We extend our sympathies to Elaine and Steve Schurr upon the death of Elaine’s brother, Jerry Andersen, who died on January 31 in Beatrice, Nebraska. from complications from Parkinsonism. Your prayers are welcomed for Elaine and Steve, and Jerry’s family during this time of loss.
Voices Together
The hymnal, Voices Together, is here! We will begin using it in our BCMC worship services soon. If you would like to have your own copy for home use, you can order it here: http://voicestogetherhymnal.org/products/ordering-and-discounts/. We look forward to how this blend of old, familiar, and new will enrich our worship together!
A Note to Commissions and Committees
Given that Harvey County’s COVID-19 two week percent positivity rate is below 10% (currently 6.06%), commissions and commissions may meet at church, in the Gathering Space or front of the sanctuary, with masks, windows open for ventilation, and with members 6 feet apart. If you would like to have a meeting at the church, please be in touch with Monica for scheduling purposes. In the meantime, Zoom continues to be a great option for meeting safely! If you would like to keep track of Harvey County’s positivity rate for future planning, you can access that information here: https://www.harveycounty.com/covid19stats
Sign up to attend Ash Wednesday Services on February 17, 2021 – (LINK NOW WORKING)
BCMC will offer several small Ash Wednesday services on February 17th. In order to ensure we have enough room to properly social distance, please sign up for only one time slot with this link. Time slots will disappear if they become full, so only sign up for the time that you will attend. The service will be less than 20 minutes in length and will include silence, music, scripture, and a time to receive ashes.
Announcements
Final Call for the 3rd film in KIPCOR’s 2020-2021 Film Series
KIPCOR is offering a second helping of “Cooked”, originally screened in November 2020. It was such a multi-layered, complex production that the audience discussion could have lasted for hours. They are bringing back the audience discussion leader, Dr. Christy Miller Hesed, who will be joined by other topic experts, including Chicagoans who lived through the deadly 1995 heat wave that serves as the film’s focal point, for our post-film discussion on SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 7, AT 2:00 P.M.
The audience discussion on February 7 will once again be on Zoom, but KIPCOR is trying something new this time; you will be placed in small groups with one of our topic experts for a more intimate, in-depth discussion. This is a chance to peel back the layers and dive deeper into what the film has to say about our nation’s response to natural disasters and the impact on our poorest and most-vulnerable citizens.
You need to view the film in advance, which you can do for FREE through Amazon Prime or at this website: https://www.pbs.org/video/cooked-survival-by-zip-code-tilbr2/ So watch the film before Sunday afternoon, and register for the February 7 audience discussion by clicking on this link:
Go HERE to register for the Talkback session.
You can also find the links, including the link for the talkback session, on KIPCOR’s website at KIPCOR.ORG.
Since the talkback session is on Zoom, and we need to send you the link, advance registration for the talkback session is required.
Now on display in the Regier Art Gallery, Luyken Fine Arts Center, at Bethel College: “After the End of the End of the World,” a collaboration between Rachel Epp Buller and Derek Owens. Gallery hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Mon.-Fri. (Because of the pandemic, there will be no public reception for this exhibit.) Please note that face coverings must be worn and physical distancing observed on the Bethel campus.
FOR SALE: The Kansas MCC Sale has 2 Steel Shipping Containers for sale. These make excellent storage Buildings that can be moved to your farm or property. They are rodent and moisture proof. They are ALL steel construction with a heavy oak floor capable of handling a fork lift. Size is: 40 fee long by 8 ft wide by 8 1/2 ft tall. Donation of $2,500 requested which is below current value. They come with heavy timbers to set on. FREE Delivery close to Inman; additional mileage charged outside Inman area. ONLY 2 AVAILABLE. Call Jerry Toews at 620-367-8257
WDC announcements
1. Now What?! Post Pandemic Faith Formation: Do you want to talk with other people who care about faith formation? What have we learned about new ways of sharing the Jesus story in the past year? What will we lay aside? What questions remain unanswered? Join Kathy Neufeld Dunn and Resource Library Director Jennie Wintermote for a virtual dialogue Saturday, February 27, 9 am CST. To register, please email wdc@mennowdc.org for the Zoom link.
2. WDC Fourth Thursday Book Discussion Continues: Join us on Thursday, February 25 from 7:00-8:00pm to discuss Invited : The Power of Hospitality in an Age of Loneliness by Leslie Verner. Contact Jennie at the WDC Resource Library to borrow a copy of the book or to register for the Zoom discussion. crlib@mennowdc.org
3. Let your stimulus check do justice! If you need the $600 you recently received, we ask God to bless you. If your stimulus check went into savings, the WDC Immigration Task Force encourages you to consider sharing part or all of it. $600 is the approximate cost of one DACA application. Here are two nonprofits assisting young people with their applications: United We Dream (unitedwedream.org) in Texas and Kansas Missouri Dream Alliance (www.ksmoda.org). If you have questions, please contact Task Force Convener, Raylene Hinz-Penner at rhpenner@sbcglobal.net.
4. First Mennonite Church, 427 W. 4th, Halstead, KS will have a drive-through verenike supper on February 20 from 4-7 pm. This year they will offer a reduced menu of verenike, ham gravy and sausage. The cost is by donation and proceeds will go to local Covid-19 relief. (Poster attached.)
Camp Mennoscah announcements
1. There are volunteer opportunities for you! Camp Mennoscah continually has year-round work to support the maintenance and upkeep of the campus and facilities. We can accommodate every group size, skill set and length of project you would like to tackle. Check out these ways to Get Involved! Email office@campmennoscah.org or call 620-297-3290 to volunteer.
