WOODLAWN TODAY
March/April Newsletter
Woodlawn UMC
1675 Hopley Avenue
Bucyrus, OH
44820
Office phone:419/562-1776
Office fax: 419/562-1746
Parsonage phone:
419/562-1326
Email:
woodlawnoffice1675@yahoo.com
Website:
www.bucyruswumc.com
From the desk of Pastor Jim Ellis…
What is the most important
holiday of the year? A list of most
important holidays would have to include Easter, July Fourth, Thanksgiving, and
Christmas; three of which honor God, and two being specifically Christian in
origin. Many people would say Christmas
is the greatest of the four holidays.
Christmas takes up the most time, costs the most money, involves the
most decorating, and is a sentimental favorite for Christians and non-Christians
alike. From a worldly perspective, Christmas
is the winner, hands down.
God sees life
differently. If the purpose of a
holiday is to celebrate an important event, then Christmas, which celebrates
the birth of Christ, is only preparation for a far greater day called Easter. The Bible says, this is “…of the first
importance: that Christ died for our
sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the
third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Peter, and then
to the Twelve. After that He appeared
to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time…” (I Corinthians 15:3-6). If Christmas is about God coming to earth as
Jesus Christ, then Easter is about why he did it. At the first Easter, God broke the chokehold sin and death had on
all humanity and gave us the ability to enter heaven. Even more, because Jesus rose victorious over this world,
“…creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into
the glorious freedom of the children of God.”
(Romans 8:20).
Now, that is something worth
celebrating! May you all have a joyous
and victorious Easter.
Youth News by Alaina Crall…
The Youth Spaghetti Dinner
held Sunday, January 31, to benefit Lifeline Missions profited $304.75 and
served between 60-70 people.
The Youth will participate
in a 30-Hour Famine March 19-20 with the Pietist Church in Chatfield. Please keep us in your prayers.
The Youth and Betweens Group
will have a Bake Sale Palm Sunday, March 28, with proceeds going to Haiti.
Woodlawn’s Jr. Church is
making “I Care” kits for the children of Haiti. Donations of the following are being accepted: bottled water, toothbrushes and toothpaste,
combs and/or picks, baby wipes, band aids, and small toys. We will also be making small cuddle blankets
to give to the children. Everything
will be sent to Lifeline Missions.
Deadline for donations is March 28.
The Youth will serve Sunrise
Breakfast at 8:45am on Easter morning, April 4.
It is Hawkins’ Scholarship time once again………..
Any graduating senior who is
a member of Woodlawn UMC may be eligible for the Hawkins’ Scholarship. Please pick up an application at the church
office. Deadline for applications is
April 30. For any questions, please
contact Jim Gillenwater at 419/562-3276.
Christian Education News by Carla Gerhart…
Having lost several Sunday
School teachers, I no longer have enough teachers to do rotation Sunday
School. I also need help in the
preschool class. We cannot afford to
pay for curriculum, so I am at a loss for what to do. No one
has stepped up to offer to
help me, let alone take over. I believe
God is working on someone’s heart and that person, or people, need to step
forward. It is a very rewarding position
but after nearly 26 years I am out of ideas and energy. We have wonderful children here, and
they deserve the best. I am afraid that
I am letting them down. Please search
your heart, and if God moving you to do so, step forward. You won’t be sorry. God Bless You!
Mission Outreach News by Nancy Maples…
The Recycling Proceeds for
October/November/December 2009 totaled $136.08.
The January mission offering
totaled $212.66 for the Lighthouse Homeless Shelter and $212.67 for the First
UMC Soup Kitchen. February’s mission
offering totaled $265.00 for Scout Pack 101.
The March mission offering
will go towards Bucyrus Salvation Army, and the April mission offering will go
towards Bethel House in Upper Sandusky.
We are still supporting the Reffey Family ($1,000/year). We donated a total of $625 for UMCOR/Haiti.
News from United Methodist Women…
The ladies of our church
have been busy, as usual, serving meals as we are known for. We have had three recent funeral dinners
serving a total of 230 family and friends after the services of loved ones. We are always glad to be of service to our
church families in their time of need.
On February 3, we served the
United Way Volunteers a luncheon. On
March 5, we have the Lion’s Zone Dinner on our calendar.
Recently, four officers
attend a UMW Mid-Ohio District appreciation brunch at the Korean Methodist
Church in Mansfield. Many health care
packets were collected at that time to be sent to Haiti. Our ladies are also involved in sewing school
bags for school supplies. A big “thank
you” to Margie Guttenberg who has done many of these.
We are planning our annual
UMW Sunday for April 25. Barb Ellis
will be giving the message at that time.
Looking ahead, the Esther
Circle will meet on March 9 and April 13 at 6pm. The Rebekah Circle will meet on March 17 and April 21 at 9am at
the church. The UMW Unit Meeting
(Prayer and Self-Denial) will also be Wednesday, March 17, at 9am. Any ladies of the church who have not been
attending a Circle are encouraged to join us.
We have a good time, and welcome you to come to be with us.
God’s Blessings to All.
