Memorial Day Weekend
Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States for honoring and mourning the military personnel who died while serving in the US Armed Forces. Please thank a veteran for their service. It is also the unofficial start of summer. Stay safe during this long weekend and remember to use your mask and social distancing.
Prayer Group
Please consider joining our prayer group. This is an on-line way of praying for each other’s needs and praising God for what is happening in each other’s lives. If you would be interested in being involved, please either call or email the office and you can be set up. Prayers requested are:
Peace with Justice Sunday
Peace with Justice Sunday is the first Sunday after Pentecost. Join us on June 7, 2020, as we gather for our online worship service to celebrate this important churchwide ministry.
As a connectional church, we combine our resources so that we have a larger impact in the world. In 2019, United Methodist churches gave $433,437 toward ministries funded by the Peace with Justice Sunday offering. Thank you for your generous gifts. Fifty percent of the offering remains in the annual conference to support local and regional justice efforts, and 50 percent supports justice ministries through the General Board of Church and Society
We will worship together online and renew our commitment to resist evil, injustice and oppression on behalf of the vulnerable.
Start the day with Debbie
Our District Superintendent Debbie Earthrowl shares a devotion via Facebook Live at 7:30 AM every Monday through Saturday, and worship at 10 AM on Sundays. The devotions and worship are also posted on her Facebook page and our District Facebook page, so you can tune in at any time. The Adirondack District also posts daily gospel readings from Rev. Bill Mudge. To view, go to https://www.facebook.com/debbie.earthrowl or view it at the Adirondack District Facebook page.
Access all the latest from the church online!
If you are on Facebook, be sure to “like” the Ballston Spa United Methodist Church page, where the latest news, photos, and video messages from Pastor Kelly are posted. If you’re not on Facebook, but have Internet access, you can find the same content on our website at https://www.ballstonspaumchurch.org/recent-posts. Scroll down the page to see everything; be sure to leave a comment so we know you’re seeing us!
Dance with us down VBS memory lane!
If you LOVE VBS music and tend to break into song motions, tune in on Thursday, May 28 at 7:30 p.m. EST for the Very Best Sing-along! Mark it on your calendars!
What Happened This Week
Our custodian, Tom, has been doing some painting around the church. He finished painting the ramp to the Food Pantry this week.
The Jenkins family greeted people in front of the church with Pastor Kelly last Sunday morning. They counted 58 honks from cars, numerous waves and peace signs and one namaste.
Consolidated Reports for the Ballston Spa United Methodist Church Council for May 2020
In these unsettled and unprecedented times, the Church Council is not meeting in the regular face-to-face manner. When business is required an email is sent out requesting a vote on a matter. Members have been very diligent in responding and doing so promptly. Thank you.
Thank you for your patience, your faithful commitment to the financial health of the church, sharing your time and talents in so many ways. Each day presents new challenges and things we have not faced before (ever).
Below are the reports I have received by the deadline - Ilah Sisson Walser, Chair
Treasurer’s Report: Lynne Blake has submitted a PDF report, which will be sent in a separate file. If you are unable to open a PDF file, please let me know and I will try to send it to you in a different manner.
During the last couple of weeks, we have requested an approval for John Sheeran to sign documents for the Church relative to the SBS loan/grant process with the Federal Government program for the COVID-19 relief. It was a unanimous vote to have John work on behalf of the Church with the Adirondack Trust Company. The loan has been secured and the funds have been deposited in our account. From those funds payroll and utility bills can be paid. With the proper documentation, we can apply to have the loan changed to a grant, providing we prove we kept our employees paid and working, and our utilities are paid. John and Lynne Blake will work on the reporting to accomplish this. We appreciate the efforts to apply and report for this loan/grant.
Report from Ruth Persons, Lay Leader and Chair of Worship: Nothing to report from Worship team. We have not had a meeting. Ruth has also been participating in the Caregiving of the congregation by keeping in contact with congregation members. About 20 persons in the congregation are serving as caregivers.
Ruth is also attending a Lay Servant Class: The Dancing with Words class started 5/12/2020 via Zoom.
Food Pantry and Thrift Shop: For the month of April (5 weeks) our numbers were down. We served 40 families of which included (88) adults and (42) children. Some of the reasons, I believe, are that there were so many free food drive-throughs, and Saratoga EOC located in Ballston Spa is making weekly deliveries to its clients which are some of the same clients we serve.
With the Thrift Shop being closed we are not receiving any money from the sales at the Thrift Shop. Any money that they take in goes into the Food Pantry account. For the month of April the Food Pantry has received some very generous monetary donations ($2,000.00) and a grant ($840.00) from Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, that was directly sent to the Regional Food Bank and applied to our account. We have also received a large amount of Food Donations in April.
God Bless, Helen Senecal & Melody Babcock
Fair Trade: Stan Lockwood is still offering coffee, tea and dark chocolate bars for sale if folks are interested. He had a few sales during the shutdown and will still do that as long as there are items to sell. He can be reached at sdlock2008@hotmail.com or 518.885.1552 Maybe by June 21st we will be back in church for the next scheduled sale after 5/17.
5K Dinners: We hope to resume these dinners after restaurants are allowed to open and BSUMC folks express a willingness to go out to dinner. In the meantime, please consider ordering take-out or do business with our sponsors (that are open) and other local businesses that contribute to our Falling Leaves 5K run during the COVID-19 shutdown. Stan Lockwood
Have a blessed week
Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States for honoring and mourning the military personnel who died while serving in the US Armed Forces. Please thank a veteran for their service. It is also the unofficial start of summer. Stay safe during this long weekend and remember to use your mask and social distancing.
