Canton Church of the Brethren

Forum Topic – Poverty

“Poverty is not an accident. Like slavery and apartheid, it is man-made and can be removed by the actions of human beings.” -Nelson Mandela

Poverty Forum Survey (10 Questions)

Everyone is invited to attend this community forum to discuss the less fortunate and ways we can collaborate on their behalf.  Our panelists include Rhonda Morgan (Love INC), Teri Williams (Spoon River Pregnancy Center), Bob Sennef (Graham Hospital), Paula Grigsby (YMCA), Brooke Denniston (YWCA), Pastor Monroe Bailey (First Baptist Church), Rolf Siversten (Superintendent of Canton USD 66), Missy Kolowoski (Health & Wellness Clinic of Fulton County). The forum will be moderated by Kevin Kessler.

We encourage you not just to attend, but to explore ways you can get involved. There will be opportunities to brainstorm ideas and collaborate as a community.  If you cannot attend, the event will also be available online as well as through our podcast (search Canton Church of the Brethren on iTunes). You can also call 309-219-6660 for more info as well. Hope to see you!

Below is information about poverty in Fulton County from state studies provided by the Fulton County Health Department and Spoon River College.

• Stats from “County Health Rankings and Roadmaps” of the Robert Woods Johnson Foundation (provided by the Fulton County Health Department)

1. Quality of Life: *Ranked 48 out of 102 counties in IL
2. Health Behaviors: *Ranked 61 out of 102 counties in IL
   1. Adult Obesity: 32% (25% is U.S. top performers)
   2. Access to Exercise: 69% (91% is U.S. top performers)
   3. Teen Births: 41 (19 is U.S. top performers)
3. Clinical Care: *Ranked 80 out of 102 counties
   1. Uninsured: 13% (11% is U.S. top performers)
   2. Primary Care Physicians: 2,600:1 (1,040:1 is U.S. top performers)
   3. Mental Health Providers: 2,770:1 (370:1 is U.S. top performers)
4. Social & Economic Factors: *Ranked 76 out of 102
   1. High School Graduation: 85% (93% is U.S. top performers)
   2. Some College: 59% (72% is U.S. top performers)
   3. Unemployment: 8.6% (3.5% is U.S. top performers)
   4. Children in Poverty: 22% (13% is U.S. top performers)
   5. Income Inequality: 4.3 (3.7 is U.S. top performers)
   6. Children in single-Parent Household: 34% (21% is U.S. top performers)
   7. Social Associations: 16.8 (22.1 is U.S. top performers)
   8. Violent Crime: 179 (59 is U.S. top performers)
5. Physical Environment: *Ranked 23 out of 102
   1. Drinking Water Violations: No
   2. Severe Housing Problems: 12% (9% is U.S. top performers)
   3. Long Commute, more than 30 minutes: 44% (15% is U.S. top performers)

• Stats from the Department of Economics & Finance at SIU (provided by Chad Bailey, Spoon River College)

1. Population of Fulton County 16 years and older: 57,693
2. # of 16 years and older who live in poverty: 10,632 (18.4%)
3. # that have less than 9 grades of formal school: 1,505 (2.6%)
4. # that have 9 or more grades of formal school but no high school diploma or GED: 4,901 (8.5%)
5. # classified as ESL adults or do not feel they speak English very well: 3,674 (6.4%)
6. # that receive some type of public assistance from the government: 9,110 (15.7%)  

• Poverty Stats from our Congressional District (taken from “TalkPoverty.org)

1. Gender & Age: 22.9% Children, 18.0% working-age women, 13.3% working-age men
2. Race & Ethnicity: 37.8% African American, 13.7% Asian American, 21.8% Latino, 12.3% White

• Poverty and mass incarceration

1. 97% of people in prison did not have a trial. “The poor, and especially poor people of color, have long been overrepresented in the prison population.” -Barbara Ehrenreich
2. Study – The Poor Get Prison by Karen Dolan