ONLINE ONLY: Organization focuses on ways to help Third World

On the second floor of the First Presbyterian Church, Bread for the World held its annual Offering of Letters workshop Tuesday.\nThe workshop's purpose was to educate members of the Bloomington community on the Millennium Development Goals. These goals, which were established at the United Nations Millennium Summit in 2000, are to eradicate hunger and poverty, combat HIV/AIDS and other diseases and provide universal primary education. \nToday, about 21 percent of the world lives on less then $1 per day, according to U.N. statistics. The organization also finds that 47 percent of Africa lives on fewer than two dollars a day. \nOffering of Letters workshop is a way to wake up the world to these problems, Mariah Priggen regional organizer for Bread for the World said. Priggen said the amount of money spent on poverty-focused development aid is a major reason for today's existing poverty and hunger. \nCurrently, the United States spends less then half a percent of its federal budget on poverty-focused development aid, according to the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development. Priggen and Bread for the World members believe that an increase of 1 percent in federal budget spending on Third World development aid will make it possible to defeat this hunger and poverty. \n"Hunger and poverty are solvable," Priggen said.\nOffering of Letters workshop instructed church members around Bloomington on ways to write letters to their state representatives urging them to increase development assistance. \nDonna Wenstrup, the workshop coordinator, thought the event did a good job of helping people understand the issues more thoroughly.\n"It is so hard for us in America because we are so rich, we don't really have a good perspective on the issues," she said. "We have to constantly remind ourselves of these issue, and Bread for the World does a good job (of) reminding us."\nThose who attended this workshop were then encouraged to take the information they learned and educate their churches, asking them to write letters to Indiana Senators Evan Bayh and Richard Lugar, urging them to work toward increasing spending for development aid.\nAnne Novak, a member of St. Paul Catholic Center, was pleased with the workshop.\n"It helped me understand the Millennium Development Goals better and motivated me to do the work I need to do to publicize this to my church," she said. "I know now that what I do will make some difference on the issue."\nFor more information on how to write letters to public officials, contact Bread for the World at 1-800-447-0239.