Download Report

C o a l C i t y U n i t e d M e t h o d i s t C h u rc h
The Messenger
May 2015 Newsletter
Volume 11 Issue 11
Special points of interest:
 A report from the Parsonage
Committee. See page 2.
Registration is now being accepted
for Vacation Bible School!
 We are observing Change the
World Weekend in May.
Please see page 3 for details.
 Peace with Justice Sunday will
be observed May 31 with a
special offering. Please see
page 5.
 We will be recognizing our
graduates on May 24. Please
see page 8 for details.
 Meet our new Acolytes on
page 10.
 We will be serving St. Vin-
cent’s Meals on 3 Mondays in
June. Help is needed. Please
see page 11 for more information.
 Golden Cross Sunday will be
observed on May 10 with a
special offering. More information is on page 12.
 From Where I Sit, Reverend
Carlson’s article can be found
on page 13.
Coal City Vacation
Bible School will be held
June 22 - 26, 2015 at
Coal City United Methodist Church from 9:00
am to noon
each day.
The theme
is Everest:
Conquering Challenges with God’s
Mighty Power.
Registration is now
being accepted and you
are encouraged to register children early.
Preschool is limited to
30 children.
Registration forms are
available at the church and
are also included with this
newsletter. You may also
download and print registration forms at
www.coalcityvbs.org.
All children who are entering preschool through 5th
grade in the fall are wel-
come at VBS. Individuals
who are going into 6th
grade or older are invited
to serve as crew leaders to
help the younger children
at VBS. Adult helpers
will also be needed.
Please contact Suzanne
Jackson at 634-2189,
Marsha Vaughn at 9429084, or the church
office with questions or to
volunteer. You can also
email us at
[email protected]. We
are looking forward to another great Vacation Bible
School!
Inside this issue:
Altar Flower Dedications
2
Birthdays & Anniversaries
8
Acolytes, Liturgists, Ushers,
& Greeters Schedule
9
Memorials
14
Like us on
Facebook!
Follow us
on Twitter!
@coalcityum
Ladies Tea to be held May 3
The Coal City United Methodist Building Fundraising Committee is
hosting a Ladies Tea
on Sunday, May 3,
from 1:00 - 3:00 pm.
The luncheon will
include soup, finger
sandwiches, vegetable tray, scones, tea
breads and dessert.
Entertainment will be
provided by
Shelley Crawford
a Chicago singer,
dancer and
actress and a
Coal City native.
The cost of the
ticket is $15.
Tickets are now
available to pur-
chase in the church
office during office
hours or tickets may
be purchased at
Rolando’s Furniture
& Appliances, 140 S.
Broadway.
Only 100 tickets are
available, so be sure
to get your tickets
early!
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
T HE ME S S E N G E R
PAGE 2
Report from the Parsonage Committee
About 20 years ago our church was
suffering declining membership and
very few young families in attendance. The church was downtown
with limited parking.
Moving to a new location and building a new church was not viewed as
an option. However, after much soul
-searching the church took a leap of
faith and did exactly that. Today
our church is thriving and viewed as
one of the top churches in our district. Taking that leap of faith was
difficult, but it was done because of
members trying to advance the mission of the church and following
God’s will.
For our church to continue to grow
we will need energetic Pastors. As a
rule, those Pastors have young and
growing families. We are already
seeing this with Pastor Brad
Shumaker and his family. Their
family has three children from 14
years old to 2 years old. Moving
here and accepting the position as
our pastor is a potential hardship
on their family. They have visited
here and determined they may
have to sell their furniture due to
the size of our parsonage. We are
trying to work through that issue
but it raises the question of, “is our
parsonage adequate for our continued needs?”
Our current parsonage is a nice
home but it is small. It is 1,900
square feet with 1 full bath and a
smaller bath in the laundry room.
The three bedrooms are small by
today’s standards. There is
extremely limited storage and most
pastors end up using the garage for
storage instead of parking. It is fine
for smaller families but is currently
a possible limitation to attracting
the pastors we need to grow as a
congregation. Given the excellent
work done by church members to
repair, paint, replace carpeting and
tile floors the parsonage is in very
good condition to sell at this time.
