Newsletter

Diaconate Board Fall Planning: Sunday, September 7, 4pm, at the home of Dana Donnell

Photos of the party held at the Slotten’s on August 9 are available in the Plymouth Church office.

Copies of the sermon, Lifted Up by the Lifejacket, Sunday, August 10, 2008, by Rev. Linda Looney, are available on the counter in the narthex.

They're Coming!

Plymouth Interfaith Hospitality Network begins again Sunday, September 7

Our guests from the Interfaith Hospitality Network are due here to stay for the week beginning Sunday, September 7. Please sign-up to help set up the rooms, bring part of a meal, host the group for a couple of hours, stay overnight, or help with the take down on the 14^th. We need lots of people to make this mission work. Any questions, see Candi Teachout (or contact her via the church office (455-4260).

If you haven’t worked with IHN before, it is a great experience and will be more rewarding to you than possibly to our guests. We will need hosts for two three-hour shifts beginning at 5pm each evening and all day on Saturday as well as hosts to stay overnight. Each evening our church members prepare a meal for the guests and the hosts. We can always use your special talents in crafts or playing with the children. We are in exceptional need for people to help set up and take down. No one came forward with our pleas for the setup and take down coordinator positions.

- Set-up and Take-Down Coordinator: The truck will be at the church on the first Sunday. This person will supervise unloading the guests’ personal belongings and the beds that are on the truck and setting up the beds in each of the rooms. The truck then needs to be taken back to the rental company. On the last Sunday, this person will make arrangements the day before to rent the truck, pickup the truck and drive it to the church; supervise the take down of the beds and loading them on the truck along with the guests’ personal belongings that belong on the truck. This person will then drive the truck to the next church, will arrange for someone to drive the van that takes the guests to the GGRIHN Center and then drives the van to the next church. Someone else will pick them both up and drive them back to Plymouth.

- Room Setup Coordinator: Getting the linens put away after they are laundered. (This can be pretty much on their own time, usually for a few weeks after the past IHN). Getting the linens, alarm clocks, flashlights, etc. ready for each room. (Usually the Saturday before IHN begins as we don’t know the number of guests until then.) Supervising the morning of set-up as to what goes in each room.

Please see Candi Teachout or call the church office for more information 455-4260

Rev. Van Doren will say a special prayer in memory of Kandee Vander Maas (member of Plymouth and cousin of Kathy Bogart) during the worship service. Kandee passed away in May of 2008. There will also be a bouquet of flowers in the sanctuary in her memory.

During coffee fellowship time after the worship service, there will be cake and punch to honor her life and a small display in the meeting room next to the narthex of her artwork and some photos of her life. Kandee loved being a member of Plymouth and enjoyed the services, loved Rev. Van Doren and the people that she got to know at church.

Where, oh where has our little summer gone? The new choir season is upon us and we would love to have you be part of our fun. We will kick off the year with a luncheon/retreat/rehearsal, Sunday, September 7, immediately following worship. The lunch will consist of a variety of soups and salads provided by choir members.

Following our festival of food, we will begin rehearsing a few anthems. Regular choir rehearsals are held Thursday evenings from 7-8:30pm. We also rehearse on Sunday mornings at 9am preceding the service. No previous experience is required. In true Plymouth fashion, we are open to all. Please join us!

SAVE THE DATE

Michigan's Prison System - How Does It Affect You?

September 20, 2008, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.

In the year 2000, the U.S. incarcerated over 2 million people in our nation's prisons and jails, more than any other industrialized country: 14x the rate of Japan, 8x the rate of France, 6x the rate of Canada.
Did you know that the American prison system releases 600,000 people each year; many who are angry and unskilled, having had their hope destroyed? This is more than the city populations of Boston, Milwaukee, or Washington D.C. (Steven Vago, Law and Society 9th ed.).
Michigan alone has seen an increase from approximately 15,000 people incarcerated in the mid-80s to over 50,000 today. As taxpayers, we are spending more on incarceration than on higher education.

The Restorative Justice sub-committee of Plymouth's Justice and Peace Task Force believes “there is a better way.”

Join the conversation Saturday, September 20 from 9-3 at Plymouth. A free-will offering will be accepted for lunch. Call the church office (455-4260) to register.

During the summer office hours are more flexible. Please call the church office (455-4260) before making a trip to the church to make sure someone is available to let you in.

