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The Link
September 2017
Monthly news from Washington Park United Methodist Church
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Corrie ten Boom |
Corrie ten Boom was one of my grandparents' favorite authors - I learned from them her story of love and courage, as she and her sister, Betsie, helped to smuggle many Jews out of the Netherlands during the Nazi invasion of World War II. She was a woman of deep faith and commitment to God's ways of justice and compassion. Even after being arrested, living in concentration camps, and losing Betsie to illness in one of those camps, Corrie ten Boom was able to share stories of grace and celebration of life to a wide audience, writing books and speaking to audiences in over 60 countries.
In her book, The Hiding Place, she shares a poem (author unknown), that begins with this stanza:
My life is but a weaving
Between my God and me.
I cannot choose the colors
He weaveth steadily.
Oft' times He weaveth sorrow;
And I in foolish pride
Forget He sees the upper
And I the underside.
In our community of faith, we are a tapestry of God's weaving. We have people of diverse ages and backgrounds, and our lives are woven together through our shared love of Christ and others. During the next month, we will be exploring the ways that we share our lives together as a community with our sermon series, THREADS. Combining the image of a weaving, and the emphasis in our church's mission statement on Love, Justice, Mission and Hope, we will consider the ways that this mission binds us in community.
To symbolize our woven-together lives, we will be making an altar cloth together! We are building an actual altar-cloth-making loom, and are inviting every individual or family in the church to pick out a ribbon that reflects their character in some way (a family of nature lovers? Maybe you want to choose an evergreen or earth tone. Love the Broncos-I'm sure they have bronco ribbon somewhere around Denver!) The ribbons can be any width, but we need them to be 1 yard in length. We will begin our project on Rally Day, when Rev. Sandi will have some ribbons to choose from (or you can go purchase your own at local stores), and we'll continue weaving throughout the month to celebrate the beautiful diversity of our faith family and the ways that we hold together, through good and bad, thick and thin, agreements and disagreements.
It is a rich and varied tapestry, for sure, but one that God designs with us into a grace-filled and embracing picture of the kingdom of Love, Justice, Mission and Hope!
Peace,
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September Worship
"Threads" sermon series
September 3 - COMMUNION SUNDAY, Creation/Re-Creation: DAY 7, Genesis 2: 1-3, Rev. Jamielee Demske preaching
September 10 - RALLY DAY SUNDAY (see more below about Rally Day BBQ and scavenger hunt) THREADS: Woven Together in Love, Mark 12: 28-34
September 17 - THREADS: Woven Together in Justice, Amos 5: 18-24, Special Mission Moment in worship: Close to Home Storyteller
September 24 - THREADS: Woven Together in Mission, Matthew 28: 31-40, Special Mission Moment in worship: Metro Caring Representative
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Rally Day - September 10
BBQ, scavenger hunt, and mug brownies
Join us for Rally Day on Sunday, September 10. We will celebrate coming back together after summer activities and settling into new school routines. A delicious brunch (offered by Eric Olson) will be served, a look into the different ministries of the church, and a scavenger hunt to make our own desserts (mug brownie, anyone?) will be a part. Join us for a great day of fun, fellowship, and excitement for a new program year.
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Book Study: "Half Truths" by Adam Hamilton
Meets regularly or attend a one-time discussion
Everything happens for a reason...? God helps those who help themselves...? God won't give you more than you can handle...? All true? Not so fast. Take a deeper look at some popular sayings.
Sign up and choose between two study options:
- Wednesday evenings at 5:15 pm on September 6, 13, 20, 27 and October 4.
- Or, read the book on your own, and join a one-time gathering with Rev. Sandi and others for coffee and discussion. Will plan around participants' schedules.
Sign up online
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CROP Hunger Walk - Sept 23
Starts at WP UCC at 400 S. Williams
CROP Hunger Walk - What are you doing Saturday, September 23? Would you like a way to visit with friends, make new friends, enjoy the outdoors, get exercise, AND help change the world? Come walk with us in the CROP Hunger Walk to raise funds to fight hunger in our community and around the world.
