LEAVING A LEGACY
Ann Pearson
Pastor, North Canton Community United Methodist Church

When the Reverend Ann Pearson inherited $1,000 from her uncle she wanted to use it in a way that reflected his influence on her faith. The step she took built on his legacy and launched her own.

One Sunday Rev. Pearson distributed a hundred $10 bills to the congregation at North Canton (Connecticut) United Methodist Church, where she is the pastor. Her sermon that day was about the Bible parable in which a man gave his workers money and told them to go out and do what they thought was best. The loser buried his money. She had realized that until then she, too, had been burying her $1,000 inheritance from her uncle.

In giving away her inheritance, she instructed her parishioners to spend some time deciding where they wanted to give the money. She wanted them to truly think about what they were doing. Many of the parishioners did so. Today, many of them continue to contribute time and money to the organizations they selected. Some have embarked on their own giving journeys. For example, one parishioner was inspired to give money to each of her grown children to donate to causes of their choice.

"The ripple effect is absolutely tremendous," Rev. Pearson says. "When you truly listen to the needs and you give of yourself, others follow, and it continues for generations to come. And when you don't act, that creates a ripple effect, too."

	WORDS OF ADVICE "Get involved. It's not so much about the money. It's about taking the time to mentor a child or be a lifeline for a single-parent family. When you do that, the ripple effect goes on forever."

Her passion is children at risk. This year she led a town meeting to talk about this issue. It was really the first time the town got together and even admitted that it could be an issue. In the past, people in the town tended to deny that any community problems existed. She's organized an effort among the six local churches to begin an after-school program for elementary school children. It's financed and run by the volunteers. Next year, she hopes to expand it to intermediate school children.

"The legacy that we leave behind is all about the people we leave behind," she says. "By our examples, we teach our future generations how to live with one another. I'd like to think that my own kids and grandkids, as well as the kids in our community, will carry on the tradition of giving. What we have is really God's anyway. It's our responsibility to share it. We need to understand that, in the world, there's plenty for everyone, it's just that some of us have too much."

For her leadership in philanthropy, Rev. Pearson was chosen one of "12 Heroes" by the White House's Millennial Committee in 1999 and honored by President Clinton at the White House.

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