What’s inside:

Announcements & Lectionary ................................................................................. Page 2

Housekeeping ......................................................................................................... Page 3

2013 Thank offering ................................................................................................ Page 4

Stewardship ............................................................................................................ Page 5

Bazaar, Book club & Shepherding .......................................................................... Page 6

UM Men & UMW in Billings ...................................................................................... Page 7

UMW news .............................................................................................................. Page 8

November calendar ................................................................................................. Page 9

The Glad Tider

W hen you think

of November,

what comes

to mind? As I was

sitting in the office

writing this article, it

was still the middle of

October, and the

Christmas decorations

have been in the stores

for weeks. Once upon

a time, in a land close

at hand, November was about the lead-up to

Thanksgiving. Christmas was held at bay until the

weekend after Thanksgiving (and never on

Thanksgiving Day!). So, what are you thinking about

as November begins?

“In early autumn of 1621, the 53 surviving

Pilgrims celebrated their successful harvest,

as was the English custom. During this time

‘many of the Indians coming ... amongst the

rest their great king Massasoit, with some

ninety men.’

“That 1621 celebration is remembered as

the ‘First Thanksgiving’ in Plymouth. ...

“The Pilgrims did not call this harvest

festival a ‘Thanksgiving,’ although they did

give thanks to God. To them, a Day of

Thanksgiving was purely religious. The first

recorded religious Day of Thanksgiving was

held in 1623 in response to a providential

rainfall.

“The religious day of thanksgiving and the

harvest festival evolved into a single event: a

yearly Thanksgiving, proclaimed by

individual governors for a Thursday in

November. The custom of an annual

Thanksgiving celebrating abundance and

family spread across America.

“Some presidents proclaimed

Thanksgivings, others did not. Abraham

Lincoln began the tradition of an annual

national Thanksgiving in 1863. Thanksgiving

is an enduring symbol from which millions of

immigrants have learned ‘Americanism.’

While not all native peoples celebrate the day,

the story of the Pilgrims and Wampanoag

sharing a harvest celebration remains an

inspiration to many.”

- From the website of the Pilgrim Hall

Museum in Plymouth, Mass.

As I consider the coming month, I am thinking

about the lives that will be touched by the ministries of

our congregation. I am thinking about the four months

we’ve shared together since Belinda and I first arrived

in the Bitterroot Valley. I am thinking about the

differences we have, and the common bond we share as

people of God.

I know I can’t do anything about stopping or even

slowing the secular observance of football, shopping

and the like, the things that pass for “important” in our

culture. What I can do is remember that each day is a

gift from God, and every day is a day of Thanksgiving

to our God.

Every blessing, Pastor Charles

November 2013 STEVENSVILLE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

From the pastor’s desk

Page 2

November 1, 2013 [White]

All Saints Day Daniel 7:1-3, 15-18

Psalm 149 or Psalm 150 (UMH 862)

Ephesians 1:11-23

Luke 6:20-31

November 3, 2013 [White or Red]

24th Sunday after Pentecost

Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4

Psalm 119:137-144 (UMH 840)

2 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 11-12

Luke 19:1-10

November 10, 2013 [Green]

25th Sunday after Pentecost Haggai 1:15b–2:9

Psalm 145:1-5, 17-21 (UMH 857)

2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17

Luke 20:27-38

November 17, 2013 [Green]

26th Sunday after Pentecost

Isaiah 65:17-25

Isaiah 12 or Psalm 118 (UMH 839)

2 Thessalonians 3:6-13

Luke 21:5-19

November 24, 2013 [White or Gold]

Christ the King

Jeremiah 23:1-6

Luke 1:68-79 (UMH 208)

Colossians 1:11-20

Luke 23:33-43

November 28, 2013 [Green, White or Red]

Thanksgiving Day

Deuteronomy 26:1-11

Psalm 100 (UMH 821)

Philippians 4:4-9

John 6:25-35

LECTIONARY SCRIPTURE

GriefShare for the Holidays

In past years, the holiday season may have been a time of great

anticipation and excitement … but this year, the prospect of

facing the holidays without your loved one may cause anxiety and

dread.

You are not alone. Here you can connect with support,

encouragement and advice to survive the holidays. Whether your

loss is recent or years ago, GriefShare for the Holidays can help.

Join us at the church on Wednesday, November 17 at 7 pm.

Join us again on December 21, the longest night of the year,

for a special Blue Christmas service. In the midst of the busyness

of the season, this service will seek to provide support and lift up

hope to those who are not finding this Christmas season to be

joyous.

