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Coming Soon:  September 2008 Issue of UMW Update
May 2008 Issue of UMW Update [PDF]
Our Monthly Newsletter for West Market Street United Methodist Women

• About West Market Street United Methodist Women

• Circle Meetings

• Prayer Shawl Ministry Grows

• Check Out our New Reading Program Books!

• From the President

• Visit the website for Western North Carolina Conference United Methodist Women

Circle Meetings this month:

Watch MarketPlace for more September 2008 Circle meeting times.

• Tuesday, September 2 - Circle #4, 7:30 p.m., 1625 Milan Road, Mary Belle Gilbert and Lynne Gilbert, hosts

• Wednesday, September 3 - Circle #7, 12:00 noon, Gathering Space

Are you interested in joining a circle?  Wonderful!  Just contact Lynne Gilbert or Sybil Watts...we will be glad to help you!

Western North Carolina Leads the Nation!

Did you know…that YOU are part of the Greensboro District, which is part of the Western North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church?  Did you know…that YOU and other United Methodist Women across our conference led the nation in giving last year for the 7^th consecutive year?

Here is news from our conference…

The United Methodist women of the Western North Carolina Conference continue to be NUMBER ONE...for the 7th consecutive year!  We have received confirmation from Women's Division that the Western North Carolina Conference was FIRST IN THE NATION for 2007 in the following channels of giving through United Methodist Women:

Special Mission Recognition, Gift to Mission, Gift in Memory, World Thank Offering, Total Undesignated Mission Giving, and TOTAL GIVING!!

We led the nation in giving again in 2007, and as a conference, we met our $810,000 Pledge to Mission.  Our total Mission Giving was up...an increase of $43,094 over 2006.  

The real cause for celebration is the mission made possible by your giving.  Here are just a few of the ways that YOU are making mission possible...many times in places where these things would not otherwise be available:

• By providing medical care, including joining the fight against the scourge of HIV/AIDS in Africa, and caring for HIV/AIDS orphans
• By providing scholarships, and education & enrichment opportunities for children and youth
• By supporting the Bible Women program...which provides training in basic healthcare and Bible study for women from rural communities in some of the poorest countries in the world.  These women return home to share their faith and their knowledge with other women in their communities.
• By providing opportunities for at-risk youth to stay off of the streets, and away from drugs & violence
• By helping to meet basic needs, like clean water, food, and housing
• By working against injustice
• And, more....these are just a few...YOU are in mission around the world!

If you want to know more about where your money goes, check out the pages of each issue of Response Magazine!

Through your giving...YOU make mission possible, and YOU make a difference, every day, in the lives of women, children and youth around the world.  THANK YOU!!
 

Check Out Our New Books!

Our unit recently purchased 19 new books for the Reading Program Collection, located in the UMW section of our Church Library.  Following is a list of the 9 new books from the 2008 Reading Program list, with category in parentheses:

End of the Spear:  A True Story (Education for Mission); Who’s Raising Your Child:  Battling the Marketers for Your Child’s Heart and Soul (Nurturing for Community); Enrique’s Journey (Social Action); And We are Changed:  Encounters with a Transforming God (Spiritual Growth); Living Bountifully!:  The Blessing of Responsible Stewardship (Spiritual Growth); Walk in a Relaxed Manner:  Life Lessons from the Camino (Spiritual Growth); Brothers in Hope:  The Store of the Lost Boys of Sudan (Education for Mission), a children’s book; Does God Hear My Prayer? (Spiritual Growth), a children’s book; and Heck Superhero (Social Action), a youth book.  Stop by the church library and “check out” our new arrivals!

Inquiring Minds Want to Know: Some Questions & Answers about the Reading Program

Q. Where would I get a Reading Program book?
A. Our unit purchases a number of new books every year. They are housed in the Church Library on the 2nd floor, just off the Gathering Space.
Q. Can I check out Reading Program books during the week? I’m really busy on Sunday morning.
A. Certainly! Books may be checked out anytime the library is open. The library is open during the week during church office hours (8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.) and Sunday mornings.
Q. How long can I keep a book? I’m not a fast reader.
A. Books may be checked out for three weeks.
Q. Do I have to purchase a book to be a UMW Reader?
A. No, one does not have to purchase a book to participate in the Reading Program. Basic participation in the Reading Program consists of reading four (4) books, one in each mission category, and reading Response magazine monthly. However, donations of books on the Reading Program list are always welcome.
Q. I’d like to participate in the Reading Program but I’m concerned that all the books will be long and hard to read. Is that true?
A. Not at all! Many of our books are moderate in length. Also, we have a number of children’s and youth books that may be read for credit. Very few of our books could be classified as difficult reading.
 

Gift to Mission Cards

Have you ever sent a Gift to Mission card? Did you know that there are seven different Gift to Mission cards that you can use…to honor someone, to send a note of encouragement, to celebrate a birthday or other special day…and more? Did you know that for a gift to mission of $5.00 (not all that different from what you might pay at the card shop)…you can brighten someone’s day with a special card, and at the same time…help to make a difference in the lives of women, children and youth around the world by supporting mission through United Methodist Women?

The following Gift to Mission cards are available from Martha Faye Robbins, our treasurer: Thank You, Happy Birthday, Congratulations, A Baby, A Special Day, Thinking of You, and In the Service of Christ. And, Christmas cards are also available.

