A Wo r d F r o m O u r P a s t o r

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1 JULY/AUGUST 2011 C O M M A C K U N I T E D M E T H O D I S T C H U R C H The Messenger Open Hearts Open Minds Open Doors W h a t s I n s i d e Prayer & Birthdays Upcoming Events UMW Harvest Fair Thrift Shoppe Congratulations Annual Conference Boy Scouts Local History Administrative Board Minutes Calendar Rev. Lynda Bates-Stepe Pastor A Wo r d F r o m O u r P a s t o r I just returned from southern California where the sun was shining, the heat was dry, and the traffic is even worse than Long Island. Our schedule had us driving (or crawling along) the LA freeways our first three days in California and I thought, I am never going to come to this place again. But the rest of week kept us close to family, our reason for traveling across the country. I had the opportunity to meet my sister-in-law who hosted us for the week. In the ten years I ve known my husband I ve never had the chance to meet Peggy. Sarma, my husband s cousin from Australia, arrived a few days later and we enjoyed five days of engaging conversation with a great deal of reminiscing and family history, some of which was new to me. I also read several books including a novel. Reading, for no other reason than enjoyment, is such a luxury for me that it makes vacation time special. The timing of this trip wasn t the best and traveling the airlines stand-by was stressful but I m grateful to have met family members who live so far away. And it was relaxing to sit on the patio, walk the dogs, attend church (as a worshipper, no less!) and just get to know one another. It was a good way to begin the summer. I share this with you as encouragement to take some time this summer to relax, enjoy the company of family and friends and feel your spirit renewed. At its best, that is what summer is all about. The fast paced lives we lead are not healthy but sometimes we feel so trapped by our commitments and expectations that we can t slow down. So use summer to slow it down and reconnect with yourself, people who are important to you, and most of all, God. Even on vacation, remember that God is near. And God s love and desire for you is a life of wellbeing, connection with those who feed your soul, and health. Remember, after six days of working God took a day off for rest and renewal. Sabbath time is essential for us but all too often it gets pushed low on our priority list. So this summer enjoy some Sabbath time, extended Sabbath time, if you can. If nothing else, take a day each week to slow the pace down, worship, relax and enjoy the company of others or just hang out with yourself. Sabbath time is a gift from God. Open your gift and enjoy it! Peace, Rev. Lynda Bates-Stepe Donna Etergineoso Editor 486 Town Line Road Commack NY (631) Office: mail@commack-umc.org Pastor: pastor@commack-umc.org

2 A Prayer... J U L Y / A U G U S T Dear God, Thank you for loving us and forgiving us. Thank you for teaching us how to live and love one another. Help us to believe and share our belief in you with others. Hear our silent prayers. In Jesus name we pray. Amen JULY Bir thdays 3 rd Donna Etergineoso 3 rd Logan Theofield 11 th John Kessler, SR. 15 th Barbara Knippenberg 16 th Deb Hervey 21 st Dagmar Mackay 28 th Andi Kessler Michael Kopping Harry Gahrman Ryan Kopping Jessica Mallgraf Gery Spory Erin Sullivan We wish you all a Happy Birthday, whether we are near or far away during vacation time. We will be happy to come together in September with great big smiles!! AUGUST Bir thdays 4 TH Matt Gamby 8 th Eileen Waidlelich 10th Janice Woods 10 th Anne Tammaro 10 th Dotty Megna 13 th Cyndi Pinkham 19 th Matilda Gollatz 21 st Tim Sampson 23 rd Nick Mondelli 25 th Mark Prasad 31 st Sue Medina Christine Amato Marylee Arfer Lara Ciamician Rhonda Mohan Caroline Reddo ***Please note: If you wish to have your birth date noted, please send an to the Church office and Donna will forward to me. Thank you, Kathy MITTEN MINISTRY During the summer our talented ladies continue to knit and crochet hats, scarves and mittens for the homeless, which I store until needed in the cold months ahead. They are then delivered with the PB&J sandwiches and thankfully received. We have delivered about 300 items this past season and the ladies have used their own yarn. Donations of yarn would be greatly appreciated, preferably worsted weight, any color. If you wish it contribute your talents to this ministry, please contact me. Thank you, Kathy Muller Page 2

