Mission Matters. South West District UMW Newsletter August Inside this issue:

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1 South West District UMW Newsletter August 2018 Mission Matters Inside this issue: President s Message Dear UMW Sisters, I hope that you are looking forward to our District Annual Gathering this year and are enthusiastically inviting others to attend with you. Our theme this year, Sacred Spaces: Encounters with God and Neighbor is an invitation to see and honor the image of God imprinted upon each of us and particularly on the other. It is an opportunity to consider what makes a space holy or sacred. If we believe God has created all things and is present with us wherever we go, sacredness cannot be a product of God s presence alone. Sacredness is manifest when we recognize God s presence among us, see God in the people we meet and utilize the power of the Holy Spirit in the tasks and mission we undertake. We are celebrating sacred spaces as we collect our ingathering for The Playing Field childcare center. We are upholding sacred connections as we give our offering and make our unit pledges for our Pledge to Mission which supports our work of faith, hope and love for women, children and youth around the world. We are reaching out to our sacred neighbors as we continue to advocate for social, racial and environmental justice. We know God is already doing the work of making all things new. It is our turn to embrace our holy work of being co-creators with God of new sacred spaces redeemed by God s love and ours. Laura Pfeffer, pfeffer.umw@gmail.com South West District President President s message 1 SW District Officers 2-3 Memorial form 3 Deaconess calling 4 Judy Vasby Conference Historian 4 Milk Moola 5 Northcott Needs You 5 Unit Leadership form 6-7 Cindy Morse-reading program 7, 21 On a Way Forward 8 Unit pledge form 9 SW District Day of Enrichment 10 WI Conference Annual Gathering SW District Annual Gathering Playing Wish list 14 Mission Today Tasks Charlene Mingst, Social Action Coordinator 17 Standing Rules Revisions Reading Report form 21 Vice Pres. Message Calendar 24 1

2 2019 South West District UMW Officers Kay Putman President Laura Pfeffer W10132 Koltes Rd. Lodi, WI (C) Continuing term expires 2019 Vice President Kathy Maldegen 4314 Nakoma Rd.#2 Madison, WI nd term expires 2020 Secretary OPEN Treasurer Lisa King W615 Riverview Ct. Fall River, WI nd term expires 2020 Communication Coordinator Becky Yager Co. Rd. K Lancaster, WI (C) byager@chorus.net 2 nd term expires 2020 Program Resources Cindy Morse W770 Hwy. K Arlington, WI ccynmorse@aol.com Continuing term expires 2019 Spiritual Growth Coordinator OPEN Membership, Nurture, and Outreach Coordinator Nancy Beilke 305 Cheyenne Ct. DeForest, WI Continuing term expires 2019 Social Action Coordinator Charlene Mingst 622 W. Merrimac St. Dodgeville, WI jcmingst@mhtc.net Continuing term expires 2019 Education and Interpretation Coordinator Eileen Bennett 332 W. Prairie St. Columbus, WI bennettpesl@charter.net 2 nd term expires 2020 Nominations Chair Nominations Kay Putman 215 Water St. #205 Lodi, WI Pat Gallus 567 Main St. Merrimac, WI No ptgallus@gmail.com Continuing Term expires 2018 On committee until 2019 Continuing Term expires

3 Nominations Mary Friederich th St. Brodhead, WI org Continuing term expires 2020 Nominations Kathy Radcliff E11324 Hillman Rd. Baraboo, WI No Continuing term expires 2020 Nominations Martha Boyer 4638 Cty. Hwy. Z Dodgeville, WI (C) marta@mhtc.net Continuing term expires 2021 Nominations Donna Fae Krause S6350 St. Hwy. 23S Loganville, WI No Continuing term expires 2021 Historian Open Northcott Representative Carol Lange 625 N. 4 th St. Platteville, WI langec@uwplatt.edu Continuing term expires 2021 Young Women s Representative OPEN District Superintendent Rev. Scott Carlson 750 Windsor St. #106 Sun Prairie, WI scottcarlson@wisconsinumc.org 3

