Caroling as a Mission

The previous two years we have gone caroling as a church around the neighborhood, singing the Good News as a way of evangelism. This year due to the weather we had to postpone and revise the singing to indoors. So on the afternoon of December 23, four adults and four children went to the Betsy Ross House, followed by the South Portland Nursing Home. The residents from both facilities loved that we brought caroling books for them to sing along too, but especially loved seeing the children.

A Fun and Exciting Pageant for Peoples

It seemed that God was truly present at Peoples during worship on Sunday, December 23: the music, Karen Jenning's devotional message was inspired and inspiring as a personal witness of her faith journey and her children's impact on that journey; and most especially the children's pageant (see article below) which was filmed by NBC and aired on the channel 6 news Sunday evening. This included interviews of Andy Folley as Sunday School Superintendent, Samantha Foote as Mary, and Caleb Marston as a Magi. You can play the news clip here ...

Here's a comment from Susan Angell: The Christmas Story presented by our children with LOTS of help from many adults was just FABULOUS! It was a real joy to see them all in their costumes...Mary, Joseph, Baby Jesus, the angels, the shepherds, wise men, etc. and the sheep and cows were especially endearing. THE SET designed by the Greer Family was PERFECT. The costumes were inventive and lovely. How fortunate we are to have so many talented children and adults ... Thank you one and all for this most wonderful service. Thank you Ellen and Pastor Gwyneth for Offeratory singing of "Mary Did You Know?". It was such a great service, I didn't want it to ever end .

Christmas Pageant!

The Sanctuary will take on a different look for the Christmas Pageant on December 23rd ... it will be remade into a stable.

This amazing production is a must see: Under the leadership and direction of Andy and Teresa Folley, costume creation by Melinda Marston and Susan Paige, set design by Linda and Eric Greer, Audio-Visual work by Doug Greer, and much assistance and support by all the parents, and most importantly ... all of the kids as angels, shepherds, cows, baby donkeys, wise men, star, Mary and Joseph. The production tells the simple story with word and song as the kids proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ born on Christmas Day.

On Saturday, December 22, all gathered for a dress rehearsal. This was followed by a pizza party with games like pin-the-tale-on-the-donkey. Then the cake candles were lit, and all sang "Happy Birthday" to Jesus!

We hope all are blessed by this special celebration this Christmas. Thank you to all who have worked hard to bring about this Christmas miracle!

Church / Charge Conference

The annual church conference was held Tuesday evening, December 18 and have had positive feedback, especially on the presentation on "Warming Up Your Welcome" (see next article) put on by our district superintendent, Rev. Mike Davis.

For those who were not able to attend, here are some of the highlights from the evening:

Taize Worship led by Mike Davis -- This is a style of worship popular among younger generations today which is a bit surprising as it is very contemplative. WE were given permission to not like it! The worship included silence, meditative singing of one verse repeated for several minutes, Scripture, prayers offered from the people and more singing. Several folks attended the Taize worship at Peoples last Spring so this was not a new experience for a few.

Marlene Tordoff was elected as Recording Secretary. We offered a slide presentation to give thanks for the folks who have gone to be with the Lord this year. We've lost some folks who were very dear to us this year and had a chance to share about this. Mike offered some encouraging words, that "the hurt goes deeper because we've lived and loved together."

Mike spoke about the importance of mission shares in the conference, and our church's contribution which goes toward churches such as the Lawrence UMC that has brought in 47 new converts this year. Mike also presented a conference wide missions focus called "Nothing But Nets". With the purchase of nets to cover African children while they sleep to protect them from mosquitoes, the disease of malaria could be virtually wiped out. Malaria kills a child every 30 seconds - that's 3000 children every day. Nets cost $10/day, and the district has put out a challenge for each church to purchase 17 nets - that would be 1,000 nets for the conference. It was pointed out in the video that one little girl raised 1,000 nets all by herself so certainly 15,000 Methodists should be able to do the same! This is the first time Methodists have partnered with organizations such as the MBA and Sports Illustrated. We also were encouraged not just to take this on as a church but to partner with other area organizations - boy scouts, work places, etc.

A list of inactive members was voted on unanimously to begin the removal process. These are folks who have had no contact with the church for some time. The Darling trust fund was accepted unanimously. The lay speakers were all approved as well for continued ministry: Chris Ward and Merrill Kaiser (advanced lay speakers) and Art Tordoff (basic lay speaker). Mike Gray now holds his membership at Annual Conference so Peoples no longer is responsible for his candidacy process.

Pastor Jamie reviewed the list of folks who will be holding various ministry and committee positions for 2008. Earle Harvey presented a creative report on what it means to bring the Gospel to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the to the ends of the earth, and such ministry stems from our Small Group Ministry as we are encouraged to serve together within the Food Cupboard, the Root Cellar, Red Bird Mission, and Heifer.

The pastors compensation package was approved. Pastor Gwyneth then presented the pastors report with a video presentation of photos showing our life together the last year, which was encouraging and fun. The conference closed with the presentation on Warming Up Your Welcome, and then we closed in a prayer circle as those connected with each other through Christ.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact the pastors or other attendees.

Warming Up Your Welcome Seminar

This was a seminar designed by Mike and Jan Davis and was presented during our church conference on Tuesday evening, December 18.

Have you ever thought about what it was like the first time you visited a church? Have you visited another church recently and felt uncomfortable not knowing anyone or not knowing where to find the bathroom or not understanding a part of the worship service? How much more so for someone who has never gone to church before -- we learned that 50-70% of residents in New England have no previous church connection.

People do visit though - at Peoples, we have at least one visitor almost every week. A few stay, but most do not. We need to ask why. The title of the seminar was "how warm is your welcome?" One of the quotes was: "Almost all churches say they are friendly, but few make friends." What would it mean to make friends with visitors at Peoples?

One suggestion was to think of visitors as guests. This puts the responsibility on us to ensure our guests are well cared for. Other suggestions, to get us thinking, were putting cones out on the nearest street parking spaces that say "Reserved for Visitors." The nursery space is also very important for visiting families, which is why we are in progress on this right now. How about finding your way around the building as a visitor? How many signs do we have to help folks find their way? Visitors make up their minds about a church within the first 10 minutes of arriving - that includes finding parking and finding the correct door to enter through. We need to make sure these first 10 minutes are as welcoming as possible.

It also very important that visitors be greeted by folks not paid to be there - in other words someone in addition to the pastor! It was also suggested that the ushers reserve the best seats (on the isles, toward the back) for visitors. Several folks shared experiences (within Peoples and while visiting other churches) of visitors being told to move out of someone's seat. If we are to be a warm and welcoming church, we need to be willing to give up our seat preference for our guest. On the other hand, we also need to be sensitive to visitors. It can be overwhelming with ten people trying to talk to them at once, and hugging is generally not a good idea with newcomers -- much better to offer a friendly hand and warm smile.

