The Willow Word A Publication of the Willow Glen United Methodist Church
God’s Family Growing Through Caring, Sharing and Serving
From Seeds to Saints
Stewardship and Mission Possible Campaigns Begin October 19 Why does Willow Glen UMC have so many living saints? Because long ago, someone planted seeds and they grew! Yes, in the last 100 years, the church has been good at growing saints, and we celebrate the folks who raised them up and built a community of faith strong enough to withstand the onslaughts of an increasingly secular culture here in Silicon Valley. Our church is alive and strong in 2014, and that is no small thing. Now, while these special people are still with us, our attention turns to the future. How are we going to grow new saints? First, we’ll need to prepare the soil, then plant some seeds and water them. And though there is a severe water shortage in California, there is no drought when it comes to the gifts of God who has showered so many blessings on us. Let’s roll up our sleeves, hitch up the team, and get to work in God’s good field. This year our campaign for the operating budget of the church and the campaign for capital improvements and debt repayment (Mission Possible) will coincide. The two pledge cards last year caused confusion, so this year we are consolidating the two pledges on one card. Your Mission Possible pledge will help us prepare a space, a field for growing things. Your MP gift will enable us to renovate the Wesley Room, update the kitchen and make a start on badly needed sanctuary repairs and improvements. Your pledge to the operating budget will then help us plant the seeds of faith and grow new disciples of Christ who will, by the grace of God, one day become our new living saints. Join us and we will make an excellent team, yoked together by the love of God, love for each other, and a desire to share that love with our neighbors. Be looking for a copy of the church budget, a letter from the pastor and a pledge card in the mail and in the Sunday morning bulletin starting October 19.
Mexico Mission Trip 2015
July 25-August 1 It’s not too early to begin planning for next summer… We will be taking an intergenerational mission trip to Mexico July 25 – August 1, 2015. Working with AMOR Ministries, we will build two-room houses from the ground up for families living outside Tijuana. We encourage everyone to consider making this life-changing trip: families, individuals, school-age children, youth and adults of all ages. Mark your calendars now and begin praying about your participation on our mission team. Informational meetings will be held in January. The cost of the trip is currently estimated at $725 per adult and $425 per child, which includes the cost of building materials for the homes we will build. If you have questions, contact Pastor Susan or one of the members of our previous teams (Chamberlains, Grubbs, Quigleys, Karen Ehrke, Freemans, Falls, Fisks, Dick Oswald, Penses, Seevers, Smiths, Stecks) for reflections on their experiences. This is one more way that we are building hope in the world as we join in ministry with Almaden Hills UMC and Cambrian Park UMC.
October 2014
In This Issue: Pastor’s Page General Church News Children & Family MInistries Spiritual Development Women’s Page Mission & Service
Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7
2 Sunday Worship 8:45 – 9:45 a.m. Contemporary Worship 9:45 – 10:00 a.m. Fellowship Time 10:00 – 10:45 a.m. Christian Education/Sunday School 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Traditional Service 12:00 – 12:30 p.m. Fellowship Time
Church Staff Rebecca Irelan Senior Pastor
Susan Smith Pastor of Children & Family Ministries Lisa Jacobs Director of Joint Youth Ministries Lorene Sheridan Director of Weekday Ark Ministries Robert Birnstihl Organist & Director of Music Ministries Tom Mounts Director, the Willow Glen Ringers Dee Davis Office & Facilities Manager Karen Kwon Wedding Coordinator
Pastor’s Page Celebrating Our Many Anniversaries! When I served Grace UMC in Santa Cruz, most of the church’s archives were stored in cardboard boxes in the attic on the third floor. They were, of course, good kindling for the fire that started in the furnace flue in 2000. I vowed then that from now on I would see to it that my churches did a better job of safekeeping their stories. Since arriving at Willow Glen, I have been watching out for archival materials and haven’t found much. I’m wondering if old records were stored in cardboard boxes in the basement when it caught fire back in 1966. The most interesting thing I have been able to find so far is one cardboard box (in the basement!) containing some histories of the church and photocopies of old photographs, but only very old (1”X 2”) photo of the first church building on Lincoln Avenue. If anyone knows of any pre-1970 photos or worship bulletins, etc. hiding in the church (or in someone’s house), please let me know. I would like to make a display of Willow Glen history for a special worship service on October 26. There are many