Districts in Action 2023
August 10, 2023
Every year, we call upon our GBU districts to select an organization in their local area to support. This is known as the Districts in Action program. The 2023 Districts in Action program helped support a variety of causes, including food banks, burn camps, animal shelters and rehabilitation facilities. We are proud to announce that GBU and its members donated a total of $61,654 to support organizations located in PA, MI, OH, IL, NJ, MN, and AZ.
- District 45-Altoona, PA: Allegheny Lutheran Social Ministries' Blair County At Home Program, $2,700 District 146-Johsntown, PA: Mom's House Inc. of Johnstown, $1,820
- District 171-Pittsburgh, PA: Brentwood Meals on Wheels, $1,240
- District 291-Summerhill, PA: Summerhill Recreation, $1,200
- District 510-Toledo, OH: Ohio Grand Chapter Order of Eastern Star's Service Dog Fundraiser, $1,300
- District 630-Ann Arbor, MI: The Leukemia Foundation for Arizona Children, $1,558
- District 684-Pittsburgh, PA: Baldwin Community United Methodist Church's Lord's Pantry Food Distribution, $3,490
- District 699-Frankenmuth, MI: Pet Angel Adoption and Rescue, $1,300
- District 701-Pontiac, MI: Deutsch-Amerikanischer Schützenverein, $3,460
- District 707-Grand Rapids, MI: Mary Free Bed Foundation, $1,100
- District 810-Cleveland, OH: Tapestry Partners International, $5,250
- District 815-Dayton, OH: East End Community Services Corporation, $7,030
- District 821-Sterling Heights, MI: Carpathia Foundation, $2,680
- District 1000-LFA: Camp Concordia, $1,722; Gifts for All God's Children, $1,554; Offering Alternative Therapy with Smiles (O.A.T.S.), $1,722; Seedlings Braille Books for Children, $1,104; Macomb Charitable Foundation, $1,404
- District 2000-ULS: Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church Food Pantry, $1,200; AHEAD, INC., $1,000; Quota International of Massillon, $1,000; First Presbyterian Church of Duquesne, $1,050, Helping Hands Society, $1,300
- District 3000-HRFA: First Baptist Church of Allentown, $1,400; Elijah's Promise, $1,140; Bethlen Communities, $1,290; Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, $1,630; American Hungarian Friends of Scouting (AHFS), $1,080
- District 5000-IOV: Concordia Language Villages, $2,200; Illinois Fire Safety Alliance-Camp “I Am Me”,$1,050; Arthur C. Luf Children’s Burn Camp, $1600; Great Lakes Burn Camp, $1,800
The GBU Life Scholarship Awards support students in college, trade programs, non-college programs, and graduate school, helping them achieve their dreams, setting them on a career path and realizing life goals. Since its founding, the GBU Foundation has awarded 4,500 scholarships and educational grants totaling more than $3.2 million. In 2025, 215 members received $226,000 to support their two‑year, four‑year and graduate studies. Here’s a look at where the rubber meets the road — as we check in on past grantees to see how their scholarship awards have helped them stay on course, where they are now, and where they hope to be in the future.
To celebrate our 134th anniversary, GBU Life launched the Birthday Bash initiative, calling upon the GBU Life community to honor our fraternal legacy through service. GBU Life invited members, producers, and community leaders to assemble and deliver shelf-stable cake kits for individuals and families who may otherwise go without a birthday celebration. What can seem like a simple act of service could be the spark of hope someone needed.

