Kingdom Committee Raises Awareness, Money for Malaria

(from sckans.edu)

A spring event at Southwestern College raised funds for malaria awareness.

Approximately 50 students participated in the Imagine No Malaria (INM) event organized by the Kingdom Committee of Discipleship Southwestern. Co-chairs were Molly Komlofske and Alicia Ong. The event began with set-up of tents, cardboard boxes, and mosquito netting.

“We provided large rolls of tulle for people to make their nets with,” says Komlofske.  “We hung string from tree-to-tree and made clotheslines and provided clothespins for people to use to make their nets. Because of the cool temperatures, we told them that they could bring tents to sleep in if they wanted to. Most did, although we had a few people who slept with only the nets as their protective covers. We did, however, provide plastic tablecloths for people to place under their sleeping bags so they wouldn’t get wet from the morning dew.”

Throughout the evening, games and trivia taught the students about malaria.

“We then did a presentation about Imagine No Malaria and its purpose with information that we got from the web site (www.imaginenomalaria.org),” Komlofske says. “We also had a staff member at Southwestern who e-mailed us and told us that he wanted to help with our event because he contracted malaria in the Gulf War. He told us his story and we passed it on to our students during our presentation time.”

The students then congregated in the welcome center for concessions, and proceeds from the concessions went towards INM.

The Kingdom Committee ended up raising $800 for INM.

“Imagine No Malaria is an organization that falls under the umbrella of the United Methodist Church, so it’s a UMC organization,” says Komlofske.  “To date, over $18 million have been raised for INM and the disease has been decreased by 50% in some areas because of the purchase of bed nets and treatment. This organization’s goal is to eradicate malaria by 2015.  All of the proceeds that we raised went directly to INM to help purchase bed nets and provide treatment to people who live in an area where malaria is prevalent.”

Southwestern College campus minister Ashlee Alley was impressed with this event.

“The Kingdom Committee of Discipleship plans several awareness-raising or fundraising events, but this was our most successful activity this year, as they connected with other events on campus and students who might not ordinarily come to a campus ministry event,” Alley says.  “I’m very proud of the commitment that these students had for contributing to the eradication of malaria and also the student body who jumped on board with it.”