Mission Outreach Ministry Annual Report - January 2005
How do we say thank you to so many Bethel people who make Mission Outreach possible? We present opportunities, and you never fail to enthusiastically sign up and join in. So, Gracias! Merci! Danke Schoen! In any language, you have a servant's heart! On to our recap of last year:
Two Sundays were set aside in 2004 for Bread for the World's Offering of Letters. Bethel members wrote letters to their representatives in the House and Senate to speak out in favor of legislation to improve the lives of millions of hungry people around the world. Watch the bulletin for dates and times of letter writing in 2005.
Bethel made a remarkable contribution to the 27th Annual South Bay CROP Walk, held on Sunday April 25th. Twenty-four people walked either the one-mile or five-mile route, making us the fifth largest group to walk. Together with matching funds from Thrivent Financial, Bethel contributed $3,010.00, almost double the amount raised in 2003! Bethel is number 4 on the top ten donors' list for the South Bay. This year's CROP Walk is scheduled for Sunday April 20 in the Rosegarden area of San Jose, so mark your calendars!
Bethel served two dinners in 2004 at the Sunnyvale Armory for the Emergency Housing Consortium. Volunteers prepared food at Bethel and drove it to the armory, feeding up to 150 people at each meal. At one meal, volunteers were treated to a wedding between two of the diners! Due to an increase in the number of churches providing meals, Bethel is not scheduled to serve dinner at the EHC in 2005.
On a beautiful Saturday in July, Bethel members worked on three Habitat for Humanity homes on Gianera Street in San Jose, doing everything from grouting tile, to plumbing, to rebar work, to cleaning up the job site. The houses were dedicated in September, and three very happy families took residence. Look for opportunities in the bulletin to help build 5 new houses on Murphy Street, and to help restore two Victorian homes, turning them into condos for multiple families, on North 13th and E. Julian in San Jose in 2005.
One way Help One Child supports their foster families is by giving a Christmas Party each December. Bethel helped in this effort on Dec. 11th by staffing craft and game tables, and working one-on-one with little ones. A good time was had by all!
A ministry team from Bethel, led by Clayton Johnson, continues to faithfully visit Juvenile Hall every other month to conduct a Sunday morning worship service. Now in its ninth year, Clayton would like to expand the worship team. Please call Clayton or Ralph Miller for more information about this exciting ministry.
Ever wonder where the donated food in the barrel in the narthex goes? Each week, volunteers from Bethel deliver it to The Lord's Pantry, an emergency food program located on the campus of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in San Jose. In December, Bethel members also donated frozen turkeys in a special drive for Christmas dinners for the Lord's Pantry clients. Also in December, Bethel's own Wildside kids (7th & 8th graders) donated more than forty Target gift cards for underprivileged teenagers served by the Lord's Pantry for Christmas!
In May, November and December, MayaWorks sales were held at Bethel to connect Guatemalan artisans with our congregation in the spirit of free trade. People interested in joining the MayaWorks team are encouraged to call Kaye Kuhlmann for more details about the upcoming trip to Guatemala, and upcoming sales events on and off the Bethel campus.
Two successful Mission to Mexico trips happened in 2004. The first was in April, when Bethel youth travelled to Tijuana over their spring break to work on the community center at the Esperanza compound. The second was at the end of September, when adult members and non-members joined together to mix concrete, pour tiles and beams, cut and tie rebar and other interesting jobs at a home outside of Tijuana and at the compound. To make wonderful memories by being part of this year's youth or adult trips, contact Tom Hoegel.
Volunteers and their pets faithfully visited Sunny View Lutheran Home twice a month as part of Pet Assisted Therapy. This is a wonderful ministry to older adults in assisted living and nursing care. If you would like to be a part of this program, please contact Carol Hooper.
The Quilters continue to meet each Monday morning in the Fireside Room to produce beautiful works of art. In 2004, they made a whopping 184 quilts! Eighty of these were sent to Lutheran World Relief for distribution overseas. The balance were given locally to Gloria Dei, Ronald McDonald House, Heritage Home, Cupertino Community Services, Bethel School, Sunny View, Friends Outside, and the Valley Medical Neonatal Nursery.
We served breakfast the third Sunday of every other month at the San Jose Family Shelter in 2004. Although the menu didn't change much, we had wonderful groups of new and not-so-new volunteers to cook and serve. In November, we held a special turkey drive for the shelter, and collected 47 turkeys (a record breaker for us!) Our next breakfast is on Sunday February 20th. To be part of the February gang, contact Lois Brouillette.
In May and October, two groups from Bethel sorted and repacked food for distribution at Second Harvest Food Bank in San Jose. This is a fun group activity, so watch the bulletin for dates when you can participate.
Stand With Africa, a special ELCA campaign to overcome FUV/AIDS, banish hunger and build peace, was our designated offering in September. To promote this program, we had a unique sale of African products, supplied by Asante Asante Asante of Walnut Creek. Bethel folks purchased beautiful batik shirts and vests, African masks, and baskets, baskets, and more baskets! Thanks to everyone who shopped and brought much needed awareness and money to a people in need.
The first Saturday in November, St. John's in Sunnyvale looked like a flea market or bazaar, and it was; a "junque" sale to benefit Sunnyvale FISH. As we get closer to the fall, put aside your upscale junk to donate and come and shop for true bargains! Cashiers and worker bees are also needed for the Nov. 5, 2005 event.
Our most successful Ten Thousand Villages holiday sale was held on Sat. Nov. 20th and Sun. Nov. 21st. Thank you for your patronage! If you missed this event, never fear, for due to popular demand it will be repeated the weekend before Thanksgiving in 2005!
Yours in Christ,
Your Mission Outreach Ministry Committee
Lois Brouillette, chair, Ed Fox, Dale Jones and Jackie Jones