ways to count the age of Willow Glen UMC. It started as a Sunday School that ran in fits and starts from the late 1860’s until the early twentieth century. It had an appointed (though non-resident) pastor in 1874. But there was a span of years (1877 to 1892) in which there was no appointed pastor and no regular preaching services. The Willow Glen Methodist Episcopal Church was not formally organized until 1909. It first met in a school on the corner of Lincoln and Malone. A small frame church was built on Lincoln. Then it was replaced by a larger building a few lots away, dedicated in 1914. So this year, 2014, is the 145th anniversary of the start of the Sunday School (give or take), the 140th anniversary of the first appointed pastor, the 105th anniversary of the formal organization of the congregation, the 100th anniversary of the dedication of the second Lincoln Avenue building, the 70th anniversary of the kick-off of the capital campaign to build a new church (with “adequate bathrooms properly located”!) on Minnesota and Washington (now Newport), and the 50th anniversary of a decision to sell this building and build a new church at Dry Creek and Meridian (a decision that was thwarted by the 1966 fire.) We are going to mark this year of anniversaries on October 26, the day our Mission Possible Team will present a progress report on the first year of the renovation/debt repayment campaign and seek your support for their goals for our second year. We will be sharing more church history stories in the coming weeks, but let’s put on the to-do list getting a fireproof storage container for the history we are going to make in 2015! Yours in Christ,
Rebecca
General Church News
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Willow Glen UMC Care Team Launches October 12
How do churches become families? By members taking care of one another in times of need. You may not know this, but a team of caring individuals has been meeting for months now to figure out how better to coordinate care for members or our congregation. They have defined the work, designed a communication system, created a brochure, and are now ready to recruit helpers for this ministry. They need volunteers to make phone calls, write cards, visit with members, or provide short-term help with shopping, meal preparation, transportation or pet care. You’ll hear all about it and ways that you can care or be cared for in worship on October 12. (Note: The Care Team is not a licensed social service agency, but we will try to find urgently needed assistance for our church family and friends.)
Building Community, One Skein at a Time! Yarn Drive – October 12 Due to popular demand, the Caring Hands prayer shawl ministry is in need of some NEW yarn. It is getting expensive for our knitters to provide all the yarn themselves, so we are hosting a yarn drive on October 12 to support this ministry of compassion and the wonderful folks who pray with their knitting needles. We are looking for new yarn that is good quality and will make a prayer shawl soft enough to convey the warmth of our prayers. Each prayer shawl takes 3 skeins of yarn. Choose a washable yarn that is soft to the touch. Shawls are made for children and adults, men and women, so when you are picking a color, keep that in mind. Caring Hands also needs plastic storage bins for completed shawls and gift bags to distribute them. Please bring your yarn (or bins or bags) to church on Sunday, October 12. If you have any questions, contact Jacque Lauer.
Church Conference Date
Sunday, November 23, 5:00-7:00 p.m. at Almaden Hills UMC This year, Almaden Hills, Cambrian Park and Willow Glen UMC’s will meet at Almaden Hills to share a meal and a short worship service together and then break into our separate church groups to do the business of church conference. This will be a great time to celebrate all the wonderful things we do together: Joint Youth Ministry, Building Hope, Open Table, and Mexico Mission.
Pumpkin Fun!
Friday, October 24, at 7:00 p.m. Join us as we decorate pumpkins in many creative ways, and have some fun playing with them, too! We’ll have all of the decorating supplies ready for you. Bring a pumpkin to paint, carve, or adorn. Don’t forget, we will be celebrating October birthdays, too! See you at The Village: Activities for the Whole Church Family!
Greeters Needed
We need greeters for the 11:00 service. Please contact Lynda Hutcheson if you’d like to volunteer.
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Children & Family Ministries It’s Time to Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF!
For over 60 years, kids have trick-or-treated for UNICEF, making a difference in the lives of kids in need all around the world. You can, too! Pick up your orange trick-or-treat box from Pastor Susan and start collecting donations from family, friends and neighbors. You can even wear your costume to church on Halloween weekend and trick-or-treat for UNICEF among your church family at fellowship time. Let’s help make a difference in their lives this Halloween!