3 UMW J U L Y / A U G U S T T h e M e s s e n g e r MESSAGES To my Friends at CUMC, Thank you for all of your prayers and cards. I know that I am doing so well at this time because of them. Thank you again and God bless us all. Love, Ann Aupperle Deepest sympathy goes out to Cynthia Williams and her family, on the passing of Donald, her husband, on June 12, Cynthia and Donald were former members but moved up to New Hampshire. May God and his unfailing love be with Cynthia and her family. The Church wants to thank Steve Waidelaich for his initiative and work in painting and brightening up the planters at the entrance of the sanctuary. A grateful thank you to his helpers Mary Lee Arfer and Harriet Neuberth too! It looks beautiful! An appreciative Thank you to the congregation for the beautiful bouquet of flowers! ~Tricia Green During July, date to be announced: we will meet to carpool to St. Catherine of Siena Nursing Home for our annual visit and sing-a-long. We are not permitted to bring refreshments but will serve those supplied by the nursing staff. Again, we thank those who contributed and donated to the Father s Day Candles. We wish all a happy and safe summer holiday Church is still open during the summer, we hope to see you! August meeting, date to be announced: Deb Hervey will plan the program and also serve as hostess. September 8 th, a guest speaker from a local UM Church is planned. Kathy Muller will serve as hostess. DATES TO REMEMBER: Oct 1 st : UMW District fall meeting at East Meadow UMC Nov. 5 th: NY Annual UMW fall meeting in Connecticut The Thrift Shoppe will be closed for the summer. It will re-open after Labor Day. HARVEST DINNER NOVEMBER 12TH Page 3

4 THRIFT SHOPPE HARVEST FAIR J U L Y / A U G UJ SU T L Y 2/ 0A 1U 1 G U S T Our annual Harvest Fair will be on Saturday, October 22, The Pumpkin Patch is hopefully coming to town. I have visions of our church lawn filled with dozens of donated pumpkins of all sizes, just waiting for fairgoers to discover and claim as their own.. There are several farms in the area that I m sure would donate pumpkins. Once we have pumpkins for picking, decorating them should be a delight! Let s open The Pumpkin Patch at our fair this year - something new, autumn inspired and sure to draw passer-bys! We need volunteers to make this happen. Please contact me if you enjoy smiling, enthusiastic children of all ages and pumpkins galore! Remember the Parcel Post Booth while you are on vacation in a far-away land or while sightseeing on Long Island by purchasing a small item to donate. All items will be sold for $5 (so the item you purchase should cost at least $5.00). Please wrap it in brown paper to disguise the contents (the surprise is half the fun!) and note from where it originates on the package. You may give your donations to Sobana or to me or you may drop them off in the church office, noting they are for the Parcel Post Booth at the Harvest Fair. We have a few items and are looking forward to receiving many more! As you finish your spring cleaning, please save the items that you no longer want but are still functional and in good condition so you can donate them to our White Elephant Table. We ll be accepting donations prior to the Fair. If you would like to share your talents on a craft project or two, please speak with Kathy Muller. It s wonderful if you have some ideas for projects and, if you don t, I m sure you ll be inspired after talking with Kathy! Thank you! Connie Jarvis, Harvest Fair Chairperson Hip, Hip Hooray!! The Commack Methodist Community Yard Sale was a huge success. There were a dozen Commack families, who joined our church members and several Korean ladies from our sister church, who set up their tables inside the RE building on Sat. June 11th. It was misty, and rainy, but inside everyone was in good spirits as the people kept coming in, and taking "stuff" out. Sarah Mackay managed the Food Stand for the yard sale as a fund raiser for her Girl Scout Gold Award. The items she offered were so fresh, nutritionally excellent, attractively displayed, and served graciously with a smile. The stand was complete with table clothes and flowers. The people selling things said it was one of the nicest food stands they ve seen. Well done, Sarah! Thanks for adding such a yummy part to the yard sale and good luck with your project. Anne Tammaro was a big reason the event was such a success. She coordinated the advertisements, put up the signs, assigned spaces, checked cleanup and returned clean-up checks. Join the fun in 2012 which will be held the second Saturday in June. The Thrift Shoppe will celebrate another successful year by honoring all our volunteers at a dinner held on Aug 9th at 6pm at Nocello's, 843 Fort Salonga Rd, Northport. Our honored guest will be Marge Wright, who has served many years as "The Scheduler", which is a very demanding position. You may join us, total cost for complete dinner is $ See Harriet Neuberth or Patti Spory for reservations. The Thrift Shoppe will be closed July and August, grand reopening is Sept 6th. If you have noticed the six new black lawn chairs on the patio, those were supplied by the Thrift Shoppe. Look for more major furniture improvements to the parlor during the summer!!!!! Page 4

