Church Life Weekly Newsletter
Find pdf files of Church Life newsletters at the bottom of this page.
Mission statement: Grace United Methodist Church is a family of faith striving to share God’s love with all people.
May 13, 2024
Good Morning Friends and Members of Grace United Methodist Church,
We look forward to welcoming Rev. Eumin Kim around July 1st.
Rev. Eumin Kim has served various congregations in McLean, VA; New Haven, CT; Poughkeepsie, NY; Lagrangeville, NY; Maspeth, NY, and is currently at the Community United Methodist Church of Jackson Heights. Eumin is happily married to Prumeh Lee and has two children, Yeari and Eli. In his free time, Eumin loves playing sports and lives vicariously through rooting for his favorite sports teams. (Information taken from the NY Annual Conference.)
Prayer List
♥†Family of Karen Kiernan, ♥†Family of Dr. A.B.A Prempeh (Pat Eshun’s brother), ♥Manny Kurz, ♥Jasmin Whittaker, ♥Emma Donnelly, ♥Cecil and Carol Walker (friends of Barbara Woodford), ♥Veronica Stone (friend of Margo Morrison), ♥Everon Palmer (son of Enid Simpson), ♥Eugene (Gene) O’Brien, ♥Hedy Kling, ♥Carol Whyte, ♥Winston Scarlett (brother-in-law of Maudlyn Scarlett), ♥David Biegler, ♥Vivian (4 months old) Peeples and sister Emilia (4 years old) Peeples, ♥Michael Ciampi (friend of Kim Neri), ♥Michael Kurz, ♥Walter McKnight, ♥Vin Dowling, ♥Suella Fredrick (friend of Lorna McKenzie), ♥Juliana Bonds (sister of Eleanor Phillip), ♥Garvin Phillip (nephew of Eleanor Phillip), ♥Elaine Treske, ♥Marilyn Eller (sister of Elaine Treske), ♥Charles Zipperlen, ♥Jim Poch, ♥All our Military men and women, ♥Barbara Siegl, ♥All UMW in Rehabilitation and Nursing Homes, ♥Castells Family (family of Elaine Treske), ♥Iris Molina, ♥Olga Molina (sister of Iris Molina), ♥Milly Molina (sister of Iris Molina), ♥Evelyn Neber (friend of Elaine Treske).
Note: Prayer List names will continue to be listed for two weeks. After that period of time, the names will be removed unless you call us with current information. † – Death in family, ♦ – New entry
Sunday School
My name is Janet Stone and I am writing to invite your child to join us for in-person Church School each Sunday. Church School is where students will learn about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and how to live a Christian life. We learn Bible stories and we learn how to use those stories to help us be better people. All PreK-8th Grade students are welcome. Children start out in Church at 10:00 with their families and are sent to Church School following the Children’s Sermon. Please note that on the first Sunday of the month, children are directed to the Education Building first and then return to the church building in order to be with their family for communion. I am looking forward to a fun-filled Church School year! Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns. Janet Stone
May 12, 2024:
Today’s lesson was on Acts 6:1-7 Choosing the Seven. The story begins by describing a conflict between two groups in the early church. The issue involves the case of some widows not receiving enough food during the daily distribution of food. The Twelve call a meeting of all the disciples. The Twelve realize that they need to focus on prayer and proclaiming God’s word rather than on serving food, so they ask the community to select seven disciples from among themselves to serve. They specify that the “new disciples” must be wise and filled with the Holy Spirit. This proposal pleases the whole community. The community selects seven people and presents them to the Twelve, who pray for them and lay hands on them. God’s word continues to spread, and the number of disciples in Jerusalem increases.
Children may wonder why the disciples needed more help or why they couldn’t do it all on their own. We might have this problem too. Sometimes children say, “Don’t help me. I can do it by myself!” But sometimes we actually need help. It’s OK to ask for help and to work together to spread God’s love. In the story, the Twelve recognized that their gifts to share with the community were prayer and proclaiming God’s word. They needed help from these “new disciples,” the Seven, to share their gifts for the distribution of food. This story provides us with an example of how to share our unique gifts in the Body of Christ. It shows that the disciples were paying attention; they wanted to provide more help for the community and then moved forward to organize that work. We all are called to find ways to unite and act in love for one another, each sharing our individual gifts and talents to benefit the larger goals of the faith.
