WITH COMMUNITY

JANUARY/FEBRUARY

2012

IN TOUCH

APPLES OF GOLD -Barb Jensen

“A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver” (Proverbs 25:11).

“With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness” (James 3:9).

Our tongue, which spews out our thoughts, in words, is so powerful!!! Several years ago when some of the women from CRC participated in a program called “Apples of Gold,” we learned how important it is to encourage our spouse, children and all people with whom we are in contact. This praise and encouragement come in many forms: words, written and spoken; actions; body lan-guage, including smiling, actively listening, looking at someone when we use words to praise; and being genuine.

I know all of these things in my head, yet sometimes it is very hard for me to put them into practice. I am better at some than others. With God’s help I am growing in some of the areas where I struggle.

So, at this time, I would like to give praise and encouragement to Theda and the Worship Team for the wonderful Advent services, to Chip for his encouraging messages, to Cindy for her time and dedication to lead the Community Cantata and Bev Boss for the leadership she gives to the Christmas Project. Thank you all for sharing your gifts.

Theme: Apples of Gold in Settings of Silver—How can your words be a blessing (or curse) to others?

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Kitchen Corner

A huge thank you to the crew that helps put on Wednesday night dinners. Without their help it wouldn't be possible. We welcome anybody wanting to join us as some of the crew is heading south in February. We can use some help in February and March. If interested, please contact Dianne Coolman at dcoolman@chartermi.net or 231-675-6550 (cell) or 231-547-6933 (home).

Thanks to the following individuals:

Bev Boss, Gay Pung, Pat Brown, Sharon Coen, Tim Coen, Nickole Cox, and John Coolman

Bless you all for your time and commitment!

Fair Trade Coffee

Our church has begun serving “Fair Trade Coffee” for all our meetings and gath-erings. Why, you ask? Through some learning over the past few months on the plight of poverty, some of us have learned about the world’s slave labor that is involved in the coffee industry. (It is even true in the making of Chocolate, this to be conquered next). Companies such as Folgers go into poor countries and

literal pay children and adults under $2 a day for harvesting. An excerpt from an article titled: “Fair Trade Churches” by Nathan George says; “Much about fair trade has yet to be done, thought through, debated and implemented. But the good news is much has already been done. Fair trade as a move-ment was started by Christians who had a passion for justice and fairness—and a vision of a world where the workers in the field no longer cry out to the Lord Almighty…Charity does not fix poverty – jobs do. There is an old African proverb that says: ‘the hand that gives is uppermost. The hand that shakes is an equal’. The poor want the dignity of a meaningful job so they can take responsibility for their own future.”

We are now getting our coffee beans through a place called “Higher Grounds” in Traverse City. The cost is a bit higher, but the work it supports is helping to eliminate poverty throughout the world. The coffee is delicious (haven’t you noticed the difference?). Each week there will be a basket by the coffee if you would like to throw some money in to help defray the extra cost, but most importantly enjoy the coffee and the job it is doing in eliminating poverty. Nathan George ends with the following challenge: “God is waiting for us in humility to turn around and not just offer Him percentages of our income but to lay it all out there in front of Him. To ask Him to help us live more simply, give more generously and consume more consciously.” This is a start!

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WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

Most of us are familiar with new member Damaris Blatt who was an intern at CRC for the fall semester. Damaris has attended CRC ever since she was baptized here as a small child. After graduating from East Jordan High School, Damaris stayed in this area to attend NCMC. Her family moved to Wyoming two year ago.

During her internship, Damaris had the opportunity to explore various areas of ministry. Damaris says she “learned a lot,” was “passionate about some areas more than others,” and especially “loved the teaching part.” Having earned her Associate of Arts degree from NCMC, Damaris is prayerfully considering her next step: the selection of a college where she’ll continue her education. In the meantime, she has decided to continue taking classes at NCMC with plans to transfer next fall. Her goal is a bachelor’s degree in social work with an MA in counseling.

When she is not studying, Damaris loves to read, watch movies, cook, bake, sew (including cross-stitch) and sing (without an audience).