The music, readings and meditation will be centered around

the areas of loss and mourning and the hope that Christ offers us.

An opportunity will be provided during the service to remember

by name those who are dearly missed this Christmas season.

Gathering with others who are remembering loved ones

reminds us that we are not alone in this journey. Feel free to

invite a friend or two.

Wednesday Evening Study Group

The Wednesday evening study group will resume on November 20 with a four-week-series using the hymns and carols of the season as our source material. This series will meet at 7 pm on Wednesday November

20, we’ll skip November 27, then meet again December 4, 11 and 18.

Many people want to sing Christmas songs during Advent because everywhere around them, except in the church, the world is observing Christmas with lights, parties, decorations, trees, concerts, school and choir programs, radio and TV, and their own shopping. Everything seems out of sync when the church seeks to preserve the mystery of the

season and the culture wants to race to Christmas Day.

Join us to sing and learn about the hymns and carols that make

Advent a season of joy!

Advent Devotional

Pastor Charles is looking for people from the congregation

willing to write a one-to-three paragraph entry for an Advent

Devotional. A devotional entry might share a favorite hymn or

carol, or offer a special poem or prayer.

Please contact the pastor by November 15 to reserve your

space for what promises to be a unique and valuable devotional

resource. Copies will be available on-line on the blog, on

Facebook and via email. Paper copies will be available the first

Sunday of Advent, December 1st. Visit the October 22 blog entry

for more information.

Page 3

*Designated means the giver has specified that the gift

be used for a certain purpose, such as Loaves & Fishes.

Such money is not used to pay general church expenses,

which are paid out of the General Fund.

CHURCH INFORMATION Worship service 10:15 am

Email Church ........... steviumc@gmail.com Pastor Charles ....... cjalkula@gmail.com

Website www.steviumc.org

Phones Church .............................. 777-5443 Parsonage ........................ 777-2077 Pastor Charles’ cell .......... 363-8314

Office hours Tuesday - Friday .......... 9 am - 1 pm

YAC Western District Superintendent John Daniels .................... 396-8966 E-mail ................. john@yacumc.org

Stevensville United Methodist Church 216 College Street, Stevensville, MT 59870

Ben Longbottom ··································· Trustees chair Molly Hackett ······················ Administrative Council chair John Fisher ·············································· Lay leader Carole Koval ······································ UMW president Carol Goffe ······························ Administrative assistant Hazel Smith ················································· Organist Julie Ludington ··············································· Pianist Brenda Bolton ········································ Choir director Molly Hackett & Brenda Bolton ········ Chime choir directors Clay Freeman ·························· Brass ensemble director Mary Nelson ··············································· Librarian

The Glad Tider is published monthly by the Stevensville United Methodist Church. Distribution is free to church members & friends. Please submit articles by the 20th of each month.

Housekeeping

Prayer Chain

If you have

requests for the

prayer chain,

please call

Trudy Freeman at

370-9420,

or email Gail Moshier

at pray@steviumc.org.

If you would like to be

a member of either

prayer chain, contact the

church office.

Last month’s attendance & giving November special days

You may find it convenient to donate to the church by direct deposit. If interested, contact the church office.

Date Sept. 29 Oct. 6 Oct. 13 Oct. 20 Oct. 27

Attending 82 84 87 88

—

General

fund $1,509.00

$4,327.12 $1,549.01

$1,642.75

—

Designated

giving $137.30 $165.00 $318.13 $125.00

—

BIRTHDAYS

Nov. 1 Vickie Vernon

Nov. 2 Caleb Morton

Nov. 4 Phyllis Daniels

Nov. 13 Betty Shorten

Nov. 18 Cammie Edgar &

Rachel Schweissing

Nov. 21 Jim Ziegler &

Amanda Morton

Nov. 25 Julie Ludington

Nov. 30 Mary Lyon

ANNIVERSARIES

Nov. 24 Belinda &

Charles Alkula

Page 4

Thank offering, Sunday November 24 Our Annual Thank Offering will be held Sunday,

November 24, 2013. Our church started this outreach

program 13 years ago. Before then, we held fairly

frequent special offerings for some of the organizations

listed here, as well as others. Don and Mary Nelson

brought the idea of holding a Thank Offering from their

former church. Since then, we've celebrated the Sunday

before Thanksgiving with an outpouring of thanks to God

for all our blessings by giving to those who are in real

need of help.

The Thank Offering Committee has selected twelve

projects for your consideration. The project list and

descriptions are below. You may designate your gift for

any or all, as you please. On Sunday, November 17

during the coffee hour after church, the Mission

Committee will be available to answer questions about

these projects. If we don't know an answer, we’ll find out.

