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MISSIONS CALENDAR FOR 2009

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The Missions Committee of Mt. Zion is responsible for determining the recipients of our monthly, Special Benevolence Offerings, the oversight of appeals to the congregation for what they refer to as “in kind” contributions such as food drives or health kits, organizing food runs, and promoting special offerings such as Blanket Sunday.

In arriving at the calendar for 2009, the committee has tried to maintain a balance of offerings that reflect a variety of interests and needs with the local community plus the U.C.C. related institutions in our area. As in the past, several months or Sundays were not designated to allow for appeals that may arise during the year. During the year, the Missions Committee will apprise you on a monthly basis what the Special Benevolence Offering is. In the meantime, we share this with you as an overview of the coming year.

Jan. ~ Lancaster Theological Seminary

Feb. ~ Mt. Zion’s Disaster Relief Fund

(This fund was established in 2006 to provide emergency relief. Last year aid was provided to assist hurricane victims in Texas.)

Mar. ~ Habitat for Humanity

Share-Your-Heart – 5th Sunday

(This provides support for the UCC Child Sponsorship Program.)

April ~ Access-York

May ~ Homewood Homes - Hanover

(Our UCC related home and ministry to seniors)

Holy Joe’s Café – 5th Sunday

(Funds provide chaplains serving in Iraq and other combat areas resources to set up a coffee house for service men and women.)

June ~ Bell Shelter – York

July ~ Hoffman Homes – Gettysburg

(Our UCC related ministry to troubled children and youth.)

Aug. ~ Undesignated at this time

Compassionate Food Run – 5th Sunday

Sept. ~ York Association Micro-lending Project

(The York Assoc. has helped establish 9 Trust Banks in Africa.)

Oct. ~ Lehman Center – York

Nov. ~ Rescue Mission - York

5th Sunday – Lakota Workcamp

Dec. ~ Good Samaritan Fund

The undesignated times will be assigned as the Committee continues to assess needs that arise locally, nationally and globally through the year.

Compassion-York Food Runs have been scheduled for Jan. 25th, and May 31st . The soup kitchen, referred to as “Chop & Peel,” will prepare food for Our Daily Bread Soup Kitchen the last Monday of March, June, September, and December in 2009.

Additionally, the Missions Committee will be collecting children’s items during the observance of Children’s Sabbath in October and Christmas gifts in December. These missions are in addition to our special offerings: One Great Hour of Sharing (OGHS) in March, Strengthen the Church in May, Blanket Sunday in September, and Neighbors in Need & CROP walk in October.

The Missions Committee is most appreciative of the congregation’s support and understanding of the importance of mission and outreach. The Committee has endeavored to provide a variety of ministries as well as balance the appeals for donations. It is hoped that this will help you to plan and to appreciate the vast mission work of our congregation.

Members of the Missions Committee: Carol Hartman, Leon Hartman, Bob Bievenour, Doris Loucks, and Kathy Ensminger (Chair).

The Ministry of Ushering

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Ushers are usually the first representatives of the church to meet people as they arrive for worship. This means you establish the mood that enables people to worship. Be friendly and respectful to every person—try to restore the dignity that society manages to trample each week. Be helpful in answering questions and in directing people to other areas of the church. You help establish a warm, welcome, friendly feeling for strangers.

YOU play an important role in outreach and mission of Mt. Zion.

THE USHERING TEAM

The Worship Committee and Worship Ministry Teams coordinate the ushering schedule. The team consists of a Head Usher and four persons for each service (early and late). The name of the Head Usher for each week is included in the Spirit. Please inform the Head Usher if you cannot be present and, if possible, get another person to usher in your place.

HEAD USHER RESPONSIBILITIES

Arrive at least 20 minutes before the service.

Turn on ALL lights in the sanctuary and choir lofts (except the candelabra). The switches to control these lights are located inside the sanctuary on the west wall (switches B & C). At the end of the scripture reading, when the pastor moves to the pulpit, turn off B and C.

NOTE: If the candelabra lights are on, please do not turn these off as there may be equipment that is being prepared or warming up for the service.

Light taper for acolyte. The taper and matches are found in the ushers' closet. The acolyte enters during the PRELUDE. Turn on candelabra when both candles are lit (inside wall switch A). If acolyte is having a problem lighting the candles, assist them! If there is no acolyte, find a substitute, light the candles yourself, or ask one of the ushers to do this.