Family is very important to Damaris; she is the middle child in a family of nine children. She says her parents set a good example for her while her dad played a huge role in her becoming a Chris-tian. He encouraged her and spent time dialoguing, answering her questions. Besides the blessing of family, Damaris feels that God has blessed her in many small ways.

……….

Love of the outdoors prompted new members, Tim and Patti McCreadie, to move from Northville, MI to Charlevoix in 2009. Tim had been vacationing in this area his entire life, both while growing up and after marrying and having his own family. Tim and Patti are parents of Taggart, a junior in high school; Gavin, a freshman; and Avery, a third-grader.

Tim holds a BS degree in business from Michigan State University. He is currently a director for Cutco Corporation (cutlery) where he has worked for 25 years. Modern technology provided the opportunity for him to relocate his now “virtual” office to Charlevoix.

Patti attended Alma for two years; then she transferred to Michigan State, earning a degree in psychology. Her main job for fourteen years was a stay-at-home mom. Presently, she works for Medical Web Technologies.

Patti shares Tim’s enthusiasm for the outdoors; she enjoys gardening and family camping. Tim loves the water, especially boating and fishing; he also enjoys hunting.

The McCreadies join CRC by transfer from First United Methodist Church of Northville. After visiting a number of other churches, they chose Community Reformed because it is family ori-ented (they already knew a number of families) and they appreciate Chip’s sermons.

………. Continued on page 4

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WELCOME NEW MEMBERS (Cont’d from page 3)

Chris Maki comes to CRC through a very significant connection—Kari Jo (Boss) is his wife; as most of us know, Kari grew up in this church. Chris shared that transferring from First Covenant Church of Iron Mountain was theologically an “easy transition.”

Chris was born in the UP in Ontonagon County, moved around a lot, then, graduated from High School in Monument, Colorado. He earned a one-year bible certificate from Covenant Bible Col-lege in Canada. Next, he secured a job as youth pastor at Community Covenant Church in Twisp, WA. After four and one-half years, he moved to the Seattle area where he served for two and one-half years as youth pastor at Kenmore Covenant Church. Chris circled back to Michigan where he became an associate pastor for three years in Iron Mountain.

Presently, Chris is taking classes on-line from Western Theological Seminary, working toward an MA in divinity. (Apologetically, I had to interrupt his study of Greek for this interview.) Working part time at Boyne “affords” Chris the opportunity to downhill ski, one of his favorite pastimes. He also pursues his “love of the outdoors” camping and hiking.

Chris confessed to being a “coffee snob.” Between studying Greek and responding to new baby Quinn’s wake-up calls, I suspect we will find him drinking even Folgers with a grateful “amen.”

……….

Matt and Ellie Evans have chosen CRC as their church home because it is Matt’s “family church.” While Ellie is a northern Michigan native, Matt has lived here most of his life. He was born in Midland, but his family moved to Charlevoix when he was six-years-old. Ellie was born and raised in Petoskey. In June, she and Matt moved to Petoskey right next door to where Ellie grew up. Ellie’s sister and family share the property on the other side of the family homestead.

After graduating from Charlevoix High School, Matt attended Michigan State, earning a cer-tificate in dairy management. Matt did work for a while in farming, but he currently is employed at St. Mary’s Cement Plant. However, he continues to enjoy some farming as a hobby; he recently purchased a cow and likes to make ice cream! In his spare time, Matt also enjoys baseball and building things.

Ellie earned a BSW degree in social work from Saginaw State University. She is employed by Lutheran Child and Family Service of Petoskey, working in their Family’s First Program. At home, she enjoys cooking, baking, reading, and scrap-booking. Her favorite outdoor activity is playing and coach-ing softball. For the past year Matt and Ellie’s greatest shared delight has been raising their infant son Bo.

..........

New members, Ron and Jan VandenBrink, have a blended family consisting of five children and seven grandchildren, geographically located from New York to California. The VandenBrinks re-side in Petoskey where Ron has practiced internal medicine for thirty-five years.

