Conference-goers are invited to bring Gifts of the Heart.

In May and June, Newsline will offer short previews of special events or features of the 2004 Annual Conference of the Church of the Brethren, to be held July 3-7 in Charleston, W.Va.

Gifts of the Heart school and health kits and Church of the Brethren Clinic Boxes will be collected at Conference this year, in a project of the General Board's Emergency Response/Service Ministries program. The kits and boxes will be handed on to people in need around the world, with the help of Church World Service.

The kits include useful items such as pencils and paper in the school kits, and band-aids and soap in the health kits. Clinic boxes include supplies such as gauze pads and adhesive tape. Donations for shipping and handling, and for purchasing medicines and supplies appropriate for clinic use at wholesale prices, are being collected by mail, as donations cannot be accepted at Conference. For more information see page 66 of the Conference information packet, which can be downloaded from www.brethren.org/ac, or call 800-451-4407 ext. 3.