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Social Justice Public Witness Committee

The Social Justice and Public Witness Standing Committee exists to share the Good News for the common good by

  • Facilitating and empowering Grace Presbytery churches and their partners, through education, advocacy, and financial support for social justice and public witness work and community engagement to love and meet the needs of our most vulnerable neighbors;
  • Elevating, promoting, inspiring, and nurturing the Church’s public witness for justice and love through deep connections and coalitions using the guidelines set forth in Book of Order W-5.0304

If you have questions about Social Justice Public Witness work, in general, please contact:

Bryan Jones, Moderator
[email protected]

Laura Walters, Coordinator of Community Engagement and Public Witness for Grace Presbytery
[email protected]

Mission, Vision, & Background

Mission, Vision, & Background

Mission Statement: The Social Justice and Public Witness Committee elevates, inspires, and nurtures the church’s public witness for God’s love and justice in the world.

It is the vision of the SJPWC to:

  • Listen to the congregations and communities in Grace Presbytery call to do SJPW work.
  • Lead GP with respect to the command to love neighbors, do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God.
  • Inform and guide GP on the society and the world’s upheaval where a public witness is needed to speak Truth to power.
  • Connect to the national statements concerning Social Justice and Public Witness.
  • Actively engage others to act through public witness, protest, and deeds of compassion and love.

All of the actions above should be done to further God’s justice in the world as set forth in W-5.0304: exercising power for the common good; dealing honestly in the private and public sphere; seeking dignity and freedom for all people; welcoming strangers; promoting justice and fairness in the low; overcoming disparities between rich and poor; bearing witness against unjust systems; and redressing wrongs.

The Evolution of Social Justice Work in Grace Presbytery:

Since the creation of the Social Justice Task Force in 2019 by Grace Presbytery, the SJTF has been discerning a call to raise the consciousness and awareness of our member churches and our communities in many ways.

We believe that the Presbytery’s faithful recognition of a Christian mandate, and the yearning in our families of faith to listen, to learn, to lead, and to educate was divinely inspired. In turn, the SJTF has endeavored to be obedient to the call to truly be public witnesses. Again, Grace Presbytery has responded.

The presbytery voted to move the SJTF to a committee rooted in the commitment that “God sends the Church to work for justice in the world.” (W-5.0305) The newly formed Social Justice Public Witness Committee (SJPWC) was created to elevate, promote, inspire, and nurture the Church’s public witness for justice and love through deep connections and coalitions with and for our congregations and their neighbors. The SJPWC will continue to provide education, advocacy, witness, and solidarity in word and deed as we share the Good News for the common good.

As people of faith, we are called to “do justice” as it says in Micah 6:8 and, in doing so, reflect the heart of God. This means listening to the voices of the marginalized when they cry out about a lack of fairness. Having a heart that is moved by these cries and filled with compassion leads us to make personal sacrifices to serve those interests, needs, and causes.

Our hearts are full of gratitude. We have opportunities to do justice work. We are blessed with a sense of urgency, we hope you are too. We pray, and ask you to join us in this prayer, that our work together will continue to move us toward social justice and public witness in our world.

Structure & Subcommittees

Structure & Subcommittees

Structure of Social Justice Public Witness Committee
The SJPWC has chosen to organize into subcommittees that reflect our budget and the priority of our work:

Congregation & Community Connections and Support Subcommittee

This group offers support to facilitate social justice and public witness projects, community engagement, and advancement of commitments to meet the needs of our most vulnerable neighbors. We support congregational initiatives that promote the justice work of inclusion and liberation. We are committed to supporting congregation with information, conversations, and finances so they may partner with broader movements and organizations who are deeply involved in justice work in the world.

Some examples of this work have included:

  • Multi-cultural ministries.
  • Promotion of voter participation.
  • Work towards fair housing and food security.
  • Banned book sanctuaries.
  • Discussions leading to action on issues such as gun violence prevention, Earth care, sex trafficking, education, religious freedom, and forced migration.
  • Events that affect the health and well-being of the community-at-large such as health fairs and immunization clinics, food insecurity, and other acute needs of our neighbors.
  • Recognition and advancement of the rights and full humanity of all our siblings.

