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August 19, 2016
Newsletter of the Thousand Oaks United Methodist Church
Making Disciples of Jesus Christ for the Transformation of the World
F A L L MINISTRY F A I R SEPTEMBER 11!!
ON THE PATIO BETWEEN SERVICES
P O T L U C K
IN DICKERSON HALL AFTER SERVICES
important
You are
piece of G
od’s
an
plan!
All Are
Invited!
The More
the Merrier!
A Word f rom Your Pastor. . . Connected?
2
We are praying
for. . .
OUR HOME BOUND
OUR MILITARY
As Mina and I continue to settle in to our new home in Thousand Oaks, we are also busy getting acquainted with the wonderful people of UMCTO. We have especially enjoyed the small group dinner gatherings that Wanda Williams has organized at the member’s homes. So far we have been to six of those dinner gatherings and allow me to simply say that UMCTO has lots of wonderful chefs, we have thoroughly enjoyed all the delicious dishes of appetizers, salad and main dish, and of course you can’t forget those desserts. We returned to our home from each one of the dinner gatherings, having our hunger satis! ed with wonderful food, but also having been connected with you more on a per-sonal way. Wanda tells me we are not done yet with those small gatherings and I look forward to more of those times to get to know more and the food.
I am also up-to-date in the communications department. Richard Lolley connected my new laptop to the internet and got me set up with the church e-mail and other apps. Here is how you and I can stay connected. In fact, I have several e-mail addresses: my main church e-mail is [email protected]. I also have personal e-mail address at [email protected], and [email protected]. You can reach me by phone at church, and if you can’t, you can also call me on my cell at 909-641-4696. I’ll even receive a phone call from the car if it’s urgent. And our wonderful O" ce Administra-tor May Simonds does a wonderful job helping us to connect with each other through weekly e-blasts and monthly Oakleaf newsletters.
You know where I am going with this; there is no reason why you the church, and I can’t stay connected. With today’s technology, we are hooked up like never before. But the other day, one of my colleagues from this area called and said, “Why is it so hard to get hold of you?” He had sent me a couple of e-mails and texts to welcome me and I for-got to respond. I paused for a moment musing on how reachable we are, how available, and yet not able to connect, saying, “Oh I forgot, not now, I am busy…..”
Even with all these communication tools and means, we often fail to communicate and so we keep trying….which leads me to this question: how are you in staying connected spiritually and with God? God has given us various spiritual tools to help us stay con-nected with one another and with God. John Wesley called it “Means of Grace” - the means that God uses to give grace to us. Wesley named the chief means of grace: both private and public prayer; searching the Scriptures, reading, hearing, meditat-ing, worshipping, helping the needy; and the Lord’s Supper. I can think of many other means of grace, I am sure you can too. As the fall season is fast approaching it’s a good time to pause and ask ourselves how we can stay connected with God, with UMCTO people and the community……
Connected,Pastor John
Jonathan BrubakerFaye CrawfordCarlene Embree(Bacon)Sue Embree (Barwick)Doris FishSidney GreathouseMike Greene (Borner)Eilers-Gutierrez family Pam GrossAudie HarrisDon & Randy HaroldDavid Hill (Gramlich)Emma KnutsonMark Lescher (Ruwhiu)Shirley MoranValerie NeelRena O’Brien (González)Jacklyn OverstreetJim PetrasNancy PietrangeloKyle RainerSara & Bobby RichardMary Jo RobertsonElli SchubertBeth Ugino(Gramlich)Dick WeberDonna WilsonPamela Wilson
Mary F. ApgarJerry DunklinDoris FishMaxine HoweNeva HoweTom MaxwellCarl Shaw Marge Wilson
Chloe DiestelNatalee DueberJeremy EmbreeJesse D. NegrongarciaBrock PoolerMark RabensWesley RabensShane Raede Jake StonestreetDavid Walker
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Wo r s h i p We cherish regular corporate worship
WHAT: ALL CHURCH BEACH FELLOWSHIP & WORSHIP!
WHEN: SUNDAY AUGUST 28 - AFTERNOON
WHERE: OXNARD BEACH PARK 1601 S. HARBOR BLVD., OXNARD
TIME: 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM
MORE: WE WILL SUPPLY HOT DOGS & HAMBURGERS AND DRINKS. YOU BRING SIDES & DESSERTS.
COME PRAY & PLAY IN THE SUN!
CENTERING PRAYER IN THE SANCTUARY
WATCH FOR DAY AND TIME!
