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Grace United Methodist Church 555 Russell Avenue Wyckoff, New Jersey 07481 (201) 891‐4595 (201) 891‐4599 – Fax E‐Mail: [email protected] Website: www.gumc.org
Rev. Jeanette Block, Senior Pastor Rev. Pamela James, Associate Pastor
Christine Cauda, Director, Christian Education Ministries Amy Hofmann, Nursery School Associate Director
Theresa Lucas, Business Manager Katy Ryerson, Youth Director
Lori Vanderaa, Church Secretary
August 2013
A NOTE FROM THE PASTOR
We are blessed at Grace to welcome our new Associate Pastor, Pamela James, and on August 18th , we will welcome our new music director. Mr. Kevin Cummines, who served as our interim director, was strongly recommended by the music committee and Staff Parish to serve God with us in our ministry. Kevin has an impressive resume and a wealth of expertise in all areas of music. He is excited to work with so many talented people. We will be working together to rebuild the music ministry to insure that everyone feels welcome to explore their faith artistically. Watch for Kevin's contribution and invitation in the September Grace Notes. In an ongoing effort to deepen our spiritual life together through small group ministry, our Bible study on Revelation picks up on September 11 at noon and 7:30 p.m. We will review and move forward in order to understanding John of Patmos's vision of hope. There are two book studies planned: September 10 we will discuss The Color of Water written by James McBride and on October 8 If You Want to Walk on Water, You Have to Get Out of the Boat, by John Ortberg. Hope you are reading!! Both studies are held at noon at 7:30 to accommodate everyone's busy day. Our next prayer breakfast is September 21 at 8:30 a.m. in Fellowship Hall. Pastor Pamela will be asking a small group to work with her on the Covenant Disciple process to form life around Wesley's way of discipleship. It is hoped that those participating in this group will lead more groups to expand our understanding of the Wesleyan way of grace and living as a disciple. Keep reading, praying and learning for we are to be a faith seeking understanding.
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“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone, the Lord is near” (Philippians 4:4‐5). May the peace of Christ surround you,
Pastor Jeanette
A NOTE FROM THE ASSOCIATE PASTOR
“Praise the Lord” (Psalm 111) I am so grateful and excited for my Grace United Methodist Church Family. You have welcomed me with immense love and kindness from the large welcome sign, cake and punch reception, etc. I have had the honor to pray with some of my brothers and sisters and the opportunity to have breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as walking and “golf” with others. I look forward to spending time with all of my GUMCF in whatever venue you choose. (LOL) For this reason, please contact me so we can set aside a time to get to know each other and I can discover how I may best serve you in Christ. There is a Covenant Discipleship Group forming which will commence on Wednesday, September 4, 2013 at 7:30pm. Please contact me if you are interested in this group. I am also looking forward to reaching out to the community, so if anyone knows of somebody who would benefit from a home visit, call, etc. please do not hesitate to contact me. However, please note I am scheduled for a short conference from July 29 to August 3 to better equip me as your Associate Pastor. Thus, I am both energized and honored to journey along with the beautiful souls, excellent leadership, efficient staff, and wonderful ministries already in place and I eagerly await God’s miraculous experiences here at GUMC. Gratefully,
Pastor Pamela
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SPIRITUAL GROWTH
Recommendation #6 from Rev. Janka’s Consultation Report dated June 26, 2013 – “Expand opportunities for deepening the spiritual life of the congregation through small group formation.” There are two upcoming opportunities for spiritual growth through small group discussion in the early fall:
In September, the book study group will meet to discuss “The Color of Water” by James McBride. We will meet on Tuesday, September 10th at 12noon and 7:30pm. Bring a bag lunch at noon if you desire.
In October, we will discuss “If You Want to Walk on Water, You Have to Get Out of the Boat” by John Ortberg. We will meet on Tuesday, October 8th at 12noon and 7:30pm. Bring a bag lunch at noon if you desire.
WOMEN’S RETREAT
The annual Women’s Retreat will be held the weekend of September 27‐29, 2013 at the Sacred Heart Retreat Center in Newton, New Jersey. This year’s topic will be “Celebrating the Indomitable Spirit of Women Like Us, The Resilience of the Human Spirit and The Joy in the Journey”. Our leader, Rev. Anita Grau, will call us to remember that we are children of God and spiritual sisters. Our willingness to give God full access to our lives and our willingness to share our stories with each other has led us to substantial spiritual growth. No matter how far we have come in our spiritual growth, we still have a way to go. We will be encouraged to invest in what matters and to be audacious, to invest in God’s word and God’s dreams for our future, to invest in others and to encourage them on their faith journey. This is an invitation to all women of the church to join in celebration of God’s gifts to all of us and to spend time in fellowship and friendship with each other. If you have any questions, please contact Charlotte Ewing ([email protected]) or Helen Wielhouwer ([email protected]).
