June 2018 INSIDE THIS ISSUE SUMMERTIME JOY. Pastor s Message 1 & 2

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1 June 2018 INSIDE THIS ISSUE Pastor s Message 1 & 2 Sunday School VBS 3 & 4 Wells & Handpumps 5 Youth The God Squad 6 Hospitality Confirmation Scrip 7 SUMMERTIME JOY Can you remember the last day of school, with its endless horizon of freedom? You lived in the anticipation of a summer full of ice cream, water sprinklers, fireworks, picnics, picking berries, eating watermelon, and 4th of July fireworks. You had extra chores such as lawn mowing and watering plants. Or maybe you had more farm chores to do to help out on the home place. But it was different, life was lived at a different speed. How does the summer season change your life today? Does it speed up? Are you running children or grandchildren to ball games? Do you attend the College World Series or Storm- Chaser games? Do you travel to see family and take sightseeing summer vacations? UMCOR MOW 8 At St. Paul s we have a different summer routine too. The Chancel Choir takes a month off and we share the special gifts of other musicians offering music. The children and family ministry areas offer seasonal special events and activities. We have one of the few day time Vacation Bible Schools in the area. You can read about these on pages 3 and 4 of this newsletter. Women s Ministries Prime Timers UMM Summer Camp Specials Refugee 9 10 Our youth group is going to Minneapolis to do a week s worth of service. We are able to do this because of your generosity and funding. We leave on July 15 and return on July 20. It will be exciting to share our experiences with you when we return. The experience of serving is always life altering. The Annual Conference also meets this month in Wichita for four days of worship, education and conferencing. We will be sharing educational opportunities that enable us to learn about different ways to reach people for Jesus Christ. We will celebrate the Great Plains Annual Conference successes in helping people see Christ and pray for God to open more doors for creative evangelization. Sermon Series: Loving Kindness Calendar 11 And our physical church plant is undergoing tremendous changes this summer. Phase 3 of our building project is underway. We are beginning to see what the NEW upstairs and downstairs spaces will look like. We are dreaming about the ministry that can occur in those areas. And a remodel of an older downstairs space is underway. Our youth have vacated their rooms to enable painting and other work to occur. Ultimately the old basement (not

2 the old old basement) will house fully remodeled youth ministry and women s ministry areas. The programs have flourished and the renewed and remodeled spaces are needed to allow those ministries to continue to expand. Life at St. Paul s is exciting. God continues to work in our church and in our lives together. God sustains what is working well and helps us envision new life to meet new ministry challenges. Summertime today is both the same and different from my childhood and I suspect yours. It is still special but in different ways. How can we allow God to use our summertime for the glory of God? What can we do to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world this summer? It may be as simple as summer hours invested in family and faith or as different as volunteering to be a mission trip chaperone. But one thing we can count on, God desires to use us and St. Paul s for helping others learn about the tremendous, life-giving love of God in Jesus Christ. Let us pray and then let us do... all for the glory of the kingdom of God. What greater summertime joy could there possibly be? Blessings, Pastor Nancy This month we celebrate Flag Day on June 14 and Father s Day on June 17. I chose to honor our flag Old Glory this month with a poem written by Howard Schnauber. Our flag is representative of a nation founded on Christian values and the freedom of a people to worship however they choose. Old Glory is the manifested presence of God. I am the flag of the United States of America. My name is Old Glory. I fly atop the world s tallest buildings. I stand watch in America s halls of justice. I fly majestically over institutions of learning. I stand guard with power in the world. Look up and see me. I stand for peace, honor, truth, and justice. I stand for freedom. I am confident. I am arrogant. I am proud. When I am flown with my fellow banners, My head is a little higher, My colors a little truer. I bow to no one! I am recognized all over the world. I am worshipped I an saluted. I am loved I am revered. I am respected and I am feared. I have fought in every battle of every war For more than 200 years. I was flown at Valley Forge, Gettysburg, Shiloh and Appomattox. I was there at San Juan Hill, the trenches of France, In the Argonne Forest, Anzio, Rome, And the beaches of Normandy, Guam, Okinawa, Korea, and Vietnam. I was there; I led my troops. I was duty, battle-weary and tired But my soldiers cheered me and I was proud. I have been burned, torn, and trampled on the streets of my country. And when it s by those whom I ve served in battle it hurts. But I shall overcome for I am strong. I have slipped the bonds of Earth And stood watch over the unchartered frontiers of space from my vantage point on the moon. I have borne silent witness to all of America s finest hours. But my finest hours are yet to come. When I am torn into strips and used as bandages for my wounded comrades on the battlefield, When I am flown at half-mast to honor my soldier, Or when I lie in the trembling arms of a grieving parent at the grave of their fallen son or daughter, I am proud. MY NAME IS OLD GLORY. LONG MAY I WAVE. DEAR GOD IN HEAVEN, LONG MAY I WAVE

