About The Savannah Faith In Action Residency Site

How do I use this web site?

This site serves as a teaching resource on interfaith relations in Savannah, Georgia, with a focus on material relevant to the State of Georgia's 8th-grade history curriculum. The content is organized into three main menu sections for ease of navigation and instruction.

Three Content Sections

  1. The first section, "In The Beginning," centers on Georgia’s early history, aligning with state curriculum as laid out by the Georgia Department of Education [SS8H2] for 8th grade students.
  2. The second section, "Faith In Action," highlights contemporary efforts by Savannah's faith-based community to address local needs. While not exhaustive, this section features programs and individuals who participated in on-camera interviews as part of the residency project.
  3. The third section, "Common Ground," offers a collection of reflections from interviewees on the nature of Savannah’s interfaith community, providing optional material to enrich students' understanding.

Teachers may incorporate any or all three main menu sections into their lesson plans.

Reading a Page

The page content is designed to flow from one section to the next, and you should not skip ahead within a given page, since certain elements may not make sense out of context. A brief page-by-page Navigation Guide will appear at the top of content pages.

  1. Students should begin each page by reading the Synopsis section.
  2. Then proceed to watching the videos in numerical order as noted (except for the Common Ground page, where the order of the videos is purposefully randomized).
  3. Continue by reading any additional text sections.
  4. Finally, finish the page by reading the Conclusion section.

In areas where further pages are available, a or button will appear at the bottom of the page to aid in navigation.

Hyperlinks

Links in the text passages are underlined, and they will almost always take you to another website for additional information. Before opening, a notice will appear, explaining where the link leads and how to return to the page.

These links will open in a new browser tab. To continue with this site's content, simply close the new tab when you're done, then close the notice to return to the page where you clicked the link.

Cited Sources

In various areas, certain sources are cited in light blue information boxes containing links to the original material.

Teaching Resources

To assess comprehension, the Teaching Resources menu section includes quizzes and essay questions available in both online and PDF formats, ready for immediate use.

  • Online Quizzes: Students can complete quizzes online, and their results can be sent directly to their teacher. To do this, students simply need to enter the teacher's email address in the designated email field.
  • PDF Quizzes & Essay Questions: These are available for download and can be printed for offline use.
  • Additional Reading Suggestions: A curated list of recommended readings is also provided, specifically chosen for an 8th-grade audience.

Why am I unable to view the videos? (or I see an error message where they should be)

Our video content for this site is hosted on the Vimeo platform and simply embedded here. Sometimes, there are technical issues that prevent video content from Vimeo loading in these windows. Please check that your network environment is not blocking any content from Vimeo.com. If the problem persists, please try refreshing the page where you are encountering the problem, or re-visiting the page at a later time or from a different physical location.

When using a mobile device, how do I navigate to sub-menu items?

On the mobile menu (access is via the "hamburger menu" in the top-left on mobile devices), if an item has a sub-menu, there will be a (>) indicator on the right side of the screen indicating that more content is available. Simply touch the triangle to display the sub-menu. To return to page content, simply make a selection from this menu.

Why is it important to study interfaith relations?

Studying interfaith community relations is essential to fostering mutual understanding and cooperation in an increasingly interconnected world. It allows younger individuals to navigate cultural and religious diversity with respect and empathy, reducing prejudice and misconceptions that can lead to conflict. By examining the dynamics of interfaith dialogue, students gain insight into how shared values and differences can coexist better, creating a foundation for collaborative problem-solving in global and local contexts. This field of study equips participants with the skills to build inclusive communities, address social challenges, and promote peace through respectful engagement with diverse belief systems.

Who participated as interviewees in this project?

While not all of our 30 interviews (32 total individuals) are featured on this website, all materials—including time-coded reference files and text transcripts—are available for download and review through the City of Savannah Municipal Archives.

