WESTERN DISTRICT CONFERENCE
SPROUTS
February 12, 2013
A weekly communication for:
WDC Churches and Pastors
WDC Executive Board, Commission, Committee and Task Force members
Any content may be used in bulletins and newsletters and
forwarded to congregational leaders and members.
WDC Sprouts is also available at: www.mennowdc.org
IN THIS ISSUE:
*Pastoral Openings
*News and Transitions
*Announcements
Pastoral Openings
Congregational Information Forms can be viewed at: www.mennowdc.org – Pastoral Openings
Beatrice Mennonite Church, NE – Pastor
First Mennonite Church, Halstead, KS – Pastor
First Mennonite Church, Hutchinson, KS – Associate Pastor (1/2 time)
Kingman Mennonite Church, KS – Youth Pastor (1/2 time)
Southern Hills Mennonite Church, Topeka, KS – Youth/Young Adult Leader
Trinity Mennonite Church, Hillsboro, KS – Youth Pastor
News and Transitions
Ray Reimer and Rosie Epp will be commissioned as Co-Pastors at Zion Mennonite Church, Elbing, KS, on February 24.
A Celebration of Ordination service for Luann Yutzy will be held on Sunday, March 10 at 4:30 pm at Eden Mennonite Church in rural Moundridge. Luann has been serving as Interim Associate Pastor at Eden since December of 2011. The wider church community is welcome to come and join in the celebration.
WDC Announcements
1. The WDC Reference Council and Mennonite Church USA Regional Immigration Gathering is scheduled for March 1-2 at Hope Mennonite Church in Wichita, KS. Citizens of God’s Kingdom: Immigration and Christian Faith will be the focus. See complete information and schedule attached, and online at: www.mennowdc.org (Upcoming Events). Please RVSP by Feb. 22 (email wdc@mennowdc.org or phone 316-283-6300).
2. As a Camp Mennoscah Board Member, I am contemplating organizing one or two PASTORS LOVE CAMP fundraising talent nights if there is enough interest from pastors to participate. I would invite you to email me if you would like to share a talent (besides preaching!!!) for the benefit of Camp Mennoscah. Talents could include any number of things including singing, playing an instrument, telling a story (not preaching!!!), juggling, tumbling, telling jokes, dramatic readings, etc. Dates and format of the event are yet to be determined (perhaps Aug. 2013 and Feb. 2014). I would also welcome anyone who might be interested in helping plan or host such an event. My email is jvklaassen@gmail.com. Thanks for considering this opportunity to showcase your talents to benefit camp! –Valerie Klaassen
3. Seeking Certain Someones! Camp Mennoscah is looking for those certain someones who are great with kids, fun-lovin’ folks, and looking to work at a camp for the summer. We’re seeking summer staffers! The positions available are crafts leader, music leader, office assistant, lifeguard, grounds/maintenance, and naturalist. If you know one of these someones, pat them on the back and direct them to www.campmennoscah.org to find the summer staff application under the Resources link. We SO want to talk to them.
4. Free Tee Shirt! It just doesn’t get better than a free camp tee shirt. Camp Mennoscah has volunteer kitchen staff positions for the weeks of June 16-20, June 23-29, July 7-11, July 21-27, and July 28-Aug. 2. Kitchen staff need to be able to follow directions and enjoy the company of a variety of camp folks. A camper discount of up to full camp fees is available for kitchen volunteers. It’s a great way to spend some time at camp–and add to your museum quality collection of tee shirts. Contact us at 620-297-3290 to sign up for fun and hilarity.
5. Hello, Nurse! We’ve got a few spaces left for some capable bandage appliers and sticker removers at Camp Mennoscah. Licensed nurses are needed for the camp weeks of June 16-20, July 7-11, and July 21-27. This position either receives a volunteer stipend or a camper discount of up to full camp fees. Olivia will supply the bandages (and other supplies)–she just needs to you to wield the tweezers. Send us an email at campmno@mennowdc.org or give us a call at 620-297-3290 for more information.
Kansas Announcements
1. Jesus commanded us to love our enemies and Moses said, “Thou shalt eat pie” (or so we imagine). First Mennonite Church & McPherson Church of the Brethren are hosting Ted & Company in bringing their lively fundraiser, “Peace, Pies and Prophets” that includes the show, “I’d Like to Buy an Enemy” to the McPherson Opera House, 219 S Main St, McPherson KS, on March 16 at 7 pm. General admission is free (with a very limited number of reserved seats at $25 each). Homemade pies (furnished by First Mennonite and Church of the Brethren) will be auctioned off during the show and an offering will be received. This is a fundraiser for Christian Peacemaker Teams, a nonprofit that offers an alternative to violence around the world. Ted Swartz will also perform his one-man drama “Laughter is Sacred Space” on March 17 at 10:40 at the First Mennonite worship service. Donations towards his ministry will be gratefully received. The autobiographical drama is appropriate for Lenten worship. This “honest, funny, and vulnerable” reflection deals with issues “of the paradox of working with a comedic partner who’s struggling with bipolar disorder,” as well as “the challenge of writing and performing God’s stories while experiencing the absence of God after Lee’s death.” Yet, it offers hope and humor as only Ted delivers. For more information, call 620-241-4040 or email Kathy Neufeld Dunn at: pastorfmc@gmail.com.
