The Williston-West Navigator

We have just completed a remarkable year at Williston-West Church which was celebrated at our annual meeting with a chili-chowdah cook off, reports presented in a novel way, lots of laughter and a financial report which is better than this church has seen in generations.

In our time, when the conventional wisdom is not particularly church friendly, we indeed are blessed and the following Lenten schedule reflects the nature of how we are trying to bring the history of the church, the reality of the Gospel and person of Jesus into our daily lives.

When the news is truly good, it continues to generate itself with, in church talk, the blessings and energy of God’s Holy Spirit. Those blessings and energy are here and I do hope that you will choose to make what we are doing a significant part of your Lenten journey. It will bless you. I am going to give you an overview of the whole season with some explanation of The Great Easter Vigil, a new and exciting addition to our Lenten journey. There will be more detail regarding Holy Week throughout the month of March as well as the April Navigator.

The Great Vigil of Easter is a multi-dimensional experience, filled with drama, music, readings from Scripture, and the Church’s two Sacraments, Baptism and Holy Communion. It will touch all of our senses, and deepen our understanding and experience of the Holy Season. To prepare for your participation in The Great Vigil of Easter, you are encouraged to attend a special Adult Study to be held on three Sundays in Lent, March 14, 21 and 28. In this series, Bob Witham will guide us in understanding the roots, symbols and dynamics of this rich liturgical tradition.

We have so much going on, and this is the most important event of Christendom that we celebrate, so I encourage you to participate in as many of these events as possible. It will make a difference and will change your life for the better. As many times as I have consciously made the Lenten journey, I look forward to this one with great expectation.

Greetings to everyone from your new Moderator. I am excited about the upcoming year for the church and fortunate to be a part of it.

I want to just start with a quick introduction for those of you who may not know me. I have been a member of Williston West for seven years. I was raised close to God’s Country in Hancock County and attended a UCC church throughout that time. After moving to the southern part of the state seventeen years ago, I started to search for a church that met my needs. It took me a very long time to find the right home and I have settled here.

My partner and I live in Scarborough and we raised my two children to early adulthood, more or less unscathed. I love Maine, love this church and feel blessed to have found such a wonderful and nurturing church home.

I have some specific goals for my tenure as the Moderator. They may be my goals, but none will become reality without the capable members of this church and the staff.

• Three years ago the church had started a self-evaluation process with the guidance of materials from the Alban Institute. That process included reviewing the mission statement, reviewing who we are as a church, where do we want to go and who do we want to be. It also included an evaluation of our pastor. I would like to resurrect that process and include a retreat to Rockcraft on Sebago Lake.
• As a UCC church we are a member of a broader church family. One of the many benefits of that large family is Pilgrim Lodge, a camp for children. More information will come later, but I feel that the church has an obligation to our young members and
• part of that is their presence in that larger church family. I will challenge the congregation to raise enough funds to send at least two children to camp. The Christian Education Committee will work with me to make this just the beginning of what I hope will be several children attending camp in years to come.
• The church By-Laws are the governing guidelines of our church. Although some changes have been made over the years, the church has not taken a broader look at the By-Laws to insure that they accurately reflect who we are as a church, who we want to be and what is expected of the church’s governance and membership.
• Our historic building is at the moment in pretty good shape. However, as any home owner will know, things can happen when you least expect it and a large sum of money can be spent before you can blink your eyes! Williston West has a growing endowment that provides a cushion for operations and for some building repairs. However, to keep this beautiful building in its historic condition for our future, I will challenge the congregation to begin an endowment campaign for capital improvements & maintenance. I will work with the Trustees to get this effort underway.

I hope my organizational skills will keep the operations of the church running smoothly. The first council meeting on February 22 is a ‘must attend’ for all committee chairs.

There has been a lot happening in Christian Education. Amy Partridge-Barber will be co-directing the Sunday School with me. This has transpired for several reasons: first, as you can tell, there has been real growth in numbers of children we serve in our Sunday school. For us to continue to grow, we need more hands. Second, we want to expand the types of services we offer our children and families. For example, we want to provide a full Lenten journey for the kids as well as adults, offering children services at the same time the adults are in church. Third, Amy brings an expertise in early childhood development, which gives the church a unique opportunity to teach Christian education at a very early age. Finally, when I took over as the director of Christian Education, I was working part time as a crisis counselor. My circumstances have changed over the years. This gives me a chance to stay involved and expand my other career.

