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Gwen’s Note

      I m= entioned in the last Spire, we are going to hear and read a lot about "= ;healthy, vital congregations." On the conference website it say= s:
• Healthy, vital congreg= ations…are clear about their identity and mission as followers of Jesus Christ= …and can answer the question: "What is God’s vision for ou= r church within the community at this time?"
• Healthy, vital congreg= ations…look outward and focus their energy and resources on engaging with the = world in meaningful ways.
• Healthy, vital congreg= ations…have meaningful, passionate worship that speaks to those in the church = and welcomes those who seek to participate.
• Healthy, vital congreg= ations…are empowered by laity, who are involved actively in leadership and on-= going disciple development.
• Healthy, vital congreg= ations…are able to point to clear signs of health and vitality, because they h= ave created specific measures to define success and use them to evaluate on= a regular basis.
      When I read this, I can easily get ov= erwhelmed by expectations, thinking we can do better. When I tak= e a deep breath and look and listen to our congregation, I realize how= grateful I am for all we do, who we are, and where we are going. &nbs= p;
      Six of us attended the "Thrive W= here You Are Planted" Conference in McMinnville last weekend.&nbs= p; We learned much and came back inspired! There are three = areas we want to work on: a process of listening, the development a wo= rship planning team to help design meaningful, passionate worship, and a pr= ocess to increase involvement in small groups. Our first step will be= to listen! And I mean listen. The leadership of our church wan= ts to know what your story is, your hopes and dreams, your passions. = And we are going to ask you in a methodical (after all we are Methodists) a= nd caring way. We are not going to ask you to do anything, = except to share more of who you are with us. Like I say, we= are simply going to listen. And those of us doing the asking/intervi= ewing are going to be trained to ask questions and listen.  =
      We learned at the conference in McMinnvill= e, that to thrive as a congregation, we need to be indigenous. We nee= d to be embedded deeply in our community, knowing what the community surrou= nding us and within us is about. We cannot transplant what a suc= cessful church in Texas or Kansas is doing and do it here. We need to= know what makes Hillsboro, Oregon tick.
      I also want to assure you this does not me= an HUGE changes for us. It is about taking small steps with care= ful planning after listening.  We have a coach to help us st= ay on track and hold us accountable.  He is the pastor at Tigard = UMC and his name is Lee Hunefeld.
      If you have any further questions about th= is you can talk with anyone who attended the conference:  Mary an= d Katie Foote, Christine Webb, Sunny Iboshi, Susan Jensen, and me. &nb= sp;

S= ee you in church!

= Peace, <\_~

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = Gwen // ||

UMW

(503-530-0035) Revgwen7@m= sn.com

= ; Women in our church will learn about street child= ren in Afghanistan when UMW meets on April 7. Elinor Edmunds Miller w= ill tell about her work with children in Kabul and show pictures and art wo= rk of and by them.

= ; The meeting will begin at 10 a.m. with coffee hos= ted by Barbara Endecott and Audrey Greenlee, followed immediately by the pr= ogram. A business meeting will conclude the event. As usual, the Exec= utive Board will meet at 8:45, prior to the unit meeting.

= UMW is finalizing plans for the annual Mothers and Others Dessert, to be he= ld May 5 at 7 p.m. A professional storyteller will be the featured sp= eaker, presenting a program geared for both children and adults. Tickets wi= ll go on sale following the April meeting. The cost will be $5. Now i= s a good time to invite friends, family and neighbors to this special event= .

Steady Diet of

Church camp week for HUMC childre= n and youth!

       Church camp is a great act= ivity for kids -- I'll bet many of you went to camp yourselves when you wer= e young! We thought it would be great for our HUMC kids to have the opportu= nity to attend summer church camp together.

       Two camps in August meet t= he same week, in the same place, for both younger kids and for youth -- how= convenient is that? They are totally separate camps and they are bot= h at Camp Magruder the week of August 15 - 20. Both are currently accepting= registrations (we have camping scholarships available through the church).=

       Camps can fill up early! G= o to http://gocamping.org/camps-retreats/ for more information and to regis= ter.

