ACTION, ministerial group join forces to address issues

Participants will have the chance to express concerns to political and community leaders.

By LINDA M. LINONIS

Vindicator Staff Writer

BOARDMAN — Lend your voice, ideas and presence to a public meeting planned this weekend by ACTION and the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance.

The session will take place at 3 p.m. Sunday at St. Charles Borromeo Church, 7345 Westview Drive (church faces U.S. Route 224). ACTION — Alliance for Congregational Transformation Influencing Our Neighborhoods — and the IMA are partnering for the first time to discuss these issues: community college and unemployment, crime and safety, health and wellness and immigration reform.

“This is our spring-into-action meeting,” said Jeanne Adams, ACTION president. “We’ll discuss issues and ideas and ways to improve our quality of life.”

Adams said this meeting specifically was more “politically oriented” because those are the people who control the funding.

Adams said ACTION, whose focus is to overcome poverty, racism and social injustice, needs the involvement of community leaders to fulfill its mission. “We’re all in this together,” she said, referring to finding solutions to problems.

She noted health and wellness are of concern because of recent events, and the community college is an avenue to addressing unemployment.

The meeting is designed to bring together religious, political, academic and business leaders in the community who work toward the common good of all citizens. Invited dignitaries include Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams, Police Chief Jimmy Hughes, Youngstown council members, other area mayors and council members, area police chiefs, U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, state senators and representatives and Bishop George Murry of the Diocese of Youngstown.

The Rev. Joseph Feta, pastor of St. Luke Church in Boardman and a former ACTION president, said the meeting will address old issues and new ones. “ACTION is based in the faith community. We are multicultural, multiracial and interdenominational,” Father Feta said. “We are faith-driven and have a strong base in the community.

Father Feta said ACTION holds a big public meeting every so often to get input from its participants and community leaders. “We want to let our civic and political leaders that we are holding them accountable,” he said. “They are the people who can bring money into our community.”

Father Feta mentioned immigration, one of the issues to be discussed. “We want to have healthy and fair immigration laws,” he said.

He noted that “inner-city problems” affect the entire city and the suburbs, and only by working as a unified community can problems be addressed and solved. “Nothing will improve unless we come together in unity.”

The Rev. Lewis Macklin said, “People can be a problem or solution. As a community, we can bring about the change we want to see.”

As president of IMA and an ACTION member, the Rev. Mr. Macklin said the partnership of the two groups for this meeting was natural. “Social justice is one of the tenets of IMA,” he said, noting that is in harmony with ACTION. “Typically, there has been a good turnout,” Mr. Macklin said.