4 DEACONESS CALLING Hi, I am a deaconess, and I m calling YOU to become one, too. Are you feeling restless in your spiritual life? In your work life? Are you feeling a need to go deeper in your commitment to God? Do you want to work for the Lord, but not become a pastor? I so, that could be a call from God to become a deaconess! HISTORY STARTS NOW! A deaconess is a lay woman called by God to serve God by serving others. With her faith at the core, she takes her vocational training (job) into the community and show God s love through her words and actions. She may be a teacher, a nurse, an accountant, a fire fighter, a photographer, a flower shop owner, or any number of things. Almost any vocation can qualify as long as there are elements of love, justice, and service, and as long as the woman has a deep relationship with God. If you are feeling the call, I will be happy to talk with you further about the process of becoming a deaconess. Contact me at vasby.umw@gmail.com Cell: Blessings- Judy Vasby Wisconsin s only active deaconess PS. I can do programs for units, circles, or churches. I just ask for help to cover travel costs. 4 To all unit secretaries the work you do in keeping minutes of meetings is vitally important. Not only do the minutes keep your unit on track month by month, but they inform the future members about what was important to you in their past. Minutes connect the present to the future and today s women to those who came before. Be sure to include full names in your minutes. In twenty years, or even in five, the last names of Henrietta and Shirley could be lost from memory and their connection to other unit or church members gone. While their contributions still will be recognized, their full personhood will be diminished when last names are left out. In celebration of 150 years of Methodist women s mission work, I challenge you to go back to minutes from a meeting 15 or 20 years ago, or longer, and read them at a unit meeting. (Your local historian should know where to find them, but if you don t have an historian, it is YOUR duty to fill that position.) Enjoy the warm connection you feel with your sisters who came before you. Appreciate the Legacy they have left you. Contemplate what your unit is passing on to the future members. Remember history starts now! Judy Vasby Conference UMW Historian vasby.umw@gmail.com Cell:

5 NORTHCOTT NEEDS YOU Northcott Neighborhood House in Milwaukee came into being through the efforts of Methodist women who were taking the census in 1960 in a low income area of Milwaukee and saw great need. Through the efforts of East Wisconsin Methodist Women, in 1961 a ministry was started in that neighborhood. MILK MOOLA and YOU! Yeah! With your help, Harbor House Shelters recently received a check for $ That represents 3,126 caps and milk bag slips that YOU collected. Kwik Trip has taken over all the PDQ gas stations, which means that Milk Moola caps and plastic bag tops are available all over Wisconsin! So stop in when you drive by and get some milk or orange juice in sizes single-serve through gallon. Save the bottle caps and bag slips for UMW. We count them up and send them in for redemption at 5-cents each. Please bring them to all district and conference UMW events. District Coordinators for Education and Interpretation will see that I receive your contributions. Or, another way is to send them with your church s representative to Annual Conference. There is a collection box at the Harbor House display. Don t forget to rinse off your caps and slips before sending. Some have arrived smelling of sour milk or sticky with orange juice. Also, be sure you send only Milk Moola items. They say Milk Moola 5 or have a cow face. We DO NOT take Kemps, Prairie Farm, or any other brand of milk caps. Also, the bag slips need to be carefully cut along the scissors marked cutting line. Some slips have arrived with only the 5-cents circles and not the whole line, which includes the words Nature s Touch. Kwik Trip will not accept those circles, so we lose 5-cents each time someone cuts them out. Harbor House has a large need for funds to keep their programs operating to help homeless women and children. Please encourage your church members, neighbors, relatives, and co-workers to save Kwik Trip caps and bag slips for this good cause. Got Milk? Milk Moola, that is. Judy Vasby Moola Coordinator gmail.com Cell: The day before Assembly began, I attended a meeting in Columbus, OH, of representatives from all the UMW National Mission Institutions. There are about 100 NMIs. The meeting was part of our national Legacy celebration, acknowledging our UMW history. Northcott is one of them. As such, it has a relationship with United Methodist Women across the nation, but more so with the units in Wisconsin. It does not matter where you live, Northcott Neighborhood House is part of your mission work. Northcott currently is in need of financial assistance. During this past year, several furnaces have failed and needed to be replaced. While grants have paid for some of the cost, there still is need. Please consider sending a donation to Northcott Neigborhood House as soon as possible. Send it to your district treasurer, who will send it to the Conference treasurer, and then on to the national UMW treasurer, who will send the money to Northcott. We ask you to do it this way, rather than directly to Northcott, in order to show the national office that we are undergirding our own National Mission Institution. In this way, we will see what a big difference we can make collectively across our Conference. I will update you periodically on our total giving and Northcott s needs and success stories. Judy Vasby Conference Historian with special assignment to Northcott vasby.umw@gmail.com Cell:

