Steamboat Springs surpasses their goal by 50%!

We know that Imagine No Malaria is just one of many important causes that churches are asked to support, and that each congregation faces unique circumstances and challenges that affect their ability to raise the suggested $20 per member toward our Rocky Mountain Conference goal of $1.2 million. And so we are grateful when a church takes on that baseline goal with commitment and conviction, and thrilled when they surpass it by more than 50%!

Here's how Steamboat Springs UMC did it, submitted by member Dorothy Lindahl:

Just wanted to let you know what the Steamboat Springs UMC has been doing to support the Imagine No Malaria Campaign.  Our mission team set a goal of raising $8000 (approximately $20 per member as was suggested). 

On July 4th we set up a booth which included a bednet on the lawn of the church following the parade to let others know about the project.  We had a donation jar and literature and mosquitoes.  Next we advertised and showed the "Killer in the Dark" movie at the town library, with the children selling mosquitoes they had made in Sunday School.  At the UMW Fall Fare we offered a few items left from an Estate Sale. 

We have been taking coins in buckets on the third Sundays of the month called "Change for Change." We have a portable basketball hoop which is moved place to place in the church with a bucket for coins. A challenge was made to parents and kids to make a donation for every score made as they played sports. (Nets for Nets). At Christmas we offered cards for honor donations.

I don't have the exact figure we have collected but know it is more that $13,000. United Methodist Women gave $500 raised for mission work to the fund. This has been a joint project of the Mission Team and United Methodist Women. 

Congratulations and thanks to all who took part in these efforts, and praise God for an abundant return on your faithful work!

What has your church done so far to support the cause? What exciting plans do you have for the next several months? Please send stories and photos to kerry@rmcumc.com! 

New Year's Resolutions, or How to Save Lives in 2014

Happy New Year! Are you making any resolutions for 2014? The first day of the year always seems like a good opportunity to declare your intentions to be more healthy in mind, body, spirit, relationships, finances, and other important areas of life.

If you're looking for ideas on how to help proclaim God's love in the coming year, or want to share with family and friends what it means to be a United Methodist committed to putting faith into action, here are 10 ways to support Imagine No Malaria in 2014 - let me know in the comments if you take on one or more of these, or if you have other suggestions!

How to Save Lives in 2014

1. Schedule a monthly donation to Imagine No Malaria (make sure to check the box to indicate what church you're affiliated with). Remember:

• $10 Buys a life-saving insecticide-treated bed net
• $20 Pays for the cost of food and treatment of anemia in a pregnant woman with malaria
• $50 Provides malaria medication to treat ten adults
• $100 Covers the cost of an anti-malaria campaign in a local school
• $200 Trains Traditional Birth Attendants in malaria prevention and treatment
• $500 Provides all the resources for a one-day community leader training for 35-40 people on malaria prevention
• $28/month over three years adds up to a pledge of $1,000 that will save 100 lives - that's a whole community!

2. Send an email to your friends and family, telling them about the threat of malaria in Africa, what Imagine No Malaria is doing about it, and why you are supporting this cause. Invite them to join you in saving lives.

3. Like Imagine No Malaria - Rocky Mountain Conference on Facebook and follow @RMCbuzz on Twitter. Share or retweet a post at least once a month.

4. Host a screening of A Killer in the Dark, the documentary about the United Methodist Church's work to fight malaria in Africa. Invite friends, neighbors, coworkers, or church members to watch with you and discuss afterwards.

5. Talk to your pastor, Sunday school teacher, small group leader, or other church members to find out what your congregation is doing to support INM, and offer to help.

6. Make pipe cleaner mosquitoes with your own children or the church youth group. Sell them for donations (suggested: $5 each or 3 for $10) at church during coffee hour/fellowship time or as part of a bake sale or other event.

7. Contact your Senators and Representative in Congress to let them know that you support continued federal funding for global health work, including the President's Malaria Initiative. Tell the staff person you speak with that you are United Methodist and you are doing your part through Imagine No Malaria, and you hope the US government will continue to do its part to end this unnecessary source of suffering in our world.

8. Talk to leaders in your school, civic groups, local government, hospitals/clinics, or other congregations in your community to find out if they would like to partner with your church in saving children's lives in Africa.

9. Help your church leaders plan and put on an event that invites the whole community to come together in support of Imagine No Malaria. Possibilities include a basketball tournament, benefit concert, fundraising dinner, silent auction, knit-a-thon, variety show, or any creative option that will give people a chance to have fun while learning about malaria and giving generously.