We were given a list of types of folks who might visit the church who are different than the majority that makes up the church today, whether we would want to worship with them, and whether our church would welcome them. How warm would we welcome an interracial or gay couple, a man wearing multiple piercings, or a parent with crying children?

We also discussed the difficult transition when visitors begin getting involved in the life of the church and begin bringing ideas and change that may seem threatening. It is difficult to let go of control and allow new folks the freedom to bring change.

So, whose role is it to welcome visitors? We learned that welcoming visitors is the responsibility of EVERYONE of us in the church! Mike left us with three challenges:
1. Welcoming our guests begins with me - every single person
2. During coffee fellowship or before worship, greet everyone within 10 feet of us. Ask visitors their names and show Christian hospitality.
3. Within the first 3 minutes after church, do not converse with other members until speaking with all of the visitors first.

District Yankee Swap

On Tuesday, December 11, Pastors Gwyneth and Jamie travelled to a Tri-State District meeting at the Exeter UMC. We started with worship together and Holy Communion, followed by some discussion with our District Superintendents, Mike and Jan Davis. The biggest question on people's minds was the status of Vermont coming into the New England Conference as its current Troy Conference seeks to merge with the New York Conference. Whether Vermont decides to ask to be included in New England will be decided during the Troy Annual Conference in June 2008. New England would then vote on whether to receive Vermont in June 2009.

It didn't take long until the party began though. Everyone brought $5 and under gifts for a good old-fashioned Yankee Swap. Each person drew a number, and starting with the lowest number each pastor selected a gift to unwrap and then could either keep or exchange it for some other unwrapped gift! It was a fun time with a lot of laughs.

We finished our time together with lunch (Methodists never get together without a meal). At Exeter UMC they have their kitchen right off the Sanctuary, and they had set up a beautiful dining area in the Sanctuary with candles and Christmas place mats. In addition, the church set up childcare so we were able to have some adult conversation.

Overall it was a great time, and well worth the drive to Exeter! Mike and Jan are hoping to set up more frequent district meetings throughout the year.

Fun Finance Presentation!

Keith Snoddy, Pastor Gwyneth and members of the Finance Committee presented our current financial situation in a thorough, easy-to-understand, and interactive format after church on Sunday, December 9. Attendance was about what we had expected -- fairly low. But everyone who attended seemed to be very excited about this format for presenting our financial situation to the church body that if you didn't attend, most likely you'll be hearing about it from someone who did!

Keith began with information on how the budget is put together and a simple pie chart showing the major expense categories and what they include - the largest expenses being building, pastoral compensation and mission shares to the Conference. Then the presentation shifted to looking at the same budget number but with a pie chart of ministries of the church. Yes, we spend money to heat the building almost every day during the winter, but how is our building being used to do exciting ministry? So expenses such as heat were divided among the categories of missions and outreach, discipleship, worship, fellowship, caring for one another, and support/administration. Folks enjoyed viewing photos of the church family engaged in such ministries.

The proposed budget for 2008 is $161, 539 (down from $167,283 in 2007), which will be voted on at Church Council on December 11.

After we discussed the projected budget, Keith then presented the income side, showing a pie chart of categories such as pledges, gifts, fundraisers, and building use -- with pledges amounting to by far the largest chunk.

In 2007, there were 40 pledges. Keith showed a slide with the number of pledges in each range. For example in 2007 there were 9 pledges in the range of $1-9 per week and 3 in the range of $150-199 per week. The average for 2007 pledges was about $42/week. If all were tithing, this would mean our average income per family at Peoples was $22,000. Although there are certainly some folks at this income level, the average is most likely quite a bit higher. This was eye opening to a number of folks who put it together that there are not many people pledging at even close to 10%.

The last piece of the presentation was the budget deficit, which is about $34,000 for 2008 (and was about $46,000 for 2007). According to Keith, the church has run a budget deficit for some 13 years. How do we continue to get by? One way is by not paying our total mission shares to the denomination, which are about $29,000. In so doing, we are breaking covenant with the denomination, so although we have been given a lot of grace over the years, we need to look at ways of getting back on track financially. Another way is through using income from endowments that have been designated for budget items. And in 2007 specifically, we have spent less through eliminating a staff position (secretary) and since we have not yet hired a music director. Pledges are up by about $4,000 too! Still, we will not be able to pay mission shares this year.

So what is the answer to this large deficit? Cuts in the budget would only amount to $2-10,000 and would reduce ministry so this isn't a great option. The only other cuts would involve staff - going to a half time pastor, which would be a sign that the church was beginning the stage of closing its doors ... and this is NOT where anyone seems to sense the church should be heading. Peoples church has an amazing potential for ministry, and a world right here that needs to hear the good news of Jesus Christ!

So what about income? One suggestion was to increase fundraisers. However, Pastor Gwyneth shared that we would like to see a day when the church had absolutely no fundraisers - that 100% of funds from bean suppers, auction, church fairs, etc. would go for missions such as the Root Cellar or Heifer International. In the short term, we may need to increase some fundraising though. We also discussed the danger of wanting to grow the church so that newcomers can increase the income -- rather we want to grow the church in response to the love of Christ we've experienced and can't help but share.

The presentation concluded with the reality that the biggest potential for growth is through pledging. If all active members and attendees were pledging at 10% (definition of the tithe commanded in Scripture), the church would have more than enough to cover the budget, and there would be room to grow in areas such as missions and discipleship with greater funding. What was amazing was the witness from several folks in attendance of the joy and blessing they have received in setting aside that 10% and trusting the Lord to provide for them and their family. The offering isn't supposed to be a burden but a joy!

Pam Beal of Finance suggested posting the presentation, perhaps in Ellis Hall. If there are any folks interested in working on this project, please let Pastor Gwyneth or anyone on the Finance Committee know.

Thank you to everyone on Finance (Pam Beal-Chair, Keith Snoddy, Walter Greer, Susan Angell, Chris Bowker, Earle Harvey), and to Rosemary Herd and Chris Ward for organizing the food, and for others who provided some of the food as well. Methodists can't meet without eating together, right?!

Advent Study - Preparing the Way for the Lord!

Many folks know Ruth McLellan as a very active member of Peoples, but in recent years has had more difficulty getting out of the house so isn't able to attend church. Folks visit Ruth, but it's not quite the same as the kind of connection shared with those who are blessed to be able to attend worship, Sunday School or other church activities throughout the week.

In contemplating this dilemma, and also wondering where we should host an Advent study, we found an answer to both by meeting in Ruth's home.

Pastor Gwyneth has been leading, and attendees in addition to Ruth have included Polly Morrill, Earle and Wealthy Harvey. We have been using a text called Devotional Classics from Renovare, which includes a few pages of reading from Christians spanning 1st to 20th centuries, as well as Scripture, discussion questions, and devotional exercises. We began with C.S. Lewis in the 20th century (1898-1963), and have gone back in time to read John of the Cross (1542-1591), Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153), and we will finish up on December 17 with Augustine (354-430). The theme of these sessions as been "Preparing for the Spiritual Life" which was perfect for Advent.

