A Midwestern farmer named Dan West who was serving as a Church of the Brethren relief worker ladling rations of milk to hungry children during the Spanish Civil War came to the conclusion, These children dont need a cup, they need a cow. When he returned home, he formed Heifer for Relief, dedicated to ending hunger permanently by providing families with livestock and training so that they could be spared the indignity of depending on others to feed their children. In 1944, the first shipment of 17 heifers left York, Pennsylvania, for Puerto Rico, going to families whose malnourished children had never even tasted milk. Why heifers? They supply a continued source of milk and also a continued source of support. Each family receiving a heifer agrees to pass on the gift and donate the female offspring to another family so that the gift of food is never-ending.

Today, over sixty years later, the program has expanded to include a wide variety of animals as well as trees and has served millions of families in 128 countries.

First UMC supports this project through special offerings.

Heifer International
1 World Avenue
Little Rock, AR 72202
1-800-422-0474
www.heifer.org

FUMC contact: Sande Presar (472-6012) or
Mary Lee Welliver (472-1624)