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DIRECTOR OF MUSIC ANNOUNCEMENT
The members of the Director of Music Search Committee: Bob Dietz ‐ Senior Choir, Men’s Choir and Handbell Choir member; Cynthia DeJong ‐ Handbell Choir: Calvin Farley ‐ Youth Confirmand; Hope Jans ‐ Youth Choir member; Kathryn Agnello ‐ Youth Choir member; Rachel Agnello – Youth Choir member; Katy Ryerson ‐ Youth Director; Kerry Winiarski ‐ SPRC member; Lori Vanderaa ‐ Senior Choir member, Soloist and Worship Committee Chair; Matthew Shurts ‐ Men’s Choir and SPRC member; Tom Freeswick ‐ Senior Choir and Men’s Choir member, Music Committee and SPRC chair; Rev. Jeanette Block ‐ Senior Pastor (non‐voting) The above committee was commissioned by the SPRC to recommend a director of music candidate.
The search committee received 8 resumes and conducted four candidate interviews and auditions. Following this process and deliberation, the search committee recommended Mr. Kevin Cummines to the SPRC for employment as our director of music. The SPRC accepted our recommendation and Mr. Cummines accepted our offer as our director of music at an annual salary of $28,500.
Kevin has served as our interim music director from April to June. He has also served as the director of the senior choir at the Central Baptist Church in Millville, NJ, as music instructor at the College of Saint Rose in Albany, NY, artistic and music director at Saint Peters College in Jersey City, NJ, and vocal instructor and accompanist at the Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown, NJ. Kevin holds a Bachelor of Music Degree in composition from Indiana University, and a Masters of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre Writing from the Tisch School for the Arts at NYU. Following six weeks of travel across the country that he has planned for a number of months, Kevin will begin his service as our director of music on August 15th and will join us in worship on August 18th.
OASIS SCHOOL SUPPLY DRIVE
On August 18th we will begin collecting school supplies for the children of
OASIS, a haven for women and children in Paterson. The program, which
runs from 3 – 6 pm Monday through Friday, is asking for donations of
pencils (regular and colored), markers, crayons, colored construction paper,
wide line notebooks and stickers. This year they are also requesting backpacks for children
ages 6 – 12. Boxes will be in the library and the Narthex in August for your donations. We ask
that all supplies be brought in by September 8th. Lorraine Lees is overseeing this project for the
Mission Committee and can be reached at (201) 891‐1682.
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STEPHEN MINISTRY I’ve been in the car a lot lately. Within the past seven days, I’ve taken my son out to Pittsburgh to look at two universities and my elderly aunt to the Philly area to look at a continuing care facility. Both trips were rife with the spirit of adventure; they both were full of the promise of life changes. My son is eager to begin the next phase of his life, my aunt is not so eager to take this next step which will most likely be the last move of her life. Change can be very stressful. It can be full of unknowns. Facing the unknowns can be scary or exciting. It all depends on how you look at it. If you think about all the things that can go wrong or conjure up the things you won’t like, it will be scary. If you think about all the new things you will learn and how God will stretch you and bless you with new experiences, it can be exciting. I think that some famous person once wrote that the only thing that is constant in this life is change. (If not, then I just did). However through the changes in life, we Christians have another constant who is greater than any stressful change we might have to face. That person, of course, is our Awesome God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit who promises never to leave us alone to face the challenges of change. Grace Church has undergone many changes in the past year. For some, these changes have created a lot of stress. For others, it has ignited excitement to see what God is doing and the blessings that will come of these changes. Our Lord has promised over and over again in His Holy Word never to leave us or forsake us. We need not fear nor be dismayed. Because of this we can embrace change as an opportunity to learn more about ourselves and about our God. If you are looking for a new adventure in serving God and would like to learn more about Stephen Ministry, please contact me at 201‐887‐5045 or [email protected]. I would be happy to talk with you about how you can be a huge blessing in someone’s life as they face stressful changes in their circumstances. Serving Our Lord with you, Merryl Dietz
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CONFIRMATION 2013‐2014
Confirmation will begin with orientation on Sunday, September 22 at 4:00 p.m. in Fellowship Hall. Confirmation is a time for eighth graders to profess their faith for themselves and to become full members at Grace. They vow to live a life of faith through this congregation; it is the beginning steps of responsible faith. It is not simply a rite of passage or something
to be done because a student has reached 8th grade. It is assumed that the students have an active relationship in the ministry of Grace either through Sunday School, worship or junior youth group. The curriculum begins at a place that assumes the student comes to class with a basic, but relatively growing, understanding of Christianity. Parents of students from the 7th grade Sunday School class received an invitation to be part of Confirmation. If there are other students seeking to join, the parents are to contact Pastor Jeanette. We have booked our retreat weekend, May 2‐4, 2014 at America’s Keswick in Whiting NJ; this is a mandatory (and fun!!) part of the confirmation process.
