From: Laura Thomas, MCC East Coast <laurathomas@mcc.org>
Date: Tue, Oct 17, 2017 at 1:00 PM
Subject: October Church Announcements
To: Gehman Mennonite Church <info@gehmanmennonitechurch.org>
| October 2017 Church Announcements No Images? Click here Donate to our current disaster responses From hurricanes and flooding, to conflict and drought, MCC is responding to many disasters around the world. Learn more about our relief projects and give today to help provide assistance and to support communities as they rebuild. You can donate by visiting mcc.org/disasters, by calling 1-888-563-4676 or by mailing a check to MCC, PO Box 500, Akron, PA 17501. New Bulletin Announcements Share the joy of giving Honor your friends and family this December with gifts Call 1-888-563-4676 to talk to an MCC representative or visit mcc.org/christmas to choose your gift through our secure online donation site. To receive a paper copy of the Christmas giving booklet, contact LauraThomas@mcc.org.  Voices of Hope Benefit Concert On December 3rd, Madeline Bender will once again team up with pianist and emcee Timothy Long, both of whom are amazingly talented opera stars, along with a delightful troupe of young children to bring an unforgettable night of holiday music and laughter and an opportunity to support MCC's education programs around the world. For more details about this event in Lancaster, PA, visit https://mcc.org/get- Visit the Voices of Hope website for tickets and more information: http://  Give EXTRA. This November 17 go the EXTRA mile for Mennonite Central Committee. On that day, MCC is participating in the Extraordinary Give, Lancaster County's Largest Day of Giving. For 24 hours only, visit ExtraGive.org and make a donation to MCC (min. $25) and every dollar you donate will be stretched by at least a half million dollars in stretch pool and prizes. Visit https://extragive.org/  10th Annual Fundraising DinnerGood food for a good cause? Absolutely! Enjoy a delicious dinner of fried oysters and ham while supporting MCC's disaster responses. Join the MCC Material Resource Center of Harleysville at the Franconia Heritage Banquet Center on Saturday, October 28 at 6pm. Learn about MCC's work from special guest Brooke Strayer, Young Adult Coordinator for MCC Great Lakes. An offering will benefit MCC's disaster responses to flooding in Asia and Peru and the effects of Hurricane Irma in the Caribbean. For tickets ($29 each), call the MCC Material Resource Center of Harleysville at (267) 203-8074 by October 23.  Open positions Canner Operator (service worker): Looking for an exciting way to serve? MCC is urgently seeking a Canner Operator, with CDL truck driving eligibility, to travel with the mobile cannery. Canner Operators travel to 30 different locations in the United States and Canada canning meat which is then sent around the world. "Meat" new people and travel the country! Counselor for Peace Project with Veterans in Ukraine (Stipend): Help veterans and other victims of the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine re-adapt to peaceful civilian life through trauma healing, and by teaching peacebuilding and tolerance in society. The Counselor for Peace Project with Veterans in Ukraine would work with a team to strengthen the psychological component of their work. They would assist in developing activity and therapeutic groups for veterans as well as for family members of soldiers killed in the armed conflict. The worker would provide individual counseling/therapy. Nurse – Loreto Primary Health Care Unit in South Sudan (Stipend): The Loreto Primary Health Care Unit Nurse will work with members of the Maker Kuei community in the Rumbek area of South Sudan. This unit provides basic primary health care, health and nutrition monitoring, and health education for Loreto students, parents, and staff. The clinic focuses on services to vulnerable population, namely children and women. For more information on these and other open positions, visit mcc.org/careers. Ongoing Bulletin Announcements Feed your neighbors this fall Join MCC this fall as we partner with Anabaptist churches in Pennsylvania and New York to provide food boxes to those in need. Fill a bag or box with the following groceries and drop them off at the Material Resources Center (MRC) in Ephrata, PA:
The deadline for the grocery collection is Tuesday, October 31. For more information, contact the MCC East Coast MRC at EastCoastMRC@mcc.org or call (717) 733-2847.  "Clean Slate" criminal justice advocacy event Join MCC and the Pennsylvania Council of Churches for "Faithful Advocacy for Criminal Justice Reform: Principles and Practice." Come to this program to hear an Anabaptist perspective on why we, as people of faith, engage in criminal justice advocacy. Learn more about "Clean Slate" legislation passed by the PA Senate and why it is important that people of faith support a bill that opens doors and creates opportunities for our brothers and sisters who have served time.
Visit mcc.org/events for more information. --------- For details and registration for October 28 and November 3 in Harleysville, PA. click here. Share this bulletin announcement for the event with your church.  Help MCC ship 19,042 comforters by March 2018 As cooler weather approaches, we're reminded that there's nothing like snuggling up in a warm blanket. A handmade comforter provides not only warmth but also a tangible message to people that their needs are not forgotten. Last year we shipped 51,062 blankets to vulnerable people in Jordan, Ethiopia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), Ukraine, Serbia, Iraq, Canada, the U.S. and more. For detailed instructions on how to make comforters, visit mcc.org/kits. We are also accepting purchased blankets (twin or full size) and new flat twin sheets. For more information on how to give hope and comfort to vulnerable people, visit mcc.org.  Sewing kits needed Calling all crafters! Help MCC empower individuals in countries like Haiti, Kenya and Ukraine by donating new sewing items! MCC sewing kits provide the essential items needed to make and mend clothing and create craft items. For instructions and a detailed list of sewing kit contents, visit mcc.org/kits.  Help MCC ship 25,000 relief kits by March 2018 Our partners in the Middle East and Ukraine are asking for more relief kits than MCC has on-hand, so we need your help! Our goal is to ship 25,000 relief kits by March 2018. Visit mcc.org/ephrata-mrc for kit information, shipping information or additional drop-off locations. For more information, contact the MCC East Coast Material Resources Center at EastCoastMRC@mcc.org or (717) 733-2847. DOWNLOAD A POSTER: Click here Resources for Church Leaders We Will Speak OutOctober is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The "We Will Speak Out" Campaign calls all faith communities to dedicate the weekend of October 13-15 to "Speak Out Sabbath" for dialogue, teaching, prayer and action around sexual and gender-based violence and its prevention. While the official annual date is the second weekend of the month, the campaign encourages congregations to view the entire month as an opportunity to speak out and take action.Speak Out Sabbath resources: Click here  MCC Haiti coloring pages MCC service worker in Haiti, Madeline Kreider Carlson, has developed some coloring pages for you to use in your church. Each comes with an explanation on the back. Please print and distribute to those young and old who like to color! DOWNLOAD: Click here  Education resources: "Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery" Is your church busy preparing for a new year of learning and growing together? Challenge yourself and your church family by exploring a different narrative than what you've been taught in school. For more than five centuries, the Doctrine of Discovery and the laws based upon it have legalized the theft of land, labor and resources from Indigenous Peoples across the world. Dive deeper into this issue—take notice, learn what it is and find out how you can take action to dismantle the Doctrine of Discovery. To order resources or stream the DVD, visit dofdmenno.org.  "7 Ways to Support Refugees in Your Community and Around the World" More than 65 million people have been displaced from their homes, including refugees, asylum seekers and those who are internally displaced because of war, disaster and economic hardship. Some are Syrian and Iraqi refugees. Others are Central American refugees seeking safety in the U.S. God's call to welcome the stranger, regardless of nationality or religion, is clear in Deuteronomy 10:18-19 and Matthew 25:35-36. Download the following bulletin announcement to share with your congregation about how anyone can respond through MCC. DOWNLOAD: English Version DOWNLOAD: Spanish Version |
