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SWITCH NAMED BENEFICIARY OF SPARTANBURG COMMUNITY THANKSGIVING SERVICE

The Annual Spartanburg Community Thanksgiving Service, sponsored by The Spartanburg County Foundation in partnership with the Spartanburg Interfaith Alliance, was held Tuesday, November 20, 2018, at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church (290 E. Main St.).  The annual event brought over 700 guests from diverse faith groups together to give thanks and give back to the community.

“These are indeed troubled times in which violence and division have tried our souls,” says Rabbi Yossi Liebowitz, co-chair of the Spartanburg Interfaith Alliance.  “How blessed we are in Spartanburg to have men and women of different faiths and ethnicities join together in prayer and in an effort to support a badly needed charity which distributes justice and heals the pain of so many.  As a psalmist had declared; ‘How good and pleasant it is when brothers and sisters join together.’”

Each year, a committee made up of local clergy and lay leaders identify a charity to receive the offering collected at the service, which is matched by The Spartanburg County Foundation up to $5,000.  This year, SWITCH, an organization that fights human trafficking and sexual exploitation in the Upstate, was named the grant recipient and received $17,923.77.  The funds will be used to support SWITCH’s intervention program in the Spartanburg County Detention Center, providing trauma-informed care to women who are incarcerated and have a history of sexual exploitation.

“Human trafficking is a hidden problem with victims in plain sight, regularly turning up unable to ask for help because they are trapped in ‘the life,’” said Zaina Greene, Executive Director for SWITCH.   “Spartanburg is seeing an increase in human trafficking crimes, and it is an honor to partner with The Spartanburg County Foundation and the Spartanburg Interfaith Alliance to help us in the fight against human trafficking.”

To view photos from the event CLICK HERE.

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The Spartanburg County Foundation is dedicated to improving the lives of Spartanburg County residents by promoting philanthropy, encouraging community engagement and responding to community needs.  Established in 1943, The Spartanburg County Foundation is the oldest community foundation in South Carolina.  Additional information about the Foundation is available at www.spcf.org.