Assist visitors and persons with handicaps. Be available to operate chair lift. Help with doors and finding seats when sanctuary is crowded. Offer to hang up coats. Be attentive. AND, be friendly.

Turn on the sound system. It is already set up—all you need to do is turn on the power strip. For the 10/10:30 Service only put the tape in the left side of the tape deck at the beginning of the service. Press the red RECORD button, then the right PLAY button. Tape should be moving left to right.

Check the comfort level of the church—adjust air conditioning (rear east wall), windows, and doors as necessary.

EARLY WORSHIP USHERS:

Turn on necessary lights in entrances, hallways and stairs. Turn on hanging lights in sanctuary and choir loft. Turn on the candelabra when both candles are lit (inside wall switch A.) Also, tidy up the church after early service by returning hymnals to their racks, picking up bulletins, etc.

USHER RESPONSIBILITIES:

Arrive at least 20 minutes prior to beginning of worship.

Locate bulletins (regular, large print and children's) in cabinet in old narthex. Distribute bulletins at main sanctuary entrance and also side entrance.

Greet and Welcome people! A friendly greeting and warm smile is appreciated by everyone. Ask visitors to sign guest book. Help them feel comfortable by directing them to coat racks, restrooms, and childcare during the 10/10:30 service.

Count the number of people present at each service, including children, choir members, pastors, and organist. This can be done while passing the offering plates. Fill out a Worship Attendance Slip (found in Ushers’ Closet) and place in the offering plate. Don't forget to count the people in the nurseries.

Receive the offering. Ushers move back all three aisles, passing the plates back and forth. When the offering has been collected, two ushers will carry the plates to the front and hand them to the acolyte or pastor. The acolyte or pastor will place the offering on the altar. After the prayer of dedication, ushers may return to the rear of the sanctuary. Please note, on some Sundays there are two offerings: ushers should receive both of them.

There is a seating area reserved for ushers at the back of the church. From this area, you can continue to welcome people who may arrive late and be attentive to concerns during the service.

If a parent is needed in the nursery, a helper may ask you to assist in finding the parents. Also please try to be attentive to the telephone and answer, if possible. Monitor the congregation, seeking to be helpful whenever a need is indicated. (If someone becomes ill, get a nurse, etc.)

Open all doors out of the sanctuary following worship service.

DUTIES FOLLOWING SERVICES:

Tidy the church after the service – return the hymnals to their arcks, pick up bulletins, etc., and straighten all materials. The fliers and special envelopes in the pew racks are placed there and removed by members of the Missions Committee.

See that the tape is rewound, labeled, and placed in the rack and the sound system is turned off.

Turn off all lights in sanctuary and hallways. See that doors to the sanctuary are closed. Make sure that the windows in the sanctuary and narthex are closed.

THANK YOU for your willingness to help in this part of the life and ministry of Mt. Zion U.C.C.
IT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!

Sincerely,

The Worship Committee
Rev. Sherry

You can download a PDF version of this page here.

September 2008

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September Special Benevolence Offering: Micro-Lending through Opportunity International

Micro-Lending is a way of helping one person, one family, and one village in a Third World Country, to help themselves work their way out of poverty.

We here at Mt. Zion have been supporting Opportunity International for five years, and have helped hundreds of poor people. Mt. Zion, along with the York Association, has sponsored 11 trust banks. Our focus has been on

Africa.

Starting with a loan of $57, Janet

Korutaro has expanded her business in her small store in Nsike, Uganda. A widow, Janet, dreams of buying land and building a house. She cares for two children and one grandchild, along with three AIDS orphans she has taken in.

Janet’s trust bank is called the Orphan Caring Group. The 15 members have committed to raising a group of 43 orphans. Each member contributes weekly to pay for food and school fees for the orphans.

Poverty and AIDS go hand in hand in Africa. Opportunity International’s response to AIDS provided a means for the poor to create income by building businesses that will provide for their children for years to come.

Working in seven African countries, Opportunity International is making a difference in the lives of 87,000 poor entrepreneurs, offering working capital, practical business training and Christian principles for personal growth.

With your help, we can continue this important work! Thank you!

The Missions Committee

Chop & Peel

We have Soup Kitchen in April with Chop & Peel being Monday, Sept. 29 at 6:00 PM. Sign up in the narthex to donate food and show up to help prepare. Your ongoing donations and help are gratefully appreciated.

Thank you for your gifts to our Hoffman Homes July Special

Benevolence Offering. Receipts totaled $1,652.00.