Administrative Board News from Linda Efaw…
Is it spring yet? I normally consider myself a patient person
but this winter weather has me losing patience with the cold, snowy, dreary
days. I’m longing for sunshine, warm
weather, birdsong and spring flowers. I
turned to my Bible to see what I might learn about patience. Not surprisingly, there’s a lot to ponder:
Proverbs 19:11 A man’s wisdom gives him patience
Proverbs 14:29 A patient man has great
understanding…
Proverbs 15:18 A patient man calms a quarrel
Proverbs 16:32 Better a patient man than a warrior
Ecclesiastes 7:8 …patience is better than pride
Romans 8:25 But
if we hope for what we do not yet have,
we wait for it patiently
Romans 12:12 Be
joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer
Colossians 3:12 …clothe
yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience
Hebrews 6:12 …to
imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised
I Thessalonians 5:14 …to
be patient with everyone
Psalm 37:7 Be still before the Lord and
wait patiently for Him
Since
I cannot do anything about the weather, these passages remind me to be
patient. Reminds me to be patient with
situations I cannot control and to be patient with others. Reminds me to be patient with myself. Reminds me that “good things come to those
who wait.” I do have to admit the snow
this week is beautiful. I am still,
however, anxiously awaiting spring sunshine and flowers. May God’s blessing be on Woodlawn, whatever
the season.
Notes from Families and Friends…
The items from the hat, mitten, underwear, socks, and
sweatshirt tree were taken to Bucyrus Elementary School.
All items were very much appreciated and needed.
To Our Woodlawn Family,
Thank you for all your love and care during John’s
illness and passing. You make life
easier. You have been a blessing to the
family and me.
From my heart to yours, Barb Spaid and Family.
To Our Woodlawn Family,
From the bottom of hearts we wish to express our
gratitude and heartfelt thanks for the cards, visits, calls, food, flowers,
prayers, thoughts, and all acts of kindness expressed during Lyle’s
hospitalization and passing.
The Fauser Family.
Membership News…
The Woodlawn Congregation extends their sympathy to:
*Ralph and Debby Kinney on the passing of Debby’s
Father, Billy May.
*Melissa Nolen and Ron Cress Family on the passing of
Ron’s brother,
John Cress.
*The family of Theda Lederer who passed away January
2, 2010.
*The family of John Spaid who passed away January 6,
2010.
*The family of Lyle Fauser who passed away January
24, 2010.
*Joe and Cathy Beck on the passing of Cathy’s uncle.
*Don and Dixie Striker on the passing of Don’s
sister.
Congratulations to Alaina Maples and David Crall who
were united in marriage February 11, 2010.
March Birthdays and Anniversaries:
Birthdays:
March 2 Harold
Miller
March 2 Pat
Trout
March 3 Ruby
Cover
March 4 Janie
Richardson
March 5 Barb
Spaid
March 7 Fred
Sparks
March 10 Dana
Young
March 11 Colleen
Laferty
March 11 Alaina
(Maples) Crall
March 11 Adam
Heinlen (military)
March 11 Dudley
Gilfillan
March 12 Dixie
Striker
March 12 John
Witter
March 13 Caleb
Hess
March 17 Denise
Detwiler
March 18 Dave
Linn
March 20 Norm
Kisor
March 21 Kim
Hensley
March 21 Angie
Wyss
March 24 Carson
Heinlen
March 25 Tyson
Smith
March 26 Mike
Strouse
March 29 Nancy
Gillenwater
March 30 Miriam
Fauser
March 30 Bob
Laipply
March 31 Sheraton
Richardson
March 31 Sydney
Van Meter
Anniversaries:
March 1 Sam
and Dawn Failor
March 2 Jeff
and Michelle Cochran
March 13 Mike
and Sherri Strouse
March 22 Ralph
and Debby Kinney
March 24 Gene
and Sandy Michener
March 30 Mike
and Barb Kent
April Birthdays and Anniversaries:
Birthdays:
April 4 Debbie
Kovach
April 4 Jeremy
Gilbertson
April 5 Madison
Tieben
April 5 Barb
Ellis
April 6 Mike
Kent
April 9 Nicole
Tschanen
April 10 Nancy
Maples
April 15 Michelle
Cochran
April 17 Max
Cover
April 19 Shelley
Darnell
April 19 Rick
Miller
April 21 Carol
Van Meter
April 21 Bryce
Tieben
April 23 Robert
Richardson
April 23 Jacob
Maddy
April 25 Ellie
Rockwell
April 26 Chuck
Leuthold
April 27 Debbie
Musick
April 28 Dori
Bishop
April 29 Melissa
Tinkey
Anniversaries:
April 1 Chuck
and Barb Leuthold
April 4 Tom
and Pam Holtshouse
April 4 Bob
and Linda Greenick
April 7 Jeremy
and Sarah Gilbertson
April 10 Fred
and Pat Sparks
April 15 Jim
and Nancy Gillenwater
April 20 Kevin
and Dori Bishop
Lenten Service Schedule…
Sunday, February 28 at
Woodlawn UMC
6:30pm movie:
“Oh God! You Devil”
Prayer Time 15 minutes before movie
Sunday, March 7 at Grace UMC
7pm Jim Ellis preaching
Prayer Time 15 minutes before
service
Sunday, March 14 at Mt. Zion UMC
7pm Don Krapps preaching
Prayer Time 15 minutes before
service
Sunday, March 21 at Woodlawn UMC
6pm Merger Meeting
7pm Sondra Snode preaching
Prayer Time 15 minutes before
service
Sunday, March 28 Palm Sunday
at Woodlawn UMC
6:30pm movie:
“The Boy in
the Striped Pajamas”
Thursday, April 1 Maundy
Thursday
7pm Service at Woodlawn, tentative
Saturday, April 3 Easter
Walk-Thru
4pm at Woodlawn, tentative
News from the Worship Committee…
Thanks to Josh Laferty who
will be changing the front outdoor sign.