Although the group that meets for Centering Prayer in the Sanctuary has taken the summer o! , they will soon be meeting again weekly for an hour of peace in God’s presence. Mark Lybarger-Monson, who co-leads the group along with Connie Jones, forwarded this contemplation to whet our appetites for the peace and connection we feel with God as we commit to this prayer practice.
Growing in Jesus Christ: 1) We focus on what we want from Jesus Christ. 2) We focus on what Christ wants for us. We gratefully accept and receive what Christ is o! - ering us. We become more interested in His will than ours. We appreciate that He wants our hap- piness even more than we do, and that He is the Way. “Thy will be done in earth, as it is in Heaven” (Matthew 6:10).3) We focus on Christ.
While we move increasingly according to God’s will, we realize that Christ is more than just the way to happiness, he is the Way and the Goal, he is the Pearl of Great Price! We love and receive Christ as He IS for who He IS. As we abide in Christ’s Presence, He shines through us as Light- Life-Love. “For in Him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). 4) We surrender ourselves to Christ, losing ourselves in Him. As we surrender to Christ, we feel him holding onto us even more steadily and powerfully than we are holding onto Him. We can rest in Christ. The peace of resting in Him is beyond our under standing. Additionally, we discover His boundless Joy. We begin to spontaneously see others with the eyes of Christ’s Heart. His compassion awak- ens in us. A loving, “Yes,” becomes our steady prayer and disposition toward God. “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit” (Luke 23:46).
Stay tuned for the day and hour!
WORSHIPPING AT A DIFFERENT
TIME
WORSHIPPING IN A DIFFERENT
SPACE
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C o m m u n i t y We share joy!
Kim Cavanaugh and Dan Krauss grew up on the west side of Allentown, Pennsylvania just two blocks apart. Although neither remembers seeing the other as young children, that all changed at the ripe old age of 13 when they both can remember the ! rst time they saw one another on a cool summer evening in 1972. The memory is still as vivid as if it happened yesterday. For the following year they fumbled and stumbled through their ! rst innocent relationship and all the magic of their “! rst kiss”. However, Kim’s family moved far away and Kim and Dan never saw each other again. At times over the years they would each return to Allentown, taking walks by themselves through the old neighborhood and reminic-sing about old friends; wondering where the other might have ended up.
With the advent of social media and a touch of luck, Kim and Dan reconnected 40 years later. As fate would have it, they found that they were only a mere 3000 miles apart. In fact the only way they could have been farther apart is if Kim had lived in Hawaii! For the next two years, Kim and Dan had nightly conversations. They spoke sometimes until 3 or 4 A.M. and fondly remembered their childhood. They both were saddened by the fact that there were no photographs of them together growing up. The only reminder of their shared past was a well-aged Jr High photo of Dan that Kim had stored in a memo-ry box, and Dan still had a Sterling ring that Kim gave as a gift so long ago that he had kept in a packing box from his childhood home. Amazingly the ring now ! t perfectly and he started wearing it every day.
Dan, now retired, began to visit Kim in CA as time permitted. Over the next several years they nurtured a loving relationship that has its foundation in the Methodist Church, a faith which they both share.
This year Kim and Dan have decided to get married. Dan’s eldest son Ryan is a Methodist Minister; however, Kim and Dan both decided they wanted to share their special day with their UMCTO church family with Pastor Steve o# ciating. So without further ado, we invite our friends and family of UMCTO to our wedding!
Kim and Dan request that if you ! nd time to attend, please DO NOT BRING A GIFT, your presence is gift enough…Blessings Kim and Dan
Because you have shared in our lives
and supported our love, we
Kim Cavanaugh and
Dan Krauss
request the pleasure of your company
at our marriage.
Saturday, the � rst of October, two thousand sixteen at
eleven o’clock in the morning.
Thousand Oaks United Methodist Church
Thousand Oaks, CA
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C o m m u n i t y Mi Casa es Su Casa!
The Harvest program has had a successful summer and we look forward to new activities in the fall. The program has depended on faithful volunteers to pick up donated food, process it ! ve days a week, and help distribute it on MWF. We have 39 volunteers and it represents a an interfaith community with UMCTO supporting via generous donations, the use of the facility, and the participation of 12 UMCTO members. Your Easter donation has helped us meet the needs of an average of 100 families a week, over 300 individuals including over 120 children. We are giving out approximately 4,300 pounds of food a week.
