 The
United Church of Los Alamos
United Chimes: Vol. 39, No. 10, October 2003
Table
of Contents
to work on the Vision and Goals for the United Church of Los Alamos At the congregational meeting on September 21, 2003, the congregation endorsed the vision and goals for the United Church for the next 4-5 years. (The endorsed vision and goals are included in this issue of the Chimes.) This step, the endorsement by the congregation, is just the beginning of a continuing planning process in life of the church. To help foster that process, the adult subcommittee of the CE Board and the Long Range Planning Committee have scheduled four evening “vision and goals” sessions wherein the congregation is invited to participate in the early steps of the brain storming and planning for the implementation of the vision and goals. The evening sessions will be on four Thursday evenings, October 2, 9, 16 & 23, and will include a supper starting at 6:00 pm. There will be a free will offering to cover the cost of the supper. Following each of the suppers there will be a program designed to discuss specific elements of the vision and goals, to brainstorm in small groups ideas for fulfilling the vision and goals, and in the last session, to discuss implementation steps. Referring to the major headings in the vision and goals: October 2 will focus on Belonging and Growth October 9 will focus on Spiritual and personal growth and Worship October 16 will focus on Planning and evaluation and Outreach October 23 will focus on implementation steps. How will the results of these sessions be used? It is an opportunity
for you to be an active participant in planning for the future of this
congregation
Please
Take Note
October 5th Exodus (Feast Day) October 12th Abraham and Sarai October 19th Ten Best Ways October 26th The Ark and a Tent for God Cathy Renfro is the coordinator for Children’s Worship. If you can help, please contact Cathy Renfro. Fall
Festival
Harry
Potter Night
Your Presence is Requested Think
Inside the Box
The senior high youth group is looking for help. They are very excited to be recently rejuvenated as a weekly gathering (they meet Sundays from 5:00 – 6:30 PM in Craig Hall), but they need help from the congregation to make it work. In other words, they need YOU! Below is a list of themes they have chosen for each youth group, with a suggested snack. The thing is, they need both “sponsors” and “snack providers” for each week. As a sponsor, you would be invited to come to youth group that night and lead the group in 2 or 3 games to get started. And then after a good bit of the silliness and fun that always results from those games, there would be a time for a brief devotional and a sharing time of some sort, ending the evening with a time of prayer. As a snack provider, you would be invited to provide a snack for 10-15 people, either the one suggested on the list below or some other tasty treat of your choosing. If you are in the slightest bit intrigued by either of the above opportunities, don’t waste another second. Get on the phone and call Deb to sign up for the night that is calling out your name before someone else does! Don’t be intimidated by the prospect of planning games - we’ve got TONS of books and a few websites for you to peruse to find just the right ones. Neither be intimidated by the idea of leading a devotional; we’ve got resources for that, too, if you’d like. Rather be led by the still small voice within you urging you to get to know…and have fun with…and serve…and influence…and be influenced by the youth of our congregation. They need you! Here are the dates, themes, and suggested snacks that are available: 10/5
Mentor Night/(Snack already “taken”)
Deb and the youth are waiting to hear from you! What are you waiting for? Call now! 662-2971 Take
a Break at Sonlight!
To sign
up, pick up a registration form (available in the church office), fill
it out, and return it to the church office with $85.00**
**LOTS of scholarship money is available; don’t let the cost keep you from signing up! Talk with Deb if you’d like to find out how you can help deplete the scholarship fund! Ministry
Search Committee Update
In addition to our joint meetings, the Committee has begun to brainstorm strategies to obtain feedback from you, our partners in this search. Within the next month the Committee will be asking for your input through a written survey. In the meantime, we invite you to contact us to share your ideas about the future of youth ministries at the United Church. Above all, we urgently seek your prayers for enlightenment to see God's plan and courage to tread unfamiliar ground. Karen Edwards, Chair Attention all fun-loving people!! The United Puppet People need volunteers to help with Puppeteering Props & Technical stuff (like lights, special effects, sound system, stage setup). Adults and adolescents alike, training provided!! Call Angie Chipera or Jean Picard, or contact the church office to volunteer. A
Little News from Deb
That’s one way to think about what I am about to share with you. Chris and I had always hoped to be able to have more than one child, and having had Sarah now for almost a year and a half—with her mellow, easy-going nature—we felt even more strongly about it. Some time ago we decided it was time to start trying to make that a reality, thinking that it might take several months or even a year (based on what we had heard and read). It didn’t. So yes, the rumors are true. Worley Baby #2 is “underway,” and if all goes well between now and then, Sarah will become a big sister on March 27, 2004—give or take a couple of weeks! What that means for The United Church is that I will be resigning from my position as (half-time) Associate Pastor For Youth Ministries sometime this spring (perhaps around March 1?). I realize that the timing of these events is not ideal from the church’s perspective and that I will be leaving sooner than some had anticipated (including me!). Please know that this was not my, or our, intention, and I can only trust, as others have suggested to me and as I have experienced to be true in other situations, that “God’s timing is not always our timing” and that “things will work out.” Obviously, in terms of the youth ministry of The United Church (and the church in general!), things are already in a state of transition. It’s impossible to predict how the timing of my leaving will affect the search for a full-time youth pastor/director, but I will certainly try to do my best to continue with my ministry here in the way that seems most effective, as well as try to help ease the transition to a new youth leader however I can, in the 5 or so months I have left. It will be with mixed feelings that I bring my “official” ministry among the youth here, and the rest of you, to a close - it has been a tremendous blessing to me to serve among you for the past 5 years (minus one!) and I will be sad that that is ending. At the same time, however, it is very exciting to think about our growing family and giving Sarah a little brother or sister, and becoming again a stay-at-home mom. For as a friend suggested, motherhood truly is a ministry and the time is drawing near when I will again be called to it full-time. I hope you can join us in our excitement as we anticipate the arrival of another of God’s little blessings!
