Glory Words Ministry Creates Unique Handcrafted Cards
to Encourage Others With God's Word
A desire to help others and a love of crafting inspires a new non-profit ministry. Using greeting cards and notecards to encourage others also creates funding for various missions and charities. -written by Gladys Strickland
You never know where a hobby will lead you. Liz Yancey started making greeting cards when a friend invited her to a party, and she was "stung by the paper crafing bee". Soon, she was demonstrating and teaching the craft. In the spring of 2008, Holly Jackson Mitchener approached her with a request. She wanted to learn to make cards in order to create a mission-based ministry. Yancey not only agreed to teach her, but asked to be part of the ministry.
After a year of "praying, planning, designing, and working out the details," Mitchener and Yancey launched Glory Words as a ministry of Covenant United Methodist Church in Cordova, Tennessee. The arrangement allows Glory Words to donate 100% of proceeds after costs. Covenant UMC receives 10% of the proceeds in its benevolence fund. The other 90% is divided among various missions and charities with a focus on disaster relief/recovery and economically depressed or challenged areas.
In 2009, their first full year in operation, Glory Words brought in $3500 in sales and donations. They donated $2, 250 to six different charities and missions. The recipients were Mountain TOP Ministries, UMC Neighborhood Centers, Grow Memphis, Reelfoot Rural Ministries, UMCOR/Haiti and Red Cross/Haiti.
The greeting cards are sold individually, while the note cards are sold in packs of 6. All items are available through the ministry's website (http://glorywords.com), at church events, wholesale through gift shops, and through an opt-in-mail order plan. For a $20 donation, a selection of 5-6 cards are mailed once a year, while two yearly mailings is a $40 donation.
"People love to have the cards on hand to send out immediately when they hear of someone who needs lifting up", said Mitchener. "The mail out provides an easy way to keep a supply of cards at home."
The notecard packs make great gifts for friends and family. They come in a variety of designs, including a custom card featuring your child's artwork. Send either the original artwork or a high resolution digital photo, and Glory Words will create one-of-a-kind notecard packs. Bling and/or sparkle will be added on request.
This spring Glory Words is adding sympathy and thank you cards to their offerings.
In addition to founders Mitchener and Yancey, who create and make their own designs, the team includes Susan Elswick, who specializes in original artwork notecards; ministry assistant Mary Frances Broome; and Gladys Strickland who assists with publicity. They meet several times each year to share design ideas, pick the designs for the next season, and discuss upcoming opportunities for sales.
Glory Words is seeking new designers of handmade cards to join the team. If interested, artwork can be submitted as high resolution jpeg images through email to glorywords@yahoo.com. Designers need to be prepared to produce 100 of each design that is selected.
To view the current selection of cards, and to place orders, go to the Glory Words Ministry website at http://glorywords.com. For more information about the mailouts, custom notecards featuring your child's art, or to place an order, please email glorywords@yahoo.com.