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May 2003 Newsletter
    
Deadline for Newsletter Articles for next month is the 15th of the month.
Email the Church Office or fax the office at 330-836-8872
Use Newsletter submission form here on the website or place in church office newsletter mail box.
Confirmation Wrap - Up
Class will be held from 6:30-8:30 p.m. on April 30 and 9:30-11:30 a.m. on May 3.
The final class for this school year will be a combined class from 6:30-8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 14.
There will be a review, a quiz on the New Testament and TREATS! The youth should be prepared to say or write the Books of the New Testament from memory on this quiz.
Class members are asked to attend the Year-End Celebration during the 9:15 a.m. service on May 18 in the sanctuary. They will be introduced at that time.
Parents will receive a written report from Pastor Jean in late May listing the quiz results and requirements (worship attendance, service projects, memorization) that the student needs to complete by September 7, 2003.
Anyone with questions should contact Pastor Jean.
Explorer Club - Year End
The year-end celebration for Explorer Club will be held during 9:15 a.m. worship on May 18. The service will be held in the Sanctuary due to space constraints in the Fellowship Hall. Children will sit with their classes and will participate in the service, which will include Holy Communion. All parents and Clara’s Club Guides are invited to attend worship.
Youth News
In May, the youth will claim their Youth Room. On May 4, high school youth will be painting, cleaning, hanging posters, and rearranging furniture in the Youth Room after the Light Service in order to personalize the space. All middle school youth will have their chance to do the same on May 7 at 7:00 p.m. in the Youth Room. Pizza will be served. We are accepting donations of furniture and paint of various colors, so if you have any of these items in your garages, please let us know by calling the church.
During the month of May, we will also decide upon the destination of our summer mission trip, and each youth group will meet at least twice for fellowship, service and study. There will more information to come. Thank you for your support.
In His Name,
Carrie Miller
The Beginnings Life Group
The Beginnings Life Group will start a new study Monday, April 28 at 10 a.m. at Cherli Gsellman’s. We meet every other week at each other’s homes. We study and the children play!
The new study will be:
Through the New Testament
by Jeffrey A. Nelson
and the companion text is
Friendship With Jesus
A Way To Pray The Gospel Of Mark
David L. Miller
If you have any questions or would like to join us call
Cherli 330-867-4569
or
Denise 330-668-4039
W-ELCA
Wednesday - May 14 - 10:00 a.m.
Fellowship Hall
Program: Assemble Craft Kits for use at Summit County Children Services
The Visitation Center at Children Services will be utilizing these craft kits to help enhance the time spent between parents and their respective children. The center uses close to 200 kits each month.
Devotion will be given by Elaine Johnson.
Hostess will be Bettemae Ramsey.
A Thanks offering will be taken.
Alzheimer's Care-Giving Seminar - May 15th
A seminar for those who are caring for someone with Alzheimer’s Disease will be held from 6:30-8 p.m. on Thursday, May 15, at Arden Courts, 171 N. Cleveland-Massillon Rd., Akron.
The speaker is Dr. Peter Rabins who co-authored the book The 36-Hour Day, a family guide to daring for persons with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. He is the director of Geriatric and Neuopsychiartry at John Hopkins University.
Seating is limited, so please make a reservation if you are planning to attend. The number is 330-668-6889. Adult Day Care will be provided by qualified staff; please request this service if it is needed.
A seminar for nursing staff will be held from 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. that day. Free CEU’s are available. Those who are interested in attending should also call.
(A note from Pastor Jean: While I have not heard Dr. Rabins speak, I have read the book mentioned above. It is an excellent resource. Based on that fact, I would encourage your participation in this seminar.)
God’s Call To Serve
Dear Lutheran Church Friends,
Are you ready for some summer fun? Enjoy a great day of golf, a delicious buffet dinner, and solcialize with many of the other Lutherans in our area, while supporting this Lutheran outreach ministry.
At. Luke is sponsoring our 6th Annual Benefit Golf Outing to support the St. Luke Foundation. All proceeds from this golf outing will be dedicated to the Annual Appeal, which provides the needed dollars for the St. Luke Foundation resident assistance program. The FOUNDATION, established in 1983, is spending over $10,000 a month providing financial support to residents who can no longer afford to pay for their own care and do not qualify for any type of funding. This situation has been increasing every year and we want to keep our promise to “be there” for all of those who need us.
