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Hoosier United Methodist News Archives
| Hoosier United Methodist News |
July 2002 |
South Conference breaks ground
TV Ad Indiana campaigns to receive UMCom grants
Hoosier UM News index now ready online
Don't miss out on camp this summer!
Potato drop helps feed North Indiana hungry
South Bend 'Disciples in the Streets' gets $12,000
North Indiana camping gets new marketeer.
Southeast Indiana tackles problem gambling
South Conference breaks ground
After several years of planning and fund-raising, ground was broken for the new South Indiana Conference Service Center's new building, just outside of Bloomington. Earth turners, above, are (from left) the Revs. David V.W. Owen and Robert Sharp watching as Bishop Woodie W. White takes the first bite out of the damp earth where the new center will rise during the course of this summer.
TV Ad Indiana campaigns to receive UMCom grants
United Methodist Communications (UMCom) recently announced the names of the Igniting Ministry matching grant recipients. Among them is a joint advertising effort among the South Indiana, North Indiana and Kentucky Conferences, which UMCom awarded a total of $66,000 in matching funds to be used during September's Igniting Ministry campaign.
The SIC Igniting Ministry initiative also received a $50,000 Mustard Seed grant from the conference in March. With financial support from Kentucky and North Indiana, an additional $16,000 was raised. The total $132,000 campaign will run during the month of September in Indianapolis, Louisville and Evansville through an effort that will include radio, billboard, cable and broadcast television advertisements. To learn more about the Igniting Ministry campaign, visit www.ignitingministry.org.
Hoosier UM News index now ready online
After months of development, the United Methodist Archives and Special Collections at DePauw University now offers a means of searching past issues of the Hoosier UM News online. The index covers volume 1, issue 1, January 1971 to the present. Visitors may search the database by keyword or subject. A list of subjects is available as well. Search results will list the title and date that the article appeared. Copies of articles found may be obtained from the UM Archives. To access the index, visit www.depauw.edu/library/archives/.
Don't miss out on camp this summer!
South Conference Outdoor Ministries is offering a wide menu of camping opportunities for little folk on up to grandparents. Also virtually all major camping facilities have been upgraded in the past year. Check out the new camping brochure at www.sicumc.org/gocamp/. You'll find photos of the church's camps, maps on how to get there and a list of camping programs for all ages, as well as camp dates. This year's theme is "Turn Your Life Around."
North Conference Outdoor Ministries is offering many new programs this summer: new day camps, specialty camps such as: Clown Around, Magic or Miracles (for Harry Potter fans), Rock Climbing for elementary kids, Photography Camp, Raize the Praize (praise and worship teams), Exploring Art, Cinematography Camp and many others. Look for camping information on the conference web site: www.nicumc.org/.
UM 'Mission in Motion' rolls
The bus formerly known as Night Crawler has a new name: the Circuit Rider -- United Methodist Mission in Motion. As the name implies, the focus of this South Indiana Conference bus program will be missional and will include emergency disaster response team work, Volunteers in Mission trips and local church mission trips. For information or to schedule a trip, contact the Rev. Tarrell Thompson at 812/724-3704; his cell phone number is: 812/453-3961.
Potato drop helps feed North Indiana hungry
North Indiana United Methodist Men members gathered in Gary to participated with the Society of St. Andrew in a potato drop on May 4. An estimated 44,500 pounds of potatoes were distributed to 17 social services agencies across 11 communities in North Indiana. For more information on gleaning and hunger relief activities, contact David McCleary, hunger relief advocate for North Indiana, at 574/269-1143 or via e-mail at hranin@endhunger.org . Matt Oates
South Bend 'Disciples in the Streets' gets $12,000
South Bend Broadway Christian Parish UMC recently received a $12,000 grant from the UM Board of Discipleship.
The program -- "Disciples in the Streets" -- identifies and celebrates the gift of art in the inner-city neighborhood surrounding the church, said Shannan Miller, program director.
"It (Art) is such a natural way to help people to feel they have a voice and a way to express it," said Miller.
The grant will help fund two young adults in the neighborhood to go door-to-door, network and facilitate projects with residents in their homes and in the church. "We're encouraging them to use their gifts." Broadway UMC was one of 12 projects that addresses young people's concerns that received a grant. Matt Oates
North Indiana camping gets new marketeer
Bringing "a burning desire to serve the Lord in this new position." Robert Holz has been named NIC Board of Camps and Conferences' Director of Communications and Marketing.
"The camping ministry's mission is to make disciples for Jesus Christ," Holtz said. "This is bifurcate calling. First we need to reach young people, who may have never heard the Gospel; then we must empower those who know Christ to grow in that relationship."
Holtz attended Houghton, a Wesleyan College in western New York State; later he transferred to Anderson University in order to study Mass Communications. While at Anderson he acted as the Director of Covenant Productions, the school's video production facility. He also was in charge of the sound reinforcement system at the college's auditorium.
For a number of years he lived in Florida working a variety of graphics arts jobs before taking a position at American Express where he worked as a corporate trainer, organizing and running an employee learning center for the company's 5,000 employees. Also while in Florida, Robert earned his MBA at the University of Miami.
Robert Holtz is married to Katrina, whom he had known and dated since their meeting at Houghton College.
UMCs, pastors receive grants
Five Indiana UMCs and their pastors are recipients of this year's "Clergy Renewal Grants" from the Lilly Foundation. They are: Faith UMC, Fort Wayne, $29,897 -- Rev. Jack Scott; St. Joseph Ministries (St. Joseph UMC), Fort Wayne -- Rev. Curtis R. Sylvester; St. Luke's UMC, Indianapolis, $28,818 -- Rev. Linda McCoy; St. Mark's UMC, Decatur, $28,721 -- Rev. Heather Olson-Bunnell; and University Heights UMC, Indianapolis, $24,190 -- Rev. Todd Outcalt.
A total of 37 congregations, including those above, received a total of slightly more than $1 million in grants for this, the program's fourth year. Each year congregations are invited to apply for up to $30,000 to support their pastor's sabbatical plans. The Lilly announcement notes that "Several of these ministers have served 30 years or more without taking a sabbatical. This opportunity for renewal seems to them like an astonishing gift." The hope of the congregations is for "their pastors to return to them with renewed vision and energy."
Southeast Indiana tackles problem gambling
Last updated on 01/14/2004A new Gamblers Anonymous (GA) meeting, the only one in southeast Indiana, recently started in Dearborn County and is hosted by Aurora First UMC every Saturday evening at 7 p.m.
After much prayer and planning, the group's first meeting was held May 4. The new GA group is a result of Gambling Recovery Ministries (GRM), a project created at the 2001 South Indiana Annual Conference session. The Rev. Janet Jacobs, GRM director, and the group's board saw the vital importance of this new meeting, as there are no other GA meetings in this part of the state.
The first, fourth and fifth Saturdays of the month are "closed" meetings; the second Saturday is a closed STEP meeting. The third Saturday is an "open" meeting for family, friends and associates. Rev. Jacobs can be contacted at 812/926-0761 for more information and speakers for programs on problem gambling.