Raising money for a cause: Nothing But Nets
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Katherine Commale adjusts a handmade diorama that
she and her brother made to show how a mosquito net covers a sleeping
family in their home. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose.
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Jan. 5, 2007 | NEW YORK (UMNS)
By Linda Bloom
At the age of 5, Katherine Commale learned how to inspire people and raise money for a good cause.
By this past Christmas – with the help of her mother, church and
community – she had collected more than $10,000 for the purchase of
insecticide-treated bed nets to protect people in Africa from mosquitoes
that spread malaria.
She and her family, who are members of Hopewell United Methodist
Church in Downingtown, Pa., were among the denominational
representatives at the Jan. 4 launch of the Nothing But Nets campaign at
the NBA Store in Manhattan.
Katherine also celebrated her sixth birthday that day – an occasion that was marked with a cake during the launch event.
The people of The United Methodist Church are partnering with NBA Cares, Sports Illustrated,
the United Nations Foundation, the Measles Initiative and others in the
campaign to prevent malaria by raising funds to purchase and distribute
mosquito bed nets in Africa. Other partners represented at the launch
included the Mark J. Gordon Foundation and VH-1.
The United Methodist Board of Global Ministries and United Methodist Communications are coordinating the church's participation.
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Six-year-old Katherine Commale blows out the candles on a surprise birthday cake. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose.
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Bishop Thomas Bickerton, president of United Methodist Communications,
heralded the partnership and "the passion that exists among all the
agencies" for Nothing But Nets. "This is a tremendously exciting day for
us," he said. "We won’t stop until the job is done."
A family effort
Katherine has been raising funds for bed nets with her mother, Lynda,
since last September. "It’s really been a family project for us from
the start," Lynda Commale said.
They made their first presentation over Labor Day weekend at the
Hopewell church, led by the Rev. Steven Morton, and raised $1,500 in
less than 24 hours.
To educate children in the congregation about how the disease strikes
African children, mother and daughter displayed bed nets, performed
skits, made bookmarks and used a handmade diorama constructed by
Katherine and her 3-year-old brother, Joseph, to show how a net covers a
sleeping family in their home.
Additional funds were raised through a holiday gift certificate
project. More than 500 certificates were sold, honoring a friend,
teacher or family member. "We decorated them," Katherine explained
during the launch. "Our friends decorated them."
The Nothing But Nets campaign got its start after Rick Reilly, a Sports Illustrated
columnist, issued a plea for readers to send in donations of $10 per
bed net to help prevent malaria in Africa, combining his efforts with
the United Nations Foundation.
Reilly said he didn’t think his appeal would raise more than
$100,000, but so far around $2 million has been collected. Traveling to
Nigeria in November to meet some of the people who had received the
150,000 nets distributed so far "was one of the greatest experiences of
my life," he said.
$3 million challenge grant
Kathy Bushkin, executive vice president of the United Nations
Foundation, announced a $3 million challenge grant from the Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation for the Nothing But Nets campaign. The grant
will match contributions for bed nets, dollar to dollar, up to $3
million.
The foundation became involved in malaria work through its
involvement with the Measles Initiative, according to Bushkin. By
integrating the measles vaccine with other health measures, such as
malaria prevention, "you can really save lives and change lives," she
added.
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Bishop Thomas Bickerton (left) and Rick Reilly share
a laugh during the launch for the Nothing But Nets campaign. A UMNS
photo by Mike DuBose.
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As executive director of UNICEF, Ann Veneman knows that good health care
is essential. She pointed out that 10 million children "die every year
of preventable causes," with half those deaths occurring in Africa.
Twenty percent of the African deaths are due to malaria.
She lauded the group effort on the anti-malaria campaign. "What we’ve seen today is the power of partnership," she said.
According to the Rev. R. Randy Day, chief executive, United Methodist
Board of Global Ministries, "the whole church is about connections."
Having a partnership with groups such as UNICEF, the U.N. Foundation and
the NBA "is very exciting for us because we’re reaching a wider
audience."
Changing lives
Ruth Riley, a WNBA player for the Detroit Shock, said she became
interested in Nothing But Nets after visiting Kenya and "experiencing
what life is like for them on a day-to-day basis."
As a professional basketball player, she hopes to use her influence
in support of the campaign. "It takes so little to change their
(Africans’) lives completely," she added.
Sam Perkins, an NBA legends player, 18-year NBA veteran, Olympic Gold
Medal winner and spokesperson for NBA Cares, declared that malaria is
"so treatable" that it doesn’t make sense not to help. He noted that the
NBA has a fan base around the world and is not only teaching basketball
skills in Africa but also providing education on health issues.
Students from Americans for Informed Democracy participated in launch
activities at the NBA Store, as well as malaria advocacy training the
day before.
Contributions can be made to Nothing But Nets through the Advance for
Christ and His Church, the designated mission giving channel of the
denomination. Donations, designated for Advance No. 982015, can be made
online at http://secure.gbgm-umc.org/donations/advance/donate.cfm?code=982015,
by phone at (888) 252-6174, or by mail at Advance GCFA, P.O. Box 9068,
GPO, New York, NY 10087-9068. Checks also can be placed in the offering
plate of any United Methodist congregation. One hundred percent of every
Advance gift goes to the designated ministry.
For more information about the Nothing But Nets campaign, visit www.nothingbutnets.net or www.umc.org.
*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.
News media contact: Linda Bloom, New York, (646) 369-3759 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
Related Video
Katherine Commale
Video Interviews
Bishop Thomas Bickerton: "That grassroots movement will change lives."
The Rev. Randy Day: "The whole church is about connections."
Sam Perkins: "We all have a common goal."
Ruth Riley: "People there trust them."
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Resources
Nothing But Nets
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The Advance
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