• FEATURE: College Care in a Can encourages missionary children and caring church members from Foothills Bible Church in Littleton, CO (see below).
• TOOL PACKAGE: Three tools to facilitate implementation of College Care in a Can.
• GREAT IDEAS: 27 ways to make missionary children feel loved.

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A Church Reaching Out to MKs

Affectionately called MKs, missionary kids may be far away, but they are not forgotten by this loving church! Foothills Bible Church of Littleton, Colorado has a well-developed plan that ministers to children of their missionaries from birth through college. At each stage of growth, the children are reminded that they are loved and important to the church body back home.

About ten years ago, Missions Director Joyce Feil launched the Missionary Care program at the church, and they have developed several innovative components that show love to missionaries' children. These activities involve scores of their church members... and succeed in making many MKs feel very special!

One of these creative ideas is College Care in a Can!

How the Plan Works
A church member has a continuous supply of large cans (#10 size, about three quarts). Her husband delivers Planters nuts, and he saves large empty cans for the project. These containers are washed and filled as care packages for the college-age children of missionaries supported by their church. Each college student receives one of these cans twice a semester or four times through the school year! One is shipped near the beginning of each semester and another in time for finals--just when the students really need encouragement!

Long before this happens, the church has been busy preparing and planning so these packages can be personal and meet special needs and wants. Every college student completes a survey (see tool available--Tool Package) telling about himself or herself, hobbies, interests, needs and likes. Using the survey, the church creates a fake CD out of cardstock with a label giving information about each student and items he or she might like in a care package. (See tool for CD labels --Tool Package.) Each CD is then placed in a CD case with the student's name on it.

Volunteers cover the cans with contact paper, personalizing each one. The cans are prominently displayed during the Missions Emphasis week when church attenders may each take one, along with a CD and a set of instructions (see tool--Tool Package). Church members fill the cans with appropriate goodies for their particular recipients, adding photos of their families and encouraging notes. The cans are returned to the church where they are stored and shipped at the appropriate time. The church pays shipping using funds from the Missionary Care Account. They pledge, "You shop. We ship."

Each College Care in a Can is valued between $25 and $30. The size of the cans limits the contents of the packages and the dimensions of the parcels for shipping. But the college students love the Starbucks cards, phone cards, ink cartridges, batteries, film, stamps, school supplies, toiletries, and treats that fit inside!

The College Care in a Can blesses the church members, the MKs--and their parents! Missionary Care Coordinator Corrie Kozacek is enthusiastic about the responses from participants.

What the Volunteers Say
Volunteers are delighted to participate.

"College Care in a Can is a wonderful way to minister to a missionary kid who may be a long distance from his/her parents, plus it ministers to the parents knowing their child is being cared for by individuals in their sending church. What a blessing... to touch their lives with this gift."

"To me it's really fun and rewarding... to find out their likes and dislikes from friends and relatives and then surprise them with things that are really meaningful to them specifically."

What the MKs Say
The students themselves are thrilled!

"Thank you so much for the 'College Care in a Can'! I just received it last week and was so surprised... getting packages in college is so much fun! I definitely needed the encouragement."

"... It was a slice of paradise."

College Care in a Can is only one of the strategies used by Foothills Bible Church to minister to missionary kids. See their Birthday in a Box idea for younger children listed under Great Ideas.

When it comes to taking care of missionary kids, this church shines!

For more information about College Care in a Can, contact Corrie Kozacek: clkozacek@4fbc.org.

Foothills Bible Church is sharing three tools they developed to facilitate College Care in a Can. The MK Survey Forms give information about the MKs, their needs and wants. CD labels tell about each individual MK. Instructions are provided for volunteer participants, explaining the program and defining responsibilities. Download all of these free at TOOLS.

Great Ideas offers practical suggestions for ministering to MKs at several stages of life: growing up overseas, on home assignment, and in college and beyond. These 27 ideas are available for free at Great Ideas.