Nets for Mulungwishi

It’s all the 'buzz' in the New Mexico Conference - raising enough money to purchase 15,755 lifesaving bed nets for the people of Mulungwishi, Congo.

The New Mexico Board of Global Ministries challenged the Conference this past year to provide bed nets to Mulungwishi. Bed nets protect people from mosquitoes carrying malaria. The Nothing But Nets initiative, already underway, has not reached the southern Congo area of Mulungwishi. The NM Annual Conference already helps support the school and seminary in this untouched area. Now, the Conference wants to make sure friends in the Congo have access to life-saving nets.

Following the initial challenge, Albuquerque District Superintendent Tom Nagle then issued a challenge to his fellow District Superintendents, Barry Dickens and Steve McElroy, to raise a combined Districts total of $157,550 by June. Churches and districts were encouraged to be creative in their efforts!

Each district has a goal determined by taking the cost of one net ($10) times the average worship attendance in the district as recorded in the 2009 Conference Journal.

 HERE'S HOW WE DID, NEW MEXICO:  (from the pen of Albq. D.S., Tom Nagle)

"When I heard that our Conference Board of Global Ministry had chosen New Mexico Nets for Mulungwishi as our 2010 Annual Conference mission project, I got excited.  This is a cause I believe in deeply.  And, the possibility of saving lives for $10 a net just seems like such a simple task.

But, I knew that Annual Conference offerings typically range from $200 to $300.  And, I wanted us to do better than that for this life-saving cause.  So I issued a challenge to my fellow District Superintendents.  'Let's encourage each church to raise $10 x their average worship service.  The Superintendent of the District that raises the highest percentage of their goal gets a free steak dinner, bought by the other two.'   Well, hearty congratulations to Rev. Steve McElroy and the El Paso District , who 'smoked' the other two!

Little did I understand how the churches of the conference would respond to this challenge.  I would have been happy, I suppose, with $15,000 to $20,000....you all absolutely blew me away.  We have raised for NM Nets for Mulungwishi --  GET THIS---

$88,000.00 !!!!

Wow!  Incredible!  What a great conference!   What a dedicated, generous bunch of United Methodists!!  Together, we will be saving over 8800 lives of children and families in Mulungwishi, Congo.

Thank you for your extaordinary response.  I am so proud to be a part of the family of the New Mexico Annual Conference. "