The following is a comprehensive list of those who were interviewed, in alphabetical order:

Sakinah Ziyadah Ali
Masjid Jihad

Sr. Margaret Beatty, RSM
VP, Mission Services, St. Joseph's/Candler

Katrina Bostick
CEO, Family Promise

James Buttimer
Catholic Scholar

Dana Felty Bynum
Religion Reporter, Savannah Morning News

Dr. Walter Campbell
Researcher/Author

Rev. Michael Chaney
Episcopal Priest

Becky Cheatham
Member, Christ Church

Brittany Farbo
Office Administrator, First Presbyterian Church

Rabbi Robert Haas
Mickve Israel Synagogue

Bobby Hanson
Member, Compassion Christian Church

Pastor Candace Hardnett
Agape Empowerment Ministries

Dr. Christopher Hendricks
History Professor, Georgia Southern University

Rev. Billy Hester
Asbury Memorial Church

Kathryn Johnson
Member, Compassion Christian Church

Dr. Otis S. Johnson
Former Mayor of Savannah

Roshi Paul Genki Kahn
Ancient Oaks Zen Community

Tom Kohler
Former Chair, Chatham-Savannah Citizens Advocacy

James Stanley Lester
Kairos Prison Ministry

Rexanna Lester and Kevin Ionno
Members, Unitarian Universalist Church of Savannah

Pastor Larry McDaniel
Executive Director, Old Savannah City Mission

Rev. Ben Martin
Wesley Monumental United Methodist Church

Helen O'Brien
Daughter of Mary O'Brian, Community Activist

Michael O'Neal
Member, Bahá'i Unity Center

Jermain Ray
Program Director, Old Savannah City Mission

Pastora Aida Reyes
Amanecer de Fe y Gloria Church

Chaplain Kenneth Rouche
City of Savannah Police Department

Rev. John Ruehl and Ruth Love
White Bluff Presebyterian Church

Malena Stone
Founder, People of Action Caring for Kids (P.A.C.K.)

Richard Towns
International Seamen's House

What was the process for selecting people to interview?

Throughout the 2024 project residency year, the project team connected with a diverse group of individuals actively engaged in faith-based initiatives and knowledge-sharing across Savannah. On-camera interviews were conducted with those who chose to participate, while the City of Savannah supported the effort by sharing information on its social media channels and extending an open invitation on its website for all residents to take part. The process was fully inclusive, ensuring that no applicants were turned away.

Will there be additional opportunities to participate?

The project team conducted six (6) separate days of interviews during 2024 with the final shooting date in September. No further interviews are planned at this time.

Where were these interviews filmed?

The film/video production process is always disruptive to the normal flow of any environment. The project team extends its gratitude to First Presbyterian Church for allowing us to use their music classroom for the duration of our project. 

How can I access the transcripts or video files of these interviews?

The City of Savannah Municipal Archives has made the transcripts and the timecoded full interview video files fully accessible via links within the archival collection finding aid/inventory. For additional information, please contact the Municipal Archives via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call (912) 651-6412.

Can I use the material as presented on this website for my own work?

Yes, you may use the material presented on this site for your own work, but only under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) license. This means:

  1. Attribution: You must provide appropriate credit to the original creator ("Savannah Faith In Action Residency Project"), include a link to this site ("www.interfaithsavannah.org"), include a link to the license, and indicate if any changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the original creator endorses you or your use. 

  2. NonCommercial: You may not use the material for any commercial purposes.

  3. NoDerivatives: If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you may not distribute the modified material.

If your intended use does not comply with these terms (e.g., commercial use or creating derivative works), you must seek additional permission from the copyright holder ("Savannah Faith In Action Residency Project"). Please use the contact form on this site to do so.

For further details about this license, please visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.

Can I use the original materials collected for this project for my own work?

All original content generated by this project is housed in the City of Savannah Municipal Archives. It is protected by copyright law. Anyone wishing to reproduce, republish, or use the materials beyond private study, educational use and scholarship, or research must obtain written permission in advance from the Municipal Archives by submitting the Request for Permission to Reproduce/Publish, failure to do so may result in copyright infringement. For additional information, please contact the Municipal Archives at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

What are the types/formats of the original video, image, and text files in the City Archives?

Transcripts: RTF (Rich Text Format) - will open in any text editor.

Time-coded Reference Videos: MP4 (H.264) @ 23.98 fps in Full HD (1920x1080) resolution. These will open and play natively in any default video player software on nearly any contemporary device or computer.

Camera Original Videos: MXF Sony XAVC-I in Rec709 color profile (S.Cinetone) @ 23.98 fps in UHD (3840x2160) resolution. All camera original material was shot over a chroma key backdrop (either green or blue, depending on interviewee's clothing). These files are suitable for use inside any modern video editing software such as Adobe Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve or Apple Final Cut Pro.

Headshot Stills: PNG in 3840x2160 resolution. There are two angles for each interview, and two versions - one is over a black background, and the other has an alpha channel for use over other backgrounds. These files will open in any image editing software. They are also direclty usable in web browsers, PowerPoint and many other programs.