Due to the construction and floor
plan, adding on to the home is not a
reasonable option. The Administrative Board has appointed a committee to investigate options of purchasing a different parsonage and
selling the current one. The United
Methodist Book of Discipline has a
number of actions that are to be
followed if we elect to exercise this
option. Much as the leap of faith we
took 20 years ago, this may be another to advance the mission of
Christ.
- Chris Kent
May Altar Flowers
3
Blake Certa & family in loving memory of
Brenda Certa.
10 In memory of their mother, Mabel
DeGrush, by Joanne Schenck, Bob & Paula
Runty, Tom & Janet Runty, Karen & Rich
Jordan, and Lori & Andy Supinie.
17 Max Cullums & Family in memory of
loved ones.
24 Cathy Smith & Fran Rolando in
memory of loved ones.
31 Wilbur & Carol Olroyd in memory of
loved ones.
For information about dedicating altar flowers in memory of a loved one or in honor of an occasion and dates
available, please contact Joan Blaine at 815-634-8435.
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
T HE ME S S E N G E R
PAGE 3
Change the World Weekend
Six years ago the United Methodist Church started the Change
the World weekend. During
that weekend, United
Methodists all over the
country will be engaging in
simple acts of mission, trying to change the world –
one life at a time.
This year the weekend is
May 16 and 17. While you
can do any other kind of
mission you choose (and we
encourage that: tend someone’s
garden, read books to kids, visit
someone in a nursing home, fix a
screen door, bake
and bring a pie to
someone, invite
someone to
church….), on that
Sunday (JUST that
Sunday) we are
encouraging you to
bring important
things to our chancel which we can
put in the food pantry and then
distribute. The items we want are:
peanut butter, jelly, paper
towels, tissues, toilet paper,
bars of soap. You can bring one of
each, several of one, or just one of
anything. We are going to pile it all
in the chancel, take pictures of it,
and then tote it down to the food
pantry.
Doesn’t seem like much, does it?
But it will change the world for
someone!
- Rev. Wally
Want to try something different?
We are starting a new, alternative worship. It’s going to be
(for now) once a month, generally on the last Saturday of
the month, at 6 pm. In May it
will be held on the 4th Saturday of the month, May 23.
We’ll have music videos and
performances, presentations (let’s not call them
sermons for now….) –
both live and recorded,
question and answer
periods ---- all in a
relaxed, easy-going
style. It will be kid-
friendly, snack-friendly, question
friendly.
It will be church as you have not
experienced – but maybe always
wished you could.
We invite you to join us on Saturday, May 23 at 6 pm.
Questions? Call Rev. Wally.
Biscuits & Gravy Breakfast
May 31
A Biscuits & Gravy Breakfast will
be held on Sunday, May 31 during
fellowship time from 9:00 am until
10:15 am. We will be serving biscuits & gravy, fruit, coffee, & juice.
The breakfast is being hosted by
the Building Fundraising Committee and the cost is a free will donation.
All proceeds from the breakfast
will go the church building fund to
be applied to the principal of the
church’s mortgage.
We hope you will join us for breakfast on Sunday, May 31!
PAGE 4
T HE ME S S E N G E R
We celebrated 2 baptisms during
the month of April 2015.
Rev. Wally baptized Mason Joyce
on Sunday, April 12. Mason is the
son of Ted Joyce & Kristi Albrecht.
Mason’s maternal grandparents are
Art & Donna Bertheaume. Paternal
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
grandparents are the late William
Joyce & the late Helen Joyce.
Maternal great-grandparents are
Barb Finger and the late Ed Finger.
Mason’s sponsors are Cole Albrecht
& Kelsi Bertheaume.
On Sunday, April 19, Rev. Wally
baptized Kamden James Kerr.
Kamden is the son of Trevor &
Julie Kerr. Maternal grandparents are James & Dorene Viano.
Paternal grandparents are
Stuart & Jane Kerr.
Kelsi Bertheaume, Ted Joyce, Mason Joyce & Cole Albrecht
Photos courtesy of Karen Hart
Trevor, Kamden & Julie Kerr
Please wear red to church
for Pentecost
May 24 is Pentecost Sunday. In observance of
Pentecost, we are
asking the congregation to wear red to
church on May 24.