2. First Mennonite, Halstead will have a Verenike fundraiser supper for the youth group on February 23 at 6:00 pm. Menu is: Verenike, Sausage,Green Beans, Zweiback, Cherry Moos, Pies
3. Attn: Women’s Ministry contact or church office – Attached is a poster, signup sheet and bulletin insert highlighting the annual women’s SPRING SUPPER on March 21at 6 pm, a joint effort of the Mennonite Women organizations of the South Central and Western District Conferences. Please publicize and promote this event in the following four ways (we appreciate your assistance!): 1. Put up the attached poster. The half sheet bulletin insert can be given to your women personally, placed in their church mailboxes or used as a bulletin insert. The signup sheet can be used to help with car pooling to this event. 2. Use the following bulletin announcement each Sunday in February: “Mark your calendars ladies – an evening of fellowship and inspiration is planned for Thursday, March 21, 2013 at Whitestone Mennonite Church Fellowship Hall, Hesston, KS. This annual SPRING SUPPER will feature Ruth Lapp Guengerich, Co-Executive Director of Mennonite USA as guest speaker. A light supper will be served at 6:00 p.m. (costing $6.00 per person). There will be special music and an offering will be taken for Mennonite Women USA. This event is for women of all ages of South Central Conference and Western District Conference and their guests. Reservations are required by March 4 so contact __________ from our church or see the signup sheet on the bulletin board.” 3. Encourage someone to make a Sunday morning announcement to draw attention to the event. (Suggestion: invite someone who has previously attended the event to do this.) 4. Appoint a contact person or place a sign-up sheet on the bulletin board for persons who want to attend. Call or email by March 4 the number of women who plan to attend from your church. Reservations are necessary for those preparing the meal. The WDC reservation contact is: Marjorie Gundy preferably by email at mgundy1@cox.net or phone 620-463-3991
4. Whitestone Mennonite Church – Salt and Light Forum – “Parenting with Purpose”, February 24, 3:30 to 7:00 PM. Come and hear from experts, eat, discuss, and quiz a panel of parents who’ve “been there”. Leave your kids in fun, free childcare. Resource persons: Kevin Wilder, Tami Keim, Wendell Loewen. For more information call 620-327-4123 .
5. Iglesia Menonita Casa Betania, Newton, KS, will host a Valentines meal at the fellowship hall in First Mennonite Church (Newton) on February 25 at 6 pm. Cost is $25/couple, $15/ single. Email iglesiacasabetania@yahoo.com or call 316-644-5800 for reservations by Feb. 23.
Mennonite ChurchUSA Announcements
1. Attention: Pastors and delegates! Please read this linked Message to Pastors and Delegates from Moderator Dick Thomas, Moderator-Elect Elizabeth Soto Albrecht, and Executive Director Ervin Stutzman, which provides helpful information for how you can begin to prepare for the Phoenix convention. http://mennoniteusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/PreparingforPhoenix1.pdf. Watch for monthly updates in our new Resource Center on our website! under the “Preparing for Phoenix 2013” box. P.S. Make sure your delegates indicate their delegate status by marking the appropriate box on their convention registration form. Churches no longer need to record this information in the MennoData database.
2. Learn more about the suffering of Anabaptist martyrs and African-American slaves and their commonalities at “Common Threads: Anabaptist and African-American Songs and Stories of Suffering and Hope” at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 24 at Bethel Mennonite Church in Inman. The event is free and open to the public though a free-will offering will be received to cover program costs. The program, which features Hesston College faculty members Tony Brown, John Sharp and Ken Rodgers, is in honor of Black History Month. For more details, visit hesston.edu or call the Alumni and Church Relations office at 866-437-7866.
3. God is working in incredible and creative ways in the city. Come and see! You can serve through DOOR (Discovering Opportunities for Outreach and Reflection) in cities like Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, L.A., Miami, or San Antonio. Join in God’s work in the city for a week, several months or a year! Check things out at www.DOORNetwork.org. Dios hace su labor en maneras increíbles y creativas en la ciudad. ¡Ven a verlo! Puedes servir con DOOR (Descubriendo Oportunidades de Extensión y Reflexión) en ciudades como Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, L.A., Miami, o San Antonio. ¡Participa en la labor de Dios en la ciudad por una semana, varios meses o un año! Conoce más sobre el programa en www.DOORNetwork.org.
Western District Conference
2517 North Main, PO Box 306
North Newton KS 67117
316-283-6300; FAX: 316-283-0620
Email: wdc@mennowdc.org
Website: www.mennowdc.org