The discussions have been encouraging for all of us, and we have all gone deeper in our faith together. We are planning to begin another session from the same Devotional Classics text in January on the topic of The Prayer-Filled Life, and will read from folks such as Thomas Merton, Julian of Norwich, Henri Nouwen and Soren Kierkegaard. We also have tentative plans to host a Lenten study on the topic of The Virtuous Life, which would contain readings from Gregory of Nyssa, John Calvin, Blaise Pascal and Teresa of Avila.

Next session will begin Monday, January 7 at 10am at the home of Ruth McLellan, and will meet for 5 weeks. Please let Pastor Gwyneth know if you would like materials as we will be ordering shortly.

Thank you Ruth for opening your home! And thank you God for growing us closer to You through each other.

Sealed up in time for snow

There have been some questions about how we have been doing the major work on the roof and exterior given the current financial state of the church. There are a few pieces of information that will help to clarify this and future projects.

As to our current financial picture, we are in slightly better financial shape than the same time last year despite a budget that was further behind. Likewise, the year before was worse at yearend than the budget for that year predicted. Both years have been much like several years before where much of our mission shares have not been paid and some money from investment income has had to be spent to cover ministerial support at the end of the year. The membership has been increasing contributions, but to cover the annual expence side of our budget with pledges and cash income, we need to continue to increase our commitment to bringing our resources together. 

Most maintenance, capital purchases and special improvements come from investment income and bequests. Some portion of this money can be used to cover annual expenses, but it is better for the financial health of the church to keep most of this income reserved for capital investments and upkeep for our physical capital - the building. Because our investments have been doing well, we do have money to keep the physical plant in good shape and cover some annual expenses. If the stock market turns down, we may even need some budget money to help with maintanance, but this is not a current concern.

Some of the recent projects have been paid for through insurance claims. Here are some notes from Doreen about the details:

Needed roof & steeple repairs was completed last week. This was an insurance claim due to roof shingle and steeple siding damage caused from the storm last April. The total cost of the project was $23,770, of that we had to pay $4,370, which came from investments that are specifically designated for maintenance.

The exterior lights of Ellis Hall & the sanctuary, are in horrible condition, we recently purchased and will have installed soon these replacement lights. They were purchased from Jim Darling's memorial, they totalled $1838 plus installation.

The breezeway windows and safety glass on the exterior of the sanctuary stained glass windows were finally completed two weeks ago. This was an insurance claim because the windows were damaged by pellet gun shots approx. 1 1/2 years ago. The total cost was $1,879, we have a deductible of $1000 per claim from our insurance carrier, they reimbursed us $193.99. The balance of the charges were for needed repairs on a breezeway window, which was damaged during the CIP several years ago, as well as maintenance on several stained glass windows. This money came from investments that are specifically designated for maintenance.

Entrance rugs were purchased to save on continued rental costs at a purchase price of $780. The payback will be a little more than one year.

Finally, there is an insurance claim that was recently settled to cover the damage to the fence on the back side of the church. Chuck Kamilewicz has been handling the contrators and the claim as well as clearing off some of the damaged materials. 

The church is overall in stable condition, though increased income is necessary to meet our full obligations of ministry each year. For further information, please come to the budget presentation after church on the December 9th after church.

Hanging of the Greens Blessing for All

The Hanging of the Greens worship service Sunday evening of December 2 was well attended, but especially by our little Peoples people! We sang carols as the kids decorated the tree and adults hung wreaths and other greens around the Sanctuary.

Then Rosemary Herd led the story telling time, only she had each of the reading-aged children do the reading, and parents and grandparents came up with their children to place one of the creche figures into the stable which now sits prominantly on the altar.

The kids brought their gifts to place under the tree for Red Bird Mission while we sang "We Three Kings." The lights were lowered as we sang "Silent Night" and the Lord was surely in our midst. .

The pastors were especially appreciative of being able to worship together as a family, and thank Chris Ward and Rosemary Herd for heading up the service, and Kit Pike for leading the hymns on piano.

Prepare your hearts for the coming of the Lord!

Christmas Fair Fabulous Fun Fundraiser!

Submitted by Susan Angell

Oh, you just had to be there! What an absolutely wonderful fair. The team work was extraordinary, the food to die for, the tables contained fabulous things and we all had so much fun. Rosemary Herd & Chris Ward, as point persons for UMW, worked tirelessly in the coordination. Rosemary’s enthusiasm was contagious and she was just so creative in solving glitches.

All those people that came to the Fair Meetings with their input certainly should be delighted at all their ideas that were put into action. Doreen’s floor plan of tables was brilliant and with a little tweaking, we want to follow it again. The name, Coastal Christmas Fair, was so inviting we plan to use that theme again next year. Carol Bruneau’s contribution of baked goods and unique confections; Sue Paige’s gift baskets, Linda Wade’s creative knits and crafts table, Nancy Greer’s mittens, Doreen Gay’s lovely jewelry and professional presentation, the yummy and inviting candy sold by Becky Snoddy and Janice Huelin, Amy Wellingtons’s tasty and tasteful baked goods table and her assistants on the day by Sharon Obie and Barbara Kenney, Mariah Bowker’s attractive ornaments, Kathy Brann’s sea shell themed table cloths, Betty Lane and others that assisted children in wrapping their secret purchases for parents, the other things that were either baked, cooked, knitted, crotched, created or donated by our people, were just so nice.

The newly created book room operated this year by Susan Angell was cozy as well as roomy. Thanks to all the people that came into that room and brought me food, treats and coffee and for Becky Gottlieb, Sam Siedl and our floater Kathy Brann for spelling me and checking on me to see if I was still alive. The trash and treasure tables and the people that manned them, were so wonderful. I personally think that T&T are really the hardest tables to set up and man but these gals led by Barbara Nelson and Joanne Kamilewicz inspire all they draft into helping by their inventive lay out of used items. The New and Nearly New table created by Doug Greer and family some years ago and set up this year by Carol Bruneau and her assistance on the day by Jodi Fyles, is a clever idea in action. The food!!!!!!!!!

We received a generous $200 in little donations to purchase the ingredients. What can we say about a kitchen and all the people headed by Brad and coerced by Chris, that produces lobster stew, crab meat rolls, chili, corn chowder, etc. other than, “we love ya”. What about those that set up the tables the night before the fair, all those that worked those tables on the “day” and then that mighty clean up crew? We have warm feelings in our heart for each and every one of you. The Spirit of the Lord was present in that hall, that’s for sure.


The people commented that our fair was the nicest they attended this year and their enthusiasm is the proof in the pudding. This year’s fair generated $900 more than last year’s (This makes more than $2,500 income!) Better yet, the camaraderie that we all felt, was priceless!!!!

What is Advent?

The word “advent” means “coming” or “arrival” and is the season in the church when we focus on Christ coming into the world as our Savior. The worship music, Scripture readings and prayers during Advent not only prepare us spiritually for Christmas (Christ's first coming) but also his eventual second coming. The mood of Advent is reflective and a bit solemn but expectantly hopeful, similar to the season before Easter called “Lent,” providing both a sense of anticipation, and a contrast of darkness with the joy of Christmas when we will celebrate the birth of Jesus who is the Light of the world!

