Utah - we can't do it without U!

United Methodists in Utah have waited patiently all year for a chance to get all the details about Imagine No Malaria and how to join this extraordinary effort to save lives. Some churches have already jumped in and begun raising awareness and funds, while others are eager to learn more. Your wait is almost over!

Next week, I will be offering two training/information sessions in northern Utah - details are below. I regret that time constraints don't allow me to travel to all corners of the state, but I hope folks from several churches will be able to travel to join us in either Ogden or Sandy. I still plan to offer another webinar before the end of the year for those who have been unable to attend a training in person.
 
Imagine No Malaria: YOUtah Can Make It Happen!
It's time to GET INVOLVED!  Learn more about Imagine No Malaria and how you can help save lives. This training/information session begins with a detailed overview of the extraordinary effort by the people of The United Methodist Church to end deaths from malaria in Africa. You will then learn ways to engage your church and community, as well as some of the different volunteer opportunities available. (Attending a training does not obligate you to take on any specific role!)

When & Where:Friday, November 8 at 6:30pm: Community UMC, Ogden
Saturday, November 9 at 10:30am: Hilltop UMC, Sandy
Who:

These trainings are appropriate for anyone who wants to learn more about Imagine No Malaria, as well as for those who want to lead efforts in the local church or volunteer at the district level.

RSVP:
Please email Kerry Greenhill (Kerry@rmcumc.com) by 9am on Wednesday, November 6 to make sure we have enough materials.

Hope to see you soon!

Engaging young people around the world

Students in Anya Greenhill's
Year 12 Geography class,
East Doncaster Secondary College

In September, I (Rev. Kerry Greenhill, Field Coordinator) had an opportunity to talk about Imagine No Malaria with the very bright and engaged students of a 12th-grade Geography class in Australia. My cousin's wife, Anya Greenhill, is a teacher at East Doncaster Secondary College, and she decided to spend their final unit of the school year (which runs January to December) on malaria.

The wonders of 21st-century communication technology (Skype) allowed me to give a 15-minute presentation about the challenge of malaria in Africa, and how the people of The United Methodist Church are responding through Imagine No Malaria, and then spend another 30 minutes or so answering questions from students.

It was an excellent experience, in spite of some minor challenges in volume levels, and as I have found to be true in other settings, the young people asked questions that were every bit as insightful and probing as questions asked by adults. They had done their homework in researching both the topic of malaria and some of the background of Imagine No Malaria, and we had what I experienced as a thoughtful conversation across the thousands of miles of Pacific Ocean that separate us. Anya has set a goal to invite them to get involved in the global fight against malaria in one way or another, and it was clear that they are well on their way.

If you are a teacher or otherwise connected with a local school in some way, consider whether it might be possible to invite the students, faculty, and community to join you in learning more about malaria and in taking action to end preventable deaths from this killer disease of poverty. I'd be glad to offer support and resources (as soon as I return from vacation on Oct. 24) - just send me an email or give me a call at the Rocky Mountain Conference office!

Advent is coming!

Advent is coming! Yes, it's just October, but we know many pastors and congregations like to plan ahead.

Advent worship resources (prayers, wreath liturgy, Bible study, and sermon starters) are now available! Download the file here.

And in a couple weeks, we'll have information about some adorable teddy bears and pajamas you can order as Christmas gifts that also benefit Imagine No Malaria.

Meanwhile, start letting friends and family know that if they want to make a one-time gift to Imagine No Malaria, consider doing so on Giving Tuesday, December 3. We recently learned that The Advance will MATCH EVERY GIFT made through their website on that day! Local churches can be credited, and gifts can be made in honor or in memory of someone. To make your gift count double, make sure to give at this page on that day. (You can also click on the "Giving Tuesday" tab on this site, above and to the right, which will take you directly to the page.)

If you haven't heard much about The Advance before, it's just one of the channels for giving to important United Methodist projects around the world like Imagine No Malaria:

The Advance is an official program of The United Methodist Church for voluntary, designated, second-mile giving. Through The Advance, United Methodist annual conferences, districts, local churches, and organizations, as well as individuals and families, may choose to support mission programs or mission personnel with their financial gifts. Each Advance project has been vetted and approved by Global Ministries and Advance staff.

The Advance is an official program of The United Methodist Church for voluntary, designated, second-mile giving. Through The Advance, United Methodist annual conferences, districts, local churches, and organizations, as well as individuals and families, may choose to support mission programs or mission personnel with their financial gifts. Each Advance project has been vetted and approved by Global Ministries and Advance staff. - See more at: http://www.umcmission.org/Give-to-Mission/The-Advance#sthash.G2gKyixd.dpuf

Learn more at http://www.umcmission.org/Give-to-Mission/The-Advance.

Stay tuned for updates on these great Advent and Christmas resources!

Greeley Training Sep. 18: Confirmed

Our thoughts and prayers are with all who have lost loved ones, homes, livelihoods, pets, or belongings in the flooding this past week. May you know God's love and grace through the caring of others, even in the midst of grief.

In case you haven't seen it already, you can get updates on how churches across the affected area are doing, and how you can help, at http://rmcumc.org/COfloods.

AND, even knowing that many in the district have much more pressing concerns right now, we are going ahead with tomorrow night's training/information session at First UMC in Greeley: 6:30pm on Wednesday, September 18; address is 917 10th Ave, Greeley CO 80631.


The main roads into town (25, 85, 34) are all open, the church is high and dry, and for those who are able to get there, we will continue the work of educating, advocating, raising funds and engaging community on behalf of our sisters and brothers who suffer from malaria in Africa.

There is still room for more to join us if you have been thinking about it and are available; email kerry (at) rmcumc.com or comment here to let me know if you're coming.

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!

Advocate: Lift up your voice!

The need to not only sustain but increase global funding for malaria control efforts is tremendous. The United Methodist Church will raise $75 million by 2015, a major undertaking for our denomination. But the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that a total of $5.1 billion is needed each year in order to continue making progress against the disease. Read more about the need in this WHO report.

As Katie Dawson, Iowa Field Coordinator for Imagine No Malaria, explains,

While the money we raise with Imagine No Malaria makes a huge impact, one of the things you can DO to help our effort is to advocate for global health funds from our U.S. government.

The budgets from the President, House and Senate for 2014 all include $1.65 billion for the Global Fund and between $650-670 million for the President's Malaria Initiative.

Those funds are available for our United Methodist conferences in Africa, our health boards, our hospitals and clinics to receive through grants. Because of our work raising funds and our incredible distribution and connection on the ground, we are a voice at the table with the Global Fund.

Talk to YOUR legislator in support of funding for global health in the budget to help save lives.

Some 100 anti-malaria advocates visited Capitol Hill in
December 2012 to speak to legislators about global health
funding.

While phone calls and hand-written letters still have the greatest impact in conveying how important the topic is to you, you can also sign an online petition in about a minute at the General Board of Church and Society's "Take Action" site.

Proverbs 31:8-9 offers this instruction (from The Message paraphrase by Eugene Peterson):

“Speak up for the people who have no voice,
    for the rights of all the down-and-outers.
Speak out for justice!
    Stand up for the poor and destitute!”

How will you lift up your voice on behalf of those who have no voice? Join us in advocating for global health funding to fight malaria!