First United Methodist Church. 301 S. National, Fort Scott, KS (620)

Transcription

1 First United Methodist Church Newsletter MAY/JUNE, 2014 Volume 18, Number 5 & 6 Rev. Dr. Kenton D. Van, Pastor SUNDAY SCHOOL 9:30 WORSHIP SERVICE 10:30 Message from the Pastor Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ. This will be my last newsletter article to you. It has been good ministering with all of you. This congregation has a lot going for it. The emphasis on mission and outreach is excellent. Keep at it. That is the heart of our work as Christians. That is how we share the love of God with those around us. The Spirit of God is moving here in our congregation. Keep open to it. Keep listening with your hearts. When we came here you opened your hearts to us and welcomed us. Please do the same for the new pastor, Steve Cole. Show the Coles the love and warmth that we have come to know. Pray for them as they transition into this congregation and community. Please pray for us also as we transition into Leavenworth. God bless and keep you. God give you guidance and fill you with grace. God go before you to prepare the way. God go with you and keep you safe. May you have the presence of God to shine in your life all of your days. Grace and Peace, Ken Mission Statement The mission of the First United Methodist Church of Fort Scott, Kansas, is to share the good news of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and to exemplify the love of God by knowing Christ, growing in Christ, serving Christ and sharing Christ. First United Methodist Church 301 S. National, Fort Scott, KS (620)

2 Listed below are those who have received scholarships through the Memorials & Gifts Committee. These scholarships are made possible through the generous gifts of the Lucile and Livian Rogers family, the family of B. Irene Monday, and other individuals and families for whom higher education is of great importance. Paige Denton Hannah Tourtillott Katren Rienbolt Christopher Allen Karley Stark Jill Fritter Kyle Altic Kacie Brown Pierce Rienbolt Kori Page Rienbolt Jasmine Davis Nolan Stark Jennifer Carnes May Anniversaries: 7-Rick and Chris Comstock; 9-Chad and Lauren Ammons; 10-Todd and Jesse Foxx; 21-Jim and Susan Regan; 23- Reggie and Janet Fancher; 28- Randall and Cindy Hiatt. June Anniversaries: 2-Gary and Pam Brown; 4-Dean and Carolyn West, Randy and Karen Nichols; 5- Cameron and Megan Vincent; 6-Jim and Debbie Stevens; 9-Ron and Kathy Snyder; 14-Steve and Pat Harry; 18-Clayton and Melissa Tatro; 20-Steve and Susan Payne, Joe and Becky Tourtillott; 22-John and Betty Clayton, Curtis and Gloria Shankel; 23-Zack and Leslie Reynolds; 28-Carlyle and Maureen Dunshee; 29- Eric and Danette Popp. FINANCE COMMITTEE REPORT The Finance Committee would like to thank Tayton Majors, Steve Harry and Carol Majors for handling the recording and delivery of our church service broadcasts for April 6 th and April 20 th. KMDO radio airs the recordings at 1:00 p.m. on channel 1600 AM. Air dates for May will be the 4 th and 18 th. Next meeting date for the finance committee is May 20 th at 6:00 p.m. Feel free to call or the committee with questions, concerns or suggestions! Debra Wood phone or dlwood2@hotmail.com May Birthdays: 1-Virginia Stevens; 2-Carol Newcomer, Emily Braker; 3 Pauline Norris, Teresa Gregory; 4-Ottis Allen, Tom Braker, Ilyanna Knopp, Amari Berry; 6-Susan Payne; 7-Lindsey Walker; 8-Terri Heiser, Matt Foster, Garrett Tatro; 9-Blair Singh, Adam Reynolds; 11-Garrett Payne, Abby Altic; 12-Cindi Lipe, Evan Tatro; 14-Mary Wood, Joyce Allen, Jennifer Stevens, Darrick Green; 15- Dakota Hazelbaker, Keatyn Hunziker; 18-Jennifer Engle; 21-Ron Snyder, Ron Wood, Karleigh Arndt; 23-Toby Denning, Haley Kruse, Deb Anderson; 28-Emory Arnold; 31 Doug Hazelbaker. June Birthdays: 1-Keith Tucker; 2-Allen Warren; 3-Bryan Foxx, Beverley McBride; 4-Linda Hessong; 7-Libby Fennewald; 9-Steve Harry, Connie Van; 11-Allen Davis; 13- Shirley Culbertson; 14-Ainslee Magee; 15-Estalee Simpson; 16-Koyle Link, Millie Lipscomb, Megan Vincent; 17- Dee Ann Davis; 18-Kathryn Morrison, Ron Rains, Robert Wilson; 19-Karen Fremar; 20-Elisa Denning, Sean Durnal, Aubree Altic; 21-Ken Van, Monte Hall, Deb Norris; 22- Joan Cox; 24-Tracy Perry; 26-Dana Ballou; 28-John Staples, Kurt Pellegrino, DaLynn Schmidt, Evan Heiser; 30- Gabbi Majors.

