2009 Celebration of Confirmation
Wednesday, November 4
Wilkins Auditorium, St. Paul River Center
H20 Challenge
September 2009 - May 2010
Challenge your youth to lead your congregation in raising awareness and dollars for clean water needs and issues in our African Companion Synod, The Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria. Hundreds of wells are in need of repair and new ones need to be drilled.) The synod is partnering with The H2O Project (www.theH2Oproject.org) to bring you excellent resources to lead this Challenge! The resources and materials are free and are adaptable to support our own efforts toward clean water/well-drilling initiatives in our partner Synod. See flyer, and the H2O Web site. Send checks for funds raised to the synod office, payable to the synod with "H20 Challenge" in the memo line.
Don't Bottle it Up Challenge
Challenge your youth to lead your congregation to rethink and reduce use of bottled water! Initiated by the youth of the New Jersey Synod and passed on to us at the 2009 ELCA Lutheran Youth Organization Convention – take the “Don’t Bottle It Up!” Pledge. See flyer for more information. (This initiative works hand and hand with the H2O Project above!)
To quench your thirst…
Diving deeper
Youtube resources
Curriculum
Curriculum is provided for your small groups. Use the curriculum prior to or after the Celebration.
Our common well
Play an Online Game
Right whales once filled our oceans but now there are only 400 left in the world. Play this interactive game to learn more about what they face.
Clean a Beach, Inland Waterway, Lake or Steam Near You
Last year alone, more than 400,000 dedicated water-lovers in over 100 countries across the globe turned the tide on trash as they cleaned up six million pounds of trash from lakes, streams, rivers, and the ocean’s shores through the International Coastal Cleanup. Start your own Water Clean-up day through your church and invite friends, family, and community groups to join your cause!
Host a Water Event to Raise Awareness
- Show a video or Youtube clip at your church and build a retreat or discussion around education about water issues.
- Invite a speaker to do a presentation about well efforts in Nigeria - johnson.jay.e@netzero.com
- Speak to your congregation on a Sunday this fall about the H2O Project and "Don't Bottle It Up" Challenges and invite all to participate. Host a table on Sundays for more information.
- Create a plastic bottle recycling project at your church, educating your congregation about the devastating effects of plastic bottle pollution.
- Have a Common Well Car Wash, asking people to go without washing their cars for a week longer than they normally would, then hand wash their cars with as little water as possible. Give proceeds to well drilling efforts.
Start a "Water Solutions" Poster Contest
Invite younger members (or youth group) of your church to participate in a poster contest showing their ideas about solving our water problems. Display the posters in a common place at your church to raise awareness about water issues and solutions. Invite retired people in your congregation to form a panel of judges to pick the contest winner. See if you can adopt the water solution into your church.
Build a Rain Barrel
In hot months, an estmated 40% of average household water goes to water our lawns. Redirect the rain from your roof into water for your garden.
Support a Billion Acts of Green
Help Earth Day Network reach their goal of "A Billion Acts of Green". Once you have completed your group Common Well Pre-event, go to the Earth Day Network and enter your group action, be it bottle recycling, waterway clean-up, creating a rain water barrell, or any action you have personally taken to protect God's precious gift of water. You will be counted among a billion people worldwide as a member of The Green Generation™, a movement toward sustainability that includes everyone.
