United Methodists in Texas raise $1 million for nets

Bishops Benjamin Boni and Janice Riggle Huie affirm a proclamation signed in May establishing a covenant relationship between the Côte d'Ivoire and Texas annual (regional) conferences. UMNS photos by Eleanor Colvin.

By Eleanor L. Colvin*

THE WOODLANDS, Texas (UMNS)--The groundbreaking covenant partnership between the Texas and Côte d'Ivoire annual conferences of The United Methodist Church has yielded its first fruits--more than $1 million in donations from Texans to fight malaria in West Africa.

At $10 a net, the gift will buy more than 100,000 nets planned for distribution in Côte d'Ivoire in November as part of a national vaccination campaign. The distribution will include another 400,000 nets authorized by the United Nations Foundation through the Nothing But Nets fundraising campaign.

The United Methodist Board of Global Ministries will play a key role in helping with the logistics of the distribution through its Health and Welfare unit and the United Methodist Committee on Relief. The Texas Annual (regional) Conference has commissioned a team of 35 clergy and laity, representing all nine districts of the conference, to help distribute the nets.

The Texas funding was generated sooner than expected. Members of the Texas conference pledged at its 2007 legislative meeting to raise $1 million in two years to cover Côte d'Ivoire with insecticide-treated mosquito nets. During its 2008 meeting held May 25-28 near Houston, a 60-member Ivorian choir led the celebration that the goal had been surpassed in a single year.

"The spirit of support for this effort among our congregations has been energizing and exciting," said Rev. Cynthia Harvey, director of the Texas Conference Center for Missional Excellence. "More than 350 churches have supported Nothing But Nets financially, and many continue to do so."

The $1.1 million from Texas also is donated through Nothing But Nets, a campaign launched in 2006 with founding partners that include the people of The United Methodist Church, the U.N. Foundation, the National Basketball Association's NBA Cares and Sports Illustrated magazine. Thus far, the campaign has raised more than $20 million for nets, including more than $4 million from United Methodists.

Nothing But Nets and the involvement of United Methodists and other partners, including the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and Union for Reform Judaism, was highlighted in a front-page story on June 2 in The New York Times.

Casting a wider net
Bishop Janice Riggle Huie explained to the 2008 Texas conference legislative assembly how the power of partnerships is helping in the fight to eradicate malaria in Africa. She shared about the additional 400,000 nets being sent to Côte d'Ivoire from other donations to Nothing But Nets.

"In addition to that, the General Board of Global Ministries is giving money to offset travel and distribution costs, so everything you've given goes for Nothing But Nets only," she said.

Dr. Allah Kouadio Remi, the Côte d'Ivoire minister of health who helped identify regions to receive the first shipment, affirmed the need for insecticide-treated nets. He told a partnership meeting in April that 27 percent of children in Côte d'Ivoire sleep under bed nets, but only 7 percent of those nets are treated to repel insects. Of children under the age of 5, he said, 17 percent sleep under bed nets, and only 3 percent of those nets are treated. Covering the entire country will require 7 million nets.

"Our goal is to still cover the country of Côte d'Ivoire," Huie told the Texas assembly. "We're not there yet, but friends, God is good … and with God all things are possible."

In addition to commissioning the team who will help distribute the nets, the conference affirmed the covenant relationship between the Texas and Côte d'Ivoire conferences. Huie of Texas and Bishop Benjamin Boni of Côte d'Ivoire signed a proclamation outlining the scope of the relationship and read the document aloud in French and English. The primary focus areas are evangelism on both continents; eradicating the diseases of poverty--HIV/AIDS, malaria, measles and tuberculosis--in Africa; and educational support of children, youth and pastors in Côte d'Ivoire.

The covenant signing was ratified with a standing ovation of Ivorians and Americans waving handkerchiefs, or "spirit cloths," found at any Ivorian celebration.

"May we give the world a glimpse of the kingdom of God united in faith and in service," Boni said. "In spite of our differences, in faith we know with Jesus we have the strength we need. If we unite and work together and show our solidarity, we will always be strong."

'Truly a partnership'
Harvey said the spirit of partnership has been visible as the relationship has been defined and will remain a focal point of the net delivery.

"This is truly a partnership. We both give and receive. It's a covenant relationship," Harvey said. "For every person from the U.S., we want to have an Ivorian partner so that together they can distribute nets. This will not be a Texas Annual Conference distribution of nets in the Ivory Coast, but a delivery of the partnership."

Because pregnant woman and children age 5 and younger are most susceptible to the mosquito-borne disease, the distribution this fall will target those two populations. Another fruit of partnering is the free vaccinations that the Measles Initiative will provide in conjunction with the net delivery.

The two United Methodist conferences are working to distribute the nets in cooperation with the Côte d'Ivoire Ministry of Health, U.N. Foundation, CARE, UNICEF, Board of Global Ministries, United Methodist Communications and other organizations.

"The work before us is bigger than we are," Harvey said.

Donations to support the Nothing But Nets effort in Cote d'Ivoire can be made online through the Advance, the designated giving arm of The United Methodist Church. Give to Advance #982015 at http://www.givetomission.org/. Checks can be placed in church collection plates or mailed to GCFA, P.O. Box 9069, New York, NY 10087.

*Colvin is the director of communications for the Texas Annual Conference.