Idea Exchange
Here at Williston United Methodist Church, Williston, we have a small but active United Methodist Women. Our focus, of course, is on missions, so this year we decided to do something different for Mother’s Day in our church.
In the past we have recognized our mothers with well-deserved flowers and words of appreciation. This year we thought our mothers would be even more honored by gifts that would save the lives of children. Mothers especially know how precious each child’s life is.
One of our members, Chris Dunaway, shared a pattern for a “mosquito” made from a clothespin, cream and brown tulle (netting) for wings, and two wiggly eyes. Our youth made 50 of these, attaching a small message on the back that read, “A gift in your honor to Imagine No Malaria.”
For Children’s Church the Sunday before Mother’s Day, the Rev. Cindy Fuller used a shrimp net to imitate a mosquito net. She draped it over her and the group of children as she talked about the great need for mosquito nets for children in Africa who do not have homes like ours that keep the mosquitoes out.
Deborah Edwards, our lay leader, also spoke one Sunday sharing that the cost of one net is $10 and how these nets can save many lives. For several Sundays, our church bulletin included the information that members could honor their mothers for Mother’s Day by making a donation and receiving a “mosquito.” UMW ladies held baskets with mosquitoes as people left church for several Sundays. Some mothers even told their children that instead of gifts for Mother’s Day, they would appreciate these mosquitoes!
Imagine No Malaria
The response was heartwarming and inspiring. Almost $800 was raised, plus our church members were educated and became aware of this tragic problem and how they could help.
We are sharing this story in hopes that other churches will adopt this idea to raise more money for Imagine No Malaria. After all, helping others in Jesus’ name is what United Methodists are all about, isn’t it?
To make your own mosquito, cut one cream and one brown 8.5-inch circle from tulle (fine nylon net). With one circle on top of the other, scrunch the circles together and clip in the middle with the clothespin. Glue two wiggly eyes on the top. Use computer generated address labels and place the message on back. Optional: Glue a magnet on back of the clothespin.
– By Laura Buice, UMW vice chair, Williston UMC
