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WorldCrafts to aid Baptist foster care ministries


BIRMINGHAM, Ala.(BP) — WorldCrafts, the global fair trade division of Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU), has launched an initiative to support the work of the Baptist Coalition for Children and Families, encompassing Baptist children’s ministries in 19 states.

Through the initiative, churches or individuals can support at-risk children in foster care while also providing life-sustaining work for overseas artisans and their families affiliated with WorldCrafts in 24 countries.

Currently more than 430,000 children are in foster care in the United States alone, according to Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System within the Department of Health and Human Services. Baptist children and family ministries serve this population through Christ-centered care and resources to protect foster children and to reunify families.

To help support children served by local Baptist children and family ministries, churches or individuals can host a one-month online WorldCrafts benefit utilizing multiple dozens of artisan-produced products.

To begin the process of hosting a benefit, an individual would complete an online registration form, available here. Then WorldCrafts will create a unique promotion kit for the host, including a webpage, promotion code, media slides, social media images and a bulletin insert. Twenty percent of all sales generated by the benefit will go directly to the host’s selected Baptist children and family ministry.

Sandy Wisdom-Martin, executive director of national WMU, said the initiative to assist Baptist children and family ministries is a natural fit for WorldCrafts.

“Most faith communities are aware of the foster care crisis in our country,” Wisdom-Martin said. “Many people have a desire to assist foster children, but don’t know how or where to get started. This initiative through WorldCrafts can help create connections between churches and families and their local Baptist children and family ministry.”

Initially, WorldCrafts is launching the initiative in conjunction with Arizona Baptist Children’s Services & Family Ministries and Alabama Baptist Children’s Homes & Family Ministries. It plans to expand the initiative by creating additional partnerships with Baptist children and family ministries throughout the country.

Like Baptist children and family ministries, WorldCrafts aims to bring grace and restoration to hurting people throughout the world. WorldCrafts exists to develop sustainable, fair-trade businesses among impoverished artisans in a vision to provide an income with dignity and the hope of everlasting life to every person on earth.

Founded by WMU in 1996, WorldCrafts is online at www.worldcrafts.org. Its latest catalogs of artisans’ products can be accessed at www.worldcrafts.org/catalog.

WorldCrafts encourages churches and individuals to partner with children and family ministries by:

— Praying for their local Baptist children and family ministry.

— Supporting their local Baptist children and family ministry by hosting benefits and visiting WorldCrafts.org to learn how to raise awareness of their work in the community.

— Going to their local Baptist children and family ministry and exploring how to assist with current ministry needs.