2. Registration is open for the Spring Scrapbook and Crafts Retreats at Camp Mennoscah on March 5-7 and March 19-21! Once the retreats are full, sign up on the waitlist. Register at www.campmennoscah.org!
3. Nothing’s better than a summer at camp! Watch this video created by Mennonite Camping Association about why you should work at camp. Applications for Camp Mennoscah Summer Staff positions are now being accepted!
4. Camp Mennoscah is an amazing space for families and groups to connect! Facilities for differently sized groups are available with a variety of gathering areas. Trails and fields are waiting to be hiked and used for fun activities, too! Contact Camp Mennoscah at 620-297-3290 or office@campmennoscah.org to reserve. Mennonite church announcements1. Mennonite World Conference is seeking a new Chief Operations Officer, starting in April 2021. The COO must have competencies in accounting and financial reporting, maintaining corporate status in Canada and the USA, developing administrative policies for the North American offices, managing human resources and information technology for staff and participating in senior leadership. The COO participates in the senior leadership team, develops budgets in collaboration with other staff, and makes presentations to the Executive committee and General Council. The position is based in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. The application closing date is 26 February 2021 with a 19 April 2021 start date. Send resume and cover letter to jobs@mwc-cmm.org. For more information about MWC, visit mwc-cmm.org. See longer job description at mwc-cmm.org/coo. 2. Youth Venture is accepting applications for summer 2021! Discover and experience the work that God is doing in the world with a team of other young people, as you serve, learn, worship, and build relationships. Visit MennoniteMission.net/YouthVenture to learn more! 3. Looking for a non-traditional pastoral role? Become a unit leader for Service Adventure, a gap-year program for ages 17-20 from Mennonite Mission Network. Unit leaders, who are at least 24 years of age, serve as mentors to the young adults in the Service Adventure household. Leaders are needed in Johnstown, PA and Colorado Springs, CO. Learn more by contacting SusanN@MennoniteMission.net.
Everence to hold Social Security and retirement income planning webinar
Everence will host a Social Security and retirement income planning webinar, on Tuesday, Feb. 16 at 6:30 p.m. Attendees will learn about Social Security strategies, risks that can impact retirement savings and strategies to help income last throughout retirement. This online workshop is free. Register soon by contacting our office at 316-283-3800, 877-467-7294 or central.kansas@everence.com.
Advisory services offered through Investment Advisors, a division of ProEquities Inc., Registered Investment Advisors. Securities offered through ProEquities Inc., a registered broker-dealer, member FINRA and SIPC. Investments and other products are not NCUA or otherwise federally insured, may involve loss of principal and have no credit union guarantee.
Products and services offered through Everence Trust Company and other Everence entities are independent of and are not guaranteed or endorsed by ProEquities, Inc., or its affiliates.
Mennonite Central Committee announcements
1. You are invited to join the virtual MCC Central States annual meeting on Saturday, February 27 at 9 a.m. CST The meeting will include a reflection on MCC in pandemic times, details about what COVID-19 has meant for MCC thrift shops and a look at our financial statements. To join the meeting please email centralstates@mcc.org and then Zoom meeting information will be sent directly to you.
2. Use your skills or try something new! Join the summer staff of MCC’s Sharing With Appalachia People (SWAP) program to support home repair projects in Kimball, West Virginia or Harlan, Kentucky. Positions for Job Site Coordinators and Meals Coordinators are now open. Applicants should be at least 19 years old, but the roles are not limited to young adults. For more information and to apply, visit mcc.org/swap-summer-staff or contact the MCC Appalachia SWAP office at (606) 633-4008 or AppalachiaAdmin@mcc.org.
Mennonite Mission Network announcement
What: Webinar hosted by Ann Jacobs of Mission Network, with Pastors Kevin Himes and Vikki
Pruitte-Sorrells.
When: Thursday, February 18, 2021
Time: 7 p.m. EST | 6 p.m. CST | 5 p.m. MST | 4 p.m. PST
Where: Zoom Meeting
How: Visit the registration page to sign up!
In honor of Black History Month and in response to the Mennonite Church USA denominational mandate to support, build and cultivate peace across our denomination, Mennonite Mission Network is excited to host the Speak the truth in love webinar on February 18.
We desire to speak the truth in love, while celebrating relationships, to mend divides that caused primarily by fear and racial stereotyping. The leaders of this webinar claim this desire because of their commitment to the Gospel of peace.
In May 2020, shortly after the killing of George Floyd, Kevin Himes — a European-American pastor at Salem Mennonite Church, in Kidron, Ohio — called Vikki Pruitte-Sorrells. Pruitte-Sorrells is an African American pastor at Lee Heights Mennonite Church, in Cleveland, Ohio. Himes wanted to better understand the racial tension in United States. During the Speak the truth in love webinar, Himes and Pruitte-Sorrells will discuss the dialogue that ensued over the course of the following eight months, with regards to such racial tensions. They were guided by Latasha Morrison’s book, Be the Bridge and Ephesians 4:15: “But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ” (KJV).
Join us as we witness God’s peace that surpasses all understanding by working to bridge communities of faith.
Sign up today!
The Rocky Mountain February newsletter is here!
Have a look at the latest/greatest happenings here at RMMC. For this and previous newsletters, please visit the camp website and click on the “News” tab under “About Us”. THANKS!
Corbin Graber on behalf of the camp board and staff members