DETAILS:

SALINE First United Methodist Church, Saline MI, has agreed to organize and send a container of Books to Africa.

These books will change children’s lives by starting school libraries in two new and poor United Methodist Primary Schools in rural Zimbabwe.  Additional books will add to earlier small libraries created in 2006.

Children must master English in primary school or remain unskilled.   Your books will help give them a future.

BACKGROUND:

• The language of instruction is English, but the children are surrounded by their mother tongue. Therefore mastering English is difficult.

• However, hours of exams written in English at the end of primary school determine their future hopes for education.

• We learned that our primary schools in Zimbabwe had never had libraries and that the children had almost no access to ordinary books to improve their language skills.

• In 1999 Ann started the Maramba Library at Hartzell Primary School, Old Mutare.

• The resulting improvement in the 7th grade pass rate was so impressive that other mission schools wanted libraries.  Americans responded enthusiastically when asked to donate children’s books.

• In 2006 we sent a container of books that started primary libraries in 4 more of our poor rural schools.

• Empty library rooms transformed into centers of reading and learning.

• Children’s futures are being changed

• A new sponsoring church was needed to keep this revolution in African education going.

• On March 12, 2011,  Rev. Laura Speiran caught the spirit of this and quickly organized Saline FUMC to make it their United Methodist “Change the World” project.

ACTION:               YOU WILL make a difference!

• Organize a collection of good condition children’s books, grades K-7 [not texts]. Both hardcover and soft cover are accepted.

• You can get them to Zimbabwe in one of three ways:

• If you’re near Saline, you may bring them to the church on the afternoon of Collecting Day, May 14.

• You may mail them to First UMC of Saline, 1200 N. Ann Arbor St. Saline, MI 48176 to arrive during May. Deadline – May 31^st.   12x12x18 boxes much preferred.

• If neither of these work for people in Michigan –Arrangements are being made to receive books at the Detroit and West Michigan Annual Conferences. Check with Rev. Speiran for details.

BOOKS FOR ZIMBABWE

FIRST UMC OF SALINE

12OO N. ANN ARBOR ST.

SALINE, MI 48176

For more information contact:

Rev. Laura Speiran

laura@fumc-saline.org

734-429-4730