6 2019 Local Unit Elected Leadership Local Church: Address: City: Pastor(s): Zip Code: Church Phone: Instructions: Please print or type the information requested in the blanks provided. Include telephone number(s) with area codes and addresses if available. Add additional pages as needed (if you have co-leaders for a position). Please provide all requested information even if your officer list has not changed. Note: The Conference is requesting two contacts to be designated as contacts to whom information can be sent. These people do not need to be officers but must agree to pass along information to the officers and members. Complete and return form by October 1st, 2018 to: Becky Yager, Communications Coordinator South West District Cty Rd K Lancaster, WI (cell) byager@chorus.net Contact #1: Name: Contact #2: Name: President: Name: Phone Number: Address: City/State: Zip Code: Vice President: Name: Phone Number: Address: City/State: Zip Code: Secretary: Name: Phone Number: Address: City/State: Zip Code: Treasurer: Name: Phone Number: Address: City/State: Zip Code: Continued on page 7 6

7 Mission Coordinator for Spiritual Growth: Name: Phone Number: Address: City/State: Zip Code: Mission Coordinator for Membership Nurture and Outreach: Name: Phone Number: Address: City/State: Zip Code: Mission Coordinator for Social Action: Name: Phone Number: Address: City/State: Zip Code: Mission Coordinator for Education and Interpretation: Name: Phone Number: Address: City/State: Zip Code: Secretary for Program Resources: Name: Phone Number: Address: City/State: Zip Code: Committee on Nominations, Chair: Name: Phone Number: Address: City/State: Zip Code: Cindy Morse Program Resource Coordinator Reading Program Time to report on our reading for the year. The due date will be Sept 5, Please list all books read in the past year. Remember we can count the children s books you have read. The interesting books we have sold out of are 59 Things Every Woman Should Know, America's Greatest Sin and The Book of Joy. We are learning a lot about covenants with the earth and what to do with money at Mission U. I was overjoyed to take my granddaughter to Mission u this year & we had a good time. See you all at Annual meeting on Sept 22 at Bethany UMC in Madison. Please fill out the form on page 21 and return it to : Cindy Morse W770 Hwy. K Arlington, WI Or ccynmorse@aol.com 7

8 UPDATE FOR UMW ON A WAY FORWARD Mary Lainberger and I presented information and a brief conversation about A Way Forward at Mission u-four Day event. So what is A Way Forward all about? It is about the future of the United Methodist denomination! Specifically it concerns language in The Book of Discipline about human sexuality. The Book of Discipline says that while all people are of sacred worth, the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching. The book bans the ordination of self-avowed practicing gay clergy and the blessing of samegender unions. However, some individual pastors and conferences regional units of the church publicly disregard those policies. The Commission on A Way Forward has been working since our 2016 General Conference to present information about possible ways forward to our Council of Bishops. The Commission has completed its work. A Special Session of the General Conference will be held February 23-26, 2019 in St. Louis where our General Conference delegates will vote on the three plans that will come before them. The three plans are the Traditional Plan, the One Church plan and the Connectional Conference Plan. A majority of the Council of Bishops recommended the One Church Plan. Translations of the plans into the 4 working languages of our worldwide church have been released and are available online. In October 2018 our United Methodist Judicial Council will rule on the constitutionality of the three plans. Go to for more information about the three plans. Our General Conference delegates are planning listening sessions in our 5 districts from September through November. Please see more Information from Bishop Hee- Soo Jung and the listening schedule on the Wisconsin Conference website. For more information about scheduling a conversation with your UMW unit please contact Mary Lainberger or me. YOUR VOICES ARE IMPORTANT. UMW has a long history of being at the forefront of important issues of the Church. This one is about PEOPLE--ALL GOD S PEOPLE! Mary Lainberger, National UMW Program Advisory Group ; or mlainberger@charter.net Sue Plasterer, Conference UMW Membership Nurture and Outreach Coordinator ; or seplasterer@charter.net See you September 22 at Bethany UMC in Madison and at our Conference Annual Gathering in October in Waukesha. Listening sessions link attend-listening-sessions-for-2019-general-conference Biship Hee-Soo Jung link 8

