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Thoughts from Pastor Eilidh10 years ago I helped to close the Capitol Hill United Methodist Church in Southwest Portland. This church was down to 20 people and there was over $200,000 of emergency maintenance needed on the building. After much prayerful work over 2 years, they chose to close and use their substantial endowment to help Habitat for Humanity buy the 2 acres of land from the conference for half price. 18 homes will be built there. They spent a year closing well and Habitat took possession in 2016. This week I got an email from the head of the construction team and framing is happening, finally after all this time! Arguments with neighbors, other projects, and the pandemic have made this a long wait, but we should be ready to swing hammers this summer. A beautiful symbol of resurrection and God's felt presence in the neighborhood. In that email we heard heartbreaking news that many of the current Habitat builds are slowing due to a downturn in volunteers. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is targeting construction sites so people of color are afraid to come out to the builds. New owners do not want to put their friends and family at risk, regardless of their immigration status. This is a perfect opportunity for those of us who are not afraid in this way to step up and support our neighbors. You can find opportunities with our local Habitat Group here or volunteer in Portland here. Together we can continue the important work of housing espoused by folks in our community like Ray Johnson and Ed Lynch. Blessings, Pastor Eilidh |
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Sweetheart LuncheonRSVP in person, by phone or email. |
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Ash Wednesday ServiceJoin us Ash Wednesday, February 18th at 7pm, as we prepare for the start of the Lent season. |
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Missions Team TED TalkWatch a video about Homeslessness with Missions Team and engage in discussion after. |
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"9 to 5" with Tigard High SchoolA group will meet for dinner at PF Chang's in Bridgeport Village at 5pm Friday before the show. If you would like to join in for that, please contact Pastor Eilidh. The show starts at 7pm. Come out and see our own Martin Ellis work with Tigard youth in this one-of-a-kind show! Tickets can be purchased here. |
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The Vanny's!Sunday, March 15th following worship.
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Ocean Park CleanupMarch 20-21 Join us to help preserve this great place of outdoor connection to God by working together on the property. The deadline to sign up is March 5th. We will start work in the morning when we arrive, around 10am and then when we are done with the list, we leave on Saturday afternoon. We will need to know if people need accommodation and what meals they will be on site for, so please RSVP soon! Contact Tom Musser for more details & RSVP to the office. |
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Behind the CameraThe new theme will be LIGHT - a continuation of our Advent focus on "Glimmers in the Darkness" and also based on the scriptures from:
Genesis 1:16 - God made two great lights - the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night.
Isaiah 9:2 - The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.
Submissions:
- Include photographer's name
- A title for the photo
- A short description of how the photo connects you to God's great light.
The submission deadline is February 9th, so email your photos to Larry Irish!
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HUGS Tree UpdateThe amazing work of VanFUMC made this year’s HUGS Tree outreach effort a wonderful success! Here are the results of our giving: Hats - 39 Underwear - 66 Gloves - 19 Socks - 170 Coats - 1 Scarves - 13 Thermal underwear - 38 Sock Warmer Inserts - 70 These will be delivered to Friends of the Carpenter, Open House Ministries, and Vancouver School District Family and Community Resource Centers. Thank you for your generosity. |