We’re Using our Imaginations in Sunday School
Creativity. Just the word can get us excited to make something new…or it can fill us with dread if we feel we have never been creative and never will be. We have been conditioned to think of creativity in terms of arts and crafts, music and dance. We’re not creative because of our talents, however. We are creative because that’s how God made us. God created each of us with a mind that can think beyond ourselves and imagine a myriad of possibilities for just about anything. When we talk about creativity in those terms, maybe it isn’t so scary for some. Creativity allows us to see beyond the ordinary, using our imaginations to do something unique. That’s what we will be exploring in Sunday School beginning October 12. We’ll be turning on our imaginations and opening up to all the possibility of creation. Creativity is imagination plus action. We’ll allow our imaginations to lead us to do good things in the world and each make our own mark. Whenever we find a unique answer or solution, we are being creative. So let’s get creative together and discover where God is calling us to imagine the possibilities. Our memory verse for this unit will be Ephesians 2:10: “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
Joint Youth Ministry Walkathon Is October 19
Please consider sponsoring a member of the Joint Youth Ministry of Almaden Hills, Cambrian Park and Willow Glen United Methodist Churches. The JYM is raising money for scholarships for 100+ kids so they can participate in life-altering summer camps, service projects and other youth activities. The JYM Walkathon is Sunday, October 19, 2014, 1:00-5:00 p.m. at Cambrian Park United Methodist Church. There will be food, a jump house, and other entertainment. What you can do to help: • Encourage your junior and/or senior high youth to participate • Pledge our youth, in person or online at jointyouthgroup.com • Sign up to volunteer on October 19! If you have any questions, contact Kiersten Manuel at
[email protected].
Spiritual Development
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Adult Classes for the Fall
“Our Story” Sunday Morning DVD class on the history of Methodism meets in the church library at 10 am. Scholars from Methodist institutions around the country have contributed to a DVD course on the history of the Methodist movement. Beginning with the parents of John and Charles Wesley, the course traces the development of Methodist spirituality and practice and the growth of Methodist institutions over 300 years of history. Thank you to Lex Danson for leading the discussion of these video lectures. Covenant Bible Study We’ve had strong interest in our new Bible class this fall. The Covenant Bible Study is similar to “Disciple”, which many of us have taken during the last 25 years, and just as deep. The major differences are that it consists of 3 short-term sections of 8 lessons each, and is theme-based rather than a chronological study of the Bible from beginning to end. So the first section will run only up to Thanksgiving. The class is meeting on Wednesday evenings, at 7:45 p.m. at Woodhaven. Stan Praisewater, Kristen Kufeldt and Pastor Rebecca will take turns leading the class. If you’re interested in finding out more about Covenant, be sure to check their website: http://www.covenantbiblestudy.com/. (see more on Covenant Bible Study below) Kaleidoscope While the Covenant Bible Study meets on Wednesdays, the Kaleidoscope class will not be meeting on Thursday evenings. We hope to bring this unique Bible experience back at a later time, so watch your worship bulletin and email for updates.
October in Worship
October 5: Rev. Cate Noellert, marriage and family therapist, is preaching at both services in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Week. The worship bulletin will be full of resources for seeking help for yourself or a loved one who is trying to improve their mental health. October 12: Pastor Rebecca is back in the pulpit to speak on what we can do to maintain healthy relationships, in our families, friendship circles, communities and world. We will be collecting yarn for our Caring Hands prayer shawl ministry and introduce our new Care Team ministry. October 19: This is a very special day of giving thanks and going forward. God willing, we will celebrate Ruby Goodnight’s 100th birthday after the second service on this day and also commit ourselves to continue to do and to support God’s work in Willow Glen. As we all have reaped the harvest of her faith, we will take this opportunity to plant our own seeds and make our pledge to keep growing our faith and to give the church what it needs to help others to grow theirs. October 26: The Mission Possible Team will be with us in both services to present a progress report on the first year of the renovation/debt repayment campaign and to seek your support for their goals for our second year. As we mark the 140th anniversary of Willow Glen UMC (see pastor’s letter, page 2), we are working hard toward the goal of revitalizing our ministry buildings in plenty of time for the 150th anniversary!
Covenant Bible Study
By Stan Praisewater We will be starting Covenant Bible Study at Willow Glen this fall and we already have a full class! Covenant is similar to “Disciple”, which many of us have taken during the last 25 years, and just as deep. The major differences are that it consists of 3 sections of 8 lessons each, and is theme-based rather than a chronologically running through the Bible beginning to end. If you’re interested in finding out more about Covenant, be sure to check their website: http://www.covenantbiblestudy. com/. In the meantime, please pray for the success our class, which will be meeting in Woodhaven at 7:45 p.m. on Wednesdays.
6 Women’s Groups Open to all, newcomers are welcome. Please call the contact listed below for information. Heart and Hand Thursday, October 2 7:00 p.m., Woodhaven Susan Smith Friendship Circle Third Monday Noon, Woodhaven Suzanne Selby Wesley Women Fourth Tuesday 1:30 p.m., Woodhaven Jane Vivian
UMW Executive Board will meet Monday, November 3, at 9:30 a.m. in the Wesley Room UMW is open to all women regardless of church membership. For more information about UMW, call Patricia Madsen.