5 T h e M e s s e n g e r Congratulations! Congratulations to Zachary Zoltowsky for winning 2nd place in the Huntington's 5th Annual Covanta Energy Recycling Poster Contest! Out of 360 posters submitted from area schools, there were 1st, 2nd & 3rd place winners from each grade, 1st through 3rd grades. In placing 2nd, he received a Wind Power Energy Science Kit, a $25.00 gift certificate to Barnes & Noble, a certificate, and a recycling book and bag. A 2nd place trophy and his poster will be framed and put up in the hallway at the recycling facility. Beautiful job Zach!! The focus of this year s New York Annual Conference was on heart-warmed missions. The bishop s opening sermon was based on John 3:16-17 and he noted that warm hearts are in our DNA thanks to John Wesley- so mission is in our DNA too. The evening s offering was for Anchor House, a Christ-centered substance abuse recovery program. A choir sang and a witness spoke about his life before Christ and Anchor House. In the 1960 s Ginny remembers Rev. Cotto Thorner would come to our chapel to give testimony about the help they were receiving at Anchor house and how, each year, the confirmation class journeyed to the city and visited Anchor House to see their good works. On Thursday we had a wonderful lay speaker, Mr. Jerry Eyster, from Westport UMC. He spoke about being happy in God and what makes people flourish: regular church attendance, positive emotions, how you approach the world, and your connection with others. Our fulfillment includes the happiness of others and living a life of authenticity before God and then you will be happy. He told a story how there are two wolves who live inside all of us- one bad and one good. They fight, but who wins? The one you feed! On Friday our bishop told us about the state of our churches in the NY Conference. There have been 6 new congregations and 10 more expected this year, 2 new chartered congregations and one church in the city gained 491 new members last year. He reminded us that time for action is now. Change is imperative. Cultures change. We need an outward focus of hospitality, an expectation to fulfill responsibility and commit to the Faith to be the best Christians we can. Our stewardship should be the joy of giving and make mission a priority. Photo: Tim Sampson proudly displaying the CUMC banner which won a gold ribbon! Summarized version of report by Lay Member, Ginny Eichenauer GOING GREEN 2011 NEW YORK ANNUAL CONFERENCE Page 5

6 J U L Y / A U G U S T CHRISTOPHER GAZERRO BECOMES BOY SCOUT TROOP 125 S EAGLE SCOUT #83 Christopher Gazerro became Boy Scout Troop 125 s (Commack) 83 rd Eagle Scout on December 23, An Eagle Court of Honor, celebrating this achievement was held on June 4, 2011 at the Commack United Methodist Church. For his Eagle Leadership Service Project, Gazerro built three benches and constructed a key-hole shaped fire pit at campsite S3 in West Hills County Park in Melville. The fire pit was made using Belgium blocks and was placed so that the key hole area of the fire pit points due north, significant to lost hikers knowledgeable about the keyhole design. Christopher went above and beyond by earning 30 Merit Badges, nine more than the 21 which are necessary to obtain the Eagle rank. Gazerro began scouting when he was in fourth grade and joined Cub Scout Pack 329 (Commack) as a Webelos. As a member of Troop 125 for 7 years, he currently holds the position of Junior Assistant Scoutmaster and has previously held the positions of Senior Patrol Leader, Patrol Leader, Troop Guide, Assistant Patrol Leader, Den Chief and Webmaster. In addition to his involvement with Troop 125, Gazerro is also a member of Boy Scouts of America Venture Crew 2011 where he has served as Vice President and Secretary. Through Venturing, he has attended Sea Base in the Florida Keys, gone caving which was an awesome experience and other high adventure experiences like hiking trips and a 50- mile bike trip. He has earned many awards during his years in scouting: BSA Lifeguard, Mile Swim, and Totin Chip. Gazerro is also CPR and AED certified, National Youth Leadership trained and Den Chief trained. He is an Ordeal Member of the Order of the Arrow, the National Scouting Honor Camping Society and has been awarded the religious emblems of his Roman Catholic faith, the Ad Altare Dei and the Pope Pius XII. Gazerro will be attending Manhattan College in the fall as an accounting major with ambitions of working in law enforcement s white collar crime division. He commented, As a kid, people say you want to grow up fast and once you ve grown up, you wish you could be young again. For me, I had some great experiences as a child and enjoyed it immensely and in my old age I will take pleasure in knowing that due to scouting, I have lived this part of my life to the fullest. Through my life I have met and befriended many people who cared for me and helped me to become the man I am today. I wish that I will be able to do that for someone else someday and I look forward to scouting with the children I hope to have. The newest Eagle Scout is the son of Kathleen Gazerro (of East Northport) and William Gazerro (of Oakdale). Page 6