Continued on page 5

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WELCOME NEW MEMBERS (Cont’d from page 4)

Ron secured his BS degree from Hope College, followed by a medical degree from the Uni-versity of Michigan. He presently volunteers his medical skills at the Free Clinic in Petoskey.

Jan, who earned a MSW degree from the U of M, has held various jobs as a social worker, including with hospice and the public schools. She currently uses her skills helping orphan caregivers while also serving on the International Board of Bethany Christian Services. BCS serves seventeen countries; most recently, Jan served in Africa.

Ron and Jan have a shared passion for orphan care. Ron serves on the board of SAME (South Africa Medical Expedition) and each year volunteers his service to medical clinics in Africa, working with a team from either SAME or the LUKE Commission. The VandenBrinks feel humbled and blessed to serve in orphan care.

In keeping with their heart for orphans, Ron and Jan were drawn to CRC by our “mission emphasis” as well as Chip’s bible-based preaching.

--Submitted by Mary Seaman

Highlights from Consistory Meeting – Tuesday, December 13th ⇒ Emmy Glass was present and reported on Local Outreach. ⇒ Nominating committee reported on their work in acquiring the slates for elders and deacons for

2012-2014. ⇒ Proposed agenda for congregational meeting was presented and approved. ⇒ Voted on candidates for at-large position on Executive team. ⇒ Staff and team reports were received. ⇒ Discussed recommendation to prohibit food and drink in the sanctuary to protect the new cush-

ions. This decision was tabled until January so consistory members could collect more informa-tion and input.

⇒ Deacons proposed recommendation for the use of a potential surplus at the end of the year. *1/3 would be used to establish a sinking fund – recognizing there are some capital projects coming up. *1/3 would be left in checkbook for adequate cash flow going into the new year. *1/3 would be given away with the help of input from Local Outreach and Global Outreach. ⇒ Acknowledged and thanked Josh Dhaseleer, Bud Klooster, Bill Meengs Jr., and Ed Schroeck for

their service on consistory. Highlights from Congregational Meeting – Sunday, December 18th at 5:00pm.

⇒ Approved 2012 Budget ⇒ New elders chosen by lot: Sherry Kirby and Jim Malewitz ⇒ New deacons chosen by lot: Linda Boss, Brandon Glass, and Scott Philp ⇒ Spent time celebrating in God’s movement over the last year and thanked Him for His work in

and through us.

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RCW Corner

The Women’s Lenten Breakfast is fast approaching. Mark your calendars for Saturday, March 10, 2012 – 9:00am. – Community Reformed Church. Our guest speaker is Luan Jackson – Abundant Life Counseling.

About Luan Jackson, MS, RN, CS

Luan is a graduate of the University of Michigan with Bachelor and Master degrees. She is board certi-fied in psychiatric mental health, and holds certificates of achievement from both Michigan State Uni-versity (administration) and Oakland University (group therapy). She is active in continuing education programs, and a member of the National Speakers Association.

Please come and experience the blessings of fellowship with the women of our church and community and take pleasure in a breakfast which includes gourmet quiche, scones, fresh fruit and beverages.

The event will be catered by one of our own Charlevoix High School gradu-ates, Kacy Hoaglund. Kacy is studying Hospitality Management at Grand Valley State University.

There is no charge for this event. However, we will present a free-will offer-ing. For your convenience a nursery will be provided

The mission of the RCW (Reformed Church Women) is to engage, encour-age, and equip women of this church and those of the wider community in being active disciples of Christ and in leading the unsaved to Jesus. With that

being said, it was the decision of the current RCW board to donate a large portion of our funds to Rev. Ginger Stevens of the Third Day Fellowship and Outreach. She was emotionally grateful and said she now has enough for the moving of the Joppa House! Amen

HAPPILY EVER AFTER ~ THE MYTH

Saturday, February 11th from 8:30a – 4:00p will be a day to “Enrich your Marriage” here at Community Reformed. Luan Jackson will be leading this day long event and cover such topics as: How the brain works, Personality styles, Love languages, Communication skill, Learning to fight fair, What role does prayer play in your relationship, and more.

