Fun at the Golf Scramble

All are welcome to join in the Peoples Annual Golf Scramble. All skill levels are welcome, as was evidenced by the poor play of Pastor Jamie last year! We have had a great time in past years (even in the rain), and it will be even more fun with better weather this year!

There will be prizes, including longest drive and closest to pin for men and women.

The cost is $33 per player. Please contact Fred Wade or Jamie Arrison with your entry for an individual or a foursome. The fun begins at 8am at the SP municipal course.

The men's breakfast will start early that day with Brad having coffee on as early as 6:30 at the church. Come early for the breakfast and you will still have time to play!

Family-Style Dinner and Creative Worship

The Gathering, a new creative and interactive worship experience, has been an exciting new opportunity for many. The evening begins with a family-style dinner such as pizza or sphagetti. Then folks gather for worship, usually in a large circle to increase the sense of community, but the seating may vary depending on the night's theme. Contemporary style worship is provided through I-Worship videos, and visuals are used to inspire the senses as we worship.


We are working through a sermon series on "Who is Jesus" using the "I am" sayings from the Gospel of John. This past week on October 1, the theme of "Living Water" was enhanced by a baptismal font which was used later for a hand-washing ceremony. As we heard the Scriptures about Jesus providing us with Living Water, we could hear the children playing nearby with a large water toy -- sounds of living water and joyful noises. All are welcome, and bring a friend!

The Contractors are Here!

Ralph Aceto and his crew arrived today, October 5 and will be working on the ceiling in Ellis Hall. Doreen and others have been painting, and the electrical work will begin on Sunday. Thank you to all the Trustees for coordinating this amazing work to improve this space for all of the vital ministry going on in Ellis Hall.

Annual Conference Semi-Annually

Pastors Gwyneth and Jamie attended the second session of Annual Conference last Saturday, September 30. The New England Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church meets every June. However, last year and this year the budget portion of the conference was scheduled to meet in the Fall (with the hopes this is the last year necessary to do this).

Bishop Weaver shared that the conference is 4% ahead in mission shares (the local church tithe to the conference) than last year this time. Although we are just one church, some of this 4% is Peoples Church because of the Finance Committee's decision to step out in faith and send out our mission shares each month rather than waiting until the end of the year to see what's left. Thank you for your faithfulness in giving that has made this possible!

In addition, Bishop Weaver shared that the conference has now pledged $15 million toward the conference capital campaign Together For Tomorrow, when the goal was only $10 million! Thank you to all of you who have also pledged toward this capital campaign in addition to your stewardship at Peoples. If you have any questions about any of these financial details, please feel free to contact the pastors, Fred Wade as Finance Chair, or any member of the Finance Committee.

We also saw many friends at Annual Conference, some of whom you may know too -- Rev Bill Beddie, Pastor Mike Gray, Rev. Meg Queior and others. Then after conference, we attended a "young clergy" party (there was a miracle - that we are still considered young!) and met several other clergy couples and clergy with young children.

Mission Trip Opportunity

Volunteers are invited on a United Methodist mission trip to Suna, Megori, Kenya. The mission team leader is, Gael Orr, UMVIM Coordinator for WNY Conference. The trip cost is $2,500 (price includes: food, lodging, flights, insurance). The team is going for approximately 2 weeks over winter break returning on January 14th. The team will be working with Aids Orphans, widows, and a school building project. The team will have the option to teach HIV/AIDS education in the schools, work doing construction or counsel with the women in the community. The team is going to take a side cultural trek to Masai Mara Game Reserve for safari.

If you would like to find out more about attending, please contact, Gael Orr at: 585-612-6633 or by email.

Peoples Bell Tower

By Chuck Kamilewicz

How many have seen the bell at Peoples United Methodist Church? Not many, up to this point. Now you can say that you have seen it. During the painting of the bell tower by contractors, they were kind enough to let me borrow fall protection and open the bell tower to view and take pictures of the bell.

The reason for the viewing was two-fold. One was to check the condition of the bell and its components and the other was to gather historical information about the bell. Overall, the bell is in good condition and some startling information was gained about the bell.

On September 11, 2006, I was hoisted up in a mobile vertical lift to the bell tower. I removed a section of louvers on the rear side and entered. A former Trustee member, Randy Pike, had been in the bell tower about 15 years ago and did a wonderful maintenance job on it. He carried out many pails of bird droppings, repacked the bushings with 50 year packing and added hardware clothe to the inside of the louvers to prevent the birds from entering. The fruits of his labor continue to serve us even today.