Please consider volunteering to lead a One Room Schoolhouse session this summer. Our “bring a buddy, be a buddy” program invites children ages five – fourth grade to bring a friend. It also invites two adults (or an adult and teen) to plan a lesson/activity and bring a snack. The relaxed format allows for lots of creativity. To sign-up for a Sunday, please see the display in the narthex. There is still an opening for August 31. Please call the church office or signup on the sheet in the narthex if you would like to lead a session this summer.

What’s Happening in Sunday Sessions…

Sheree Alexander, Sunday Sessions Director

“Peace, if it is to endure, must be a life-long endeavor of those who would achieve it. It is the endless cultivation and nourishment of seeds sown in children, nurtured through adolescence, lovingly tended in fruitful adulthood.”

Lora G. Koomanoff, from an article in Friends Journal, January 1, 1979

“Practicing Peace” is the curriculum we will be using for 2^nd-8^th grade youth this fall, and I’m excited to tell you about it. This program begins with a peaceful individual and moves through a variety of topics allowing the individual to reflect on their own actions and decide for themselves how they might make a difference in the world. Music, using many popular songs, reader’s theatre, cooperative games, and other new response material will be introduced throughout the year.

We are still looking for one leader and three helpers for our Practicing Peace program . The position is a commitment of 10-12 Sundays scattered throughout the school year. I would consider a team who wanted only to do six Sundays each.

Training and dinner are scheduled for August 26, 6pm in Smith Hall. I would love to see you there!

Would you consider a ministry of working with our youth this year in pursuit of a peaceful world?

See Sheree Alexander or contact her via the church office (455-4260).

ALSO: Do you have an extra portable CD Player ...that will play home-burned CDs that you would be willing to donate to Sunday Sessions? Two of our CD players will not play homemade CDs and all of our music is on home-burned CDs.

The Outreach Board regularly sponsors a pizza and bingo night for Birchgrove residents. Your help is requested in donating small items to be used as prizes. Small household items, soaps, personal care products, gift cards such as to Meijer, or local restaurant gift cards are appreciated. There will be a box in the narthex to receive these items. Thank you.

Do you think you have an outgoing, sometimes goofy, sometimes dramatic personality? Have you admired the people in a theater presentation or in skits at school? Have you wished you were brave enough to try out for a play but just don’t feel confident due to your lack of experience? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, consider joining the new Youth Drama Team at Plymouth. I am looking for about six-eight people (no experience required) who are able to work in a group, take some direction, and support others in their work. If you are interested and would like more information, please see me before or after church or contact me through the church office. Thanks and I hope to hear from you soon. Sheree Alexander

Join us on Tuesday nights from 7-8pm. (If the day is bad but your interest is high, let me know a better day – we may be able to work with you.) We have a great time, still have many “new” musicians who are learning to ring bells and/or learning to read music. Firm qualification: you must be able to count to 4 over and over again. (I, as your director, will need you to correct me when I can’t!) Please sign up in the narthex, call the church office, or contact Sandy Swayman if you would like to be in the choir OR if you would like to learn more about ringing bells.

Please bring a dish to pass and your own place setting. Rev. Van Doren will lead us in a Bible lesson. Guest speaker will be David Moore, Plymouth Church member, speaking on the topic: Justice and Travel. All are welcome to join us on the third Tuesday of each month for good food, great fellowship, and Bible lessons by Rev. Van Doren.

All adults are welcome to attend. The first meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 17, 10am.

Due to increased costs in fuel for shipping, the falling US dollar and increasing demand for Fair Trade items (this last is actually a good thing), prices for our Fair Trade products will go up beginning in August. Coffee is going up an average of $0.50 per bag. Official prices will be announced in August but these are good ballpark figures. Fair Trade products are sold the 2nd Sunday of each month at Plymouth.

Item Cost

Café Salvador, Drip $ 5.50

Tanzanian Jubilee, Drip 5.50

French Roast, Drip or Bean 6.00

Mind, Body & Soul, Drip or Bean 6.00

Ethiopian, Drip or Bean 6.00

Hazelnut, Drip 6.00

French Vanilla, Drip 6.00

Decaf, Drip, or Bean 7.00

Hazelnut Decaf, Drip 7.00

Baking Cocoa, increases to 5.00

Hot Cocoa mix, increases to 5.00

Candy Bars – currently no price change 2.50

Almonds - currently no price change 5.00

Pecans – currently no price change 4.00

Cranberries – currently no price change 3.50

Teas – currently no price change 2.50

The Justice and Peace Task Force has six WAGE PEACE t-shirts remaining in stock:

If you are interested in purchasing a shirt, please contact Sondra Loucks Wilson. Currently priced at $15.50 for long-sleeved tees and $12.50 for short-sleeved. If you do not see the size you’d like and you’d be interested in ordering a t-shirt, please let Sondra know. The Task Force will place another order if enough people are interested. (We order in quantity to keep costs down.) Don't forget - WAGE PEACE static clings and yard signs are also available.