Conference Disaster Response Trips

DISASTER RESPONSE TRIP TO NEW ORLEANS - Oct 25-Nov 1, 2008
DISASTER RESPONSE TRIP TO NEW ORLEANS - week of December 8

Blanket Sunday

Have you ever been really cold? What was it like? Did your teeth chatter? When you are cold, it would be helpful to have a blanket. You could wrap up in it. But it could also be a transformer blanket. Folded up, it could be a pillow; open it up, and it could be a suitcase. You could also put it over your head and use it as a tent.

On September 14, we will be participating in Blanket Sunday. For only $5, you can provide a warm blanket for someone left homeless by a hurricane or other disaster. $25 can provide five warm blankets for a family left homeless by a hurricane or other disaster. $120 can enable three women to attend a literacy class for a year and change their lives forever. $200 can provide a struggling farm family with a water buffalo – a “living tractor” to significantly increase their food production and carry their produce to market. $250 can provide a sewing machine to a young mother learning to support her family. $5,000 can drill a deep water well, protection again drought for a village.

Please be generous in your support on Sept. 14. Thank you! The Missions Committee

August 2008

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Thank you for your gifts to our Bell Socialization June Special Benevolence Offering. Receipts totaled $1,576.50.

Thank you for your gifts to our June Adopt-a-Cabin 5^th Sunday Special Benevolence Offering. Receipts totaled $377.00.

Coming in September. . .

Blanket Sunday – Sept. 14^th & Chop & Peel – Sept. 29^th

Special Benevolence Offering for August

The Student-In-Care Fund of the York Association

The Committee on Ministry of the York Association of the United Church of Christ is charged with nurturing and supporting members of local UCC churches who are preparing for ordained ministry. One of the ways we do that is by offering scholarship support. Students must be enrolled in an accredited seminary, submit a request for the scholarship funds and complete a financial need statement. The primary source of funding for these scholarships is the offering received at a local church installation or ordination. These events occur infrequently while the need for support remains constant.

Generally the scholarships provide $3000 to $5000, annually. If the student is ordained into parish ministry and serves in that capacity for five years, the loan is forgiven. Thankfully, that has been the case with almost all of our students over the years but it also depletes the resources. Your gifts to the Special Benevolence portion of the envelope will help provide for the future of the church and it leaders in York County and Penn Central Conference.

Thank you, The Missions Committee

5th Sunday Special Benevolence Offering – UCC Coffee Ministry

Holy Joe’s Café originated from the First Congregational Church in Wallingford, CT, and was started by collecting and shipping coffee to military chaplains for their Coffee House Ministry. The coffee houses were a way for Chaplains to get solders acquainted with the on-base chapel. At first, the project began as a 100 cup a week make-shift ministry but now serves over 3,000.

At this time our troops in Iraq find themselves in difficult and life threatening situations. This puts an extreme physical, emotional, and psychological toll on them. The coffee houses are places where troops can go to relax, get away from the war for awhile, get a good cup of coffee and talk about their problems. The chaplains are a first line of defense against issues faced by our troops.

The Coffee Ministry: UCC Coffee Project partners with Holy Joe’s Café to support chaplains and our troops in Iraq. The support that is offered to the troops is so effective and well received, that the outreach program has grown to assist chaplains at five bases in Iraq.

The money collected through this offering will purchase Fair Trade coffee to be shipped to Iraq. This is an easy way for the whole congregation to support our troops!

Church World Service Clean-Up Kits

Due to the massive need in the Midwest because of all the flooding, the Missions Committee has decided to collect Emergency Clean-Up Buckets during the month of August.

Church World Service provides the clean-up buckets and supplies to enable communities to begin the overwhelming job of cleaning up after a flood, hurricane, tornado or other disaster.

These clean-up kits are for use only in the United States. The following items are needed:

Five scouring pads
Seven sponges, assorted sizes
One scrub brush
Eighteen cleaning towels (reusable, like Easy Wipes®)
One 50-78 oz. box dry laundry detergent
One 12 oz. bottle of liquid concentrated household cleaner (like Lysol®)
One 25 oz. bottle liquid disinfectant dish soap (like Dawn®)
Fifty clothespins
Clothesline, two 50 ft. or one 100 ft.
Five dust masks
Two pairs latex gloves (like Playtex®)
One pair work gloves
24-bag roll of heavy-duty trash bags (33-45 gallon)
One 6-14 oz. bottle of insect repellent (drops or lotion, not aerosol)

All liquids should be purchased in plastic bottles, and should remain in those unopened bottles. Items should be packed securely into the plastic bucket to avoid damage during shipment.

