AN District News.....UMC Buzz...... September 13, 2018
What to Do Before the Storm Hits
Hurricane Florence is on track to make landfall along the Carolina coast later this week. In light of drenching rains and high winds hitting our area, coupled with already saturated ground, the Baltimore-Washington Disaster Response office wants you to be prepared now, before the storm hits, for any possible damage.
The BWC's Disaster Response manual is online. It has processes to understand how to deal with disasters in a local church area. A copy should be printed as a reference, in case the power goes out for an extended period of time. The following items are listed with detail explanations in the manual, which is updated yearly.
If you have a specific local church disaster plan (and we hope you do!), make sure everyone has a printed copy to take home. An electronic version may be useless if you lose power.
- Make sure your local church staff, volunteers, and board contact lists are up-to-date.
- Determine how you will communicate with one another before, during, and after the storm. Make sure your shut-in list is up-to-date, and assign people to check on them before, during, and after the storm.
- Make sure your insurance information is readily available.
- If you don't already have up-to-date images (photographic/video) of your church's facility's exterior and interior, including storage areas, now's the time to take them. Being able to illustrate how your buildings looked before damage will be helpful if the need arises to pursue recovery financing.
- Back up electronic records and store the back-ups off-site or in the cloud.
- Secure outdoor furniture, bike racks, book drops, etc. - anything that can become a projectile in strong winds.
- Move book, file and photo collections that are in areas vulnerable to flooding - i.e., the floor, the basement - or susceptible to rain - near windows or under roofs.
- Know the location and shut-off procedures for water, electricity, and gas.
- Review individual plans, family plans, and plans for pets. You'll feel better attending
to your church knowing that your loved ones are safe. - For tips on what to do before, during, and after a hurricane, go to ready.gov/hurricanes.
- Download FEMA fact sheets "After the Flood: Advice for Salvaging Damaged Family Treasures" and "Salvaging Water-Damaged Family Valuables and Heirlooms."
- Familiarize yourself with
FEMA disaster declaration process, in case one is declared for your area. - Make sure you have contact information for your district superintendent.
- If needed, contact Pastor Fred Sipes, BWC's Disaster Response Coordinator, at , or 410-967-9134.
Please keep Pastor Sonia King of St. Marks United Methodist Church in your prayers as she mourns the
In 2017, more than 72,000 people in the U.S. died of causes related to opioid addiction. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, West Virginia has the highest rate of opioid-related deaths in the U.S. and Maryland is among the top five. A letter to first-responders dealing with this epidemic, by the Rev. Karin Walker is now online. Read "God's Protection Be With You," as the church prays for all those affected by the opioid epidemic and other addictions.
This Saturday, Sept. 15, the Rev. Tom Berlin will offer a day-long learning session and conversation on the options facing The United Methodist Church as it moves towards February's special session of General Conference in St. Louis. There, United Methodists will gather to discern how the church will move forward on the issue of homosexuality.
This session will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Nichols-Bethel UMC at 1239 Murray Road in Odenton. Participants are asked to bring their own lunches. There are several fast-food and other restaurants in the area.
The final report of the Commission on the Way Forward, along with a Finding our Way Forward Covenant to assist churches in their exploration of this issue, and a video of Rev. Berlin's and Bishop Sudarshana Devadhar's report to the May session of the Baltimore-Washington Conference are online.
New This Week
Church conference scheduling: The Annapolis District/Southern Region has distributed all the necessary information regarding Church Conference 2018. The presiding elder’s information and changes to church conference letter are all posted on the church conference documents website. Please be sure to send me your scheduled church conference date, time and confirmed presiding elder of your choice in an outlook calendar invite or email it to me so that I may add it to the calendar ASAP. Please also note that all church conference document submissions are due 10 business days (not calendar days) prior to your chosen church conference date to be reviewed by the district office, DS, and your presiding elder.
To view all documents regarding the changes to church conference for 2018, please follow the link here.
Finding Peace amid the Storm: Registration is now open for Bishop LaTrelle Easterling's Pre-Advent Day Apart with the Clergy on Tuesday, Nov. 13, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Epworth UMC, 9008 Rosemont Drive in Gaithersburg. This year, the guest preacher and presenter will be the Rev. Kirk Byron Jones, senior pastor of Zion Baptist Church in Lynn, Mass., and a professor of social ethics, preaching and pastoral ministry. His most recent book is "Soul Talk: How to Have the Most Important Conversation of All." The cost for the event, which includes lunch, is $35 for active clergy and $25 for retired clergy. Learn more and register.
Farming4Hunger Missional Experience (Washington East)
Please join us on September 22, 2018
(Please click the following link if the video below does not play: https://vimeo.com/157222152)
Annapolis Missional Day: The Annapolis District is proud to announce our district missional event. Please join us on October 20, 2018
We will meet at 514 Crain Hwy N # K, Glen Burnie, MD 21061 and break out into our neighboring centers. Please dress in comfortable clothes to perform community service. Join us for this missional experience that you won't forget! To RSVP for the event, please click this link here.
BMCR meets: The Northeastern Jurisdiction Black Methodists of Church Renewal will hold their annual meeting Oct. 11-12 at St. Marks UMC in Hanover. The event will be hosted by the Baltimore-Washington Conference chapter of BMCR. Learn more. Register online.
reCall Summit 2018: The reCall Summit is a time of brave conversations as the church explores racial justice and reconciliation Oct. 26-27 at the DoubleTree Hotel by the BWI Airport. Registration is $129 before Aug. 31. Featured speakers will include Jim Wallis of Sojourners and Marvin McMickle of Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School. Learn more and register.
Missional work: Arundel House of Hope is preparing for the next season of their Winter Relief Emergency Shelter Program and find themselves short a few hosts. Many partners in this ministry of grace and mercy are Methodist Churches. Are their any Annapolis District churches willing to host approximately 30 homeless guests for a week? If so, please contact Pam at 410.863.4888 ext. 112.
Thinking about retirement? The BWC's Pension and Benefits team will hold a Pre-Retirement Session Thursday, Oct. 18, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.at Mt. Zion UMC, 12430 Scaggsville Road in Highland. Spouses are also encouraged to attend.
Courageous Conversations about the Way Forward: United Methodist congregations can face potentially difficult discussions about plans submitted by the Commission on a Way Forward by using resources available from the Courageous Conversations project at Discipleship Ministries. Learn more. For more information about Courageous Conversations, on this and other topics, including tools for leaders, sample outlines, sample guidelines, webinars, prayer guide
Classifieds
An auctioneer, Roy Gregory, in the Central Maryland district received 2 tractor trailers that a plethora of church supplies…everything but the building.
It includes: +/-1200 sanctuary chairs (neutral color, the type that will link together or fold away), large chairs for the pulpit, piano, lecterns, offering plates, office supply,
Roy is planning to auction it at his regular Tuesday auction held on the Howard Co. Fairgrounds starting at