If you don’t have
anything red to wear, you can wear orange or
yellow, also colors of a flame.
Congratulations to Brooke McClure & Aaron
Appleby who were married at Coal City United
Methodist Church on April 11, 2015.
The Appleby’s new address is:
Aaron & Brooke Appleby
200 Westwood Court
Shorewood, IL 60404
T HE ME S S E N G E R
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
PAGE 5
Holy Communion . . . all are welcome
Holy Communion will be
served on Sunday, May 3. The
Communion Stewards will
be Jill Ames at 8:00 am &
Carol Olroyd at 10:30 am.
In our tradition, everyone
is welcome at the Lord’s
Table regardless of church
affiliation. You do not
have to be a member of
our church to share in
Holy Communion.
church office at 815-634-8670.
Communion Stewards are needed.
If you are interested in
serving as a Communion
Steward, please contact
Jill Ames at 815-634-2106.
Center will be Wednesday, May
13 at 10:00 am.
If you would like to help with
these important ministries,
please speak to Karen Hart or
Reverend Wally.
Our monthly visit to
Regency Care of Morris to
share communion with our
church family & friends
will be Monday, May 4 at
10:00 am.
Holy Communion for shut-ins
can be arranged by calling the
Our monthly visit to Park Pointe
Healthcare & Rehabilitation
Peace with Justice Sunday
May 31
Peace with Justice Sunday,
which we are observing May 31,
is one of the six church-wide
Special Sundays of The United
Methodist Church. The offering
on this Special Sunday gives
The United Methodist Church a
voice in advocating for peace and
justice at home
and around the
world. The day
witnesses to God’s
demand for a
faithful, just, disarmed and secure
world.
It is a special time to think
about God’s children, both in
our community and in faraway
places where people are at war.
On Peace with Justice Sunday,
we show people we love and care
about them, and we do whatever
we can to help them to live in
peace.
things. We help poor people to find
food and shelter and to be able to go
to the doctor. We do whatever we
can to show people how to get along.
“Peace” is an easy word to understand, but what about the other
word, “justice”?
What does that
mean?
This offering allows The United
Methodist Church to have a voice in
advocating for peace and justice
through a broad spectrum of global
programs.
It means treating
people fairly. Jesus
also said, “Treat
other people as you
want to be treated,”
and that is exactly
what “justice”
means.
With the money
from this special offering on Peace
with Justice Sunday, we help people to care for God’s beautiful world
by recycling and doing other
Annual conferences keep half of the
offering to fund local projects while
a portion goes to the General Board
of Church and Society (GBCS) Peace
with Justice Program to fund U.S.
and global work in social action and
public policy education and advocacy.
“What does the Lord require of you
but to do justice, love kindness, and
walk humbly with your God.”
(Micah 6:8)
- Valerie Mezger Wengstrom
PAGE 6
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
T HE ME S S E N G E R
In Loving Memory
In Loving Memory of Elizabeth “Bette”
Cullums, an active member of Coal City
United Methodist Church for many
years. Bette passed away on April 10,
2015.
their daughters, Barbara (Pat) Bunton
and Cindy (Alan) Farcus; grandsons,
Adam Farcus (Allison Yasukawa),
Matthew Farcus (fiancé Jenna Plese)
and Benjamin Farcus and their family.
Our deepest sympathy and prayers are
with Bette’s husband, Max Cullums;
Please remember this family in your
prayers.
The family of Harold Horwedel would like to thank
those who sent sympathy cards, memorial gifts,
beautiful flowers, words of support and prayers for
peace during the time of our loss.
Linda & Ken Miller
Michael Miller
Megan & Matt McIlvane
Thank you for the prayers, cards, gifts & visits
for Kay these past several months. Your kindness
is so appreciated.
Franklin & Kay Brtva
Thank you from the Jr. High &
Tween Youth Groups
The Junior High and Tween youth groups would like to thank everyone who helped in any way to make our
Easter breakfast a success. We were very blessed to receive so many donations of breakfast casseroles and
coffee cakes! They were all delicious as was the fruit salad that was also graciously donated. We had several
helpers that day as well, which made our jobs as leaders much easier. Thank you to all who gave of their
time to eat and also for all of the monetary donations. We appreciate the generosity of all who attended and
will be planning what to do with the money very soon. Thanks again to everyone who pitched in and made
the breakfast a success!
