FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Mayor James R. Miron, 203.385.4001

Stratford to Observe National Day of Prayer

Stratford, Conn. (May 5, 2009) – Mayor James R. Miron announced today that the Town of Stratford and the Stratford Clergy Association have partnered together for Stratford’s National Day of Prayer: A Mulit-Faith Observance. The ceremony will take place on Thursday, May 7, 2009 at 5:30 p.m. on the front steps of Stratford Town Hall. In the event of rain the service will be brought inside Town Hall to Council Chambers.

“The Stratford Clergy Association and the Mayor's office have worked together to create a new model of a National Day of Prayer celebration for Stratford,” said Reverend Julie-Ann Silberman-Bunn, President of the Stratford Clergy Association and Minister at the Unitarian Universalist of Greater Bridgeport. “We are very excited to offer our community a Multi-Faith National Day of Prayer celebration as an opportunity to remind us that Stratford is a diverse community and yet there is a place for all of our prayers here.”

The National Day of Prayer has been in existence since 1952, when President Harry Truman signed a joint resolution by Congress declaring that an annual day of prayer be observed. In 1988, the law was amended and signed by President Ronald Reagan, permanently setting the day as the first Thursday of every May. This year marks the 58th annual observance of the National Day of Prayer.

“Stratford’s diversity is what makes it such a great place to live,” said Mayor Miron. “The National Day of prayer gives each resident of our Town an opportunity to join with others in our Community and demonstrate that one can be authentic to his or her own faith while still respectful of others’ beliefs. Our ceremony is going to be a remarkable moment of unity and hope.”