Mohawk District E-newsletter for Churches and Pastors
March 31, 2021
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Good Friday Digital Worship Experience
The District Leadership Team of the Mohawk District has provided a free digital Good Friday Worship Experience that can be used by all District Churches. Find the link below to use with your church or for your own personal worship time. Each link gets you to the same video. Feel free to choose whichever platform you prefer.
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District Prayer Focus
Week of April 4
Mohawk District
Rev. Abel Roy
the 2020-21 Prayer Calendar
Healing prayers still needed for
Clergy Spouse Heidi Bradseth
Pastor Mark and Dawn Hediger
District E-newsletters
To subscribe to the news-
letter, send us your email
address. To submit news
for this publication, send
it a minimum of eight
days in advance to:
To catch up on past e-newsletters visit the Conference website at:
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Holy Week Worship Opportunities
Good Friday - April 2nd
Mohawk District Leadership Team is providing a free, digital Good Friday Worship Experience that can be used by all District Churches. Use this worship with your church or for your own personal worship time. See the web links above to access this Worship Experience.
Easter Sunrise Services - April 4th
Morning Star UMC and Ilion Baptist Church are offering Sunrise Worship beginning at 7 a.m., April 4, Easter Sunday, at Russell Park in Ilion. Russell Park is located off Frederick and Park Streets. Enter through the Park Street entrance behind Remington Arms according to the Village of Ilion website.
Steuben UMC offers an in-person sunrise service 4-4-21 at Starr Hill look out. There is a devotion at 6:15 am. All welcome. Dress warmly and wear a mask.
Directions to Starr Hill Lookout:
From Holland Patent: take Route 274 to Steuben UMC, turn right onto N. Steuben Rd, turn right on Starr Hill Rd. follow until you get to the lookout.
From Rome, Route 365 toward Floyd: turn left on Soule Rd., follow to Steuben UMC, pass the church staying on N Steuben Rd., turn right onto Starr Hill Rd., follow to lookout.
From Rome, Route 46: turn right on 274 to Steuben UMC, turn left onto N Steuben Rd., turn right onto Starr Hill Rd., follow to lookout.
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Watch the Easter Sunday 2021 Virtual Choir
View and download for use in your Easter services! This was an amazing experience bringing together over 400 singers from different countries, congregations, and communities – proving that even in the midst of a pandemic we are still united.
Thine Be The Glory is an Easter celebration hymn that transcends time and cultures. Watch the video and you’ll see why!
To download the video and learn about the history of the hymn click below:
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Clergy now eligible for
COVID-19 vaccine
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New York State’s Governor Cuomo has expanded COVID-19 vaccine eligibility. The following New Yorkers
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are eligible for the vaccine beginning March 30: All individuals age 30 or older. As of March 18th: Public-facing government and public workers, not-for-profit workers who provide public-facing services to New Yorkers in need (including clergy) and essential in-person building service workers of all ages were eligible to receive the vaccine.
Click here for all New York State counties’ Department of Health links.
Did you know New York State employers must provide employees
up to four hours paid time off to receive a COVID-19 vaccine?
If you have questions on this law, please contact Tracy Rickett, Human Resources Generalist, at (315) 898-2017 or tracyrickett@unyumc.org.
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Appalachian Local Pastors' School - Summer |
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Annual Conference 2021
The 12th Session will take place virtually June 17-19, 2021. The Upper New York Conference is working with Good News TV Media Ministry to provide a positive virtual experience.
Who will attend: All clergy and laity representatives to the Annual Conference Session
When is Annual Conference: June 17-19, 2021
Where will Annual Conference Take Place: Virtually
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Equalization Members to Annual Conference
Each year additional voting members to Annual Conference (see article above) are needed to balance the votes between non-clergy and clergy, in other words, make the number of non-clergy votes equal to the number of clergy votes. To achieve this,
Each District in the UNY Conference selects a predetermined
number of non-clergy to vote on behalf of the District.
If you would like to serve in this capacity, please fill out the application and return it to Mohawk District. The District Superintendent and District Lay Leader will review the applications and invite some to serve. All applicants will be notified following this process. Please remember, submitting an application is not an automatic guarantee you will be asked to serve. For those invited to serve as equalization members, they may register upon receiving notification from the Mohawk District Office they are invited to serve. Applications will be approved on a rolling basis. Deadline for applications to be received for Equalization Member is April 15, 2021.
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Hospital Visitation Reopening
~ Rev. Becky Guthrie
I am happy to report that Mohawk Valley Health System (St. Elizabeth’s, St. Luke’s, and Faxton Hospitals) is opening their doors with guidelines for visitors. As of March 17th, visitors are allowed to enter with restrictions.
Restrictions include:
1) Visiting hours will be 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. and 4 – 6 p.m.
2) Only two visitors per day (only one visitor will be allowed into a patient’s room during each two-hour period). If more than one visitor arrives, they will be denied entry into patient areas
3) Visitors must maintain social distancing even in patient rooms
4) COVID patients are not included in visitation availability at this time.
However, exceptions include the following circumstances as defined by NYS Dept. of Health:
- Labor, delivery, and remainder of their time in hospital
- Pediatrics
- Patients with medically necessary support person in their room (i.e. intellectual and/or Developmentally disabilities with cognitive impairments including dementia)
- Patients in end-of-life situations
5) If visitor has temperature more than 100.0 degrees, they will be denied entry
6) A mask is required—cloth masks are not allowed without being covered or replaced with hospital mask
7) Cafeterias are not open to visitors—employees only at this time
8) All visitors must be 18 years or older unless exceptions above apply
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Help Needed: Take the Mission u 2021 Survey |
United Methodist Women in the Upper New York Conference are planning this summer’s “Mission u 2021” event, to be held virtually in July. |
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Mission u is a transformative education program that offers study on several different curricula, including plenary and worship sessions open to everyone—not just women.