I took a number of photos of the bell and its components, as well as the tower. Information gathered from the bell will be passed on to Church Historian Art Tordoff and Kevin Malcom. Maybe you can read the raised information on the bell from the pictures. If you can, you will see that it was cast in 1884, much later than originally thought. It was also made by the Blake Company, formally the Hooper Bell Company.

Thanks to God and All!

From Chuck Kamilewicz

I felt I must give the glory to God for the help in Ellis Hall. First the partitions with 20 people working 5 hours. Some working an hour some working five on a hot day. Then the upright support removal and then the cleaning of the space over the Ellis Hall rooms and pink insulation installation. Yesterday and today the walls were all washed and spackled in preparation for painting. Then after it is painted, the electrical work and ceiling installation will transform the look of Ellis Hall to a bright welcoming space.

Nobody could have accomplished by themselves, nor all of us without God's help and strength. But a few stand out that need recognition. Doreen Gay who is guiding this project, is tenacious, and never stops. Walter Greer who gives of his strength, big truck and trailer. Kathy Brann who quietly shows up as time permits, digs in and continues to work. Sue Angel finished washing the walls by herself today. Dan Doughty and Hank Dunn for their expertise and wisdom. Countless others who had showed up and pitched in. I do remember each of you and what you have done in the name of the Lord.

Thank you All. Each of you really made a difference in this project.

We Have Begun To Gather

The Gathering, our new Sunday night contemporary service, has begun. About twenty people participated in the first service and we expect it to grow from there. The service includes upbeat music led by a projected video, participatory sermons and various means of response such as small group prayer, personal art projects or discussion.

By meeting in Ellis Hall, we have space to offer a variety of children's activities that coordinate with the service. We want to make this a family friendly service, so we will consider the children part of our joyful noise to the Lord.

Please join us for dinner at 5:30 and be ready to worship at 6pm! And bring a friend or two!

We will be focusing on "Who is Jesus" in the Gospel of John:

Sep 24: The Word
Oct 1: Living Water
Oct 8: Light of the World
Oct 15: Bread of Life
Oct 22: Eternally Existant I AM
Oct 29: Great Shepherd and the Gate
Nov 5: The Resurrection and the Life
Nov 12: The Way, the Truth and the Life
Nov 19: The Vine
Nov 26: The Holy

Youth Group Underway!

The Peoples middle and high school youth group started up on Sunday, September 24, led by the pastors. The group began by attempting to instruct Pastor Gwyneth in making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich...not a pretty site! We then talked about the youth group curriculum we will be using, Combos for Youth Groups. There will be specific focus themes for four-week segments, which include games, faith and life discussion, and time to share and connect with other youth. The youth also enjoyed finishing the evening playing Sardines! The youth are encouraged to stay for pizza, etc., followed by our new contemporary service, The Gathering.

We are also planning a number of special events for the youth group. The first of these is the Youth Super Bowl (see separate article) on October 20. Some additional ideas are a "lock-in" where the youth stay in the church building for a night, fasting and raising donations for world hunger, Christmas caroling, ski/sledding trip at Shawnee, and the August 2007 Soul Fest.

If you know of youth who want to connect with others their age, have a safe place to ask tough questions about faith and life issues, and do lots of fun and meaningful activities ... why not bring them over?

Sundays 4:30-5:30pm (followed by pizza, etc.)
The Gathering @ 6:00pm

Super Bowl - Not What You Think!

We are planning on bringing the middle and high school youth to the Super Bowl this year on October 20. It will involve staying up ALL NIGHT, but it won't involve football. This is a Christian event sponsored by Word of Life.

The event actually begins with a Portland Pirates hockey game starting at 6:30pm, followed by a Christian speaker. Then the games begin; youth are invited down on the ice to play games and win prizes until about midnight. After this, youth groups travel to various fun events around town such as bowling, skating and open gym until about 6am!

All middle and high school youth are invited to attend, even if they have not yet attended the youth group meetings. So spread the Word of Life!

Sunday School - What's Next?

The pastors' six week studies are more than half way completed: Introduction to the Bible, and Survey of the Gospel of Mark, but you are still welcome to join. The pastors will be leading two more classes beginning October 26th.

Pastor Gwyneth will be leading a six-week class called SHAPE, which stands for Spiritual Gifts, Heart for ministry, Abilities, Personality and Experience. A pilot study was completed this summer with rave reviews.

Pastor Jamie's class will look at the problem of evil - why bad things happen by studying various sections of the Bible. This six week class will focus on the scriptural observations of the participants.

Art Tordoff's class on "Parables from the Backside" by Asbury professor Ellsworth Kalas will be continuing. The book is excellent and organized to make it easy to join in on any chapter.

