International Orthodox Christian Charities, Inc. (or IOCC), based in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, is the official international humanitarian agency of the

Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America The Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America (formerly the Episcopal Assembly of North and Central America and later the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America) is an organization of churc ...

. Since its inception in 1992, IOCC has distributed emergency relief and

development assistance Development aid is a type of foreign/international/overseas aid given by governments and other agencies to support the economic, environmental, social, and political development of developing countries. Closely-related concepts include: developm ...

to families and communities in more than 60 countries. IOCC does not provide funds for Church missions such as religious education or

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

work. All funds collected by the agency (minus administrative expenses) are instead used for humanitarian aid. All assistance is provided solely on the basis of need, and benefits families, refugees and

displaced person Forced displacement (also forced migration) is an involuntary or coerced movement of a person or people away from their home or home region. The UNHCR defines 'forced displacement' as follows: displaced "as a result of persecution, conflict, g ...

s, the elderly, school children, orphans, and people with disabilities. Through its US headquarters and field offices around the world ( Banja Luka, Bosnia-Herzegovina;

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo language, Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the ...

;

Tbilisi, Georgia Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million peo ...

;

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

West Bank The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

/ Gaza;

Amman, Jordan Amman (; ar, عَمَّان, ' ; Ammonite: 𐤓𐤁𐤕 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''Rabat ʻAmān'') is the capital and largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of 4,061,150 as of 2021, Amman is ...

; Beirut, Lebanon;

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, Minnesota; Belgrade,

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...

) IOCC assists people living in some of the most volatile places in the world, including Gaza, Kosovo, and in Syria, where IOCC has provided relief to more than 3.3 million displaced and exiled people suffering through a catastrophic civil war. IOCC is one of few agencies still working inside Syria and continues to support one of the largest humanitarian networks on the ground in the country. IOCC carries a rating of four stars from Charity Navigator, the highest rating the organization awards. IOCC is a member of InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.–based secular and faith-based organizations working to improve the lives of the world's poorest and most vulnerable populations.

External links

IOCC website

on Charity Navigator * http://assemblyofbishops.org/ * IOCC Profile page http://actalliance.org/about/members/international-orthodox-christian-charities-iocc/

References

Charities based in Maryland Religious charities based in the United States Eastern Orthodox organizations established in the 20th century Organizations established in 1992 Eastern Orthodoxy in Maryland {{US-philanthropy-org-stub

See also

External links

References