News & Notes 8/21/08
Hello My Friends,
It’s great to be back to work again! Wendy and I had a wonderful vacation time - in Vermont, and Boston, and on Orr’s Island (off Brunswick), and even around home! Thank you for giving us the time away. There are a number of things to share with you about our life together, so I’ll jump right in!
Tina Weinberger, our Church Librarian, has asked me to thank everyone for their donations of books to the Library. They are wonderful additions. But she has asked if we could take a hiatus from making more donations, as the shelves are full!! She will be cleaning the shelves of older volumes that don’t seem to be used, and making more room for the future, but for right now, could we hold off from more donations? Thanks.
And Jinny Scott asked me to thank everyone who has made donations of school supplies - those things that the public school students are required to purchase for their classes. And she asked me to let you know that this coming Sunday will be the last opportunity to make donations. So please bring your one subject and three subject notebooks; your pens and pencils; your index cards; colored paper and colored pencils; markers (no crayons please); rulers; erasers; three ring notebooks; notebook paper; subject tabs for notebooks; etc. to church. The collection box is located in the narthex (entryway to the sanctuary).
I want publicly to lift up my thanks to Brenda Borchers and Bill McWilliams, who led worship while I was on vacation. It’s great to have capable, committed, faithful folks to lead our worship!!
Vacation Bible School is “cooking” right along this week! Lots of kids have come - and lots of youth and adult volunteers are helping out! It’s a great week, and our kids are having fun even while they are learning of the love of our great God! They end VBS tomorrow morning. Many thanks to Natalie Hanson and Amie McGlauflin, who have organized and led this wonderful ministry of our church.
Speaking of Amie, she has agreed to serve as our Sunday School Coordinator this coming year. While there are several folks who have agreed to continue to teach Sunday School again, there are a number of vacancies - as teachers and as assistant teachers. You might give Amie a call to volunteer, or if she should happen to call, please prayerfully receive her invitation to teach!! As we baptize any individual in the church, we all make a commitment to help them to grow in the knowledge and love of God - that they may grow into ever more faithful disciples of Jesus Christ. Our educational ministries are one of the most dynamic ways we have of living out that commitment! Is God calling you into this ministry?
Karen Schutt came into the office this morning, and let us know that her Dad, Joe Greeley, passed away last evening. He has been in declining health for some time, now, and as she says, his death is not a surprise. Please keep Karen’s Mom, Ginny, and all their family in your prayers.
There are a number of folks who are in the hospital, or who have been in and are now out. There’s only one about whom I have permission to share information with you. Christine Skidds, who suffered a seizure last Saturday, had surgery to remove a tumor from her brain yesterday. The surgery went well, but the doctor was only able to remove about 60% of the tumor. The remaining tumor tissue will be treated with radiation. The hope going in was that the tumor was benign. It will be tested to see if that’s true. Yesterday afternoon Christine was doing well in recovery - talking clearly. She’ll be in ICU for a couple days.
The September issue of “The Bell-Wether” will be mailed out tomorrow - with lots of new information. Look for it in your mail. For now, that’s all the information that I have to share with you. See you in church on Sunday!! Peace, Mark
The following items come from the August 22, 2008 issue of “Newscope”, or from our Conference’s mailing:
UMCOR Coordinates Supplies for Republic of Georgia
The UM Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is coordinating medicines and medical supplies being provided through U.S. government-sponsored emergency airlifts to the conflict zone in the former Soviet republic of Georgia. The South Caucasus nation has been fighting with Russia over the contested region of South Ossetia since Aug. 7. A cease-fire agreement, reached on Aug. 12 and brokered by France, apparently was not holding the next day, according to news reports.