7 T h e M e s s e n g e r BOY SCOUT TROOP 125 CELEBRATED MEMORIAL DAY BY HONORING THOSE WHO SERVED, AND CONTINUE TO SERVE. OUR COUNTRY Boy Scout Troop 125 (Commack) celebrated on Memorial Day with a weekend full of activities honoring the troops that have served and are still serving our great nation. On Saturday morning, the scouts began their day by placing flags at the Long Island National Cemetery at Pinelawn, followed by a special ceremony around the main flagpole where Troop Chaplin, Ryan G., gave a very moving speech about the meaning of Memorial Day. On Sunday, the scouts participated in a service with their sponsor, Commack United Methodist Church. The service, which was held in the 1789 Chapel, was led by the Pastor, Reverend Lynda Bates-Stepe and was followed by a bagel reception for the members of the Church. The weekend concluded on Monday morning when the scouts marched in the Commack Memorial Day Parade. The Troop also participated in the ceremony by placing a wreath by the monument where Veterans Highway meets Jericho Turnpike. Page 7

8 J U L Y / A U G U S T AREA HISTORY The original native people of Long Island were the Algonquian Indians who inhabited most of the eastern coast of North America. The Indians living here were not individual tribes but rather small bands, or clans. They had loose interpretations of boundaries and held no idea of land ownership like the Europeans. There were three groups of Indians living on, or around, the lands that were to become known as Commack. They were the Nessaquakes, Matinecocks, and Secatogues. Traces of them can still be found in the area ranging from stone tools and arrow heads, to some of our main roads which follow their original foot paths. A few neighborhoods and schools even have Indian names, as does the community itself. The name Commack comes from the Secatogue Indians who lived on the south shore between Copiague and Bayport. They named their northern lands in the center of the island Winnecomac meaning Pleasant lands. This is what they must have thought when they looked over this area of flat lands with rich soil, and thick oak forests abounding with plants and wildlife. The Nissequogues, named after their leader Nesaquake, had a name for one of their villages in our area. They called it Indian Head after a pond with a large rock on its shore that was said to have resembled an Indian s head. This village, or camp as it s sometimes described, was said by some to be located on Indian Head Road about half way between Kings Park Road and Old Northport Road. In those days Kings Park Road was the northern end of Wicks Path. A trail that went from Bay Shore on the south side of the island across to Indian Head Road near the village. The Indians and the head are mentioned by Judge J. Lawrence Smith in his notes about the history of Smithtown for W. W. Munsell in Richard Smith stopped here for a quick lunch of bread and cheese during his legendary bull ride around the Nessaquake s land. In 1698 two men, John Skidmore and John Whitman went to the Secatogues to look into buying the land they called Winnecomac. After this land was bought from the Secatogues two houses were built, and both are still standing today. They are the Elnathan Wicks house at Hoyt Farm, and the Moreland-Harned house now located on Commack Road. It was common for early settlers to construct their house and farms where the Indian villages, or camps, had been and expand on any fields that were already there. Over the years a variety of Indian artifacts have been unearthed at both of these locations. Hoyt Farm, now a town park, has a number of stone tools, axes, grinding stones, and arrow heads that were found in the area. Ralph Moreland still owns a house that has been in his family since 1780, and was built forty years earlier. The family is said to have picked up four to five hundred arrow heads from their fields along with a few stone tools. Ralph remembers when he was young his brothers used to take him to a place where there were a number of large stones scattered about, and some in circles. They were told by their grandmother it was the site of an old Indian camp. It was said to be located in the woods west of Commack Road near the parkway. The third group of Indians living here were the Matinecocks. Their land went from the streams near Cold Spring Harbor to the west bank of the Nissequogue River, or so they thought. Their chief was named Asharoken and his main village was in an area known then as Fresh Pond, or Unshenamuck, at the end of Bread and Cheese Hollow Road. The name of the road has been surmised to perhaps come from a flowering bush that grows in that area with berries that taste like bread and cheese although the popular story is that Page 8

9 This information was referred by Kathy Muller from the website: CUMC does not guarantee the accuracy of the historical information on this website. Page 9

