SPIRIT SONG. Falling Into the Fall Season A Message from Pearl Wilkinson District President. Pearl

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1 SPIRIT SONG United Methodist Women Connecticut & Western Massachusetts Falling Into the Fall Season A Message from Pearl Wilkinson District President As fall approaches, we see the deep green leaves vividly transform. These leaves will soon plunge gently to the earth as the chilly rains prepare the ground for God s creation to nourish and sustain us. The hymn writers Thomas Chisholm and William Runyan capture this sentiment of God s faithfulness through constant change. The second stanza and chorus of Great is Thy Faithfulness testifies: Summer and winter and springtime and harvest, sun, moon and stars in their courses above. Join with all nature in manifold witness to thy great faithfulness, mercy and love. Great is thy faithfulness! Great is thy faithfulness! Morning by morning new mercies I see; all I have needed thy hand hath provided. Great is thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me! Fall is reminiscent of coming together with family and friends. Fall brings around great opportunities for us to gather, plan, dream, and fellowship together. This season lets us find our new flow and testify to the goodness of God. Let s examine how we welcome women? Are we looking for ways of reaching diverse groups? What ways can we draw the circle wide to make our ministry attractive for more involvement? As we enjoy this fall with our sisters in faith, let s celebrate each other s ministries throughout the District. We want to know and celebrate the ministries of our United Methodist Women groups. Even if you do not have a formalized UMW unit, tell us what your women s ministry is doing to celebrate God s faithfulness. Maybe, this is the season to try something new! You may be interested in hosting a fun night out or a day away with a circle of women. Maybe a starting a book club, or having those hard conversations we tend to avoid. Does your church have craft projects, quilting, or scrapbooking that you want to share with us? If you are a woman trying to be a follower of Christ, while keeping the many other things going, know that you will fit in just fine with the United Methodist Women. We wear many hats both in the church and in our homes and communities. Although our responsibilities and roles vary, there is something really special that happens when the women gather in relationship with God and in partnership with each other. Won t you come join with us? The District UMW wants to be in partnership with you. Servanthood@Work, Pearl Faith, Hope and Love in Action 1

2 FALL MEETING 2016 TURNING FAITH, HOPE AND LOVE INTO ACTION SEPT a.m.-3 p.m. Crystal Lake Community Church 278 Sandy Beach Road Ellington, CT Registration Deadline Sept. 12 Cost: $12, lunch included Register by mail: Use form below Make check out to: CT- WMass District UMW Mail to: District UMW Treasurer Elaine Folkers, c/o Hazardville UMC, 330 Hazard Ave., Enfield, CT Register by phone or Linda O Connell, umw.ct.wma@gmail.com, Fall Meeting Name(s) Church/Town and or Phone I / we need special accommodations: I / we have special dietary needs: I / we need child care * yes no Name/Ages of children *PLEASE NOTE: Children must be pre-registered by the deadline (May 1). If there are no registrations requesting childcare at that time, the caretakers will be released from responsibility. Faith, Hope and Love in Action 2

3 Through your support of United Methodist Women, you along with 800,000 other women across the world collectively make a huge impact on the lives of other struggling and un-empowered women, youth and children. UMW relies on our annual support to maintain these programs that are so vital to the underserved and vulnerable women of the world. What if your annual pledge were able to be made to UMW for eternity? How happy could that make you? It s possible and easy to do. The 150 th Legacy Fund, an endowed fund that already exists at the national office, is the tool to achieve the goal. From 2015 to 2019, all United Methodist Women members are invited to participate in an organization-wide campaign to grow the Legacy Fund. When the campaign is finished, interest generated by the Legacy Fund will permanently support the work of United Methodist Women. Here are a couple of examples of how you can make this happen: To Donate by Check: United Methodist Women 475 Riverside Drive 15th Floor-Finance New York, NY To Donate Online: women.org/legacyfund To Donate By Phone: am - 6pm YOU YOUR ANNUALGIFT 150 th LEGACY FUND GIFT: THE AMOUNT NEEDED TO ENSURE YOUR CURRENT GIFT TO UMW FOREVER Marita gives $150 annually X 20 = $3,000 Sally gives $520 annually X 20 = $10,400 This Legacy Fund amount will fund Marita s annual gift to UMW in perpetuity This Legacy Fund amount will fund Sally s annual gift to UMW in perpetuity For many women making this kind of a gift may not feel like a wise decision when they don t know how long they will live and whether or not they might need the resources during their lifetime. This is where a planned gift may be the most sensible way to guarantee that UMW is able to receive your support year after year. Various options exist for any woman who wants to create a thoughtful financial plan that distributes her assets the way she wants and leaves a legacy of love and caring for her family and for United Methodist Women. The two easiest ways to make a planned gift is to 1) add UMW to your will or 2) make UMW a beneficiary on a life insurance policy. Annuities and more complex planned gifts are options that come with tax advantages. We recommend you consult a tax or financial advisor for more guidance. Suggestions for Action Collaborate with our New England Conference Legacy Fund coordinators on fundraising efforts. Make gifts to the Legacy Fund in honor or in memory of United Methodist Women leaders. Name United Methodist Women and the Legacy Fund in your estate plans. New England Conference 150 th Legacy Fund Team Linda Reiber, Chair* Fay Flanary Leeda Marsh Marie MacDougall Roxie Pin Peggy Swett llreiber@aol.com ms.fay@juno.com leedam@aol.com macdome@juno.com roxiepin@gmail.com, peggyliz@roadrunner.com * If you don t have , please call Linda s cell: Faith, Hope and Love in Action 3

