Requests should be made to Bernice Suplee (631-665-7033 or jbsuplee@aol.com). Let her know:

• Who is the contact person? Daytime and evening phone numbers? Fax number or email?
  
  
• What can you tell us about the audience? How many people do you expect?
  
  
• What location, day and time do you want? Please do not ask when we are available - we do not know until we ask for volunteers: tell Bernice your preferred date and she will let you know if this conflicts with a previously-scheduled presentation. Please allow at least a month for us to recruit volunteers. Due to travel time, we cannot schedule presentations before 9:00 a.m. Please bear in mind, too, that the time you pick may affect which faith communities can participate: observant Jews probably cannot come on Friday nor Christians on Sunday morning, because this is their worship time. If you want a particular faith community, please consult their holiday schedule to see if this is a major holiday for them. Calendars can be found at: www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/calendar or www.interfaithcalendar.org.
  
  
• How much time is available for our presentation? It is best to allow an hour and a half for a presentation, though we can do shorter presentations by bringing fewer speakers. We find it hard to convey anything meaningful in less than 40 minutes, however.
  
  
• Are there particular topics you want panelists to cover? We avoid politics and foreign policy, and our panelists are not professional theologians, but they can address a wide variety of questions about how they practice their faith in the daily lives, such as the religious holidays they celebrate, what they want their neighbors to know about their customs and beliefs, and how to get along with one another in our increasingly diverse communities. Do you want them to tell what they have learned from their tradition about tolerance? Discrimination? Health and sickness? Dating? Marriage? Managing money?
  
  
• Are there particular faiths that you want represented? We may not have volunteers from every faith community you want on a particular date but we can come pretty close. Please remember, too, that the audience may need to learn about faith communities that have no house of worship in their area but are present nonetheless: you might not think of inviting Jain, Bahai, or Buddhist speakers because they have no temple in your neighborhood, but they may still live and work near you. Please note, also, that we will be sending representatives of diverse religious traditions, not members of particular ethnic groups. Hosts sometimes invite us to multi-cultural celebrations and are disappointed if our volunteers do not conform to the racial composition they were expecting. If you are particularly interested in the faiths that are rooted in the Middle East, we will try to find Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and Baha'i volunteers, but the Muslim may not be from India and the Bahai from Brooklyn - which in itself may help break down stereotypes.
  
  
• Who will set up the DVD player to show Faiths of Long Island? If you expect a large audience please set up microphones and check the sound before the program. We usually begin our program by showing this 30-minute DVD, which gives an overview of all the faith communities in the LIMFF. If time is limited we urge you to order our video and show it in advance. And watching it may give you a better idea what topics you want our panelists to address or what faiths you might like to see represented. We are sure you will want your own copy of this unique resource. The suggested donation is $30, plus $5 for shipping and handling. Checks can be sent to the LICC, 1644 Denton Green, Hempstead, NY 11550.
  
  
• Would you like copies of educational materials to distribute in advance for class preparation or advance approval by school administrators? We have prepared one-page descriptions of each of our faiths that have been reviewed and vetted by our faith communities and school officials. Studying this booklet in advance helps students and teachers to get more out of our presentation.
  
  
• Who will send directions to Bernice for the panelists? Where should they park?
  
  
• Would you like flyers describing the program to publicize your event? If so, how many?
  
  
• Can your group make a contribution to the program? The panelists are all volunteers, but we depend on donations to cover the costs of materials, mailings, and such in order to continue this program. While there is no set fee for houses of worship and not-for-profit community groups, we expect at least $100 for a Building Bridges presentation from a business or school or any course or event where tuition, registration, or admission is charged. Eastern BOCES has approved the LIMFF for funding, and school districts elsewhere have worked out BOCES funding, too. We would be glad to mail, email, or fax an invoice for the program. Checks can be made out to the Long Island Multi-Faith Forum and mailed c/o Long Island Council of Churches, 1644 Denton Green, Hempstead, NY 11550.

LONG ISLAND MULTI-FAITH FORUM REQUEST FORM