We'll start and end at Wash Park UCC - 400 S Williams St. Registration starts at 9 am and the Walk starts at 10 am. See Rev. Sandi for more information and to get your Walker envelope.
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Music
Choir rehearsals begin for singers and bell-ringers
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Choir singing during Easter Service |
September is upon us! Whether this means a return to a familiar schedule, or an adventure into a new stage of life for you and your family, I hope that you find peace in this changing time of year.
For the music department, September means a return to choir and bell choir practice, and a return to more regular fellowship. These are all things that I am so very happy about! It also means that it's time for me to make it known that while we have a robust musical program at WPUMC, it could be even stronger if YOU were to join us! If you have any interest in partaking in the musical life of the church, I'd love to hear from you. We can always use more voices in the choir, and we have need for a ringer or two in the bell choir.
Also, our Christmas Cantata rehearsals will be starting soon, and participating in the Christmas Cantata is a fabulous way to enter the Christmas spirit. Our cantata this year will be centering around a theme of peace - Let There be Peace on Earth, and Let it Begin With Me! This seems a message that is sorely needed as we look around the world in which we find ourselves. I hope presenting this work will bring some peace into the lives of the congregation, and it's almost guaranteed to bring peace into the lives of the musicians, as we will be living into the music for weeks!
Choir and Bell Choir meet
on alternating Wednesday evenings,
6:30 - 8:00 pm, in the North Parlor. Choir begins on
August 30, and Bell Choir meets the following week on September 6. Feel free to email or call me with questions.
So happy to be the music director here at WPUMC!
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Youth Ministry
Youth Group meets regularly after workship service
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Youth Group made tie-dye t-shirts last week. |
As we begin school, Youth group also comes back
into session and we are so overjoyed to welcome our 6th through 12th graders back for a year of growth, self-discovery and fun! Our theme this fall is discovering personal identity, getting to know yourself as a creation in God's image. This month we will take time to get back into the swing of things, enjoying holidays and taking a moment to get to know one another before we dive into the work of getting to know ourselves. If you'd like to volunteer with the youth program or assist in future events, please contact Rev. Jamielee.
September Schedule:
9.3 - No Youth Group/Labor Day Weekend
9.10 - No Youth Group/Rally Day!
9.17 - Socks and Sandwiches
9.24 - Get to Know you Sunday
Rev. Jamielee Demske
Associate Pastor,
assocpastor@washparkumc.org
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Children's Ministry
Sunday School forms available
Welcome back from Summer Break!
We will be working with the curriculum called The Gospel Project once again this season. It has served us well and we look forward to making our way through the Bible in a chronological fashion. With thoughts of
Sunday
School, I realize that some of your kids will be moving to new classrooms for
Sundays
as well. I would love it if you could e-mail, text, or catch me in person to let us know the grades your children will be in this school year. Our
Sunday
School classrooms range in ages from 3 and potty trained through students in six grade. Knowing your child(ren)'s grade will allow some rearranging of groups and classrooms if needed.
I will have new contact forms available in the
Sunday
School rooms for parents to fill out. It would be awesome to have a more focused database for the
Sunday
School leadership team to be able to reach out to you in an easier style for a specific event. If anyone is interested in helping with our Children's programs, please contact me as we have several ways to serve the Park Kids team. Mark your calendars for Rally Day and find us downstairs for more details on our missions.
Grow in Grace,
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Missions
Pura Vida Ministries will hold a Benefit Dinner and Celebration on Friday, October 20 in Lakewood, Colorado. The dinner will provide an opportunity to join in the celebration of the success of Pura Vida's Guatemala ministries. Washington Park United Methodist Church has been instrumental in that success via mission trips and financial and prayer support throughout Pura Vida's history. Pura Vida volunteers from WPUMC visited Guatemala in 2016.