Thanks, also, to Ruby Cover who will be working with the scheduling of
acolytes during the months of May through October.
Drinks and cookies are NOT
to go into the sanctuary. We still need
volunteers for ushering.
The country/gospel group,
Two by Two, will be at Woodlawn UMC on Sunday, February 28, at the 8am and
10:30am worship services.
SPR News from Roger Weisenauer…
Congratulations to Alaina and David Crall on their
recent wedding.
Let the Lord be in charge, and He will bless you with
a lifetime of happiness!
We,
as a church, must do the same. We head
into a new year as most churches, businesses, manufacturers, and individuals
looking for a better 2010 than 2009. We
must continue to reach out to people in need, the unchurched and anyone else in
need of prayers or a church home. We need to step up our efforts, as a staff,
congregation, and committee members, as being a loving, caring, outreaching
church. We all love our church and what
it has to offer. Let’s continue to pray
for us; as a church, our staff, and our committees, for our strength and
direction, spiritually and financially.
With constant prayer, and your continued giving, and letting the Lord be
in charge, we can focus on 2010 being a good year and entering 2011 on a
roll. In the Lord’s name.
Financial News…
Sanctuary Balance: $25,605.02 as of 2/17/2010.
For the month of January, (5
Sundays) we had 136 average in attendance and $3736.93 was the average
offering.
Woodlawn Savings Account
First Federal
Memorial/Undesignated: 23,018.15
Parsonage:
9,283.00
Hawkins’
Scholarship: 5,070.86
Instrument
Fund: 17.73
Local
Mission Trip Expenses:
448.75
Total
as of 2/17/2010: $ 37,838.49
Bucyrus United Methodist Churches Vision Committee
Minutes from January 17, 2010
Peggy Streiff, DS, opened
with prayer. Dr. Ball reported that he
is retiring in July. Those in
attendance introduced themselves and their church affiliation.
Sue Stander led in a
devotional reading.
Excerpts from the 2008 East
Ohio Conference Journal were distributed and reviewed.
Pastor Don Ebert, Grace UMC,
presented one proposal of how a merger could be accomplished. An outside consulting service could be
utilized and is recommended. Current
structures could be evaluated by the outside consultants. The consultants could assist with
determining potential sites for a new building if that would be more practical
and economical.
Each church would have the
option of presenting a plan of their own.
The McKnight Group was named
as a consulting option. They could also
do a community assessment.
A proposal from Epworth UMC
was presented as well.
The question was raised as
to what can we do if we don’t have funds to upgrade the facilities. A funding consultant could be utilized.
Peggy suggested we make the
decision to merge before we hire a consultant.
Grace UMC wants to look at
both basic and vital merger options before they make a decision.
July 1, 2010 may be too
aggressive of a goal.
It was suggested that we
both deal with existing ministries and have space to grow. We need to get used to working together –
identify projects we can do with existing resources.
Peggy suggested we
brainstorm what we want to look like in five years.
Rick proposed that we
contact the McKnight Group and have a representative address our group on how
they could assist us with options. Any
merger plan should include a vision for the new entity.
The McKnight Group could
review the two options presented tonight and evaluate those.
Peggy concluded from
attendance at the local vision meetings that she has attended that we have a
“fear” of working together. What is
holding us back? There is a fear that a
merged entity would look identical to our individual churches which is not what
we want.
Peggy cautioned that we will
lose some people if we merge. The hope
is that we would gain new disciples.
The McKnight Group should look at the big picture of Methodism in
Bucyrus.
We need to determine where
God is leading us.
Grace UMC has voted to leave
their current building. Dr. Ball is
retiring July 1.
A merger could save $100,000
per year in those two congregations alone.
Grace UMC voted to explore
both basic and vital merger options.
It was decided to propose to
the 4 individual churches that we bring in the McKnight Group. Representatives from each church were
present and all agreed that this was a good option at this time.
We need to determine if we
are having a joint service next month.
It is Grace’s turn to host but some from First UMC cannot attend due to
inadequate handicap accessibility. The
service will be held at Grace UMC the second Sunday of February. Peggy suggested that we have individuals
from each church participate in each service.
Communication to the
individual congregations is vital.
The next meeting will be
held at Epworth UMC on Sunday, February 21, at 6pm.
Linda Efaw, Woodlawn UMC