About CPC
What is the Church Periodical Club?
The Church Periodical Club’s ministry is to provide written materials, both religious and secular, such as paper or electronic books, magazines, workbooks, and educational software, through grants to organizations sponsored by the Episcopal Church or Anglican Communion who otherwise cannot obtain them, and to raise the money to do this.
The Church Periodical Club is “Church” because its work is carried out through The Episcopal Church and grants must be sponsored by an Episcopal or Anglican Communion organization. It is “Periodical” because it makes grants and has projects on a schedule. It is “Club” because it has members who carry out its ministry together in parishes, dioceses, provinces, and the world.
– Individuals make donations through their parish or directly to the diocese or National CPC.
– National CPC has two granting funds. The National Books Funds makes grants to adults, including seminarians, and the Miles of Pennies Fund makes grants to children. NBF grants are made in an annual granting session in late June or early July; the application deadline is March 1. Miles of Pennies grants are made about six weeks after the request is received. All grants have eligibility requirements and dedicated committee members review each one.
– The province is the link between the diocese and National CPC. Province representatives sit on the National Board. They collect stories from the diocesan directors and keep contact information up to date. Some provinces have their own projects such as support for Episcopal seminary and college libraries. All provinces contribute to the National Books Fund.
– Many dioceses have diocesan seminarian book funds and/or reading camp book funds. Funds are usually collected from parish organizations such as Episcopal Church Women, Sunday school classes and Outreach Committees. Some dioceses also collect the gifts to National Books Fund and Miles of Pennies Fund and send them on to National CPC.
– Very few dioceses have regions, districts, convocations, deaneries or similar organizations that make separate grants. A CPC committee with members from several regions helps the diocesan director gather information about CPC, to share tasks and to reach parish representatives in person and by phone.
– Parishes may have a local project as well as making contributions to diocesan and National CPC grant funds. They may send all their funds to the diocesan director for distribution, or they may send diocesan contributions to the diocese and national contributions directly to national CPC.
– Parish groups might adopt the Miles of Pennies Fund, a named diocesan fund or the National Books Fund as a project. They probably will send funds to the parish and the parish will send them to the designated recipient.