Please note that next Sunday, May 19th will be the last Church School class for this school year. We will resume again on the Sunday after Labor Day weekend. Janet Stone
COUNTING TEAM SCHEDULE for MAY 2024
May 05 – Debbie Nicosia
May 12 – Marisa Pershad (Team 1)
May 19 – Marisa Pershad
May 26 – Debbie Nicosia
COUNTING TEAM SCHEDULE for JUNE 2024
June 02 – Everett Fitch
June 09 – Debbie Nicosia
June 16 – Marisa Pershad (Team 1)
June 23 – Marisa Pershad
June 30 – Debbie Nicosia
SPECIAL SUNDAY OFFERINGS – 2024
MISSIONS – January/April/July/October 2024
HUMAN RELATIONS DAY – January 14, 2024
UMCOR SUNDAY – March 10, 2024
EASTER – March 31, 2024
NATIVE AMERICAN MINISTRY – April 14, 2024
GOLDEN CROSS SUNDAY – May 5, 2024
PEACE WITH JUSTICE SUNDAY – May 26, 2024
WORLD COMMUNION SUNDAY – October 06, 2024
UNITED METHODIST STUDENT DAY – November 24, 2024
CHRISTMAS EVE – December 24, 2024 (Tuesday)
CHRISTMAS DAY – December 25, 2024
REMINDER. Please remember to put your Envelope Number on your checks, your donation envelope or include with your Venmo or Zelle. Thank you.
Book of Remembrance. A gift has been given in loving memory of our dear friend, Karen Kiernan, with love by Maureen and Bill Smyth.
News from Friends and Members:
HAPPY BELATED ANNIVERSARY to Janet and Brian Stone who celebrated their 40th!!
Received a card from Jeanne LaFranier (Dick Tiedge’s daughter) He may be coming to his home in Malverne in late spring. Dick’s presence continues to be missed.
2024 Camperships
Camperships are financial gifts given to Church School students who wish to attend either Camp Quinipet or Camp Kingswood. Camperships are determined by the Educational Scholarship Committee. Consideration is given to church involvement, church school attendance and service to church. Submissions may be made by email or paper. See the link for the application. Please note that it is due no later than May 19th. Late applicants may receive a reduced scholarship. Please be sure to submit both sections (parent and camper).
Questions? Please email mom2springers@gmail.com.
2024 Educational Scholarships
Educational Scholarships are financial gifts given to church members who are college students. Consideration is given to church involvement and community service. Submissions may be made by email or paper no later than May 19th. Only complete applications will be considered.
2024 Educational Scholarship Application
Questions? Please email mom2springers@gmail.com.
GRACE METHODIST NURSERY SCHOOL. Grace Methodist Nursery School, a nurturing early childhood center which has dedicated itself to “celebrating children and childhood” in Valley Stream for 53 years will be closing its doors after the 2023-2024 school year. Many factors including decreasing enrollment affected by the implementation of UPK in Valley Stream have caused us to make this very difficult decision. For 53 years GMNS proudly provided a variety of early children programs to the young children of the community and their families.
During its 53 year tenure GMNS has been blessed with a dedicated team of faculty members whose professionalism and devotion have contributed to its long standing success. GMNS is grateful for the support and loyalty of the Grace United Methodist Church family throughout the years. Diane Panzarino, Director
Nursery Room in the Undercroft. The United Women in Faith are working to re-open the Nursery in the undercroft so that parents of children aged 2 months through 3 years will have the option of using the Nursery services during Sunday morning worship. On Saturday, March 2 we emptied the nursery for a deep clean including the furniture, blankets, and toys. We thank Narendra Pershad for cleaning the carpet. Thank you to the many volunteers who helped with the Nursery cleaning. We want to give a special shout-out to My Brother’s Keeper for washing the walls. It did my heart good to see the tremendous outpouring of support. The next step is getting volunteers to staff the nursery during the church service on a rotating basis. Two people are needed each Sunday. If you are interested in volunteering in the nursery on a rotating basis, please contact Katherine Perkins: katherine.lowe.perkins@gmail.com. Thank you!
