First United Methodist Church - Wausau Wisconsin
Friday, June 23, 2017
Live and Share God's Love
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CareMilestones Deaths: We grieve this month with the loss of these members of our church or of our families.
We grieve with the Wadinski family as they mourn the death of James Wadinski, Sr,, on May 5. Pray with Jim, Jr., Carla, Jim III, and Danielle Hassberg, Jim’s First UMC family. Another member of our congregation, Sharon Schmidt, died on May 9. Few, perhaps, remember Sharon. She was raised and confirmed in this church but moved to Minocqua 45 years ago. She returned to Wausau family and to her childhood church just six months ago, having been diagnosed with a terminal cancer. We reinstated her membership and welcomed her for the last stage in her journey. Pray for her mother Nina Schmidt, still a member here, and all Sharon’s family. And we need to offer a correction. In last month’s newsletter, we noted the death of Ivanette Johnson. We were mistaken. Ivanette has moved from her old apartment to a long-term residential facility, but she is very much alive. Thank you to those who sent cards to Ivanette’s daughter. Without your care, we would not have discovered our error. |
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The Ministry of Yoga
Remember that Monday nights at First Church are yoga nights. “Chair Yoga,” for those with limited mobility, begins at 4:30pm, and the class for everyone else begins at 6:00pm. There will be no classes on the New Year’s Day Holiday, January 2, however. Classes will resume January 9.
UMW Reading List
The Reading Program List is available at: umwonline.net in the Reading Program group. Click on Reading Lists in the blue box.
Prayer Shawls
One of the tangible ways that we care for those who are facing the stress and distress of life changes is through our prayer shawl ministry. Each shawl is handmade and has been prayed over by our team. And each shawl is a physical, and very soft, reminder that God is with us.
Do you know someone who would appreciate a shawl? It doesn’t have to be a major crisis or illness. If so, let us know. Tell one of the Prayer Shawl team (Marion Attoe, Mary Ann Dykes, Yvonne Firary, Nancy Flath, Alice Schacht, Jessie Stange, Maggie Werhane, and Jean Zuelke) or Pastor Jerry. We will see that a shawl is provided for the person you love.
Do you know someone who would appreciate a shawl? It doesn’t have to be a major crisis or illness. If so, let us know. Tell one of the Prayer Shawl team (Marion Attoe, Mary Ann Dykes, Yvonne Firary, Nancy Flath, Alice Schacht, Jessie Stange, Maggie Werhane, and Jean Zuelke) or Pastor Jerry. We will see that a shawl is provided for the person you love.
Hospice Volunteer
As our society, state, and community age, people are beginning to pay closer attention to issues surrounding quality of life - and dignity of death. Hospice care can be a part of this.
Interim Health Care, which has already provided flu shots for our church is beginning a new hospice program in Wausau and is looking for volunteers who might want to work in this important area of care. They have opportunities in both direct care (e.g. visits or transportation) and indirect help (e.g. office and scheduling).
If this ministry appeals to you, contact:
Jennifer Juntunen
Human Resources Director
Interim HealthCare
2402 Grand Ave.
Wausau, WI 54403
715-842-7707
Interim Health Care, which has already provided flu shots for our church is beginning a new hospice program in Wausau and is looking for volunteers who might want to work in this important area of care. They have opportunities in both direct care (e.g. visits or transportation) and indirect help (e.g. office and scheduling).
If this ministry appeals to you, contact:
Jennifer Juntunen
Human Resources Director
Interim HealthCare
2402 Grand Ave.
Wausau, WI 54403
715-842-7707
Assist with Funeral Meals
The United Methodist Women have, as a mission, provided funeral lunches. It is an honor to do this for the families. We are updating our volunteer list. We are inviting anyone to help set tables, prepare and serve lunch, and do the dishes. Any help is welcome. If you are interested, please contact Nancy Flath at 715-446-3252, Barb Ritchie at 715-843-7700, or let someone in the office know that you would like to be added to the updated list.
