August 06, 2019
Soul Box - Partner Messaging
Dear Calvary Friends...
Since 2014, more than 235,072 people have been killed or injured by gun violence in the U.S.
To help raise awareness of the impact gun violence has on our community, First Baptist Church of Denver (FBCD) is participating in the Soul Box Project, a national community art project that displays origami paper boxes for every person killed or injured by gun violence since 2014.
The project’s goal is to honor and memorialize the victims, and illustrate how much Coloradans care about the gun violence epidemic.
From Soul Box's website:
"Over 42,000 people are killed or injured by gunfire in the U.S. every year.
Gun violence. Defense. Accidents. Another 22,000 die from suicides with guns.
Statistics can tell us facts, but they do not reveal the pain.
How do we put meaning to those numbers?
The Soul Box Project is showing people the numbers.
We are collecting one hand-folded origami box for every victim of gunfire in the U.S. and displaying tens of thousands of them in public spaces around the country.
When people see the numbers, they feel the magnitude of this gunfire epidemic.
And they realize they can make a difference: By locking up their guns. Or supporting a friend who’s struggling. By writing to their legislators.
Folding a Soul Box is a nonconfrontational, nonpolitical way to take action.
To express outrage or frustration. To honor a victim. To help heal a grieving heart.
This is something you can do – right now.
Make a Soul Box today and send it in to be included in our exhibits.
It begins with two pieces of paper, when you acknowledge one life.
It comes together in a massive art statement.
It continues with a cultural shift, as people take meaningful, individual actions. "
In order to make the Colorado project successful, we need volunteers and participants from all Colorado communities, cities, organizations, faith communities, and community groups to create boxes for our local exhibits. These will be on display at FBCD until April 2020, then taken to a larger installation in Washington, D.C.
The national effort needs another 175,462 boxes (as of July 17, 2019). Let’s unite in Colorado to create 32,000 boxes as our contribution to foster hope, promote healing, and to increase awareness.
As faith communities, we understand the importance of supporting projects like this because we know the importance of remembering the victims and their families. We are writing to ask for your support as a faith community member, to help make this project successful.
The Calvary congregation can support this project in a number of ways:
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Sponsoring one or more “We’ll Take Sunday” box making sessions with a goal of 100 boxes each on those Sundays. Data shows 100 people are lost to Gun Fire each day in the US.
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Promoting the project and sharing box making instructions so individuals can contribute to a display area at Calvary Baptist Church. Call FBCD for suggestions on how to create a meaningful visual display for members to display, temporarily, the boxes you are making. Then, you can take your boxes to FBCD to be formally integrated and dedicated into the Colorado Soul Box Project. This will be very meaningful to a wider community.
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Simply stopping by FBCD during business hours or after Sunday service to create one or more of the boxes (in the next few weeks, we will have materials and instructions available at Calvary for anyone who would like to participate).
FBCD will be hosting a number of events through April 2020 for our community to participate, including the dedication of one entire month where we and our partner groups will create 2,800 boxes during a series of workshops.
Please consider how the Calvary congregation or other community of which you are a part might find meaning and satisfaction through participation in this effort and the exhibits.
If you would like to be a “point person” for Calvary to help organize and move this idea forward, please let one of the pastors know.
Thanks for your help on this very important matter.
Rhonda Magee
Click here for Soul Box website.
Click here to see how to Make a Soul Box.