9 "Here is your Unit Pledge to Mission Form for Please bring this with you to our district Annual Gathering on September 22nd. If no one from your unit is able to attend, please mail your form to Lisa King, South West District UMW Treasurer, W615 Riverview St., Fall River, WI or to 9

10 Southwest District Day of Enrichment Sacred Spaces of Community At Lodi UMC, 130 Locust St, Lodi, Wisconsin On November 10, 2018 Registration begins at 8:30 AM. The program begins at 9:15 AM. Registration forms will be available at the Southwest District Annual Gathering. Your registration includes morning refreshments, luncheon and all materials used for preparation of this event. (We will provide child care, but because of dietary needs and food choices we request that parents bring lunch for their children.) Directions to Lodi UMC: From I-39N/I-90W to I-94W exit 97B, then to WI- 60 exit 119 toward Lodi. In Lodi, turn right onto N Main St/WI-113 then take 2 nd left onto Locust St. 10

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14 Annual Gathering Mission Project Bethany UMC has chosen The Playing Field childcare center as our Mission Project for the annual gathering. The Playing Field wish list can be googled on Amazon. It's easy to get to with many toys and craft things listed. If you wish to donate to the wish list, you can visit The Playing Field on line and click on wish list to see the items they most need. Or you can plan to use a check to donate, using Bethany UMC as the payee with The Playing Field on the memo line. 14

15 WISCONSIN CONFERENCE UMW Southwest District MISSION TODAY TASKS To become a Mission Today organization, please complete two (2) criteria from each category. Please try at least one (1) new criterion each year and report back using the form on the back. F A I T H H O P E United Methodist Women shall be a community of women whose PURPOSE is to know God 1. Plan programs that encourage spiritual growth. (Program book, response magazine, etc.) 2. Create prayer partners with other church groups. 3. Pray using the Prayer Calendar at meetings. 4. Organize the spiritual growth study from Mission u, possibly several evenings/ weeks. to experience freedom as whole persons through Jesus Christ; 1. Take advantage of opportunities thru UMW such as Mission u, Spiritual Growth Retreats, Annual Gatherings, Mission Action Day. 2. Set aside a time to go over the year s plans using Mission Today Mission Tasks. 3. Implement the Charter for Racial Justice program. 4. Present a mission study from Mission u, inviting church members. L O V E to develop a creative, supportive fellowship; 1. Honor the organization s leaders and member s contributions with Special Mission Recognition pins. Don t forget community leaders. 2. Encourage everyone to visit or invite visitors to/from other local UMW organizations. 3. Publicize your events using newsletters, bulletin boards, Sunday bulletins, social media, phone calls, etc. 4. Plan a year end program to give thanks and celebrate your accomplishments. I N A C T I O N and to expand concepts of mission through participation in the global ministries of the church. 1. Encourage all members to participate in the Pledge for Mission; give reports on where the money goes. 2. Involve all members in fundraising (think creatively). 3. Contribute to scholarships (UMW related) and Mission u. ($25.00 or more). 4. Partner with a mission institution such as Northcott, or Wisconsin Conference supported Harbor House, United Methodist Children's Services of Wisconsin, etc. 15

16 Mission Today Local Unit Report Form Year: Presidents of All Local Units, please complete the form below even though you may not qualify as a Mission Today unit. Refer any Questions to your District Team. Return this form by Dec 1st to your District Education and Interpretation Coordinator. Any criteria that are not currently listed but would fit in one of the categories can be included in the unit reports. Name of Church: Your Name: Your Address: Home phone: Cell Phone: Criteria Completed (Circle the numbers completed) *Any criteria that are not currently listed but would fit in one of the categories can be included in the unit reports Faith Hope Love In Action Report any new criteria tried this year: Comments: Send to: Eileen Bennett, 332 W. Prairie St., Columbus, WI

