Chapel Bells St. Paul s U.C.C.-Erin August, 2018

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1 Chapel Bells St. Paul s U.C.C.-Erin August, 2018 Celebrating Life For it was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. ~Psalm 139:13-14 One of the many wonderful little gifts that Eva, Stephanie s mother and my mother-in-law, God bless and rest her soul, used to give every one of her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren on their birthdays was to personally call them on the phone and sing Happy Birthday. It was a small, but very special way to say I love you that no one in the family will ever forget. One of the simplest, yet most caring things we can do as a congregation is to remember and celebrate one another s birthdays. Birthdays are an opportunity to thank God for the precious gift of life each one of us has received, celebrate the friendships we share with one another as a community of faith, and say I love you and I care about you. As one of my favorite spiritual writers, Henri Nouwen, writes in Celebrating Life, Birthdays need to be celebrated. I think it is more important to celebrate a birthday than a successful exam, a promotion, or a victory. Because to celebrate a birthday means to say to someone: Thank you for being you. Celebrating a birthday is exalting life and being glad for it. On a birthday we do not say: Thanks for what you did, or said, or accomplished. No, we say: Thank you for being born and being among us. On birthdays we celebrate the present. We do not complain about what happened or speculate about what will happen, but we lift someone up and let everyone say: We love you. (from Mornings with Henri J.M. Nouwen) Remembering and celebrating one another s birthdays can also deepen our friendships and strengthen our community of faith. So, if you re looking for a very simple, easy spiritual discipline, try making a phone call, writing a card, sending an , text or FaceBook post to a member of our congregation on their birthday. And try sending a birthday greeting to not only the people you know, but someone you don t know like one of our new members, or one of our children, youth, or homebound members. You can find the birthdays of our members and friends on the church calendar at the end of every newsletter and in every Sunday bulletin. And if for some reason you find your birthday not listed, let me know and I ll make sure you re added to our b-day list. Let s celebrate the gift of life together! And don t be surprised if I call you sometime and sing Happy Birthday With Faith, Hope & Love, Glenn

2 Women s Guild Our July Guild meeting began with an especially tasty potluck lunch, probably due to all the fresh garden vegetables in the salads, hot dishes, and even a carrot cake decorated to honor Beulah Timm s 96 th birthday. School Partnership Forming In keeping with our ministry priorities of serving children and young families and hands-on outreach to our community, the Church Council has approved the development of a School Partnership ministry with Erin Elementary School. District Administrator Kieth Kriewaldt has approved this partnership and welcomes our members volunteering to support children, families, and teachers in numerous ways. We will be working with the District Volunteer Coordinator over the summer to identify ways that our congregation can volunteer beginning this fall. If you d like more information or would like to volunteer, contact Pastor Glenn or John Duwell for more information. Extending the Table August 5 We will be Extending the Table to our neighbors in need by collecting goods for area food pantries again on Communion Sunday, August 5. Here are the items currently most needed: juice (64 oz. bottles), jell-o, oatmeal, hamburger helper, pasta sides, easy mac & cheese, baking products, toothpaste, tooth brushes. Please try to remember to bring some food items for our local food pantries to church next Sunday as we reach out and care for our neighbors in need! Know of Someone in the Hospital? If you know of someone in our congregation who is currently hospitalized or would like a pastoral visit, please contact Pastor Glenn at SPPastor@yahoo.com or (414) We began discussing plans for this year s Homemade Bread and Soup Lunch and Bake Sale on September 15. The soups to be served this year are chicken noodle, stuffed green pepper, cheesy broccoli, and the vegetarian selection will be minestrone. Jill Paddock is in charge of volunteers, so if you are willing to cook up 12 quarts of soup (the recipes will be furnished) or can help out at the luncheon/bake sale, please see Jill. We also did a good bit of housekeeping and disposed of items no longer used to maximize our storage area and make supplies more accessible. Job well done, ladies! Our next Guild meeting will be Thursday, August 16, and all church women are welcome to join us. Our meetings begin with a potluck lunch at noon. Totes anyone? After clearing items from the Guild closets, we have some unused storage totes several sizes-- in the old furnace room for any church group that can use them.