As a member of the United Nations Health and Nutrition Coordination group, UMCOR Georgia is heavily involved in organizing and distributing supplies. UMCOR also is providing health kits to displaced people and assisting local hospitals by distributing medical supplies housed in its Tbilisi warehouse. George Gedevanishvili, head of office for UMCOR Georgia, is working with agency staff to provide assistance while also keeping personnel safe. Some of UMCOR’s operations near the conflict zone have been halted, while work continues in areas unaffected by the violence. “Our team was profoundly disturbed by the escalating crisis and the impact on the civilian population,” said Thomas Dwyer, UMCOR’s director of operations for its non-governmental organization, about the changeable environment in Georgia. “Responding to immediate needs in the first days of an emergency such as this requires a great deal of flexibility.” Donations to support UMCOR’s work in Georgia can be made by giving to Georgia Emergency, UMCOR Advance #250305. Checks can be mailed to UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087. Write the Advance number and name on the memo line of the check. Online donations can be made at http://secure.gbgm-umc.org/donations/advance/donate. - Michele Scott is the director of communications for UMCOR (UMNS)
Kenyans Displaced after Elections Still Need Assistance
Theresa, a widowed mother of three, wakes up every morning in a crowded tent at a camp for internally displaced people in Mathare, Nairobi. She has lived in the camp since January, after her home was destroyed during political and
tribal unrest following the Kenya presidential elections last December. More than 1,000 people were killed in the violence. Although the violence has subsided, more than 62,000 people remain displaced in settlements like that in Mathare. Many more of the displaced live with family or friends. The UM Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is providing assistance. “We are working in partnership with the East Africa Annual Conference, the Methodist Church in Kenya and the U.S. Agency for International Development to provide medical supplies, blankets, dry food goods, school supplies and more to help communities that are most in need across Kenya,” said Melissa Crutchfield, an UMCOR executive. Because the government has expressed it will provide assistance, humanitarian agencies have wound down their operations and no longer distribute food and supplies, Crutchfield reported. The government programs are still not accessible in many areas, however. Communities of faith have stepped in to take responsibility for their neighbors. With the help of UMCOR, the Methodist Church in Kenya and the UMC in Kenya are serving hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people. Churches are coordinating large-scale distributions of goods and supplies, in addition to working in small camps and unofficial settlements, assisting families and communities that have the fewest options. They are creating networks of care, providing host families, securing donations, arranging for medical care and setting up child care. Donations to assist UMCOR’s work with the displaced in Kenya can be given to International Disaster Response, UMCOR Advance #982450. Checks can be mailed to UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087. Write the Advance number and name on the memo line of the check. Online donations can be made at http://secure.gbgm-umc.org/donations/umcor/donate. - Melissa Hinnen, UMCOR (UMNS)
The UM NOMADS will observe their 20th Anniversary with a celebration at their national Annual Meeting and Reunion to be held this year at the Expo Center in Shawnee, Okla., Sept. 22-26. NOMADS, which stands for “Nomads on a Mission Active in Divine Service,” is a mission outreach ministry of UM individuals and couples with RVs who wish to be involved in Christian service. The nearly 1,100 NOMADS members worked 179 projects in 33 states and Mexico in the past year. More information about NOMADS is available on their web site at www.nomadsumc.org or from Program Administrator Carla Kinsey at 866-466-6237 or director [at] nomadsumc [dot] org. - Arlin Kiel, Board Chairman, NOMADS
“In the United States, eight children and teens are killed by firearms every day, according to the 2008 Children’s Defense Fund report ‘Protect Children, Not Guns.’. In July, the U. S. Supreme Court ruled that municipalities cannot
enact sensible and necessary gun restriction laws. The Supreme Court’s decision stands in direct contrast to the stance of our denomination in actions taken at the 2008 General Conference to condemn gun violence and seek greater restrictions on gun ownership and use. What will your congregation do to make a positive difference in the midst of this epidemic of violence? Investigate the options in your community. Join with parent groups, other faith communities, schools, community-based organizations and local law enforcement. Provide safe space and constructive activities. Engage in the legislative process and speak out for gun controls.” - Bishop Hee-Soo Jung of the Chicago Area in an Aug. 4 UMNS Commentary
New England Annual Conference Seeks Conference Treasurer
The New England Annual (Regional) Conference seeks an individual to fill the position of Conference Treasurer/Director of Administration. Experience and familiarity with non-profit church finance and the United Methodist Church is desirable. A job description may be found on the conference website at www.neumc.org/treasurer. Submit a resume with references to NEAC, attention Deb Cannella, PO Box 249, Lawrence MA 01842-0449, or email to admin-asst [at] neumc [dot] org. Applications must be emailed or postmarked by September 19, 2008. For more information please contact Deb Cannella at admin-asst [at] neumc [dot] org or 978-682-8055 ex 131. The New England Annual Conference is an Equal Opportunity employer.