We are looking forward to the spring semester in Sunday school. We already have several special events. We are going to have a special children’s worship on Ash Wednesday and the other Lenten services. We are planning to have a special Seeds of Peace seed sowing on April 18th – where the children are starting seeds for our spring planting project at the camp.

We are really looking forward to expanding Christian Education, as a safe loving place for our children to worship and learn about our Christian values. We still have several Sundays that need teachers. You can see me or Amy about these dates. We are interested in people who would like to teach the kids about the inner workings of the church (why we do what we do), a time line of the Bible, the history of the congregational church, and Biblical archeology. If you have an expertise in any of these areas we would love to talk to you.

One Great Hour of Sharing is one of the nationally sponsored United Church of Christ offerings that we participate in annually. This year the theme is that "God uses all gifts for BIG purposes." The needs are many – malnutrition, illness, natural disasters, illiteracy, displacement—and the responses are practical—agricultural development, health care, disaster response, education, and refugee advocacy and resettlement. With our help, and the help of U.C.C. churches across the nation, the results can be remarkable.

Jesus showed us how to live out the qualities of love, faith, and compassion for a purpose larger than ourselves. On March 21, we will dedicate our offerings to One Great Hour of Sharing, a ministry that reaches out with love, faith, and compassion to people in 90 countries.

Here are some of the ‘BIG purposes’ that can result from our gifts to One Great Hour of Sharing: A child returns to school after years of fleeing war. A mother learns basic hygiene so her children’s health improves. A roof is put back on a home after a tornado. Clean water is brought to an entire village. Refugees sleep in a tent, out of the elements they have been enduring. Having started a fish farm, a family has a steady source of protein and a new stream of income.

$5 – One blanket for warmth

$17 – Immunizations against measles, polio, diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, & TB

$20 – Carpentry tool set for home construction and repairs

$25 – 400 kits of oral re-hydration salts to save lives of children suffering from diarrhea

$30 – Wheelbarrow for agricultural or construction work

$30 – Mine field probe to detect land mines

$50 – 500 small fish for fish farming

$84 – Basic equipment kit for a village midwife

$95 – Bicycle for basic transportation

$100 – 20 mosquito nets treated with insecticides to protect against malaria

$200 – Water purification tablets to treat 1,000 gallons of drinking water

$300 – Antibiotics to treat 900 children suffering from pneumonia

The media often show us the drama of war and disaster and document the suffering of millions of people who lack food, water, shelter, and other basic necessities. We know the needs are real but we often think, "What can I do about such enormous need?" What we can all do is join with our larger church community and give generously to this annual offering.

Please give to One Great Hour of Sharing on Sunday, March 21. You will find that it is, indeed, remarkable what your gift can do!

Williston-West is in its fifth year of supporting Reiche Elementary School students through our Food For Thought Sunday. The last Sunday of each month is designated as a time to bring in nutritious snacks for distribution by the Reiche social workers to students who are in need. Did you know that a staggering 86% of the students at Reiche qualify for a free or reduced-price lunch and that 65% come from families who are on government assistance? 53% are categorized as ethnic and linguistic minority students and 3% of the student body is homeless. Clearly, there are many children in need right here in our neighborhood. Please consider adding a few extras to your weekly shopping list and bringing them in as a donation to this important, on-going mission. It’s such an easy way to make a difference in the life of a local child! Donations can be left (at any time) in the wicker basket that is located in the vestibule between the Sanctuary and the Parish House.

Suggested Food Items: Peanut Butter Crackers, Cheese Crackers, Popcorn, Pretzels,
Juice Boxes, Raisins, Cereal Bars, Granola Bars, Individually Packaged Applesauce, Fruit Roll-Ups

While the Stewardship Committee has been inactive for the last several months, pledges keep coming in or in a few cases some members have revised upward their 2003 pledges. As of February 2, 2004, total pledges increased 16 % to $103,335 compared to $89,171 last year. If you haven’t done it already, please pick up your pledge envelopes at the Church. Again, thanks for the incredible show of support during our fall campaign and for helping us make it such a success. A great deal of thanks also goes out to the volunteer team captains who came in at the last minute to help with the distribution of the bags.

The fourth grouping of Suppers of Eight participants will meet this month. Hosts should check the main list and call your guests to set a date as soon as possible. If you have questions, call Kathy Rauchfuss through the Church office. Later there will be information about forming new groups for ’04 – ’05.