How can we best prepare our hearts during the Advent season? One way is through daily reading and prayer, perhaps using the Peoples Advent Devotional books that were given out Sunday, December 2 which contain short writings by Peoples people. Faithfully attending worship provides an opportunity to experience the expectant hope of Advent as we light the Advent candles each week, sing hymns about the coming Savior, and hear the words of Scripture proclaimed.

Another common way to experience God's grace during the season of Advent (and Lent) is fasting. Fasting means abstaining from something, usually food for some period of time, certain meals, or on some regular frequency. But there are many kinds of fasts. One can fast from using their credit card, or fast from TV, or fast from junk food. Fasting provides a wonderful reminder to pray - when we hunger for that which we crave, we are instead reminded to pray. Fasting helps us to realize what we are holding on to too tightly in this world, and shifts our attention instead onto our beautiful Savior.

Fasting also provides additional time for prayer and missions - think of what we could do with those 3 hours of not watching TV, or the uneaten food we could provide to someone in need. Sometimes Christians experience great renewal during fasts, other times we feel nothing at all. But we know that Jesus fasted and prayed, and taught his disciples to do likewise. We do this in faithfulness to God, trusting in his grace.

The pastors are fasting as a family this Advent, including our daughters and baby! We are fasting from eating out. A little less McDonalds will do us all some good, and we are bound to spend more time as a family at home together too. What a perfect way to prepare for Christmas.

May God bless you in your fasting, whenever you might feel led to try it out! We are sure to appreciate the feast of Christmas that much more.

New Look for the Bulletins

Have you noticed the last few months something different about the bulletins in church? We are saving about $300/year in not ordering color bulletin covers. In addition, designing our own gives us the flexability of coordinating the theme with the sermon, using church photos or just a picture of the church. Although the bulletins will be black print only, we feel it's worth the cost savings. We did go all out for Christmas Eve and ordered special covers though!

What do you think? Please share your thoughts; we'd love to hear from you.

Advent and Christmas Schedule of Events

Come experience the true meaning of Christmas at Peoples Church. All are welcome!

Sat 12/1 Coastal Christmas Fair 9am-2pm
Sun 12/2 Hanging of the Greens 6pm
Mon 12/3, 12/10, 12/17 Weekly Advent Study 2pm
Wed 12/5, 12/12, 12/19 Weekly Advent Prayer Service 7pm
Sun 12/16 Christmas Caroling Party 6pm
Sat 12/22 Christmas Pageant Dress Rehearsal and Party (details to follow)
Sun 12/23 Christmas Pageant 10:30am
Mon 12/24 Candlelight Christmas Eve Worship 7pm

Coastal Christmas Fair Sat 12/1 9am-2pm

Submitted by Susan Angell

This Saturday, Peoples will host an amazing Coastal Christmas Fair. Set up will be Friday afternoon and evening. Doreen Gay provided us with a great floor plan on set up of tables. Donations of baked items, candy, knitted/crochet/sewn items and other crafts, trash and treasure and the like are all welcomed. Good food is being served from our kitchen. Some strong fellows have come forth and volunteered to help us as a clean up crew and boy are we grateful and more would be welcomed.. Oh, it is going to be fun! Bring your Christmas list, shop and eat and browse.

Bell Choir Ringers Needed!

Anyone interested in ringing bells in the bell choir please contact Becky Snoddy or Doug Greer. If there are enough folks we will be blessed with bells during the Christmas Eve worship service!

Advent Prayer Service Wednesdays 7pm

The weekly prayer service held in the Vestry Wednesdays at 7pm is being led by the pastors during Advent. This time will provide an opportunity for Advent devotion and prayer, which includes praying over all of the prayer cards from the previous Sunday. During this hectic season as we rush around in preparation for the holidays, this is a chance to focus our attention on the true meaning of Christmas, and to prepare to experience anew the Advent of our Savior.

Christmas Caroling Party

The pastors will be hosting the annual Christmas caroling party on Sunday, December 16 at 6pm. We will go out caroling in the church neighborhood and then come back to the house for some festive goodies. Meet at the pastors’ home at 154 Mussey Street (next to the church). Please dress warmly and bring your flashlight. All ages welcome.

Christmas Pageant December 23!

The Sunday School is rehearsing for a Christmas Pageant to be presented by the kids during worship on Sunday, December 23. Please come and show your support! All Sunday School children should plan to attend the Dress Rehearsal on December 22 – details to follow.

Christmas Gifts for our Babies

Submitted by Betsy Morrison

It is answered prayer that we have such a growing Nursery and Sunday School and to hear an increase of young chatter in our church. This growth, combined with shifts in the ages of our Nursery and Sunday School, has us in need of toys for our nursery that are appropriate for ages 0-2 year olds. It has been a number of years since our toys have been replenished. Please consider giving a gift to our Nursery this Christmas. If you are unsure what to give, Peoples Church is registered at both Toys ‘R Us and Babies ‘R Us. The website is toysrus.com Our registry number is #69301283 and we are registered under: Last name: Methodist, First name: Peoples. Please contact Betsy Morrison 767-6063 with any questions. Thank you for supporting our youngest Peoples people.

Joyful Stewardship Month

We experienced “Joyful Stewardship” during the month of November! This included a four-part sermon series on joyful worship, joyful learning, joyful sharing and joyful sharing, with worship services surrounding these themes. Many times we only think of stewardship as money, but we are stewards, or caretakers, of all of God’s gifts. Within the church in particular, we are stewards together of Christ’s Body. This was our focus in November, which also included stewardship witnesses who spoke about their experiences. These included Ellen Dunn, Andy Folley, Belle Graney, Susan Angell and Betty Lane. Thanks to all these folks for their willingness to share the blessings they’ve experienced as stewards of God’s gifts, and especially to Susan Angell who worked on the stewardship program this year with Pastor Gwyneth. We would love to hear your thoughts.

Keep Those Pledges Coming In!

The Financial Secretary, Keith Snoddy reports that there are 20 pledges in so far, which is about half what we had for 2007. If you are intending to pledge for 2008, please let Keith know soon. Thank you!

Why does the church encourage pledging rather than just offering our gifts each week? Some might answer that it’s good business. And it is, and we certainly look at our budget forecast in light of expected income for the year as good stewards of our resources. But an even better reason to pledge is that the church is not a business but God’s family. As family members we do what’s best for our family even when that means personal sacrifice.

However, the greatest reason to pledge is that it helps us grow as Christians because it involves much more trust in the Lord. Pledging involves catching up on our gifts even when we are unable to attend worship. Pledging involves setting aside a portion of our income in advance and dedicating it to the Lord because we are loved and want to return that love. Pledging involves doing all of this when we don’t know what we may need to sacrifice buying in order to remain faithful to our pledge. Pledging takes a leap of faith. But when we are faithful to the Lord, we will find ourselves in his arms on the other side, and know ourselves blessed many times over.

