Clergy Appreciation recognized in Rio Rancho

RIO RANCHO — Civitan International, a global service organization serving individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), is recognizing Clergy Appreciation Week Feb. 2-8. The Rio Rancho club has joined the effort.

“Our club is proud to partner with Route 66 Civitan Club, Sandia Civitan Club, River Of Hope Civitan Club to recognize first responder chaplains for Clergy Appreciation Week, which honors local leaders of all faiths for their dedicated service to their local communities,” said Matthew C. Gutierrez, 2024-25 club president/club marketing and communications eirector of City Of Vision Civitan Club.

According to a release, Civitan clubs around the world have set aside a week in February of each year to honor local faith leaders for their acts of service since 1963. The project was inspired by the story of the Four Chaplains.

“On February 3, 1943, four military chaplains — a Methodist minister, a Catholic priest, a Reformed minister and a Jewish rabbi — sacrificed their lives in service to others on board the USS Dorchester. The troop transport ship, in route to Greenland, was hit by a torpedo. The four chaplains, George L. Fox, Alexander D. Goode, John P. Washington, and Clark V. Poling, removed their own life jackets to give to other passengers and locked arms in prayer for the safety of others as the ship submerged into the icy waters,” the release says.

It added that Clergy Appreciation Week quickly gained attention across the nation.

“First lady Betty Ford served as honorary chairperson for Civitan in 1974. President (Gerald) Ford issued a White House proclamation for the week in 1975. Among the clergy honored that year was Rev. Martin Luther King Sr., pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia, and father of slain civil rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr. Civitans around the world continue to honor leaders of all faith traditions each February in respect to the men and women who lead their communities with the hearts of servants,” it reads.

For more information, visit civitan.org/city-of-vision.