We have new volunteers as well as some who have participated since our start in 2012. Debbie and Mitch Schrader have signi! cantly sup-ported Harvest as Mitch helps with
the food distribution and makes the weekly Thursday morning drive to Foodshare to pick up 1,000 pounds of food. Debbie was not working as a crossing guard this summer and volunteered to help us pick up do-nations from Chipotle and Starbucks including a daily two week pick up from the new Chipotle at the Oaks. Jerry Hong started the program in 2012 and con-tinues, as he has with the Shelter program, to make extensive contributions from picking up donations, leading our new participation in collecting donations from the vendors at the Thursday Farmers Market, and maintaining communication with the national Harvest program, Foodshare, and other new donors like Sprouts near the Oaks.
This fall we hope to expand our involvement with the Food Forward program. This program provides the best, fresh produce for our program and we have picked up boxes of grapefruit, oranges, lemons, avocados, carrots, etc. through this program. The donations from the Farmers Market come through
Food Forward. We would like to contribute more to this program by leading picks of produce on Saturday mornings. A pick normally involves two hours picking fruit in backyards in Thousand Oaks and other near-by communities as well as in the ! elds of growers in Camarrilo and Somis. For Food Forward see https://foodforward.org/get-involved/ventura-county/ We are seeking involvement in this program from other United Methodist churches, Calvary, the Mormon church, and a nearby Moorpark pantry. Children may participate with adult supervision, and I have participated in several e" orts that involved families and church youth groups. We will share the produce with the other participants. If you are interested in participation in the Harvest program and/or the new Saturday morning program, please contact Tom Mad-dux at 805-495-7355 ([email protected]).
UMCTO HARVEST PANTRY NEWS
These veggies will be di-vided into individual
family crateslabeled with their name
Each family receives a crate
packed with healthy foods
particular to their needs
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U M W F a i t h - H o p e - L o v e i n A c t i o n
UMW EXECUTIVE TEAM meets September 10, at 1:00 p.m. in the Wesley Room. NOTE TIME CHANGE!
UMW Book Club will meet at 7:30 pm at the home of Sara Richard on Monday, September 26, to discuss “Testament of Youth” by Vera Britain.
COFFEE RECEPTION FOR MINA YOON
Tuesday, September 610:15 a.m.
Wesley Room
RECOMMENDED READING - FROM THE BOOK WORM
Greetings from beautiful, downtown Thousand Oaks!
I recently added a new book on the book cart in room 10. “Break the Cycle: Healing From a Abusive Relationship”. By Tracy Deitz. This book will qualify for social justice.Also “Tilly”by Monique Gray Smith,a new book that will qualify for spiritual growth. Hope you all are having a interesting reading summer.Thanks, Jan Maddox
TAKE THE CHALLENGE!
UMW’s Spiritual Growth Challenge contin-ues during September and October with a focus on the spiritual discipline of Bible Study. Women are invited to share their experience practicing the discipline with each other by attending one or more of the scheduled gatherings.
Daelene Rainer, who made posters to publicize the dates and places is shown with the posters in this photo. Look for the posters on the patio near the co" ee on the # rst Sunday of each month.
NORTH DISTRICT UMW ANNUAL CELEBRATION
Saturday, September 249:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Simi Valley United Methodist Church
The theme of the North District United Methodist Women’s Annual Celebration is “Fruitfulness - the Possibilities”. Come together with women from UMW local organizations all over the North District. We’ll have a carpool leaving from the church parking lot at 8:45 a.m.
The cost, which includes lunch, is $12 if paid prior to September 12 or $15 after that date. Quiet Disciples from all local organizations will be honored. Register with Donna Kirby.
All women are invited to attend a co" ee reception for Mina Yoon, our pastor’s wife, on September 6th at 10:15 a.m. in the Wesley Room.
Let us know you’ll be attending by signing up on the patio Sunday, August 28 or September 4, or call Barbara Marshall. We want to make sure we have enough refreshments for all. Let us know, too, if you’ll need childcare so we can arrange for that if needed. Come prepared to have a good time and to get better acquainted with Mina.
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Fo r m a t i o n We e m p o w e r p e o p l e t o f o l l o w C h r i s t
STUDY BUDDY 2016-2017
We are getting organized and ready to begin Study Buddy 2016-17! We will begin at the end of October, and will tutor after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 3 - 5 PM.
This ministry takes a village to run! We are in need of adults and teens who o" er many di" erent types of gifts, from tutoring, to organizing, to reading, to walk-ing with kids, to donating items! Speci# cally, here is what we need:
• Adult and Teen Tutors who love to help children in 1-3rd grades with Reading, Math, Homework. Tuesdays or Thursdays, or both!
• Adults and Teens who enjoy talking with kids as we walk to Glenwood, pick the kids up at Glen-wood School, and walk back to the Church
• Adults and Teens who enjoy doing organizational and prep work....organizing forms and schedules
We need donations of any of the following items...
