1 Vancouver Heights United Methodist Church The Bell Ringer Vancouver Heights United Methodist Church Website: http://vancouverheightsumc.org Part of the Reconciling Ministries Network. We are a church that is spiritually alive, radically in- clusive and justice oriented. STAFF Ministers: The Whole Congregation Pastor: Rev. Dr. JoAnn Shipley Administrative Assistant: Cheryl Niehaus Shelby Tanke Choir Director & Song Leader: Nancy Huerena Accompanists: Robby Mayer Penny Wharton Joyful Noisemakers Director: Penny Wharton Webmaster: Michael Niehaus Nursery Attendant: Abby Niehaus Covenant Relationship: Paul Jeffrey Volume 52 Issue 11 November 2017 Pastor Jo Ann’s Corner I am a beloved child of God and a Beauty to Behold No one else can play my part It is simple really. Each of us was made in the image of God. Each of us is unique. Each of us has been blessed with specific passions and gifts through which we are able to love and serve God and our neigh- bors. I have enjoyed working with our nominations committee to find the best options for leadership in our church. Committees are full and we have expanded our ministries of Care to more fully address exist- ing needs. We will enter charge conference on November 1 with the knowledge that there will be others who will need to be added. The first Sunday in November, we will celebrate the Saints who have gone before us. The names of church members will be offered in prayer before our communion service. If all goes as planned, we will celebrate communion on a new table that was built in honor of two of our youngest losses this past year – Wyatt and Daniel. Remembering their unique talents of hiding in the sanctuary during youth group, we wanted a permanent way to mark their memories. Two “Trees of Life” will be present at the front of the sanctuary for All Saints Day and the month of November. Our youth will help us to place the names of our loved ones upon the tree. After worship, all who are interested will join the youth at the Grotto in Portland. We will have the opportunity to light devotional candles, walk prayer sta- tions and also a labyrinth. Some of us are hoping to build an outdoor labyrinth on church grounds and want to familiarize our members with the opportunity. Not to be forgotten are the saints that continue to surround us and teach us. Cont. page 2
Transcript
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V a n c o u v e r H e i g h t s U n i t e d M e t h o d i s t C h u r c h
The Bell Ringer
Vancouver Heights United
Methodist Church
Website: http://vancouverheightsumc.org
Part of the Reconciling
Ministries Network.
We are a church that is
spiritually alive, radically in-
clusive and justice oriented.
STAFF
Ministers:
The Whole Congregation
Pastor:
Rev. Dr. JoAnn Shipley
Administrative Assistant:
Cheryl Niehaus
Shelby Tanke
Choir Director & Song Leader:
Nancy Huerena
Accompanists:
Robby Mayer
Penny Wharton
Joyful Noisemakers Director:
Penny Wharton
Webmaster:
Michael Niehaus
Nursery Attendant:
Abby Niehaus
Covenant Relationship:
Paul Jeffrey
Volume 52 Issue 11
November 2017
Pastor Jo Ann’s Corner
I am a beloved child of God and a Beauty to Behold
No one else can play my part
It is simple really. Each of us was made in the image of God. Each of
us is unique. Each of us has been blessed with specific passions and
gifts through which we are able to love and serve God and our neigh-
bors.
I have enjoyed working with our nominations committee to find the
best options for leadership in our church. Committees are full and
we have expanded our ministries of Care to more fully address exist-
ing needs. We will enter charge conference on November 1 with the
knowledge that there will be others who will need to be added.
The first Sunday in November, we will celebrate the Saints who have
gone before us. The names of church members will be offered in
prayer before our communion service. If all goes as planned, we will
celebrate communion on a new table that was built in honor of two of
our youngest losses this past year – Wyatt and Daniel. Remembering
their unique talents of hiding in the sanctuary during youth group, we
wanted a permanent way to mark their memories.
Two “Trees of Life” will be present at the front of the sanctuary for All
Saints Day and the month of November. Our youth will help us to
place the names of our loved ones upon the tree. After worship, all
who are interested will join the youth at the Grotto in Portland. We
will have the opportunity to light devotional candles, walk prayer sta-
tions and also a labyrinth. Some of us are hoping to build an outdoor
labyrinth on church grounds and want to familiarize our members
with the opportunity.
Not to be forgotten are the saints that continue to surround us and
teach us.
Cont. page 2
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Cont. from page 1
teach us. At the close of the service, Vicki Smith will give Ally Niehaus an award for her
hours of volunteer work with Martha’s Pantry. I applaud Ally for her faithful service and
Vicki for her wisdom in finding just the right match for Ally’s time and talents.
