SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT REGARDING COMMUNICATIONS. To our faithful members and guests of Seymour UMC

Transcription

1 Seymour United Methodist Church Jason Gattis, Pastor February 2017 SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT REGARDING COMMUNICATIONS To our faithful members and guests of Seymour UMC Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! I write this letter to both offer an apology and begin a process of improved communication throughout our beloved congregation. First, I want to sincerely apologize to any who arrived for worship on Sunday, January 8, and found that services had been cancelled. Your safety and well being was compromised and went against the very reasoning for cancelling these services. Arriving to find you had not been notified was frustrating. I pray you were able to find your way home safely and if you would like to speak with me in person know that my door is always open. In an effort to assure all receive critical information, I am implementing an immediate restructuring of our communication channels. In today s age, communication is a lofty challenge for churches and organizations. In previous years, our phone tree was a wonderful means of communication. However, since phone numbers are changing on a regular basis with the movement from land lines to cell phones, it is not financially feasible to spend the thousands of dollars it would take to upgrade the phone tree system to meet today s operating systems. Since then we have tried to send information through other means without great success mostly because a process has never been established. Moving forward, our communications will take place through three channels. SOCIAL MEDIA Social media serves to be the fastest method to send and receive information. I want to encourage you to connect to one or all of our church social media channels via Facebook page (Seymour United Methodist Church), Twitter handle (@seymourumc), or Instagram feed (umcseymour). So as to be better connected to the community we serve, we moved away from the Facebook group to the Facebook page a few years ago but kept the group open for minor reasons. Having our people effectively informed is a higher priority so we will be discontinuing our Facebook group and moving all communication on Facebook through our page. Social media serves to be the fastest & TEXT method to send and I understand that social media is still very foreign to many people. If you are not on social media we will also be receive information. utilizing a mass and text notification system. In order for this to be effective it is vitally important that we have correct contact information. Over the next few weeks we will have Contact Information cards available for you to fill out during worship. I am asking that everyone complete these cards even if you know we have your information. This communication channel will also allow a simpler way to send out such things as prayer requests and funeral notifications. We are exploring mass text & providers and will have one up and running by the time we receive your contact information. WEBSITE & LOCAL NEWS All emergency information distributed through the aforementioned channels will also be updated on our website at and given to our three Knoxville television news affiliates (NBC WBIR, CBS WVLT, ABC WATE). Critical news will be found at a prominent location on the main page of our website. In regard to inclement weather and cancellations, we will send out information as soon as we can, but no later than one hour before the scheduled event. Our Parents Day Out program will continue to coincide with Sevier County School closings. Wednesday evening programming, Recovery, and Sunday morning worship will be determined on a case by case scenario. All emergency information distributed through the before mentioned channels will also be updated on our website at Again, I apologize for our past efforts in getting information to you. Thank you, as always, for your support, involvement, and service. As your pastor I look forward to an improved way of communicating with you. Grace & Peace,

2 Upcoming.... Please register on the church website. Page 2

3 Our next GriefShare group will begin Wednesday, February 15. Soul Sisters Soul Sisters is doing something different this month and we hope you will join us. We will meet Tuesday, February 7, at CROSS on Boyd's Creek in Seymour from 6:30 to 8:30 pm. We will be working with Gert Showers to help set up the CROSS store that is opening. There will be no meal, so please eat before you come. Join us for scrapbooking Thursday, February 17th from 4:00 10:00 pm in the Fellowship Hall. Men of Faith You are invited to join us Friday, February 10th at 7:30am at Connie s Kitchen in Seymour. Contact Thomas Hill at or thomashill@att.net for more information. Out to Lunch Book Club Meets 2 nd & 4 th Tuesdays, Noon, locations vary. Rebekah at RebekahHill@Comcast.net February Book... The Gift by Wanda E. Brunstetter March Book... an Invisible Thread by Laura Schroff Page 3