3 Letters from the Mission Field As a fundraiser for this year's ASP Mission Trip, the team members are offering to send letters from the mission field. For a donation of $20.49 (the $.49 is for the postage stamp) the team members will send a letter to the donors from the ASP mission site. In the letters the team member will tell a little about the family they have met, the work they are doing, and the trip. In the space below please provide your name and mailing address so the team member will know where to send the letter. Include your donation of $20.49 with your name and address slip and put them together and return them to the church office on or before June 1. Thank you for your support of this project. Name Address THANK YOU Thank you to those who prepared and served the food for the Lenten luncheons served at First United Methodist Church. Also, thank you to our piano player. Your service during this time was appreciated. Summer Break is Coming- - - Last Meeting Dates Prior to Summer Break for: Reading Group - May 7 Fiber Fellowship - May 20 Quilts to Comfort - May 27 First Thursday Stitchers - May 1 Congratulations, Graduates! Chris Allen - Fort Scott High School Jasmine Davis - Fort Scott High School Kyle Perry - Fort Scott High School Katren Rienbolt - Fort Scott High School Tyler Slinkard - Fort Scott High School Kyle Atic - Fort Scott Community College May God continue to be with you in your future endeavors. We would like to extend our thanks to Rev. Ken Van and to the ladies of the church for the wonderful meal after the service. Your kindness and thoughtfulness was greatly appreciated. The family of Marilyn Carnes Watch the bulletin and newsletter in the fall for the dates when these groups will resume. First Great Plains United Methodist Annual Conference Rev. Van and Ron Wood will be attending the first Great Plains United Methodist Annual Conference scheduled for June 11-14, 2014 in Lincoln, NE. The theme will focus on growing vital, dynamic congregations. The guest speaker will be the Rev. Jorge Acevedo, who is the lead pastor at Grace United Methodist Church located in Southwest Florida. Acevedo will address growing both faithful and fruitful congregations.

4 July 7 July 10, :00-8:00 p.m. Volunteers needed Contact: Karen Cook or cook53@yahoo.com Jan Hedges or janstreck@yahoo.com Fun for the Family MINI HAM SANDWICHES Barbara Stuart Brown sugar deli ham (about 2 pkgs) Swiss cheese (about ½ slice folded in half per sandwich) King s Hawaiian rolls (12 per package) Sauce: 2/3 stick butter, ½ t poppy seed, 2 t Worcestershire sauce, 1 ½ t Dijon mustard, 1 t onion flakes. Melt butter, add other ingredients, remove from heat, let thicken. Slice rolls in half. Brush with sauce, stack ham and cheese as preferred. Baste top of sandwiches with remaining sauce. Place in 9x13 dish, sprayed with Pam. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for minutes. Items needed for VBS-16.9 oz. or 20 oz. (clear, if possible) plastic pop bottles, with lids. You may leave them in the office. First United Methodist Hour is scheduled to be broadcast on the local radio station, 1600 AM, from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. on the dates below. You can tune in to hear the Sunday morning worship services that are recorded live on these dates and then broadcast during the afternoon. May 4 and 18; June 1, 15 and 29; July 13 and 27; August 10 and 24.

