February 2002

Malawi News Update

Dear Friends,

Greetings from the warm heart of Africa!

My term in Malawi comes to completion the end of June, which means I will soon be in the U.S. for Interpretation Assignment—July through September 2002. This will be a special season to renew friendships and share experiences of life in Malawi. During this time I would greatly enjoy visiting your church and community to tell you more about Malawi, if you would extend an invitation to me. There are a number of ways you might fit mission interpretation into the programming of your church or group, including:

• Potluck dinner, prayer breakfast or luncheon with mission presentation on Malawi. Includes slides and other visuals. Any day of the week would be fine.
  
• Sunday school mission presentation on Malawi with slides and other visuals.
  Preaching during worship with focus on Malawi.
• Minute for mission on Malawi. Hopefully, this would be in addition to one of the other options, such as a potluck dinner, Sunday school, or a presentation to a youth group.
• Presbytery meeting, congregational meeting, committee meeting, or other church group gatherings (youth, Presbyterian Women, etc.) at which I could do a Mission Presentation on Malawi with slides and other visuals.
• Community organization or service group meeting, such as Kiwanis, at which I could do a mission presentation on Malawi with slides and other visuals.

If your church or group would like to schedule a time for a Mission Presentation on Malawi, you may contact me directly via

debbiechaseccap@malawi.net

or contact Ms. Julie Burton, moderator of Eastern Oklahoma Presbytery’s Malawi Partnership Committee. She is my stateside contact, assisting with scheduling.

Office Telephone: (918) 224-1022 (First Presbyterian Church, Sapulpa, OK)

Home Telephone: (918) 342-0762

Home Address: 23122 S. Cedar Street, Claremore, OK 74017

E-mail Address: julieburton@intcon.net

My schedule is as follows:

• July 1-13: In Appleton, Wisconsin with family—with limited time for interpretation within Wisconsin
  
• July 14-21: Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma
  
• July 22-August 2: Oklahoma and Texas
  
• August 3-10: Missionary Sharing Conference in Louisville, Kentucky
  
• August 11-September 22: Oklahoma, Texas and throughout the U.S.
  
• September 23-30: Vacation

The hosting church or group is responsible for travel expenses (mileage, lodging and meals) to and from your location for my interpretation visit. However, no honorarium is expected since I am salaried for this interpretation assignment. If I drive, mileage will be 34.5 cents a mile. Over two hundred miles it is often cheaper to rent a car with unlimited mileage and be reimbursed for rental and fuel or to fly and be reimbursed for a round-trip airline ticket. If I am visiting several churches/groups in your area, the cost of travel will be divided among the churches/groups. If your church cannot afford to pay for travel please let me know in advance so that other sources of funding may be sought to cover these expenses.

In so many ways, through your prayers, correspondence, visits and gifts, you have already been a part of my experience here in Malawi. So it will be "icing on the cake," a special gift of God’s grace, to have an opportunity to tell you more about the blessings received and challenges encountered in living and working with the faithful people of Malawi. My deepest gratitude to all of you for sharing this journey with me in partnership with our Malawian friends.

Ucizi na Mtende (Grace and Peace),

Debbie

The 2002 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 39