Welcome to the Interfaith Mission Service
2021 Annual Celebration and Awards Conference (ACAC)
2021 Virtual ACAC, September 30, 2021, 6:00 – 7:30 pm
ZOOM – Hosted by Trinity United Methodist Church
The Interfaith Mission Service is an interfaith cooperative of congregations, businesses, and individuals.
Our motto, The Power of We, expresses our core belief that when we work together for the greater good,
we can accomplish more than any of us can accomplish alone.
Click to Open Flier (pdf)
Our Theme for the Evening
Shaping the Future Together. Following the 60s decade of turmoil, the twelve congregations formed a grassroots cooperative and named it the Interfaith Mission Service an ecumenical, interfaith organization whose goal would be to work hand-in-hand to care for the vulnerable in the community and to promote racial equity and social justice.
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| Imam Ragab Abdelmoneim | Rabbi Eric Berk | Delois Smith | Rajinder Singh Mehta | Sarat Praharaj | Jacqui Shipe Moderator |
| Huntsville Islamic Center | Temple B’nai Sholom | Central Church of Christ | Sikh Sangat of Alabama | Hindu Culture Center | Global Ties Alabama |
Join us for an expert panel discussion of current trends in the diversity of religious, racial, and cultural traditions present in America, Alabama and Huntsville will continue to grow at an accelerated rate; and the rise of fundamentalism and extremism will grow as a response.
Award Dedications – Community service awards will be presented in five areas:
Rabbi Jeffrey L. Ballon Memorial Interfaith Award
Rabbi Ballon, who died January 19, 2011, is remembered as a witty man with a dazzling intellect. His devotion to his faith, love of justice, and a desire for interfaith understanding and respect are legendary. From 2001 to 2009, he served as Rabbi at Temple B’nai Sholom – one of the original congregations to form IMS in 1969. He was the first to offer his hand in friendship to the clergy of other faiths, establishing lifelong friendships.
Marilyn V. Mabry Memorial Racial Harmony Award
Marilyn V. Mabry’s untimely death on April 28, 2011, left Huntsville bereft of a tireless advocate of equality. As a professor of social work at Alabama A&M University, she produced a 2009 study of racial disparity in Huntsville, then worked toward alleviating the causes. Her family founded the Harris Home for Children, and all her life, she had a heart for those who needed a home. Her charity, New Futures Family Lodge, provides shelter for homeless families.
Charles L. Ray, Jr., Memorial Social Justice Award
Mr. Ray, who died March 5, 2013, was a visionary. He was active in the Civil Rights era in Huntsville and was a voice for those who needed help. He was the Equal Employment Opportunity Officer at MICOM, Chairman of the Board at Redstone Federal Credit Union, owner of Nelms Funeral Home, and on the Board of First Stop Homeless Day Shelter, to name a few of his gifts to the community.
IMS Community Service Award
The Interfaith Mission Service bestows the Community Service Award annually upon the organization or individual who during the past year excelled in direct service to groups or individual persons in need. Such groups or individuals are recognized for providing relief to human suffering while empowering individuals who to strive to attain greater success in their lives. Examples of relieving human suffering include, but are not limited to feeding the hungry, housing the homeless, clothing those without adequate clothes. Examples of empowerment include, but are not limited to providing guidance and counseling, life skills, basic academic education, etc.
Pandemic Service Leadership Award
During the year 2020 the Covid-19 pandemic viciously attacked the people of the Tennessee Valley, inflicting a terrible sickness and even death on thousands and inconveniencing effectively everyone else. Nonetheless, large numbers of our essential workers bravely continued performing their daily duties providing the essentials of life to the rest of us at great risk to themselves. These essential workers ranged from the truck drivers delivering food to grocery stores to City and County employees collecting garbage to law enforcement officials and medical workers who contacted infected patients daily as they labored to save lives. In recognition of these and many others, the Interfaith Mission Service is granting a new award this year, The Pandemic Service Leadership Award.
Congratulations to our Award Winners
Rabbi Jeffrey L. Ballon Interfaith Award
Global Ties Alabama (Jacqui Shipe)
presented by Karen Fanaspazir
Marilyn Mabry Memorial Racial Harmony Award
The Religious Society of Friends (Judy Guerry)
presented by Doug Seay
Charles L. Ray, Jr., Memorial Social Justice Award
NAACP Huntsville (Mary Moore)
presented by Patricia Smith
IMS Community Service Award
Madison County Commission (Violet Edwards)
presented by Doug Seay
Pandemic Service Leadership Award
Huntsville Hospital System (Tracy Doughty)
presented by Doug Seay
Our History
IMS was founded in 1969. In the 51 years since then, the small group of twelve congregations Christian and Jewish has grown to include congregations of the world s great faiths. We re Methodists and Muslims, Baptists and Buddhists, Catholics and Hindus, Jew and Baha’is, and more. We are also supported by a number of businesses large and small. At our core, there are individual and family members.
During our 51 years, we have also been a service incubator in the community. Our congregations have responded to community needs by creating such well-known non-profits as HELPline and HOPEplace (now Crisis Services of North Alabama), CASA, HAP, FirstStop, and Lift Housing. After these agencies were strong enough to stand on their own, we worked with them to spin off as standalone agencies. Like all proud parents, we are proud of this legacy. Click Here for Awards Dinner History
Twelve Founding Congregations of IMS
Covenant Presbyterian Church, Etz Chayim Synagogue, First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), First United Methodist Church, Holmes Street United Methodist Church, Lakewood United Methodist Church, Latham United Methodist Church, St. Mark s Lutheran Church, St. Paul United Methodist Church, Temple B’nai Sholom, Trinity Presbyterian Church, Trinity United Methodist Church