5 Meet Rev. Ken and Connie Van Submitted by Jan Hedges Kenton D. Van was born at M.C.A.S. Cherry Point, North Carolina on June 21, 1951 to Edward and Josephine Williams. His parents were divorced and his mother married Arthur Van who adopted Ken and his sister. Connie Franks Van was born in Savannah, Tennessee to John and June Franks. She only lived in Tennessee a short time, growing up in California. She has a sister, Cheryl and two brothers, Wayne deceased, and John. Connie lived in California until she married Ken in1984. They came to Kansas and have never left. Growing up in a military family, Ken lived in eight states before he graduated from high school in Oceanside, California. He especially enjoyed vocal music in high school. He received a Bachelor of Arts from National University in San Diego in Interdisciplinary Studies, a Master of Divinity from St. Paul School of Theology and a Doctor of Ministry from Drew University. Connie attended Kindergarten through Grade 12 in San Bernardino, California. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Foods and Nutrition at California State Polytechnic University. She completed a year s internship in Glendale, CA to become a Registered Dietitian. Her career began in Big Bear, CA where she worked as the food services director for the hospital. Over the years she has worked as a clinical dietitian in nursing homes and hospitals, a consulting dietitian for nine years and most recently 11 years for the Kansas State Department of Education as a child nutrition consultant working with nutritional content of foods. Varied is the best word to describe Ken s career. His first job in high school was working in a bakery. His first full-time job was as a communications clerk for the FBI in San Diego. After a year he took military leave for a two-year tour of duty with the Marines as an intelligence analyst. When he returned, he worked for the FBI for another 1 ½ years. He then left the FBI and became a missionary for two years with the Latter Day Saints (LDS). This was followed by two years working for the Osmond family in security. Other security related and military jobs included: armed and unarmed security for the San Diego stadium, Sports Arena, LaCosta Country Club; intelligence analyst with an Army Reserves Psychological Operations unit; Camp Pendleton in the cash office for the Marine Corps Exchange. During this time he finished working on his Bachelor s degree. After his graduation from St. Paul School of Theology, Ken has spent 28 years full time ministry in Kansas. His appointments as a minister have included: Axtell & Vermillion, Hoyt & Elmont, Salem & Bushton, College Hill in Wichita as an Associate pastor, Elkhart, Cheney, Junction City and currently Fort Scott. He will begin his next appointment in Leavenworth beginning July 1, During this time he has also been a volunteer in fire and ambulance services. Appropriately, Ken and Connie met at a Methodist Church function at the School of Theology at Claremont. They were both taking a class provided for lay people. Ken s former pastor, Jim, in Oceanside, CA had moved to Big Bear, where Connie was living. Ken asked him if he had found him a young lady yet. Connie walked by and Jim introduced them to each other. When Ken returned home and shared this story with his mother and sister, they decided they needed to go to Big Bear and visit Jim. Much into matchmaking, Ken s family arranged for a picnic following the church service and invited Connie to come. When Connie announced she was going to be leaving for a 6-month missionary trip for training and travel in the Bahamas, Ken decided he needed to spend more time with Connie. They saw each other every weekend for the next 6 weeks and wrote while she was gone. When she returned from her trip he proposed to her. Since Ken was transferring from the School of Theology at Claremont to St. Paul School of Theology, they checked on the availability of married housing to determine when they should set the wedding date. They also had to take into consideration how long it would take them to drive to Kansas and get moved in before school started. They were married August 11, Continued on next page

6 Meet Rev. Ken and Connie Van - cont. Ken and Connie have two sons Kenton Derek Van, Jr. and Benjamin J. Van. Both boys graduated from Cheney High School in Cheney, KS. Derek has a Masters degree in International Relations and works in Topeka for the Department of Labor doing statistical analysis. Benjamin is currently attending the University of Michigan working on a degree in nuclear engineering. He spent four years in the Air Force and last summer went to Nepal to hike to the base of Mt. Everest. He almost made it to the base camp when he had food poisoning and had to be helicoptered out. Ken and Connie have been involved in many ways in the communities in which they have lived. Their hobbies include: Connie cooking, gardening and reading. Ken motorcycles, tropical fish and photography. Besides serving as pastor of the churches listed earlier, Ken has served on a variety of conference and district committees as well as the Conference Board of Ordained Ministry. Connie has taught Sunday school classes, helped with children s time, singing in the choir, volunteering with Feeding Families, Next Steps and the Education Committee. Connie lists the Ebb and Flow Sunday school class, singing a couple of solos (which she had not done before) and the Come to Jesus song from Vacation Bible school as special events or memories of the time at First Church. Ken listed Biker s Sundays and his favorite song is Be Thou my Vision. The hope they have for the church is to see God s love continue to grow in our hearts. They see signs of excitement and want it to continue to blossom and grow. Women s Banquet You are invited to attend the Women s Banquet on Thursday, May 8, 2014, at First United Methodist Church. 6:00 p.m. - Connie Conroy will cater the meal. Reservations are requested by noon, May 5, by calling Marla at or secretary@firstumcfsks.org Sponsored by the United Methodist Men. Know Christ, Grow in Christ, Serve Christ, Share Christ. The mission of the First United Methodist Church of Fort Scott, Kansas, is to share the good news of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and to exemplify the love of God by knowing Christ, growing in Christ, serving Christ and sharing Christ. What does this mission mean for you, for our church, for our community? From April 27 th through June 15 th explore with the Ebb & Flow Discussion Group how the mission given to Fort Scott First UMC can renew life. Join in the journey with friends, rethink your purpose for living, and find Christ in your life. When: Sunday mornings at 9:30 am. Where: 1 st floor of the Education Building (last classroom on the south end of the hall). Each session is self-contained. Bring questions, insights and/or friends. Questions? Contact Connie Van