3 August 18 Serving Day at Sussex Food Pantry We are responsible for providing a team of 4-5 people to serve at the Sussex Food Pantry from 9:30 am-12:00 pm on the 3rd Saturday of each month. Our next serving day is scheduled for Saturday, August 18 (friends are welcome, too!). Please sign up on the sheet in Fellowship Hall or let Pastor Glenn know if you are interested in serving. The Sussex Food Pantry is located in the new Sussex Civic Campus at N64 W23760 Main Street, Sussex, WI. Women s Guild Calling all SUPERHEROES!! Every Sunday starting on Sunday, September 9 th 2018 Meet During Worship All Children 4k thru 7 th grade Come learn about the Heroes In the Bible with us!! August Liturgist Schedule August 5: Stephanie Danz August 12: Jo Swanson August 19: Brett Miller August 26: Bernie Chase St Paul s Book Club meets on the last Thursday of the month. This month s book is The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper with Bernie Chase hosting We take turns hosting and serving dessert. We also have great discussions on the book we ve read. All are welcome to join us! September 15th is the date for our Soup and Bread and Bake sale event. We can use your help on that day and for baking some goodies for the bake sale. And for you and your family to come and enjoy some delicious soup. We are also having our second annual raffle, so if you and your group would like to make a basket or donate something, gift certificates from restaurants, gas stations, hair salons etc that would be great! Thanks for all of your support to St Paul s. And the Sun Shines On Our solar panels continue to perform well. Since the beginning of 2017 (about the time of our last update) the system has produced 10,300 kwh (the system has produced a total of 58,140 kwh from January 2012 through May of 2018). However, our utility usage since the beginning of 2017 has also increased, principally because Pastor Glen keeps more regular office hours at church, which requires more energy usage. Based on my rough estimates (which compares our historical electrical usage and inflation adjusted cost prior to the system's installation with our actual net costs) the system generated an energy savings to St. Paul's from 2012 through 2017 of just under $10,000 (an average of just under $1,700 per year). Assuming the system remains in good shape, is should take us only 4 more years to completely recover our initial investment in the system (just over $16,000). With a 25 to 30 year life expectancy, the hope is the system should pay for itself several times over. Brett Miller Senior Fellowship Games begin at 10:30 on August 7 th. Come enjoy the company!

4 Greeters for August: August 5 th - Bill & LouAnn Evert August 12 th Jill Paddock & Kathy Schlafer August 19 th Larry & Dawn Raether August 26 th Rachel Schuppel & Haleigh Yesko Cheryl Fischer W290 N9458 Deer Lane Colgate, WI (262) (home) (414) cfisc57755@aol.com Please remember with your prayers, cards, calls & visits: *The Truman family as Jeff continues to battle brain cancer *Sheila Anderson, recovering at home from pneumonia *Ron and Diane Smith, as Ron recovers from brain surgery Jean Sutter 242 St. Augustine Road Colgate, WI (262) (home) (262) (cell) jeansutter@gmail.com Joey Sutter 242 St. Augustine Road Colgate, WI (262) (home) (262) (cell) jsutter3773@gmail.com Elise & Keith Gothard 6463 Weis Street Allenton, WI (262) (Keith-cell) (262) (Elise-cell) elisesutter@gmail.com Machelle Stein & Tony Callen child: Louie Callen 112 Scenic Avenue Slinger, WI (414) (Machelle-cell) macy951.ms@gmail.com VBS Week 2018 Pastor Glenn s Contact Information & Schedule: Cell phone: (414) SPPastor@yahoo.com At the church office Monday-Wednesday: 9:00 am to noon Thursday: I work at home writing sermons and making calls Friday: Pastor s day off *Available other times by appointment just give me a call! **Schedule subject to change depending on evening meetings, weddings, funerals, SE UCC clergy meetings, etc.