Sincerely,
Amy Borchelt (Junior High Youth Group Leader) & Matthew and Tricia Hook (Tween Youth Group Leaders)
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
T HE ME S S E N G E R
PAGE 7
March 2015 account balances
General Fund checking $56,142.67
Building Fund Money Market
Centrue Bank - $4,677.82
Memorial Fund - $5,289.89
Gen. Fund Money Market $6,456.32
Youth Group Savings - $3,733.72
Mortgage Balance - $549,407.32
Building Fund Checking $24,981.11
Endowment Checking - $3,900.17
Building Fund Money Market
Harris Bank - $53,445.97
Endowment CD #2 - $10,000.00
Flower Fund - $563.13
Youth Group CD - $639.08
Endowment CD #1 - $10,000.00
Endowment CD #3 - $10,000.00
Zimmerman Scholarship
Dr. Keith Zimmerman served as
our District Superintendent for
the Vermilion River District from
2004 through 2011. We received
the sad news a few months ago
that Keith’s wife, Bobbie Zimmerman, passed away on February 7,
2015.
Keith & Bobbie established a
scholarship to Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary a few
years ago to support those who
are seeking a career in ministry.
At the April 15, 2015 Administrative Council meeting, it was
approved for Coal City United
Methodist Church to donate $500
to the Zimmerman Scholarship
Fund in memory of Bobbie Zimmerman. The Administrative
Council felt this would be a nice
way to make a remembrance to
Bobbie and show our support
and appreciation to Keith for
his leadership & dedication to
our church and district.
If anyone would like to contribute toward the $500 donation
to the scholarship fund, please
designate Zimmerman Scholarship on your offering envelope.
The photo below was taken
when Bishop Christopher
preached at our church on
March 11, 2007 for the dedication of our education addition.
Left to right: Janice Logsdon,
Dr. Thomas R. Logsdon, Bishop
Christopher, Bobbie Zimmerman
& Dr. Keith Zimmerman
PAGE 8
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
T HE ME S S E N G E R
18 Amanda Albrecht
Kyle Owensby
Jennifer Rolley
Matthew Spalla
1
Doug Simmons
Lorrie Stogsdill
2
Danielle Lindley
Jim Payton
3
Maggie McCollough
Brooklyn Milne
4
AnnMarie Cora
6
Landon Eaton
Ryan Elberts
Joel Munson
Rev. Lora Zink
7
8
19 Kylee Boyd
4
20 Lynn Albrecht
Joe Cora
Zakk Kramer
David & Susan Royer
(Happy 24th Anniversary!)
4
Dave & Jenny Spinale
(Happy 2nd Anniversary!)
7
Paul & Cindy Starks
(Happy 23rdAnniversary!)
22 Nick Hume
Shirley Miller
26 Cameron Eaton-Anderson
James Krull
Tracy Norris
Miranda Starks
27 Joyce Bettenhausen
Kyler Krull
Claudia Lorenz
28 Tom Beverly
Matt Provance
Marci D’Agostino
Linda Miller
Branden Petersen
29 Abby Benson
Reilly Glefke
Glen Reyelts
12 Barb Finger
Dennis Rolley
Tyler Shirkey
13 Matt Hines
Kaylee Micheletto
Noah Wheet
21 Dan & Gail Anderson
(Happy 55thAnniversary!)
24 Michael Calderon
Katie Runty
Joseph Giordano
Mike Morris
11 Lori Cora
16 Lannie & Leslie Spreitzer
(Happy 23rdnniversary!)
23 Dorothy Byers
Jeremy Kenney
31 Kay Brtva
Amanda Combes
21 William & Laura Daniels
(Happy 27thAnniversary!)
21 Darren & Stacey Roach
(Happy 14th Anniversary!)
21 Bill & Dorothy Rolando
(Happy 60th Anniversary!)
25 Kyle & Brea Owensby
(Happy 2nd Anniversary!)
27 Chris & Mary Beth Anderson
(Happy 26th Anniversary!)
27 Vince & Danielle Mugnolo
(Happy 9th Anniversary!)
