For over 30 years, DuPage African Methodist Episcopal Church in Lisle, IL has served hundreds of thousands in the DuPage County area through ministry and our REACH Food Pantry. Although we have re-opened our church for in-person worship, our virtual worship attaendance continues to grow. We believe that virtual worship is here to stay so we are raising money to purchase new streaming equipment, which will allow us to serve a broader audience through quality streaming of our worship services. The purp;ose of this corrspondance is twofold. In support of our 2023 Women's Day efforts, we are requesting your financial assistance with enhancing our current streaming equipment; and with supporting a Sarah's Circle (https://sarahs-circle.org/), a local organization that meets the needs of homeless women and girls.

Each year, DuPage AME Church hosts our annual Women's Day in June. Activities are planned throughout the month for our women members to fellowship and raise funds to address the needs of our church. Women's Day 2023 will be held on Sunday, June 25th. LIVE streaming our worship services with our current equipment has been challenging over the last year. Our church leaders have met with numerous vendors and have determined that the best equipment to meet our needs would cost approximately $120,000. Women's Day 2022 fundraising efforts netted $45,000 toward this goal. We hope, with your help, to raise the remaining $75,000 through the 2023 Women's Day Campaign efforts.

This year, we will also engage in a service activity for Sarah's Circle (https://sarahs-circle.org/), an organization whose primary goal is to end homelessness for women in Chicago, serving many in Black and Brown communities.  The organization provides daytime support (e.g. showers, lockers, laundry, meals, self-sufficiency skills, interim and permanent housing). To support their mission, the women of DuPage AME Church will provide sack lunches, toiletry kits, and underwear for the unhoused population that they serve.

In addition to pledges from our membership, we are seekng monetary contributions to help raise the additional $75,000 needed for the new streaming equipment, as well as in-kind donations from individuals and businesses to secure items for our service project wth Sarah's Circle - toiletries, women's underwear, etc.

Your generous monetary contribution will allow us to offer seamless, uninterrupted experience to those who watch our worship services virtually. Partnering with us through in-kind donations will allow us to meet the needs of women and girls who could use  our help at this time.

Thank you in advance for your prompt consideration of this request. We are grateful.