There will be no worship service in the BCMC Building
this Sunday, June 1
Vacation Bible School worship this coming Sunday is in Athletic Park at 10 am. There will be no bulletin this week.
From the VBS coordinators:
JOINT WORSHIP SERVICE: Everyone and anyone is invited! Sunday in the park will replace the regular worship services for all participating congregations. Please bring lawn chairs or blankets to sit on for the worship time. VBS children and volunteers are invited to sit up front with their groups. This worship time will be the fifth and final lesson of the VBS curriculum, including singing, a skit, a Bible story, and will offer some interactive games/activities. We anticipate the worship service to last approximately 30-45 minutes.
POTLUCK: Please bring your own seating (lawn chairs or blankets), food to share, and your own tableware. Upon your arrival, deliver food to the tables under the shelter. There is a committee of volunteers who will be assisting with arranging the potluck food and providing jugs of drinking water.
IN CASE OF INCLEMENT WEATHER: If needed, the joint worship and potluck will be moved indoors at First Mennonite Church 429 E 1st St. The decision will be made on Saturday evening and each church representative on the VBS planning team is responsible for notifying their own congregation if we choose to move indoors for Sunday. We will also place a notification on the First Mennonite Church website firstmennonitenewton.org.
Many thanks and hope to see you Sunday!
The Week at BCMC: June 1-June 8, 2025
Sunday, June 1, 2025: Worship—10 a.m. at Athletic Park, Newton
Potluck lunch to follow; everyone is invited; bring a dish to share, tableware, lawn chairs or blankets
Monday, June 2, 2025
9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Library Committee in Room 14 and the Library
Monday, June 2 through Friday, June 6
6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Newton Community Theater rehearsals in Fellowship Hall
Thursday, June 5, 2025
4 p.m. Church Board meeting in Room 14
Sunday, June 8, 2025–Pentecost Sunday—9:30 a.m. at BCMC; communion will be served
Sunday, June 8, YouTube Link will be: https://youtube.com/live/E5iIKDq2dUY?feature=share
YouTube Link for Sunday, June 15: https://youtube.com/live/7KzN9SajTEQ?feature=share
The Newton Community Theatre Board would like to thank BCMC for being able to begin “Matilda” rehearsals in the Fellowship Hall during June. We appreciate your generosity! Of course we also hope you attend a performance of the musical scheduled for July 18-20 in the Bethel College Krehbiel Auditorium.
– Aaron Tschetter and Judy Harder on behalf of the NCT Board
BCMC SUMMER READERS: Be Part of the Picture—Between now and the end of August, take a digital photo of you and your book or of you reading with others. Send the photo as an attachment to office@bethelcollegemennonitechurch.org
Become part of the BCMC photo collage of summer readers on display in the thering Place.
BCMC Offering for May 25: General Fund $12,329; MCC Meat Canning $500; Sr Hi Youth $100; Kitchen Fund $7; Women’s Fellowship $280; Solar Fund $1,000; Merrill Raber Memorial $670.
BCMC Prayer Network: The Prayer Network is an email-based prayer network comprised of Deacon Commission members and BCMC congregants. Participants make a one-year commitment to this prayer ministry which is coordinated by Pastors and the Office and Facilities Manager. Pastors respond to prayer requests and determine when and how these requests are distributed. Specific prayer requests are shared only with the permission of the person(s) involved. If you would like to join the BCMC prayer network, please email your interest to office@bethelcollegemennonitechurch.org. Thanks to all who serve BCMC in the Prayer Network.
CARE CONNECTIONS, sponsored by Deacon Commission, offers a variety of opportunities for extending care. Do you enjoy conversation? In-person visiting? Visiting by phone? Writing caring messages in cards, email or text? Preparing food or care packages? Delivering food or care packages? Individualized creative care possibilities? To learn more, express interest, or share ideas, please contact Elizabeth Schmidt, Pastor for Congregational Care.
Monica Lichti will be on vacation from June 2-13. During these weeks the office will be open Mon., Tues, Wed., Thurs. mornings, and closed on Fridays. For emergencies call Pastor Joanna Harader.
Bethel College Announcements
Sunday, June 1 – Kauffman Museum hosts the U.S. premiere of the documentary Where the Cottonwoods Grow by Dale Hildebrand, 3 p.m., Krehbiel Auditorium in Luyken Fine Arts Center. Ticket purchase is required – available at the door.
Sat., June 7 – The public is invited to Walk Sand Creek Trail Day, 6 a.m.-8 p.m., as part of National Trails Day®. Water will be available for people and leashed dogs at the trailhead at Memorial Grove on the Bethel College campus, courtesy of the Sand Creek Trail Committee, with members there to answer any questions about the trail.
Sat., June 7 – Kauffman Museum monthly bird walk, 7 a.m. start time in the museum parking lot at the corner of Main and 27th streets (2801 N. Main St., North Newton 67117). Experienced birders lead a walk of 1-1.5 hours in Chisholm Park and on Sand Creek Trail (terrain is mostly wood-chip path and sometimes uneven/sloping)
Camp Mennoscah Announcements:
–Camp needs a head cook for June 22-26 and nurses for June 26-28 (3rd & 4th graders), July 13-18 (6th-8th graders), and July 27-Aug. 1 (Senior High camp). Nurses can receive a stipend or parent discount for a camper of up to full camp fees. Contact Olivia at olivia.bartel@campmennoscah.org or 620-297-3290 with questions or to claim a week. Camp has other needs, too–maintenance, custodial, musician/guitarist.