Lunch will be provided. Child care will be provided. Laughter will be provided. Good dis-cussion I’m sure will happen. The cost for this day is FREE (we will take up a free-will offering for lunch)!

Pick up a brochure on the kiosk and fill out the registration form on the back before February 5th.

PAGE 7

CONGRATULATIONS AND BLESSINGS TO:

• Andrew and Jeni Bergmann on the birth of a baby girl, Alaina Rose.

• Jon and Laura Boss on the birth of a baby boy, Jonathan ‘Owen.’ The proud grandparents are Wayne and Sandy Boss and Doug and Leslie Nitchman.

• Chris and Kari Maki on the birth of a baby girl, Quinn Annabelle. The proud grandparents are Bud and Judy Boss; great-grandparents are Bob and Maezella Potter and Jeanette Boss.

• Jill and John Eakes on the birth of a granddaughter, Lilyana Eden Cottrill.

SYMPATHY AND PRAYERS TO:

• Scott and Karlee Philp for the loss of their unborn child.

• Eloise Klooster and family on the loss of Eloise’s great-grandson, Ethan.

• Gary DeYoung and family for the passing of his brother-in-law, Tracy Curtis.

• Diane Parrish and family (now in Kalamazoo) on the loss of her son Jake to a diving accident.

• Ed and Carol Schroeck on the death of Ed’s father.

• Noreen Jolliffe and family for the passing of Noreen’s sister, Lynelle Essenberg.

• Nancy Balchik and family on the loss of Nancy’s husband, Jack.

Announcements

• The youth house is in need of gently used living room furniture for one of the extra rooms. Please contact Ted at 547-9482 or tpolleys@communityreformed.net if you have items for him to consider.

• Looking for new ways to reach out as a volunteer? Consider serving through RSVP, a national volunteer organization for those 55 and over. There are many opportunities to serve in the Char-levoix area. Contact Sue Bouwense at 347-4394.

• A newer attendee of CRC is in immediate need of a queen mattress and box spring due to a back disability. If you can help, please contact Emmy Glass at 348-3690 or bgeg714@gmail.com for her contact information. Other needs include food/pantry items and a dining table.

PAGE 8 IN TOUCH

Parent-to-Parent Corner—Game on!

Winter seems like the perfect time to play family games. The short days and cold temperatures lend itself to some inside fun with board games. This is an opportunity to connect as a family, exercise the brain, and teach valuable lessons about winning and losing. Below I have reviewed a few games that your young family may enjoy. (The games with an * can be purchased locally at Rocking Horse Toy Store.)

Zingo by ThinkFun* Ages 4 and up (The Dhaseleer children have played this as young as 2 years old.) Zingo is bingo with Zing! Zingo is a fast-paced variation of bingo. Players try to fill their Zingo cards with matching picture tiles from the Zingo Zinger. The first player to fill his or her card wins! Zingo teaches shape and pattern recognition, and improves observation and short term memory skills.

What’s GNU by ThinkFun Ages 5 to 10 The object of What’s GNU? is to spell more three-letter words than the other players. Each Word-Starter card has one letter provided and two blanks. Players slide the clever Letter Getter to magi-cally reveal two letter tiles. Kids then must look at these tiles and try to make three-letter words by filling in the blanks on the Word-Starter cards. The player with the most three-letter words when all the tiles run out wins! Building your vocabulary is three times more fun with What's GNU?

Apples to Apples Junior by Mattel* Ages 9-adult (Kids as young as 7 or 8 will enjoy the game also!) Apples to Apples is a game of hilarious comparisons. Players will delight in the crazy comparisons while expanding their vocabulary and thinking skills.