28
Steve & Sharon Smith
(Happy 33rd Anniversary!)
29 Doug & Lori Simmons
(Happy 22nd Anniversary!)
14 Danette Wren
Do you have a graduate this spring? If so, please
let us know by calling the church office or emailing the office at [email protected].
15 Bridget Kauzlaric
Chad Macaluso
Addison Skaggs
Maisey Skaggs
We will be recognizing our graduates on
Sunday, May 24 during both worship services
and serving cake in their honor during fellowship time to celebrate!
16 Dave Hasenjaeger
Brooke Appleby
17 Adam Farcus
A list of our 8th grade, high school & college
graduates will be included in the May 24 bulletin and the June issue of The
Messenger. We would like to know about your graduate to complete our list.
Please contact us by Thursday, May 14 so we can be sure your graduate is
included on the list!
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
Greeters
3
PAGE 9
T HE ME S S E N G E R
Liturgists
3
8:00 am - Craig & Sherry Herrick
10:30 am - Roger & Imelda Long
‘
8:00 am - Judy Miller
10:30 am - Marsha Vaughn
10 8:00 am - Rodney Platt
10:30 am - Shirley Rolando
10 8:00 am - Cathy Smith
10:30 am - Jennifer Kenney
17 8:00 am - Lorraine Vilt
10:30 am - Harold & Faye Holsinger
17 8:00 am - Cindy & Miranda Starks
10:30 am - Tammy Elledge
24 8:00 am - Vickie Powell
10:30 am - Liz Clegg
31 8:00 am - Larry & Suzanne Bennett
10:30 am - Phyllis Bruno
If you would like to serve as a
Greeter, please contact Shirley
Rolando at 815-634-8722.
24 8:00 am - Jim Hutchings
10:30 am - Mitch Hamann
31 8:00 am - Karen Hart
10:30 am - Karen Hart
If you would like to serve as a Liturgist,
please contact Marsha Vaughn at 815-9429084.
Acolytes
3
8:00 am - Fionna Hook & Lindsie Van Dyck
10:30 am - Nicole Combes & Haelyn McPherson
10 8:00 am - Dima Gass & Connor Gass
10:30 am - Briahnna Combes & Brittnae Combes
17 8:00 am - Delaney Platt & Rianna Platt
10:30 am - Steffan Wengstrom & Keaton Stroner
24 8:00 am - Carter Garrelts & Owen Kent
10:30 am - Elaine Sebby & Kyler Krull
31 8:00 am - Hunter Novander
10:30 am - Emma Kenney
Ushers
3
8:00 am - Larry & Suzanne Bennett
10:30 am - Joan Blaine
10 8:00 am - Mike & Geri Baker
10:30 am - Sara Smith & Family
24 8:00 am - Blake Certa & Jill Ames
10:30 am - Marsha Vaughn
31 8:00 am - Craig & Sherry Herrick
10:30 am - Mitch & Annette Hamann
17 8:00 am - OPEN
10:30 am - Doug & Diane Born
If you would like to serve as an Usher, please contact Sherry Kinzler at 815-458-3238 (for 8:00 am)
or Annette Hamann at 815-634-3526 (for 10:30 am).
Please contact Sara
Smith at 815-693-0974
with any questions
regarding Acolytes.
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
T HE ME S S E N G E R
PAGE 10
Meet our new Acolytes!
L to R: Rianna Platt, Delaney Platt & Carter Garrelts
Photos courtesy of Sara Smith
L to R: Lindsie Van Dyck, Kyler Krull,
Briahnna Combes & Brittnae Combes
Not Pictured: Owen Kent & Haelyn McPherson
On Sunday, April 12, new Acolytes were consecrated by Rev. Wally and certificates and pins were presented to
all of them. Congratulations to all of the children who went through the training and will be serving as Acolytes
during both of our worship services. We look forward to having you be a part of the worship services!
- Sara Smith, Acolyte Coordinator
Summer Musical Camp
“Are We There Yet?”
Shanan D’Agostino, our Director
of Music Ministry, invites all
youth entering 1st grade
through 8th grade, to attend
Summer Musical Camp “Are We
There Yet” at the First
Congregational Church
of La Grange July 27 July 31 from 2:00 to
6:00 pm. Performances
will be held on July 31
at 7:00 pm & August 2
at 10:00 am during the worship
service at the First Congregational Church of La Grange.
