Anchor Park's UWF Annual Holiday Auction

Anchor Park's United Women in Faith will host their Annual Holiday Auction on

Saturday, November11th from 10:45am to 2:15pm! Lunch cost is $17 which includes salad, chicken, potato, vegetable, fresh baked bread, assorted desserts, coffee and tea. This is a great way to have fun and support mission

projects focused on women, children, and youth in Alaska, the United States, as

well as the world. Forty-three organizations have benefited from the profits of this event over the last 10 years. There will be a Silent and Live Auction

on Saturday. Following the event, they will have an online auction as well.

Invite your friends and join us for this fun event. Please call Jo Anne Hayden at 907-903-5025 to make a reservation.

We are looking for volunteers if you would like to help with the auction. Tasks include setting up or cooking on Friday November 10th. Saturday November 11th tasks include cooking, set up,

clean up, check-out table, and the famous other duties that arise. Any questions about the event can be directed to Jo Anne Hayden 907-903-5025 or Susan Williams 907-317-0406.

Camp staff positions available in Alaska and Washington

Birchwood Camp is looking for 2 people who either are already friends/family or would like to become friends/family in part-time, year-round staff positions. One position is for Food Services Manager and the other position is for Administrative Assistant. For more information or to apply visit www.birchwoodcamp.org.

Our sibling camps in PNW are looking for a year-round Site Director at their Indianola Camp in Washington. View the information here: https://umcrm.camp/blog/site-director-camp-indianola-indianola-washington

If you (or anyone you know) may be interested or a good fit please consider applying. Thank you for your time and consideration.

'Housing God's Beloved' event registration open

There is still time to register for the GNW Housing God's Beloved hybrid workshop Nov. 4 either in-person at Parkrose UMC in Portland or online. The training event is designed to inspire and equip ministries with resources to become advocates for housing in their individual communities.

Learn more about the event, speakers + register on the GNW site.

Charge Conference assistance

Don't forget that Crystal in the Conference Office is available during work hours to help individuals get logged into their People Portal to work on the Charge Conference paperwork. Don't wait until the last minute!

Don't forget that charge conference reports should be complete one week prior to your date. You will need to have a hard copy of the reports for the Superintendent.

Charge Conference Info

Birchwood Camp Board of Directors positions open

Birchwood Camp is owned by the Alaska United Methodist Conference and operated by an independent Board of Directors. The Board is a mix of pastors, lay people and community supporters. Board members are the visionaries, setting the direction for Birchwood today, tomorrow and into the future.

We are looking for persons with experience/interest in construction/project management, accounting/book keeping/finance and personnel/human resources. The most important experience/interest is a love of camping and outdoor ministries.

Board terms are 3 years in length. If you have served in the past and have been off the board for at least one (1) year, you are eligible to be on the Board again. You do not need to live in Anchorage to be a Board member. Terms begin in January 2024.

The Board meets 4 times a year and has been meeting by Zoom to include Board members from across the state.

To learn more or express your interest, contact Sandra Woods (Board President) surywoods@yahoo.com.

Emergency Response Team Training (ERT)

When disasters strike, United Methodists respond in many different ways. Our earliest responders are ERTs, who go in to help clean, sort, and prep homes for long term repairs or replacements. If you think you might be interested in knowing more, or receiving this training, please speak with Dan Wilcox, Conference Disaster Response Coordinator, at 907.414.7078, or AlaskaCDRC@pnwumc.org. 

The training will be Nov. 4^th from 9:00am-3:00pm, at Anchor Park UMC (2300 Oak Drive) in Anchorage. ERTs are required to be 18 years old and physically able to do the work. 

Korean United Methodists gather to celebrate spirituality

The 2023 special session of the National Association of the Korean American United Methodists was Oct. 2-5 in Northbrook, Illinois — its first in-person gathering since 2019. In his sermon at the opening worship service, Wisconsin Conference Bishop Hee-Soo Jung said, “The future of the church lies in reconciliation, acceptance, friendship, repentance and self-reflection.”

Read the story

LGBTQ advocates plan for new day in church

Reconciling Ministries Network’s 2023 Convocation looked back at the group’s 40 years of advocacy for LGBTQ United Methodists. The gathering also included time for strategizing for next year’s General Conference in hopes of helping to create a much more inclusive church.

Read the story

All Saints Day is Nov. 1

Discover the meaning and traditions of All Saints Day. As we remember those who influenced our faith, consider how we might strive to become saints ourselves.



Watch

Regionalization is already (partly) here

The word “regionalization” has been used more frequently in recent months as legislation to put The United Methodist Church’s different geographic regions on equal footing heads to General Conference. In a new series, Ask The UMC explores the ways that regionalization already exists for central conferences, as well as the implications of enabling regionalization worldwide, including for United Methodists in the United States.

Read the story

UM News: Regionalization plan heads to General Conference

Church takes in people living in cars

Lake Washington United Methodist Church is highlighted in a recent, front-page New York Times article about financially struggling people who live in their cars. The church offers safe parking for women and families in that situation.

Read the story

For more on church’s program

Solar trailers ready for disaster relief

Solar microgrid trailers are ready to bring clean power to the sites of disasters. A newly unveiled trailer will be used by the North Georgia Conference and United Methodist Committee on Relief for disaster response. It is intended to power cell phones, Wi-Fi, refrigeration, lighting, medical devices and other critical services. When there is no environmental emergency, it can be utilized to help power other live events.

Read the story and watch the video

Weaving harmful bags into helpful mats

At Hope United Methodist Church, two members started an initiative to weave plastic bags into sleeping mats for people who are homeless. After Joni Jenkins and Florence Hacklander learned that it takes plastic bags 1,000 years to degrade in a landfill, they acquired a special loom that can turn the bags into mats that are lightweight, flexible and provide a thermal barrier that repels bugs.

Read the story

Arnold to depart United Methodist Men

Greg Arnold, top executive of United Methodist Men, is resigning from that position as of Nov. 10. Retired Bishop James Swanson, who currently serves as vice president of the board of United Methodist Men, will step in as the interim top executive. Arnold served in the post for two years. “I'm satisfied that we are leaving the commission better than we found it, prepared for 2024 and beyond as an organization,” Arnold said. 

Read the press release