Ticket to Ride by Days of Wonder* Ages 8 to adult (This is a great game for kids and adults to enjoy!) Ticket to Ride is a cross-country train adventure where players collect cards of various types of train cars that enable them to claim railway routes connecting cities throughout North America. This fam-ily game of strategy teaches geography while having fun at the same time. Math-A-Kazam by MindWare Ages 6 and up Abracadabra! Stir the game pieces in the cauldron with the magnetic wand, select-ing numbers that create a math equation. Games can be adjusted for the skill level of the players by including addition, subtraction, multiplication or division. Bananagrams by Bananagram* Ages 7 and up Bananagrams is a word game where lettered tiles are used to spell words. The game is similar to the older Scrabble variant Take Two or Speed Scrabble. Continued on page 9

PAGE 9

Parent-to-Parent Corner (Cont’d from page 8) Game play involves arranging one's tiles into a grid of connected words faster than one's opponents. The object of the game is to be the first to complete a word grid after the pool of tiles has been ex-hausted. The tiles come in a fabric, banana-shaped package (this just adds to the fun of the game!) Whether you choose to play one of my recommended games or one of your own, I hope that you enjoy the extra family time that the cold winter days allow us to have. Game on! --Submitted by Tennille Dhaseleer

Children’s Ministry Corner Wandering from classroom to classroom in the children’s wing at Community Reformed Church, it is evident that the first and last words children hear from their teachers are ones of positive encouragement. Week after week, they don’t demand that kids perform to earn their approval, but dependably cheer them on and point the way to Jesus. Their words are truly a blessing to the little ones. What does this blessing look like? Have you ever added purple dye to a vat of hot water? The dye swirls and oozes and attaches to all the water molecules until the water and dye are one. Our words are the purple dye. They twist and ooze into the hearts and minds of our children and attach to their spirits. Constructive words (the teachers') encourage; destructive words discourage. Although many children have tender hearts and comprehend how to be kind, they all learn when we as parents and teachers model compassion and offer soothing and uplifting words. At some level, we all need to know we’re wanted and appreciated. We as adults have histo-ries where we’ve come to recognize the value of a smile and a kind word and we’re painfully aware how easy it is for some of us (umm… me) to flippantly deflate someone’s self-worth. I marvel at what a difference it makes to provide reassurance to these little ones and to build them up. In turn, they are being shown how to live a more joyful life as the fruits of the spirit are taught and developed. Proverbs tells us “the mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life” (10:11). We have a huge responsibility to seek a righteous relationship with God. There is no difference among the children or you or me. As we allow the Spirit to guide us, our self-control – part of the fruit of the Spirit – increases and in turn we are simply nicer to be around and a stronger influence as our words touch the hearts of our children and each other. My ‘apples of gold’ that I’ve been asked to share are words of gratitude to the many parents, teachers, mentors, and givers-of-love who have offered time and talents in the past. I am grateful to the current phenomenal caregivers who influence and instruct young spongy hearts. I appreciate those who are seeking how to serve and cherish our children in the days to come. Simply, thank you. --Submitted by Gail Cherry, director of Children’s Ministry

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Justice for the Poor

Justice for the poor is this year’s “All Church Study.” All small groups will be going through this study, and for those that are not in a small group, a class on Sunday mornings begins February 19 at 10:15am.

“When the wealthy are dying from diseases of overabundance and the poor are dying from inadequate health care, poor diets, and stress related illnesses, there is a spiritual disease in society (Jim Wallis).” Justice for the Poor recaptures the biblical vision that links poverty with justice. Jesus’ life and teach-ings show a deep compassion toward the poor. His messages often highlight the injustices shown to the poor and the prejudices the wall-off have against them. How can we learn from the poor? What is our responsibility to care for the poor and to advocate for justice on their behalf? In this six-week study you will be engaged to take a hard look at what is happening in our world and how we are being called to “change the wind”.

Breakfast at Community Reformed

Have you ever woke up and said: “I’m going to skip breakfast today so I can save money and have something for dinner” “Another day without food” Have you taken off to work without a hot breakfast or any idea where one can come from? Have you ever woke up in your car, because it is your home, and wondered where a meal would come from today?