“Are We There Yet” is the story
of Moses, Miriam, Aaron, & Joshua
told through humor and song, showing that we aren’t so different from
these biblical heroes.
The Summer Musical Camp will be a
week of singing, drama,
movement,
games, and
crafts mixed
in with a little
faith information.
Shanan will be serving as Musical
Assistant during Summer Musical
Camp and would be happy to
offer a car pool to anyone interested in going.
Tuition is $140 for one child; $115
for each additional child. Scholarships are available. Registration
ends July 6. The camp includes
music, t-shirt, art supplies,
snacks, and Friday night dinner
for camper.
If you would like more information, please contact Shanan
D’Agostino at 773-308-5835 or
email her at:
[email protected].
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
T HE ME S S E N G E R
PAGE 11
Help needed with St.Vincent’s Table Meals
Assumption Catholic Church has
asked for our help with the St. Vincent’s Table meals on 3 Mondays in
June, due to the Berst
Center not being available
during the month of June.
The dates are still to be
determined at this time.
We have been asked to
prepare and serve meals to
help feed those in need.
Approximately 12 volunteers are
needed to prepare and serve food to
50 to 60 people. The usual procedure is to serve the meals from
5:00 to 5:30 pm and then assist
with carry-outs until
all of the food is gone.
The usual meal includes a meat, side
dish, vegetable, salad
& dessert.
This is an important
ministry to provide a
warm meal for those in need and
we hope we are able to fulfill this
need.
Wendy Smith has volunteered to
be the coordinator for these
meals. If you are interested in
helping in any way, please contact
Wendy at 815-634-4487. If you
are unable to reach Wendy, please
leave a message on her answering
machine and she will return your
call as soon as possible. Thank
you for any help you are able to
provide.
Lunch Outing Invitation
Friendship Circle will be going out to
lunch Tuesday, May 5 at 11:00 am.
They will be leaving from the church
and going to Wilmington to New
China Restaurant, located next to
Berkot’s. Anyone interested in going
is welcome. If you would like to join
Friendship Circle for lunch, please
call Judy Miller at 815-530-5933.
The Learning Leadership Team for
Coal City has put together a survey
asking for community feedback on
possible programming for the high
school auditorium. Your feedback
would be appreciated:
http://bit.ly/auditorium_survey
- Tammy Elledge
Coal City Backpack Program Thirty-One Fundraiser
The Coal City Backpack Program
is teaming up with Jill Steffes,
Thirty-One consultant, to raise
funds for the
organization.
Commission
earned from
any purchase will be donated to
the Backpack Program to help
them reach their goal of becoming
a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Using proceeds from this
fundraiser will allow the organization more opportunities to
obtain food for the children and network with other organizations. This
status will also help improve what is
currently being done
and better serve the
children. For more
information, please
contact Jill Steffes at 815-600-0985
or via email at [email protected]
or Sara Smith at 815-693-0974 or via
email at [email protected].
Catalogs are available upon request.
An online party is currently taking
place. Visit www.mythirtyone.com/
jillsteffes for ideas for Mother's
Day, graduations, Father's Day,
birthdays, or summer outings! In
addition to the online party, one is
being held in the fellowship hall on
Sunday, May 31 at approximately
12:00 p.m., or right after the 10:30
a.m. service. Stop by after the service to check out all of the wonderful Thirty-One products! This is all
for a great cause! Thank you for
your support!
PAGE 12
T HE ME S S E N G E R
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
Golden Cross Sunday - May 10
“Now concerning the collection
for the saints…” 1 Corinthians 16:1
In his letters and travels, Paul often
spoke about “the collection for the
saints”. This was to help widows,
orphans and those in need in Jerusalem. He was asking the saints in
other churches to support the saints
in need in Jerusalem, to share what
little they had with those whose need
was greater. He emphasized that
both givers and receivers would benefit and the community would be one.
On Sunday, May 10, Mother’s Day,
our church will be observing Golden
Cross Sunday. The observance focuses on the work of health and welfare
ministries and institutions in the Illinois Great Rivers Annual Conference.