Financial Presentation

Do financial spreadsheets make your eyes cross? Does the word “budget” seem to put you to sleep? Then this presentation is for you! Keith Snoddy, Financial Secretary, will be presenting our church financial situation with easy-to-understand charts, graphics and photos. December 9 after church. The 2008 budget will be voted on during the December 11 Church Council meeting.

Church Conference

The annual church conference is scheduled for Tuesday December 18 at 7pm. We will be voting on some important issues such as pastors compensation, and then will hear an exciting presentation by our District Superintendent on “Warming up our Welcome” for visitors. All are welcome to attend, and members strongly encouraged to attend! If you would like to attend but would prefer not to drive at night, please contact Chris Ward at 767-2516 and she can help arrange someone to pick you up.

Advent Study

All are invited to attend any or all of the Advent study on Mondays at 2pm through December 17 at the home of Ruth McLellan. We are using a text entitled, “Devotional Classics” from Renovaré. Please obtain materials from Pastor Gwyneth.

Worship Team and Choir Rehearsal

All who sing (or used to sing but it’s been a while), play an instrument, or are otherwise interested in music ministry at Peoples, are welcome to attend a weekly worship team rehearsal on Thursdays at 7pm, led by Pastor Jamie. Music will be selected and rehearsed for Sunday as well as upcoming weeks. Come on out!

Music Director Search

The church has not yet found a suitable candidate to serve as music director. We are filling in from the variety of gifts from our congregation along with some recordings and videos. As we continue the search, we ask for your prayers, your suggestions and your musical gifts during the coming weeks. Thank you!

Visitor Ministries

Becky Snoddy, Linda Wade and others within and outside of the Worship Committee have taken on the project of thinking through how we might more effectively welcome and follow up with visitors. Linda has ordered Peoples Church mugs to give to visitors as a welcome gift, and they are in the back of the Sanctuary. Please check them out, and help give them out to any first time visitors you meet! Linda will also be taking on more of the visitor contact ministry done by the pastors, which involves writing notes after each Sunday. If you have ideas, suggestions, or would like to be involved in visitor ministries, please contact Becky or Linda.

Blue Christmas Service 12/21 Thornton Hgts 7pm

This is a special service on the darkest night to remember that all emotions are present during the Christmas season. We can worship our savior from the midst of both joy and pain for Jesus loves us just as we are. Whether you find this a dark time of year or a bright one, come as you are and find the light of Christ and the love of our church community. Sponsored by the Casco Bay Cluster.

E3 a Success

Nine folks attended this conference event, E3: Equip Empower Evangelize from Peoples! And Susan Angell graciously served in the nursery. The following is a summary of Art's full article which is found below.

Bill Kemp opened up the conference with a sermon on Ezekiel's Dry Bones. The United Methodist Church has many issues today, and needs the new life of God's Spirit to make these bones live again! Art Tordoff attended a seminar on Communication - within the church and to the community. Pastor Karen Munson advised the group on how best to use newsletters, websites, blogs, email, and also how to establish a relationship with the press to get the church's name into the public domain.

Art also attended a seminar on small membership churches, which revealed that since most United Methodist Churches are small (78% are less than 125 in membership within the USA) that we need to use the strengths inherent in a small church to grow the church. Reasons given for failure to grow included poor leadership, low spiritual passion, poor structures, lack of passionate worship, dead meetings, lack of missional clarity and failure to deal with conflict.

Earle Harvey attended a seminar on "The Agile Church: "Creating a Congregation geared for change" and "Passionate Spirituality for a Cold Climate, Resurrecting the Lifeless Congregation". Earle found that spiritual passion is the fuel that keeps a congregation active and excited about the faith that it has to share with the world.

Principal speaker Vance Ross, gave a dynamic presentation on the love of Christ for us and sharing this love with our neighbors. This was followed by a lively concert by Marty Magehee, former member of the 4-Him Christian rock band. The evening was topped off with a musical concert that featured Marty Magehee, former member of the 4Him Christian Rock Band. Most if not all of the music he played was of his own design. Marty displayed a singing range of several octaves. Periodically he would pause while changing his music and give brief sermonettes about where the Lord Christ was in his life and how he came to love the Lord.

Earle concludes his remarks with the following words: The revival at Beech Ridge Speedway and the E3 Conference have given us tools to go forth into our neighborhoods to share Christ’s message of love and redemption. Our church can accommodate about three times the number of people currently attending on a Sunday morning service without the need to expand the facility. The immediate area has over two thousand families that offer an opportunity to visit them to invite them to come and share in worship. We need to pray for God’s guidance as we prepare to visit these families. Most importantly, we need to respond to the leading of the Holy Spirit and obey the call to serve.

Variety Show 2007!

Peoples put on a fantastic variety show on November 10! The show raised about $400 as a mission for Heifer International. From classic comedy by Caleb to classic rock by the ushers, and everything in between, a good time was had by all, with great food and great entertainment. Let's do it again soon!

VIDEOS ...

The Ushers Singing "Lean on Him"

Caleb's Skit About His Little Brother

E3 a Success (Full Article)