3 Our ministry seeks to CONNECT young disciples with the community of God, to GROW their relationship with Christ, enable them to SHARE their faith and to SERVE throughout the world. 9:30-10:45 ~ Play and Worship & W.O.W Rotation Sunday School 11:00-11:30 ~ Children s Choir Summer Rotation Begins June 3rd The Good Samaritan Summer Help Needed volunteer for only 2 weeks at a time! Our shepherds have spent all year with us; the summer is their time to rest and renew their spirit through Sunday morning worship. Please consider spending 2 weeks with us so we can continue to minister to our children. There is a sign-up outside of the Chapel doors to pick out the dates you are willing to help us. LAST CALL!! VBS 2018 Rolling River Rampage June 25th - June 29th Experience the ride of a lifetime with God and learn that Jesus is with us all the time, even in rough water rapids. Along the river, children will discover that life with God is an adventure full of wonder and surprise. They can trust God to be with them through anything! TIME IS RUNNING OUT TO REGISTER 3

4 * Additional *NEW* Option - 2 Night Evening VBS, June 26th & 27th * This is for families/children who are not able to come during the day. This is a family VBS where kids and parents come together. We are offering this option if there is enough interest. Please sign-up early so we can determine if this is a need for your family. FOR PLANNING PURPOSES DEADLINE FOR NIGHTTIME REGISTRATION IS JUNE 3RD Grandparents can bring their grandchildren, neighbors, nieces, nephews - everyone is invited!!! MORE WAYS TO HELP... We need newspapers, please bring your old newspapers and put them In our collection box under the table outside the Chapel Pick-up a tree tag outside the Chapel And help with purchasing some of our supplies Decorating Workshops JUNE 7TH 6:00-8:00pm JUNE 12TH 6:00-8:00pm JUNE 19TH 9:00am-12:00pm Decorating Day Part 1 ~ Friday, June 22nd 9:00am-12:00pm Part 2 ~ Saturday, June 23rd 6:00-8:00pm Due to a wedding in the Chapel on the 23rd, we are only decorating classrooms, the sanctuary, and Fellowship Hall on Friday. After the wedding on Saturday, we will decorate the Chapel, hallways & Narthex. VBS Kick-off Event Church Family & Community June 24th, 5:00-7:00 MARK YOUR CALENDARS and join us for a fun evening! Campfire cookout, s more roasting, music making, bounce house fun and more! This is an all church and community event that we hope St. Paul s will support with their presence and their service. Check-out the VBS display to volunteer to help. We will have to cancel this event if we are unable to get volunteers to help support it. It is a great way to reach the community and invite them to St. Paul s. Can you help make it a success? 4

5 DEEP WATER WELLS AND HANDPUMPS OUTREACH 2018 IN PARTNERSHIP WITH WORLD VISION Pray. That s the first thing our well-drilling teams do when they come to a thirsty community. They know that dirty water and poor sanitation and hygiene result in the deaths of nearly 1,000 children every day. Help one of our teams drill a deep well and fit it with a hand pump. One well can provide 2,800 gallons of safe, life-sustaining water every day for over 300 people. Your gift will save lives for years to come. More ways to make an impact including a Clean water fund starting at $35, a hand-drilled well starting at $100, Sesame Street wash up kits starting at $100 and a foot powered water pump starting at $75. These are in addition to sponsoring a deep water well for $150 share to even $90,000. Prices range from $10 to $90,000. There are many projects we can give to within these ranges. This project is one of the few where we are strictly asking for prayer and cash donations. There is such a need for clean water all over the world. Any and all donations are greatly appreciated and will be combined. Please make checks to St. Paul s United Methodist Church-Water Project. 5

6 ST. PAUL S JUNIOR/SENIOR YOUTH It has been a spring of celebrations for the St. Paul s youth. After honoring our graduating seniors at the fifth-sunday service April 29, we confirmed eight young men and women on May 6. Special thanks to Ed and Katie Ostlund for teaching the class and to all our mentors for guiding our confirmands through this important process. Other activities in May, as we wound down the school year: A movie and pizza night on May 6 Our end-of-school year celebration with games and barbecue on May 20 Regular God Squad programming will resume in August. Pringle Tasting at BBQ Pringle Tasting at BBQ JUNE SCHEDULE June 3: Movie and snacks in the Youth Room, 4:00-6:00pm June 17: Movie and snacks in the Youth Room, 4:00-6:00pm (Date and location of above events subject to change due to construction in the THE GOD SQUAD north basement.) July 15-20: Youth Mission trip to Minneapolis YOUTH WORSHIP SCHEDULE We will continue to meet every Sunday at 9:30am, but will shift to our summer curriculum. We will open with a short worship service and then, back by popular demand, is The Gospel According to the Simpsons series. 6