10. Pray each week for those who suffer from malaria, for those who have lost loved ones, for the doctors, nurses, and community health workers who bring healing and hope, for those who are working in communication and advocacy, for improvements to infrastructure and social systems that will make health care more accessible for more people, and that Imagine No Malaria can be a powerful witness to God's desire for abundant life for all people as we help end deaths from malaria in Africa in our lifetime.

Thank you for whatever step you can take to help make abundant life more possible for our sisters and brothers in Africa. Together, we are bringing hope and healing to millions of people: a great testimony to the Good News of God's love made known in Jesus Christ!

The UMC and the Global Fund: a unique voice at the table

Bishop Bickerton Reports on UMC Leadership Role
at the International 4th Global Fund Replenishment Conference,
December 2013

Pittsburgh Area Bishop Thomas J. Bickerton, chair of the UMC's Global Health Initiative, shared the following report and his statement from the Global Fund Replenishment Conference with United Methodist Church leadership.  He shares it now with leadership in the Imagine No Malaria Campaign.

Dear Friends & Colleagues,

On Monday and Tuesday of this week I had the privilege of representing the people of The United Methodist Church at the 4th Global Fund Replenishment Conference in Washington, D.C.  This conference gathered under the theme “No Time to Lose: Sharing the Responsibility to Save Lives.”  This conference gathered representatives from across the world to share their commitment to the ongoing global fight against HIV/Aids, tuberculosis and malaria.

During the conference, these representatives sat at tables, each taking their respective turn in making a pledge from their organization.  China made their pledge.  So did Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, France, India, and the Netherlands.  Country after country took the microphone and made their pledge for the 2014-2016 cycle.  It was then that Nafsiah Mboi, the Indonesia Minister of Health and the Chair of the Global Fund Board said these words, “I now call upon the representative from The United Methodist Church.”
 
Our church sat with government and private sector representatives as the only faith-based partner at the table in the collaborative fight against HIV/Aids, tuberculosis, and malaria.  There is no doubt that there are other faith-based organizations that are working to eliminate killer diseases.  But we are the only ones that are pledging our resources, both financial and personnel, in a joint fight with governments and the private sector. 
 
After a while in the pledging conference, persons began looking at their cell phones and notes.  But when the United Methodist Church was named, all eyes turned our way.  It was a different voice, a different organization, a different pledge of commitment.  There is no doubt that as a faith-based partner, we play a critical role on the world scene in this ongoing fight to eliminate killer diseases.  We may not have the pledging capacity of a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.  We may not have the power of a large country.  But what we do have is an understanding of the local communities and villages that benefit from this collaborative effort.  What we do have is a relationship with people through traditional birth attendants, rural clinics, and hospitals.  What we do have is something a government or a private sector contributor does not have: the trust of the people.  Often we underestimate our worth.  We will not eliminate the killer diseases on our own.  But today it was very evident that the killer diseases will not be eliminated without us.  We are an essential piece in the puzzle of making the world a healthier place for all God’s children.

Below are the remarks I was privileged to share on your behalf and on behalf of all of our people.  In the midst of ongoing conflict and controversy within our church and throughout the world, there is a unifying effort taking place which requires everyone’s participation, even ours.  Today I was proud to be a United Methodist Christian.  As I left the meeting today I said a simple prayer, “Thank you God for letting me be a part of such a great church.”  I hope that this can be your prayer as well.
 
The Journey Continues,
 
Bishop Thomas J. Bickerton

Global Fund Replenishment Conference

Washington, D.C.

Pledging Remarks

Let me say a genuine word of gratitude on behalf of the people of The United Methodist church to the Global Fund for the opportunity to participate in this very important conference.

The United Methodist Church – with eleven and a half million members in the United States, Africa, Europe, and the Philippines currently has a campaign which is a holistic approach to fight malaria called “Imagine NO Malaria.”  Our goal is to raise $75 million dollars for this fight against malaria.  Part of the proceeds from this campaign is going to strengthen our United Methodist hospitals and clinics in Africa.  Another portion is going to the Global Fund.  The United Methodist Church has already contributed $8.1 million dollars to the Global Fund.  Based on the anticipated successful fundraising campaign of $75 million dollars, today The United Methodist Church is pledging another $19.9 million dollars to the Global Fund over the next three years.  This will bring our total contribution to $28 million dollars.

The United Methodist Church is the first faith-based organization to directly support the work of the Global Fund.  We are fully aware that collaboration among the governments and private sector partners around this table is a key in this fight against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.  None of us can eliminate these diseases of poverty on our own.

The United Methodist Church has developed health initiatives in Africa for more than a hundred years.  We provide clinics, hospitals, and community-based health services without regard to race, religion, or political creed.  This has been our calling and it is why we believe that support for indigenous health systems and infrastructures, especially on the continent of Africa, is essential to the success of the Global Fund.

