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The Pastoral Ministry Leadership Team is meeting October 4-5 (Monday and Tuesday) in Huntington, Ind. The PMLT is responsible for issues related to pastoral education, licensing, and ordination. Lee Rhodes, pastor of Countryside UB (Breckenridge, Mich.), is the chairman.
The Convoy UB church (Convoy, Ohio) voted to close during a local conference meeting on Sunday, September 26. Bishop Phil Whipple spoke during the morning service, and then led the local conference meeting.
The congregation attending Family Day at Faith UB
Deon McLennon
On September 26, Faith United Brethren Church climaxed its month-long family celebration with the all day ”Family day” program. The first Sunday in September focused on the role of the mother, the second Sunday on the role of the father, the third Sunday on the role of youth, and the fourth Sunday–Family Day–on the role of the family.
Family Day began with a special 9 a.m. service where Pat Eves-McKenzie delivered an inspirational sermon on the role of the family. After the service, all participants attended a special Sunday school which looked on issues relating to married couples and single people.
The 203 strong attendance then congregated outside to take the group picture for the 60th anniversary magazine. We then enjoyed a wonderful dinner together after which all enjoyed a spirit-filled concert which displayed the variety of artistic gifts God has blessed us with.
The Institute for TESOL Studies at Huntington University has signed a five-year agreement to continue training English teachers in Doumen, a city in China’s Guangdong Province.
Since 2007, Huntington University has provided a three-week training camp to English teachers currently in the country to help them better teach the language. The camp trains approximately 80 teachers each summer and also offers a two-week English camp for children. The children’s camp provides valuable practice time for the teachers.
“We’ve trained over 500 teachers who are now beginning to offer training in their own schools,” said Dr. Luke Fetters (right), director of the Institute for TESOL Studies (ITS). TESOL is the acronym for “Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages.”
The five-year contract, which begins in 2011, allows ITS to consistently work with the Doumen School District in the southern Guangdong Province of China. The relationship will hopefully open doors for an educational exchange between the schools in China and the Huntington County school system, as well as opportunities for Chinese teachers and students to study at Huntington University.
“It gives us the opportunity to plan for the future in ways that are strategic for the training that we deliver and the cultural exchange that we hope to foster,” Fetters said.
Even though Huntington University’s relationship with the Chinese schools began in the early 1990s, the teacher training camp was not officially offered until 2007. 
Valerie Geer (right), associate director of ITS, has been involved each year in the teacher training camps in China.
Through ITS, a group of Huntington University and community educators, along with HU students and other volunteers, travel to China each summer to provide professional development to Chinese teachers who teach English in those schools. The students and other volunteers then help operate the children’s camp which teaches the children English through lessons and other fun activities.
ITS was established by Huntington University in 2009. The program offers certification to students as well as local teachers.
On August 15, after the morning service, the congregation of Liberty UB (Stockport, Ohio) adjourned to Wolf Creek. There, 14 persons were baptized. All 14 are pictured above, along with Pastor Charlie Simmons (in the middle in the back, wearing the white shirt).
Huntington University will celebrate its homecoming weekend October 1-2. This year’s theme, “Celebrating the Arts — HU style,” is in honor of the 20th anniversary of the Merillat Centre for the Arts.
These alumni awards will be presented on Saturday at 12:30 in the lower level of the Habecker Dining Commons:
Also included in the weekend’s itinerary will be several events for people of all ages, including athletic events, theater performances and a parade. Then wrapping up the weekend’s schedule will be Davis Hall Follies, to take place in Zurcher Auditorium.
Saturday’s schedule includes:
Elva L. Whybark Armitage, 92, passed away Sunday, September 19, 2010, in Lewiston, Idaho, from complications related to cancer surgery. For 56 years, she was married to Arly Whybark, and for 37 of those years, they pastored United Brethren churches in northern Idaho, Washington, and Oregon. Elva was active in the various Women’s Missionary Societies, often serving as president.
Arly passed away in 1989. In 1990, she married Rollin Armitage; he passed away in 2002. She was most recently a member of the Lewiston First Church of the Nazarene.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, September 23, at Malcom’s Brower-Wann Funeral Home of Lewiston, Idaho.
On Saturday, September, 18 Morocco UB church (Temperance, Mich.) held a Family Fun Fest, for which they invited church families and the community to a outdoor festival setting. A worship team from Abundant Life in Temperance performed.
The event included a lot to eat–cotton candy, snow cones, popcorn, funnel cakes, hot dogs, brats chips, and beverages. There were games for the kids.
Mark Smith of Morocco writes, “We saw many new and old faces. We praise God for the chance to offer this for free and share his love with others! Pastor Todd Greenman is the new pastor at Morocco. The Bedford press did a feature story on Morocco Church and his coming as the new pastor.”
Eden UB church of Reedsville, Ohio, is serving as a command center emergency services in the aftermath of the tornadoes which swept through the area last Wednesday, Sept. 16. Three F3 tornadoes touched down, one of them within a mile of the church.
Eden UB is located in hill country, which supposedly doesn’t attract tornadoes. Pastor Adam Will says they have floods and ice storms, but never tornadoes. This is considered the country’s worst disaster ever.
Fortunately, nobody in Ohio was killed, though some were injured, including one lady from the church who couldn’t get out of her home when the tornado sucked the doors shut.
Most people in this economically depressed area, says Pastor Will, have no insurance. Many lost everything they own.
From the church, they are feeding about 350 volunteers and families three meals a day. Many volunteers attended Eden Church on Sunday, after which they immediately began feeding people. Some are fed at the church, others receive food delivered by truck and ATV.
Much clothing has also been collected at the church–more, says Pastor Will, then they’ll ever be able to use.
Scott Hergert, senior pastor of Lansing UB church (Lansing, Mich.), sends the following:
“At our Local Conference Meeting, we voted to stop services at First UB church of Lansing on October 24. It was also decided to donate all of our resources to the denomination for the purpose of restarting this church or beginning a new church in the Lansing area.
“I would like the month of October to be a celebration of our heritage. I would like to hear stories of how this church has impacted the lives of people, and the churches around Michigan. I would welcome guests to come and share in any of those services.”
