“Farmville District United Methodist Women”
Spring Issue
2016
Happy Spring to all UMW members!
Thanks to Jane Smith and all participants for a wonderful Prayer Breakfast on Saturday, March 12. We have so many angels among us. We had a total of one hundred-forty-two in attendance. All units should now have your directories which were given out at the Prayer Breakfast or sent by mail afterwards. If your unit does not have a directory, please let Mari- lyn Johnson know. Thanks to Marilyn and her committee for compiling the directories. Also, included in the directory was a copy of the “Living Into Our Purpose” form. Please start completing this form which will be due August 31.
Thanks also to Alice Johnson for being our Communications Coor- dinator. She is sending out an email at the beginning of each month with reminders, and she also does our Linkette. Please send her information about your unit’s activities so we can learn from each other, and it can be published in the Linkette. I have enjoyed my visits to many units, and I usually pick up some good ideas from my visits. The members of the Dis- trict Leadership Team are willing to visit your units and if you desire to give a program.
Our District Mission Study on Latin America will be held at Main Street United Methodist Church in South Boston on Saturday, April 23. The physical address for the church is 701 North Main Street. Lori A. Valentine de Segovia who taught the study at Mission Encounter in 2015 will be the speaker. I hope we have great attendance for this study. Our mission em- phasis will be Henry Fork Service Center, and suggested list of items to do- nate is found in Irene Chapman’s article in this newsletter. Our offering will go to a mission project in Latin America. Following the study, the Main Street UMW will serve a salad lunch.
I hope some of you are planning to attend the Spiritual Life Retreat at BCRC on April 29-May 1. Mary Fulton and I will be leading one of the small groups.
On May 14, we will have our quarterly District Leadership Team meeting at Jamieson Memorial UMC in Clarksville at 9:30 am. We invite the president or a representative from each unit to this meeting. We want to honor you, and we want you to learn more about what is happening on the District level. We suggest you carpool with UMW units around you. We hope to have as many units represented as possible.
The General Conference of the United Methodist Church is meeting on May 10-20. Please join with me in praying for the delegates and our Church. Joyce Winston, our Confer- ence UMW President, is one of the delegates.
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UMW Day at Ferrum College has been changed to Saturday, June 4. A registration form for this event is included in this newsletter. Our District Annual Meeting will be held on Saturday, September 24. We are excited that Kip and Nancy Robinson, former missionaries to Sierra Leo- ne, will be our speakers. The lo- cation of the meeting will be an- nounced later. I am very sad to report that Blackstone Confer- ence and Retreat Center will cease operation on May 7 This makes me very sad as I know it does you. Please pray about this action. Several of you have asked about Dimes and Dollars for VUMAC. All the money that was turned in the first quarter has already gone or will go to VUMAC as designated; but, nei- ther the Conference or the Dis- trict will continue to collect for
this fund.
We must remember to keep faith, hope, and love in ac- tion as we minister to women, youth, and children all over the world.
Betsy Hanmer
District President
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VICE PRESIDENT
Happy Spring everyone. Finally Winter is past and better days are ahead. As I am writing this mes- sage it is Easter Monday. I stared at the computer and my fingers would not move. I needed inspi- ration and the best way to find it was to put on my walking shoes and go for my usual one mile trek. I Walk through the rolling hills of the avenues and make my way into the cemetery. There I can’t wait to take respite on the bench within. Some might think
it to be morbid to walk the cemetery, but quite the contra- ry to me. While there, I feel at peace and being in communion with God and nature. I am thankful for the good thoughts that flow through my mind while there. The camellia bushes, daffodils, tulips, and other early bloomers are in their glory. Thank God for His Son, Jesus Christ. That through His death and resurrection all things are made new again.
Looking back:
The Prayer Breakfast at Brian’s Steakhouse in South Hill was a “Hit”. ANGELS AMONG US, a program com- posed by our district Spiritual Growth Coordinator Jane Smith. What a joyful time we had presenting Angels with their wings. I am confident that there are many more An- gels out there that have earned their wings and halos. We all will see in God’s time.
A big thank you goes to our registrar of that event. Car- ol Fields and her helper Brenda Hawkins of the Farmville UMC are always ready to help. They are a wonderful example of An- gels Among Us.
Looking ahead:
Farmville District UMW Mission Study LATIN AMERI- CA presented by Lori A. Valen- tine De Segovia at Main Street UMC, South Boston on April 23, 2016, from 10-12 noon. A salad lunch will follow at no charge but do register for a headcount. Call Lucy Harris 434-572-2094 or email Lucy at . See you there.
Hedy Thomas, V.P.
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TREASURER
We certainly had a
great Prayer Breakfast this year with an attendance of 142. The program was excellent and we thank Jane Smith for her work in getting the program together. Our offering to missions was $708 and our love offering to Evergreen UMW to help them with their tor- nado work was a total of $716.00. You ladies were very generous that day and I know your gifts were ap- preciated.
The Candle Burning form is now ready for next summer. Your Candle Burning should be done this spring or summer and submit- ted to me by August 20 to count for 5 or 6 star giving. Again, gifts given for individuals that are $5 or more will be listed on the District Annual Meeting Program. All remittances should be sent to me at Mary Ful- ton, District Treasurer, 6321 Phillis Rd., Boydton, VA 23917. My email is . Feel free to contact me with any of your questions.
We still need someone who is interested in becoming our new treasurer to step up and volunteer. This will complete my 6th year as treasurer so I will not be eligible to be treasurer any longer. So think about it and step up. You are needed!
I hope you all have a nice Spring. After all our recent cool weather some spring weather will be quite welcome to all of us.
