The Notes - June 28, 2018

Volume 48

Issue 26

June 28, 2018

Three On A String Sunday
Join us in worship this Sunday, July 1, as Three-On-A-String leads us at both the 8:30 and 11:00 am services in our brand-new Tyson Hall. You won't want to miss this exciting Sunday in the life of our church.

Cooking Up Worship
Worship for the second half of this summer will be unlike any at VHUMC. With the newly remodeled Tyson Hall ready to be occupied starting July 1, the Sanctuary will be closed off for major renovations. All worship services will move to Tyson Hall and the Chapel from Sunday, July 1 to August 5. Traditional Worship will return to the Sanctuary on August 12. Here is the summer worship schedule for this period:

8:30 am - Traditional - Tyson Hall
9:45 am - Service of Word and Table - Chapel
11:00 am - Blended Service (with elements of Traditional and Contemporary) - Tyson Hall

The 8:30 and 9:45 am services will be essentially the same format (though the pipe organ will not make the trip), but the 11:00 am service will have elements from both worship styles. It will be somewhat like peanut butter and chocolate, or chicken and waffles - but we are hoping to create a delicious recipe for this summer service for all to enjoy.

There will be several unique services happening that will also contribute to the unique quality of the 11 am service: Three on a String will perform on July 1 (and at 8:30 am); 6th-9th grade mission trips will share their experiences and pictures on July 8; and Grades 10-12 ASP Mission Trip will share their experiences on July 22. The Sanctuary will be used on August 5 to host the Discovery Weekend service, but all regular services will remain in their late summer locations.

On August 12, everything should be back to our original worship spaces, with the first full Contemporary Service in Tyson Hall at 11:00 am. So, join us for worship during the rest of summer - we'll be cooking somewhere!

Sunday Evening Worship
Sherry Harris will be leading us as she preaches "Living on a Prayer" from Luke 11:1-11. Come as you are as we celebrate our July 4th holiday singing patriotic selections in the Cokesbury Hymnal. Also, mark your calendars for Butch Williams on July 8th and Bill Bostick on July 15th.

Methodist Missionaries Leaving for Thailand
Join us this Sunday in the Fellowship Hall at 9:45 am to hear from David and Allie Houle before they leave on their call to Thailand. This couple joined us in October and spoke to us about their mission to Thailand with Blessing Home. We will hear about their journey and what the next few years will entail for them. They will be leaving next month, so you do not want to miss meeting them and hearing their story.

Church Office Closed flag

The church office will be closed and all programing cancelled on Wednesday, July 4, as we observe Independence Day.

Welcome New Members
Please join me in welcoming our newest members to VHUMC.

· Linda Colegrove joins us from Hunter Street Baptist and is already a member of the Serendipity Sunday School Class.

· Andi and Jonathan Jost join us from Prince of Peace Catholic Church and are already involved in all things children and the Agape Sunday School Class.

· Mary Patsy Elliott joins us from Highlands UMC, yet has been a part of our community for 10+ years, working in the nursery. She is now looking forward to getting more involved in other ways.

Parents' Night Out
Parents Night Out is a laity led ministry designed to enrich the marriages of couples with children ages 3 months through 5th grade by providing a loving, safe and fun-filled time for their children while parents enjoy an evening out together. It's "families helping families grow stronger." We are currently accepting registration for limited space for the 2018-19 school year. For more information, email Julie Bray ([email protected]).

Crimes Against the Elderly
The City of Vestavia Hills is hosting an informational meeting at VHUMC from 1:30-3:00 pm on Tuesday, August 7. It will address crimes, particularly financial crimes, which are being committed against our senior citizens. Recent scams to be addressed include: IRS scams, relative in distress scams, romantic website scams, reverse mortgage scams. All are welcome. Join us to help prevent these types of scams and protect our senior citizens.

Christmas in July
This July we will be celebrating Christmas early. We will be celebrating by accepting toys for our Student Ministry Christmas breakfast in December. If you are able to make a donation with a toy, please bring your donation to the missions' office at church anytime the month of July.

Growing Pains: Renovating for Our Future

Thank you for your patience with all of our renovations! We now have most all of the new HVAC units in the Adult Education Building operational. But, we don't have all the controls set, so some are temporarily "all on" or "all off." We plan to have the programming set up by mid-July.

Work is in full gear in the Sanctuary and Narthex. HVAC work continues for our new four-pipe system. All of the front pews were removed this past Sunday night (thanks to Jim White and our crew of laymen) to allow installation of our Induction Loop - a project paid for by separate, special gifts that will improve audio quality for those with hearing aids. Other changes have begun and will be evident soon. Please be careful in these "hard hat" areas for the next couple of months.

All of this will affect our Sunday worship plans. Please see the "Cooking Up Worship" article above. Also, please plan to join us for our first meeting in the new Tyson Hall this Sunday, July 1.

Work has also started on renovations for room 316 which will become our new Bob Morgan Library. Several members who knew Bishop Morgan have been working behind the scenes for the past two years to establish a library/conference room in Bob's honor. Bob Gower provided a great design and one donor is covering the costs of converting the room. The Leigh Gray SS class will still meet there on Sundays.

Do remember that we be without power to most of the church for a week in July. We will let you know as soon as we know the dates.

Ongoing Outreach

Food Pantry

The Food Pantry is again receiving fruits and vegetables from the Farmers Market as well as donated items from Sprouts. We need flat bottom medium sized bags with handles to distribute these into families. Please put them to our wooden bins. Thanks to Bill Brasher and Mike Harris for driving to UMCOR in Decatur to pick up 1,700 free box lunches for us to distribute.

Oak Mountain Mission

Oak Mountain Mission can no longer go into homes for pick-ups. Furniture and appliances need to be in basements, garages, car ports, etc. Please call Brenda at

685-5757 for pick-up scheduling. They will be closed the week of July 2.