17 UMW Assembly, November Elections, Economic Inequality Charlene Mingst, S.W. District Social Action Coordinator On May 18-20, 2018, I was lucky to be one of about 6,000 or so United Methodist Women (90 from Wisconsin) that attended the 2018 UMW Assembly in Columbus, Ohio. I had never really thought about attending this event before last fall, when I was urged to register at our Annual Gathering in Waukesha. I am so glad that I was able to experience this event! Just as attending my first UMW Annual Conference a number of years ago opened my eyes to the scope of our organization in WI, now I have seen the larger picture of the influence and the difference that the work of United Methodist Women makes throughout the U.S. and the world. The keynote speakers were: Leymah Gbowee, Nobel Peace Prize winner from Liberia; Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow ; and Marian Wright Edelman, of the Children s Defense Fund. They and other speakers, panelists and workshop leaders truly exemplify The Power of Bold the theme of this year s event. Through our work in our local units and within our district and conference UMW events, we all can do our part to be Bold Women and fulfill the vision of UMW to turn faith, hope, and love into action on behalf of women, children, and youth around the world. One of the ways to use our influence is to vote in the elections this November. Although 2018 is not a presidential election year, there are many other races coming up at the federal, state and local level. There are resources available on our UMW Website that you might want to consider using as an individual or in a group situation in regard to these elections. Items you can download include a 2018 Candidate Checklist: A Questionnaire for Candidates Seeking Election. Within this document are questions that will help you decide whether your candidate is committed to attaining equality, justice and fairness for those in society who are often left at a disadvantage. Another item available to download is the United Methodist Women 2018 Voters Rights Toolkit; the purpose of this information is to protect the voting rights of everyone. According to the action alert The state elections will impact the redistricting that comes after the 2020 U.S. Census. In many instances, it will be governors and state legislators who draw new boundaries for state legislative and congressional districts. Over 300 federal programs, worth over $600 billion dollars, use census-generated figures to decide the allocation of federal funds. One of the four priority issues of United Methodist Women is Economic Inequality. While at Assembly I attended a workshop facilitated by Carol Barton who is on staff at the National Office of UMW. The topic of her workshop was Everyone Has the Right to a Living Wage. At the beginning of her presentation she gave examples of scripture from both the Old and New Testament that point to the biblical basis for working for this cause. (See Isaiah 61:1,2 and Luke 4: 18,19). Please read the article in the June, 2018 issue of response magazine titled: Everyone Deserves a Living Wage also written by the same Carol Barton. The first paragraph of this article is an eye opener as to how difficult it is to try to support a family while earning the federal minimum hourly wage of $7.25 a rate that has not been raised since She also points out that this minimum wage is often overlooked as in the tipped worker s minimum of $2.13 an hour, or how workers in restaurants and retail are not allowed to work a full 40 hours a week; also known as wage theft. Go to the United Methodist Women Economic Inequality web page for program resources or join the UMW Inequality Initiative Facebook community or ongoing information or read the mission study, What About Our Money? A Faith Response. In closing, let me leave you with this quote: (source unknown) My vote is my voice and the voice of all who have struggled, so that I may have my voice. 17

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23 Continued from page 22 Submitted by Kathlyn S. Maldegen Vice President, South West District Cell:

24 South West District UMW Becky Yager, Communicatons Coordinator Co. Rd. K Lancaster, WI byager@chorus.net PLEASE PLACE STAMP HERE August 18 Sept. 1 Sept. 7 Sept 22 Oct. 1 Oct. 6 Oct Nov. 10 Dec. 9 Calendar District Team Meeting Bethany UMC Reading Lists due Memorial forms due to Laura Annual Gathering at Bethany UMC Officer List Forms due Mission Matters articles due Wisconsin Annual Gathering Day of Enrichment Lodi UMC District Team Meeting and Christmas party 24