Chimes
Newsletter on the Web
Update
from Senior Pastor Search Committee
Moms
and More Group
On October 3rd we will be sorting items at the Thrift Store, so now is a good time to donate all those extra things in your closets. This is a fun "service project" we do for the church. On Oct 17th we will have another Mom's Day Out where you can drop off your children and run errands, shop, have coffee, etc. The programs for the other Fridays are still being determined. If you have ideas for programs or just want more information, call Leslie Wallstrom or Deb Worley. See you on Friday! Picture
Directory Signup
If members have various pictures of church folks or events from throughout the year that we could use in the directory, please see Kathleen Logan. We're also in need of volunteers for the actual week of the shoot to help church members get signed in on shoot day. Volunteers should call Bernadette Lauritzen. Coffee
Hosts for September
Everyone appreciates our coffee hosts. A special thanks goes to Betsy & Jack Comly who sign up often for this coffee ministry. If you have never been a coffee host before, the instructions are posted inside the cabinet in the kitchen located at the back of the church. All the supplies you need are right there. Now that the weather is getting colder and wetter, we will be enjoying our social time in Fellowship Hall after church, so there are no tables to set up outside or coffee pots to carry out. Please call Irene Powell, if you would like to make coffee on a Sunday morning in November or December. Thank you!
Reminders!
Liturgists for October: Greg Boebinger, Sandy Berner, Youth and Laura Parker October
2003 Lunch Bunch
Janet Tallman
Survey
for Adult Classes and Seminars
Please help us in the planning of Adult Classes and Seminars for the 2003/2004 year --and beyond. Your interest and possible help are really crucial to our efforts. Classes
In a more focused way, in what specific class(es) would you be interested? For example: a study of Acts, Biblical archeology, personal growth in faith, a Christian in society. (these are just examples, to get your ideas flowing) 1. _________________________________________________________________
Seminars
Do you have any suggestions on the scheduling of seminars (e. g. hour, day of week)? All Church
Camp
1. Continue
current plan. _____________________________________
Leadership Finally--and, in a way, most important - could you help in the leading of some future class or seminar? In many cases there are materials available (books, programs, videos) to help the leader. You might be interested in leading as part of a team of two or three. Please indicate possible areas below or initial one of the preceding selections. Topic
Class or Seminar
Your Name: ___________________________________________________ Phone/E-Mail: __________________________________________________ Please mail or drop this form at the Church Office or at the back of the sanctuary. With Thanks, The Adult Education Committee September, 2003 Pictorial
Directory: A Pastor’s Perspective
My hope is that you will take the opportunity to be photographed and included in our new directory. You will find that it is a blessing for you as well! Howard Grant, Interim Pastor Stephen
Ministry Continuing Education
We are
pleased to present a program at 6:00 pm in the Lounge of the Christian
Education Building on October 5th with the topic of “Depression.” Former
Family Council Director, Nancy Tenbrink, who is now in private
If you know someone who has some of the following symptoms, and you are concerned and would like to know more about this subject, please join us: change in appetite
with either weight gain or loss
Nancy will
be happy to entertain questions and discussion. We hope you will
join us for this presentation.
Stephen Ministry Leadership Fall
Work Party
Your Hands Are Needed!!! Bring your rakes, clippers, loppers and other yard tools. The Trustees will host the Fall cleanup and will provide juice, coffee and pastries. Any questions, please call the church office at 662-2971. Bill & Dot Miner Please refer to the Chimes hard copy or call the church office for the Miner's address. Prayer
Concerns
Prayer
Letter Telephone Prayer Chain
To receive the Prayer Letter, contact the Church Office at 662-2971 or email at UCoffice@losalamos.org It is Jesus’
name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete
healing to him, as you can all see.