Subcommittee Members: Bryan Jones (organizer), Dae Jung, Armel Crocker

Event and Programs Subcommittee

This group will increase awareness, participation, and listening to and supporting justice activity in Grace Presbytery since more members will be engaged, broader communities will be included, and more relationships will be formed. We support presbytery-wide efforts for SJPWC activity and advocacy.

By way of past example:

⦁ 21 Day Racial Challenge with discussion gatherings via zoom.
⦁ Webinars with special speakers concerning timely issues including: Rev. Dr. Michael Waters, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, Dr. Warren Chalken, Omar Chacon.
⦁ In-person events i.e. author presentation and panel discussion of The Accommodation (also streamed); North Texas Faith Votes event.
⦁ Civil Rights Pilgrimage.
⦁ Dallas Hidden History tour.

Subcommittee Members: Armel Crocker (organizer), Thella Bowens, Whitney Arreche, Katy Rigler, Frank Fehmel, Kymberlaine Banks

Grants and Scholarships Subcommittee

  • Assess and respond to requests for individual scholarships for public witness and social justice work initiatives.
  • Assess and respond to individual scholarships to members of historically marginalized groups in need due to systemic discrimination and exclusion.
  • Assess and respond to grants to communities and groups that experience significant collective barriers to full society participation and equity-denied groups.

Subcommittee Members: Craig Hunter (organizer), Alice Hernandez

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COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & PUBLIC WITNESS

SOCIAL JUSTICE PUBLIC WITNESS GRANTS & SCHOLARSHIPS

The Purpose:

To encourage and support congregations (grants) or individuals (scholarships) of Grace Presbytery to address social justice issues in the creation of new and innovative ministries within the congregations and communities that they serve. Applicants should be able to answer how the grant would serve a justice project.

The Process:

The SJPWC will receive, review, and award grants and scholarships on an ongoing basis throughout the year.

SOCIAL JUSTICE PUBLIC WITNESS GRANT & SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION
EMAIL GRANTS AND SCHOLARSHIPS SUBCOMMITTEE

Preference will be given to those applications for which one or more of the following is true:

  • Individual scholarships for public witness and social justice work initiatives
  • Individual scholarships to members of historically marginalized groups in need due to systemic discrimination and exclusion.
  • Grants to communities and groups that experience significant collective barriers to full society participation and equity-denied groups.
  • Grants to foster congregational initiatives addressing social justice issues
  • Preference may be given to grants that address current topics of focus identified by the SJPWC.

2026 Committee Members

MODERATOR

Rev. Alice Hernandez
Richardson, First Presbyterian Church

Bryan Jones
Dallas, Northridge Presbyterian Church

STAFF

Tammy Stepka, Coordinator of Office & Ministry
Grace Presbytery

EX-OFFICIO (without a vote)

Rev. Laura Walters, Coordinator of Community Engagement & Public Witness
Grace Presbytery

MEMBERS

Rev. Whitney Wilkinson Arreche
Bedford, Emmanuel Presbyterian Church

Rev. John Blewitt
Grace Presbytery

Thella Bowens
Dallas, First Presbyterian Church

Ann Christian
Fort Worth, First Presbyterian Church

Steve Crane
Longview, St. Andrew Presbyterian Church

Anne Edwards
Dallas, Preston Hollow Presbyterian Church

Frank Fehmel
Farmers Branch, Faith United Presbyterian Church

Rev. Alice Hernandez
Richardson, First Presbyterian Church

Rev. Ann Hoch
Grace Presbytery

Rev. Craig Hunter
Denton, Trinity Presbyterian Church

Bryan Jones
Dallas, Northridge Presbyterian Church

Chrissie Ozuna
Dallas, Preston Hollow Presbyterian Church

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