The St. Luke Golf Outing will be held at Raintree Country Club on Wednesday, June 25, 2003 starting at 10 a.m. (registration begins at 9 a.m.) The event will feature a day of golf on the 18-hole championship golf course, lunch, Shoot-Out Challenge for 5 lucky people for $150,000 each and a buffet dinner in the dining room at the club. Raintree Country Club is located in Uniontown, Ohio just minutes from 1-77 and easily accessible from anywhere in the greater Akron-Canton area.
Thank you for your consideration and we pray that you will help us. I look forward to your support and participation in our 6th St. Luke Lutheran Community Benefit Golf Outing.
Be There “Fore” Us, Be There For Them!
Kenneth C. Sippola
St. Luke Foundation
New Memebers Welcomed
On April 6 we received 15 adults and 8 children into our family at Faith. I felt inspired to write a “thank you note” to those members of a Team tasked to assist in this area. This team has no team leader nor a secretary and meets only just prior to each of the two times our church receives members. I feel that the reception of new members is one of the few times we can see positive results of our “Chrisitan efforts”. I started out naming the functions, not persons, that make up the “Welcome to Faith Gathering” and the “Reception of New Members”. About one hour later I had asked 30 primary/secondary functions. It dawned on me: EVERYONE in our congregation, acting as the body of Christ, lent their God given talent(s) in this important mission. So my thanks and prayer that God will bless each and every one of you.
Bill Pope
OPEN M
In March several hundred people helped Open M celebrate 35 years of helping the poor. The speaker was Terry Pluto, the noted Akron Beacon Journal sports columnist who also writes twice a month, a religion column.
A lot of progress has been made in helping the less fortunate in these many years. The changes in the nature of the work and in the development of new responses to needs of the community they serve dictated that they find creative approaches to the ways in which they plan and deliver the life saving - and life changing - programs that has been the hallmark of Open M. At the same time, the financial challenges of a declining economy and increasing unemployment in the Akron area brought more people to their doors. Those whom they serve are usually the first to feel the impact of a depressed economy. It is our neighbors in the innner-city who are the first to lose their jobs, have their hours cut, or have benefits withdrawn.
Coupled with a declining stock market in which the personal wealth of many who support their work was financially eroded - and therefore affected their ability to make charitable contributions at previous levels. Thus, the impact was greatly felt!
Open M’s mission is simply stated:
- Feed the hungry
- Heal the sick
- Nurture the children
- Build families
- Strengthen the community
There now are 71 covenant churches which help Open M in its missions.
Norm Schmidt
Attention Soup Cooks
Many at Faith enjoyed the delicious soups that were prepared for the Lenten Soup Suppers and have expressed an interest in getting the recipes. If you were one of the cooks and are willing to share the recipe(s) you prepared, please give it (them) to Judy Lee in the church office. The recipes will be compiled and a mini soup recipe booklet will be printed. Thanks so much!
Synod Assembly - May 17th
NORTHEASTERN OHIO SYNOD ASSEMBLY
on May 17 in Akron
The Northeastern Ohio Synod Assembly will be held on Saturday, May 17, in Akron. Delegates from the congregation are Hans and Kathy Zbinden. Pastor Jean also will be attending this important gathering of congregational representatives and pastors from the Synod. Anyone who would like to attend as a visitor should contact Pastor Jean.
Dear Jean Butler
Dear Jean Butler and Faith Lutheran Church,
The sound of children laughing, playing, and just having fun will be heard on Easter, thanks to your donation of Easter baskets. Summit County Children Services provides services to more than 1,800 children each day. Every six years, Children Services has a county levy on the ballot that provides 65% of the agency’s funding. The other 35% of the agency’s annual budget comes from state and federal grants. This does not provide for Easter baskets, school supplies, birthday gifts, and other benefits that many families take for granted. Donations like yours help us provide these extras. With the support of the community, Easter will be a lot brighter for the children receiving services from the agency.
On behalf of the children served, thank you for your generous donation.