Wouldn’t it be neat for every member of our unit to send at least one Gift to Mission card? Contact Martha Faye (292-8564 or e-mail marthamrobbins@bellsouth.net), and send a Gift to Mission card! Cards will also be available at our general meetings.

Are You Reading Response Magazine?

Response magazine is the official magazine of United Methodist Women. Published 11 times a year, Response features a Bible study in each issue that can be used as either a devotional or a circle program. Articles in each issue keep members updated on mission projects so we can see where our money goes. Response also gives us coverage of social issues that are important to women and children.

A popular department in Response is “Bright Lights”, which covers unit mission projects and successful fund-raisers. These “tried and true” ideas are there for the harvesting! Annual coverage is given to the Reading Program each fall whenever the new book list is issued. Also, news from Women’s Division is featured on the last two pages of each Response.

Our unit provides a subscription to Response for the church library. The magazines are kept in the UMW section and are available any time the library is open. Stop by and peruse a recent issue. For more information or to purchase an individual subscription to Response, contact Secretary of Program Resources Emily Johnston at 834-3420 or ehj76tarheel@mindspring.com

Prayer Shawl Ministry highlighted
in News & Record

Making Gifts of the Heart
Click to read article on N&R website

Photos from May 5th UMW Luncheon
Twenty-one babies were honored with Gifts to Mission!
 

Time to Make our Pledges for Mission Giving

As we begin a new year, it is time once again to make our pledges to support mission through United Methodist Women.  Your giving makes mission possible.  Giving supports institutions and programs empowering and improving the lives of women, children and youth in the United States and around the world.  Mission Giving provides food, shelter, education, employment, healthcare, and human rights advocacy for many living on the margins of society.  Mission Giving supports United Methodist missionaries and deaconesses.  Mission Giving also funds spiritual growth programs, leadership development events and mission education opportunities for United Methodist Women members.

Prayerfully consider your pledge for the coming year…and give generously.  YOU are making a difference, every day, in the lives of women, children and youth around the world.  Thank you!

More about Mission Giving of United Methodist Women
 

Tell the Story...Invite a Friend
to Your Circle Meeting!

What does being a member of United Methodist Women mean to you?  Are things like the following important to you?

• the caring & supportive community

• the opportunities for spiritual growth & mission education

• being part of a group of women that is organized for mission…making a difference around the world by sharing the love of Jesus Christ

You can surely name more reasons that you are a part of United Methodist Women.  Share that story with someone you know who is not a member of United Methodist Women…and invite them to come with you to your circle meeting!

PLANNING DATES FOR 2008

Prayer Shawl Ministry Grows

In the Spring of 2005, a new ministry was formed within United Methodist Women which has given comfort and support to people in special circumstances both locally and in other countries. Meeting monthly, two groups of women are contributing their time and skills to the knitting of prayer shawls. A shawl may be given in celebration of a special event or as an expression of love and concern. But whatever the situation, prayer is an implicit part of the gift. The individual knitter prays as she knits and offers her completed shawl for individual prayers from the members of her knitting circle. The final blessing is then given by an ordained member of the ministerial staff.

Since 2005, the ministry has expanded. Shawls are being provided to mission teams who have taken them to Bay St. Louis as a part of hurricane relief efforts; our youth have taken them on their Carolina Cross Connections mission; shawls have been taken to Guatemala, and to our sister church in Bulgaria.

In June 2006, the decision was made to include the occasion of infant baptism as a part of the ministry, and a special pattern was designed and produced with white yarn. These baptismal blankets require many hours to knit and are given in celebration of this special occasion and as a token of our intent to help raise and nurture children in the church. The blankets are more appropriate for infants and are given to those one year or younger. Since 2006, a total of 32 baptismal blankets have been given.

The most recent addition to the ministry has been the knitting of prayer blankets for children who are facing difficult challenges. Softly colored yarns are used, and a new pattern has been adopted for this purpose.

To date, a total of 220 shawls and blankets have been knitted and given away. This number speaks to the commitment of the women involved and the gratification of spreading love through hand work.

New members are welcome, and assistance is available for anyone who is an inexperienced knitter. Contact Sarah Hester, 288-7823
 

Click on thumbnails to see larger image.

We have an active unit of United Methodist Women at West Market Street United Methodist Church.  We are women organized for mission, and we are involved in mission both locally and globally.  We invite ALL women of the church to join us! 

Membership in United Methodist Women is open to all women who seek to be a part of a supportive community committed to the UMW PURPOSE. Members may participate in one of our seven small group circles or, if unable to participate that way, may be members at-large. Our circles have varied meeting times that provide opportunities for women with different schedules. Over two hundred fifty women at West Market Street are members of United Methodist Women. There are approximately 800,000 members of United Methodist Women worldwide. Join Us!

As women organized for mission...we have a PURPOSE:

...to be a community of women whose PURPOSE is
...to know God
...to experience freedom as whole persons through Jesus Christ
...to develop a creative, supportive fellowship, and
...to expand concepts of mission through participation in global ministries of the church.

We have four general meetings each year, on the first Mondays of March, May, October and December. All meetings are held in the fellowship hall at West Market Street United Methodist Church. Childcare is available for all general meetings.