Finally, on the hearts of many are those who have not felt unappreciated in their giving and have
left our church with hurt. I hope for opportunities of next chances. I know that our leadership is
seeing it as a spiritual practice to gather in those who are not with us on Sunday morning and I
am ready to be pulled into these conversations when that seems helpful.
I will be in Los Angeles from Sunday November 12 through Friday November 17th to complete a
second level of training with the Lombard Mennonite Peace Institute. The focus will be on Con-
flict Mediation and I will be joined by a variety of church and secular leaders from the west coast.
I look forward to becoming more comfortable standing in the midst of challenging situations and
working with you to respect both God’s people and God’s vision for this church.
As former lay leader and a current lay representative to Annual Conference, Dr. Sue Kohlhepp
will speak in my absence on the second Sunday. She will discuss a place of challenge for the
Church in general- the inclusion of LGBTQ persons. She will explain how this congregation be-
came radically inclusive and reconciling through a faithful read of scripture and attention to sci-
entific realities.
I am looking forward to a full month. May God bless and keep us as we grow stronger together,
Pastor Jo Ann
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All are welcome to join
Pastor Jo Ann’s Book Study!
Currently we are meeting Sunday
afternoon at 3:00 pm.
We will be studying:
The Days of Awe and Wonder:
How to be a Christian in the 21st Century
by Marcus J. Borg
from 10/29 until the end of November.
I am a
beloved child of God and a beauty
to behold .
Please take the time to look at the
sign up sheets in the hallway for
greeting, coffee hour and flowers.
There are lots of empty spaces.
We are also in need of some new peo-
ple to usher. Please talk with Michael
Niehaus if you would like to help ush-
er.
Vancouver Heights will
celebrate 21 years of being a
Welcoming and Reconciling
Congregation on November 12th !
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Annual Basket Auction Saturday, November 18th
6:00 pm Pie and Preview
6:30 pm Auction begins
If you have not attended one of our
Auctions you are missing out on lots of fun!
Friends, dessert, laughs and things to buy!
There will be lots of baskets and items to bid on!!
We will also be having “Significant Dishes”—yummy things
you can bid on and have them made when ever you want!
Don Orange will be our Auctioneer again this year!
If you would like to donate anything for the Auction please drop it off at the office. It could be
a few items for a basket a pie, a dinner you’d like to make, services you can offer, etc.
If you need a basket we have some here at the church for you to use.
Do You Hear What I Hear?
Pacific Arts Ensemble is at it again!!! The Chorus will be performing on
December 2nd at 2:00 PM and 7:00 PM. at our church.
Come join us for fun and tradition at our Christmas Concert.
$5 donation at the door proceeds to benefit the church as well as the choir.
Hope to see you there!!!!
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It’s almost time for Kriskindlmarkt…
Men’s items are needed! Small flashlights and tools kits are popular items chosen by
the kids for the Dad’s.
Anything you would like to donate can be labeled accordingly and dropped off at
the office.
If you have any questions please contact Mary Zimmerman at
360-573-5485
DINE OUT
November 12th
12:00 pm (noon)
Elmer’s
7105 NE 40th Street
Vancouver 98661
We hope to see you there!!
We are adding a new feature to our fund-raising Auction: Significant Dishes!
It will be a list of special dishes (includes desserts) and those who make them.
They do not need to be fancy – just the one the family requests when given a
chance.
We’ll list them together and auction them separately.
The evening will start with pie and coffee at 6 pm.
The auction will start at 6:30.
Come for a good time with your buddies at church.
Friends of the Carpenter Christmas concert is Saturday, December 2 at 2 pm at St.
John Lutheran Church, 11005 NE Highway 99. The concert will feature Doug Smith
as the opening act followed by Misty Mamas - a 4 piece band playing Bluegrass,
Oldtime, Gospel and Folk music.
Tickets are $20 each.
For more information contact Friends of the Carpenter at 360-750-4752, or Grover
Icenogle.
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The Fort Vancouver High School Drama department is presenting the play Julius
Caesar on November 2-4, 2017. Pastor Jo Ann’s daughter, Sara has a role in the play and is
leading the make-up crew. We are organizing a VHUMC outing to the play for the 7:00
PM performance on Saturday, November 4th.
Donations will be taken at the door for admission to the play. We will arrive at FVHS at 6:30
PM to get seats. If you would like to have a seat saved for you and/or have questions, please con-
tact Monte Brachmann at 360-326-3035.
Poinsettia Sale The plants are from Fessler Nursery, our spring sale supplier.
