UnDue Medical Debt Campaign Update
Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson and the Missional Engagement Office recently shared an update on the Virginia Annual Conference offering:
Thanks to the generosity of the Annual Conference members and churches, the total offering has reached $109,800. The 2024 offering this year was split between Partnerships of Hope, who will be receiving $54,900, and Undue Medical Debt, which will also be receiving $54,900 alongside special gifts of $15,300 for a total of $70,200.
Bishop Sue wants to see the VAUMC take the next step toward forgiving medical debt in Virginia by sharing an updated challenge. If the VAUMC could raise an additional $180,000 over the remainder of 2024, for a total amount raised of $250,000, our collective efforts would forgive at least $25 million in medical debt in Virginia. According to our friends at Undue Medical Debt this could lead to the forgiveness of as much as $45 million.
Bishop Sue recognizes raising this much money is a big goal.
“It will take all of us working together to raise money in our neighborhoods, local churches, districts, and throughout the Annual Conference,” she said. “But I think this might be the time for us to take such an important step together. Amidst the turmoil of disaffiliation and the divisiveness that has pervaded our world, wouldn’t it be incredible to come together and make a generational impact on our state? I think we can do this. I think we will do this. I think God is calling us forward to live our faith in a new way. And so, I invite you to this space of generosity and stewardship over the rest of 2024. Because we are a connectional people. We are a transformed people. We are the people called United Methodists.”
If you would like to give to this effort, please visit www.vaumcdonations.org and select the Undue Medical Debt tab.
Over the coming weeks, the conference office will share fundraising progress and celebrate stories of lives changed by this kind of forgiveness along the way.
Thank you so much for your generosity and for embracing what’s ahead.
Let’s see what God will do!
Online Book Club
This group will meet over Zoom five to six times each year. Books will be selected from the UWF Reading List. Contact Ann Klotz at jasnc5@gmail.com for more info.
UM Volunteers in Mission
A Valley Ridge District UMVIM team is currently forming to serve with Carolina Rebuilding Ministry in Windsor, North Carolina the week of October 20, 2024. If you are interested in participating in or helping to support the team please reach out to Rev. Tim Craft, Minister of Discipleship at Cave Spring UMC in Roanoke timcraft@vaumc.org or 540-989-3673. Our very own Nancy Sasser has already signed up to go!
Wesley Community Center
The Wesley Community Center is a United Methodist ministry serving children and youth in inner city Portsmouth, Virginia. Nancy Sasser and Penny Livesay have been on two mission weekends to work on projects at the Center. In the coming weeks, NOMADS, a group of retired UM volunteers who travel in RVs campers across the U.S. to take on much needed volunteer projects, will be working at the Center on the installation of new flooring, painting, updating electrical systems, and improving accessibility and safety. The Center is in need of additional financial support to cover the costs of materials for these improvements. Financial gifts can be made to Wesley Community Service Center, P.O. Box 1396, Portsmouth, VA, 23704. Additionally, an Amazon Wishlist has been set up where you can purchase specific items. Visit https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1H46Y481W4PEX?ref_=wl_share.