Prayer Group
Please consider joining our prayer group. This is an on-line way of praying for each other’s needs and praising God for what is happening in each other’s lives. If you would be interested in being involved, please either call or email the office and you can be set up. Prayers requested are:
- Ilah Sisson Walser asks for prayers for a family friend who has been diagnosed with breast cancer. She is facing surgery and treatments into the future. Please pray for Sandy for her recovery, for her family for support, and for the medical team for their care.
- Condolences to the family of Linda Howie, who passed away on May 12th at the age of 74. Prayers for her husband Arthur and daughter Mindy. This family was active in our church years ago.
Peace with Justice Sunday
Peace with Justice Sunday is the first Sunday after Pentecost. Join us on June 7, 2020, as we gather for our online worship service to celebrate this important churchwide ministry.
As a connectional church, we combine our resources so that we have a larger impact in the world. In 2019, United Methodist churches gave $433,437 toward ministries funded by the Peace with Justice Sunday offering. Thank you for your generous gifts. Fifty percent of the offering remains in the annual conference to support local and regional justice efforts, and 50 percent supports justice ministries through the General Board of Church and Society
We will worship together online and renew our commitment to resist evil, injustice and oppression on behalf of the vulnerable.
Start the day with Debbie
Our District Superintendent Debbie Earthrowl shares a devotion via Facebook Live at 7:30 AM every Monday through Saturday, and worship at 10 AM on Sundays. The devotions and worship are also posted on her Facebook page and our District Facebook page, so you can tune in at any time. The Adirondack District also posts daily gospel readings from Rev. Bill Mudge. To view, go to https://www.facebook.com/debbie.earthrowl or view it at the Adirondack District Facebook page.
Access all the latest from the church online!
If you are on Facebook, be sure to “like” the Ballston Spa United Methodist Church page, where the latest news, photos, and video messages from Pastor Kelly are posted. If you’re not on Facebook, but have Internet access, you can find the same content on our website at https://www.ballstonspaumchurch.org/recent-posts. Scroll down the page to see everything; be sure to leave a comment so we know you’re seeing us!
Dance with us down VBS memory lane!
If you LOVE VBS music and tend to break into song motions, tune in on Thursday, May 28 at 7:30 p.m. EST for the Very Best Sing-along! Mark it on your calendars!
- When: Thursday, May 28
- Time: 7:30 p.m. EST
- Where: The comfort of your own home
- How: Stream live from the Group VBS Facebook page
What Happened This Week
Our custodian, Tom, has been doing some painting around the church. He finished painting the ramp to the Food Pantry this week.
The Jenkins family greeted people in front of the church with Pastor Kelly last Sunday morning. They counted 58 honks from cars, numerous waves and peace signs and one namaste.
Consolidated Reports for the Ballston Spa United Methodist Church Council for May 2020
In these unsettled and unprecedented times, the Church Council is not meeting in the regular face-to-face manner. When business is required an email is sent out requesting a vote on a matter. Members have been very diligent in responding and doing so promptly. Thank you.
Thank you for your patience, your faithful commitment to the financial health of the church, sharing your time and talents in so many ways. Each day presents new challenges and things we have not faced before (ever).
Below are the reports I have received by the deadline - Ilah Sisson Walser, Chair
Treasurer’s Report: Lynne Blake has submitted a PDF report, which will be sent in a separate file. If you are unable to open a PDF file, please let me know and I will try to send it to you in a different manner.
During the last couple of weeks, we have requested an approval for John Sheeran to sign documents for the Church relative to the SBS loan/grant process with the Federal Government program for the COVID-19 relief. It was a unanimous vote to have John work on behalf of the Church with the Adirondack Trust Company. The loan has been secured and the funds have been deposited in our account. From those funds payroll and utility bills can be paid. With the proper documentation, we can apply to have the loan changed to a grant, providing we prove we kept our employees paid and working, and our utilities are paid. John and Lynne Blake will work on the reporting to accomplish this. We appreciate the efforts to apply and report for this loan/grant.
Report from Ruth Persons, Lay Leader and Chair of Worship: Nothing to report from Worship team. We have not had a meeting. Ruth has also been participating in the Caregiving of the congregation by keeping in contact with congregation members. About 20 persons in the congregation are serving as caregivers.
Ruth is also attending a Lay Servant Class: The Dancing with Words class started 5/12/2020 via Zoom.
Food Pantry and Thrift Shop: For the month of April (5 weeks) our numbers were down. We served 40 families of which included (88) adults and (42) children. Some of the reasons, I believe, are that there were so many free food drive-throughs, and Saratoga EOC located in Ballston Spa is making weekly deliveries to its clients which are some of the same clients we serve.
With the Thrift Shop being closed we are not receiving any money from the sales at the Thrift Shop. Any money that they take in goes into the Food Pantry account. For the month of April the Food Pantry has received some very generous monetary donations ($2,000.00) and a grant ($840.00) from Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, that was directly sent to the Regional Food Bank and applied to our account. We have also received a large amount of Food Donations in April.
God Bless, Helen Senecal & Melody Babcock
Fair Trade: Stan Lockwood is still offering coffee, tea and dark chocolate bars for sale if folks are interested. He had a few sales during the shutdown and will still do that as long as there are items to sell. He can be reached at sdlock2008@hotmail.com or 518.885.1552 Maybe by June 21st we will be back in church for the next scheduled sale after 5/17.
5K Dinners: We hope to resume these dinners after restaurants are allowed to open and BSUMC folks express a willingness to go out to dinner. In the meantime, please consider ordering take-out or do business with our sponsors (that are open) and other local businesses that contribute to our Falling Leaves 5K run during the COVID-19 shutdown. Stan Lockwood
Have a blessed week