Poinsettia plants
4” - 10” available in red, pink, white, bicolor and burgundy.
Christmas Cactus
4” pots
Order forms available in the office and on the table in the narthex.
Please join us...
Vancouver Heights UMC and Martha’s Pantry will
be cooking Thanksgiving Dinner for anyone that
would like to come and eat a home cooked, yummy
meal.
We cooked dinner last year and it was an absolutely
wonderful meal, spent with church family, old
friends and new friends.
When: November 23rd, Thanksgiving
Where: Fellowship Hall at VHUMC
Time: 4:00 pm
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Remember in Prayer, Word and Deed
● Barbara Hayden Wahl-Deb Avery’s Mom●
● The Avery Family ● Connie Icenogle’s sister, Carol ●
●Connie Icenogle ● Myrna Ihrig’s daughter ●
● Kayla Mayer ● Nancy Huerena ●
● Corkie Stewart’s son ● Helen Cridern’s sister May ●
Ed Wolthausen
Friends of the Carpenter
Product Sale: December 8,
10:00am to 3:00pm
1600 W 20th St
Vancouver.
A great place to finish or begin
your Christmas Shopping!
November 5th is our All Saints Day Ser-
vice. We have a trip to the Grotto planned
after worship. We will meet at 1:00 at the
Grotto to walk the labyrinth, the Stations
of the Cross and enjoy the gardens.
The cost to visit the Upper Level gardens
where the Labyrinth is:
$6.00
Seniors(55+) & Military $5.00
Children (6-12) $3.00
The Grotto labyrinth is a replica of the medieval
labyrinth in Chartres Cathedral in France. Origi-
nally used as a “mini pilgrimage” or spiritual
journey for those who could not travel to the Ho-
ly Land or some other sacred site, labyrinths to-
day continue to offer an opportunity for medita-
tion and contemplation as one walks to the cen-
ter and back out again.
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FINANCE COMMITTEE:
We celebrate the generosity of our giving members. The amount received in pledges is actually more than we had anticipated going into the 2017 fiscal year. Unfortunately, unexpected building and utility expenses has also been more than was budgeted. If you are able to give more than your current pledge or practice then we would much appreciate your help. The Church Auction on November 18 will also be an opportunity to help reduce our deficit. If you have items to contribute, please contact the church office and/or drop the items off at the office. Our goal for this event is: $4,000
AD BOARD: Administrative Board Meeting October 3rd
Items discussed included; Debriefing and discussion of our Family Retreat at Ocean Park and the decision to make it an annual event.
Committee formed to research labyrinths. Charge Conference. Natural Church Development Project.
Full copies of the minutes are available on the table in the back of the sanctuary. Next meeting November 7th, 7:30 p.m.
MISSION COMMITTEE: First, the Mission Committee would like to thank all those who donated to the Coat/Sweater Drive, as
well as, those who helped with the physical labor. Just so you are aware, there is a Make-A-Wish dona-tion box in the front parking lot, under the pine trees. It accepts clothes/shoes , small household items, and clothing that is ripped or torn. In November, we are going to hold our annual Thanksgiving Food Drive.
The primary foods/supplies needed are, in part: Yams, green beans, mushroom soup, fried onions, pota-toes, pineapple chucks/tidbits, packaged bread cubes, boxed stuffing, cranberry sauce, pumpkin or pie fill-ing, gravy pkgs., chicken broth, Jello, canned fruit, paper towels, A. foil, and foil turkey pans. A complete
list will be available at the Church, in the Narthex. The deadline for the food donations is November 19th . In December, we will pick some families to provide gifts for. We will also hold the annual KriskindleMart, for the day care in our building, “Learning Avenues”. The main opportunities for Mission are: To start bringing in the gifts from now, until December 11th . The event will be held on December
12th, Mission opportunities are: to bag or box gifts, help the children pick out gifts, serve snacks, and set-up/clean-up. If you are interested, please see the event coordinator, Mary Zimmerman. Please bring the gifts into the Church Office, in the Workroom (Rm. #6). Mary will pick them up from there. We always
have a special need for men’s gifts. On Behalf of the Mission Committee, Darla Borella – Mission Chair
All meetings, except Staff-Parish are open for anyone to attend: 11/7 Finance Meeting 6:30 pm 11/7 Ad Board Meeting 7:30 pm 11/12 Mission Meeting 11:40 am
11/19 SPR Meeting 11:30 am 11/27 Trustee Meeting 6:30 pm
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Prayer Calendar 2017
Mission Witness
God’s kingdom is best exemplified through the combination of the gifts an graces given to those who are striving to follow Christ. It is through this collaboration that the church
reaches out to the least, lost, last and lonely. Brooke Atchley, church and community worker, Holston Conference
Cote dlvoire (Ivory Coast): Broadcasting radio ministry for evangelization and social development.
