The 2008 Great Rivers Region Mission Conference is scheduled for Friday, April 25 and Saturday, April 26 at Cherry Hills Baptist Church (2125 Woodside Road, Springfield).

The cost of the conference is $30 for both days for $15 for one day and meals. There is no charge if you come for Friday evening only (no meal). Childcare is available. Registration forms are available online (www.abc-grr.org/missionsconf) or on the bulletin board outside of Merriam Hall.

Friday evening speakers will be American Baptist missionary to Thailand serving in the United States, Duane Binkley and GRR Associate Minister serving Area II, Max Klinkenborg. American Baptist missionary to Costa Rica Gary Baits will be a speaker and breakout leader on Saturday.

Breakout Groups will help you understand what American Baptists are doing to make a difference with Children in Poverty, Women at Risk, Resettlement of Baptist Refugees, and mission service. Church members Dave & Carol Matheson will talk about their experience in Bluefield, Nicaragua and American Baptist missionary Gary Baits will share about his mission field in Costa Rica.

Offerings will be given for Murrow Indian Children’s Home and to scholarships for volunteer participation in the Gulf Coast Baptist Blitz Build April 27-May 17, 2008. Saturday morning there will be a time of recognition and commission of Gulf Coast workers.Participants are also invited to bring Wal-Mart gift cards for Murrow Indian Children’s Home and Campbell’s soup UPC barcodes also for Murrow.

The American Baptist Men’s Disaster Relief trailer will be available. They have many stories to tell about the work they have been doing.

Also available at the conference will the Used Book Depository. Individuals, Sunday School classes and small groups are encouraged to bring old Bibles, commentaries, study helps, adult Sunday School quarterlies and Christian reference books to the conference Friday. Church libraries, pastoral collections, collections of Bibles can be distributed around the world for use in seminaries, learning centers and educational venues. If your items look a little rough around the edges, that’s OK, they will be repaired before they are shipped.