–Summer Camp registration is still open! We’re taking “Another Way” and finding transformation in Jesus’ way of living. Summer camps are open for those going into grades 3-12. Scholarships are available and parents volunteering as kitchen helpers can receive a discount up to full camp fees for a camper. Register here! (https://campmennoscah.campbrainregistration.com/)
–2025 Summer Staff In alphabetical order by first name: Camryn Entz (lifeguard), Caroline Miller (crafts leader), Charlie Major (lifeguard), Daniel Miller (naturalist), Josiah Buller (grounds/maintenance), and the newest first-time staffer, Maddie Tegeler (lifeguard). We ask for prayers and cheers for these generous folks.
–There are two 20 amp RV hookups and two 30 amp RV hookups available in the south (boys) cabin area on a pole of the gazebo. The hookups/outlets are not spread out. Please communicate with others in your group, if there may be high demand for RV hookups. Camp Mennoscah only has electrical hookups.
Western District Women in Mission’s annual Women’s & Girls Retreat will be Sat., Sept. 6 – Sun., Sept. 7 at Camp Mennoscah. Registration will open on our website on June 7 (register & pay online or print out form and mail with your payment). For more information go to westerndistrictwomeninmission.org This year’s featured speakers are Pastor Katherine Goerzen and Pastor Laura Goerzen. Comforter tying will start Sat. at 10 a.m. Afternoon seminars will include dried flower bookmarks, yoga, guided nature walk, book reviews with Bethany Martin from Faith & Life Bookstore and free time. Come for fun and fellowship!
Western District Conference invites you to visit our website to read the latest news, stories and announcements.
Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) Central States is hiring for the following positions and MCC Lunch & Learn is back:
· Do you thrive completing a variety of tasks while connecting with people? MCC Central States is seeking a Volunteer Coordinator for the Material Resources Center in North Newton. This half-time position involves working with volunteers to prepare humanitarian aid for those in need around the world. View the full job description and apply online at mcc.org/cs-volunteer-coordinator by June 2. Contact brociamueller@mcc.org.
· The Peace and Justice Practice Coordinator is responsible for planning and coordinating activities that articulate the vision of a holistic, biblical, Anabaptist vision of peace and justice ministry to staff, board, conferences, and churches of MCC Central States. This is a full-time position and is offered in the MCC office in North Newton or remotely in these states: Kansas, Texas, Colorado, Montana, Minnesota, New Mexico, or Oklahoma. View the full job description and apply online at mcc.org/cs-pjp-coordinator by June 4. Contact: andrewwright@mcc.org
· The MCC Lunch & Learn is back! Join us Tues., June 17 from 12-1 p.m. at MCC in North Newton, 121 E. 30th St. Becky Teiwes, MCC Central State’s Borderlands Program Coordinator will share about courage, compassion, and faithfulness as MCC continues to work with partners and churches at the U.S./Mexico border. Lunch will be provided for a suggested donation of $10-$15. Please RSVP by June 9 at mcc.org/events/lunch-learn-mcc-partners-usmexico-border or by calling the office at 316.283.2720.
For Mennonite Mission Network “News and Beyond” press here
Mennonite Church USA Announcements
Join Michael Danner, associate executive director for Church Vitality, and Nancy Kauffmann, interim denominational minister of Church Safety, for a webinar, June 2 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT, as they orient participants to the updated abuse prevention and accountability policies of Mennonite Church USA. These policies have been revised from the 2016 Ministerial Sexual Misconduct Policy and Procedures. They will also discuss the updated misconduct process, including a new administrative structure and key additions to the policy. Register here: mennoniteusa.org/safe-church-june-webinar
The MC USA Delegate Assembly is Friday, July 11, at the Koury Convention Center in Greensboro, North Carolina. Delegate resources, including the agenda, bylaws, proposed bylaw changes, previous minutes and proposed resolutions, will be posted on MC USA’s Delegate Assembly website, as they are available. See the web page here: mennoniteusa.org/2025-delegate-assembly-resources/ Register for Delegate Assembly here: mennoniteusa.org/registration/
Follow Jesus ‘25 attendees will have the opportunity to participate in MC USA’s inaugural Menno Makers Market in the Follow Jesus ‘25 exhibit hall. This new area will feature handmade items produced by Anabaptist artisans that are available for purchase. Vendors are invited to apply here by June 1: mennoniteusa.org/form/menno-maker
Menno Snapshots
Cyneatha Millsaps, executive director of Mennonite Women USA, looks forward to the 2025 Mennonite Church USA Women’s Summit by pondering how women can better stand up for themselves and their sisters. Read more here: mennoniteusa.org/set-forth-mothers
Mennonite Mission Network Prayer Request: Mennonite Mission Network requests prayer for Angola, which is experiencing a cholera epidemic, with more than 13,000 reported cases and nearly 500 reported deaths at the time of the compilation of this prayer request. The outbreak has rapidly spread throughout the country, with those under 20 years old being the most affected. Join the Angolan Mennonite churches in praying, as they care for the sick and pray for healing.
Western District Conference Prayer Request: Pray for WDC congregations hosting Vacation Bible School this summer, as they invite children, families, neighbors and other church friends to grow in faith together.
Bethel College Mennonite Church is an open and affirming congregation
centered in the life and teachings of Jesus. Embracing the divine within each
person, we warmly welcome any and all into fellowship without regard to race, ethnic background, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability,
economic status, marital status, or age.