News & Notes 7/17/08
Hello Dear Friends,
I hope this note finds you well. This edition of News & Notes is longer than I had intended, but I hope it’ll be worth your time reading!!
There’s some sad news for our church family. Mary Allen, a long-time member of our church, passed away last Saturday. Her funeral is this morning, at 11 AM, at Wiggin-Purdy-McCooey-Dion. Mary held several jobs over the years, but for seven of those years, she was the Administrator of Wentworth Home. Several years ago, Mary and her husband, Clyde, moved to Rochester, and attended Bethany UMC in East Rochester. Our prayers will be with Clyde and their family.
Our Friends at Wanakee wrote this to us: Wanakee Annual Homecoming Chicken Barbeque: Come one, come all and join us for a day of fun at Wanakee! It all starts this Saturday, with the Footnotes concert [including our own Ashley and Chloe!!] at 10:00 am, followed by a delicious chicken barbeque at 11:00 am. Meet up with old friends! Swim at the waterfront! Walk the trails! We can’t wait for you to visit us! Bring your friends and family. You don’t want to miss this special event! Call (603) 279-7950, for more information or to R.S.V.P.
This Sunday is “Food Pantry Sunday” at St. John’s - an opportunity for us to band together to bring items for the Dover Cooperative Ministries Food Pantry. Remember, too, that Jim Miller has asked us to consider bringing personal care items (except Ivory Soap), since they are in such short supply. What will you bring?
Mike Weinberger, our Public Supper Coordinator, wrote, “Hope you’re all having a great summer; hot, hazy and humid, but great. We’re in need of grills for the [July} 26th [Public Chicken Barbecue Supper]. So if you or anyone you know can supply one, that would be terrific. We also need a call out for transportation for the grills to and from St John’s.” Can you help? Please be in touch with Mike! There’s also a rumor that the dessert for this supper will be either strawberry shortcake or “make-your-own-sundae!” The sign-up sheets - for donations and helpers - are still posted on the bulletin board in Hartford Hall. Please check that out, too.
Our Worship Committee met this week, to finalize the plans for our “Jubilation Service,” to be held Sunday, July 27th, at the Rotary Shell in Henry Law Park - at 9:30 AM. There are some things that they’d like me to ask you. (1) They’re making some special “personal air-conditioning devices,” (aka fans) special for this event. If you can help with the simple construction process, please come to the church this Saturday, July 19th at 9 AM to help - and bring a heavy duty stapler or staple gun if you have one! (2) If the weather should be bad, and cause us to have to change plans, the change will be announced on WOKQ, and posted on our church’s website (www.stjohnsdover.org). If it does rain, the service will be held back at the church. (3) When you come to the park, you might want to bring an umbrella, to shade yourself; suntan lotion (just in case); a lawn-chair; and a bottle of water (though we’ll have some folding chairs and a “water station” there, too). (4) When you set your chair up, it would be wonderful if you would set-up in the lower section - leaving the back section for those who might come from the community, or might drop in at the last minute as they were walking by. And finally, (5) please be sure to greet everyone - especially those you don’t know - as they’re arriving AND as they leave. We’re hoping to have “official” greeters, but it would be much more effective if we all took on that responsibility.
Hope you’ve had a chance to “experience” the new parking-lot striping at church!! I mentioned that RCH had begun the striping in last week’s N&N, but since then - on Saturday - they completed the work. The blessing is that it takes the guesswork out of where to park!! Many thanks to the anonymous donor of the $900 expense of accomplishing this task!!
The staging around the Bell Tower has been taken down - and is sitting on the lawn in front of the church (the rental company couldn’t pick it up till early next week). The work on the bells isn’t quite finished though. There’s a solenoid (sp?) yet to be replaced - we’re waiting for it to arrive - but we don’t want to continue renting the staging as we wait - Kenny G. will be able to reach the bell that needs that part with a long extension ladder. And then one of the converters located in the electrical closet downstairs needs to be replaced. We’re trying to track one down. In spite of the remaining work that needs to be done, you’ll hear the bells this Sunday morning!! It’s great to have them playing again!
Plans for our August 18-22 Vacation Bible School are coming together. I understand that folks are needed to help - especially some “acting-type-folks.” If you can help out, speak to Natalie H. or Amie McG. soon!! Thanks.
We are looking for a Coordinator(s) for the new pictorial directory. With their new program, Olan Mills does the majority of the work. We need a person, who is primarily a contact person. . . really! The work load is much lighter than for previous editions of our directory. We already have a person who is willing to work with the coordinator. Won’t you help us out? Contact Patrick Murphy at murphnyjets10 [at] yahoo [dot] com.