Blessings to all.
Mary Fulton
District Treasurer
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . SPIRITUAL GROWTH
In this beautiful season of the year when the world is in bloom around us and the Easter Hallelujah Chorus still resounds joyfully, I’d like to believe the
world is at peace. My friends, it’s not a reality.
The headlines on the news- paper beside me read, “Easter At- tack on Christians in Pakistan.” Across the bottom of my TV screen I see “Global Terrorism A Threat.” Suddenly, the world’s become closer, and my Easter joy is tainted with fear.
I closed my eyes and put my head on my crossed arms in contemplation. A scenario of the eleven disciples hiding and filled with fear following the crucifixion flashed before me. They faced the same from the Jewish authorities and Roman soldiers.
How did the disciples en- dure their impending danger and become strong enough to become Christ’s church in the world? It was through prayer and that final chat with Jesus when He promised a peace, unlike what the world gives, and a courage strong enough to face persecution. (John 16:33)
His promises are as real now as when the disciples trusted them. We will have an opportuni- ty to share in our Christian faith at the Annual Spiritual Life Retreat April 29—May 1 at Blackstone Conference and Retreat Center. Register now for one or both days.
Blessings to all.
Jane S. Smith
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EDUCATION & INTERPRETATION
“For now the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing has come,…” Song of Solo- mon 2: 11-13
And here we are – springtime in Southside Virginia – the glorious Easter season. What better time to learn of our UMW missionary work, and I hope many of you will
attend the mission study on April 23 at Main Street UMC in South Boston, VA. Lori A. Valentine De Segovia will talk about mission work in Latin America. Our monetary offering will go to UMCOR Latin America relief aid, and our material offerings will go to the Henry Fork Service Center. We ask you to bring acrylic craft paints, paper products such as toilet paper and paper towels, Styrofoam bowls, round Styrofoam divided plates, or 8 oz. plastic tumblers. A salad lunch, of several choices, will be provid- ed by the Main Street UMW.
Meanwhile you need to be thinking about your “Living Into Our Purpose” forms where you are recording the activities your UMW units are involved in this year. The deadline of August 31 when you will send the forms to me will be here soon enough. When your executive team meets next have someone review the form as your officers give input on each item, and you will have it completed in no time. If a re- quirement is one you’ve not thought about, maybe your group will come up with some creative way you can meet the expecta- tion between now and the time the report is due. Do add an ex- tra page to explain your activities. I know I’ll have lots of good pro- grams, events, etc. to read about when I receive the reports.
Irene Chapman
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PROGRAM RESOURCES
It was so good to see you all at the March Prayer Breakfast, a wonderful program about angels, was given by Jane Smith. I bet we all have angels in our life.
As I write this, yesterday was the first day of spring and the new life opening outside. God gives us
that reassurance of new life each spring that we too will have new life when we leave this world.
I am starting to think about our Annual Meeting in September and hope the books this year are as good as our 2015 books. I hope you are all reading as I am. I am getting ready to read I Am Malala and look- ing forward to it. I just finished read- ing This Child Will Be Great. It was an inspiring inside look of a nation struggling to rebuild and the women behind those efforts.
Peggy Sickles
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MEMBERSHIP, NURTURE AND OUTREACH
Greetings from southern Halifax County! The trees are forming new leaves, the azaleas are beginning to bloom, the grass needs mowing and all that brings pollen to make me sneeze, unfor- tunately!
If you missed the Prayer Breakfast at Brian’s Steak House in South Hill this year, you missed a great event. We had to set up more tables to accommodate eve- ryone that came.
We had several “angel sightings” during the program that Jane Smith had planned and each angel received her “wings”. It was a meaningful program, and I’m sure there were many angels pre- sent that were not recognized at that particular time.
Thanks to all that reported on membership. The report had to be done on the computer this year which was different from the past reports. Farmville District reported 762 members, down 41 from last year. We now have 53 active units. Let’s all try and get some new members in the coming year.
Cecile Ford
SOCIAL ACTION
Ponder on the needs of our
women, youth and children
Obey God’s word and spread the Good News
Vicious circles we need to change
Examine ways to eliminate pov- erty
Read, read, read Social Action books
Travel around your community with “ideas outside the box”
You and I must minister to the
poor
“What good is it, my broth- ers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sis- ter is naked and lacks daily food and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.” James 2:14-17 The old adage, “Give a per-
son a fish and he or she eats for a day; teach a person to fish and he or she will eat for a lifetime” is so true. Our UMW’s raise money to give to UMCOR which in turn buys seeds, etc. to give to women in impoverished countries. They are shown how to plant the seeds and how to harvest their crops. They, in turn, feed their families, sell extra vegetables to make mon- ey, use the money to send their children to school; thus improving
their children’s lives and their fu-
VUMAC IS CEASING OPERATIONS!
As District VUMAC Coordinator, I am including two pieces this month. The first paragraph is from Sam, sent to me for this newsletter. I am also including, in italics, the announcement posted on the closing of the facili- ty. Let us continue to keep the employees in our prayers and the future plans God has for the facility. Sam and the office staff firmly believe God is still in charge and will reveal His plan. Sue Mayo
“The occasion is sad but let us remember all the good, no let us remember all the great times, events and memories that we have created and have had here at VUMAC. Remember that our Savior has walked the halls with all of us and will continue to be with us as he promised. We should all rejoice in having had the opportunity of sharing our faith here and now we need to share it wherever we go. My life has been blessed by being here, meeting so many and creating friendships that will last a lifetime. I thank you the women of the UMW for your service and faithfulness. May God be with you.” (Sam McCracken )