TRUSTEE’S NOTE
TRUSTEES CONSIDER ALTERNATE OPTIONS FOR BUILDING SECURITY
A critical responsibility of the Trustees is the protection from harm of Grace Church's physical building & more importantly the protection of our children & congregation who come to use our physical space. Given this important responsibility and recent inquiries from many of our church and nursery school families about access to our building, the Trustees are reviewing our current state and exploring alternate security options. For many years we have operated entrance to our physical building with traditional entry door locks and keys and at times, have literally maintained an 'open door' policy to our facility. Under the leadership of John Minnaard & Bob Kluthe we are investigating how we may improve the security of our building especially when our children are present and during hours when there is limited activities at Grace but when we still may have some of our church family inside our facility (e.g. later in the evenings). The environment surrounding us is ever‐changing and the needs for safeguarding our people have altered during the past several years. As the Trustees identify & assess potential building security options we will communicate with you doing our best to keep you informed of any changes. In the interim, if anyone has any input regarding this important work please reach out to John or Bob with your feedback.
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RALLY SUNDAY – CHURCH PICNIC
Sunday, September 8th is our annual Rally Sunday! We will once again be placing flags by the flag pole and around the church property in memory of those lost on 9/11.
Our theme for this year’s Rally Sunday is ASK, SEEK, KNOCK. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be given to you” (Matthew 6:33).
We would like to invite the congregation to the First Annual Grace Church Family Picnic following the 11am service that day. Come to church dressed for a picnic and join your Grace Family for a time of food, fellowship and fun as we start the new school year. Rain or Shine! We ask that our church family help us with providing some salads (potato, macaroni, etc.) and desserts to share with each other. All other food and drinks will be provided by the various committees of our church. Families with last names starting A – M, please provide a salad to feed 10‐12 people. Families with last names starting N – Z, please provide a dessert to feed 10‐12 people. We then ask all of the Grace Family to help with clean‐up as many hands make light work.
CUMAC SUMMER FOOD DRIVE
CUMAC has informed us they are very low on canned pasta sauce, Chef Boyardee pasta products, tuna fish and canned fruit. Please bring these items to the church for pick up on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month. On August 10th we will hold a food drive and the Midland Park A&P. Anyone interested in helping should call Leigh Bolton at (201) 891‐9221.
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VBS 2013 WONDERFUL WEDNESDAYS
Our church embarked on a new program this summer….with children from all venues….local neighbors, summer of fun campers and outreach to area towns…not to mention our own church community children. As we finish this encouraging and growing experience, acknowledgement is in hand for the following students and adult volunteers, as well as helpers who created the scenes for our weekly visits to Paul’s Tent Making House in Athens. Lead Teachers: Linda Gregory Wise, Kelly Wise, Hedy Tam, Jennifer Tam, Sarah Shurts, Stephanie Racioppi, Hope Jans, Jeanette Pakosinski, Heather Jans, Leigh Bolton, Rachel Agnello and Kathryn Agnello. Acting Crew: Andrew Wise, Kristine Hiltke, Cassidy DeMona, Christian Hillman, Ian Jones and Cassie Peel. Student Aides/Athens Marketplace Shop Keepers: Chris DeMaio, Melissa Diaz, Dan Diaz, Chris Winiarski, Grace Winiarski, Ian Jones, Cassie Peel, Mackenzie Cauda, Emily Cauda, John Pakosinski, and Emilee Pakosinski. Cooking Basics Crew: Wendy DeMaio and Christian Hillman Puppet Show Workshop Crew: Christian Hillman, Ian Jones and Cassie Peel Volleyball Clinic – JV team members from Ramapo: Allison Diaz and Hannah Scibetta Hula Hoop Day Crew, Water & Chalk Day Crew, Olympic Games Crew: all student aides Athens Greek Columns – Eric Hiltke Tent Raisers – Amy Hofmann and Mike Cauda Yes, it does take a community to raise our children…..this is not a job for one but a whole body in Christ…..THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH FOR ALL YOUR EFFORTS!!!!