Hopefully those aren’t questions that have ever gone through your head, but we KNOW there are people here in Charlevoix that this is true of. After completing the course—Justice for the Poor— a group of people have been meeting to try to figure out the needs of Charlevoix. Many ideas passed through our heads and continue to, but this one is where we feel we need to start. Breakfast on Tuesday & Friday mornings for anyone who needs it. The Community Church of God provides a hot lunch on Mondays and Thursday so maybe this would take up some slack.

Beginning March 20 we hope to begin this program. You will hear lots more about it in the coming month. There will be sign-ups for volunteers, for food, for cooks, and clean up. We are looking at serving from 7:30am – 9:30am and service a protein, carb, fruit and drink. Think about what part you may be able to play in this ministry.

We have many more ideas coming down the pike!

PAGE 11

What’s in a word? -Kathy Martinchek What’s in a word?

If we could count the words that are spoken every day and categorize them, we would discover two basic trends. Words which encourage and build up and those which do just the opposite…discourage and tear down.

There are people who believe that once a word is spoken, it is dead. Emily Dickinson says: A word is dead When it is said, some say. I say it just begins To live that day.

Our words, both written and spoken, have tremendous permanence. Think back on times in your life that have had the most impact on you. Was it an encouraging word spoken to you by a teacher? Did some family member speak wisdom through their personal story? How about a friend who is willing to speak truth to you?

Edward Thorndike says it this way, “Colors fade, temples crumble, empires fall, but wise words endure.”

I recall a Thanksgiving almost twenty years ago when I was handed a cigar box containing three let-ters from my birth father. Those letters contained words of love written to me. My mom and he were divorced before I was two and I never heard from him after that, at least that I knew of. I had put him in a “box” that said he didn’t care…that he couldn’t be bothered with me…that I wasn’t important enough in his life to waste energy on me.

Then came the letters that were full of love, caring, and acceptance. It was devastating and wonder-ful at the same time. So many years lost, so many thoughts of abandonment, so much wasted nega-tive energy. Those words were agents of healing and acceptance. They helped me bridge the gap between anger and frustration to healing and forgiveness.

Our words encourage, our words express love, and our words give hope. Choose them wisely and never forget that the ultimate encouragement and direction come from the HOLY WORD….God’s message to each of us.

"Words--so innocent and powerless as they are, as standing in a dictionary, how potent for good and evil they become, in the hands of one who knows how to combine them!"
- Nathaniel Hawthorne

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Swaziland Summaries from the Youth (Thank you for sharing your stories!)

I had an amazing trip to Africa. There were many times that we were able to see the reality of what they don’t have and how we mistreat what we do have. On our trip we were given the opportunity to work closely with a church in Hoho. It was amazing to see the kids and to be a celebrity in their village. The joy we brought them was well worth the energy and brought us all price-less memories. One thing that stood out to me was that some of the children had to walk hours just to get to the church where they could see us and be fed a small portion of food. To me and to anyone it would be a

huge burden to have to walk that far to the store or something similar every day. When we were singing and playing with the kids, we would have to leave at 3:30pm so that the kids would be able to be home before dark, otherwise they wouldn't leave because we were there. This trip was truly a blessing to me and the whole team! God moved through us in so many ways and is still influencing us. I had an amazing time on the trip, and I won’t stop my journeys explor-ing God’s world and sharing love to EVERYONE He created.

-Submitted by Paul Stolt

Most people that go on a mission’s trip have many months of preparation before leaving, but I’m not most people. I was fortunate enough to get a phone call 48 hours before the team was leaving for Swaziland, Africa and was told that someone was unable to go and I could take his place. It was very stunning to hear of this great opportunity. I had around an hour to make up my mind. Not a lot of time to make a big decision such as this. But after numerous phone calls, my mind was made up and I decided I would join the team and go on my first mission’s trip to Swaziland. Pre-paring for the trip was not easy. The next day after deciding to go, my Dad and I had to make the 4.5 hour drive to De-troit to get my passport. After just a few hours of waiting and wandering around Detroit I had my first passport.