E3: 3 Days Packed with Optimism and Faith In The Future of Methodism
Not many folks from our church seemed to look at the opportunity to get together with other Methodists near home with any excitement. Even with only two weeks to go only a few folks had registered in advance to attend any portion of the E 3 conference that was held at Woodfords Congregational Church from November 1-3. Some may even have thought it was ironic that a Methodist Conference was held at a Congregational Church. Rarely in recent years has it been that a major event in the Methodist Church was even held in the Portland area. While the New England Conference made it possible for local area folks to attend and to learn from some really outstanding speakers it appeared there were more people in attendance from "away" than those from the local area. It was announced that of the three School of Congregational Development conferences that have been held that the number of registrants at this event far surpassed those of the previous two.
As a result of some well-placed telephone calls, Peoples attendance at the event was at least representative. As those who attended would agree, everyone learned something that they felt would be useful back home.
This accounting of the events of E3 has been primarily written with the opinion, eyes and ears of only one person, myself Art Tordoff with assistance from my wife, Marlene. I would encourage others who attended the conference to either add to this accounting or add it as a Comment attached in the proper location at the end of the article. I would say that I had not been to a conference for a long time that had as much meaning as this event, especially in the realm of church worship and activity. You will find thoughts on this conference from Earle Harvey, our lay leader as part of this report.
Thursday night with music, song and a powerful message
The Thursday night activities were held in the sanctuary and began with some rousing revival music played by Mitch Thomas on the piano. He serves as a music leader at the Auburn United Methodist Church. Lyrics for all of the music was displayed on a large screen in the chancel. Those present experienced community singing with gusto! This community singing was followed by music played by a Praise Band from Concord, New Hampshire. Bishop Weaver was scheduled to speak. Unfortunately his mother in law had passed away and he was not able to be present.
Bill Kemp ably filled in for the Bishop. Bill spoke on the subject of Ezekial’s Dry Bones.
The feeling for many is that is where many United Methodist Churches are today. Our organization in many local churches seems to be suffering. The number of members is much reduced from the past, financial need is ever present, and we are slow to respond to the changing needs of the culture that we live in. Many folks who have felt the strains of leadership for years unfortunately experience "burn out". Often the workers of the local church often negatively respond to elements of life in the church as well as the greater community. Pastor. Kemp went on to say that if we can identify the issues we have it gives us many areas that we can focus on. It seemed to me that those items identified can become the focus of a local church in order to put the separated "dry bones" back together again. Change is necessary, but that change needs to be calculated in order to keep everyone, young and old, long term member/no term member nurtured and willing to serve the Lord. The Lord’s Spirit is ever with us and we can call on him to be our ever-present guide. As the title of a Gospel song that was sung by Gospel Choir from Patterson, New Jersey we are "Never Alone".
Friday continues with a lively spirit
Quite satisfied and uplifted by Thursday night’s program, we came back again on Friday afternoon. Marlene and I had signed up to attend a session at 2:30 with Pastor Karen Munson from the Readfield United Methodist Church. When we arrived we found that the session had already started. 40 people were in the room and finding new ways to "Communicate with each other and the Community". Talk about Newsletters, Web sites, Blog Spots and e-mail took up a great deal of the time. Among the words that Pastor Munson had to offer were that God, Christ and Holy Spirit should be present in any messages that a church sends out. She mentioned that should also be the case when you have an answering machine that is used for recording the messages of those who call. Websites are more often the location to which an inquiry will go and should be updated frequently and made user friendly. She recommended that the pastor of a given church try to put out an e-mail message at least once a week to as many folks as possible. She suggested that it doesn’t have to be long, considering that people more often are looking for "reading bytes" rather than long dissertations. Keeping in contact with people who are "away" from the church such as college students is important. Something beyond the newsletter may be part of a continuing program of care. She said that some churches have set up Bible study through a chat room rather than the contact that can be gained from face to face meetings—although that form of study should not be discouraged either. I don’t think that chat rooms can really replace face to face contact although it is an alternative providing your members do have computers.
Pastor Munson did continue to say that the local church does need to nurture the local press as well. Most local papers are today looking for "good news" that could be Good News.
After a brief break and we were off to another session titled, "Holy Places, Small Places". Thinking that this session led by Bill Kemp would speak perhaps to new worship ideas we soon found that the session focused on the small church especially in the Methodist system. A chart that he passed out showed that 78% of the churches in the Methodist system nationwide are smaller than 125 in membership. The chart also showed that only 20% were midsize with membership between 126-499. The remaining 2% of Methodist churches nationally might be listed as Mega-churches. This session focused on the strength of the system being in small churches. He went on to say that the number 52 is actually normal. He also said, however, that many of these "normal" churches are without a full-time ordained pastor, without a choir that sings four parts and most normal churches then would benefit from sharing program resources with adjacent churches ie. the four South Portland United Methodist Churches. He also said that today’s culture does not really value membership, distrusts organizational hierarchy and thinks that relationships are more important than truth. It is not unusual for people to go to different churches today for different purposes while still maintaining a degree of membership perhaps in the church they originally joined. Some folks when asked about maintaining their membership at Peoples have said, "I need a church to be buried from." Sounds rather trite, but that is an attitude of many. Pastor Kemp went on to say that the ladder that many pastors, in a human sense, expected to climb is no longer available for most although being itinerant is still a part of the Methodist pastorate. He also said that every church has a bottleneck that must be overcome. Among those difficulties in a given church he suggested were the following: 1. Inappropriate leadership 2. Failure to appreciate giftedness 3. Low spiritual passion 4. Poor structures 5. Non-indigenous worship 6. Dead meetings 7. Lack of missional clarity 8. Failure to deal with conflict
Bill Kemp is an author of several books, one of which gave its title to this particular session theme. Pastor Kemp has been on the staff of Bangor Theological Seminary and is presently serving as an interim pastor in the Pittsburgh, Pa. area.
The principal speaker on Friday night was Vance Ross who presently serves as the Associate General Secretary of the Discipleship Ministries Division of the General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church. All, I can say about his presentation was WOW! Dynamic, dramatic and powerful are all words that describe his presentation and message. The center of his presentation was the Love of Christ for us and the need we have to share that love with our neighbors in the way that we are loved by the Lord. Neighbors can be as close as next door and as far away as the other side of the planet. We need to practice what we believe as Christians and as United Methodists. Dr. Ross could make his point in a whisper as well as at the top of his lungs. Over 300 people were in attendance at this session.
The evening was topped off with a musical concert that featured Marty Magehee, former member of the 4Him Christian Rock Band. Most if not all of the music he played was of his own design. Marty displayed a singing range of several octaves. Periodically he would pause while changing his music and give brief sermonettes about where the Lord Christ was in his life and how he came to love the Lord. Some folks left after a few songs yet the message he came to give was not finished until the concert was over.
This had been a long day, but a rewarding day, a day that we were grateful to the Lord for providing us.
The following are some impressions that Earle Harvey passed on for inclusion in this report from his perspective. Earle attended a workshop titled, "The Agile Church: Creating a Congregation geared for change". From this workshop Earle said the normal church will remain passive until some action is taken to change thinking. To accomplish this there must be an influx if ideas accompanied usually by new people.
In a second workshop, "Passionate Spirituality for a Cold Climate, Resurrecting the Lifeless Congregation", Earle found that spiritual passion is the fuel that keeps a congregation active and excited about the faith that it has to share with the world. Without spiritual passion a church, no matter what its size will either crash and burn or become a hollow shell of its former glory.
Earle’s third workshop, titled " Holy Places, Small Spaces," has been referred to previously in this report, but serves as a good review from his perspective. Seventy eight percent of United Methodist churches have under 125 that regularly attend worship. Many small churches are small because they will not take steps to reach out to their community in order to grow.
Earle concludes his remarks with the following words. The revival at Beech Ridge Speedway and the E3 Conference have given us tools to go forth into our neighborhoods to share Christ’s message of love and redemption. Our church can accommodate about three times the number of people currently attending on a Sunday morning service without the need to expand the facility. The immediate area has over two thousand families that offer an opportunity to visit them to invite them to come and share in worship.
We need to pray for God’s guidance as we prepare to visit these families. Next we have to have faith that God already has a plan for us to follow. From the past we have trusted that his plan will glorify his kingdom. Most importantly, we need to respond to the leading of the Holy Spirit and obey the call to serve. Jesus calls us to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
We should pray that we have the courage of our convictions so that under the guidance of the Holy Spirit we may build in 2008 on the foundation started in 2007.