Please sign up on the sheet on the Missions table in the narthex. Our goal is to fill ten (10) buckets. Please help our unfortunate people in disaster areas. Thank you. The Missions Committee

2^nd Annual “Displaced, Not Erased” Benefit Banquet Spotlighting Iraqi Refugees

Friday, August 15, 2008 ~ 6:30 PM ~ Calvary Church, 1015 Landis Valley Rd., Lancaster, PA 17601. Tickets: $20 per person; $160 for a table of 8.

You can fill a table yourself or let CWS fill it with refugee families.

Please make checks payable to Westgate Baptist Church, 2235 Harrisburg Pike, Lancaster, PA 17601 ~ Attn: Pastor Roy Johnsen

July Special Benevolence Offering: Hoffman Homes

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The special Benevolence Offering for July is Hoffman Homes. Located in Gettysburg, Hoffman Homes for Youth is a psychiatric residential treatment program for children ages six through 18. Providing behavioral and cognitive therapy, physical health care services, education, spiritual nurturing and a safe and comfortable home for up to 141 children, Hoffman Home for Youth relies on funding to continue its successful programming and rehabilitation.

According to the Hoffman Homes website, of the 168 children admitted last year,

* The average age at admission was 13.2 years.

* The average length of stay was 8.4 months.

* 77% of the children were patients in a psychiatric hospital at least once.

* 39% of the children made at least one major suicide attempt prior to admission.

* 44% of the children had a history of physical abuse.

* 44% of the children had a history of sexual abuse.

* 92% of the children had a history of aggression.

Please give generously to this most valuable mission. Thank you.

Mount Zion Mission Committee Guidelines

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Definition Mission: a ministry commissioned by a religious organization to propagate its faith or carry on humanitarian work.

I. Purpose

The purpose of the Mission Committee is to select outreach programs from the following two categories:

Community Services & Outreach - To support programs and services provided by service agencies, community action groups, and ecumenical agencies relating to the spiritual, social and economical needs of persons in the local community served by the church.

Wider Mission of the UCC - to support the work of UCC in the US and overseas in such areas as new church development, professional leadership, educational ministries, evangelism, and world missions.

The committee will attempt to maintain a balance of funding for all activities.

II. Monthly Mission Process

The committee will:

· Serve as a clearinghouse for all outreach activities including church fundraising, so a cohesive calendar of all outreach activities can be maintained.

· Research various organizations and utilize the congregation's suggestions.

a. The organization or project should be well known with a proven track record. If not known, the committee will request pertinent information through the Mission Request Evaluation Form.

b. The organization or project should relate to at least one of the two categories list above.

c. Review Mission Request Evaluation Forms and schedule/reschedule project.

· Coordinate/Support on-going programs.

· Sign-up sheets that require funds or in-kind giving must have approval of the Mission Committee.

· Keep the church council informed of all activities and ask for approval when appropriate.

III. Grant Allocation Process

The committee will:

· Publicize grant application opportunities (quarterly) in the church newsletter and bulletin until the Endowment Fund has been depleted for the year.

· In addition to publicizing the grant opportunities in the newsletter and bulletin, in the first year of the grant process (May, 08) a representative of the Missions Committee will attend early and late service and explain to the congregation the grant application process. In all proceeding years the announcement will occur In the fourth quarter of the year prior to allocating funds.

· Congregation member(s) seeking a grant must fill-out a Grant Application Form for approval by Missions Committee.

· All grants must comply with either of the two categories previously outlined above.

· Mission Committee will review grant application and if approved, the chair will mail a solicitation letter to the organization that will benefit from the grant.

· The organization will have 30 days to submit information to the Missions Committee.

· Missions Committee will review information and recommend funding request to Church Council for approval.

· Upon approval chair will notify organization(s) of funding approval and have treasurer disburse funds.

· The Missions Committee will keep track of all allocations by including the allocation and fund balance in all minutes

IV. Communication with Congregation

Keep the congregation informed of selection of Monthly Missions and Grant approval by placing informative literature in pews (Monthly Mission only), writing a short paragraph for the church bulletin and newsletter, and thanking and informing the congregation regarding the dollars raised or allocated.

Recommendation

It is also recommended that we publicly recognize organizations receiving funding at church services with a check presentation and brief comments from organization receiving funds (when possible).