Sincerely,
Carolyn Felton, MBA
Volunteer Program Specialist
Summit County Children Services
A Big Thanks
To all those who participated in making Easter baskets on Sunday, March 30th ... 196 Easter baskets were filled with candies and toys and taken to Children Services for distribution. Generous donations from the ladies of W-ELCA. Faith Lutheran Preschool, Debbie Gottas and Vee Robinson made this possible!! Also assistance from DuWayne and Dorothy Hansen and Jean Butler setting up all the goodies was greatly appreciated. Another 30 baskets were donated by various congregation members, making the total number of baskets 220!!!!
Thank You In Advance...
For Your Summer Support!
We give thanks for the faithful giving of Faith members during the first quarter of 2003! Your support of the church’s ministry is APPRECIATED!
As summer approaches, and more and more folks are away on Sundays, the Finance Team encourages your continued financial support of our ministry ... and wants to make it easy.
Did you notice that in your envelope packet for April, May and June - that was mailed to your home at the end of March - there is an envelope that you can use to send your offering to the church?
It will be great to see you in worship this summer, but when you are unable to be here, it will be good to know you are remembering the church in your prayers and with your gifts!
Easter Breakfast Thanks
A GREAT BIG THANK YOU goes to the youth of our church for providing a wonderful breakfast for us between the two Easter Services on Sunday, April 20.
The service was excellent. We were promptly seated, filled out what we desired to eat from the provided menu and then were given a cup of coffee, tea or juice before our meal, all warm and freshly cooked, was placed in front of us.
The food was delicious, the people sitting next to us at the tables provided good conversation and it was a celebrative time for those of us who had already attended the 8 o’clock service. For those of us who would later attend the 10:45 a.m. service, it was an excellent beginning for a wonderful celebration of Easter!
To Mark Horn and Bruce Lightle, the many adults, and all the wonderful youth of Faith who gave us such a good beginnning for the celebration of Easter Sunday, we thank you and God Bless you!
In Our Prayers
Health Concerns
For Faith member Joseph Anatal
For Pete Landis, grandfather of Faith member, Randy Cole
For Faith member Miriam Ramm
For Justine Molnar
Special Prayers
For all military personnel who have been deployed to Iraq and surrounding areas, and for their families, especially Robert Deme, son of Denise (and Pat) Flanagan and Erica Kovach, daughter of Norma (and Barry) White.
For Faith member Audrea Woodall
In Times Of Loss
For Faith members Bob and Shirley Kmet, and family, upon the death of Bob’s brother Daniel Kmet. His funeral was held at Faith Lutheran Church on March 24.
For Faith members Bill and Barbara Beers upon the death of Barbara’s mother, Betty Beals on March 24.
For Faith members Jeff and Sally Butler, Chris and Kerry, upon the death of Jeff’s mother, Jean Butler.
For Ann and Milan Rolik upon the death of Ann’s sister Mary Boyle.
For the Dalsky family upon the death of Arthur Dalsky, Terri Dalsky’s father-in-law.
For Anita Sears upon the death of her father, Dr. Robert Ferris.
NEW - Summer Worship
(June 15 to August 31, 2003)
Two Services!!!
*8 a.m. – Traditional Lutheran Liturgy
*9:30 a.m. – Summer “Coming Together” Service
BOTH services will be held in the sanctuary!!!
Is the 9:30 a.m. service going to be like the 9:15 a.m. LIGHT service? Or will it be similar to the 10:45 a.m. CELEBRATION service? Will it be a praise service or will there be contemporary liturgy? The answer to all of these questions is “yes”… and … “no”. Open your hearts! Clear your minds! Come at 9:30 a.m. ready to:
Be inspired by organist Bob Mollard AND the Flashlight Band AND congregation members, all of whom will share their musical gifts.
Be reunited with – or meet for the first time – Faith friends who attend “the other” service. It really is “OK” to “chat” before worship begins!
Hear a “Children’s Sermon” geared for kids but enjoyed by all!
Bask in the air conditioned beauty of the sanctuary. It’s a “blended” service … so wear whatever clothing you desire. (Just wear something!)
Celebrate Holy Communion every Sunday using varied formats
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