Double Dipping

One of the great things about UMCOR is that every dollar you donate makes it to the relief site.  Whether it’s the Philippines, Indiana, Haiti or some not-yet-named place, the field volunteers get the full amount to work with, not the net after administrative fees.

100%  You can’t get much better than that, can you?

Actually, you can.

On Tuesday, December 3, the General Board of Global Ministries will offer a dollar-for-dollar match on all gifts made through the Give website.  So if you give a dollar, UMCOR gets two. As would Camphor Mission, Red Bird Mission, or East Ohio’s own Mathew Laferty’s work in Moscow.  Click on any of those names to be taken directly to its giving page.

So those working as the hands and feet of God get two bucks for every one you give.

The lawyers say I need to include the fine print:  Global Ministries will allocate the “matching funds” dollar for dollar up to the first $500,000 in gifts to Advance projects received online on December 3, 2013, between 12:00 a.m. EST and 11:59 p.m. A maximum of $10,000 per individual gift to a project will be dispersed as matching funds. A project may receive a maximum of $50,000 in matching funds.

So what can you do?

First commit to buying one less ugly Christmas sweater, one less gift card that will end up lost in a drawer, one less box of stinky meat from the Hickory Farms guy and send that money to folks who need it.  Oh, and if you do it on December 3 it will be like you gave up two Christmas sweaters.  In fact, if you do give up two sweaters, it will be like you gave up four of them.  Even better.

Second, send this info to your friends.  Post the link on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram (OK, I have no idea if you can even do this on Instagram), email, snail mail, print it out and give it all your good United Methodist friends.

Third, get this info into the hands of your congregation.  Click this link for resources like videos, sample emails, and the like.