*Do You Know Where Your Pledge Envelopes Are?

As you well know, though activity slows a little in the summer at church, the bills don’t. If you are absent from worship for a while, it is very helpful for checks to be mailed to the church office. They are recorded, stamped for deposit, and locked away to be counted and deposited with the upcoming Sunday offering.

Please remember to keep on hunting for the Michigan Made items for the Pilgrim Manor Gala Basket. There will be a box by the IHN table beginning in September for the items. Thanks for your help and your Outreach Board hopes you are having fun with your hunt. The due date for items is October 5.

This is a great time to spend reflecting on the prayer needs of our church members and friends. It is very informal. Everyone is invited whenever you are able to make it. Another way to be actively involved in keeping joys and concerns present throughout the week is to add your e-mail address to the prayer e-mail group. Nothing is required other than you receiving periodic updates of prayer concerns, particularly those coming between Sundays. Please leave your e-mail address in the office or give to Colleen Mahon Van Doren.

We would like to begin having exhibitions in the narthex: art-making workshops, art and music colloquia, and maybe even creativity retreats. Many of these activities would include self-described non-artists and artists alike in adult and children centered events. As of now, there are no events planned—just dreams of what is possible! Please contact Kim Roberts right away to express your interest in exhibiting work, putting on a workshop, attending or presenting a talk on art and music, coordinating or attending a creativity retreat, or if you like, helping with decorations! Email Kim: kim@kimrobertsstudio.com

We are seeking to begin a weekly Bible Study that will meet in a member’s home. If you are interested in such a Bible Study, please contact Jenn Sklener via the church office. Those who would like to be involved will determine when and where to meet and how they would like to proceed. Rev. Van Doren will help resource the groups.

Copies of the devotional for July – September 2008 are on the literature rack in the narthex.

*Kiksuya - the newsletter from Re-Member is available on the counter in the narthex. View pictures from past trips on the bulletin board there as well.

Pick up a copy of Plymouth’s cookbook, “Loaves, Fishes…and other Good Dishes.” Copies are available from the church office. Send a graduate in your family off to college or a career with a book of good eating ideas!

* Many thanks to those who helped with MDOT's Adopt-a-Highway clean-up: Kelly and Sondra Loucks Wilson, Kurt and Sandy Swayman, Cindy Robinson, Stacy Grossman, the Habib family, and Shirley Oosterhouse. We were able to clean up two miles of US131 on Sunday, July 13, but were rained out on the second attempt on Saturday, July 19. The next scheduled clean-up is September 13-21. All are welcome to join us in this project.

* “Dear Plymouth Members: Muchas gracias for sponsoring/hosting Spanish Camp again at your beautiful church. We admire your commitment to multiculturalism. We are all the body of Christ and your church really exemplifies this.” - Señora Mariana and Señora Patricia

* Kids Food Basket thanks Plymouth Congregational UCC for so generously donating sack supper items to help feed kids in Grand Rapids. We are so appreciative of your dedication to the children of our community!

Donated items: 75 lbs. of raisins and Ziploc bags. Total value of donated items: $162.75. Kids Food Basket is a community-based volunteer organization that exists to attack childhood hunger in Grand Rapids by providing nutritionally at-risk children with a healthy sack supper.

* “Thank you to Doug, the prayer chain, and all of the people of Plymouth for your prayers and support in the past several months. Your thoughtfulness and kindness got us through the final illness and passing of Larry’s mother and our cousin, Kandee Vander Maas, as well as through Larry’s knee replacement surgery and recovery. He is doing well now and still going to PT. We also appreciate your continuing prayers for Ed, the husband of Larry’s sister Dawn, who continues to battle advanced larynx cancer. You are all a blessing to us.”

Two times a month IHN (Interfaith Hospitality Network) and Next Step, a Christian ministry devoted to helping men develop work skills, will pick up gently used furniture and household items. Please consider donating your household items to I