We opened up the meeting in song, singing "Bring Forth the Kingdom."
Then came announcements…..
-Fair Trade Fair will be Dec. 7th-11th during Chapel Break and 4:30-6:00. Volunteers needed to run the tables. Remember to sign up when a sheet is distributed.
-Adopt-a-family will be coming up after break….with this project different organizations on campus are paired with families in the community that can't afford to buy Christmas gifts for their children.
-At the end of the semester students will be able to donate meal card money to Hilltop Food Pantry. If you would like to coordinate this project by contacting dining services and making signs, contact James.
We mixed it up a bit this week and had one-on-ones during the meeting and found our partners by standing in like from shortest to tallest.
Then we heard from Abby Lange, who is this year's World Relief Campaign chair. She told us a little bit about past world relief campaigns. (During the WRC in the spring semester SALT raises money for a project run by a charitable organization). Here's an overview:
-2009 Shui-2-Go: Pipeline to the People. SALT raised over $15,000 to build a pipeline to bring water to a village in rural China.
-2008 EDJakarta: Imagination in Session. SALT worked with a moderate Muslim group to build a child creativity center in Jakarta, Indonesia, particularly aimed at street children
-2007 Mission Nutrition, in Uganda. SALT raised money to create recipe trials tested by kids to help them gain weight.
-2006 Operation Haiti, SALT helped bring a health clinic to a village
-2005 Project Peanut Butter, Malawi, SALT raised funds to purchase a peanut butter production line for nutritional supplements to prevent malnourishment
-2004 Book It to Crow Creek, brought new books to a school on an Indian reservation in South Dakota that only had books from a school that had shut down in 1979.
Various SALTers then told us a bit about the three applications we have received for this year's WRC. Our goal this year will be $12,500. Remember, we will have a proxy from each applicant at the meeting on Dec. 1 to answer questions and will vote on which project to take on.
1. CICRIN Orphanage in Nicaragua:
-We would be funding the construction of a foster home for children whose orphanage has been shut down by the Nicaraguan government. Praxis Group is heading this up in hope that children will not be separated from the community they have spent much of their lives with and will not have to go back to bad situations at home such as extreme poverty, abuse, etc (some do not have homes to go to). VU has sent medical missions trip to this orphanage in the past, so this could also be a source of future contact.
Questions we came up with to ask:
-Will this home still be built if SALT chooses a different project?
-How many children will live in the house SALT is raising funds for?
-Why has the government this policy in effect and could housing system be affected by a similar law?
-How many orphans are supported now? Could more be taken in?
-How is the foster system instituted, who will be the foster parents?
2. Mozambican Sand Dams Project
-This project, ran by the Christian Council of Mozambique and the Mennonite central Committee, would be bringing potable water wells to about 500 people. Currently, for water, the people in this area must dig dangerously deep holes that can easily be contaminated or travel considerable distances. Right now they do not have access to safe water, but this project would allow for that. They'd be using our funds to build at two separate locations, building at least seven wells in all. Local people would help build these wells, which include pumps and covers and would be taught about upkeep.
Questions about this project:
-What will happen with this project if SALT doesn't fund it?
-Does this provide for two separate villages?
-Will this encourage deforestation at all?
3. Project Vietnam
-For this project we would be raising funds to provide a clean water system, toilets, and kitchen for a school in Vietnam (good hygiene actually helps combat malnutrition because it prevents problems like cholera and dysentery). Project Vietnam is ran by the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod World Mission and was started in 1995 to bring hygiene and nutrition programs to communities in Vietnam. Along with this particular project, the organization will be doing hygiene programs with teachers who will pass this knowledge on to their students who will bring it to their families at home.
Question:
-Will there be other donors if SALT doesn't choose this project?
We closed the meeting in prayer.
Remember to join us next week for more on this spring's World Relief Campaign.