Presbyterians for Earth Care will present their annual recognition awards at their annual meeting and luncheon at General Assembly on July 5. The William Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Tom Quigley of Glenshaw Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh and the Restoring Creation Award will go to Earth Covenant Ministries in Atlanta.   

Since 1997, Presbyterians for Earth Care (PEC) has given awards annually to recognize individuals and groups/institutions for their forward thinking and leadership in caring for God’s creation.  Individuals receive the William Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award and congregations, governing bodies, ecumenical agencies, and Presbyterian-related entities receive Restoring Creation Awards for environmental work that is particularly praise-worthy and creative.

Tom Quigley is Director/Coordinator of The Garden of Etna, a community vegetable garden which has been quite successful in its first year. When Tom became aware of several grants available to start community gardens in Pittsburgh, he became an enthusiastic supporter of starting a garden in Etna Borough. Working through contacts in the Etna Outreach Partnership, Tom made borough officials aware of these opportunities and spearheaded the effort with the borough manager. Tom was the obvious choice to coordinate the garden which is now planting summer crops.

Earth Covenant Ministry in Atlanta will receive this year’s Restoring Creation Award.  Earth Covenant Ministry (ECM) is a partnership comprising ten congregations of the Presbytery of Greater Atlanta that direct and implement its mission. ECM seeks to be a tangible resource for congregations of all shapes and sizes in their practice of creation care. Throughout its history, ECM has been a constant presence in its presbytery on the issue of creation care, sustainability and intentional stewardship and actively promotes Earth Care Certification throughout the Presbytery. ECM is also committed to equipping seminarians in the work of creation care by joining forces with Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, GA.  In 2011, ECM launched a new program, “Mision Verde,” to engage Latino Presbyterian youth in a week-long eco-adventure. ECM continues to strive to be a model for what is possible in other presbyteries across the country.

PEC (formerly Presbyterians for Restoring Creation) was founded in 1995 as a national, grassroots organization to support people of faith working towards “environmental wholeness with social justice." PEC helps the church to fulfill its current environmental policies, to create new policies and practices, and to energize and educate church members about eco-justice - the well-being of all humankind on a thriving earth.