Joyful Stewardship

The following was shared by Bishop Peter Weaver during a special session on the conference budget. Some have asked for the text that I read from my Journal. I wrote it during my December 2005 visit to Nigeria after visiting our mission hospital in Zing where patients desperately wait, sometimes two or three to a bed, for help....for a doctor....we no longer have one there. Next to the hospital complex is a new, state of the art (for Nigeria) eye hospital....also with no doctor....no funds....only a very dedicated nurse. When there was a doctor there, hundreds would come from as far as Cameroon....there are so many in Africa suffering from eye diseases carried by water and insects....many are blind....and waiting....waiting for help....no doctor....no mission funds.....waiting.

The nurse asked me why the United Methodists in the U.S. could not provide more help....like it used to? The day before I had been at a wonderful outdoor service of about 8,000 in a remote area where some of the people had walked for days to get there. Most of those who came are very financially poor, but very rich in spirit. When the offering time came, the music started....and then the dancing...the people from each area represented came joyfully processing, singing and dancing, up to the large offering basket....children, old folk, teenagers (who had climbed up into the trees so they could see), mothers with babies wrapped on their fronts....singing and dancing....led by the pastors dressed in their black robes and white stoles that fluttered and billowed like wings of the Spirit...singing and dancing....such joy....such generosity....such faith that if they risked sharing their little, God would provide for tomorrow (no 401k plans here) ....

These folks from Nigeria were not bringing their offering with joyful dancing because of their easy living and abundant resources. In fact, it seems the exact opposite may be true. Those who are most dependent on God for daily living are the ones who experience the joy of God's provision most powerfully, and so share more abundantly that which they have received. They know themselves less as "consumers" of their resources and more as "stewards" of God's resources.

What might happen if we as a church had this much joy during the Sunday offering?!!! I believe we could all learn from our sisters and brothers in Nigeria what it means to be joyful stewards of all God has provided. This includes joyful stewardship of our financial resources, but many other ways too. During November, we will be focusing on what it means to be joyful stewards of our worship, learning, sharing and serving. The commitment cards this year reflect this more broad definition of stewardship, which have been mailed to all church members and will be available in church during November for any of our active attendees who did not receive the mailing. We hope you will prayerfully consider increasing your joyful stewardship this year as part of God's family!

Hallelujah!!!!

COASTAL CHRISTMAS FAIR Dec 1 9am-2pm

Submitted by Susan Angell

Once again we are having a fabulous Christmas Fair. Many people have been working on arts and crafts for months just for sale at this event…Nancy Greer has knitted lots of mittens, Rosemary and her cohorts have been creating nautical and coastal things, Doreen and her splendid jewelry, Brad and Chris planning the luncheon menu and many have saved up their used books and stuff for trash or treasure, etc. We will need donations towards the food for the kitchen and strong backs to help us all to clean up the hall and pack and store our left over items.

Lots of fun surprises and innovative ideas will reveal themselves when you attend. I try to bring something for every table and I do get discouraged sometimes. The lovely banana breads I brought one year lay like logs on the table unsold and I think they were eaten by the folks from the Gathering. People evidently wanted those cute little loafs instead of large ones. My pies were also eaten at the gathering. Every year I experience failure with fudge. I've burned it, dropped it all in the drive way on my way in, failed at the no-fail fudge recipe and last year it permanently adhered to the pan I poured it into. THIS year I found a Famous Fudge kit by Carnation that swears I will be successful?? Marlene is teaching me to crochet and I have made some potholders for sale and may I say they are very interesting and unique!

So set this day aside. Bring your wonderful home baked tasties, wonderful candy, crafts, books, trash and treasure and BEST of all bring yourself to enjoy the fun.

Church Conference November 18

Our annual church conference at Peoples is scheduled for Sunday November 18 from 4-6pm with light snacks provided before. Our district superintendent, Rev. Mike Davis, will be presiding.

The agenda for conference includes matters such as election of committee members for 2008, setting of the pastors' compensation package, and continuation of our certified lay speakers. We will also hear an update on the Together for Tomorrow conference capital campaign, and a presentation from Mike Davis. This presentation will either be on Welcoming Newcomers (Warm up Your Welcome), or if there are enough questions for Mike we may host a time for conversation with the D.S. instead. Please submit questions you might have for Mike to Pastor Gwyneth by Tuesday, November 13. If there are insufficient questions for in depth conversation we will go with the presentation on Welcoming.

In addition there will be a presentation of the 2008 budget before the church conference at 2:45pm for anyone interested. Last year, some folks suggested that we work on the budget earlier than usual so that we have this information in hand as we are voting on the pastors' compensation. Although this has never been done before, the Finance Committee agreed to give it a try.

All are invited and encouraged to attend, so please save the date! Church members are invited to vote during the conference but all are invited to attend.

Note: We will only be printing church conference reports needed for voting. All other committee end-of-year reports should be completed by December 31 which will be printed for a special meeting in January. Thank you!

Variety Show is Back!

Save the date - November 10 at 7pm. There will be acts done by the ushers, the walking group, the pastors and more, and will range from classical music to classic comedy. Hosting a Variety Show is one of the goals set by the church for our increased focus on missions. 100% of the funds are going to Heifer International, toward our goal of raising an ark of animals worth $5,000 to provide for the needs of people all over the world - from bees to water buffalo. Suggested donation of $5 per ticket. For questions, contact Merrill Kaiser or Earle Harvey.

Thanksgiving Worship Service

The church will be hosting a Thanksgiving Eve worship service on Wednesday, November 21 at 7pm. We have so much to give thanks for. This would be one wonderful way to say thanks to God this season. The format is informal, and all are invited to attend. This may be an excellent time to invite friends that might be put off from starting with a larger Sunday service. Many people have giving thanks on the mind already, so it is an opportunity to help them focus that by being invited to worship. As uncomfortable as it may seem, most people would feel glad to receive a low-pressure invitation and some may be eagerly awaiting it!

Worship and Prayer Midweek

The Wednesday night prayer service has been reinvented recently as we rotate leadership on a monthly basis. There are opportunities to pray for the church, for your own concerns and for the prayers offered on Sunday. There may be music, scripture and sharing. This is an excellent time to start coming to the service to be filled as well as to pour out in prayer (silent prayers are welcome as well). Betty Lane has been leading the service for October, Wealthy is leading November and the pastors will lead a special Advent service and study through December. Please come and revive your faith and support your church in prayer each Wednesday.

Many thanks to Kathy Brann for her years of dedication to the weekly prayer service at Peoples. Although the style has changed over the years, Kathy's dedication has remained constant. She now feels led to step down from this role.

Hillie, a Beloved Saint

Hillie Cass, an active member of Peoples Church since childhood went to be with the Lord on October 2, 2007. A funeral service was performed by Pastors Jamie & Gwyneth at Peoples to celebrate her life, grieve her loss, and remember that the resurrection reality Hillie now experiences is our own hope as those in Christ.

It is hard to imagine Peoples without Hillie who has been so involved in every aspect of the church, particularly as an examplar of faith, love and welcoming. Yet, as her son Malcolm pointed out in his witness at her funeral, her example lives on in all the lives she touched. He talked about a future for our church that becomes fully revived even as people step up to fill the rolls of caring for the altar, promoting our music, driving people to shopping or appointments, keeping folk in touch through neighborhood ministries, providing prophetic voices and many other rolls that could not possibly be fully listed. Her witness continues as we join new discipleship classes, welcome new visitors, and share with others the faith that many in our church received through Hillie.


