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| Getting the ball rolling |
Our January meeting! Here are the highlights (be sure to share, link, print, this is your new newsletter MMN folk!) Our meeting was held at Cooleemee UMC, hosted by Rev. Patrick Marion and his awesome wife Wendy! He opened us with prayer and we got started.
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| Behold the 6 plants! :) |
We began by first having a brief devotion called the "6 Plants," or the Parable of the Plants. It's pretty cool, ask me (Brad) if you want a copy. Having both clergy and some of our guests "volunteer" to participate was also very cool.
We then began to have our meeting with an invite; check out this blog! So if you are reading this, here you go! Also we did a quick recap of the mission successes we had last year; over 100 people helped at Hope Lives, 17,000 meals made by "Stop Hunger Now" (thanks Pastor Glen), and 5760 Summer Food Bags made to feed hungry kids in our area this summer (thanks Blair Routh!)! Whoo-hoo!
So to the New Business; we had several guests come to share mission opportunities with all of us. Here's the beauty of many of these ministries; we don't have to organize huge events to make these awesome things happen; we just let our churches take the initiative, network (ah, that word), share the info, get the word out! One thing to keep in mind; if any of your churches or some of your members get involved in these missions, tell Brad! You don't have to be name specific or give me huge numbers, I just need to know if meetings like these bear fruit. So I'll just lay them out;
Soles for Souls, shared by Dave Salmon (of 1st UMC Mocksville).
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| Dave Salmon, and the Soles for Souls Donation Box! |
SfS's mission is to get shoes to kids around the world who don't have any or can afford them. It was founded 10 years ago, and they gather new and used (but not worn out) shoes and deliver them! One load of shoes is made of 6,000, and so far they've made several runs already! A handout was made available (I'll scan it for sharing later). You can collect shoes at any time, this can be year round! Some ideas, have a "Barefoot Sunday," or use the collection boxes already available and drop them off (1st Methodist, the YMCA, Center UMC, and many others. Look for the big box, as seen here). One thing to note, the shoes are best packed by being tied together by their laces or string, boxes actually make it harder. Give it a shot, it's an easy and extremely helpful mission!
Community Garden, shared by Mrs. Salmon (of 1st UMC Mocksville).
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Mrs. Salmon talking about the Community Garden
Behind her is pics of the garden's growth (pun intended) |
The Community Garden was started in November of 2013. The program that is followed here is based off the model of Dr. John Matheson in Alabama, with the goal of "growing churches." The need is clear, access to good nutritious food is diminishing along with the health of younger people and those in poverty (which is the strongest factor to determine if you will grow up or become obese. That's a fact. Okay, this is a strong passion of me, Brad, so there you go.). So the Community Garden fixes that by providing access while at the same time reconnecting people to the soil, the earth (very theological, Genesis sounding. Here I go again). The Joe Harris Garden which was the first gave away 600 lbs of fresh food! That's 600 lbs, GIVEN AWAY!!! The requirements; you rent out 4 by 8 plots for $10-20 a season, and it has to be organic. The gardner has to agree to give a certain % of the crop to charity. Some do a lot, many give it all away! Tours for kids and adult classes are available. Give Mrs. Salmon a shout if you're interested! 1st UMC's number is
(336) 751-2503
"Serving Him Ministries," shared by Mike Drayton.
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Mike talking about Serving Him Ministries (not by best picture,
Lynn took the most of them here) |
This ministry started 9 years ago as a non-profit organization. It began by listening to the needs and concerns in the Charlotte area, developing a network of contacts that could directly help those in poverty and facing great need. It is an ecumenical ministry and is something Mike wants to bring to the Mocksville area. His vision for Mocksville; creating a soup kitchen for Mocksville. Sweet!!! What Mike needs is the networking; the contacts, volunteers, people who know people. If you feel led (and Mike has a great passion for this ministry), drop him an email! Hunger is a real problem here in Mocksville, this could be really great! Here's his email; Mike Drayton
mdrayton@mocksville.com
"Scouting Ministry Specialist," led by Barry Cartner.
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| Here is Barry! |
Barry came to lift up Youth Ministries to the MMN. He is working to bring more Youth Ministry opportunities to the Mocksville area, and isn't looking for every church to suddenly host a scout trip (though that would be nice) but for folk who just want to help in small and big ways! This would include Boy & Girl Scouts, Big Brothers, Big Sisters, 4-H, etc. If you want to camp with the scouts, cool! If you hate camping, there are still chances to serve and volunteer. For example, you can serve on one of the committees or pack meetings, teach a merit badge, share your gift! You see, the Methodist Church is the #1 sponsor for Scouts, and the kids who go through scouts are changed for a lifetime. It's a chance to be a positive roll model, and kids definitely need them! Men and women are needed! Drop Barry a line if you are interested; cell -
(336) 782-4080, email-
luvmybldhnd@yahoo.com
Summer Food Bags, led by Blair Routh (Hardison UMC).
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| Blair sharing her ministry with us. |
The Summer Food Bags get food to kids during the summer who experience hunger when school is out (and thus the cafeteria and the free or reduced $ meals they depend on). To make this happen, $30,000 is needed, and the goal is to raise the funds for 2016. What does Blair need?;
- Fundraising; have a special offering, host a meal with a love offering, etc
- Grant writing; grants are great, and Blair and her husband Don can't write them all. Write a grant!
- People for letter mailing; letters are sent out to all the neighboring churches to ask for donations. Help with the mailing!
- Someone to schedule for the schools. Talk to the schools to find out how many kids need help! If you can handle a phone, you're perfect!
- Someone to help with transportation for children to get to the food. The food is distributed at the schools, but many kids don't have the means to get there. This is a huge problem! If you're called or know someone who is, call Blair!
- Need of hands on deck! Food is distributed on Thursdays. The more hands on deck, the easier the load to carry and deliver.
The ministry has outgrown Hardison UMC, a great problem, but a need nevertheless. They need help, NOW. Here is Blair's # if you want to help; (home - 336-936-9178, cell - 336-403-9586)
"Jobs from God," led by Terry Summers (Hardison UMC)
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| Terry sharing his ministry Jobs From God with us! |
Terry is a former Human Resources person, and is now following his calling to help people find work. Getting a job is tough, and the process is even tougher. Here's some of the help he can give to those looking for work; coaching, job search skills, resume prep, cover letters, how to use the internet and company jobsites, working with temporary agencies & recruiters, networking, interviewing prep, and more! If you know someone in your church who is job hunting, or would like to host a seminar or group meeting, let Terry know! Here is his contact info; 336-624-7791, email -
terrysummers2014@gmail.com
Now to other business; our next meeting will be at Oak Grove UMC (where we had Charge Conference) on 4/14/2015, 7:00 pm.
Minutes and notes taken and respectfully submitted by Rev. John Erwin.
