'Change the World' weekend set April 24-25

Amigos Days, which pairs suburban and urban churches working together to repair inner city homes, will be one of the featured mission opportunities of "Change the World Weekend."

BY REV. MARJI BISHIR
Assoc. Dir. Connectional Ministries.

Worldwide United Methodism has been handed the following challenge:

What if … on one weekend all around the world, 11 million United Methodists came together to work in their local communities.

What if…we unite globally to fight a preventable, treatable disease that kills one child every 30 seconds?

Would you Help?

April 24-25, 2010. Build community locally, Fight malaria globally. Change the world.

What committed people can do in the North Texas Conference:

• April 23-24 are the last two days of Amigos Days, a special NTC initiative to repair or restore inner-city Dallas homes. To learn more about how you can help or how to become a part of Amigos Days, please contact Ann Meyer, Amigos Coordinator of NTCUMC, at 214-683-5409 or amigoscoordinator@ntcumc.org

• The Dallas Crop Walk is Sunday, April 25. To get a sign-up packet, contact Betty Cordell at hhgleaning@sbcglobal.net. Registration for the Walk is 2:00 p.m. at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church gym with Step-Off at 2:30 p.m. The walk will be along Turtle Creek.

• The North Texas Council on Youth Ministry is hosting a mission day on April 24th at Arapaho UMC, Richardson, to pack truck loads of rice and beans for distribution to local food pantries. Time is 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. To participate, contact Georgia Harrison at gharrison@hcumc.org.

• Members outside the Dallas area are encouraged to plan a work project in their communities on April 24. Then list it on the Change the World event webpage. (See the details in the website listed below.)

• Pastors and churches are also urged to focus the April 25th worship message on helping those in need to fight malaria. April 25 is World Malaria Day. Get involved with the Imagine No Malaria campaign. Contact Maria Brocato at mbrocato@umcom.org to receive more information on promoting this special UMC project to eliminate malaria in partnership with the United Nations Foundation and other world partners. Her office is located in the NTC Ministry Center, and she is available to visit with local churches about this program. Call 800-969-8201 to schedule an appointment.

To learn more about Change The World Event, go to http://www.umcom.org/site/c.LZJ9PFKmG/b.5771097/k.4D8B/Change_The_World_Event/apps/ka/ct/contactcustom.asp.

Ugandan Children’s Choir Concert at St. Andrew UMC

The Mwangaza Children’s Choir from Uganda, a group of talented,
spirited children who tour on behalf of Africa Renewal Ministries, will
share their message of hope through song and dance at a 1:30–3:00
p.m. concert April 25 at St. Andrew UMC, Plano. The 22 children are
between the ages of eight and 12. They represent the needy,
orphaned and poverty-stricken children of their country. There is no
admission charge and all are invited. St. Andrew UMC is located at
5801 W. Plano Pkwy.