The deadline for the November Willow Word is October 25. Please send your story ideas and submissions to Leslie Chamberlain
Women’s Page Heart and Hand Is Together Again, and Welcomes New Members
Heart and Hand is a UMW circle that meets monthly for fellowship and support, prayer and study. We will be meeting this year on the first Thursday of each month at 7:00 p.m. in Woodhaven, and will begin by reading Lisa Terkeurst’s The Best Yes together. We invite you to join us. We do not know where the journey of life will take us, but we can travel it together.
UMW Hosts Speaker at October 8 Luncheon
Members, guests, friends: ALL ARE WELCOME! Please plan to attend the meeting of United Methodist Women on Wednesday, October 8, at 11:00 a.m. in the Wesley Room. Dion Roberts, Executive Director of Mary Elizabeth Inn, will be on hand to share first-hand about this unique housing opportunity for women and some details of the 100th Anniversary Celebration. Luncheon will be served by Friendship Circle at a cost of $8 per person. Reservations will be taken by Ruth Granfors or Patricia Madsen.
Annual Conference Celebration October 8
Almaden Hills UMC will host the Annual Celebration of California-Nevada Conference of United Methodist Women on Saturday, October 18, from 8:45 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Right in our own backyard – so easy to attend, and all are welcome! Workshops include prayer beads and liturgical dance, among others. Guest speaker Mary McCormick Maaga, is a pastor, author and community volunteer, currently serving at Mercy Way Rescue Church for the Homeless in Placerville, Calif. Please see the UMW bulletin board in the office hallway for details and registration forms. Scholarships are available for first-time attendees; please speak to Pastor Rebecca or to Patricia Madsen.
Annual Celebration on October 26
October 26 is the annual celebration of the El Camino Real District UMW. This event is taking place at Asbury UMC in Livermore on Saturday, October 26. Please see the UMW bulletin board for information and registration forms.
Mary Elizabeth Inn Celebrates 100 Years
2014 marks our centennial year and we’re celebrating! Save the dates and join us at these special events. • Wednesday, October 1 – Lizzie Glide Birthday Tea for Residents • Thursday, October 2 – Open House and Reception at our historic building • Friday, October 3 – Centennial Gala and Fundraiser at the Mark Hopkins San Francisco • Saturday, October 4 – Celebration Service at Jones Memorial United Methodist Church For additional information: Mary Elizabeth Inn, 1040 Bush Street, San Francisco, CA 94109, www.meinn.org.
Mission & Service
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Coming to WGUMC in November – You’re Invited to a Christian Weekend Retreat
Walk to Emmaus (A Three-Day Journey with Christ) By Kristin Kufeldt Walk to Emmaus is an experience of Christian spiritual renewal and formation that begins with a three-day short course in Christianity. It is an opportunity to meet Jesus Christ in a new way as God’s grace and love is revealed to you through other believers. November 6-9 (Men) and November 13-16 (Women) will bring the Silicon Valley Walk to our own Willow Glen United Methodist Church. During the retreat you will enjoy three days of singing, learning, laughing, worshiping, reflecting, praying and participating in small groups. Discussions center around fifteen talks given by laity and clergy. These talks present the theme of God’s grace, how that grace comes alive in the Christian community and how it is expressed in the world. You’ll also discover how grace is real in your life, how you live a life of grace, and how you bring that grace to others. You will leave with an experience of Christian love in action that will equip you for new levels of grace-filled service and leadership. Contact the church office for information on how you can participate.
My Experience on the Walk to Emmaus
By Ruth Granfors You do not need to be a member of our church or any church to attend the Walk to Emmaus. It is open of anyone interested in learning more about faith, and love. People wishing to attend are encouraged to contact a member that has attended a previous walk, so that you can be helped to complete paper work and prepared for the walk. Carmen McBride mentioned the walk in her recent sermon. Several people from our congregation have attended the walk and would be glad to be a sponsor if you would like to attend the walk if room permits. People attending the walk will be treated to 3 days of personal sharings of grace by others, crafts, singing, good food and lots of love. You bring your everyday clothing, and your sponsor will help you with the rest of the items for the walk. I attended Emmaus Walk 38 in Woodland, Calif., in 2004, which was held by the CA/NV Emmaus group. Ingrid Quigley and Kathy Benedict encouraged me to go. I had to wait for a second session, as the earlier Walk was already full. I had just retired so was able to take the time to attend. It was life changing. I would encourage couples to take the walk as they can share the experience and deepen their walk/talk life. Get an application from your sponsor. Talk to Ingrid, Ruth, Carmen, Jeanette Beavers, Stan Praisewater, Steve Quigley, Ruby Goodnight or any pastor for more information. I hope you plan to attend this walk, or one in the near future.
Willow Glen United Methodist Church
1420 Newport Avenue, San Jose, CA 95125 408-294-9796 wgumc.org
