Newsletter for April 29, 2018

The Bearing Fruit

April 29, 2018

Upcoming Events:

May 16 – Monthly Quilting, 10am

June 1-2 – Iowa MCC Relief Sale, Iowa City

June 9  – Saturday Kitchen, UP Church

June 21-24 – CPMC Annual Meeting, NE

Washington Mennonite

▪ Offering for 4/22/18 - Regular Offering: $3,652.89; Coins for Camp:  $39.00

▪ In the month of April, we are collecting Coins for Camp during worship.

▪ In the month of May, we’ll be Collecting My Coins Count for Mennonite Central Committee during worship.

Iowa MCC Relief Sale

▪ Iowa Mennonite Relief Sale Tractorcade: Meet at Fairvew Church on Friday June 1, 2018 between noon to 1:00pm for check-in. The tractorcade will be leaving for the fairgrounds at 1:30pm SHARP. Suggested donation of $35.00 will be collected at check-in. Registration deadline is May 9 to be guaranteed a t-shirt. Register by May 21 to ensure a parking space at the fairgrounds. You can get a registration form from your MCC Sale church representative.  Please contact LaVern Shetler at 319-530-0032 if you have questions. 

▪ Volunteers are needed to help fill several areas at this year's Iowa Mennonite Relief Sale.  Areas needing volunteers include: parking, Relief Sale Trail Run, Welcome Centers, breakfast servers, Activities Barn and Book Corner. If you are interested in volunteering please visit www.iamcc reliefsale.org/volunteering to sign up or contact the following persons: for parking, the trail run or welcome centers contact Rebecca Beachy Miller 319-631-2461, rabeachy@msn.com. For Breakfast Servers: Janet Geyer 319-321-0995, janetgeyer@gmail.com. For Book Corner: Shirley Yoder 319-331-3931, gsyoder@kctc.net. For Activities Barn: Tanna Boshart 319-936-2844, tannaboshart@gmail.com or Amy Landes 319-383-1890, amylandes16@gmail.com.

▪ A new addition to the 2018 Iowa Mennonite Relief Sale is the Relief Sale Trail Run. Beginning at the Johnson County Fairgrounds and continuing through neighboring Ryerson Woods, a 5K Trail Run will be just the thing to get you ready for the all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast! A 1-mile walk for all ages will also take place at the fairgrounds. The Run/Walk begins at 8am on Saturday, June 2. Cost is $20/person, includes T-shirt. Register for both the run and walk at GetMeRegistered.com, search for "Relief Sale Trail Run". 

Crooked Creek Christian Camp

▪ Crooked Creek Wild will be here earlier than you think....May 5, 2018! Register at your convenience at  www.crookedcreekcamp.org/crooked-creek-wild  Come for a fun and muddy time! 

Iowa Mennonite School

▪ TODAY | The Children’s Drama will be performed in Celebration Hall at IMS at 3:00PM. The Children's Drama is directed by Michael Swartzendruber and will feature fresh tellings of the old stories of Hansel and Gretel, 3 Little Wolves (and the big bad pig) and Mushkil Gusha, students bring to life a few important life lessons. The performance is for all ages. No admission will be charged, donations for the IMS Drama Dept are welcome. 

▪ Academic & Fine Arts Awards Night | The annual event will take place in Celebration Hall on Tuesday May 8 at 7:00PM. Awards will be given to students who have excelled in academics, music, drama and art. It also recognizes students who have been of service to others. The event is hosted by the IMS National Honor Society members. The community is welcome and encouraged to attend this event in support of these students.

▪ Hannah Peters Senior Recital | May 12 at 7:00PM Hannah will be accompanied on stage by other students, faculty and family. Hannah is the daughter of Michael and Robin Peters. There will be a reception following the recital and everyone is welcome to attend.

▪ IMS Graduation Activities | Baccalaureate on Saturday May 26 & Commencement on Sunday May 27 both are in Celebration Hall at 6:00PM.

SundaySucCentral Plains Conference

▪ We give thanks and gratitude for all the prayers and monetary support given to Central Plains Mennonite Conference.  We are coming down to the final days of our fiscal year and still have a hill to climb to end our 8th consecutive year in the Black.  We are hopeful, but need your help.  We need a total of $29,000, by, Monday, April 30^th.  We would be thankful for any size of support and can be sent directly to Central Plains Mennonite Conference, PO BOX 101, Freeman, SD  57029 or visit the website at centralplainsmc.org/donate for more information.  Thank you! – Stewardship Task Group

▪ Central Plains Mennonite Conference Prayer Request:  Pray for the pastors and chaplains of Central Plains and their spouses who are meeting together for a retreat this weekend in Schuyler, Nebraska.

Mennonite Agencies

▪ Celebrate Mother’s Day by supporting mothers around the world through MCC Infant Care Kits! Help mothers, who are displaced by war or disaster, give their infants a good start. The kit contents have changed recently, visit mcc.org/mrc/kits for full kit information and from there click through to our Amazon Wish List for easier shopping and shipping. Just bring or ship kit items to MCC Central States 121 E. 30th St. North Newton, KS 67117. Send love around the world this Mother’s Day! Contact katemast@mcc.org or call 316.283.2720 with questions.

▪ Calling all MCC volunteers!! Please save the date for our Volunteer Appreciation event on Wednesday, June 13 5-7 pm at MCC Central States in North Newton!

▪ Sexualized violence and the church – Mennonite Central Committee is offering a series of free webinars this spring for churches and individuals who want to learn more about how to address sexualized violence within the congregation and how to encourage healthy sexuality and healthy masculinity among members. Each webinar will be led by church leaders and others with expertise in the topics. All three webinars are free and begin at 2 pm and end at 3 pm CST. Please join us on Wednesday, May 9 for Sexualized violence- How should churches respond? Speakers Cyneatha Millsaps and Silvia Rios will lead the discussion about what we mean when we talk about sexualized violence and what we can do when our congregations experience sexualized violence. The final webinar will be on June 13, Healthy masculinity. Learn more and register for the webinars at mcc.org/wwso.  Contact karinkaufmanwall@mcc.org with questions.

Area Events

▪ Frank Yoder will speak at the Spring meeting of the Mennonite Historical Society of Iowa.  The focus of the evening will be, "The End of an Era: Closing One-Room Schools in Johnson and Washington Counties.” This event will be at Kalona Mennonite Church on Monday, April 30, 2018 at 7:00 p.m.  Frank’s presentation is based on research he has been doing for a soon to be published book on rural schools in Johnson and Washington County, Iowa.

▪ You are invited to join a community hymn sing May 6, 3:00 p.m. at Pleasant View Church at Joetown, using The Mennonite Hymnal (red) which will be provided.

▪ West Union MYF invites you to a delicious taco fundraiser meal on Sunday, May 6 at noon. The IMS Touring Choir will be at West Union that morning during the service. Bring your friends and enjoy a time of food and fellowship! Proceeds will go to cover expenses for this summer’s service project and convention expenses next summer.