WORLD & NATIONAL

Heifer Project International: A nonprofit that

alleviates hunger, poverty and environmental degradation

by giving live animals to people in need, so they can breed

them and/or use them as food. The Heifer Project is about

helping people help themselves with dignity.

Pastors in Angola: The Yellowstone Conference has

partnered with the East Angola Methodist Church since

2004. There were more than 200 Methodist churches in

East Angola until 27 years of war reduced that number to

just 30. Many of the remaining churches cannot afford to

pay their pastors a salary. Last year, the conference

provided a salary of $40 a month to each of 54 pastors.

Imagine No Malaria: Known before 2004 as Nothing

But Nets, this program was started by the greater UMC,

which now partners with the Bill and Melinda Gates

Foundation and the United Nations. Its sole purpose is to

eliminate malaria by preventing contact between people

and the mosquitoes that carry the causative bacteria.

Millions of mosquito nets have been distributed. Work to

improve sanitation and remove standing water is being

carried out. The project has generated enough statistics to

say it works! Between 2006 and 2012, the death rate from

malaria in children has decreased from one child every 30

seconds, to one child every 60 seconds. That's impressive,

but there's still so very far to go.

Kiva: This organization helps impoverished people all

over the world who have a chance to pull out of poverty

with a small loan and a lot of determination. Last year,

more than 250,000 borrowers borrowed more than $111

million, lent by more than 500,000 folks like us. As these

microfinance loans are repaid, the funds are lent again to

another person in poverty with an idea and determination.

MONTANA

Blackfeet Parish: The Blackfeet United Methodist

Parish is one of the Yellowstone Conference’s mission

priorities. Three United Methodist churches serve the

people who live on the Blackfeet Reservation east of

Glacier Park. The oldest and largest church – organized in

1883 and built in 1912 – is in Browning, a town of more

than 2000 people and the hub of the reservation. About 40

miles north of Browning is Babb, a very small village,

home of a second Methodist church. The third, Heart

Butte Church, is south of Browning and is the newest.

Intermountain – Restoring Hope for Children: This is

the new name for Intermountain Children’s Home and

Montana Deaconess School. The school, started in 1909,

serves both residential and day students with various

family, social and emotional problems. In the early 1980s,

professional counselors started to work with the children

and adolescents, providing a “rational therapy” for

students suffering from severe emotional problems

including PTSD (often secondary to abuse and other

horrible experiences) as well attachment disorder (often

caused by being unloved and uncared for). The work of

Intermountain extends out of Helena to other Montana

communities, with school-based therapy, psychiatric

clinics, and drug and alcohol treatment. The philosophy is

to promote healing through healthy relationships.

LOCAL

Habitat for Humanity of Ravalli County: The Ravalli

County Habitat for Humanity’s mission is “to build

simple, decent and affordable homes in partnership with

those in need.” During the past 10 years, they have helped

six families build and buy homes of their own in Ravalli

County. They are currently building one home in

Stevensville, and have plans to build another here.

Loaves and Fishes: This is the discretionary fund our

pastor uses for emergency food, medical, housing, heating

and other urgent needs for our neighbors in the

Stevensville area.

(Continued on page 5)

Page 5

Clothes Closet: The Stevensville Clothes Closet

collects and distributes clothing and household goods free

of charge to people in the Bitterroot Valley. The Clothes

Closet helps recycle clothes, redistributing from those who

have a surplus to those in need. Every month, at least three

tons of clothing leave the Clothes Closet, bound for more

than 6,000 new owners.

Pantry Partners: The Pantry Partners Food Bank

continues to stay busy with all the hungry people. Pantry

Partners gave out 241 boxes of food in September 2012,

helping about 666 people. Seniors and people with

disabilities use Pantry Partners, along with young married

families, and single moms & dads. Thanks to a federal

grant, the new home for Pantry Partners was built in 2012,

but they need donations to pay for electricity, garbage

disposal and such.

Carpenters for Christ: The Carpenters help elderly and

disabled folks, and others who need help but can’t afford it,

by installing ramps and grab bars, and helping with home

repairs and other needs. In 2013 through September, they

had 13 projects and worked more than 100 hours. Their

ability to take on projects is limited by the funds available

to buy materials. They work for free, but there are more

requests for help than funds to cover costs.