Coffee Hour. Thank you Evangelism Committee for hosting Coffee Hour this past Sunday, May 5, 2024.
Jane Schreiber and Tom Littman will be hosting Coffee Hour this Sunday. Thank you. Don’t forget to put the donated coffee money in the envelope provided and put the envelope in the mail-slot by my Office. Worse case, slide it under the door!!
If you would like to volunteer to host coffee hour. please either email GraceVSNY@aol.com or call the Church Office (516/825-1182). Thank you!!
UWF Career Day and Luncheon postponed to the fall. It was brought to our attention during the Church Council meeting that May 25 is Memorial Day weekend. We will postpone our Career Day and Luncheon Event to the Fall. United Women in Faith looks forward to hosting it then.
We are having a DIAPER DRIVE! Did you know that Social Services benefits such as Welfare do NOT cover the cost of diapers? And that in order to leave a child with a subsidized daycare the parent MUST provide disposable diapers, not cloth? As we celebrate mothers during the month of May, let’s remember to donate diapers, wipes and baby food to those less fortunate. Collection boxes are located in the Church and in the Education Building. All donations will benefit organizations like The INN or the Long Island Council of Churches. We will be accepting donations through June 1st. If you have any questions, please see Janet Stone or email mom2springers@gmail.com. Thank you so much for your generous donation!
VOLUNTEERS – HELP NEEDED
HELP – The Thrift Shop continues to provide inexpensive articles for sale to the community thanks to the many donations we receive. Keep them coming! It is also providing revenue to support the church. Three of our volunteers are moving which leaves us very short of help. In order to continue volunteers are needed. We meet Thursday at 10 am to sort through donations and prepare for Saturday. We are open Saturday from 10am-2pm. Even a two hour commitment would be appreciated from either 10am – 12pm or 12pm to 2pm on Saturday. This is a time of fellowship as well as a commitment to our church and our community. Please contact Eileen at the church office if you are able to volunteer. Thank you! –Thrift Shop Ministry Team
Where You Can Volunteer
Liturgist or Reader – Contact Pat Eshun
Sunday School – Contact Janet Stone
Evangelism – Contact Andrea Owen-Boyd
Thrift Shop – Contact Andrea Owen-Boyd or Maudlyn Scarlett
Music – Leave a message for the Music Ministry Office (516/825-1940)
Missions – Contact Katherine Perkins
Worship – Contact Kim Neri or Carol Provenzano
Acolytes – Contact Tim Neri or or Mike Provenzano
Ushers – Contact Mike Provenzano or Carol Provenzano
Counting Team – Contact Marisa Pershad or Eileen Robertson
Hospitality – Contact Bob DiSalvo
Greeters – Contact Naomi Brown or Carol Provenzano
(Please call Eileen if you need contact information – 516/825-1182)
Weekly Meetings and Rehearsals
Please note whether meetings are in-person at the church or via Zoom. Thank you.
*Every Sunday – Choir Rehearsal 8AM/Church
*Every Sunday – Church School 10AM/start in Church (except 1st Sunday of the month start 10AM/Education Building)
*Every Second Sunday of the month – Healing Prayer Service after Church/Chapel
*Fourth Sunday of every month – United Women in Faith
*Every Wednesday – Bible Study 7:30PM-8:30PM/Zoom (Same Zoom Link every week)
*Every Thursday – Westminster Ringers 7PM/Church
*Every Saturday – Prayer Meeting 8AM/Zoom (Same Zoom Link every week)
*Every Saturday – Thrift Shop 10AM-2PM
Upcoming Events
*Sunday, December 8, 2024 – Christmas Concert
Upcoming Meetings
*Tuesday, May 21, 2024 – Education Scholarship/Campership Meeting 4:30PM/BKR
*Sunday, June 9, 2024 – Church Council Meeting after Church
NOTE: All of our Grace Church Services will use the same link that we have been using. Other meetings such as Bible Study have their own link.
