Will you help DOERS help the people of Iraq? The Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) needs kits for internally displaced people in the nightmare of Iraq. Here is a quote from the MCC website (www.mcc.org)

Persistent violence and civil tensions are driving people from their homes in Iraq. As families leave home they lose their source of income and the basic supplies needed for everyday life. Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have fled their homes for other areas inside Iraq in the past year. MCC is responding by sending 4,200 relief kits, 11,000 newborn kits, 22,000 school kits, and 16,000 blankets to be distributed by local humanitarian agencies working with more than 8,000 vulnerable families in Baghdad and surrounding communities. The first shipment of newborn kits and blankets is en route to Iraq. However, more relief kits are needed before the next shipment can be sent.

On Saturday, Aug. 25, you will have a chance to experience the warmth and excitement of many people working together to help others in need. We will be hosting another kit drive for the suffering people of Iraq, and there are so many ways that you can help! You can:

   • Make complete kits up at home and bring them to the collection point on Aug. 25.
   • Purchase (or solicit donations of) items that go in the kits, like combs, toothbrushes, laundry detergent, etc., and deliver them on Aug. 25. (A complete list is attached.)
   • Help assemble the kit bags and boxes, any time between 4 and 8 p.m.
   • Cut out, iron, or sew the kit bags for school kits, health kits and sewing kits.
   • Sew together strips of old sheets to make bandages.
   • Help load the boxes onto the truck.
   • Donate money to help pay for shipping to Iraq.

DOERS has sponsored 2 blanket drives and 2 kit drives in the past 5 years, collecting and passing on a total of 987 blankets, 556 kits, 22 boxes of additional kit components, and $6539 for food aid. (For a complete list of all that we have done since our founding in Sept. of 2001, visit our website at http://doerswisconsin.org/files/pastevents.htm.)

Every day we learn about some new tragedy in Iraq. As citizens of the U.S., we have a duty to help the people whose lives have been torn apart by this war. Will you take part in this people-to-people exchange, saving lives and dignity by supplying our Iraqi brothers and sisters with the basics for health and education?

DOERS is a tax exempt, 501(c)(3) organization, so your contributions are tax-deductible. We will contribute to the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), a wonderful, 87-year old charity with very low overhead and a great reputation. They do not proselytize among the people they help. MCC has been working with local partners in Iraq for 10 years. MCC's Iraq staff is based in Jordan.

We hope to see you on Sat., Aug. 25, between 4 and 8 pm at the Wil-Mar Center, 953 Jenifer St., Madison. If you can help in any of the following ways, please contact us.