7 CONGRATULATIONS Change, change, change! Starting this month, Sharon Ostlund will be managing the Fellowship Time following the 9:30 and 11:11 services. Thank you, Sharon, for providing this ministry. I would like to thank everyone who has helped with hosting, providing cookies, and who have helped with clean up. A special THANK YOU to Joanie Christiansen who always helped me out in a pinch each Sunday and for all who have filled in for me when I have been gone. God bless you all! We are still needing people to sign-up for the Welcome Desk and as Greeters. Please contact jocoleman004@gmail.com or look her up on Sunday morning. CONFIRMANDS St Paul s honored our 2018 Confirmands on May 6. They were: Josh Smith, Charlie Anderson, Nick Bottjen, Rebecca Keller, Brecken Miller, Will Skradski, Lucas Langstraat, and Lorna Moynihan. The confirmands assisted with communion during the service. Following the service, we enjoyed cake and conversation. Congratulations, Confirmands, may God bless you in your continued walk with Him! Scrip Program - Gift Card News Ladies and Gentlemen! Spring is here, so please don t forget your gift cards for yard work, remodeling, paint, etc. Also, consider using gift cards for your every day shopping which is a great way to fight identity theft. By using the gift card program, you are helping get items for the church that are not in the budget. In the past, the Scrip Program has gotten new glasses for the kitchen, a new TV for the youth room, new roasters for the kitchen, and new candles for the altar. These are just some of the items this Scrip Program has helped with. Thank you for shopping this program. For your convenience there is a locked wooden box at the Scrip Program table to put your orders and checks in. If you have any questions, please contact Chris Powell at cnmpowell@q.com, Cathy Lewis, or Nancy Peters. Thank you. 7

8 UMCOR KITS FOR 2018 The Outreach Committee will again be sending kits during Annual Conference. This year we will be sending School Kits and Health Kits only. These will need to be ready to go by June 10. As you see sales, please pick up any of the items you would like. You do not need to fill a whole kit. We will use everything you give us. We will also be accepting cash donations toward disaster relief buckets. Items are cheaper for them to buy in bulk. If you sew, please take some of the school bags Bethany has started and finish sewing the bags for us. Additional information for all the kits and how to make a school bag is on the UMCOR web site at or talk to one of us. As always, this congregation is the best. Thank you for all you do. CHRISTMAS DONATIONS 2017 TO UMCOR FINAL TALLY Memo to the church family regarding the fund raising at Christmas time in 2017 for UMCOR and disaster relief efforts. In February, a check was sent to UMCOR for $5, and then as more money was donated, another check for $515. Therefore, in total $6, was raised and donated. Thank you to all who helped support this vital ministry both in prayer and monetary donations. MISSION OF THE WEEK (MOW) The Outreach Committee is featuring an item each week for the food pantry. When you are grocery shopping for the family, don t forget those who are less fortunate and drop one of the weekly items into your cart. If there are other items you would like to donate, we will accept those also. The schedule for June is as follows: June 3: Juice Boxes June 10: Pop Tarts/Breakfast Bars June 17: Individual Snacks June 24: Fruit/Pudding Cups NEW REFUGEE FAMILY The Refugee Committee is happy to report that our refugee family safely arrived in Omaha. The Gurung family was originally from the country of Bhutan but had been living in a refugee camp in Nepal for approximately 22 years. Both of their children were born in the camp. The family will now live in a home next to their sister and brother-in-law which will make the transition to living in a new country much easier. The family includes the father, Jit, mother Dhan, son Monoj (16 years old), and daughter Barsha (12 years old). St. Paul s sponsored the Gurung family through Lutheran Family Services. We provided furniture, household items, and three weeks of groceries for the family. Thanks to all of the wonderful volunteers who helped move furniture, even in the extreme heat, this past weekend. We are blessed at St. Paul s to have so many people who help others and this moving crew was a blessing for the Gurung family. Thanks also to all those who donated items for the family! Special thanks to Mary Robothom for the many hours she has devoted to organizing the donated items for our refugee family, moving the items to the Gurung home and greeting them at the airport. If anyone is interested in serving on the Refugee Committee, or to donate other items for a future family, please contact Mary at mjrobotham@yahoo.com. Family & Voluneers Family Home Volunteers 8

