A Month of Potlucks to End World Hunger

A Month of Potlucks to End World Hunger 2010 - Coming Soon

2009-09-29T05:40:00.001-07:00

Dear Friends,

Mike and I met this past week while I was visiting Columbus and have laid some plans for the second Month of Potlucks to End World Hunger. Some of these plans will be revealed as we work a bit more in the coming months, but there are a few things I would like to share with you.

First, we are pleased to announce that the Month of Potlucks 2010 will be held officially during the month of June. We made this decision as it appeared that many communities already have plans for Lent that are "traditional" so we sought to find a month without any other big events, days, or celebrations. We are aware that this is typically the end of school or beginning of summer and that may prove difficult for some, and so we continue to encourage people to host their potluck whenever they can, and report their numbers to us. So June it is, but if June doesn't work, pick a time when it works for you.

Second, we will be working to create a website that is a bit more usable. To do this we will be purchasing a web address and using the gifts of a friend or two to help create this. This will enable us to have online reporting forms, greater conversation/connection ability, and complete control over design. If you would like to support the creation of this website, financially or in any other way please email me @ scribblingpastor@gmail.com.

And third, we will be seeking to make greater connections with organizations that share the same vision that we all do, seeking to eliminate hunger throughout the world. ELCA World Hunger will be approached again to partner, as well as some other national and global hunger groups, agencies or corporate endeavors. We know we can't do this alone, but when we connect with each other the degree of change we can make explodes.

Mike and I remain committed to this endeavor and to God's action in and through this event. If you have any ideas, would like to offer other support, or still have yet to report your numbers for 2009 please drop us a note. We are in this together and we pray that MOPEWH 2010 will continue to be an experience that will change our lives.

Your partner in Christ,

Kim Conway

Pastor
Epiphany Lutheran Church
Dale City, VA

Check out the numbers

2009-03-31T20:54:00.000-07:00

If you and your community are participating, please be sure to download the reporting form and get it to Pastor Kim or Pastor Mike as soon as possible. Keep watching this page for an update on the various statistics. Thanks for partnering with us to do our part to end hunger right here and right now!

(as of 05/20/09)
Total # of Churches/Communities Participating: 27
Churches/Communities Reporting: 10
Located in # of States: 8 (OH, VA, WV, CT, TX, MD, DC, FL)
Total # of days dedicated to the MoPL2EWH: 22
Total # of participating people: 725
Total money raised for ELCA World Hunger: $4433
Total # of green bean casseroles: 3
Total # of jello dishes: 8
Most interesting dishes: Fried Rice Casserole, Couscous, Vegetable Korma, homemade bread

Pictures to come.

Don't forget to report your numbers...

2009-03-31T18:15:00.000-07:00

Dear Partners,

With the 1st Month of Potlucks to End World Hunger coming to an end, please don't forget to report your numbers. The form to use to report this is found in the links on the left side of the blog.

The total numbers that we are showing come from about 5 of the congregations that have participated. That means there are quite a few more. Let us know the good work you did and how we will impact the issue of hunger in our world.

Peace,

Pastor Kim and Pastor Mike

Have you signed up yet?

2009-03-13T13:24:00.000-07:00

Well, Mike and Kim had set the original challenge at a potluck for each day during the month of March. We aren't going to make that via the calendar, but we can still meet the challenge via the number of ELCA congregations and communities we have participating. We are currently standing @ 27 congregations/communities in total. We need just 4 more to make 31 congregations/communities.

SO...if you have yet signed up or talked to Mike or Kim, please do so. If you know of a friend, colleague or partner in another congregation/community, why not encourage them to be a part of this first annual event that is more than a gathering of food, but a gathering of people, of resources, of voices to stand up and say the problem of hunger must end and we will be a part of that ending!

We hope to hear from you soon.

Article in the News-Messenger

2009-03-02T17:49:00.000-08:00

The Month of Potlucks got a brief mention in the News-Messenger. I missed it, but several parishoners pointed it out to me today. God's at work...will you join in? Has your community scheduled their potluck yet? There are only 8 days without scheduled events. Come on! Be a part of the solution!

Article in the Columbus Dispatch

2009-02-27T18:02:00.000-08:00

This article appeared in the Faith & Values Section of the Columbus Dispatch today.

Wanna host your own Month of Potlucks to End World Hunger Potluck? Here's how...

2009-02-14T09:56:00.000-08:00

Send an email to pastor@epiphlutheran.org to sign up for a potluck day.

We'll send you an email with information and reporting documents (# of people who attended, $$ raises, # of green bean casseroles).

Watch this blog for pictures of the First Annual Month of Potlucks.

To view the calendar below click the right arrow next to the month until March 2009 appears. Scroll over a date to see who is hosting a potluck and how you can be a part of that.

Just a couple of weeks...

2009-02-14T04:41:00.000-08:00

Friends there are just a few weeks remaining before the inaugural kick-off of the Month of Potlucks to End World Hunger. I know of at least 3 more congregations who will be hosting a pot luck in some fashion and will update the calendar as soon as I know those dates. Don't forget the documents are now posted on the blog - look just to the left on this page.

The congregation that I serve, Epiphany Lutheran Church, is hosting our potluck on March 8th. So what are we doing? Well, the congregation has been challenged to make a dish that cost $1-2 a serving. We will gather in thanksgiving for our gifts, learn some global statistics regarding hunger shared by the youth who will have participated in the 30 Hour Famine the weekend before. We'll then continue with me sharing some information about ELCA's World Hunger and we will collect an offering to support this ministry. Then will come the action. Mike Hinz, the director of ACTS Food Pantry, the local food pantry will share with us about the pantry, the clients, the needs, and how we can play a bigger part in the mission of ACTS. We will then open this up to conversation and brainstorming in light of our new purpose statement, God's mission and the gifts that we have been blessed with. It should be a good and challenging time together looking ahead to what God is calling us to do and be.

So tell us what you've got planned. Do you have any ideas that others could use?

Blessings as you continue to work and plan for your potluck and may be all do our part and end this distribution and equity problem. No one on this abundant planet should go to bed hungry.

Did you notice?

2009-01-16T06:29:00.000-08:00

Did you notice that the calendar is starting to be filled in? Did you see that we have events from the East Coast, to the midwest, to Texas? That's a great kick-off to this endeavor to end hunger. I know that there are folks on the West Coast discerning this right now, and I am hoping that some folks from places like New Mexico, the Dakotas, Kansas, and really every state will be a part of this.

Next week I will be posting things information that can be used by you and your partners as you plan the potluck. Don't forget to check out the resources from ELCA World Hunger.

Here's a question - what will you be doing at your potluck event to prevent your event from simply being a bunch of Lutherans chowing on an enormous amount of food, talking a bit about an abstract issue of hunger, donating a few dollars and then going back to "normal" life? What will you be doing to stir some action?