Please help us in preparing this event by completing a two-minute survey by April 26. If you have attended Mission u events in the past or would just like to consider attending in the future, you are encouraged to complete this survey. Thank you in advance for helping guide the development of this important program.
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Upper New York (UNY) Mission Central HUB is preparing for the coming spring to support survivors affected by the different disasters (floods and high winds) that may impact our area. In partnering with the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), UNY’s status of kits on hand is low at
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best. The most requested items are cleaning and hygiene kits. Those who can support our communities by assembling kits in your homes or churches, please share projects so we can offer support and possibly share your methods with others. Any number of kits helps.
Please review the list for contents of each kit. If you cannot provide complete kits, we can use individual items to help complete other kits that arrive incomplete.
The HUB at the UNY Conference Center will remain closed until further notice. However, there is a tent outside the Conference Center where kits can be dropped off. You can also make arrangements to drop off kits at the HUB by calling MaryBeth Ingalls at 315-372-0285 or emailing her at marybethingalls@unyumc.org or calling Mike Block at 315-491-0497 or emailing him at mikeblock@unyumc.org.
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Do You Have a God-Given Story to Tell?
Do you have a testimony to share? Write it up and send it to
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VIRTUAL LAUNCHPAD 2021
Launchpad is boot camp for anyone who is in the first year of planting a new faith community, or who is feeling called to plant a new faith community in the next couple of years. It provides the BEST practical, hands-on training for planters available in the UM Church. In these virtual sessions you will learn an amazing array of best practices that will enable you to build a solid foundation on which to build your new faith community. To register or for more information please send an email to Rev. Abigail Browka at: pastorabigail1@gmail.com
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Reminder -- Local Church Annual Audits
are Now Overdue--Keep Sending them In
The Local Church Annual Audit was due March 15, 2021, to the Mohawk District Office: 105 Genesee St., New Hartford, NY 13413, mohawkdistrict@unyumc.org.
Also the following reports were due in February 2021. Churches may still send them to the Mohawk District Office: mohawkdistrict@unyumc.org, or 105 Genesee St., New Hartford, NY 13413. Let us know if you need help.
- Report of the Trustees
- Report of the Finance Committee
- End-of-Year Financial Report (any format)
- 2021 Church Budget (any format)
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Lay Servant Courses - Open to All
The following courses are available to keep certification current or become certified as
Lay Servant or Lay Speaker.
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Advanced Course: Lay Pastoral Care
7-9 p.m., Wednesdays, Apr. 28th, May 5th, 12th, & 19th
Zoom: Course Fee $15. Click here for registration -- extended to April 1.
Imagine No Racism
2-5 p.m., Thursdays, Apr. 22nd, 29th, May 6th, 13th, & 20th
Zoom: Course Fee $15. Click here for registration -- extended to April 1.
Basic Lay Servant
6-9 p.m., Thursdays, May 13 and 27; 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, May 29; and 6-9 p.m., Monday, June 7.
Zoom. Course Fee: $15. Students must purchase, “Lay Servant Ministries: Basic Course Participant’s Book.” To register, email adschmidt@nycap.rr.com.
Advanced Course: Spiritual Gifts
6-9 p.m., Mondays. June 14 and 21; 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, June 26; and 6-9 p.m., Thursday, July 1. ZOOM: Course Fee: $15. Students must purchase, “Each One a Minister” by William J. Carter. To register, email adschmidt@nycap.rr.com.
Advanced Course: Leading Worship
6-9 p.m., Wednesdays, July 14, 21 and 28; and 9 a.m. – 1 p.m., Saturday, August 7. ZOOM: Course Fee: $15. Students must purchase, “Worshiping with United Methodists” (revised) Hoyt Hickman. To register, email adschmidt@nycap.rr.com.
Advanced Course: Polity
6-9 p.m., Tuesdays, August 17, 24 and 31; 9 a.m. – 1 p.m., Saturday, August 28. ZOOM: Course Fee: $15. "The Method of Our Mission" By Laceye C. Warner. To register, email adschmidt@nycap.rr.com.
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UMC Clergy Education Offering Courses for Credit in April/May 2021
Apr. 14 - Developing Effective Communication to Grow Your Church
Kevin Slimp. Click here to register or for information.
Apr. 20 - Ways to Enhance Online Discipleship in Your Church
Rachel Gilmore. Click here to register or for information.
Apr. 22 - Starting and Sustaining Effective Hybrid Ministries
Anne Bosarge. Click here to register or for information.
April 29 - Love Thy Neighbor: Staying the Course Toward Racial Reconciliation: Part 1
Patricia Sanders Hall. Click here to register or for information.
May 11 - Love Thy Neighbor: Let's Get Busy With sustainable Actions: Part 2
Patricia Sanders Hall. Click here to register or for information.
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The Mohawk District Office staff will be available
9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays,
generally. Call the District 315-797-1777, or
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Mohawk District Office
105 Genesee Street
New Hartford, NY 13413
315-797-1777
Regular Hours: Tues., Wed., Thurs., 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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