As a church, we place great importance on community and faith-based health organizations and advocate for their role in the fight against HIV/Aids, tuberculosis, and malaria.  We are convinced that strategies developed on a national, or centralized level must also integrate and involve the local level, where solutions are often created and generated by local communities and people.  We want to make sure that partners such as local churches, mosques, temples, self-help groups, and schools are involved in meaningful ways in a country’s health coordination and service delivery.

Our financial commitment to the Global Fund is an affirmation of the efforts of faith-based organizations in the fight against HIV/Aids, tuberculosis, and malaria.  Churches and mosques exist in the smallest, most remote villages of sub-Saharan Africa.  Often they have no road access or electricity.  Yet, the church is there providing a significant presence and influence.  We are extremely committed to activating these community entities to support the Global Fund as well as national efforts to fight the diseases of poverty.  We believe that The United Methodist Church is in a unique position to see the challenges from both a global and local perspective, which is why we joyfully contribute to the Global Fund and also continue our church and community-based health services. We are committed to the promotion of the Global Fund in our churches around the world and continue to stand as a ready partner in delivering health services to the people who need it most.

More than 40% of the health infrastructure in Africa is run by faith organizations.  It is only in close cooperation with those systems that the Global Fund can make a difference.

I would ask all of the Global Fund sponsors and donors to work with the faith-based organizations and the civil society in eliminating deaths from HIV/Aids, tuberculosis, and malaria.  We are convinced that a collaborative effort is the right way at this place in history.  It is in a spirit of hope and partnership that we continue our pledge of $28 million dollars.

Thank you.

What we have accomplished

Since Imagine No Malaria first launched in 2010, we have funded anti-malaria programs and public health infrastructure in the areas of education, communication, prevention, and treatment in 16 countries in Africa. Just in 2012-2013, 12 United Methodist conferences in Africa have received grants to fund training, nets, medications, supplies, and more.

A new handout, the "Snapshot of Activity," breaks down not only how much we've raised and how it is being spent, but how the grants are made in ways that ensure accountability and sustainability.

It's important to note that much of the $60 million that has been committed to the overall campaign consists of goals set by annual conferences and local churches: while we are confident that these funds will come in as promised, they are not yet in the form of cash in hand that can be spent out.

Download the Snapshot of Activity for all the details, including a success story from Sierra Leone, and share with your family, friends, neighbors, and congregation how their gifts continue to be put to good use to save lives and transform communities across Africa.

Cheyenne Challenge

As an addition to last week's Progress Update & round-up of creative plans, I have to share this video made by the UMC pastors in Cheyenne, Wyoming. It was the funniest thing to come through my inbox last week.

The five pastors of the four UMCs in Cheyenne have put together not just a local fundraising challenge/competition, but also scripted, performed, filmed, and edited the first in what will be a series of 3 videos in which they discuss Imagine No Malaria in character as old-time frontier folks. Enjoy, and feel free to share as an inspiration for others!

Imagine No Malaria - Cheyenne UMC Challenge

Progress Update & Creative Plans

Thanks to the churches and individuals that have given, pledged, or set goals since Annual Conference, we continue to make tremendous progress toward our fundraising goals:

• The overall Imagine No Malaria campaign has raised $53 million in gifts and pledges toward its total goal of $75 million. 
• Rocky Mountain Conference has received gifts, pledges, and church goals totaling $594,121 so far, which puts us at 49.5% of our goal! 
• This includes an individual matching gift of $50,000 from a donor affiliated with a Denver-area church, and another $45,500 committed by members of that church toward the matched amount so far!

Churches are also making plans to Advocate, Raise Funds, and Engage Community in all kinds of creative ways, including:

Cameron UMC volunteers with Kunle Taiwo, Sarah and Kristi
Kinnison, at the (Denver) South Pearl Street Farmer's Market

• Hosting Imagine No Malaria as part of their booth at the weekly farmer's market (Cameron Church, Denver)
• A knit/crochet-a-thon at Platteville UMC
• Donations from an annual Trunk or Treat event, plus a "Whack a Mosquito" activity involving beating up an old car (First UMC, Longmont)
• Benefit concerts featuring church and/or community musicians (Mountain View, Boulder; Good Shepherd, Thornton)
• A Western Slope youth camp-out where participants have to solve real-life problems as family groups based on assigned identities and circumstances faced by families in Africa

I know many other churches are planning creative and exciting activities - please email me at kerry [at] rmcumc.com to share your story, along with any photos or videos you may take!

