A neighbor is more than the person who lives next door;
Billerica Sunday School students reach out to Kenya
 Written by Andrew Jennings, Co-chair Missions Committee
First Congregational Church in Billerica heard God still speaking through the success of its Sunday School’s Lenten Mission Project last year. The Sunday School set as its goal the sponsorship of the construction of a Habitat for Humanity International House in Kenya.
Each Lenten season the Sunday School undertakes a project designed both to raise funds for a worthy cause and enhance the Christian education of its students. Habitat for Humanity’s House Sponsorship program provided the opportunity to fund the direct costs of building a simple, decent affordable house, provide community training, and administration for the program. Remarkably, the cost of sponsorship for a house in Kenya is only $2,600.
With pledges by members to match a portion of what individual classes collected, the total raised exceeded the goal of sponsorship of one house and amounted to about a house and a half.
The Sunday School students raised money for the project in various ways. Some have done chores around their homes to raise money to help build a house. They also made craft items that were sold. To illustrate their progress in each of the classrooms, the children constructed Popsicle stick houses. For each dollar a child donated, they were given a stick to add to the house.
Pat Rogers, Superintendent of the Sunday School, said, “I am very pleased that not only the financial goals of the project were reached, but the educational goals of the project were also met. We were able to bring a woman who now lives in the area to talk to the students about her experience growing up in one of the mud walled, thatched roof Kenyan houses that the Habitat for Humanity houses are replacing. We were able to use the project to teach about “Love Thy Neighbor” and how one’s neighbor is more than the person who lives next door.”
Andrew Jennings, Chairman of the Missions Committee, said “I think that the low financial cost of providing a house excited the Congregation and other members of the Billerica community we talked to. I am very pleased with and thankful for the broad support that this project received.”
In Kenya, Habitat works through 40 local affiliates who are responsible for selecting recipient families, overseeing the construction of the houses, collecting mortgage payments, and raising local funds to build some of the houses. To be eligible for Habitat for Humanity assistance, a Kenyan family has to be living in substandard housing. In rural Kenya, substandard housing is typically windowless one-roomed structures with thatched roofs, dirt floors and mud walls. Families receiving Habitat assistance are otherwise unable to raise funds to build a decent house. They put considerable sweat equity into building both their own and other Habitat houses. They must have some income, as they agree to make mortgage payments for eight to ten years. The monthly mortgage payment is tied to the price of a bag of cement, about $8.00 The mortgage payments go into a revolving fund that is used to fund more Habitat houses.
Habitat for Humanity, founded in 1976, is a nonprofit, ecumenical Christian organization that seeks to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness from the world. Habitat has built or refurbished over 200,000 houses, including over 2,200 in Kenya.
Share Your Still Speaking Story
 Tell us how God is speaking in and through your church. Have you reached out to the community in unique ways? Initiated a new mission project? Found a new way to minister to those within the congregation? Share your story and help us to spread the good news! Contact Marlene Gasdia-Cochrane, Editor, at cochranem@macucc.org.
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