1) Beach Towels...we need about 25 of them for tutors/children to sit on during reading time.2) Chewy Granola Bars3) Gold Fish Snacks4) White Computer Paper5) Pencils
MINISTRY TO LIGHTHOUSE SHELTER, OXNARDWe visit this women’s shelter in Oxnard on the 4th Tuesday of each month. Join us either Tuesday, August 23rd or September 27th. Meet at 6:15 p.m. in the church parking lot to carpool. Contact: Annie Lindo, Gerry Mortimer or Jill Delaney for info.
Donations to LighthouseThank you for continuing to donate clothing & hygiene items, as well as your prayers to this ministry. All o" erings are gratefully accepted and appreciated!Donation basket is located right outside the church o$ ce.
Annie, Gerry & Jill - the “visiting
angels”!
6) Eraser Heads for Pencils7) Colored Pencils8) Books for K - 3rd grade levels
Let Dori Fotsch or Sandee Dueber know if you are able to help in any big or small way!
SIGN-UPS ONGOING for Family Camp!Friday, October 7th- Sunday, October 9th
El Capitan State Beach
Contact: Diana Rainer 805-495-7215 ext. 303 or [email protected]
El Capitan State Beach o" ers visitors a sandy beach, rocky tidepools, and stands of sycamore and oaks along El Capitan Creek. It’s a perfect setting for swimming, # shing, sur# ng, picnicking and camping. A stairway provides access from the blu" s to the beach area.
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Fo r m a t i o n We commit to l i fe- long interac t ion with God’s word
JR. HIGH MYSTERY MISSION TRIP
Our Youth & Children directors, Robert González and Diana Rainer, along with adults Dani St. Clair and Bill Williams, escorted fourteen (14!) Jr. Highschoolers on a Mystery Mission trip over the weekend of August 12 - 14. The Mystery location turned out to be San Diego and included the following activities...
• Stayed at 1st UMC San Diego• Boat ride to Coronado Island• San Diego nieghborhood tour• “Showers of Blessings” tour with St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, San Diego• Mid-city CAN tour (Community Advocacy Network)• Attended 1st UMC San Diego worship services
(Pastor Craig Brown’s church)• Attended communion service at El Faro Border
Church
Enjoy some of the pictures posted to Facebook!
Riley AlfordRyker Beckett
Jess Fotsch Josh Fotsch
Who were the kids?
Eliseo ReyesCharly Vera Pantoja
Grace Williams
Noah HernandezMelanie MarlowAimee Mendez
Mariana MontelongoXimena Ortega
Lailany GuemezGiselle Guemez
Mozart Makafui Adevu is a missionary serving as the Africa regional coordinator for the Sustainable Agriculture and Development Program for the Un-tied Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR). He is based in Accra, Ghana in West Africa. Mozart’s program focuses on training communities in inte-grated crop and pest management, nutritional im-provement using moringa and soybeans, beekeeping, agroforestry to protect the environment and provide food while improving income. Mozart is mar-ried to Janet Mina. They have two sons, Makafui Ko� and Toni Dela Ko� and a daughter, Selma A� Serwaa.Contact Mozart at: [email protected]
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O u t r e a c h We love because He f irst loved us.
Rev. William Llanos Zuniga is a missionary serving in a pastoral team with his wife, Rev. Rocio Barcenas Jau-regui, in northeastern Argentina along the Uruguay River. Their work is in partnership with the Evangelical Methodist Church of Argentina. Their ministry in-volves worship, Bible study, prayer groups, leadership development, and outreach to young people in the area. William has served in ministry since becoming
a Christian at age 17. He has spent signi� cant time in evangelistic children’s ministry with clowns, pup-petry, and music. He and his wife have two children, Pamela Jocabed and An-dres Felipe.Contact William at: [email protected]
RECYCLING - A NEVER-ENDING REVENUE STREAM
Ann Gramlich has passed the baton (or empty water bottle) to Susan Am-brose, who is continuing the recycling ministry Ann started 11 years ago The money earned will continue to go toward supporting our missionaries (see article below). A big THANK YOU to ANN for the time, energy, com-mitment, and passion she brought to this project. As you can see from her sign, she raised $22,515!!!
Susan is asking for help going forward. So far, Damian LIndo and George Williams have o" ered to share the load., taking one week out of the month. One or two others would be welcome additions to the team. Please call Susan! And everyone else, keep bringing your soda pop and beer cans, and water bottles. Leave the tuna cans and wine bottles at home. Thank you to all!
