wfn.org | Sailing to youth conference on a sea of chicken soup

[COBNews@aol.com]

Date: Sept. 29, 2005
Contact: Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford
V:  847/742-5100 F: 847/742-6103
E-MAIL: _CoBNews@AOL.Com_ (mailto:CoBNews@AOL.Com)

CHURCH OF THE BRETHREN NEWSLINE
Sept. 29, 2005

Sailing to youth conference on a sea of chicken soup

Sept. 29, 2005 (Elgin, IL) --  ...At least, that's what Linda K.  Williams,
of First Church of the Brethren in San Diego, Calif., hopes and prays  will
happen for the youth in the Church of the Brethren.

Williams has spent more than five-and-a-half years "birthing" the new
Chicken Soup for the Soul book--"Stories for a Better World"--which includes  more
than 101 stories of peacemaking. She
now wants to get it into the hands  of everyone on the planet, she says,
especially Brethren youth. The new book is  highlighted in the September issue of
the Church of the Brethren "Messenger"	magazine. Twenty percent of the
stories and four of the 11 cartoons came from  people with Historic Peace Church
connections.

Williams felt compelled to bring stories of peacemaking into the national
consciousness via the Chicken Soup for the Soul venue in response to the murder
of an elderly relative, and then the
Columbine High School shootings. She has  already received evidence that
peacemaking can be very effectively promoted by  touching the hearts of readers.
In one example, a friend had been outspoken  about the need for
retaliation and
revenge after the events of 9/11. When	Williams needed volunteer readers to
help rate stories for the new book, she  felt God urging her to ask this
friend if she would be interested. After her  friend read and rated
several batches
of the powerful stories, Williams  expressed her appreciation. Her friend
replied, "No, I need to thank you;  by
reading these stories, I've seen there are so many ways to deal with
violence!"

Williams now has arranged to offer the book at a substantial discount of
more than 50 percent off the $12.95 selling price so that churches and youth
groups can use it as a fundraiser for National Youth Conference in 2006.
Churches and other nonprofit groups may also do other fundraising using
the  book. An
additional option exists of becoming an "Amazon Associate" with a  no-effort
way to earn four to 10 percent of the book's sales price by simply  putting
it on an organization's website and encouraging buyers to order the book  from
the site.

For more information about fundraising opportunities contact Williams at
_LKW_BetterWorld@yahoo.com_ (mailto:LKW_BetterWorld@yahoo.com)	or  619-583-8454.

The Church of the Brethren is a Christian denomination committed to
continuing the work of Jesus peacefully and simply, and to living out its faith  in
community. The denomination is based in the Anabaptist and Pietist faith
traditions and is one of the three Historic Peace Churches. It celebrates its  300th
anniversary in 2008. It counts about 130,000 members across the United
States and Puerto Rico, and has missions and sister churches in Brazil,
the 
Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Nigeria.

# # #

For more information contact:

Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford
Director of News Services
Church of the  Brethren General Board
1451 Dundee Ave.
Elgin, IL 60120
847-742-5100  ext. 260
_cbrumbaugh-cayford_gb@brethren.org_
(mailto:cbrumbaugh-cayford_gb@brethren.org)

*****************************************************************
The  Church of the Brethren Newsline is produced by Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford,
 director of news services for the Church of the Brethren General Board.
Newsline  stories may be reprinted provided that Newsline is cited as the source.
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