Continued on page 13

PAGE 13

Swaziland Summaries (Cont’d from page 12)

Having to drive to Detroit and back in one day only left me one day for packing. Finally, it was time to leave. We flew from Grand Rapids to Atlanta. From Atlanta it was a straight shot to Johannesburg, South Africa. I’ve flown many times but not in a plane as big as the B-777. Just flying over the Atlantic Ocean was an amazing experience, even though I never got the chance to see it since I had an aisle seat. Just knowing that I was over the ocean was good enough for me. We landed in Johannesburg at about 6pm. The border to Swaziland closed around 9:30 pm. The drive from the Johannesburg to the border is normally a 4.5 hour drive. All I’m going to say is that we made it in time. I’m sure you can figure out how (hint: 160 kph = 100 mph)! Going through the Swaziland border was chaotic and very unorganized. And to top it all off we had Africans climb into our vehicle. The hotel was great, much nicer than I expected. Just a suggestion to people coming to Swaziland on the next mission trip, bring lots of movies because television there was terrible. It was better than no television though. Every day we had to drive 1.5 hours to get to the community where we helped at. Every day on the way there and back we would see cows, goats, and even dogs roaming everywhere. The highlight of the drive was when the cows were on the freeway, surprisingly walking the right way. It was amazing to see how happy the kids were. Even though they didn’t have much they were so happy. Happier than kids here in the states that have more than they could ever want. As days went by the kids figured out what time we were coming and would meet us miles away from the community and just run with the van until we arrived at the church. We did many good deeds while there. We built a cooking shelter, planted many fruit trees, and gave them food and cooking supplies. They’ve been praying for a long time for cooking supplies, such as pots and utensils, so it was very cool to see their reaction when we gave it to them. They play a lot of soccer there. They like to stand in a big circle and just kick the ball in the air. I never knew such a simple game could be so fun. I got addicted to it and played every day! The day before we left the kids got a hold of my sunglasses and somehow I lost them. So all day I was trying to get them back, not because I needed them but because the kids would beat up whoever had the glasses and I didn’t want that to happen. All day I was looking for them and never had any luck finding them. Finally, it was time to leave and I felt terrible because of my actions of not keeping an eye on my glasses some child is going to get hurt. Well about 5 minutes into our drive home some kids were running and one of them has my glasses! So we kindly ask for them back. It was a relief to have them back because now I know no child is going to get hurt from fighting for my sunglasses. The 16 hour flight home was not bad at all. It took us a whole day to get home and it felt great to be back. It was a great trip and I’m so glad I got to go. What made it even better were the people I got to share the amazing experience with. I couldn’t have asked for anyone else to go with. I made many new friends and had an experience of a lifetime. This is why I am so glad I chose to go with God’s calling and go to Swaziland, Africa.

-Submitted by Logan Carson

Non

-Profit O

rg.

US Po

stage

PAID

Pe

rmit No. 81

Charlevoix, M

I 497

20

COMMUNITY R

EFORMED C

HURCH

100 Oak St.

Charlevoix, M

I 497

20

Con

tacts at CRC:

Chip Sauer, Pastor

Jan Bo

ss, D

irector of Spiritual Formation

Ted Polleys, M

inister of Y

outh

Gail C

herry, Director of Children’s M

inistries

Lynda Stolt, O

ffice Adm

inistrator

Leslie Nitchm

an, O

ffice Assistant

Theda W

illiams, W

orship Director

Cindy M

ansen, Choir Director

Michael Brown, M

aintenance Engineer

Amy Spegele, DivorceCare Facilitator

Diann

e Coo

lman, K

itchen Manager

COMMUNITY REFORMED

CHURCH

Phone: 231-547-9482 Fax: 231-547-9598

Email: crcoffice@communityreformed.net www.communityreformed.net

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Sunday School: Sunday, 10:15 a.m.

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Monday - Friday, 6:15 a.m. Wednesday (2nd floor City Hall), 12 p.m.

Wednesday, 5:00 pm Saturday, 7:15 a.m.

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