Superkids Camp - Magruder

Dates: August 15 - August 20, 2010

Ages: grades 3rd - 5th

       Summer camp is super! Kids= are super! Put them together for a super week full of adventure and tradit= ional camp activities. What a great way to finish the summer! R= ide the donkeys, go swimming, fishing, boating, and wave teasing. Try= your hand at archery, craft activities, and more. Listen to campfire= stories and make s’mores.

Make a new friend. Come to SuperKids!

Last Chance Camp - Magruder—Dates: August 15 - Augus= t 20, 2010

Ages: grades 6-8

       Bring your friends and lot= s of energy because you’ll need it for this week full of all kinds of= excitement! It’s the last chance of the summer to spend at cam= p with other Jr. High students!! It is a week to make new friends, a = week to have fun swimming, creating crafts, exploring faith, pursuing outdo= or adventures, boating, wave jumping, playing games, sports, cooking out, a= nd sitting around the campfire each night and so much more. It is the= perfect way to “cap off” the summer!

       The fee for each camp is $= 315/$365/$415 tiered pricing.

It is springtime;

therefore it is Migrant

Outreach time...

  &n= bsp;   It is nearing the = time of year that our HUMC Migrant Outreach program begins, running this ye= ar from May 1st thru July 1^st. The mission of t= his outreach is helping acclimate new migrant workers into the area while t= hey await the crops, once they start collecting paychecks our support ends.=
      The Oregon Food Bank partners with several= Washington County agencies and churches in supporting the seasonal migrant= influx into the area. Their support is mostly basic Hispanic food staples;= we then supplement the Food Bank foodstuffs with fresh fruit, juices and v= egetables. We visit the camp once weekly during the duration of our program= .

      = In addition to financial support Outreach team would also= ask you to consider donations of the following items-

- Personal care items are in ac= ute need at this time. Please consider bringing in razors, shave cream, sha= mpoo, combs/brushes, nail clippers, first aid items, toothbrushes, toothpas= te, bath soap, etc.

- Bath towels, hand towels and = washcloths are also needed. New or like new items appreciated.

- Kitchen utensils such as pots= /pans, knives, forks/spoons, large bowls, spoons/spatulas, bowls, and dish = cleaning items (dish soap, wash basin, towels, washcloths) are needed. We a= nticipate 12-15 cabins needing kitchen utensil sets.

- Clothing (pants, shirts, jack= ets) and shoes, clean and usable, is always needed.

- Smaller sizes of Men’s = shoes (6-8) are most needed.

- Bedding; sheets, blankets, pi= llows, pillow cases, is greatly appreciated.

      = = A series of collection boxes will be provided in the Fellowship Hall for th= e above items.

      = If interested in helping or have questions please contact Bruce Pederson at= (503)681-0968 or bruce.pederson@verizon.net.

Family Ministries

Corner

      = I was so touched a= t the last Lenten Dinner as I listened to pastor Brian Shimer talk about ho= w God had led him to some unexpected places in his life and his ministry, t= o places of love and of healing. What impressed me most was his open-ness t= o God, his willingness to not only listen but to act. That example, I think= , is one we can all learn from and emulate.

      = Along with several other members of our congregation, I participated in a s= eminar last weekend: “Thrive where you are planted.” It gave us= all a lot to think about and we are going to be doing a few new things as = a result of it. I am working through a few new ideas for Morning JAM = for next fall so, when I call on you for a little help, I hope you will emu= late Brian and say “Yes!” I promise it will be short-term, inte= resting and based on something you, personally, feel passionate about!

      = We will be having a fun E= aster Egg Hunt on Easter morning= at 9:15 AM. Please bring an Easter basket for your child, if you hav= e one. There’s time for breakfast beforehand if you come early = (8:30AM or so). You might consider coming for the early “SonRise̶= 1; service. For some churches this is the most-attended service. Ther= e will be no Morning JAM or LiftOff! On Easter Sunday so that we can all wo= rship together. And if your family would like to have a= n Easter picture of you and/or you= r family, you can stick around after the 10AM service and have a picture ta= ken in front of the flower cross. = Bring your camera!

      = Morning JAM will have a “new look” starting April 11 because we= are going to be using “camping curriculum” as we lead up to C= amping Sunday (May 2). I hope you = will make a commitment to being there.

Christ has risen – he has= risen indeed – how will we respond?

Take Care

Christine