We joined Literacy Connexus . . .
We had 300 hands, 1,200 woods screws, 300 pieces of sandpaper and lots of laughter. The result - 150 bookshelves to encourage children along their literacy journey. The project took place during a missions day camp hosted by WMU at the Southern Baptist Convention. While national WMU was responsible for the overall event, state WMUs led different segments. WMU of Texas hosted crafts and ministry projects. In a partnership endeavor with Literacy Connexus, we led children to build bookshelves.
It is hard to convey the excitement of the 150 children, mostly ministers' kids. As the children gathered in the morning, I told one little boy we would be building with wood and tools. He quickly responded, "I know it's fake." I just could not convince him we were actually going to build something real. Imagine his excitement when he got to use a power drill. Here's what Carolyn Porterfield (WMU of Texas) said about the project: There was real determination and commitment to the task of sanding the wood and putting the bookshelves together. The children listened intently as Lester Meriwether told the purpose behind the bookshelves. Because these children have access to many books in their homes, it was surprising to some that there might be children who didn't have this resource available to them. They were eager to help.
Obviously, they enjoyed the activity because some wanted to work on bookshelves the second day. While it was a fun activity, it was also a missions development moment for them. They were able find great joy in doing something for someone else in Jesus' name.
The children poured their hearts into the ministry project. They signed their creations and wrote notes of encouragement. The bookshelves were dispersed in different communities around New Orleans. Before bookshelves were packed for transport, day camp children prayed for the children who would receive a bookcase. Their tender prayers touched the volunteers. The experience offered a three-fold blessing for all who participated - the missions day camp children, the volunteers, and the recipients of the ministry. We pray the day camp children will look for ways in their own communities to strengthen literacy missions and share Christ. As WMU of Texas, we are blessed by our partnership with Literacy Connexus. We sincerely believe we can do more working together. We look forward to future opportunities. Sandy Wisdom-Martin Executive Director-Treasurer WMU of Texas |