The Rev. Anne R. Hagler is the pastor of New Covenant
Presbyterian Church in Akron, Ohio. The congregation is small
and struggling, as are many mainline churches. Our current membership
is 110. The congregation is made up of both blue collar workers
and white collar professionals, some of whom have lost their jobs
due to down-sizing of their companies or out-sourcing of their
jobs. She is also involved in the community in a number of ways,
including membership on the Boards of the American Friends Service
Committee's Economic Justice and Empowerment program and the Hunger
Network in Ohio. In addition, she participates in her denomination's
efforts to bring about peace, feed the hungry, and change those
systems that keep people poor. About five years ago, she got involved
in forming a group that calls itself the Akron Global Network,
a small organization of individuals trying to combat globalization
on a local level.