And if you want to learn more about how to get involved, consider joining us for one of the following training/information sessions (see full list here):

August 29	Thursday	6:30pm	Hope UMC, Greenwood Village, CO
September 12	Thursday	6:00pm	First UMC, Durango, CO
September 13	Friday	6:30pm	Hotchkiss UMC, Hotchkiss, CO
September 18	Wednesday	6:30pm	First UMC, Greeley, CO

Together, we are transforming and saving lives!

Would you walk 100 miles to save lives?

Rev. Will Morris, pastor at Burns Memorial UMC in Aurora, Colorado, has challenged his congregation to a unique undertaking: walk, run, bike, or swim 100 miles to raise money for Imagine No Malaria. He just completed his own challenge, by walking 100 miles in less than a week! Here's his story, in his own words:

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Several years ago, after a sermon and subsequent Bible Study discussion on caring for our physical bodies, I started the Kingdom Walkers. This is a small group of people who meet most Sundays after church (in good weather) to walk and share fellowship -- 30-90 minutes depending upon the interest and fitness of the walkers. We handed out pedometers and had various recognition pins for walking milestones. Recently interest has waned, so Imagine No Malaria seemed like an ideal reason to rejuvenate this group and take on an important ministry at the same time.

The 100 Miles Toward No Malaria Challenge was born. Here's how I presented it to our church:

"I challenge members of our congregation to walk, run, or bicycle 100 miles in support of our efforts to raise money for Imagine No Malaria. Alone or in pairs or in a group, take on the challenge of walking, running, or bicycling 100 miles (any combination of movement). Take the time you need to make this happen: one week, several weeks, one month – our goal is to celebrate your accomplishments and our donations on Mother’s Day, May 12, 2013. If you want to take longer to do the 100 Mile Challenge, that’s OK, too. Get a pedometer and challenge yourself. Record your mileage on paper and bring it to church. If you don’t want to walk, please consider sponsoring someone who can walk –  1¢ per mile, 10¢ per mile, $1 per mile, you name the amount. Here’s my goal: I plan to do 100 miles in one week. Jane (my wife) and I pledge $1 for each mile of that 100.  

– Pastor Will Morris"

So, after showing several short segments of the Imagine No Malaria DVD, we started off on the 100 Mile Challenge. Several people have accepted the challenge with walking; one older gentleman is using his regular swims as his approach. Two people sponsored my personal challenge.

I have always enjoyed walking and running as a time of prayer and thought, so this was a good opportunity for me. I have never done 100 miles in one week, so this was a stretch. As it turned out it took me 5 days to reach 100 miles. Lots of hours on the road, but it meant I could pray for those who have died from, and who live in the fear of malaria; and for those who are educating people and helping to prevent this disease. God has blessed me with a healthy body and I am grateful to be able to do something to help others.

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John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, believed that caring for people's bodies is as important as caring for their souls. What a wonderful way to demonstrate God's care for ALL bodies, by encouraging healthful behavior in our own community and giving of our resources for those who suffer from a preventable and treatable disease in other parts of the world! Blessings to all the Kingdom Walkers at Burns Memorial UMC!

Mary & Martha: A story of two moms united to fight malaria

Share an evening with Oscar award-winning actress Hilary Swank!

Watch the Trailer Now

No plans this weekend? Throw a party to save lives! 

Gather your friends to watch the HBO premiere of Mary and Martha, a dramatic story about two courageous women. The movie stars Oscar winner Hilary Swank and Oscar nominee Brenda Blethyn.

The TV drama is about two moms – one in Africa and one in the United States – whose lives become intertwined as they face the same reality: malaria kills both of their sons.

Offer guests a “night on the town” in front of your TV. Not only will it be an entertaining opportunity for friends to sample your best party recipes; you may also open eyes to the human pain and suffering caused by this preventable disease.

Movie watchers can join the cause and donate $10 to Imagine No Malaria by texting ‘MOM’ to 27722. 

If they (or you!) are moved to do more, contact Field Coordinator, Rev. Kerry Greenhill, to learn about upcoming volunteer trainings and other ways to get involved: call 303-733-3736 x152 or email kerry (at) rmcumc.com.

“Mary and Martha” premieres Saturday, April 20, at 8 p.m. EDT on HBO. (It is also scheduled to air Sunday, April 21, at 12:45 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. and Tuesday, April 23, at 10 a.m. Check local listings for your time zone.)

If you have been looking for a fun way to take the next step in being involved with Imagine No Malaria, this is it! Get exclusive content, including a movie-watching party planning kit, costume tips and more, from http://www.imaginenomalaria.org/maryandmartha/.