FALL TEACHER MEETING
SLATED FOR AUGUST 27TH – 7:30 AT THE DIETZ’S We are always looking for new teachers and aides….won’t you pray on this and let us know if you would be willing to teach
about Jesus to our church community?
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YOUTH GROUP NEWS
The Senior High Youth Fellowship is taking the month of August off for
some vacation and relaxing time. We will come back in September, full
throttle, with our weekly meetings on Wednesday evenings from 7:30 to
9pm. Our concentration will be on a video curriculum called “Why Jesus?”
and will begin to learn about devotions and how it plays a role in our
relationship with God.
The Junior High Youth Fellowship will be holding a monthly meeting on the
last Friday of every month starting in September called “YOLO Friday”.
Look for more information to come in next month’s newsletter.
MOM’S MINISTRY
LeeAnn and Katy Ryerson will be leading a Mom’s Ministry class on
the first Thursday of every month starting at 7pm in October.
There is a devotion book that goes along with the curriculum
available for purchase for $10. Childcare will be provided by the
youth group. If you are interested in being part of this group,
please contact LeeAnn or Katy.
YOUNG ADULTS MINISTRY
Stay tuned for more details on a new bi‐monthly ministry called “Holy Happy
Hour” to be led by Katy Ryerson and Lori Vanderaa.
YOGA ANYONE??
The Youth Group will be continuing with Yoga classes at Standing Rock
Yoga in Ho‐Ho‐Kus on the 3rd Wednesday of the month. The cost for
the class is $5 each class.
Attention Women!!! We are planning on setting up a class for you as
well to be held at Standing Rock Yoga for the 1st Tuesday of the month.
See Katy Ryerson for more details.
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GRACE UMC IS ONLINE!
www.gumc.org
We’re also on
www.facebook.com/wyckoffgrace
Go to our website, and follow the link to YouTube.
In order to make our online ministry more effective, we need your help! Here are some easy
steps that you can take:
Send Your Content! If you are planning an activity or event at the church, please send me
the information. If you had an event, send photos or video (photos always attract A LOT of
interest on Facebook!) If I don’t have the information, I can’t post it.
Us on Facebook! Go to the address above, and press the “Like” button! This will
allow you to see anything we post appear on your Newsfeed.
Our Posts! If we post photos, video, or information, press that Like button to show
your support!
Our Posts! By clicking the “Share” button, you allow your friends to see what
is going on at Grace UMC! The “Share” button is a great outreach tool!
Check In! When you come for worship or an event or activity at the church, use your
“Check In” button, and let your friends know that you’re here!
We are also in need of volunteers to operate the camera in the balcony for worship
services! If you are interested in helping us out, please let myself or the church office know!
If we can get a pool of volunteers together, we can start scheduling Sundays for you to help!
If you have any questions about Grace UMC’s presence on the web, or would like to send
content, or help in any capacity, feel free to contact me!
Kevin Vanderaa – Virtual Communications
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A NOTE FROM THE TOWNSHIP OF WYCKOFF
“BE STORM INFORMED”
It is requested that residents “Sign up for E‐news” on the home page of www.wyckoff‐nj.com to receive notices of road closings/detours, emergency communications during storms, recreation program sign‐ups, changes in recycling pick‐ups due to holidays, tax payment reminders and other useful and timely public information.
It is also important that Wyckoff residents register their cell phone numbers on the home page of www.wyckoff‐nj.com at the Reverse 911 telephone symbol to receive telephone calls with emergency information. Sign‐up to receive text messages from the Wyckoff Police Department on the home page of www.wyckoff‐nj.com at the Nixle Text Message symbol.
If you are a Facebook user, click on Wyckoff, NJ Office of Emergency Management and “Like the Page” to receive emergency storm information from the Wyckoff Police Department. Thank you.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Are you looking for some way to be involved in the life at Grace Church? There are many ways to be involved that may only require an hour or so of your time. Whatever you can offer, whether it is weekly or month, it would be greatly appreciated. These are just a few areas that we need some help with:
Stuffing envelopes for mailings
Grace Notes – helping to make copies and putting labels on envelopes.