5 St. Paul s UCC Church Council Meeting Minutes June 4, 2018 Attendance: Pastor Glenn Danz, John Duwell, Wanda Dieball, Adam Staus, Sue Miller, Jill Paddock, LouAnn Evert, Connie Johnson. Guest: Jack Duehring Absent: Eugene Dost 1) Opening prayer. 2) Building & Grounds Jack was present to give us updates on projects & discuss upcoming projects. 1) Painting project is done 2) Septic system has been pumped 3) Furnace/ Air conditioner has been checked & cleaned. Some issues found. The furnace will be checked more thoroughly as it is not working accurately. Possibly a bee/hornet nest is in the exhaust pipe. The 2 old furnaces may need a part that automatically shuts them off if there is an issue. The air conditioner needs some repairs. 4) Repair on sign room such as replacing door & frame, replace or repair soffit & fascia, gutter & down spout, etc. Plans to install a sidewalk from front steps to sign room to make it easier to access, especially in the winter. 5) Install a higher toilet in the unisex bathroom & grab bars in all bathrooms. 6) Discussion regarding possible new landscaping on south side of church & along lower parking lot. The dying elm tree in front will be removed by the town. 7) Getting bids for pew refinishing 8) Poor lighting over the serving table in fellowship hall will be accessed 9) Elevator inspection 3) Approval of minutes May minutes were reviewed and unanimously approved (LouAnn moved & Sue seconded) 4) Approval of financials The May financial statements were reviewed and unanimously approved. (Sue moved & Adam seconded). Discussion held regarding the solar panels & credits. We need someone to check the monthly bills to assure the solar panels are working efficiently & the church is getting the credits it should. Sue will ask Brett if he is willing to do this or train someone else to do this. 5) Pastor s report Written report presented and reviewed with Council. Report included May through June ministry highlights, upcoming events and prayer needs. A special Thank You to Jill, Betty, Jessica & Lynn for all their hard work in making Kay s celebration a huge success & so much fun!! We will have a new member s celebration & baptism on June 24 th. 6) Planning meeting June 23 rd from 8:30 11:30. We will try to find the building plans for the church expansion to discuss during this meeting. An informal discussion was held among some of the members regarding purging the storage areas to free up needed storage areas. This will be discussed further as how to proceed. 7) Membership Review Process Council reviewed the membership list & will make calls to those members we have not seen for a while. 8) Next Council Meeting Monday, July 9, pm. Motion to adjourn made by Sue, Jill seconded Submitted by Wanda Dieball

6 THE PARISH PAPER IDEAS AND INSIGHTS FOR ACTIVE CONGREGATIONS EDITORS: CYNTHIA WOOLEVER AND DANA HORRELL August 2018 Volume 26, Number 8 Copyright 2018 by Dana Horrell How to Raise Money for Your Community Projects A congregation s community project often starts with someone s idea or dream, followed by a plan designed by a core team, and then, a group of volunteers willing to roll up their sleeves and get to work. Yet how can this worthy work be sustained over time? Whether the project involves food, clothing, or housing assistance; counseling and job training; or organizing residents around an issue of local importance like the need for a community garden or more stop signs, at some point the program might require funding in order to continue. Plan for Sustainability In order to raise money effectively, leaders must develop a plan for future spending, that is, a budget. Some leaders prefer to build long-range planning into their thinking at the outset. The Reverend Constance Delzell, Rector at St. Andrew s Episcopal Church in Denver, decided to factor the necessity for funding into her dream of a children s ministry for the community. She describes waking from a dream, which she believes was divinely inspired, telling her that now was the time to take action on her wish to start an arts ministry. Based on this vision, she founded the Children s Center for Arts and Learning, a neighborhood ministry serving a low-income community in the city of Denver. From the beginning, she began developing a plan for sustainability. She thinks that many congregations often make a mistake by failing to plan for their project s financial future. Because St. Andrew s was small with few resources, she approached members of previous churches she had served whom she thought might be interested and who had financial means. Then a personal friend provided $10,000 in seed money over three years. At this point, she took some of the total received to hire a secretary and part-time grant writer. Thinking strategically helped the program move from vision to funding. 1 Beyond Grants As this example illustrates, individual giving plays an important role in fundraising efforts. In fact, a vast majority of funding for nonprofits originates from individuals, not foundations. In 2017, foundations provided only about 15% of all donations to U.S. nonprofits, while 72% originated with individuals. 2 With this in mind, leaders can keep their eyes on the prize by reaching out to both close ties and community members, letting foundations take a secondary role. Basing a budget strategy on individual gifts provides more stability than funding from foundations, whose priorities tend to change every few years. Joy Skjegstad, who advises churches on their community ministry programs, suggests starting with church members who already have the strongest connection with the project, including volunteers currently working in the program or previous volunteers. Meet with potential donors face to face and ask for a specific amount, following up with written materials (no more