4 A Guide to UMW Mission and Supplementary Gifts United Methodist Women members have been turning faith, hope and love into action on behalf of women, children and youth around the world for over one hundred and forty years. There are two categories for our gifts. Mission Giving When a unit of the United Methodist Women contributes to each of these five categories it receives a Five-Star Mission Giving Certificate. UMW has five channels of Mission Giving. They are: 1. Pledge to Mission The largest channel of Mission Giving. 2. Special Mission Recognition Recognition of honoring someone working in mission. There are several categories of pins. 3. Gift to Mission Cards for special occasions. 4. Gift in Memory Honoring a deceased loved one. 5. World Thank Offering Given in celebration of blessings. Supplementary Gifts Supplementary Gifts includes contributions to specific projects such as Cooper Community Center in Boston, UMCOR, Assembly, Scholarships. This category is often called designated gifts since specific projects are identified. How to Submit Mission Giving and Supplementary Gifts Local treasurers collect contributions and forward them to the CT/WMA District Treasurer. Contributions are recorded and forwarded to the NEUMC UMW Conference Treasurer. Remittance forms will be available at our 2016 Fall District Meeting on September 17. They also can be downloaded from or requested from the district treasurer by . Available as hard copy or *.PDF file. Submit unit contributions by Thanksgiving if possible. Send your checks to: Elaine A. Folkers, UMW District Treasurer Hazardville United Methodist Church CONTACT: eafolkers@snet.net Please put CT/WMA UMW in the subject line Faith, Hope and Love in Action 4

5 Enjoy the 2017 Reading Program Lois Harris Program Resources Want a book that is not only interesting but also will give you something to think about and learn from? The books for the 2017 Reading Program are now available, and we should have most of them for sale. You can find the list and a brief description of each book at Click on Reading Program under CATALOG on the left. Reading Certificates Level 1: Read 1 book in each of the 5 categories: Education for Mission, Social Action, Nurturing for Community, Spiritual Growth, and Leadership Development. Level 2: Read 2 books in each category Level 3: Read 2 books in each category plus 5 others of your choice for a total of 15 books Level 4: Read 2 books in each category plus 10 others for a total of 20 books. Any books from years count. Books can be purchased at the Sept. 17 District meeting or online. You also might find them in your local library, at used book sales or web sites. Send Your 2016 List To receive your 2016 certificate at the next Spring Meeting, please send your list of book read to bentonlady@yahoo.com, call me at , or mail me at 9 Laurence Lane, East Longmeadow, MA Your Conn./W. Mass District Team President W. Pearl Wilkinson 155 Aldrew Terrace Springfield, MA gem155@yahoo.com Secretary Theda Cornbower 53 Old Farm Rd East Longmeadow, MA theda737@gmail.com Program Resources Lois Harris 9 Laurence Ln East Longmeadow, MA bentonlady@yahoo.com Social Action Committee Linda Matys O Connell, chair 2 Veterans Way Springfield, MA lmoconnell@gmail.com Carol Caulton 63 Navajo Road Springfield, MA ccaulton@comcast.net UMW Mission Focus Out of the UMW Purpose are four mission foci that relate to the mission initiatives and priorities of United Methodist Women. To be a community of women To know God To develop a creative and supportive fellowship To expand concepts of mission Treasurer Elaine A. Folkers c/o Hazardville UMC 330 Hazard Avenue Enfield, CT eafolkers@snet.net Nominations Roxie Pin 21 Montgomery Rd Huntington, MA roxiepin@gmail.com Church Women United Liaison Marian White 29 Bacon Road Springfield, MA Elizabeth Glenn 664 Roosevelt Ave Springfield, MA elizabetglenn664@comcast.net Shereese Kelly 15 White Birch Drive Springfield, MA lejh477@hotmail.com Faith, Hope and Love in Action 5

6 There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male or females; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:28 UMW CT/WMA Spirit Song Newsletter 2 Veterans Way, Springfield, MA Faith, Hope and Love in action 6