Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Release 2010, We Need Your Ideas!


At last night's Movement meeting we decided to work with World Vision for Release 2010.  We will be bringing awareness to the campus about the thousands of kids orphaned by AIDS in Africa every day. 

But statistics aren't enough.  We need to bring students into an experience so that they understand and care about the crisis in Africa.  

What are your ideas and thoughts for how we can successfully put this event on for Release 2010?

7 comments:

  1. we not only partner with world vision, but we partner with either bethany christian services or building arizona familys adoption agencies. we set up a grant and we have that grant go to the adoption of an african child who is an orphan because their parents died of aids. yes, its a $20,000 commitment, but nothing is impossible for Christ. This not only goes to release, this goes to changing the world. Its huge. and extremely do-able starting soon.

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  2. World Vision is a great organization. And we can provide for multiple orphans for $20,000.

    Sponsoring children is only 35 dollars a month and it provides a variety of needs:
    Clean water
    Nutritious food
    Health care, including AIDS prevention
    Educational opportunities
    Spiritual nurture
    Care for sick or dying parent
    HIV and AIDS counseling

    I don't think that bringing one orphan to the United States is the best use of our resources.

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  3. When I went onto World Vision's web site they had these cards that you could send for. Each card has a child on it and that child's story. The pictures they had up were of all the cards hung up. I thought it was really cool, because they were real children and real stories. I think that all you have to do is send a request and that they'll send you a pack of the cards. I think it would be cool if we had these stories.

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  5. Wed Wilson Small Group (the nomads)

    We discussed the following idea in small group for a way to get student’s attention about this issue and what we’re doing for it.

    Flashmob Style “Skit”
    --large group of people
    --to be preformed perhaps at high traffic time outside windows of airport (union expansion) on the pedway area
    --strategic scheduling would be important
    --all people wearing white shirts, with a red and black shirt layered underneath
    --coordinated movement
    --demonstration accompanied by djimbe type drums until the very end
    --at a certain moment some people take off their white shirt to a reveal a red shirt
    --this symbolizes getting AIDS
    --then at another moment some people will take off red shirts to reveal black shirts
    --this symbolizes death
    --certain members of the group with white shirts can carry items like blankets or stuffed animals to symbolize their status as children, can have one between each two “parents” that change shirts
    --at the moment black shirts are revealed, drums should stop and “dead” fall to ground
    --other “non-participants” can hold signs explaining what’s happening, field questions, or pass out more info invites etc.

    Other smaller ideas:
    --fun event fundraiser
    --candles with orphan photos representing numbers
    --“experts” to answer questions at proxe stations
    --video viewing opportunities
    --butcher paper or board with people figured tally marks that go up over time to represent the number of people dying from AIDS as time passes
    --lots of flyers to advertise whatever culminating event (like a talk) that we do

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  6. I've been praying about this for awhile. I just have no good ideas coming to mind. But I may think of some, so don't worry!

    The one thing God is putting on my heart though, is this little boy's story who I heard a few years back. He was from Malawi, Africa.

    He lost his parents when he was 8, to AIDS. So him and his 5 year old little sister were forced to go live with their uncle.

    Their uncle didn't have enough money to support both of them, so he took the little boy outside and chained him to a tree, leaving him to die.

    For something like 3 years, this little boy survived on this tree. His little sister would try to sneak him out food and water almost every night. Whenever she would get caught, the uncle would beat her and rape her almost to death.

    So finally, after 3 years, the little boy and his sister were taken from the uncle by Children of the Nations. The little boy never talked or even looked at anyone.

    For a whole year he was in counseling and the children of the nations people were trying to help him know Jesus.

    One day, after not talking for years, the counselor asked the little boy this question,
    "Do you know who else was chained to a tree?"

    Tears streaked down the little boys face, and for the first time, he made eye contact with another person.
    The answer to her question was the first word he had spoken for years,
    "Jesus. Jesus was tied to a tree too."

    The little boy is now studying to become a pastor. He wants to tell people about the Jesus that saved him and died for him on the cross.

    I know this isn't much of an idea.
    But I believe it's the stories like this, the miracle stories, that will grab the students at NAU's attention.

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  7. Hey!
    So one of my ideas is about getting people pumped for Release 2010. So what would happen is that people would host movie nights about Africa or AIDS in their dorms/apartments. I know that I started really caring about what was happening in Africa after watching movies like Invisible Chidren, Invisible Children: Emmy (About AIDS), Hotel Rwanda, and Blood Diamond. You could provide popcorn and soda and then after the movie invite people to join Release 2010. Maybe there could be one in every dorm? Also, is there better documentaries talking about the AIDS epidemic?

    I'd be willing to host a few! What do you all think?

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