UMCTO is still participating in the Ralphs grocery story Community Contributions Program. For every dollar spent at Ralphs by a UMCTO enrolled member, a small contribution is made to the UMCTO account. Eventually, we get a check in the mail! For the � rst three quarters of 2016, 15 households have earned $275.85.
FYI - The new program year begins on September 1, 2016. Participants are required to register for the new term online at www.ralphs.com or by calling us at 800-443-4438 starting September 1, 2016. Even if you registered as recently as June, July or August 2016, you are required to register again beginning September 1st. For your convenience, step-by-step website registration instruc-tions can be found at www.ralphs.com, click on Community, click on Community Contributions, click on ‘Enroll Now’. Hey, why not join? We’ve all gotta eat, right?
MORE (REALLY) EASY MONEY
REMINDER: WHO ARE OUR MISSIONARIES?
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dorsements of individuals are common, but not necessary for election. Bishops consecrated at the jurisdictional conferences begin their assign-ments September 1.
How are bishops assigned?Bishops serve a geographical area for a four-year term. There are 46 episcopal areas in the United States and 20 episcopal areas outside of the United States.
What are a bishop’s responsibilities?A bishop serves as a general superintendent for the church, assigned to a geographical area. Bishops give general oversight to the worldly and spiritual interests of the church. Bishops also have the responsibility to see that the rules and regulations developed by Gen-eral Conference are carried out. Bishops set all clergy appointments in the annual (regional) conferences they serve. Most bishops also serve on a general agency board, often as the president. The bishop is the presiding o! cer at the annual conference session and rules on points of law.
Now you know! Welcome Bishop Higaya!
F Y I
CAL-PAC CONFERENCE NEWS
DID YOU HEAR WE HAVE A NEW BISHOP!?
As of September 1st, Cal-Pac Conference will have a new bish-op, Bishop Grant Higaya. Bishop Carcaño is being assigned to the San Francisco Episcopal Area (California-Nevada Conference).
In case you want to know more about our church governing structure and how bishops $ t in to it, I excerpted this from the UMC.org website:
How are bishops selected?Bishops are elected by the jurisdictional conferences in the United States and by the central conferences in Africa, Europe and the Philippines. (UMCTO is a member of the Western Jurisdiction.)
Any elder (like Pastor John) in full connection is eligible to be elected a bishop. Nominations or en-
Q & A: Where and when can I bring my donations?Bring your donations to the bin located at the back of Dickerson Hall anytime during church o! ce hours or on Sundays when you come to worship.Are there any forbidden items? Please, no mattresses, no stained furniture, nothing hazardous.Is it true you want old computers, iPads, laptops, towers?Yes! We have some families who don’t have access to a computer. We’ll see if we can wipe clean and
TRASH TO Treasure !Saturday, September 24
Dickerson Hall8:00 a.m. - noon
refurbish your old machine. It’s a worthy use of old equipment!When will you start setting up Dickerson Hall?Diana Rainer and Robert González will do that work on the Thursday and Friday before the sale day. If you can help, let them know.Where will the money go that is raised from this fundraiser?Funds will go toward “Family Faith Development” events and the periodic “Night of Worship” concert/ youth gatherings.
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C a l e n d a r S e p t 2 016
1000 E. JANSS ROADTHOUSAND OAKS, CA 91360VOICE: 805.495.7215FAX: 805.495.3510HTTP://WWW.UMCTO.ORG
RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED
WWW.UMCTO.ORG
UNITED METHODIST CHURCH STAFF(805) 495-7215
Senior Pastor, Rev. John Yoon [email protected]
Worship Director, Gabe Salazar ....................................................
......................................... [email protected]@umcto.org
Dir. of Children & Youth Ministry,............... Robert Gonzalez
............................................................. [email protected]
Asst. Dir. of Children’s Ministry, .........................Diana Rainer
.................................................................... [email protected]
Organist................................................................... Romy Brubaker
Of! ce Admin, May Simonds [email protected]
Facility Manager, Mitch Schrader ........... [email protected]
Sunday Worship Times9:00 a.m., Modern Worship Service
& Children’s Sunday School/Nurserycare10:15 a.m. Parent Connect, Room 4
10:15 a.m. Estudios Biblicos para Adultos, Wesley RoomYouth Sunday School, Rooms 15/16
11:00 a.m., Traditional Worship Service
Hear Ye, Hear Ye!
Be it hereby known that the annual
UMCTO Charge Conference
has been scheduled and will be held at
12:30 p.m. on Sunday, September 18
in Dickerson Hall
of the said church.
All are welcome to attend!