9 UPCOMING EVENTS: Saturday, June 23rd there will a picnic at Ed and Katie Ostlund s. Families our welcome. Ed will be cooking the main dish, and we can all bring a dish to share. There will be lots of games and food. Time: noon-2:00pm Saturday, July 21st: The women will meet in the Chapel at 9:00am to have breakfast and to hear from Carey Oswald, who is the head of the Greater Omaha Parent Life organization. Saturday, August 4 is Family/Faith Night at the Storm Chasers. The game is at 7:00pm and will be followed by fireworks and a Hawk Nelson Concert. This is for everyone. United Methodist Men and women s ministries are working together on this. Bring your families. September 22nd: Coffee/Conversation/Fall Craft, 9:00-10:30am, Chapel There are still lots of t-shirts left. More of sizes XL and 2XL were ordered. If you want one, either see Barb Thornburg at the piano or stop by the church office. They are $10. There are also plenty of the totes left from the Women s Conference. They re free. Stop by the church office and pick up one or maybe use it to put a gift in for a friend. It may help open up a conversation about church. Recent Activities: Saturday, May 19, Women s Ministries gathered to cook a meal for Youth Emergency Services (YES). Many people donated food, and Barb Thornburg was able to deliver a meal for 70 young people on Monday, May 21. 9

10 PRIME TIMERS Come join us on June 20th at 10:00am for Rolls and Coffee, in the Chapel, as Candy Johnson tells us about the construction that s happening at the church. Also, Barb Berg and Donna Gess will give an update on the music department. June 7-10, Two Rivers SRA, Family Campfire/Potluck June 14-17, Parking at St. Paul s during Papillion Days June 30, 8:00am, Breakfast, Shirley s, Millard Plaza The United Methodist Men organized a paint crew to paint Rick and Mary Anne Wilson s home. The results were amazing! Thanks to these hard-working individuals for reaching out. BEFORE AFTER LUNCH TIME Summer Camp Special It s time to consider summer camp. Again, Camp Fontanelle is offering some registration discounts. The Guardian Angel camps are for preschoolers through kindergarteners with a favorite adult, while the SonShine camps are for 1 & 2 graders, also with an adult. Another offer is Bring a Friend discount which gives 25% off the camp fees when a returning camper recruits a first-time camper to attend camp. Both receive 25% off discount. A third special is the Sibling Saver Discount which applies when multiple siblings attend, or one person attends multiple camps. The first camp session is paid at 100%, second session at 25%, and any additional session is 50% off. For more details and to view all the camps available, see the church bulletin board in the east hallway or check the camp website:

11 JUNE 2018 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 2 Scrapbooking 9:30-1:30 Chapel Piano Recital 6:00pm (FH) Bilingual Service 6:00pm Chapel Chatty Crafters 9:00 am - B9 Piano Tuning 9:00am (S) 6 Staff Meeting 11:30am Chapel Boy Scouts 6:30pm (FH) Trustees Mtg 7:00pm Chapel Girl Scouts 6:00pm-(FH) VBS Workshop 6:00-8:00pm Chapel Bilingual Service 6:00pm - Chapel 10 Gretchen Pille Concert 3:00pm (S) 11 Worship Planning 9:00am Office Boy Scouts 6:30 (FH) 12 Chatty Crafters 9:00 am - B9 Prime Timers 10:00am (L) VBS Workshop 6:00-8:00pm Chapel GAP 6:00PM (l) Stephen Ministry 7:00pm (L) Flag Day ANNUAL PAPILLION 15 CONFERENCE DAYS 16 Scrapbooking 9:30am-11:30am (C) Bilingual Service 6:00pm - Chapel Prayer Shawl 1:00pm (B9) Boy Scouts 6:30pm (FH) Comm Mtg 6:30pm (L) 19 Chatty Crafters 9:00 am (B9) VBS Workshop 9:00-12:00pm Chapel Bethany Circle 1:00pm (B9) 20 Prime Timers 10:00am Chapel VBS Decorate 9;00am (S) Wedding 23 Picnic/Ostlunds 2:00-4:00pm Wedding Landman & Peitz 4:00pm (C) Papillion Days Building Cmte 6:30pm Chapel Girl Scouts 6:00pm-(FH) Rehearsal 5:00pm (C) Bilingual Service 6:00pm Chapel VBS Decorating 6:30pm 24 VBS Family Kickoff 25 Boy Scouts 6:30pm (FH) Tech Working Gp Mtg 6:30pm (L) 26 Chatty Crafters 9:00 am (B9) 27 Praise Team Practice 6:00pm (S) 28 Circle One 11:30am Petersen's Girl Scouts 6:00pm-(FH) UMM Breakfast 8:00am Shirley s Bilingual Service 6:00pm Chapel 4:00-7:00pm (FH) VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL

12 Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage Paid 324 S Jackson Street Papillion, Nebraska (402) Office hours: 9-4pm M-F Permit No. 17 Omaha, Nebraska Website: