would have spent on the food (and often much more) to their local bishop. The money they give is called a “fast offering”. The bishop then uses these funds to help members of his congregation, and others, who are in need.
But it is not a handout. The bishop gives the needy individual or family assignments to work for the assistance they receive. The work might include cleaning a church building or using their skills to help someone else in need. Fulfilling these assignments helps those receiving assistance to maintain their dignity and self-respect and provides a way for them to give back.
“Welfare Square gives people hope and a place where they can feel good about themselves and others and it opens up opportunities for people to have a better future,” says Mr Goodrich.
The church welfare system has three purposes: To care for the poor and needy, to help people become self-reliant and to create opportunities for service. The church has established welfare centres and “bishop’s storehouses” to help with the most basic needs.
There are 138 bishop’s storehouses around the world in areas where there are a significant concentration of church members. These storehouses, funded by the donations of individual members of the church, meet the needs of many individual congregations. In areas where a bishop’s storehouse is not available, bishops may use the funds collected from fast offerings to purchase food and other needed commodities for individuals in need.
One of the largest storehouses is in Salt Lake City. While larger than most, it functions in the same fashion as the others. A bishop gives an individual or family in need an “order” for food after he meets them to discuss their needs and what they can do to provide assistance in return for the what they receive. They then take the order to the storehouse, and volunteers help the individual obtain the goods needed. As part of the process, the bishop works with the member on a plan to return to full self-reliance. (cont.)