Mennonite Healthcare Fellowship

When Mennonite Healthcare Fellowship (MHF) was formed in 2011, it inherited several mission funds from Mennonite Medical Association (MMA) which were tracked separately from the normal operating budget.  MHF is now soliciting feedback on some proposed changes in the administration and usage of these funds for the unified organization.  The MHF Board has specifically asked for member input on these proposed changes.  Changes are summarized below.  Further details are contained in a three-page document here.  You are encouraged to give feedback through a short survey here.

Background

MHF inherited two mission funds from MMA.

• Mobilization for Mission (MFM) funds were primarily used for the Student Elective Term (SET) program to provide funding for medical students to do a term of service in mission setting in a developing country.  Under MHF, SET has been redesigned to be open to graduate students in any healthcare-related discipline.
• The Steven Roth Fund (SRF) is a memorial fund from the early 1990s to provide grants to pay the interest on the educational debts of MMA members who wanted to volunteer their services following residency.  Later it was expanded to assist with other mission-related travel expenses and to supplement and promote the SET program.

Summary of Proposal:
The proposal would make two major changes to respond to current needs and realities and to streamline the administration of mission funds by MHF:

1. Combine the Mobilization for Mission Fund (MFM) and the Steven Roth Fund (SRF) into one “Mission Fund” to be used for multiple programs.
2. Honor the memory of Steven Roth by creating a flexible grant program in his name for the use of these combined mission funds for a variety of mission-related projects.

More details and rationale are in the Mission Fund and Grants Proposal itself.  If you have any interest at all in the missional purposes of MHF, please take a few minutes to complete this online survey.  You may also give more extensive feedback by email or by phone, 1-888-406-3643, if you wish.

Thank you very much!

About the author

Paul D. Leichty, M.Div. was the first Executive Director of Mennonite Healthcare Fellowship (MHF), serving from Sept. 2011 through May 2020.  Paul has served as a pastor, church musician, computer support person, disabilities advocate, and administrator/organizer of a number of church-related ministries. In addition to responsibilities at MHF, Paul is Executive Director of Congregational Accessibility Network and was formerly Director of User Services at Mennonite.net.  He is a member of Agape Fellowship of the Mennonite Church in Williamsport, Pennsylvania where he lives with his wife, Twila Charles Leichty.