The Golden Cross program began
early in the history of the Methodist
Church in America, primarily to support church related hospitals and long
term health care facilities. The Golden Cross offering has continued as a
way to support health and welfare
ministries in each annual conference.
In the Illinois Great Rivers Conference the Health and Welfare ministries that benefit are:
Older Adult Ministries:
Evenglow Lodge - Pontiac
Serving seniors through a comprehensive range of services in a
Christian multi-level care retirement community.
Sunset Home - Quincy
Leading the Way since 1889 in
serving seniors with housing and
healthcare services designed to
meet their individual needs.
The United Methodist Village
- Lawrenceville
Serving seniors with all levels of
care.
Wesley Village - Macomb
Offering seniors a choice of independent living, healthcare,
skilled care, and memory care in
a caring Christian environment
since 1980.
Hospital Pastoral Care:
Alton Memorial Hospital
- Alton
Improving the health of the people and communities we serve.
Pastoral Care Methodist
Medical Center - Peoria
Providing a ministry of pastoral
support to patients, families, and
staff in times of medical crisis.
Children & Family Ministries
Chaddock Children’s Home
- Quincy
Offering trauma-focused services
that give hope and healing to atrisk children and families
through special education, community programs and residential
treatment.
Lessie Bates Davis Neighborhood House – East St .Louis
A multi-purpose community
center providing programs and
services which empower and
strengthen people of all ages.
The Baby Fold - Normal
Providing excellent care through
residential treatment, family
support, foster care, adoption,
prevention services, and special
education
United Methodist Children’s
Home - Mt. Vernon
Healing today for a brighter
tomorrow through excellent
services for individuals, families, and communities.
More than 30,000 individuals
served each year
19,000 hours are given by more
than 2,000 volunteers
More than $10,000,000 of
benevolent care is given by the
above ministries
When you give a gift through the
Golden Cross Offering, you are
giving to benefit the sick, those in
financial need, the elderly, and
the children – all Saints, to live a
more enriching life. It is carrying
on the tradition of caring and
giving the financial, physical,
emotional and spiritual support
established by the early Methodist church. In a time of dwindling
resources and rising costs, Golden
Cross offerings help each of the
organizations meet special needs
as they arise.
- Valerie Mezger-Wengstrom
T HE ME S S E N G E R
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
PAGE 13
From Where I Sit
Later this month, May 24, we celebrate the festival of Pentecost.
When the day of Pentecost had
come, they were all together in
one place. 2 And suddenly
from heaven there came a
sound like the rush of a
violent wind, and it filled
the entire house where
they were sitting.
3 Divided tongues, as of
fire, appeared among
them, and a tongue rested
on each of them. 4 All of
them were filled with the
Holy Spirit and began to
speak in other languages,
as the Spirit gave them
ability.
(Acts 2)
Pentecost is a Greek word, meaning
fiftieth day. It is celebrated the fiftieth day after Passover (You probably could have figured that out by
yourself.) It was also not called
Pentecost by the Jews (another
thing you probably could have figured out). The Hebrew word is Shavuot, which means weeks.
Shavuot is a harvest festival which
occurs seven weeks after Passover
(seven weeks, seven days in a week,
Pentecost ---- you do the math). It
starts at Passover with the harvesting of barley and concludes in seven
weeks with the harvesting of wheat
– a joyous celebration marking
God’s goodness.
Stick with me. There’s a point in all
of this. Really.
Passover is
the celebration of freedom from
slavery. Shavuot, as a harvest festival,
is a celebration of the
next step in
the Exodus,
the giving of
the Torah
(Law) which
gives a different kind of freedom,
still one that sustains life. As
Christians, while we mark Passover, the big celebration for us at
that time is Easter – a celebration
of the freedom from death. Then,
fifty days later, we celebrate another gift of freedom, the freedom of
the arrival of the Holy Spirit, which
enables us and strengthens us and
manifests to us the presence of God
– which also sustains life. (See? I
told you there is a point.)
Pentecost/Shavuot, May 24, is a day
on which we celebrate the arrival of
God’s Spirit into our lives, an arri-
val which reminds us, as Jesus
said, of everything he said to us
(John 14). We remember the sounds
of rushing winds, the sight of
tongues of fire, the sound of God’s
words being spoken so that all
could hear, no matter what language they spoke. We wear reds
and oranges and yellows on that
day, reminding us of God’s fire filling us.
