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30 Jun

June 30, 2008 |

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A few days ago, Jeff Bleijerveld talked about “crossroad cities,” a concept that fascinates me. He says he’s got a lot more to unpack on that subject.

Fort Wayne, like so many American cities, has some crossroads qualities. We’ve got the largest population of Burmese outside of Myanmar, plus a lot of immigrants from Bosnia and Darfur. And yet, they remain somewhat invisible to me. I don’t know where to find them.

Last Saturday, I attended the dedication of a Habitat for Humanity home that my church, Anchor, along with three local Presbyterian churches, funded and built. The keys were handed over to a Muslim family (seven kids!) from Somalia. That’s them in the photo, along with some other folks from Somalia. This family spent 13 years in refugee camps before making it to the States four years ago. The husband and wife, and I assume the kids as well, now speak English very well.

During the ceremony, two young men, immigrants from Ethiopia, expressed their appreciation to us for helping their “brothers and sisters” from Africa. Very cool.

So we got a touch of the crossroads thing. In building this home, they saw the best of Christianity, and maybe some seeds were planted.

22 Jun

June 22, 2008 |

In case you’re wondering:

  • UB.org is the official, flagship website of the US National Conference. Anything you want to know about the UB church you can probably find there. Use the search box on the homepage.
  • UBMissions.com is the official website for Global Ministries.
  • HealthyMinistryResources.com is the website for the national office only.

20 Jun

June 20, 2008 |

An email was sent out yesterday afternoon to the UB constituent list, which consists of 1070 addresses. It gives information about current work trips, our newest missionary, and other things.

How about forwarding it to your church’s email list, with a note inviting parishioners to subscribe on their own? The email includes a link they can use to subscribe. There might be other people in your church interested in receiving these emails.

15 Jun

June 15, 2008 |

Scioto Youth camp kicks off today with senior high camp. The camp, located near Junction City, Ohio, is a free summer camp for children of all ages. It is operated and maintained primarily by dedicated volunteers from UB churches in southern Ohio.

There are four weeks of summer camp this year, ending with Primary Camp July 13-19. Finances are tighter, now that they no longer receive $10,000 a year from the conference.

The land was donated by Rev. and Mrs. Herbert Householder, with the intention that it always be free for any kid wanting to attend. That vision remains alive. Many kids over the years have found Christ at Scioto.

14 Jun

June 14, 2008 |

Huntington University’s summer “Godspell” troupe kicked off their summer tour with a performance in Huntington on June 8. People around the Healthy Ministry Office gave it rave reviews, noting especially the strength of the vocals. The group is headed east this weekend, with a performance tonight at Atlantic Avenue UB church in Franklin, Pa., and then at Salem UB in Chambersburg, Pa., on Sunday (both at 7 p.m.). Check the schedule for a performance near you.

13 Jun

June 13, 2008 |

This is the last Friday, for a while, that the Healthy Ministry Resources office will be open. For the rest of the summer, we’re going to a four-day schedule, with ten-hour days. 

Hours: 7 a.m. — 5:30 p.m., Monday – Thursday
Dates: June 16 — August 29

We traditionally leave at 1 p.m. on Fridays during the summer, tacking an extra half-hour onto each other day. But with gas prices so high, it didn’t make sense asking half of our workers, who drive 20-40 miles one-way, to come to the office for a half-day of work. So we’ll see if we can put up with each other for ten hours at a shot. 

12 Jun

June 12, 2008 |

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The planning committee (l-r): Nate Perry, Steve Dennie, Josh Greenfield, Heather Umbaugh, Chris Kuntz, Amy Pennington, Ron Ramsey, E. J. Ramsey, Donna Hollopeter, Opal Sherman, Marci Hammel, Cathy Reich.

The 2009 National Conference will return to Saw Mill Creek Resort (Huron, Ohio), scene of the 2007 US National Conference. Last weekend, an extended version of the planning team (above) met at Saw Mill Creek to continue the planning they’ve been doing for the past nine months.

The date: June 4-7, 2009. That’s Thursday through Sunday morning. We’ll follow pretty much the same schedule we did in 2007.

The location: People liked the general location, northern Ohio, according to the evaluations. It made a good mid-point for the bulk of our people (Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, the Virginias). We looked at various venues large enough to accommodate 900-plus people, and Saw Mill Creek floated to the top of the list.

Two things to know:

  • Saturday will feature a “missionary homecoming.” Many currently-serving UB missionaries will be brought back for what promises to be an amazing day.
  • We intentionally minimized conference business in 2007. But next year, we’ll need to spend more time in this way, and will devote all of Friday to conference business. It will include election of a new bishop.

We’ll get you more information as plans come together. But for now, get June 4-7 on your calendar and begin talking to people in your church about attending. By year’s end, you’ll need to identify persons to represent your church as lay delegate(s).

12 Jun

June 12, 2008 |

The Healthy Ministry Resources office will be closed on Fridays for the rest of the summer.

New hours: 7 a.m. — 5:30 p.m.
Dates: June 16 — August 29.

For many years during the summer, everyone worked an extra half hour Monday-Thursday and then left at 1 p.m. on Friday. But with the high cost of gas, and some of the staffers driving 20-40 miles to reach the office, it didn’t make sense to have people come for a half-day.

So Bishop Ramsey approved trying something different: a four-day work week, with ten-hour days. If you need anything from Healthy Ministry Resources, be sure to call between Monday and Thursday.

12 Jun

June 12, 2008 |

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L-r: Nate Perry, Steve Dennie, Josh Greenfield, Heather Umbaugh, Chris Kuntz, Amy Pennington, Ron Ramsey, E. J. Ramsey, Donna Hollopeter, Opal Sherman, Marci Hammel, and Cathy Reich.

The 2009 National Conference will return to Saw Mill Creek Resort, scene of the 2007 US National Conference. The planning committee has met several times during the last nine months. Last weekend, the planning team, plus several other persons who are playing an important role in making it happen, met at Saw Mill Creek to continue planning.

Date: June 4-7, 2009
Location: Huron, Ohio

We’ll follow the same basic schedule as in 2007:

  • Start Thursday night, end Sunday morning.
  • Registration starting at noon on Thursday.
  • Opening service at 7 p.m. on Thursday.
  • Business session all day Friday (last year, it was only Friday morning). This will include election of a new bishop.
  • Workshops on Saturday morning.
  • An exciting missions emphasis on Saturday night (more later).

11 Jun

June 11, 2008 |

A call came today regarding non-profit licensing of Microsoft products. The Healthy Ministry Resources office took advantage of this several years ago, buying multiple copies of Microsoft Office for the Mac for about $30 apiece (a huge, huge savings). Learned about it through Chris Moore at Emmanuel Community Church.

But in checking for the Office 2008 version, I learned that Microsoft changed the requirements to, basically, eliminate churches. Their new policy reads:

Religious organizations with a secular community designation may participate in the Microsoft and I CAN software donation programs. A secular designation is defined as an organization separate from the church or religious organization that provides services to people regardless of their religious beliefs and does not propagate a belief in a specific faith. Example: A food bank with nonprofit or charity status that is run by a church, but is a separate and unique organization that provides food and meals to anyone who qualifies for services, regardless of religious beliefs.

The pastor who called today had been told, through CDW, that they do qualify, and he should submit an application (which, ultimately, would need to be approved by Microsoft). I’m skeptical he’ll get approved, but told him to go for it and keep me informed. (I also read on a discussion board somewhere about a church that got non-profit Microsoft licensing through Dell. Whether or not they represented themselves truthfully….)

What’s been your experience? Can you clarify anything here?