Meetings: First Tuesday Monthly - Time/Location Varies
WHAT IS UMW? WHAT DO THEY DO? WHO JOINS?
UNITED METHODIST WOMEN
is the successor to the home and foreign missionary
societies and guilds of the eight predecessor denominations that now
comprise The United Methodist Church. It is an organization of laywomen
centered in relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Membership is open
to any woman who indicates her desire to belong and to participate in the
global mission of the United Methodist Church.
The Gettysburg United Methodist Women cluster (six churches banded together)
is part of the Chambersburg District and the Central Pennsylvania
Conference. Gettysburg UMW members meet the first Tuesday of each month.
Time and location may vary but is announced in the Weekly Vision and the
monthly Newsletter. Programs are designed to follow the theme announced by
the Women's Division of the General Board of Global Ministries of the United
Methodist church.
Gettysburg UMW members strive to accomplish the UMW purpose but to also have
fun. A Mother-Daughter banquet is held every spring, as well as a summer
picnic. The fall meeting is a mystery trip dinner. Friendships are
strengthened at these meetings and at the two major fund-raising events.
The two-day summer rummage sale (October 23-24, 2002) and the two-day
Snowflake Festival (November 7 - 8, 2002) enlist entire church membership
participation. GUMW also coordinate the annual World Thank Offering and two
Blanket Sunday donations for congregation participation.
Gettysburg UMW is a generous giver for mission needs. Not only do the
members pledge and contribute to the missions of the United Methodist Church
but they also donate to local missions. The group is a member of Church
Women United and this organization meets monthly in the GUC building.
Gettysburg United Methodist Women welcome new members and the return of
former members Membership is important to the success of the Church's global
mission. Join us!!!!!
P. O. Box 3134, Gettysburg, PA 17325
Telephone: 717-334-0752 "They shall beat their swords into plowshares ... neither shall
they learn war any more." Isaiah 2:4
History: The Center was founded in 1985 in an effort to go beyond
the traditional "peace movement" and bring peace and justice concerns
to a local mainstream audience.
Purpose and Mission: The Interfaith Center for Peace and Justice is
a non-profit organization which seeks to nurture dialogue on peace,
social justice and environmental balance and to enrich our community
by inspiring individuals to work nonviolently toward the realization
of those values in human society. The Center is not only an
educational institution but also a catalyst for action and a source
of support for individuals and groups responding to community
needs and to threats which may arise to just and peaceful
community life. Committed to advancing the well-being of all,
we act non-violently, with respect for truth and one another as
our guiding values (adapted from a 1988 statement).
Two of the Center's main annual activities are:
Peace Camp, which is a week-long camp in the summer for
children from Kindergarten through Sixth grade with presentations,
games, and projects promoting non-violent conflict resolution,
inter-cultural understanding, and environment balance.
Adams County Heritage Festival held on the second Sunday
following Labor Day. The Interfaith Center founded this
event and continues to organize it, with the cooperation of
other organizations. There are crafts, food, entertainment,
and exhibits which celebrate the diverse ethnic heritages of
Adams County.
There is an Annual Meeting of the membership, held in the fall
of each year, featuring a pot-luck supper and a speaker.
New members are welcome. You can become a member by making
a donation (suggested minimum of $10), volunteering to help in
one of the Center's projects, or simply asking to be added to
the mailing list. (There is a quarterly newsletter which carries
news of Center activities and those of other community groups,
as well as articles on broader peace issues). All donations
to the Center are tax-deductible.
Background:
In April, 1993, Rev. Frederick Wentz convened a meeting of
representatives of the social action committees of various
local churches to explore the need for interchurch cooperation
to deal with larger community issues. Members who attended
the meeting determined that they shared several social concerns.
They also decided that a network of interested persons from various
churches and social action organizations could help deal with
these broad community issues. As a result, representatives have been
meeting regularly since the first session.
Activities:
The Interchurch Network for Social Concerns operates to help
identify and focus attention on issues that require the action
of many community organizations to address. The Network also
helps plan, stimulate, and support action of existing organizations
to address these broad community issues. Issues identified so far
include racism, prison ministry, and resettling refugee families.
A brief description of some work done so far appears below.
Our Schools: Open and Inclusive - The Network has sponsored
three workshops to help assess race relations in the Gettysburg Public
School System (GPSS). Representatives from the white and
minority communities have included parents, students, teachers,
school administrators and staff members, and school board members.
At the first workshop (October, 1994), participants examined future
trends, the current situation in the GPSS regarding racism, and
explored ways of improving race relations in the system.
The second workshop in December, 1994, followed up on outcomes of
the first meeting by developing recommendations for inclusion in the
School District strategic planning process. Participants in the third
workshop (May, 1995) examined progress in getting recommendations
included in strategic planning reports. They also decided to
develop a strategy for making Martin Luther King Day an official
school holiday. Several Network members are working with community
organizations and interested citizens to make the recommendation a reality.
Prison Ministry: The Network has supported work of the Adams
County Prison Task Force and helped educate members of various churches
(and the general community) about task force work. The task force
has identified the need for services to inmates of the Adams County
Prison and their families. The Network also is supporting
establishment of a local chapter of the Pennsylvania Prison Society.
The Society helps maintain humane conditions in prisons by helping
local groups organize to provide needed services through an active
visitation program. Work to set up the local Prison Society chapter
is in progress.
Other Activities: The Network also has supported and promoted
the community soup kitchen, the Peace Camp, and Heritage Festival.
Future Work:
The Interchurch Network for Social Concerns will continue to help
community organizations and the community-at-large deal with broad
social issues.
This site is a work in progress, i.e., not a final product.
I decided to put something up quickly, and 'underdeveloped,'
rather than later and more complete/developed/interesting,
so that members (and other people!) could write me and tell me what
they'd like to see here.