If you have not yet, please consider joining one of these classes.

Monthly Mission Focus October

UNICEF is October's mission focus, and you might have already seen the communication board in Ellis Hall. UNICEF is a world-wide organization working to help children. "Every year 10 million children die totally preventable deaths. Six million of these lives could be saved by basic, cost-effective measures," according to their website www.unicef.org. In addition to nutritian and helping to provide basic needs for children throughout the world, UNICEF also works in areas of education and gender equality, advocacy, children with HIV/AIDS, protection from exploitation and assisting children in times of natural disaster. One of the youth will be presenting more on UNICEF on the 4th Sunday in October so come on out and show your support. If you have questions or would like to volunteer, please contact Earle Harvey for more information.

Bean Supper and a Movie

The first bean supper of the season included a free showing of the movie, Eight Below, with about 15 people attending. This was a great time, and hope even more will stay for the next post-supper movie.

The supper is scheduled for October 21, and we will be showing the Disney/ Pixar film The Incredibles. This fun and thoughtful movie challenges folks of all ages with the question, "How do you use your special gifts?"

Maternity/Paternity Leave

As you know, the pastors are expecting their third child in January! (Yes, it's a boy!). The pastors have been working with the Staff-Parish Relations Committee, District Superintendent, Board of Ordained Ministry and Church Council to facilitate their leave time. The UMC denomination provides 8 weeks of paid leave time and an additional 4 weeks of unpaid leave. However, the pastors who serve together as one full time charge, have requested less than this maximum. Their request has been approved for the following plan: Pastor Gwyneth will take 6 weeks of maternity leave. Pastor Jamie will take 4 weeks of paternity leave at the same time but return to work two weeks sooner. We will also be taking one of our vacation weeks during Faith's school vacation, so this may make the leave seem longer.

We are applying for funds to get an appointed interim pastor to serve part time for the four weeks both of us will be off. We will also be working to form ministry teams to handle minor visitation issues. If there are major emergencies at the church, we will be available through our voice mail. We are excited to have the increase in our own family as well as in the Peoples family!

October Birthdays and Anniversaires

Birthdays

2 Matthew Seidl
3 Rebecca Snoddy
4 Betty Lane
Christopher Seidl
6 Courtney Skidmore
10 Maryjean Raymond
12 Aaron Thomas Matthews
13 Ellen Dunn
14 Ryan Gay
17 Carol Campbell
Parker Wells
18 Ellie Wells
20 Faith Arrison
21 Sally Smith
22 Kayla Huelin
26 Gwendolyn C. Shaw
29 Sally Seidl
30 Bruce Wellington
31 Earle (Lew) Louis Harvey, Jr.

Anniversaries

6 Richard & Cheryl Matthews
9 Michael & Barbara Kenney
21 Hank & Ellen Dunn
23 Christopher & Sarah Brann
30 Brad & Betsy Morrison

October Schedule: Ushers, Greeters, etc.

Ushers, greeters, coffee fellowship workers, nursery workers ... These ministries are vital not only to our current worship experience but also for the future of Peoples Church. If any of these ministries should cease to exist due to lack of workers, it could greatly jeopardize the mission of our church. So a BIG thankyou to all who currently serve in these areas!

Statistics say that visitors and newcomers do not primarily judge a church by the sermon. Perceptions begin the moment they step out of their car or enter our door. Are they greeted warmly so they feel welcomed but not overwhelmed? Do they receive instructions about the facilities? Do they receive a bulletin so they can follow along in the worship without confusion? Is there quality nursery care so that they can leave young children in our care and feel safe doing so?

Every current active attendee at Peoples needs to seriously and prayerfully consider taking on at least one of these responsibiltities. Not necessarily because we feel particularly gifted in these areas, but because we are members of a family that we want to flourish and grow. These ministries are primarily aimed at newcomers: future family members! It may even become difficult for the pastor who is not leading the service to come worship with our children if the nursury is insufficiently staffed. With a full schedule of nursury help, we may be able to lead worship together more often.

In our church family, we want folks to be serving primarily in an area that they feel called, gifted, and passioned to serve. For example, if someone has a heart and gifts for teaching, they can find any number of ways to serve in our discipleship ministries. And the body works best when each person takes on one major ministry (rather than 10!).

However, serving as an usher or nursery worker once every three months is not what is meant by "major ministry." These are more likened to weekly "household responsibilites" (like vacuuming and dusting, cleaning dishes, food shopping, preparing meals, etc.) - everyone needs to take part for a house to run efficiently and be prepared for guests who might unexpectedly drop in! It is easy for all of these tasks to fall to an increasingly small group that can then get worn out trying to keep up.

