13 Jan In Nicaragua with the HU Baseball Team
The baseball team in Nicaragua.
Pitching…
…and batting.
The team was able to watch the Colts-Broncos playoff game on Sunday.
12 Jan 12 HU Students in Paris
The HU students in Paris.
HU students with the Eiffel Tower in the background.
A group of 12 Huntington University students are spending January Term in Paris, France. They are staying about a mile from the Charlie Hedbo office, where 12 people were killed on Wednesday, January 7. However, because of a flight delay, they hadn’t yet arrived. They were supposed to land several hours before the Charlie Hedbo attack, but were delayed 24 hours in Indianapolis because of ice; that’s where they learned about the attacks.
Caitlin Trainer, a senior who is on her fourth trip to Paris, is leading the trip. “I for sure went through a period of second guessing our trip once I found out about the shooting, but upon affirmation from our Paris site coordinators that it’s completely safe to travel, I made the decision to stick with the plan,” she said.
Their first full day in Paris came on Friday, the day French police killed three gunmen and freed hostages. That day, they did a prayer walk around Paris, but stayed away from the Kosher store where a hostage situation was in progress. They report that they have never felt unsafe. They’ve been able to go shopping and sightseeing.
“We are totally fine,” said Trainer. “We’re not being affected by the attack whatsoever. Really, the only big thing that we noticed is different is that we just see more armed policemen with guns, which is actually kind of normal for Paris. A lot of times they do walk around fully armed with big guns. This time around there’s just more of them. So you’ll see groups of like 10 instead of just two walking around the city.”
Added freshman Hannah Barrett, “There are a lot of police officers out and about in the city, but it’s really not bad at all. Everyone is still going about their days just like normal. I haven’t been nervous at all. They really have it under control and are making people feel safe.”
For the trip, the students teamed up with an organization called Envision Paris. They are feeding the homeless, doing young adult discipleship, hosting an art exposition, and teaching English. They will return to the US on January 20.
06 Jan Christmas at Our Church: Junction City, Ohio
Joe Leighton (right), senior pastor, Salem Chapel (Junction City, Ohio)
We set a new high total for our church in collecting 321 shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child. For the 14th consecutive year, we sent a team of people to Boone, N.C., to help pack and prepare to ship the collected boxes that will go around the world. Our eight-person team was part of a group that processed over 100,000 boxes over the course of one weekend. Our delegate, Bill Morgan, is a prayer ambassador for Operation Christmas Child, traveling and speaking to churches about this ministry. He has also been to Honduras to help distribute the Christmas boxes.
06 Jan Christmas at Our Church: Monroe, Ind.
Troy Green (right), senior pastor, Monroe UB church (Monroe, Ind.).
This year our music team wanted to help create a special atmosphere of worship throughout the month of December. To do this, they played Christmas music 15-20 minutes prior to the start of the services. Though this meant extra practices by the musicians, many people enjoyed coming a few minutes early to sit and relax and enjoy the sounds of Christmas. With hearts a little bit more settled, the Holy Spirit began ministering to the congregation, and people in a little town called Monroe were blessed.
06 Jan Christmas at Our Church: Holly Hill, Fla.
Pastor Matt McKeown at the December 21 event.
At the ornament/white elephant exchange.
On Sunday, Dec. 21, about 80 people at Daytona UB (Holly Hill, Fla.) participated in an ornament exchange/white elephant event. Everyone had a lot of fun with all the strategizing and such going on.
06 Jan Obit: Rev. Carus Campbell
Rev. Carus Campbell, 91, passed away January 3, 2015, at a medical center in Clarksburg, W. Va. He served in the European theater during World War 2, and went on to become a pastor, serving churches in West Virginia and Pennsylvania.
Visitation: 5-7 pm Tuesday, January 6, 2015
Funeral: 10am Wednesday, January 7, 2015.
Visitation and funeral location: Tomblyn-Whitescarver Funeral Chapel, Buckhannon, WV 26201.
05 Jan Funeral Arrangements for Virginia Kopp
Virginia Kopp, wife of former bishop Clarence A. Kopp, Jr., passed away Friday, January 2, 2015. She is the mother of Dan Kopp, pastor of NorthPointe UB church (Lewis Center, Ohio), and of three other children–Debra, Denise, and Dale. Bishop Kopp passed away in 2007. She has been living in Columbus, Ohio.
Viewing time: 6-8 pm Friday evening, January 9; and 10 am to noon on Saturday, January 10.
Funeral time: 12:00 noon on Saturday, January 10, 2015.
Both the viewing and funeral will be held at:
O.R. Woodyard Funeral Home & Chapel (South Chapel)
1346 South High Street
Columbus, 43207.
A meal will follow at approximately 1:30 at the nearby Living Word United Brethren Church, 145 Obetz Road, Columbus, Ohio. Clarence and Ginny were pastoring this church (then called Redeemer UB) when he was elected bishop in 1981.
Notes can be sent to Rev. Dan Kopp at this address:
Dan Kopp
7509 Storrington Place
Lewis Center, OH 43035
Email: legacydk@yahoo.com
02 Jan Obit: Virginia Kopp
Virginia Kopp, wife of former bishop Clarence A. Kopp, Jr., passed away Friday, January 2, 2015. She is the mother of Dan Kopp, pastor of NorthPointe UB church (Lewis Center, Ohio), and of three other children–Debra, Denise, and Dale. Bishop Kopp passed away in 2007. She has been living in Columbus, Ohio.
Funeral details will be posted when available.
23 Dec Christmas at Our Church: Shippensburg, Pa.
Wayne Watkins, Prince Street UB church (Shippensburg, Pa.)
Christmas time is always a busy time at Prince Street, from decorating the sanctuary to our Christmas Eve services on December 24.
We do Angel Tree Ministry, which helps the children who have parents who are serving prison sentences and cannot be home with their families at Christmas time. It is an excellent opportunity to share the Christmas story with the children and present the children with a gift that is from their parent. It is wonderful to see a child’s face who realizes that their dad or mom remembered them on this special holiday.
This year our mission commission decided to help our local families. We have community meals every month reaching out to people who are lonely and need an encouraging word and support. During Christmas, one of our meals is a Christmas dinner with turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and corn. We also purchased gifts for the children.
Christmas Caroling is always an exciting time. We divide into groups and go caroling to our people who are home-bound or residing in nursing homes.
Our choir presented us with a beautiful musical program on the real meaning of Christmas, and we even had a cookie contest where we had an opportunity to eat and fellowship with one another.
23 Dec Atlantic Avenue UB Collected 130 Shoeboxes
Children from Atlantic Avenue UB with shoeboxes for Samaritan’s Purse.
Loading shoeboxes at Atlantic Avenue.
Atlantic Avenue UB church (Franklin, Pa.) participated in Operation Christmas Child. They collected and sent 130 shoeboxes to Samaritan’s Purse.