Passing of James Sawers Jr.

April 25, 2017

To: All Christian-Jewish Council of Greater Charleston Supporters 

It is my sad duty to report the sudden death of the president Dr. James Sawers on March 21st. I first met Jim through the Christian-Jewish Council (CJC) and we became very close friends. His friendship and my involvement in the CJC allowed me to learn more about other faiths. Jim personified a good friend and visionary leader. 

Jim taught me about religious tolerance, similararities between religions, introduced me to church and interfaith leaders and provided insights in the Christian and other religions. Jim had great contacts throughout the U.S. He helped the CJC to identify and attract world renown interfaith speakers to Charleston. I've met numerous and talented individuals, clergy and interesting people though Jim. We worked creatively on behalf of the CJC to plan programming, raise needed funds, and attract people to serve on its board of directors. 

We brought some great speakers to Charleston like Dr. Amy-Jill Levine from Vanderbilt Univeristy and Dr. Charles Kimball from the Univerity of Oklahoma. Through our combined contacts from our board of directors we began a dialogue with the Mosque of Charleston. We held the first ever Jewish-Muslim dialogue program (with Halel and Kosher food) on January 30, 2017. It was a great success and attracted 200 people. 

Jim was a very smart, kind and compassionate individual who was dedicated to helping people and the community. I always learned from Jim, and will miss working with him. He will be a tough act to follow. However, I commit to following his legacy, goals and standards. Please know that I, along with our board of directors are working hard to keep the CJC moving forward with interesting and informative programs, and bringing people together from different faiths in new ways. 

Stay tuned for exciting programs and please participate and communicate with me any ideas and thoughts. 

Sincerely, 

Ken Fox