Grace and Peace,   

                           Rev. Richelle Goff

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New Membership Classes coming in May

Pastor Richelle will be offering new membership classes for all those wishing to join the church through a profession of faith or transfer from another church. They will take place several Sundays (during Sunday school time) in May. New members will join the church on May 27, Pentecost Sunday.

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Luncheon for Women and
Girls "All Dolled Up!"
Whether it's baby dolls,
Barbie Dolls, American Girl
Dolls, or others, every girl has a
special place in her heart for
dolls. Let's celebrate this love
for dolls and God's love for us at an "All Dolled Up" Luncheon for Women and Girls on Sat., May 19 beginning at noon. We'll get all dolled up and spend time with other beautiful dolls.  Bring your favorite doll of any kind and your memories to share. Enjoy paper dolls, doll houses, and doll-sized tea sets. Remember that you are fearfully and wonderfully made by a God who thinks you are a real doll. Lunch will be served in the midst of activities and conversation. Sign up in the Narthex. We’ll be asking for donations from participants to offset the cost of this event. Need more info? Talk with Mary Howard or Deb Janish. Remember we hope to see all you dolls on May 19th.
-Mary A. Howard Coordinator of Congregational Life

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Go to Photos at the top of this page:

AUMC member Kim Dungey traveled to New Orleans in March with a group of volunteers from Central New York to assist in the continuing rebulding efforts.  It was her ninth trip since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast in August 2005.  On this trip, the group helped Mary W, a homeowner whose "shotgun" style home is just a few blocks north of New Orleans' French Quarter.  She was the victim of an unscrupulous contractor who did some very nice drywall and tiling work but applied the finishes over water damaged wall and floor surfaces.  Mold and mildew were showing through the drywall.  Beneath the new floor tiles, below layers of old linoleum and other tiles, the subfloor and floor joists were crumbling from termite damage.  All that work was removed by the Central New York team, in preparation for repairing and restoring the home for Mary and her son and grandchildren.  In addition to poor workmanship, the contractor removed interior door and window trim, and stole oversized pocket doors that divided the front living room from the dining room.  Mary was victimized twice - once by the natural disaster, and then by an immoral contractor.  Kim said, "Mary was the first homeowner I've encountered who did not relish the chance to tell her story to a new group of volunteers.  The frustration and pain of her experience was too upsetting for her to even think about."
 
Work on houses such as Mary's is coordinated by Project Homecoming. http://projecthomecoming.net The non profit organization provides case management for the family, construction site supervision, and rotating teams of volunteers that will end in a House Dedication when Mary is able to finally return home.  Kim said, "It was a blessing to be part of the beginning stages of bringing Mary home.  We would have thought the gutting out of damaged homes was finished some time ago but this made it clear that while much progress has been made in the city, there is still a lot of work to be done.  I keep thinking each trip will be my last, but I suspect I'll be returning to the 'Big Easy' once again next year." 

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Our New Prayer Room:

Enjoy Our New Prayer Room Welcome to a place to pray and contemplate away from the noise of the day. A space of quiet for all genders and ages. This room has been set aside for use by the Congregation. It’s at the top of the stairs (near the lounge) on the left. We could still use a large stuffed chair or a loveseat in very good condition. If you have one, please let us know. This will be open when our church building is open.
A special thank-you to Marshall Bancroft for painting the room. We pray you’ll enjoy it.

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Don't Miss This!!

Casowasco? Aldersgate? We all know what special and spirit-filled places they are. They’re places where you can feel close to God… where you can renew your commitment to being Christ-centered. They’re places that change lives. If you've ever been to Casowasco or Aldersgate, you want to go back, and you want others to go, too. That‘s why our Campership program is so important.  Our hamburger and auction were a great success! We made over $2600 for kids for camp! Thank you to all who helped and contributed!
 

Lenten Heifer Banks

Our congregation is working with several other Auburn churches to raise $5,000 to purchase an ark for Heifer International—so we can send 15 sets of animals all over the world to help families improve their standard of living.
Beginning in mid-February the children of our Congregation, age 2 through sixth grade, brought home banks and calendars to contribute to Heifer International. These banks are one way our church is helping to do our part. Each day between Ash Wednesday (Feb. 22) and Easter (April 8) there’s something on our Giving Calendar to help the kids creatively add to their banks. One day may say, "Put in one dime for each of Noah's three sons" and another day may say, "Count all the trees in your backyard, and put in that many pennies". We ask that all banks be returned on (or as close to) Easter Sunday as possible.
If you don’t have a child of this age in your home but would like a bank and calendar, please contact Mary Howard.

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OUR PASTOR RICHELLE WAS MARRIED DECEMBER 17, 2011.  CLICK THE LINK BELOW TO SEE THE BEAUTIFUL WEDDING: http://www.photoshow.com/watch/gG9bq7ea

The Shower was wonderful. Click the link below to view it: http://www.photoshow.com/watch/aN7pn5JA

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NEW: Upper Room Book Reviews by Kim Dungey- check out Kim's Blog (clink the link below):  http://sbfehlma.blogspot.com/2011/10/upper-room-book-reviews-by-kim-dungey.html

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Hands4NY
 Feed 1 Million in 1 Year

Update:  We have fed over 800,000 so far with our 'Hands4NY'!

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