7 May 2014 *Each Wednesday-9:00 to Noon-Work session at the church >5:30-7:00 p.m. (FFiHN) Feeding Families in His Name meal served in SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT ~3:00-5:00 T.A.S.K. ~4:00 First Thursday Stitchers- 5:30 Boyd/Bishop wedding rehearsal 6:30 Boyd/Bishop rehearsal dinner- 3:00 Boyd/Bishop wedding-fumc 4 ~Native American Ministries Sunday ~Graduate Sunday ~Reception in the mini-parlor between SS and church ~FUMC Praise Team ~ASP sandwich sales after worship ~5:30 Sunday Night Light- 5 RSVPs due by noon for Women s Banquet on May 8 6 9:00-Noon Fiber Fellowship-Parlor 7:00 SPRC meeting- Parlor 7 *Work Session ~10:30 F.S. Manor ~1:30 Reading Group- Parlor (last session until fall) ~3:30 Parlor is in use ~7:00 HOCROC meeting-parlor 8 3:00-5:00 T.A.S.K. 6:00 Women s Banquet ~Communion ~ASP Fundraising meal after worship - ~5:30 Sunday Night Light- 12 1:00 XYZ Club- 13 9:00-Noon Quilts to Comfort-Parlor 7:00 Board of Trustees meeting-parlor 7:00 VBS Planning meeting-ebb & Flow 14 *Work Session ~10:30 F.S. Manor ~3:30 Parlor is in use 15 3:00-5:00 T.A.S.K. Party at Gunn Park Quilt Dedication at worship ~2:00 Pat Harry s piano recital Reception following in mini-parlor ~5:30 Sunday Night Light :00-Noon Fiber Fellowship-Parlor (last session until fall) 6:00 Finance meeting- Parlor 21 *Work Session ~10:30 F.S. Manor ~6:00 Memorials & Gifts Committee meeting- Pastor s Study ~7:00 Administrative Board meeting-parlor 22 6:00 Next Steps meeting -Parlor ~5:30 Sunday Night Light- 26 Office Closed No XYZ Club today 27 9:00-Noon Quilts to Comfort-Parlor (last session until fall) 28 *Work Session ~10:30 F.S. Manor :00 Ballou/Midkiff wedding rehearsal 7:00 Rehearsal dinner- 31 2:00 Ballou/Midkiff wedding-fumc Dates, times and activities may change. Watch the bulletin for updates.

8 June 2014 *Each Wednesday-9:00 to Noon-Work session at the church >5:30-7:00 p.m. (FFiHN) Feeding Families in His Name meal served in SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT 1 ASP sandwich sales after worship ~1:30 Nursing Home Worship services beginning at Medicalodge 2 3 7:00 SPRC meeting- Parlor 4 *Work Session No F.S. Manor service Good Ol Days June ASP Mission Trip Van reserved June 7 through 14 8 Communion ~ASP Fundraising meal after worship - 9 1:00 XYZ Club *Work Session No F.S. Manor service 12 1:30 Miriam UMW-Parlor Great Plains United Methodist Annual Conference-Lincoln, NE June 11 through 14 ASP Mission Trip participants return *Work Session No F.S. Manor service Summer begins ~Peace with Justice Sunday ~Farewell reception for Rev. Ken and Connie Vanhosted by SPRC 22 Guest speaker 6:00 UMM Fish Fry at Warren s residence 23 July/August newsletter articles are due 1:00 XYZ Club- 24 7:00 Christian Education meeting-ebb & Flow 25 *Work Session No F.S. Manor service 26 6:00 Next Steps meeting -Parlor ASP Mission Sunday report during service 30 Dates, times and activities may change. Watch the bulletin for updates.

9 First United Methodist Church 301 South National Fort Scott, KS Return Service Requested Visit our website at The people of the United Methodist Church Open hearts Open minds Open doors Here s your May/June, 2014 Newsletter from. First United Methodist Church 301 South Fort Scott, KS Phone: (620) Fax: (620) pastor@firstumcfsks.org OR secretary@firstumcfsks.org Uniting for ministry through the Bourbon County Cooperative Parish Church Office Hours: 8:00 a.m.-noon and 1:00-3:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday 8:00 a.m.-noon Friday During June, July and August 8:00 a.m.-noon Monday through Friday