PLAY ~ PRAY ~ SERVE

OUTREACH NEWSLETTER
April 2017
  Do you have Outreach news for the monthly e-newsletter?  
Do you want to know more about Outreach opportunities?  

E-mail the Outreach Team 
Sue Behringer & Katie Kross,  Co-Chairs
Steve Crouch; Sal DiNatale;  Karin Foarde; Richard Haygood; 
Shawn McClarnon; Kate Pendergrass; Anne Sassaman

     WAYS TO GET INVOLVED THIS MONTH

COMMUNITY GARDEN:  An Afternoon at the Garden on Sunday April 30, 4-6 pm.  A potluck dinner will follow gardening activities.  See article below for details. And keep bringing your compost to the Garden!


CHAPEL HILL-CARRBORO CROP WALK:  Sign up now for the 2017 Chapel Hill/Carrboro CROP Hunger Walk to be held over the Earth Day weekend on Saturday, April 23. The theme this year is "Healing the world, one step at a time." 

Volunteers are needed on walk day for a variety of tasks.  Click here to see a list of the needs and how to sign up.

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY:  For many years, University UMC has built friendships, fellowship, and lasting impact in our community by creating new affordable homes for local families through our partnership with Orange County Habitat for Humanity.  We are getting ready to help build a new home in the Northside Community of Chapel Hill.   We are looking for 2-5 church members to join our Habitat Team to help   coordinate transportation, child care, recruiting, and promotion of this mission.  If you are not able to actually help on the work site, this is a great opportunity for you to contribute to this mission.  Ple ase contact Terry Hamlet or Sal DiNatale  for more information. 

T2T-I : Teachers 2 Teachers International is sponsoring a trip to Guatemala during Holy Week 2018.  If you are interested, please click here for a brochure explaining more. 

The carpet we will be making at University UMC is a means of connecting us with the Guatemalan culture. Following the Easter egg hunt on Saturday, April 15th at 10:30 am, we will have the opportunity to use flower petals and leaves to create a traditional Guatemalan Easter Prayer Carpet. The youth will lay out a stencil for us to use in creating a beautiful stain glass cross. Please bring any flowers or colorful items that  are blooming in your yard or neighborhood to contribute to the carpet.
                     
COMMUNITY GARDEN

The garden is coming alive in more ways than one!  People are starting to come out to help, and sprouts are coming up!  The March 25 workday had 20 people of all ages.  Seeds were planted, wood chips were hauled, the broad fork was used to turn over the soil, weeds were pulled, and work on the deer fence began.  One person commented how wonderful it was to meet new people while working in the garden!  Of course, when chatting, the weeding doesn't seem so much like work.  

Beginning soon, there will be specific garden hours.  Tentatively, they will be Tuesday mornings, Thursday evenings, and Sunday afternoons.  Tuesday is the ideal day to harvest for TABLE because cleaned vegetables need to be delivered to TABLE on Wednesday so the vegetables can be ready for the backpacks Thursday morning.  If you would like to help with one or more of these jobs, please let Ann Booterbaugh know:  harvesting (Tuesdays), cleaning vegetables and delivery to TABLE (Wednesdays). Another way you can help is to keep bringing compost to the garden; tell your neighbors to bring their scraps also!  

Finally, mark your calendars for An Afternoon at the Garden on Sunday April 30, 4-6 pm.  A potluck dinner will follow gardening activities.  We will also be making Peace Flags to hang on the fence and/or just sitting and chatting with friends.  Along with your dish, please bring your own folding athletic chair(s) if you have any.   To get ideas for what to write or draw on your peace flag, click here.

Hope to see you at the garden!  Remember to check out the Community Garden webpage for updates.  Right now in the Gardening Gab section, you can learn the benefits of the broad fork.

                                 Join ZOE on a Trip of Hope!

We at University UMC have partnered with two groups in Kenya.  The church commits to $7500 per year for three years for each group we help sponsor; those funds come from the church's missions budget, designated Alternative Gifts funds, and church members who donate.
  • Samaritan Liliaba (graduated in January)
  • Peace Guitura (in their second year)
Why go on a Trip of Hope?
  • To experience God's power at work in the lives of our ZOE children.
  • To see the process of their moving from outcast orphans to confident entrepreneurs, empowered to provide for themselves.
  • To engage with them in music, dance and prayer.
  • To change your life.
The children love to have visitors and will treat you like honored guests.  They cannot believe you would travel so far to visit them.

The approximate cost for a trip to Kenya (all inclusive) is $3000.  (Scholarships may be available from the church to help with the cost.)  Two more trips are planned for 2017, June 28 - July 7 and September 5 - 14.  Erika Lusk and Savannah DePaz will be on the June/July trip.  

Contact Erika for more information.  Click here for a brochure with more information.

SUPPORT CIRCLES

A message from April Cooper:

I often get asked about my involvement with Support Circles.  I love to get this question because I passionately believe in the idea of building relationships with people and growing stronger together.  University UMC has been a part of the IFC Orange County Support Circles program since its beginning in 2012.  We have now either sponsored or co-sponsored 4 partners/families.  

Each circle is a 12-month commitment.  Our most recent circle was formed in combination with Christ UMC.  Our partner family was a beautiful 30-something Mom of 4 who is a recovering substance abuser.  She was clean for one year prior to the assignment with us.  She has remained clean and truly motivated to sobriety.  She was able to maintain full-time student status while working full-time to support her family.  Two additional struggles that we were able to help with during the year were to locate and secure apartment housing and support her during a health crisis.  We laughed and cried together many times over the 12 months.  New friendships were made, old friendships were strengthened and God was ever present. 

We have formed our next support circle and have combined once again with Christ UMC.  We are anxiously awaiting the assignment of our new partner/family.  We hope to learn more in the coming weeks.   Click here if you are interested in learning more about Support Circles and/or contact April Cooper  (919-819-1021).
ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP
  

" The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it " - Psalm 24:1. 

Humans do not own the Earth, but are called to care for it as a sacred trust.  It is our responsibility to God to preserve and protect the Earth and all its creatures. Are we doing enough? During Lent, the Stations of the Cross (pictured above) have encouraged us to reflect on our responsibilities to care for Creation.

2016 was the hottest year on record, with average global temperatures 2.9 °F higher than last century's average. Human activity is contributing to climate change. Every mile we drive, every meal we eat, and every gadget we plug into the wall has an impact on the world's resources and its plant and animal inhabitants. 

University UMC's Environmental Stewardship Team is working to ensure that we minimize our congregation's environmental footprint.  You may have noticed the new recycling bins throughout our church.  The team is also working with church staff to identify opportunities for conserving energy, sponsoring this year's Mary Henley Lectures, and contributing to an upcoming University UMC Community Garden Celebration of Earth Day on Apr. 30.  Want to help us do more? Have ideas? Contact Joan White, chair of the Environmental Stewardship Team  to join the effort or suggest ideas.
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