Newsletter for May 5, 2019

The Bearing Fruit

May 5, 2019

Upcoming Events:

May 11 – Saturday Kitchen, 11am

May 15 – Monthly Quilting, 10am

Washington Mennonite

▪ Offering for 4/28/19 - Regular offering: $1780; IMS: $244; My Coins Count: $24; New Hymnal Fund: $48

▪ Financial update: Strong giving in March allowed us to pay all our bills with a little left over! We are still behind budgeted donations so your continued generous giving is appreciated. If you have questions, see Mary Lou. Thank you!

▪ Saturday Kitchen will be hosted on Saturday May 11, 2019 by Washington Mennonite Church at the United Presbyterian Church in Washington, IA.  You will find signup sheets for both donated food items and workers on the table in the foyer. Recently the numbers of guests at Saturday Kitchen have been at 100 persons or more.  Please join us by signing up for what you can bring or do as we take our turn at hosting Saturday Kitchen.  We have a good time working together and we are never sure who is having a greater day at Saturday kitchen, the guests or the workers or both.  Don’t miss out on the blessing of serving at Saturday Kitchen.  Join us as we work together.  - Phyllis Litwiller, Gloria Widmer and Sue Widmer.

SundaySucCrooked Creek Christian Camp

▪ Do you have a passion for serving others and take pride in a clean environment? Consider working part-time on our cleaning staff at Crooked Creek. As a part-time housekeeper you would assist the Head Housekeeper with providing clean,

well-kept facilities. Some weekend and evening hours required.   Please contact Heather for more information or to

apply, click the general Crooked Creek Application below.
heather@crookedcreekcamp.org or 319-653-3611

Iowa Mennonite Relief Sale

▪ My Coins Count begins this month! This year's donations go to San Jose Parish Social Center in Montero, Bolivia, who provides programming that empowers Bolivian families to overcome poverty, improve their living conditions, and strengthen their health and psychological-physical development and forms leaders among the children, youth and women for the family and community. Visit the website to learn about the 2019 project and why we do My Coins Count: http://www.iamccreliefsale.org/my-coins-count.html

▪ It's time to register for the Relief Sale 5K Trail Run & 1 Mile Walk! On Saturday, June 1 at 8am, the 5K run begins at the fairgrounds and continues through the woods and hills of neighboring Ryerson's Woods Park. The 1-mile fun and casual walk will take place at the fairgrounds with mostly flat surfaces and suitable for strollers and all ages. After the run, enjoy an all-you-can-eat pancake, sausage, egg and fried mush breakfast. Register for the run or walk at: http://getmeregistered.com/ReliefSaleTrailRun

▪ The Apple Fritter booth is in good shape, thanks to your responses! Sign up online at http://www.iamcc reliefsale.org/volunteering.html to volunteer in another ways at the Iowa Mennonite Relief Sale.

▪ Calling all crafters, artists, carpenters, cooks, business owners and more! The general auction for the Iowa Mennonite Relief Sale needs your help to make this year the best yet! What can you gift or create for the 40th anniversary sale? Donations for the auction can be directed to Marty Roth at 319-430-4025.

SundaySucIowa Mennonite School

▪ Food Drive | The IMS National Honor Society is hosting a food drive to benefit area food pantries. Please bring your non-perishable food items to IMS any time between May 1 and May 10. Thank you for helping your community in this very special way!

▪ Peter Pan & Wendy | TODAY at 3:00 PM in Celebration Hall. Tickets at the door are general admission: $10/adults and $6/students. 

▪ Academic & Fine Arts Awards Night | The annual event will take place in Celebration Hall on Tuesday May 7 at 7:00 PM. The community is welcome and encouraged to attend this event in support of these students.

▪ Caleb Gingerich's Senior Recital | Sunday, May 12 at 3:30 PM in Celebration Hall at IMS. The public is invited to join Caleb for an afternoon of music with refreshments to follow. Caleb is the son of Dwight and Mo Gingerich. 

Central Plains Conference

▪ We would love to see you at Central Plains Annual Meeting, June 20-23, in Kalona, Iowa. Register soon, the rates go up June 1. Find more information at www.central plainsmc.org.

▪ Central Plains Mennonite Conference Prayer Request:   May 5 Pray for Pastor Xeng of St. Paul Hmong Mennonite Church as he is ordained today, and for Donna Stuckey, who is being ordained at Faith Mennonite Church in Minneapolis, MN for chaplaincy work. We ask that God would bless the ministries of Pastor Xeng and Donna Stuckey.

Mennonite Agencies

▪ Everence to hold Medicare workshop in Kalona.  Everence will host its popular workshop, Make Medicare an easy step, on Monday, May 13 at 6:30 p.m. Attendees will learn about the various Medicare plans and what they cover; plans that supplement Medicare; and enrollment details and deadlines. The workshop will be presented by Everence staff and at the Kalona Public Library, Velma Skola Room, 510 C Ave., Kalona. The workshop is free, but space is limited! Reserve your spot by May 9. Contact Joyce Garvin at (877) 656-4242 or joyce.garvin@everence.com.

▪ Save the Date: June 26 for our annual Volunteer Appreciation event at Mennonite Central Committee in North Newton from 5-7. We will celebrate all the work our volunteers do by enjoying an indoor summer picnic together!

▪ Attention all MCC Alumni! Are you interested in connecting with other MCC alumni? Have you wondered about attending an MCC alumni gathering or even hosting one yourself? If so, please contact us at centralstates@mcc.org.

▪ Support MCC via AmazonSmile: This is not a plug to begin or continue to shop at Amazon.com, but if you find yourself making an Amazon purchase, please use the AmazonSmile site. The ordering process is the same, but the difference is that 0.5% of your purchases will be donated to MCC (assuming you will choose MCC U.S. as your charitable organization!) FYI…total donations to MCC from AmazonSmile in 2018 were $2,955; $2,625 in 2017. If you have any questions, please contact maynardknepp@mcc.org or jordanpenner@mcc.org.

▪ Mennonite Mission Network Prayer Request:  South Africa’s presidential election is scheduled to take place on Tuesday. Pray for Dan and Kathryn Smith Derksen of Mennonite Mission Network as they work with Oscar Siwali and Southern African Development and Reconstruction Agency Conflict Transformation to minimize violence and monitor the elections.

▪ MC USA Prayer Request: In preparation for MennoCon19, we continue to invite you to use the Pathways study guide to consider how the commitments to follow Jesus, witness to God’s peace and experience transformation, are at work in your life and community. Find it at Mennonite usa.org/pathways.

Area Announcements

▪ Record sales at Crowded Closet! The first full month of sales (April) at Crowded Closet Thrift Shop's new location was the highest month of retail sales ever recorded in shop history. Thank you to each volunteer who supports Crowded Closet to make increasing giving to Mennonite Central Committee possible. Join the excitement! Volunteers are needed for work nights every Tuesday in May, 4-6:30pm. Contact Christine to join, crowdedcloset.volunteer@gmail.com or 319-337-5924.

▪ Spring is here with summer soon to follow, and it’ll soon be a perfect time to get our residents out for wheelchair rides! They absolutely love the warmth and the chance to interact with volunteers, and we’re asking your consideration in giving some time to make their day. The rides will begin June 5, and we’ll do them each Wednesday morning from 8:30-10:00 as long as the weather is nice. Please contact Renee Hershberger at 656-2421, ext. 155, or ReneeH@pvhome.org to volunteer or with questions. Thank you!