S.A.F.E. or Supporters of Abuse Free Environment:

S.A.F.E. promotes ending family violence in Ravalli

County by providing an emergency safe house, and

transitional housing that meets the fundamental needs of

the survivors of domestic and sexual violence, be they

adults or children. It offers a secure, safe, affordable place

to live, and counseling to the abused party (as well as the

children) while the parent is working toward self-

sufficiency. A program for kids is offered through the

schools. S.A.F.E. started as a grass-roots program about 25

years ago, and was adopted by the Hamilton Soroptimists

in 1987. Over the years, S.A.F.E. has become an

independent organization in need of funds from the

community to help with the good they do.

Ellyn Jones for Missions

A sincere ‘thanks!’ to the congregation

Preliminary stewardship campaign results

The Celebration Sunday church service was truly inspirational, with a variety of musical numbers and a meaningful message from Pastor Charles. After the service, 75 people attended a ham and potluck dinner with live music provided by the Bittergrass String Band. Everyone enjoyed the music—special thanks to Cleo Guenther, Marti Olson, Sue Pearson, and Jim & Sue McCauley. And thanks to all the volunteers who helped set up, served and cleaned up afterward. It’s a blessing to be able to ask people to help, and to have people volunteer to help on the spot. This demonstrates the generosity of the members of this church

family.

We received 47 commitment cards on October 20, totaling $96,196. This is a preliminary total. We hope to receive more cards from people who weren’t able to come. If you’d like to fill out a commitment card for 2014, please contact the church office and they’ll be glad to send you a card. You can mail it in or just place it in the offering plate

on another Sunday.

Please remember that any amount you enter on your commitment card is only an estimate of what you wish to commit to the Lord’s work through the church during 2014. If your financial situation changes, of course you can change

your commitment.

It’s truly a privilege to be a member of a Church where the members are so dedicated to supporting the Lord’s work.

Don Nelson for Stewardship-Finance

(Continued from page 4)

Stewardship & Thanksgiving

In this season of thanksgiving, a sincere ‘thank you’ is in order to everyone who supports our congregation throughout the year with

their attendance, service and regular financial contributions.

For those of you who are interested, the church offers electronic giving options for making donations on a scheduled, automated basis. It’s convenient for you and provides much-needed financial consistency for the church. You can pick up an authorization form

Page 6

October book club We had a lovely time at Hazel's on

Sunday, October 20. Ten of us enjoyed a

wide-ranging conversation that started

with midwives and babies, sparked by

Jennifer Worth’s book, Call the Midwife.

We all want to read the other two books in

the series

(Shadows of

the

Workhouse

and Farewell

to the East

End) as well

as see the

DVD of this

PBS series.

Our next

book club

meeting will

be at Janet

Lonski's on

Sunday,

November 10. The Orphan Master's Son

by Adam Johnson is our book of the

month. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, this

novel is set is North Korea. It's 443 pages

long, so you'd better start reading now!!

Mary Nelson for Book Club

Shepherding The October meeting of the

Shepherding Committee was held at Ginny Mellgren’s home.

We addressed many concerns, and will be giving follow up care to those in need. Members gave reports about the cards they sent out, receptions they served, meals taken, Helping Hands projects

undertaken, and other ways in which they took care of our church family.

Shepherding Committee members include Carole Koval, Ginny Mellgren, Carol Varien, Nilda Bishop, Janet Lonski, Gail Moshier, Sandy Kenyon and Cleo Guenther.

Shepherding meetings are held the second Tuesday of the month at 6 pm.

Cleo Guenther for Shepherding

Page 7

On October 12, ten men attended the men’s

breakfast meeting. The meeting opened with prayer.

The breakfast was prepared by Mary and Don Nelson

and Clay Freeman. The breakfast casserole, fruit

bowl, doughnut holes, orange juice and coffee were

well received. For the devotion, Pastor Charles

showed a DVD about the history of the Methodist

movement and led a short discussion.

A sign-up sheet was available for anyone who

wants to sign up to help sponsor Renatho Oscar, our

World Vision boy in Haiti. It costs $420 a year to

sponsor him; any amount is welcome. We sent

Renatho a birthday card for his 6th birthday, which

will be November 19th.

We talked about holding a Valentine dinner in

2014. John Fisher, Don Henry, Clay Freeman and

Pastor Charles agreed to be on a committee about

this, and will report back at the November meeting.

We also talked about holding a bake sale in

January as a fundraising project so we can sponsor

another child, possibly another in Haiti?

Clay and Don Nelson will look into what kind of

help we might be able to provide to Missoula’s Union

Gospel Mission (the former 3:16 Rescue Mission)

and report back.