Thanks –
to each of you who expressed your thanks in any way for the years I served as your church secretary. I’ve considered my 14 years of service for Christ and His church as a true blessing and a joy! I’ve worked with some very special people – and I thank you, and them, for that privilege!
With Christian Love,
Arlene (Trull)
Church Picnic and Farewell to the Morrises
This year the date of our annual church picnic happens to also be Pastor Jerry’s last Sunday with us before the Morrises move to Eau Claire on the 19th of June. (Rebecca and Grace will be at church on the 18th as well - in fact, Grace is preaching - but Jerry will be at Annual Conference that Sunday.)
So this year our annual picnic is also a celebration of the Morris family’s time with us. As usual, the Welcome and Communications team will provide hamburgers and hot dogs, along with buns and fixings. Your part will be to bring side dishes, chips, and desserts. It is permissible to bring non-pie desserts, but why would you?
As we have done the past few years, we will be holding the picnic in the courtyard immediately after church. (In case of rain, we’ll move into the Fellowship Hall.) Join your church family in celebrating this transition, both in the church’s life and the Morris family’s.
As a part of an effort to be welcoming to all - which includes those with food allergies and sensitivities - we would like to ask those who cook something for the picnic to bring a list of ingredients to put beside their dish, allowing people to decide for themselves if they can eat that dish.
Potluck Luncheon, July 9, and Welcome to Pastor Jayneann
July 9 is our new pastor’s first Sunday, and we want to welcome Pastor Jayneann McIntosh with a church-wide greeting by holding a potluck lunch in the Fellowship Hall after the 10:00am service that day.
Wear your name tags. Introduce yourself, knowing that you’ll have to do it again. And rejoice. The ministry of this church to the Wausau community continues unbroken.
Please include a list of ingredients with the dish you bring, if at all possible. This can make life easier for those with food sensitivities or who are simply watching their diet.
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Why Wear Nametags?
Put yourself in the place of a first time visitor in our greeting time, with names being handed to you by everyone. Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone were wearing their name tags?
Now imagine you’re a new pastor to this church next July ...
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Click here to download the 2017 Downtown Memory Café Schedule |
Remember Our 1st Sunday Birthday Table
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On the first Sunday of every month, we set up in the Parlor a small table with a copy of the newsletter birthday list, and some birthday cards and envelopes. Take a moment during Coffee Hour to write a greeting. Those who are homebound are indicated (as in the newsletter) with an asterisk, which indicates someone who might especially appreciate being remembered by her or his church family. |
Home Visit...
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Fair Trade Coffee. Our United Methodist Women maintain a cabinet of Fair Trade Coffee for sale. This is coffee that is grown by small farmers using sustainable methods. Will buying this coffee save the world? No. Can it make a difference? Yes. Look for the UMCOR sticker on your purchase. This sticker indicates that a percentage of this sale will go to the United Methodist Committee on Relief, so each purchase comes with a giving bonus. |
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Aluminum Cans. One of the more obvious ways that we can show stewardship of creation is simply not to throw as much into landfills. Where something can be recycled and reused in a different form, it should be. We should all be doing this at home and work, but recycling aluminum cans through the church is especially useful. Our Missions Team has taken on the task of redeeming those cans, and all the cash raised in this way is dedicated to mission projects.
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Cookie Cookbook Report
Thank you to all who purchased cookbooks as part of our fundraiser for the parking lot. We sold nearly all the books we ordered and raised almost $1,000. Thank you especially to Nancy Runner for organizing and administering this project in September. A few cookbooks are left and can be purchased from the office.
And thank you to all of you who baked cookies for or delivered them to our local police and fire departments on 9/11 as a gesture of our gratitude to them.
Downtown Memory Cafe Programs for 2016
Our Memory Care Council has been busy, and most of our programming for this year is already planned. If you’ve been wondering about getting involved, take a look at the next few months and do so.
March 17: Feelin’ Lucky. Some Wheel of Fortune and shamrock-making. Try the luck of the Irish.