Thanks to all who surrounded the family with love and care, and especially to Brad Morrison and the UMW for hosting a beautiful reception in Ellis Hall. We miss you Hillie.

We Love You Malcolm

Dr. Malcolm Cass, organist emeritus of Peoples has temporarily moved down to New York to stay with his son David, daughter-in-law Sue and grandchildren Libby and Annie following Hillie's passing. David has reported that he is settled in well, is enjoying time with the grandchildren and had even had an opportunity to play organ at church. They are continuing to seek appropriate accomodations and care that would allow Malcolm to return home to South Portland. His address is currently: 39 Nittany Way East Nassau, NY 12062-1714 (518) 733-6488 sbrissette@msn.com. David has shared that they are even introducing Malcolm to the computer and email.

Our church sent him off with a service of laying on hands during worship on October 7th along with prayers to return him to us soon.

Live(ly) Auction

Peoples Sponsors Live(ly) Auction
One of the highlights of the Fall program at Peoples United Methodist Church is the annual Auction that was held on Friday, October 26. Those attending and bidding were welcomed to view a wide variety of items that had been gathered by Doreen Gay and a cadre of assistants. Working on the check in and check out table were Sue Angell, Betsy Morrison and Marlene Tordoff. Some of the items were new while others may have been at one time family keepsakes. Other treasures that received live bids included camp rentals, elegant meals, parking privileges at Higgins Beach and many gift certificates. Harold Sutherland, a local professional auctioneer, again volunteered his unique services to the event. Sammy Sidyl and Braden Wellington ably assisted him. The two young men of the church displayed and delivered the "wares" to the audience.
Food was available at the kitchen counter and Alan Gay and Betty Lane both worked in that arena. Nearly 100 people were in attendance and some items received a lot of attention in the bidding. Home made food items like Barbara Kenny’s Buckeyes and Fred Wade’s cheese cakes soared in value as one bid after another made these items in a word: delicacies". Brad Morrison, our chef in residence, offering an elegantly catered meal, as always found his contribution to be among the most desired items at the auction.
Through the generosity of Pastors Jamie and Gwyneth Arrison some lucky folks will be spending a weekend or a week at the Arrison home in Bridgeton near beautiful Moose Pond. I know that the Tordoff family will be looking forward to that opportunity next summer.
Accolades go to Doreen for all of the painstaking work that she puts into this event each year. While the auction may be intended as primarily a moneymaker for the church the event is a great time for all those in attendance as the bidding is certainly entertaining and Harold Sutherland’s means of presentation is often hilarious. It is an event that is fun for the whole family, even if you don’t buy anything and your primary purpose is to see how others act and react. This year’s event brought in at the close of the evening over $3400.
Many other events are held in the life of Peoples. As you see them advertised think about attending or participating. It is always a great feeling when those who expend the effort to plan and carry out such events are supported by other members of our church, the Peoples Church family.

New Roof

Consolidated Home Improvement has been replacing the north side of the sanctuary roof and the siding on the steeple that was damaged in the large spring storm. The majority of the funds for the repairs has come from our insurance coverage with the rest made up from income from our endowments - in part already set aside for the enventual replacement of that roof that will now not be needed for a much longer time. Thanks to the Trustees for coordinating this work.

Oh What A Day!

Oh What A Day!
Shortly after church on Sunday, October 14 several folks embarked on an adventure that was a mystery to all but a few. Dan and Ruth Doughty with the assistance and conniving of Rosemary Herd had set up a mystery ride for the adventurous to follow. Ruth gave us a starting time and in individual cars we set off with directions to follow and questions to answer. The route took us through a part of South Portland into Cape Elizabeth and if we followed the directions in the right way we all ended up at the Pavillion overlooking Casco Bay at the SMCC campus. What a glorious view when we arrived at that location and eventually found everyone else that had started the trip arriving eventually. It was quite a while before Barb and Betty arrived at this beautiful spot. Prizes were given out for the most accurate time and completed answers. I tell you, I still haven’t found the Emerald Way off Mitchell. Everyone who arrived ate their own picnic lunches and then had cupcakes provided by Rosemary. We had a pumpkin hunt that had been preplanned by the Doughtys’ and then families and individuals got the opportunity to decorate or carve the pumpkins. Those who enjoyed the day together included the Doughtys, Rosemary, Chris Ward, Dick, Cheryl, Aaron, Dustin and Kiley Marie Matthews, Sally Seidl and Sam, Sue Angell, Kerry, Nicole and Samantha Foote, Karen, Kelty, Callie and Seamus Jennings, Curtis and Madeline Coughlin, Keith and Becky Snoddy, Gwyneth, Jamie, Faith, Dena and Alex Arrison, Art and Marlene Tordoff, Barbara Nelson, Betty Splettstoesser, and Brad and Becky Morrison.
It was a wonderful day to view the foliage, to carve pumpkins, and to be with other folks; children and adults alike.

E3: Equip! Empower! Evangelize!

Register now for this year’s exciting United Methodist Conference gathering entitled “E3”—Empower! Equip! Evangelize, taking place Nov 1-3! This year’s event is held right here in Portland. Peoples has already paid the $275 for as many people to attend as we want. There's also an exciting concert Friday night - see the pastors to get your ticket now! Don’t miss out. For more information or to register, go to the E3 New England Conference website.

Advantages of Planning Ahead

Advantages to Planning Ahead
A Successful Learning Opportunity for those in attendance
On Sunday, October 14 following the church service the following church folk gathered to hear Gary Melville from the United Methodist Foundation of New England, Jeff Inman from Hobbs Funeral Home and Pastor Jamie present useful information on end of life needs and preparations. Put together by the Discipleship team, this event was designed to assist folks of all ages handle some of the questions that are often most difficult regarding loved ones or ourselves. Understanding our options and why preplanning is a gift to those we leave behind was a portion of what was covered. Additionally Gary and Jeff covered why having the proper legal documents saves time, money, protects assets and helps provide for those we love. Those in attendance also discovered ways to increase our current income and provide meaningful and charitable gifts at the same time. Jeff Inman, one of the funeral directors at Hobbs funeral home gave all in attendance a comforting look at their services and how the Hobbs family are there to assist with the needs that they specialize in. Closing the two and one half-hour program was Pastor Jamie covered the area of funerals that are sacred and why planning services in advance is both a responsibility and ministry to our familes. Kathy Brann, Claralee Street, Sally Seidl, Chris Ward, Jody Fyles, Janice Huelen, Doreen Gay and her mother in law, Earle Harvey and Art and Marlene were in attendance. All seemed to find the information useful. All who attended received follow-up material from the Foundation that also will prove useful.
If you are interested in attending such an event in the future but were unable to attend on this occasion please let the pastors know or Art Tordoff as Chairman of the Discipleship team.