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August 13, 2009
The Lord has been at work through Irving Park UMC this past week
Last Thursday 26 teens and adults arrived from the United Methodist Church in Nevada, Iowa. They found us in 2005 and have returned every two years since then to help us fix up our church so we can grow and prosper. Almost all of the new paint in our church (stairwells, entry ways, fellowship hall, nursery and kitchen) has been applied by people from this church. They even raise their own money to help buy supplies to work with when they are here. You won’t be able to miss the changes at our church and in our community because of their witness. Special thanks to all who came out to be part of this amazing week, who worked side-by-side with these friends from Iowa, who cooked and helped in any way. If you want to hear first-hand what the experience was like, ask our youth, Cole or Ruby Keutzer, Jackie Schulz or Samantha Kuehl who lived and worked with the group the entire week. Thanks to Jo Rodgers who made a financial contribution to help purchase additional supplies needed to finish projects.
Here’s what they accomplished this trip:
Painted the entire ceiling and several pipes of the Fellowship Hall.
Demo and repair of the damaged walls with complete paint job and faucet replacement in the men's bathroom downstairs.
Complete church grounds weeding, mulching and garden work. This included removal of two old bushes (and stumps) that were hiding our cornerstone on the southwest edge of the church. Check it out!
Back fill and grading of the massive hole outside the kitchen window on the north side.
Repair and 2 coats of marine paint to our Keeler St. outside main church sign and railings.
Plaster and repair of the significant wall damage to the new window in our kitchen.
Repair and painting of our back hallway (outside men's bathroom) up to the 1st floor.
Extensive stripping and repair to our first floor exterior and interior (Fellowship Hall) windows. This was huge. We estimate that they cumulatively spent over 100 hours on this project alone.
A full day in our community working at the YMCA on both interior and exterior projects.
Completed a mailing for Reconciling Ministries Network that totaled over 4100 pieces and another 300 packages that went to reconciling congregations around the country.
Delivered, set up and returned a truckload of chairs and tables for Adam and Ashley’s wedding at Garrett.
Helped the pantry with inbound deliveries.
Cleaned and organized the boiler room.
Fixed several broken toilets. Yes, they even had a member of the team who doubled as a plumber, electrician and general “contractor guy.” This saved us a lot of money and major problems!
Led us in song during worship and shared their witness last Sunday and after service to the neighborhood.
Made blankets to be delivered to the homeless.
Promised to return!
If you would like to send a personal message of thanks, please write to their senior youth leader. She will make sure the rest of the group gets it: Maggie Davis
From the Food Pantry board chairman to our church: “We had the Chicago Food Depository here today taking pictures of the Express Stamp program. I just want you to know that they were so impressed with the Pantry environment. Please thank all the workers who have painted and generally made the space so colorful and clean. And the children’s artwork really made such an impact. Really nice to look at and made the basement very welcoming. We passed out 193 numbers today to clients. I believe this is another record. Thanks so much for everything you do on behalf of our clients.” - Kate Roche
Thanks in advance to David Foster who will led us in worship this Sunday. David also leads the Sunday morning bible study at 8:45 a.m.
Pastor Adam Thompson (our student pastor) and Ashley Barlow are officially partners for life! Congratulations.
The analysis has begun. Workers and equipment started showing up around our building on Tuesday of this week. We’ll be sharing reports on findings and plans for repairs that are needed to the structural parts of the building. If you have specific questions, contact a member of our board of trustees. Thanks to those trustees who took time this week to help supervise the work.
On Sunday, August 30, there will be a Blessing of the Backpacks at both worship services. Pastor Cecilia Obret with our Mission Hispana congregation, purchased backpacks last year for the children. This year we will add other children who can’t afford a nice backpack for school. If you are interested in more information about how you can be part of this, contact Pastor Vickie.
The Polish American Camp group will end their summer day school at our church next week. If you haven’t stopped down to the Fellowship Hall lately, you should do so to see the wonderful artwork and projects the children have worked on this summer.
Prayer Network: If you are interested in being part of this group, or would like to have them pray for a special person or cause, contact Tina or Wally Felckowski: bwf79@sbcglobal.net
Coming up ....
Wednesday, August 12, 7 p.m. - Deborah Circle meets at Pastor Vickie’s home.
Tuesday, August 18, 7 p.m. - Finance committee meets in Bacmeister room
Wednesday, August 19, 7 p.m. - Church Council meets in Fellowship Hall
Thursday, August 20, 7 p.m. - Staff Parish relations meets
Thursday, August 27, 7 p.m. - Sprouts teacher meeting
Saturday, Sept. 12, 10 a.m. - Worship Ministry team training
Saturday, Sept. 26, 1 p.m. - Baby shower for Lisa Falconer. Hosted by the United Methodist Women
Saturday, Oct. 10, 2 p.m. - Dog blessing and sidewalk parade to help our veterans
Weekly
Sunday morning bible study, 8:45 – 9:45 a.m. All are welcome. We meet in the third floor chapel, up the stairs inside the Grace Street entrance. We discuss a Psalm and study the book of Matthew. Contact David Foster for more information: david.foster2@att.net.
Spanish Worship Service, Sunday at noon.
Tuesday - An Hour of Prayer with Pastor Vickie
Tuesday’s at noon join Pastor for a time of prayer in the Bacmeister Room. Stay for the entire hour or a portion of the hour. If you’re not in the area, pray from wherever you are at Noon on Tuesdays. For more information, contact Pastor Vickie. Hour of Prayer on Tuesdays, beginning this week. Our time has changed. It’s from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. now.
Small Groups
In addition to our bible study and prayer groups listed under “Weekly” ...
Deborah’s Circle – This is a small group for women who want to do book study and pray together. Call Pastor Vickie for more information.
United Methodist Women – Please contact Joyce Mylander for more information. irvingparkumc@sbcglobal.net
WorkNiters – Join this group of men who do odd jobs around the church and gather for fellowship. Regular meetings are the second Tuesday night monthly, 6 – 9, and the 4th Saturday monthly 12-3 p.m. For more information contact Kent Keutzer, coachK1620@yahoo.com or 773-316-9755.
“Stewards of Creation” - contact Lindsey Elton for more information on this group dedicated to doing what’s right for our planet. lindseyelton@hotmail.com We are a Recycling Church! Please observe all posted signs which explain the “green church” process.
Ministries of the Church - contact Pastor Vickie. hadvl@comcast.net
Prayer Network - To become part of our praying group contact Tina & Wally Felckowski, bwf79@sbcglobal.net
Posted by vickie at August 13, 2009 02:18 PM
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