April 21: Folks and Jokes. Humor month. Folk guitarist Steve Loftus and a lot of humor.
May 19: Our Fine Feathered Friends. A visit from the Raptor Education Group.
June 16: ”I Do.” A wedding-themed program, accompanied harp and violins.
Cans for Missions
The Guatemala Mission Trip is paid for! But keep bringing your aluminum cans to the church!
All proceeds will support our church’s outreach projects.
Visitation Team Report
As most of you know, we have been working to establish some new systems to help our members to be more intentional about caring for each other. Here is what we’ve done:
- Established the core of a Visitation Team, people who have taken on this role as a regular commitment.
- Established an updated Visitation List, with a weekly record of who has been visited most recently, which is available to any member who wishes to make a visit. Both lists are in a marked mail box by the office door.
- Begun a monthly birthday table, available the first Sunday of every month in the Parlor, with a list of members and friends who have birthdays that month. All members are encouraged to stop at the table and send a card - especially to those who may not be able to make it to church regularly themselves.
It’s a start. And we are just starting. If you’re interested in joining the Visitation Team or have other ideas, let either Arlene Trull or Pastor Jerry know in the Office: (715) 842-2201.
Giving by Not Throwing Stuff Away
Sometimes giving to others requires sacrifice. There’s nothing wrong with that: giving sacrificially for others’ sake is what Jesus taught us to do, after all. But sometimes it is incredibly easy to make a difference, and the only thing keeping us from doing so is absent-mindedness. Here are some examples:
Milk Moola - Do you buy milk at Kwik Trip? If so, save the caps of the jugs. Those can be redeemed for money by the Harbor House Ministry in Superior.
Labels for Education / Box Tops for Education - These little labels, found on General Mills boxed foods and Campbell’s Soup cans, can be redeemed by Northcott Neighborhood House in Milwaukee.
Pop Tops from Aluminum Cans - Those little tabs, when given to the Ronald McDonald House, become cash. And, so long as you’re pulling the tabs off the cans, bring the cans in, too.
Aluminum Cans - We all know that these can be redeemed for cash, but most of us don’t bother because the few cans that we have won’t be worth the gas to drive down to the redemption center. But if we all brought our cans in to the church, they would add up. This year, the proceeds of those cans will be used to fund the mission trip to Guatemala.
Bring your cans to the recycling bin in the kitchen. Receptacles for all the other items are in baskets prominently displayed in the Parlor. See? Ridiculously easy. All you need to do is remember.
A Resource for Cancer Patients:
Cleaning for a Reason
One of the stresses of cancer is the weariness that comes from the treatments. It’s just hard to keep up with everything when you’re tired.
Nationwide foundation “Cleaning for a Reason,” has a new affiliate in Wausau. This group provides up to four free house cleanings for cancer patients. If you know someone who qualifies and could use this service, contact:
mariearnold@execcleaning.com
715-506-0970
Nationwide foundation “Cleaning for a Reason,” has a new affiliate in Wausau. This group provides up to four free house cleanings for cancer patients. If you know someone who qualifies and could use this service, contact:
mariearnold@execcleaning.com
715-506-0970
Yoga
Every Monday at 6:00pm
One of the best-kept secrets in our church is the yoga class that meets every Monday. Led by our own Maggie Schoenfeld, suitable for people of all ages and body types, yoga is a powerful way to nurture both body and soul. A suggested donation per session is $8, part of which supports our congregation’s Health Ministries Fund.
Senior Parking Spots
Now that the snow and cold weather have arrived (in force!), we ask you to think twice when you parking at church Sunday mornings. We have many senior members who find it difficult and even unsafe to walk very far in this weather. A few years ago, the Trustees designated the row of parking spots closest to the building as “Senior Parking”, and marked this with signs. Out of concern for those who have a more difficult time, please park as far from the church building as you can, to allow others to park closer. Remember, we can park on the street, and in the Y lots across the street
