Resources

Imagine No Malaria is a $75 million effort of The United Methodist Church to eliminate malaria deaths in Africa in this generation.  Achieving this goal starts with you!

Want to get involved in the Rocky Mountain Conference's campaign? Wonderful! Here are a few suggestions and resources. Please contact Rev. Kerry Greenhill, Field Coordinator, with any questions: call 303-733-3736 x152 or email kerry [at] rmcumc.com.

1. Tell me more about Imagine No Malaria
2. What should churches do?

• Resources for Lent/Easter/World Malaria Day
• Resources for Advent/Christmas

3. What can I do?

Tell me more about Imagine No Malaria

• Check out a quick overview of Imagine No Malaria (p. 1 in English, p. 2 in Spanish)
• Read a Malaria Fact Sheet
• Check out our previous posts about the launch of the Imagine No Malaria campaign in the Rocky Mountain Conference
• See how Imagine No Malaria is part of our History of Healing (and learn what happened to Nothing But Nets)
• Visit the Imagine No Malaria website
• Order materials like wristbands, greeting cards, poster brochures, DVDs, or posters 

What should churches do?

We suggest five simple steps to help you make an impact (view & download this handout).

STEP 1 – DECIDE TO SAVE LIVES. Setting a goal is the easiest but most critical step.  It is not a commitment, but rather a target. So, aim high. Typically churches set goals based on the estimate that $10 saves a life. We encourage churches to start at 10 lives per attendee ($100 each), but many churches take on a goal of 25 or 50 lives per attendee. Here are some other ideas for setting your goal.

STEP 2 – RAISE AWARENESS. Building awareness of malaria and the methods to eliminate this disease is vital to a successful effort. Share information about malaria and how Imagine No Malaria is our opportunity to truly empower the people of Africa to beat this terrible disease.  Here are a couple awareness-building ideas you can use:

• Request a speaker to give a presentation, or be trained yourself
• Create a bed net display in lobby or narthex 
• Place information in bulletins weekly and show videos from the DVD or our YouTube page 
• Lemon-“AID” stands, bake sales, chili cook-offs, basketball tournaments
• Sleep-out to end malaria (includes instructions for making a bed net from tulle)

Creativity and the experience of your church will come in handy to maximize this grassroots fundraising effort. Here's a longer list of sample events and activities.

Access a whole folder of Materials for Local Churches to help raise awareness, or check out these Activities for Children & Youth. 

If you're making Imagine No Malaria a mission focus for Lent/Easter/World Malaria Day:

• Guide for Lent (developed by INM-Iowa Conference)
• Giving from Abundance Calendar
• Bulletin Inserts
• Call to Action Poster
• Church-wide letter
• Lent slider image
• World Malaria Day Resources

Looking ahead to Advent and Christmas:

• Check out these Advent Worship & Study Resources
• Find weekly images, videos, crafts, and other files in this folder
• Use this bulletin insert for Christmas Eve (contact Rev. Kerry Greenhill if you want to edit the wording).
• Consider hosting an Alternative Gift Fair, where church members can "shop" for ways to support Imagine No Malaria at different levels (and other causes, if you want to be inclusive!), receiving card inserts to let friends and family know how a donation in their honor could be used.

STEP 3 – UNITE FAITH AND WORKS.
IMPACT 100: Encouraging members to “Impact 100” is the quickest and easiest way to save the most lives.  A pledge of just $28 a month (or one-time gift of $1,000) will save the lives of 100 children.  Impact 100 events can be a simple reception or a black-tie gala – it’s really up to you.

• Host one or more Impact 100 events prior to your Sunday to Save Lives.  Send personal invitations and follow-up to ensure attendance. Invite at least one representative from each class or small group in your church. A personal request at small, in-home receptions or similar events is the most effective means of garnering support. 
• Host an Impact 100 dessert, spaghetti dinner, or similar event at church: play a video, and ask guests to Impact 100. 
• Make sure there are invitations for people to give at all different levels, both less than and greater than the $1000 pledge of Impact 100. Check out this "Gift of Life" handout that gives a glimpse of what gifts at different levels could help make possible.
• SUNDAY TO SAVE LIVES: This special Sunday service will serve as a celebration of your church’s efforts. Make sure members are aware of this special Sunday by sending a letter from the pastor along with a brochure to all members one week prior.  As part of the celebration, share a special sermon, prayers, and possibly a video.  Finally, distribute donation envelopes in all bulletins and collect a special offering for Imagine No Malaria. 

STEP 4 – SEND YOUR GIFTS AND MAKE AN IMPACT. Make it count! Complete the Record of Contributions, and make two copies. Keep one for your records and mail one to the conference office: RMC – Imagine No Malaria, 6110 Greenwood Plaza Blvd, Greenwood Village, CO 80111. Then send in your church’s total offering with the original form to: UMC – Imagine No Malaria, P.O. Box 440544, Nashville, TN 37244. 

STEP 5 – CONTINUE THE MOVEMENT. It will take continued fundraising activities to achieve our goal of eliminating malaria deaths in Africa. Plan an annual event to support INM, such as an Advent offering or a 5K race each April 25th – World Malaria Day.

What can I do?

• Pray about how God may be leading you to take part in this extraordinary effort to offer healing and abundant life in Christ's name.
• Donate what you can - just $10 saves the life of a child; $100 saves an extended family of 10 from suffering; $1,000, or just $28/month for 3 years, can bring health and wholeness to a community of 100 people.
• Advocate for those who have no voice in our society (Proverbs 31:8-9) by sharing with friends, family, church, community groups, and legislators what you know about malaria and the difference we can make through Imagine No Malaria. Join the "SWAT Team" by texting SWAT to 27722, or find other advocacy ideas here.
• Raise funds as an individual, family, church, Sunday school class, or small group - the more people you invite to be part of this movement, the more lives we can save! See above for church fundraising ideas.
• Engage your community to learn about malaria and take action. Many people outside the church are hungry to make a difference, and we have an opportunity to build new relationships with those people by inviting them to partner with us to save lives. This is part of building awareness, advocacy, and fundraising, but it is also an opportunity for us to grow as disciples and to witness to the good news of a God who desires that all people might live life to the fullest. See above for sample events and activities.
• Volunteer:  Training/information sessions have been held in each district throughout the summer and fall, and will soon be available online as a webinar. (View the training session PowerPoint here.) If you can lend your time and passion to serve as a District Organizer (contacting churches to connect them with resources and answer questions), Ambassador (volunteer speaker who responds to requests for presentations in your area), or Local Church Leader, call 303-389-9466 or email dmmassistant [at] rmcumc.com today! And check out these Materials for Volunteers for further resources.