Read their travel blog.
The program for the dinner event will include a presentation exploring the unique approach of our work trips, and a short video showcasing the success of our students and staff in Guatemala. There will also be a silent auction and time to mingle with others who've participated in Pura Vida's success.
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WPUMC's book donations are distributed in Kenya. |
Pura Vida Ministries is currently providing scholarships for 340 children and in several rural Guatemalan villages. Many of these students wouldn't otherwise have the opportunity to attend school. A significant number of these scholarship students are sponsored by families from this church. Many of these students, who began sponsorship in primary school, are now enrolled at university. Work teams provided many news homes and school classrooms for
needy communities in Guatemala. Other construction projects have included an addition to the orphanage in Lemoa and various projects at the Methodist Camp in Lemoa.
Please join Pura Vida on October 20 to hear more about these and other successful ministries. For more details about the event and to order tickets, go to
http://www.puravida.org/dinner, or call Nickie Rounds at Pura Vida at (303) 632-8191.
Swinging at AIDS Book Distribution
In July, WPUMC collected books for children in Kenya. Thank you to all who donated, they were well received!
Learn more about Missions
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100-Year Anniversary Service
January 1919 centennial celebration of the church building
The congregation began meeting in 1891 and the current building was proposed nearly 100 years ago during a stewardship program that began on January 2, 1917.
During the last worship service in the former Myrtle Hill Methodist Church, the church was re-named Washington Park Community Methodist Church. The church bell from the old Myrtle Hill church hangs in the current building's belltower now.
The first services in the current building were held on December 29, 1918 and consisted of three morning services, a communion service at
4 p.m.,
and an evening service. Addresses were given by the Denver City Attorney, the Chief Justice of the Colorado Supreme Court, the Governor of Colorado, and possibly the Chancellor of DU. The official building dedication service was held on the following Sunday, January 5, 1919.
We will hold a special service to celebrate the church building's centennial on January 6, 1919 and would like you to be a part of it. Planning for this special event will begin in the coming year.
If you are interested in being a part of this committee, please email Kelly Carver at
office@washparkumc.org
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Calendar
- Sept 4 - Church offices closed for Labor Day
- Sept 10 - Rally Day! chURch: UR the commUNITY, Barbecue, scavenger hunt, and mug brownies after the service.
- Sept 17 - Assemble lunches for those experiencing homelessness
- Sept 19 - Ad Council meeting at 5:30 pm
- Sept 23 - Distribute lunches in Civic Center Park
- Crop Walk
- Sept 24 - Seekers and Joiners gathering for people questions about WPUMC and who might be considering joining
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| September Birthdays |
September Anniversaries |
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09/01 Layla Carpenter
09/01 Scott Bromley
09/03 Charlene Sullivan
09/06 Anastasia Glennie
09/07 Jason Shermer
09/08 Mark Abman
09/08 Megan Abman
09/08 Benicio Howe
09/10 Zachary Scheffler
09/10 Jimmy Smrz
09/11 Annabelle Weed
09/12 Luke Poirier
09/12 Lisa Stang
09/13 Steve Bondy
09/14 Jessica Harms
09/14 Katie Wieder
09/14 John Kellner
09/16 Will Edgar
09/16 Thatcher Rogers
09/18 Melissa Boyle
09/19 Colleen Howe
09/19 Dillion O'Shaughnessy
09/20 Tracy Owen
09/21 Madison Dixon
09/25 Margot Johnson
09/26 Gregory Aden
09/26 Laura Fraser
09/28 Ryan Lunsford
09/28 Peter Sehl
09/28 Bowen Steelman
09/28 Malena Wiggin
09/28 Daniel Kortsch
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Matt & Sheri Salis 09/06
Bruce & Cheryl Buddington 09/09
Adam & Kelly Carver 09/20
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Washington Park United Methodist Church has a
