Wine into Water

Candlelit tables.  Delightful ambiance.  An elegant display of food almost too beautiful to eat.  Delicious wine being poured.  Wonderful conversation with old friends and new ones.  Would you believe that all this happened on a Friday night in a church?  Jesus may have turned water into wine, but four Disciples congregations in Springfield Missouri decided to perform the modern miracle of turning wine into water at their second annual “Wine into Water” event.

Brentwood, Central, National Avenue, and South Street Christian Churches came together on February 6 to sponsor a wine tasting to raise money for the water projects of Week of Compassion and its partner agencies in Africa.  This fun, yet meaningful, evening featured (mostly) African wines, a beer tasting station, a wine and beer pull, a silent auction, conversation with Week of Compassion staff member Rev. Dawn Barnes, and information about water projects in Africa.

Last year, these Disciples churches decided that they wanted to work together to raise awareness about the good work that Week of Compassion is doing, create a fun night out for church and community members, and raise money for those without clean drinking water or access to water for basic hygiene.  The event was so successful that they decided to make it an annual fundraiser.

This year, in preparation for Wine into Water, the youth met together the week before the event for a “Clean Water Lock-in” to learn about what it was like to live without clean drinking water and to make informational displays for the wine tasting.

Those who attended, were excited to get to know people from other churches, raise money for Week of Compassion, and sample some good wine!  At the end of the night, as people raised their glasses to another successful event, conversation turned to how the event could be even better next year.