Happy Anniversary 11/5/1969 Jerry and Roberta Roche’
1 Cheryl Niehaus 3 Maymie Frey
6 Ann Alexander 8 Joyce Daniels
9 Linda Hunt 9 Conner Roche’
10 Quinn Perea 12 Diana Mulligan
17 Irene Sowder 20 Ray Johnson
22 Kristine Mathis 24 Connie Icenogle
26 Annie Presler
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Dream Big Dreams Have you ever dreamed for something or had a special dream? Do you wish it
would come true ! Well some of our church members have a dream that we could see again, our Prayer Garden. To be able to see the Strouhal Angel, the UMW Me-morial Butterflies and the rose bush in memory of Joann Lafeman back in a loving
prayer garden. Some of our church members have had a dream of a prayer labyrinth at our church.
What if we could have both? Anytime a project comes up, the word money comes up. Well here is an idea.
How many times have you been asked, “What do you want for your birthday or Christmas?” Usually the answer is, “I don’t need anything.”
Below you will find a certificate that can be used as a gift or a memorial. We will also have some in the office you can pick up and hand out to your friends
and family.
Gift for Prayer Labyrinth Garden
In honor of
______________________________
Vancouver Heights UMC
Gift in memory of
______________________________
for Prayer Labyrinth Garden
Vancouver Heights UMC
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Dream Big Dreams All Church Retreat
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We received a thank you letter from the General Board of Global Minis-tries through The Advance. $1,371.75 will go to Red Bird Missionary
Conference Church and Outreach Ministries. This was donated through Mission U this summer.
The donated money will help meet community needs and developing disciples through holistic ministry in rural Appalachia in Kentucky.
What have our Youth been up to?
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November 5
Trip to the Grotto
Meet at the Grotto at 1:00 pm
November 12
3:00-5:00 pm
November 19
3:00-5:00 pm
November 26
NO GROUP-Thanksgiving Holiday
All meetings are at the church unless
otherwise noted
Questions?
Contact Cheryl Niehaus
360-567-8616
For youth in Grades 6 through age 19
Our Youth Ministry includes Youth from 6th grade to age 19. We
feel the youth that have been involved in Youth Group should con-
tinue to be part of the activities, education and mission work we
do. Those who have just graduated from High School can serve as
mentors for those in Youth & Young Adult Ministry, while still
being part of, and maybe leading at times those that are younger.
We follow Safe Sanctuaries--so at all Youth Events and meetings
we will have two adults and all of those participating in Youth
Group ages 18 and older will have to have a background check to
participate.
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FIRST: remember to take time for yourself
every day...maybe call a friend or family
member you haven’t spoken to in awhile,
go for a drive somewhere, see a movie,
daily devotions.
1. COME TO CHARGE CONFERENCE 11/1
WITH POTLUCK STARTING AT 5:30, SPR
MEETING WITH REV. NIEDA AT 6:00 AND
THEN CHARGE CONFERENCE AT 6:30 PM
2. Come to our All Saint’s Day Service
on November 5th followed by a trip to
the Grotto in Portland.
3. Dine Out will be Nov 12th at noon
at Elmer’s on 40th.
4. Put Nov 18th on your calendar … Basket Auction!!
5. Deadline for the December newsletter is November 22.
6. Thanksgiving Dinner November 23rd at 4:00 pm. VHUMC and Martha’s
Pantry are combining again this year to make a home made dinner. Come
and eat with your church family and friends. It is not a potluck, just come
and enjoy food, conversation, football and games.
7. If you have items to donate for the Basket Auction, please put them in the
workroom marked auction.
8. The Basket Auction is November 18th. There is always very yummy pie to
eat, loads of good conversation and fun, PLUS it is a wonderful opportunity to
support the church.
9. Bring food for our Thanksgiving Food Drive until 11/19.
10. If you have any thing to donate for Kriskindlmart, please mark according-
ly and leave in the workroom.
11. VHUMC will celebrate 21 years as a Welcoming Reconciling Congregation
on 11/12 with Sue Kohlhepp delivering the message.
Last but not least, as of October 24th there are there are 61 days
until Christmas and 240 days until the first day of summer!! OH
MY!!
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Serving in Our Church Nov.5th Pastor: Dr. Rev. JoAnn Shipley
