Circle Up, a subgroup of United Methodist Women at First United Methodist Church Austin, has received a Just and Resilient Communities Grant offered through the General Board of Church and Society of the United Methodist Church. Circle Up was formed in 2018 to focus specifically on the UMW priority area of Maternal and Child Health and to advance the objectives of decreasing maternal mortality and developing a network of women’s health advocates.
Currently comprised of 19 members, Circle Up is committed to service, social justice, and supporting healthy motherhood. The circle will use these funds to facilitate a robust effort at developing a statewide interfaith coalition of laypersons, equipped to effectively advocate for maternal health improvements. As part of this effort, this November they will host an interfaith summit on maternal health in Texas.
The goals of the summit are to 1) increase awareness of maternal health outcomes in Texas, 2) build skills in the legislative advocacy process, and 3) form an interfaith coalition of lay persons whose members are equipped to engage in the advocacy needed during the 2021 Texas Legislative session. Congratulations to Circle Up!
