EPA Conference UMC



SW District E-alert August 5, 2015Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time. -- John Lubbock, 1834-1913, author of The Pleasures of LifeThe District Office summer hours are Monday through Thursday, 7:45 am to 4:30 pm. The Office is closed on Fridays. Because both the District Superintendent and the District Resource Assistant attend meetings off-site, please call (717-569-9670) before arriving to make sure that someone will be there to greet you. For our Calendar of Events and the Fine Print about this publication, please scroll to the end of this email.New! Did you delete that old e-alert? You know, the one with the notice about that workshop you were supposed to attend? No problem! Starting with the e-alert you are reading right now, SW E-alerts will be available on the SW District page of the new Conference website. Just click here. New! Speaking of the new Conference website, the SW District will now be using a page on the Conference’s website to communicate important information. Just like on the District’s old website (which will eventually disappear), you can access forms and schedules (see below) as well as view local church/Mission ConneXion events and various employment opportunities/classifieds. Take a look! (Note: You should still continue to send your notices for SW District events and news to DRA Chris McLaughlin, swdistrict@.) Reminder! Charge Conference Forms and Schedule.Click here for Charge Conference Forms (some are due at the end of August!). For the Charge Conference Schedule, click here Happening Next Week! August 11, Racial Justice Dialogue: Opening Conversations, Developing Relationships, and Working Toward Justice, 9:00 am to noon, at Faith UMC, 1290 Fruitville Pike, Lititz, PA 17543 (see for directions).As a Christian people we believe that everyone is created in the image of God and is beloved by God. Yet we live in a society where there are still issues of racial injustice that impact each of us in direct and indirect ways. One of the obstacles to progress is that we haven't made enough space to hear from people with experiences that are different than our own—especially to hear their experiences with injustices, racism, fear, etc. This session is designed as a first step to prepare church leaders to begin discussions about racial justice, to help us identify ways to develop ongoing deeper relationships with diverse peoples, and to begin the important work of proactively dismantling systems of injustice before there are any further crises in our own communities. The first dialogue will be for a limited audience, specifically white United Methodist pastors and lay people of the Southwest District of the Eastern PA Annual Conference. We believe this is an important initial step to prepare for future dialogue that will include more diverse populations. As we progress in our dialogue, we are also interested in engaging with a broad spectrum of our brothers and sisters including persons of color, other faith traditions, civil society groups, etc. in order to develop relationships and solidarity in the work. Eventually we would like to engage in dialogue with local civil servants (police, county commissioners, legislators, etc.) to enhance positive relationships between them and communities where there has been distrust. For more information or to register for this session, please contact Pastor Jason Perkowski at jbperkowski@ or (717) 333-9238.More Details! October 28, Bishop Johnson on the SW District. This event is for both clergy (required for all appointed clergy) and laity. It will be held at St. Mark’s UMC, 37 E. Main Street, Mt. Joy. The clergy’s time with Bishop Johnson will begin at 4:30 pm (registration starts at 4:00). A dinner for both clergy and laity will begin at 6:00 pm. The laity’s time with the Bishop will begin at 7:00 pm. Although the event will be free, registration will be required (details to come). A free-will offering will be taken for the meal. Reminder! November 14, Adjourned Session of Annual Conference. New Location: Macungie campus of Bethany UMC, 3801Brookside Road, Macungie, PA 18062. We will be re-voting for General Conference delegates. Click here to learn more. Reminder! A Word from LUMINA. Dear Friends and Supporters of LUMINA,While in the process of incorporating, we have recently discovered a problem in our status with the General Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church. This change in status affects our liability insurance, as well as our tax exemption. In order to help LUMINA, the Trustees of the Eastern PA Conference have now voted to bring LUMINA on as an official ministry of the Conference. This is great news!We need a little time to restructure a bit and get hooked up with the Conference insurance, so we will need to take a brief break from our usual summer ministries:LUMINA’s God’s Chefs and Super Cupboard programs will be on hiatus until September.We will not be organizing a Community Day Camp this year. The children who would have attended it will be invited instead to attend New Creation UMC’s evening vacation Bible school program July 27-31. We thank New Creation UMC for transporting our children and youth to Gretna Glen this summer for residence camps.Some ministries will not be affected:The School Uniform Bank and Professional Clothing Bank will continue normally, since they are permanently housed within UMC churches.All office work will continue.Donations of goods and funds will still be accepted.We expect all ministries to be fully operational again by September. Please call the office at 717-394-84121 if you have any questions or concerns.As always, we at LUMINA thank you sincerely for your support and prayers! We look forward to being your partner in ministry for many more years to come!