A mom was concerned about her kindergarten son walking to school. He didn’t want his mother to walk with him. She wanted to give him the feeling that he had some independence but yet know that he was safe. So she had an idea of how to handle it. She asked a neighbor if she would please follow him to school in the mornings, staying at a distance, so he probably wouldn’t notice her. She said that since she was up early with her toddler anyway, it would be a good way for them to get some exercise as well, so she agreed. The next school day, the neighbor and her little girl set out following behind Timmy as he walked to school with another neighbor girl he knew. She did this for the whole week. As the two walked and chatted, kicking stones and twigs, Timmy’s little friend noticed the same lady was following them as she seemed to do every day all week. Finally she said to Timmy, ‘Have you noticed that lady following us to school all week? Do you know her?’ Timmy nonchalantly replied, ‘Yeah, I know who she is.’ The little girl said, ‘Well, who is she?’ ‘That’s just Shirley Goodnest,’ Timmy replied, ‘and her daughter Marcy.’ ‘Shirley Goodnest? Who is she and why is she following us?’ ‘Well,’ Timmy explained, ‘every night my Mom makes me say the 23rd Psalm with my prayers, ‘cuz she worries about me so much. And in the Psalm, it says, ‘Shirley Goodnest and Marcy shall follow me all the days of my life’, so I guess I’ll just have to get used to it!’ (Note: Thank you, Jim Miller!)
That’s all the news that I have to share with you about life around here. Stay cool - love the Lord - see you in church!! Peace, Mark
These last things have come from our Conference office, and I share them with you, hoping that some of you will find them of interest!!
Passionate Spirituality: Global Context, Bold Witness
New England Annual Conference: Five-Day Academy for Spiritual Formation
October 26-31, 2008; Marie Joseph Spiritual Center, Biddeford Pool, ME
In a time when mainline protestant churches are struggling to survive and many people often find local churches to be lacking in passionate spirituality, how does the growing multi-cultural world impact, challenge and enhance our spiritual practices, our evangelical task, and our social witness? How does scripture guide us in a non-anxious, non-aggressive engagement with others? These questions and others provide the foundation for this session of the Five-Day Academy (see http://www.upperroom.org/academy/fivedayacademies.asp for general information about this program of the Upper Room).
Our faculty presenters will be Dr. Juan Bek from the Evangelical Seminary of Puerto Rico and Dr. Valerie Bridgeman Davis from Memphis Theological Seminary. For more information and registration brochure, go to http://neconference.brickriver.com/files/oFiles_Library_XZXLCZ/Five_Day_Academy_2008_PQBV72IY.pdf or call Rosemary McNulty, Academy Registrar, at 978-682-7676 x. 201.
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Volunteers in Mission (VIM) Opportunities
Haiti VIM
Building a new church for the Croix des Mission Congregation in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, is a priority project of the Haitian Methodist Church. This is a $150,000 endeavor. Land has been purchased, the site prepared, and the foundation built. Much more needs to be done. Haiti is the hungriest country in the western hemisphere and is less than 900 miles from the United States’ door step. The average annual wage is less than $350 per year. Neither Croix des Mission nor the Haitian Methodist Church is able to fund the construction themselves.
Lebanon UMC in Lebanon, NH is sponsoring a VIM team to continue the construction. The dates are February 14 - February 22, 2009. A willingness to work with the Haitians in a labor- intensive environment is required. However, construction skills are not. This will be a twelve-member team; space is available for you.
How can you help? First, pray for the hungry Haitian people. Secondly, consider giving for construction materials. Donations can be sent to: Lebanon UMC, 18 School Street, Lebanon, NH 03766. Thirdly, join us as a team member!
Bob Parker, the VIM team leader, is available to share his experience in Haiti with your mission committee or congregation. Contact him at 603-863-7348 or e-mail: parker20 [at] juno [dot] com
Missouri VIM
Volunteer teams needed for clean-up after flood. We want to thank the State Emergency Management Agency for our Photo(s) of the Week: Missouri VIM: www.umocm.com . Clean-up operations are starting in some communities. Other communities are waiting for the waters to subside before clean-up can begin. Recovery and rebuilding will continue for the rest of the year and beyond. Hundreds of Volunteers in Mission teams are needed. To sign-up your church team for clean-up and/or recovery contact Jeff Baker at the Office of Creative Ministries. Phone 573-474-7155. Email baker [at] umocm [dot] com
Iowa VIM
Iowa has been hit hard by the recent flooding. The water is receding, and they are now in the cleanup phase and in need of all kinds of volunteers. Teams interested in volunteering should contact Dan and Jean Houston, Iowa Annual Conference UMVIM Coordinators, at IAUMVIM [at] gmail [dot] com
or by telephone 515-432-1226. Volunteers can keep abreast of the situation at www.iaumc.org/volunteer. Volunteers are needed now and housing is available in churches as well as with other agencies.