1MISSION Project About to Launch

Our IMPACT students are partnering with 1MISSION to raise money to build a home for a family in Mexico. I had a phone conversation yesterday with a representative from 1MISSION and our campaign will launch in the near future.

We had the opportunity to kick off our fundraising last Saturday at a karate tournament hosted at our church. In just one day, we were able to raise $500. This weekend we start offering concessions for our Upward basketball games.  While I don’t envision we will raise all that we need through our concessions, it should give us a great boost toward our goal.

We are looking to get the word out to our friends and church family and invite a lot of people to play a small part in reaching our goal.  1MISSION encourages students to give up birthdays, to run a race or create a project to help raise funds for family in needs.

We have a new link to our campaign page – IMPACT 1MISSION Campaign page.

The link may not be live right now, but I will keep everyone updated when our campaign launches.  Hope you will be involved!

IMPACT to Partner with 1Mission

IMPACT Student Ministry is kicking off 2015 with a partnership with an organization called 1MISSION. We learned about 1MISSION through our involvement with Christ In Youth at their junior high BELIEVE Convention and Summer MOVE Conference.

1MISSION is an organization that gives people living in poverty the opportunity to earn a house by serving in their community. The leaders of 1MISSION are Christ followers and their overall vision and mission are driven by a commitment to modeling Jesus’ passion for serving the poor. By partnering with 1MISSION, we have committed to raise $4000 by the end of April to build a home for a family in Mexico. Later this month we will find out the specific family we will be serving.

While 1MISSION works within the communities to help families, our role will be to support them by raising the funds needed. We are encouraging our students, small groups and church family to come up with ways to raise the necessary funds.

One way we will accomplish this is through our Upward Concessions. For a number of years, our church family has organized an Upward basketball program for the kids and families in our church and community.  About three years ago our student ministry began hosting a concession stand during the games. This year’s concessions will support 1MISSION.

We are asking two things of our students and families – to donate items to the concession stand and to volunteer to serve

We are also encouraging our students to come up with creative ways to reach our $4000 goal. Here are a few ideas:

• Donate Your Birthday. One thing 1MISSION encourages students to do is donate their birthdays. Rather than ask for gifts for a birthday, students can ask friends and family to donate to 1MISSION.

• Share Our Campaign Site with Others. 1MISSION will provide us with an online campaign page that students can share over social media. When the site goes live in February, people can donate directly toward our $4000 goal. Here’s a sneak peek at our Campaign Page.

• Be Creative. Perhaps a small group will offer child care to families and donate the money to 1MISSION. Maybe a student will create a hand-made product where the proceeds will benefit 1MISSION. We know our students are creative and want to encourage them to come up with ideas they can run with either with their small group, a few friends, with family or just on their own.

I’m looking forward to see how God will move within our students and church family to provide a home for a family we may never meet face to face.  $4000 seems like a pretty big number to reach in four months, but I’m anticipating some exciting things taking place in the coming days.

Here is a brief video that gives an overview of 1MISSION and the work they are doing.  Please feel free to join us as we embark on this adventure.

<p><a href=”http://vimeo.com/37929298″>More Than A House</a> from <a href=”http://vimeo.com/1mission”>1MISSION</a&gt; on <a href=”https://vimeo.com”>Vimeo</a&gt;.</p>

TOMS One Day Without Shoes

Today is TOMS One Day Without Shoes. My daughter, along with other students at Clinton-Massie High School, are participating in this event by going without shoes to raise awareness of children lacking access to education and good health. TOMS was started with the idea that for each pair of TOMS purchased, a pair of shoes would be given to a child in need.

One of the unique opportunities our students have today is to be as globally connected as they are. When I was in high school, the awareness of global issues was not nearly as prevalent as it is today. One Day Without Shoes is one opportunity for students to engage in making a difference in the lives of people they will most likely never meet.

One side benefit for students is that (hopefully) it makes them more grateful for the opportunities we do have. My decision this morning was not if I had shoes to wear, but what pair of shoes I would put on.

Great job to the students of Clinton-Massie and students all across the US who are participating today.