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Friends United Meeting |
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November 1998
News from Friends United Meeting
Bookstore Takes on Ecumenical Flavor
Gaining Confidence as Pastoral Ministers announcement
David Romberger Appointed To Serve in Belize
VBS Buys Desks, Snacks for Friends Boys Schools
Bookstore Takes on Ecumenical Flavor
Over the course of the last year, the staff of the Quaker Hill Bookstore has changed from being entirely Quaker to representing five denominations. While this switch was not intentional, "it is an indication of the range of our clientele," notes Bookstore Manager Sue Calhoun. Sue is a member of Bear Creek Friends. Sherry Tryner, assistant manager, is Lutheran; Staci Newsome is Brethren; Barbara Bohall is Nazarene; and Brenda Blocher is Baptist. Brenda joined the bookstore staff last November as a part-time clerk; Sherry moved back to the bookstore in January after a couple of years as Johan Maurer's assistant; Stacy and Barbara joined the staff this summer as part-time clerks.
Jody Richmond left the Bookstore staff this summer to become a part-time case manager in a mental health unit through Dunn Mental Health Center while she pursues graduate work in that field. Vickie Jo Gray, another part-time clerk, is on indefinite disability leave, recovering from lupus.
Work teams for Lugulu (Kenya) and Cuba are both scheduled for mid-January, 1999. The Cuba Team is approximately $850 per person, the Lugulu trip will be about $2400 per person, both excluding U.S. travel. There may still be openings, call now.
Preliminary plans are being made for a group to go to the Middle East in late June through early July, 1999. Max and Jane Carter will lead the trip which will include work at the Ramallah Friends Schools, visits to historical sites and meetings with key Palestinian and Jewish leaders working for peace in the Middle East. Call World Ministries for information.
Gaining Confidence as Pastoral Ministers is an intensive study for you. Offered by Friends United Meeting, it will be held at Earlham School of Religion from January 20-23, 1999. It will look at many aspects of pastoral ministry for which little training is given such as administration, accountability, gift assessment, social graces, Christian Education, pastoral transitions and more. Stan Banker, Jr., Josh Brown, Doug Bennett, Jay Marshall, David Brock, Curt Shaw, Bob Garris, Della Stanley-Green and Frances Kinsey are among the presenters. The cost of the study is underwritten by Friends United Meeting. The only cost to the participant is travel, food and lodging. Three breakfasts and three dinners will be included with the study for $45. Please send your registration in by November 15 to Meeting Ministries, 101 Quaker Hill Drive, Richmond IN 47374.
The National Friends Pastors Conference in Kenya will be held December 31, 1998 to January 3, 1999 at Malava Yearly Meeting Friends Church in Kenya. Planned by the General Superintendents of the yearly meetings in East Africa, meeting with Rich and Sandy Davis, this is a follow-up on the first-ever Friends Pastors conference held in April 1997. Friends United Meeting is providing some scholarship help for Kenya pastors and have arranged for the participation of David Brock and David Philips, both of Indiana Yearly Meeting, who will attend as guest speakers.
Kathleen Flanagan, a third year Earlham School of Religion student, has joined Friends United Press as a publishing intern for the 1998-99 school year. Her work with Friends United Press will fulfill the field education requirements for a master of Divinity Degree.
"Our goal is to give Kathleen the opportunity to get familiar with both the editorial and business side of publishing," says Barbara Bennett Mays, editor of Friends United Press. "We are already benefiting from her considerable editorial skills and commitment to this ministry."
Kathleen is a member of Mount Toby Friends Meeting in Leverett, Mass. Before coming to ESR, she spent more than a year in the Philadelphia area as a student at Pendle Hill. When she is not studying and editing, she enjoys traveling, hiking, playing the fiddle, and watching old movies.
David Romberger Appointed To Serve in Belize
David Romberger has been appointed by Friends United Meeting for a two-year term to work in Belize with Mike and Kay Cain (see September FUM News). David will be working with both young people and adults with the ultimate goal of helping to start a meeting.
David sees this as an opportunity "to witness in an appropriate manner for our Lord Jesus" and to create educational opportunities in a nation where the family system is weak and public education usually ends at the 6th grade. He hopes to be of practical service by providing vocational skills and opportunities, possibly in the areas of citrus farming and marine activities. David is a licensed merchant marine captain and is experienced in construction trades. In the course of their work, the team intends to form relationships and provide spiritually-grounded occasions for fellowship, educational, recreational and worship opportunities, leading to the formation of Bible Study circles and a worship group.
David practiced law for eight years in the 70s until he found the conflict between Christian discipleship and professional expectations intolerable. At that point, he returned to carpentry and construction work. In 1983 the Rombergers taught at the Ramallah Friends Schools for a year. David is a member of the Seaville (NJ) Monthly Meeting of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting.
Has your meeting signed up for the 1999 FUM Chain of Prayer? It will begin January 1, 1999 and run through the FUM Triennial July 18. Every meeting is invited to participate by signing up for 12-24 hours to provide continuous prayer for our mutual concerns. Our theme is Whom Shall I Send? Who Will Go For Us? A packet of material is available upon request for $10. It includes a poster, sign-up sheet, lessons for children and youth, and bulletin cover. Do so by November 2. This can be done by visiting www.fum.org. Click on the Meeting Ministries button and follow instructions, or by calling Cheryl Stoner at (765) 962-7573.
The Turkana Friends Mission, through FUM, received a grant from the Anna H. and Elizabeth M. Chace Fund administered by Philadelphia Yearly Meeting. The grant provides Turkana Friends the opportunity to construct three rental houses on Mission-owned property located near primary and secondary schools in Lodwar. Once constructed, the housing will provide greatly needed and affordable homes for teachers, as well as generate local income to assist the Friends Mission to become increasingly self-sufficient. As a part of this project, FUM is working with the Mission to provide consultation and staff training to strengthen the local management capacity of Turkana Friends.
VBS Buys Desks, Snacks for Friends Boys Schools
As of the end of September, twenty-four Meetings had reported their participation in the Vacation Bible School project for the Belize Friends Boys School. With contributions ranging from $15.00 to over $500.00, the VBS project had raised $3,744.96.
Among the participating meetings were several who didn't actually have Vacation Bible School this summer, but they held special bake sales and other fund-raising events so that their children could participate in this important project.
With more contributions still expected, FUM staff are enthusiastic about meeting the goal of providing desks and snacks for the children at the Belize Friends Boys School. Thanks!
Copyright (c) 1998 Friends United Meeting
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