Perhaps you do not agree with this assessment of "family responsibilities." What are your opinions? We'd love to have a "family talk" -- just click on the comment button at the end of the article.

And please contact the area coordinator where you can serve!

Coffee Fellowship Coordinator: Brad and Betsy Morrison
October Fellowship Team: Brad and Betsy Morrison

Ushers Usher Coordinator: Charlie Lyons
October Usher Team: __________

Ushers Greeter Coordinator: Barbara Nelson
October Greeters:
Oct 1 Paul & Sharon Obie
Oct 8 Rosemary Herd
Oct 15 Sue Angell
Oct 22 Art & Marlene Tordoff
Oct 29 __________

Worship Leader Coordinator: Chris Ward
October Worship Leader: Dan Doughty

Nursery Coordinator: Barbara Nelson
October Nursery Workers:

Oct 1 Barbara Nelson & Betty Splettstoesser
Oct 8 Betty Splettstoesser & Ellen Dunn
Oct 15 Andy Folley & Ken West
Oct 22 Linda Greer & Leah Greer
Oct 29 ______________ & Pastor Jamie

Church/Charge Conference Nov 12

The Peoples Church annual church / charge conference is scheduled for Sunday, November 12. The timeslot immediately after morning worship was not available so we will be meeting at 3:30pm, with Staff-Parish Relations Committee meeting during the hour before. The district superintendent, Rev. Mike Davis, will be leading us in this special time of Christian conferencing together.

Committee chairs and ministry leaders, please begin submitting reports to the church secretary either in writing or by email (info@peoplesumc.com). Reports are due no later than Friday, October 27. Pastor Jamie will be coordinating this effort so you may forward any questions to pastorjamie@peoplesumc.com

Upcoming Wedding at Peoples

Pastor Gwyneth has been providing pre-marital counseling with a young couple from Portland, Nathan Sirois and Rebecca Pilling. They will be married at Peoples on November 4th. The pastors require six 2-hour sessions of counseling, which is a wonderful opportunity for couples to gain the tools necessary for a healthy and lasting marriage. To facilitate this counseling, the couple takes a relationship inventory called Prepare-Enrich, which helps to guide the conversation around the couple's growing edges as well as strengths to see them through the years ahead. The pastors hope that Peoples will consider embracing a marriage policy as a church body to encourage healthy marriages in our community. A draft policy has been reviewed by Church Council.

Peoples Hosts Tri-State District Event

On Sunday, September 17 , Peoples hosted over 100 clergy and lay people for a seminar on creating healthy boundaries in our churches and preventing sexual misconduct. The seminar is required for all clergy, but about half of the attendees were lay people. Brad Morrison coordinated snacks and dinner for the event, which was held between 2-8:30pm, assisted by Art Tordoff. Betty "Splettstoesser and Betty Lane also assisted with childcare, and a few others came in to assist in the kitchen as well. We received many gracious comments about the facility and dinner, and so we pass this along to you! Thank you to all who made this event possible.

Increasing Our Inheritance

Our stewardship campaign this year builds on our study of tithing last year. Last year we found that the tithe was not a tax or a donation, but God's provision for us to have enough to bring together for a big party. This year, we begin by recognizing that the family we inherit from God is our church family.

The Old Testament Law provided for a community that guaranteed everyone a home, a family and a community of support. The failure of their system of support came not as a punishment for sin, but simply by failing to live up to the standard set by the law. Likewise, God has provided us with a community and we have pledged to support it in our membership vows with our prayers, our presence, our gifts and our service. If we do not bring the full portion God calls us to in all of these areas, we are robbing ourselves of the inheritance God intends to provide us with.

Let us take our call seriously by recommitting to these principals. First, we must pray for our church community. Secondly, we must serve in the manner God calls us. Third, we should increase the portion we bring together. We are increasing our pledge this year even though we are beyond the tithe. For those who have not yet tried tithing, please consider bringing a full 10% of a week's earnings on October 15th our Fall Tithing Sunday. Pray for God to provide all you need and remain aware of how God may be working through you for this opportunity. We will have our commitment Sunday to receive pledges on October 29th. Please prayerfully consider increasing your pledge.

Finally, let us consider increasing our presence. If you already attend regularly, how would you do this? Make a pledge to bring someone else to church. Beyond simply inviting someone, bring them under your wing and disciple them in the faith. Make a goal of having one serious disciple every ten years. This modest goal will more than double the size of our church in that time.

By being faithful in our prayers, our presence, our gifts and our service, we will bring the increase in our family and inheritance that God promises us in this age and by faith in the age to come, eternal life.