--Correen Russo, Executive DirectorEmployment OpportunitiesNew! The following two opportunities are available at Wesley United Methodist Church, 40 W. Main Street, Strasburg, PA 17579. 717-687-6392. wesleystrasburg@ Driver NeededWesley UMC is looking for someone to drive our bus on Wednesday’s from 3:00PM to 4:00PM to pick up 20-30 children for our after-school program (Parents will retrieve their children from the church). The driver must have an active bus driving CDL to qualify, and must meet all safe-sanctuary policy regulations with regard to background checks. Please contact our youth director, Liana Kieley as soon as possible at: wesleystrasburg@, or call the office to schedule an interview. Part-time Worship Leader/Pastor NeededWesley UMC in Strasburg, Lancaster County, is prayerfully seeking a Contemporary Worship Leader/Pastor for our 10:50AM service. We are looking for a motivated leader who is passionate about Jesus Christ, has strong musical abilities, works as a team player, knows current worship music, and has the desire to help plan and implement our contemporary worship service. This position will include a stipend that has the potential to grow into a regular salary over time. The qualified individual should have a vision for growth and the patience to work with a church looking to grow again. Please contact Pastor Dave via email @ dralderson@ or via his mobile number @ (717)-926-2997. Available ItemsNew! St. Mark’s UMC in Mount Joy has a number of items that we would be willing to donate to a church that could make use of them. These items are as follows:Four folding bell tables: the folding tables measure 72” long x 29” wide x 29” high and fold to a 36” x 29” x 4” (There are also some foam pads that could be had to go with the tables.)Three freestanding rolling chalk/bulletin boardsSet of five chancel chairsCenter chair measures 53” tall x 24”w x 26” dp.Flanking chairs measure 49” tall x 24” x 24”Two side chairs w/o arms measure 36” tall x 18” w x 19” dp.Questions? Contact Rob Stoner at 717-653-5493, ext. 230Calendar of Events For a schedule of Sexual Ethics Workshops, click hereFor information about the Changing Racism training, click hereAugust 11Racial Justice Dialogue at Faith UMC (see above)August 12SW Retired Clergy and Spouses Breakfast, 9:00 am, Oregon DairyNo reservations required. August 14-16Laity Academy, Reading InnAugust 25Women in Professional Ministry Luncheon,11:30 amLoxley’s Restaurant, 500 Centerville Rd, LancasterSeptember 9-12Laity Retreat – Postponed. Stay tuned for a new date! September 29Women in Professional Ministry Luncheon,11:30 amCat’s Meow Restaurant, 215 S. Charlotte, ManheimOctober 2-4Transformational Leadership Conference, "See. Know. Love,"Offered by the Vision Table of the NE Jurisdiction. Being held at the Hershey Inn, Hershey, PAOctober 27Women in Professional Ministry Luncheon,11:30 amGypsy Kitchen, refectory at Lancaster Theological SeminaryOctober 28Bishop Johnson on the SW District, Mt. Joy: St. Mark’s (see above)November 7Planting the Seeds of Ministry, Hopewell UMCKeynote speaker: Rev. Mike Slaughter. More details to come!November 14Adjourned Session of Annual Conference, New Location: Macungie campus of Bethany UMC, 3801Brookside Road, Macungie, PA 18062We will be re-voting for General Conference delegates2016May 10-20, 2016General Conference in Portland, OregonJune 5 (Tentative)District Conference, Location TBDJune 16-18, 2016Annual Conference, The Marriott, Lancaster CityJuly 10-15, 2016Northeast Jurisdictional Conference, The Marriott, Lancaster City The Fine Print?Editorial Policy of the Southwest District E-Alert.?The Southwest District E-alert is published on an as-needed basis on Wednesdays. Articles will appear once as New information; thereafter, they will be Reminders or Calendar Items. Spaghetti dinners, fundraisers, VBSs, bazaars, etc. are included only on the Local Church and ConneXion Events page. ?The E-Alert is sent to Pastors and Church Offices on the Southwest District and to lay people who have requested having their names added to the distribution list. Please feel free to copy any article for your church’s bulletin or newsletter. To unsubscribe, please send an email to swdistrict@?with the word “Unsubscribe” in the subject line. Appointed clergy may not unsubscribe.?All articles and announcements should be sent to DRA Chris McLaughlin at?swdistrict@?by 3:00 Tuesday afternoon for consideration. Articles should be in the body of an email or an attached Word document (please no PDFs). Submissions made by telephone will?not?be accepted. Articles may be edited for clarity and space. All decisions regarding publication are made by the District Office.? ................
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