This Pentecost (again, May 24),
how will you celebrate God’s Spirit
in your life? Will you wear red to
church? Or maybe orange? However
you do it, remember this: God’s
Spirit is with you. No matter what,
no matter where. And that sounds
like a pretty good reason for a celebration!
With prayer for peace and grace,
Rev. Wally
PS
By the way, May 24 is also time for
another celebration for us! We have
MANY people graduating from one
kind of school or another – and we’d
like to recognize them! Please let us
know who they are, the name of
their school, and what their future
plans are. We’d like to make a big
deal about this – because it is a BIG
DEAL!
New Member Recognition on May 24
On Sunday, May 24, we will be
recognizing all of our new members
who have officially joined our church
family in the past year. Cake will be
served during fellowship time to
honor our newest members and a
list of our new members will be
included in the May 24 bulletin.
We hope you will join us in
welcoming them to our church
family.
T HE ME S S E N G E R
PAGE 14
V O LU M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 1
April 2015 Memorial Gifts
GIFTS TO THE BUILDING FUND
In Memory Of
In Memory Of
ANNE CRATERFIELD
HAROLD HORWEDEL
Given By:
Given By:
Chris & Barb Kent
Chris & Barb Kent
Mike & Ann Thompson
In Memory Of
BETTE CULLUMS
Given By:
Larry & Suzanne Bennett
Joan Blaine
Patti Christensen
Liz Clegg
Bill & Joann Daniels
Cynthia Deck
Velma Doty & Family
Steve & Meg Fleming
Thomas Fulton
Craig & Sherry Herrick
Frances Hintze
Jim & Cathy Hutchings
Dee Provance
Mark & Becky Sebby
Cathy Smith
Ted Smith
Mike & Pam Tessler
Mike & Ann Thompson
Mark & Jennie Villegas
Kay Veronda
Rita Washburn
Becky Wisman
Liz Yeates
Chris & Barb Kent
John & Suzanne Lissy
Bill & Nancy Lyday
Rich & Sharon Marizza
Terry McIntire
Shirley Miller & Family
Wilbur & Carol Olroyd
Darlene Palmer
Marvin & Kris Perino
Joe & Pat Phillips
Jay & Katrina Plese
Vickie Powell
GIFTS TO THE MEMORIAL FUND
In Memory Of
In Memory Of
BETTE CULLUMS
HAROLD HORWEDEL
Given By:
Given By:
Lorraine Vilt
Lorraine Vilt
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------(cut here)
The following gift is given
In Memory Of
In Honor Of _____________________________________________________________________
Amount $___________ Given to:
Building Fund
Memorial Fund
Other ______________________________
(Please specify)
Person/Family to notify of this Memorial Gift:
Given by: _______________________________________________
Name ________________________________________________
Address ________________________________________________
Address _______________________________________________
City ________________________ State ______ Zip Code _______
City ______________________ State ______ Zip Code _______
C OAL C ITY UNITED M ETHODIST C HURCH
Reverend Walter Carlson
Building families for Christ since 1886
6805 E. McArdle Road
Coal City, IL 60416
Phone: 815-634-8670
Fax: 815-634-2314
E-mail: [email protected]
Visit us on the web!
www.coalcityum.org
Join us for worship!
Sunday - 8:00 am & 10:30 am
Sunday School for all ages - 9:00 am
A staffed nursery is available
during Sunday School & our 10:30 am worship service
The Mission of the Coal City United
Methodist Church is to be a sanctuary
where prayer, worship, acts of mercy,
and study of scripture empower persons
to live as disciples of Jesus Christ.
All ladies are cordially invited
to attend our
00
ly 1 ts
n
O ke
tic able!
il
ava
Ladies Tea
The Messenger
May 2015
Biscuits & Gravy Breakfast
Sunday, May 31
Sunday, May 3
During Coffee Hour
1:00 - 3:00 pm
9:00 - 10:15 am
Ticket price is $15.00
The cost is a free will donation
Tickets include Lunch
& Entertainment
All proceeds will go
to the building fund