Sympathy
For the Van Eeckhout family in the death of Ed’s mother, Rosie; For the Verblaauw family on Roy’s death on August 30, 2003; For Pam Massey’s family with the death of her father-in-law, Philip, from Bartlesville, OK. Congratulations
United
Church Pictorial Directory
Leslie Wallstrom, our member of the month, has spent much of her adult life in service to others. While a child, her parents influenced her by being good witnesses in serving the Lord and their community. As a young child, she traveled a lot. Her desire to do something international and her strong Christian faith inspired her to want to serve. After obtaining a degree in International Relations and a Masters in Public Administration, Leslie left for Sudan (Africa) to work with Mercy Corps. She worked there for one year, followed by five years as a part of World Vision (USA), an international relief and development organization that focuses on community development in Third World countries. Leslie was not called to the ministry. Her gift was to help people tackle issues like survival, health care, clean water, disease prevention, AIDS, polio, measles, giardia, and a multitude of other community-related issues. On a daily basis, she spent her time arranging vaccinations for children, setting up teams of native-born workers, and developing community resources to assist villages. She helped teach the community aid workers about breast feeding, nutrition, and the value of clean water so that the aids could teach the mothers of their communities to properly care for their children. While working for World Vision in California, she met her husband, Tim. She continued to take occasional trips overseas until she and Tim married and moved to Los Alamos in 1992. Tim worked on a Post-Doc at LANL while Leslie took a position there as a technical editor. After two years, she left the Lab and went to work for the Los Alamos Family Council as a grant writer. She temporarily retired, making the decision to stay home and raise her children, when her second daughter, Rachel, was born. Her first call as a member of the United Church ten years ago was a three-year term on the Missions Board, which she co-chaired for one year. She felt that her experience working with domestic and international non-profit organizations was put to good use on this Board. Next, she served on the Christian Education Board for two years, until her third daughter, Miriam was born. While raising her three daughters, Leslie has become involved in children’s ministries. She has helped to teach the 2-year olds, coordinated the 3 and 4-year old room for one year, and has taught Children’s Worship. Currently, she assists in the first and second-grade Sunday school class. She also has continued to reach out in her community by serving on the Board of Directors for Little Forest Playschool and occasionally volunteering in the classroom at Mountain School. Recently, Leslie noticed a growing need in our Church for a weekly mother’s group. She approached Deb Worley in the fall of 2002 about breathing life back into the Mom’s and More program. January of 2003 was the kickoff and the program is going very well. Leslie is currently serving as the coordinator for M and M. In her free time, Leslie enjoys hiking with her family, playing with the girls, and taking them for outings to the playgrounds, parks, and the Children’s Museum. She occasionally has time to work out at the YMCA and would still like to cross-country ski if it we’d get enough snow. She participated in a women’s bible study group for six years and is looking forward to being a part of Companions in Christ this fall. Leslie’s words to us all are “Be willing to take risks with the guidance of the Lord. Pray first, and trust that God is leading you. God wants us to take risks.”
By Angie Chipera
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to Table of Contents
As I thought of how annually our congregation makes a commitment to give financially to the work of the United Church, I remembered a newspaper story from long-ago. It was on the front page of the New Orleans Times-Picayune: “She came to my back door and begged for food. But she always used to tell me that she was 'no poor woman,' and I believed her,” said Mrs. Odell Edwards, Mrs. Adams' neighbor for 25 years. Mrs. Adams' wealth was confirmed when the cash was uncovered in bank safe deposit boxes along with hundreds of valuable stocks two days before her death Sunday in a hospital. She weighed 50 pounds. “I continue to be flabbergasted,” said attorney Robert M. Leite. “It's hard to get over seeing that much money.” “We had no indication that the woman had a dime,” said another neighbor, Russell Blair. “Her house looked like a pig pen and she got what clothes she had from the Salvation Army.” “She was starving to death and yet she wouldn't spend any money to get something to eat.” Leite said neighbors observed the woman's “pitiful condition” when they took food to her periodically. They reported her condition to state social workers early in March. A probate judge ruled Mrs. Adams, a former New Jersey schoolteacher, incompetent because of senility and named Leite her guardian. She was first put in a nursing home, then transferred to the hospital where she died. Widowed twice, Mrs. Adams apparently had no children. Leite says he has located a niece and a nephew, whom he wouldn't identify. He said that since no will had been found it was not certain who would get the bulk of Mrs. Adams' estate. Leite says the source of Mrs. Adams' wealth remains a mystery. “It now appears,” he said, “she was a very good businesswoman.”
There is something about our human personality and human body that makes
us need to reach out. To horde money as Mrs. Adams did, or talents as many
of us do, is simply to invite not only physical, but spiritual death.
In Christ’s caring, Howard |
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