Habitat for Humanity needs volunteers to work on

the Mission Street build project here in Stevensville,

and UMW needs volunteers to help with the bazaar

on November 2, as well as people to attend.

Don Nelson read thank-you notes from Genesis

House, one for food in February and another for food

in June.

Our next meeting will be Saturday, November 9.

Lynn Moshier and Ed Sperry will provide breakfast,

with the coffee on at 8 am and breakfast served at

8:30 am. Don Nelson will bring a financial report.

Don Nelson for UM Men

UM Men in October

On October 11 and 12, Carol Gragg and Belinda Alkula represented the United Methodist Women of the Stevensville United Methodist Church at the annual Yellowstone Annual Conference's UMW Gathering in Billings. More than 60 women were present to worship, celebrate and extend fellowship to one another. This year's focus was how to extend a "radical welcome" to all.

▪ There was a lovely memorial service for UMW members who died during 2013.

▪ There was a mission project assembling soup mixes for the local food pantry.

▪ There was an introduction to a domestic violence awareness program that could be given at the local UMW organizational level

▪ There were presentations about the Free Store programs and Imagine No Malaria campaigns within the conference.

We all had a great time. Belinda and Carol both appreciate that our church’s UMW provided them with scholarships to help to off-set some of the expenses associated with their first-time attendance at a conference UMW event. They encourage all women of the church to prayerfully consider going to next year’s gathering!

Belinda Alkula for UMW

Stevi UMW in Billings

Page 8

With 29 ladies and Pastor Charles attending, we

welcomed two guests, Kathy Buhler and Linda

Kauffman, both of whom became members of our

UMW. Our hostesses Carole Koval, Helen Lowry,

and Sara Malo served a delicious apple dessert, a la

mode, of course. The tables were beautifully

decorated for fall.

Hazel Smith presented our devotions,

emphasizing the importance of staying centered in

God even in the midst of chaos in our world. She

read several scriptures on overcoming fear and

stress, including the 23rd Psalm.

Bonita Ziegler provided our program, a film from

the “Women of Faith” series, presented by Patsy

Clairmont, a very funny lady who gets her point

across while keeping the ladies laughing.

We missed Carol Gragg and Belinda Alkula

because they were attending Yellowstone

Conference. I’m sure they were here in spirit and

will give us a full report of their activities in

November.

Speaking of November, it’s going to be a full

month for UMW. Our annual bazaar will be on

Saturday, November 2, from 9 am to 2 pm. We

expect to see you there!!! If you have any items you

would like to donate to raise money for our mission

work, we will be accepting

them at noon on Friday,

November 1. (Watch the

church bulletins for

more information.)

We welcome all

donations — you

don’t have to be a member of UMW. Carol Varien

will be glad to accept things for her “Treasures”

room. Betty Lowell will take your baked goods (can

use some pies), Hazel Smith will accept your books/

videos/CD’s, Claire Kelly would love to have your

hand-made crafts of all kinds, Gail Moshier would

like your crocheted or knitted items, and Fran

Jackson will take “special” items for the silent

auction. Of course our soup, roll and pie lunch will

be served, and we’ll have sweet rolls for the early

comers. The more we sell, the more mission work

we can do. I’m sure there will be leftovers available

for sale on Sunday, both sale items and food.

Our next meeting will be Friday, November 8; we

welcome all ladies as our guests. We will be taking

our annual “Thank Offering” at that time. This

offering goes to District for mission work. We will

also be having election of officers for 2014.

On Thursday, November 14, we will be traveling

to Hamilton at the invitation of the United

Methodist/American Baptist Church UMW to join

them for lunch. They joined us for our summer

picnic and they are inviting us to join them now. We

look forward to that.

Each month our Spiritual Growth chair, Trudy

Freeman, sends a birthday card to a missionary

somewhere in the world. This month it went to

Diane Abbot who is a missionary in Spain. It was

signed by the UMW members with special greetings.

Our December meeting will be our annual

Christmas party. I haven’t heard what the program

or entertainment will be but it’s usually GREAT.

We all look forward to it. Guests are welcome to

that, too, but we’d appreciate knowing if you’re

coming so we have enough food.

Tell any UMW member and they

will pass it on to the hostesses.

Better yet, tell Carole Koval, our

President, and she’ll tell them.

Fran Jackson, Secretary

October at UMW

5 pm

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The Glad Tider

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“It’s Halloween — eat, drink and be scary!” Unknown

“Grace isn’t a little prayer you chant before receiving a meal. It’s a way to live.” Jacqueline Winspear

“Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.” W.T. Purkiser