7 than one or two pages long) that describe the project s activities, its mission, and various amounts that could be given. Make sure to follow up, which could be as simple as sending a brochure or program budget. Asking church members may be complicated by the fact that other appeals are being made at the same time of the year for some other worthy cause. Check with the pastor or staff to avoid inadvertently blindsiding other ministries. When possible, coordinate with others. Skjegstad tells of one scheduling conflict that required just such coordination. While working on the church staff, she sought to make a funding appeal for the nonprofit she directed, which had close ties to the church. Her group s appeal sought funding for a health clinic, tutoring, and a computer-training center. Yet at the same time, the church s food pantry was making a funding appeal for Christmas food baskets and the trustees had launched a drive to fund special fix-it projects. All three appeals happened at that prime time in the church s life the end of the year. After some discussion, the three groups decided to coordinate their appeals, making joint announcements from the pulpit three weeks in a row, and providing bulletin inserts with all three appeals listed together. 3 A Miracle Sunday Church leaders can take the idea of joint fundraising to a new level through planning a Miracle Sunday offering. The Miracle Sunday approach utilizes a strategy found in a variety of annual stewardship campaigns: an extensively planned campaign culminating in a single, celebratory event in which church members make their offerings at the Sunday worship service and tabulate the results that same day. As with other stewardship campaigns, Miracle Sunday relies on a team of people with strong financial giving records, a promotional campaign built up over a period of weeks (twelve weeks is recommended), and an explicitly stated and ambitious financial goal. However, unlike most stewardship campaigns, Miracle Sunday focuses not on the overall budget, but on one to three worthy causes, such as community projects, building improvement, or music or education that benefit church members. Another difference between Miracle Sunday and traditional stewardship campaigns is that donors are asked to give not from current income, but from their accumulated resources, such as savings, stocks, or from the sale of other valuable items such as cars, boats, or real estate. A Miracle Sunday campaign typically lasts about twelve weeks and takes place in the spring so as not to interfere with the fall stewardship campaign. The planning team sends four mailings spread over several weeks, holds two informational meetings, and makes a series of worship service announcements. No home visits are required. The goal for the Miracle Sunday is a single offering that exceeds anything the church has given before (hence the name, Miracle Sunday ). To make it most effective, set an ambitious goal, usually at least one-third of the church s annual budget. Herb Miller states, Miracle Sunday has raised an amount equal to between one-third and three times the size of the church s annual operating budget in countless congregations across the United States. He observes that congregations that experienced a budget shortfall in the previous year are surprised at the success of their Miracle Sunday campaign the following year, which may be due to the fact that contributions come from accumulated resources and may even represent a once-in-a-lifetime gift. For that reason, Miracle Sunday should not be relied on as a yearly event, but used sparingly. 4 Providing funds can help community engagement work grow and thrive. When projects reach a certain size, fundraising may provide an answer to previously insurmountable challenges such as maintaining volunteer involvement, acquiring needed equipment, or ensuring enough space to make it all work. While funding should never be considered an end in it itself, it can help keep the lights on, the bills paid, and the program thriving. Funding just might be the key to future success. 5 Do you have stories or comments to share about your church s experience with Herb Miller s Miracle Sunday? Please them to info@theparishpaper.com. 1. Linda-Marie Delloff, Public Offerings: Stories from the Front Lines of Community Ministry (Bethesda, MD: Alban, 2002), Giving USA 2017: Total Charitable Donations Rise to New High of $ Billion, 3. Joy F. Skjegstad, 7 Models for Community Ministry (Valley Forge, PA: Judson Press, 2013), Herb Miller, Planning and Leading a Miracle Sunday Campaign, Planning%20and%20Leading%20a%20Miracle%20Sunday%20 Campaign.pdf 5. Excerpted from Dana Horrell, Engaging the Community: Tools for Church Leaders (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, forthcoming). Copyright 2018 by dana horrell

8 August 2018 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat :30 am worship w/ communion + Extending the Table John & Lynn Duewell & Bill & LouAnn Evert s Anniversary 6 6 pm, Church Council mtg. 7 10:30 am Senior Group 8 Chelsea Dieball 9 Emma Staus Roy Kaisler Brett Miller Brady Weber 12 9:30 am Worship Cindy Cain 19 9:30 am worship w/ Rev. Howie Beutler- Cruise preaching Ari Miller 26 9:30 am Worship Tim Guetzke Chapel Bells items due 27 Marilyn Dieball Luke Truman Keith Gothard 15 Levi Jacklin 16 Women s Guild 12 Noon Ron Smith :30 am-12 noon, serving day at Sussex food pantry Tony Callen 25 Diane Smith