4 Opportunities to Serve..... It s a New Year for Operation Christmas Child! We did so well in 2016 we are starting another year round collection program for children ages 5-14! Look for the new OCC bulletin board and collection area in the church hallway. All the collection information you need will be posted there throughout the year. Drop of items monthly in our collection box. Our goal for 2017 is 160 boxes! In 2016 we packed 152 shoeboxes - Way to go church! As I write, our boxes are being delivered across the world and children are attending The Greatest Journey classes to learn about their Savior Jesus Christ. In January 2017 we collected lightweight winter scarves, gloves, and hats. We still need more of these items. This is a great time to shop for winter items! In February we are collecting these Accessory items: child sunglasses, plastic jewelry, girls hair barrettes, ponytails holders and hair bands, boys baseball caps and belts. See the church Facebook page for OCC info and the year round collection calendar. Thank you for your support! Robyn Robb February collection items for ages Accessories Page 4 Wildfire Relief Efforts in Sevier County Seymour UMC has received many inquiries regarding ways to meet the most pressing needs of those in Sevier County affected by the fires. Volunteers and translators are needed to meet critical demands. There are currently 4- hour shifts available between 8am and 6pm. You can sign up for a shift or find out more details at Also, the meal train to provide meals for the volunteers at the Volunteer Reception Center has been extended. You can sign up to provide a meal for 25 people at For the most up to date information visit Mission Trip Opportunities..... July 7-15, 2017 Mission Trip to Wesley Camp on the west coast of Latvia Purpose: Construction and Children s Camp at Wesley Camp, Plan: To build walls in the sanctuary and worship center of Alabama House as well as a small storage house outside. July 14-22, 2017 Mission Trip to Tasi and Wesley Camp on the west coast of Latvia Purpose: Construction at Tasi, Plan: To build walls and prepare a basement area for use as a fellowship hall/community center. For both trips: We need those with construction skills, including plaster & painting and with skills to build new tables & benches for outside seating. Anyone not skilled with construction work can work in the kitchen, general cleaning around camp, crafts with children or gardening. There is plenty to do for a wide variety of skill levels! Cost: $2,000 (The group will plan some fundraisers!) A Non-Refundable $500 deposit will be due by March 13. This covers the cost of the trip, food (while in Latvia), lodging, and construction supplies. Plan to attend an introductory meeting at Maryville First United Methodist Church on February 12 at 2:00 PM in Room 152. If you are interested in the trip, but unable to attend the meeting, please call Richard Rudesill at

5 Birthday Celebrations! We d like to wish the following individuals a HAPPY BIRTHDAY in the month of February. 2 Joyce Rusk 4 Imogene Fowler, Creed McGill 5 Pam Blanchard, Bethany Stafford, Karl Hosler 6 Judy Rogers 7 Mary McBride, Hannah South 8 Marcus Finchum, Paula York, Justin Kirby 9 Bob Swafford 10 Suzanne South 11 Doug Werker 13 Rylie McClurg 18 Jack Gooch, Hal Hubbs 24 Rick Collier, Tia Collier, Judy Ogle 26 Louie Glenn, Sean Douglas 27 Carol Huntley, Meghan Moser 28 Kelly Corallo If your birthday was not listed in the appropriate month or date, please contact the church office to make sure we have your correct birth date. We d like to honor you during your special month! Thank you Seymour United Methodist Church and Michelle Hurton! Once again you have provided Christmas to the children of Seymour Primary and other area school children. I know Christmas morning was much brighter for these precious ones. I'm so thankful that Michelle welcomes these families into the church and provides them with not only tangible items but the most wonderful gift of all...the love of our Lord Jesus! May you all be richly blessed in 2017! Angela Lindsey, Secretary Seymour Primary School Thank You from KARM! In the last quarter of 2016, the people of Seymour United Methodist Church shared 19 donations with KARM Stores. Those donations helped provide the 61,833 meals consumed by guests at Knox Area Rescue Ministries as well as the expenses associated with 25,476 bed nights during the last three months. Thanks for playing such a critical role in supplying the needs of the guests served at Knox Area Rescue Ministries and encouraging others to engage the poor & homeless in our community. Remember when dropping off donations at any KARM store, be sure to tell them you are with Seymour United Methodist Church. The church receives gift cards from your donations so that we can better serve our community! Page 5

