Here's the Press Release...

INTERN PASTOR TO SLEEP IN CARDBOARD BOX OUT IN THE COLD MARCH 21, 2007

Church Challenges Members to Raise $25,000 to Build a House in Biloxi, Mississippi

On Wednesday, March 21, 2007, Kate Murray, the intern pastor at Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, will voluntarily spend the night out in the cold on the church’s front lawn. Ms. Murray is committed to contributing significantly to the church’s goal of raising $25,000, which will pay for a house in Biloxi. She is taking donations to sponsor her night outside in a cardboard box. This money will directly benefit those who do not have a home because of the lasting effects of Hurricane Katrina.

Ms. Murray was inspired to raise money for Biloxi by a challenge from the senior pastor of Lord of Life, Robert Henderson. Several weeks ago, as a part of the congregation’s continued commitment to rebuilding the Gulf Coast, he gave out ten dollar bills to those in the congregation and asked them to multiply their money to raise the $25,000 needed to build a new house. Some members of the congregation have used their skills as craftspeople to make items to sell. Others have sold old items found in their basements and attics on eBay. Ms. Murray thought about all those who do not have homes and how difficult it would be to sleep in the cold weather. It was then that she decided to sleep outside in solidarity with her brothers and sisters who do not have a house – asking family, friends, and neighbors to donate money for her time in the cold.

Lord of Life is a 900 member congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).

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