10 J U L Y / A U G U S T Administrative Board Minutes- May 24, 2011 At 7:35 the meeting opened with a prayer by Reverend Lynda. Chair Matilda Gollatz agreed that a review and discussion of our Core Values could precede the business meeting. Those present each had the opportunity to share their views on the values that were previously chosen by the board and the congregation. The four values finally agreed upon were 1: compassion; 2: integrity; 3: truth; 4: commitment At 8:20, as several board members were absent, the meeting commenced with calling upon those present for their reports HISTORIAN: John Muller Nothing new to report MEMORIAL: Kathy Muller No donations received. TRUSTEE: John Muller reported that the cross replacement is to be started sometime in June, a deposit check was given to the contractor. PARSONAGE:. Reverend Lynda reported that the attic, bedroom fans and a bath exhaust fan have been installed. The sexton s apartment will be inspected. THRIFT SHOPPE: Patti Spory Volunteer workers are needed. A community yard sale will be held on June 11, church members not expected to pay the fee. Applications must be filled out for insurance purposes. UMW: Ginny Eichenauer recounted the history of UMW s program of hosting the guests from Pilgrim State Hospital going back some 40 years. UMW will again host the reception for Confirmation. YOUTH: The dynamics of our youth program will be discussed with SPR, by Reverend Lynda and Deb Hervey On June 3. Some issues, with discussion, were presented by Dagmar Mckay FINANCE SECRETARY: Judy Titolo Money coming in regularly. Income statements distributed. TREASURER: Karen Mallgraf All bills paid. Expense sheets distributed. COM: Mike Hervey September 11 is Rally Sunday. The cross dedication and 9-11 memorial will be celebrated with an outdoor gathering, so as to be closer to God. Mike is revisiting the possibility of video/projection capabilities for the sanctuary. Consultation with church member, John Kessler, a professional in this field. BSA: Dagmar Mackay Date for church clean-up day discussed with disappointment at recent date cancellation. The scouts have painted the flag pole located by the education building. Flag to be replaced. The Boy Scouts will assist in Memorial Day Service. It was noted that Troop 125 has had a total of 82 Eagle Scouts. WORSHIP: Reverend Lynda noted that Confirmation will be held on June 5 th. Pentecost is June 12 th. PASTORAL CARE: Al Svoboda Sue and Jim Medina were visited and appear in good spirits. Ryan Burns sends his regards, problems with new baby not sleeping well. HAPPENING: Pat Ross Duck s game tickets soon available, church members get first choice. Game will be held on June 12; tickets $ OLD BUSINESS: Motion passed at last meeting that if grant request information not forthcoming by this date, we should proceed with purchase of a defibrillator. There was common agreement that Mike Malgraff in consultation with Deb Hervey look into such a purchase. Next meeting scheduled for July 26. Chair Matilda Gollatz will notify the members for possible cancellation. Respectfully submitted, Kathleen Muller, Recording Secretary ATTENDANCE: John Muller Kathy Muller Tim Sampson Matilda Gollatz Barbara Knippenberg Judy Titolo Al Svoboda Patti Spory Ginny Eichenauer Pat Ross Karen Malgraff Dagmar Mackay Mike Hervey Lynda Bates-Stepe Page 10

11 1. Mountauk Point Lighthouse 2. Roosevelt Field 3. Roosevelt Field Mall 4. Belmont Race Track 5. C 6. A 7. A 8. A. 9. D-all are part of Long Island although Queens and Kings (Brooklyn) counties are considered to be boroughs of NYC. 10. C- The Peconic is about 15 miles long, the Carman s 10, Nissequogue is 8 and Connetquot is about 6 miles long. 11. D 12. A - Suffolk County is also called America s Lighthouse County and Southold has more lighthouses than any other township in the US. 13. A- Natalie Portman was born in Jerusalem, Israel 14. Oheka Castle- built by Otto Kahn and is 109,000 square feet and has 127 rooms. T h e M e s s e n g e r Long Island Trivia 1. What is the name of the oldest lighthouse in the state of New York which was completed in 1796? 13. Which of the following celebrities was NOT born on Long Island? A. Natalie Portman B. Soledad O Brien C. Ralph Macchio D. Bob Costas 14. What is the second largest private residence built in the US and located on Long Island? 2. Charles Lindbergh took off on his historic flight from this Long Island field. 3. What is located on this Long Island field now? 4. Which race track is home to the third leg of the Triple Crown? 5. Long Island is the largest island in the world. A. 11th B. 67th C. 149th D. 310th 6. Long Island is populous than Ireland. A. More B. Less 7. Long Island is populous than Puerto Rico. A. More B. Less 8. The highest point in Suffolk County is: A. Jayne s Hill B. Bald Hill C. Cardiac Hill D. Telescope Hill 9. Which counties are located on Long Island? A. Kings B. Suffolk C. Queens D. All of the above 10. Which is the longest river in Nassau or Suffolk counties? A. Nissequogue B. Connetquot C. Peconic D. Carmen s 11. Long Island has had lighthouses built since A. 5 B. 10 C. 13 D Which county has the most lighthouses in the entire US? A. Suffolk B. Nassau C. Kings D. Queens Page 11

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