6 Wednesday Shared Supper 5:15 pm Each Wednesday, not only is a delicious home cooked meal served, the Word of God is presented with a scripture card. If you ve never tried memorizing scripture, it s much easier than you think! You ll never regret spending time focusing intently on God s Word and there s nothing so wonderful as an encouraging Bible verse springing forth from memory at just the time you need it. With that said, here is your: Memorizing Tip of the Month Old Before New Begin each day by reviewing the memorized verses first before learning the next verse. The goal is retention, not accumulation. Thank you to everyone who makes our meal possible by serving, washing dishes, setting tables, cleaning up, and the like. Thank you to all of you who are faithful in your attendance. You have truly made Wednesday Night- the Most Fun Night of the Week! Cost remains $4 per plate, children 2 and under eat free, and the family maximum is $15.* Find the full monthly menu right here and the weekly menu in your Sunday bulletin. RSVP or Standing RSVP is required but no one is ever turned away so by all means, bring a guest! *Family maximum applies to immediate family only: head of households and dependent minor children. On the Menu this Month 2-1 Seasoned Grilled Chicken & Fettuccine Alfredo, Steamed Broccoli, Garlic Bread, Italian Side Salad Bar, Chocolate Cake or Italian Cream Cake 2-8 Jerk Chicken or Seasoned Beef Tacos, Seasoned Black Beans, Southwestern Corn, Chips, Toppings & Salsa Bar, Chocolate Pudding or Cookie 2-15 Soup: Vegetable Beef, Loaded Potato, Side Salad Bar, Cornbread Muffin or Roll, Peanut Butter Bars or Chocolate Frosted Yellow Cake 2-22 Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes, Peas, Side Salad Bar, Berry Cobbler or Brownie with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream All Wednesday evening activities will follow this schedule: 5:15 6:00 pm Fellowship Meal 6:00 pm All group activities begin 6:00 pm M&M s for Children Childcare will be available until 8:00 pm Page 6

7 February 2017 Normal Sunday Schedule 8:45 AM Traditional Worship 9:45 AM Fellowship Time 10:00 AM Sunday School 10:45 AM Fellowship Time 11:00 AM Contemporary Worship 5:00 PM Adult PDO = Parents Day Out Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless otherwise noted on calendar. Normal Wednesday Schedule 6:00 PM Small Group Ushers 8:45 am Chester McInturff, Carol Snyder, Buddy Greene 11:00 am Charlene Moore (H) Freda McCrary & Jean Capps Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 29 5:00 PM NO Adult 5 5:00 PM Adult Bible Study 12 2:00 PM Order of Arrow Scout 3:00 PM Community Worship & Forum 5:00 PM Adult Bible Study 19 2:00 PM Scout (Pack) 5:00 PM Adult Bible Study 26 5:00 PM Adult Bible Study :00 AM Staff 6:30 PM Soul Sisters :00 AM Staff :30 AM Men of Faith 6:00 PM Date Night Seymour 17 4:00 PM Scrapbooking :00 AM Groundskeepers 25 FEBRUARY Sunday night Adult will resume February 5th. Page 7

8 STAFF Pastor, Rev. Jason Gattis Associate Pastor, Rev Steve Pross Director of Family Ministries and Outreach, Michelle Hurton Director of s, Gaile Todd Director of Youth & Young Adult Ministries, Steven Mees Director of Contemporary Worship, Amber Lloyd Director Parents Day Out, Susan Cook Organist, John Bawcum Administrative Assistant, Elizabeth Hubbs Jason Gattis, Pastor 107 Simmons Road P O Box 1488 Seymour, TN Phone: (865) office@seymourumc.org We re on the web: We are a church