“Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.” Mt. 10:8
GIVEN alumnae take what they have learned at the leadership forum and leave with an Action Plan in hand. That plan is meant to put their gifts in service of the Gospel within a particular community.
The Action Plan can be large- or small-scale, but all Action Plans are new initiatives that benefit others. Through their attendance at the Forum and participation in GIVEN’s year-long leadership training program, cohort members each learn learn how to activate the gifts that God has given them and offer the gift that only they can give.
Here are a few samples of GIVEN Forum Action Plans.
Behold: Visio Divina
“My action plan was to do a 5-week program on praying with art, particularly on the theme of the feminine genius. I found praying with art transforming in my own journey with God and wanted to share that with others. Since GIVEN, my action plan has turned into a full-time mission. I am now working for organization called Behold, which has published a guide to the practice of “visio divina” and provide workshops in parishes and in our online community.”
Eden Invitation
Two alumnae developed the initiative called Eden Invitation through their Action Plans. “More than a ministry, Eden Invitation is a movement. We provide community & formation for young adult Catholics who experience same sex desires or gender discordance and are striving to be disciples of Christ. So many people on the LGBTQ spectrum don’t feel they have a home in the Catholic Church. We hope the witness of Eden Invitation shows otherwise!”
The Catholic Woman
“The Catholic Woman nonprofit organization is a storytelling platform with the mission to illustrate the many faces and vocations of women in the Church by publishing stories from Catholic women of all walks of life to show millennial Catholic women that there is a place for them in the Church. Our reach is currently at 24,000.”
Managing Your Fertility
“I founded and launched Managing Your Fertility as a ‘one-stop shop’ for individuals and couples to learn about the basics of reproductive health and the variety of NFP methods available. Managing Your Fertility is a resource for individuals and couples to review reproductive health science, criticisms and praise of specific methods, and research on the topic at large.”
No Greater Love Festival
“I put on a music and arts festival in the spirit of the Florida Martyrs to offer relief to Christians in the Middle East called the “No Greater Love Festival,” which had over 500 attendees. Together we donated $31,704.25 to the Knights of Columbus’ Christians at Risk initiative. Additionally, a Native American community was so impacted by their experience that 30 of their people returned to the Catholic faith of their martyred ancestors.”
FIERCE Athlete
“My GIVEN plan was to form and launch FIERCE Athlete Inc. FIERCE Athlete (Femininity, Identity, Embodiment, Receptivity, Catholicism, and Encounter) exists in order to promote true and authentic femininity within female athletics based on the teachings of the Catholic Church.”
FemCatholic
“My GIVEN action plan was to create a platform to reconcile the messages of empowerment in feminism with the truth of Catholic teaching. The three-fold goal of FemCatholic is to educate people on what the Church actually says about women, encourage women to explore the tough questions with how to live out Church teachings, and empower women to bring their feminine gifts to the Church and the world.”