Sunday Bulletins – helping to recycle inserts and “Stuffing” them for the upcoming week
Sunday Tellers – Counting the weekly offering.
Sunday Ushers & Greeters
Sunday School Teachers, Aides & Subs – See Chris Cauda for the current needs
Transportation – Help provide rides for our homebound to Worship
We are also in need of someone to take over the task of the bulk mailing process which includes bringing it to the post office in Mahwah. We want to thank Jean Morrison for her many years of service in this aspect. Please contact Lori in the church office if you can help out with this vital part of our ministry here at Grace.
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CHRISTMAS FAIR 2013
It’s that time of year! The sun is shining, the plants are blooming and the temperature is going up! What better time than now to start
thinking about the Christmas Fair!!
We have a number of openings this year that we need to fill. We especially need help in the following areas:
Photos with Santa. This is a favorite of the younger children. The times are Friday 11‐12, 5‐6 and 7‐8 and on Saturday 11‐12.
Fellowship Hall decorations. This includes the tree on the stage and on the floor, the fireplace decorations, and the window decorations. 3 or 4 people make for light work and a lot of fun!
Preview Dinner set up. This includes purchasing the paper products (hot and cold cups and dessert and dinner napkins), and setting the tables. Again 2 or 3 people make for light work and a lot of fun!
We are always looking for new vendors. If you know someone or are a vendor yourself pleas.
We are looking for someone to take over the Toy Room this year. The Former Chair can help or answer any questions you might have.
One last very important area we need help in is set up and clean‐up. For set up and clean up to run smoothly this year we are looking to form room teams. This means 2‐3 people per room to set up and 2‐3 people per room to clean up, with a foreman to oversee all rooms. Each room has a layout for set up and clean‐up. The Tricky Tray will be back this year in all its splendor for the 50th Anniversary Christmas Fair! The tricky tray committee is welcoming new members to assist in planning baskets, soliciting donations, designing and wrapping the baskets and to work during the fair. If you are interested in joining this committee, please contact Christine Souza (201‐873‐3126 or [email protected]). The committee will hold a planning meeting in mid‐August. If you are interested in helping in any way or want more information, please feel free to contact one of the Fair Chairpersons. More information will follow throughout the summer and fall. We look forward to working with each and every one of you to make this year’s fair extra special! Christmas Fair Chairpersons Megan Craven ([email protected] or 973‐949‐3483) Tammy Marcus ([email protected] or 201‐847‐7782) Lori Vanderaa ([email protected] or 973‐423‐1590).
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THE PEOPLE OF GRACE In the News: Congratulations to Jacob Dietz who was named to the 2013 spring semester dean’s list at Lafayette College! Melanie Marcus was pictured in Suburban News attending the Zombie Prom at the Wyckoff Public Library. Baptism: On June 30th, Leonardo Joseph DeVarso was baptized. Leonardo is the son of Patrick and Danielle DeVarso and was born on February 25, 2013. Sympathy: The sympathy of the congregation has been expressed to Ingrid Marshall and her family on the passing of Ingrid’s father, Alfred Bitte, on June 29, 2013 at the age of 97 in Palo Alto, CA. The sympathy of the congregation has been expressed to Kevin Cornwell and his family on the death of his father, Brewster Cornwell, on July 16, 2013 at the age of 87 in Charleston, SC. We pray for others: whether they are homebound, suffered a loss, in need of healing or in need of encouragement Joanne Atkinson, Christine, Valerie, Florence Noren, Lillian Van Houten, Don Rector, Ruth Dougherty, Joan Nydam, Don Hall, Ted Rutherford, George & Jessie Crooks, Carol Mahoney, Jane Burke, Audrey Brown and family, Kathy Lee Bowers, Laurie Reiner, Ruth VanderVliet, Anne Villari, Virginia Dillon, Angie Riccardi, Marissa Bedell, Nancy Hughes, Don Matthews, Mabel Monks, Sandi, Dave Williams, Lori Quinn, Shirley Croucher, Susan Winiarski (Brian’s mom), the family of Alyce Wiley, for Sherry Ireland and family on the passing of her mother, Virginia Powell, Robert Archer, John Pakosinski, Elizabeth J., Colleen, Ann Flaming, Ruth Ann Quinn, Peter Blanchet, Diana Kizis, Scott Degelman, Marianne Cilento, Jean Morrison, Bob Sweeney, the family of Susan Heck, Bob Shane, for Kevin Cornwell and family on the passing of his father, Brewster…
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