Conference News

On March 6, about 100 people celebrated the move of the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) East Coast regional office to Philadelphia from Akron, Pa.

The new office is in the Oxford Circle area of northeast Philadelphia in a building purchased by Oxford Circle Christian Community Development Association. The building already has several tenants and will eventually house other offices as well as an expanded worship space for Oxford Circle Mennonite Church.

Leonard Dow, Oxford Circle pastor and vice chairperson of the MCC U.S. Board said, “The move of MCC East Coast regional office to Philadelphia is a significant movement from seeing the urban communities as mission destinations or receivers, to seeing urban congregations as assets to the broader church, or mission senders.”

Dow emphasized that placing the office in the midst of urban churches increases their ability to not only minister to their own communities but also to share their gifts of people and resources with the broader church. It also allows urban congregations who have not been a part of the traditional church-wide networks to share in their mission and service opportunities.

East Coast Executive Board Member Darryl Wallace, pastor of Second Mennonite Church in Philadelphia, echoed Dow’s belief that this move will build the capacity of MCC East Coast as urban churches are part of its decision-making process. He said decisions will be influenced by the early Anabaptist values of justice and peace because these issues are immediate and real in the city. He described urban areas as “energy centers.”

Dow said that he hoped the synergy between East Coast and the urban areas will create momentum for risk-taking by the broader church.

MCC East Coast, one of four regional MCC offices in the United States, serves the area from Maine to Florida as well as Puerto Rico. MCC East Coast connects with more than 100,000 constituents in more than 1,000 congregations in the region. In addition to the Philadelphia office, MCC East Coast staff are also present in other parts of Pennsylvania, New York City, Washington, D.C., Florida, Alabama and Puerto Rico.

As Fred Kauffman, MCC East Coast program coordinator at the Philadelphia service unit said, “We can create opportunities for rural, suburban and urban churches to meet together.”

Mennonite Central Committee’s (MCC) Philadelphia office, in partnership with Kingdom Builders Anabaptist Network of Greater Philadelphia, has launched a new renovation and construction project this month for the various Anabaptist churches and ministries in Philadelphia.

Dan Umstead, a Spring City, Pa., resident and recent Eastern University graduate, will serve the Kingdom Builders and MCC Philadelphia office for the next two years as their building project coordinator. Dan is an experienced volunteer construction team leader and jobsite foreman. He has worked in areas affected by Hurricane Katrina and in the Dominican Republic.

J. Fred Kauffman, MCC Philadelphia Program Coordinator, explained that this building project started very quickly beginning with a discussion of the needs of many churches and ministries in Philadelphia and an inquiry on available positions with MCC from Dan. “In a period of about a month we went from nothing to enough work to say let’s go,” said Fred.

Along with immediately taking on the role of building caretaker at Franconia Conference Related Ministry Philadelphia Mennonite High School (PMHS), Dan is also scheduled to work on renovating Philadelphia Praise Center’s basement to add a kitchen, renovating Oxford Circle Mennonite Church’s new building, renovating Vietnamese Mennonite Church’s fourth floor, helping a newly developing Ethiopean church purchase and renovate a building for their congregation and working with several city-based Anabaptist community ministries to assist in renovating the homes of community members in need.

In addition Dan will solicte and coordinate volunteer groups to assist him in the renovation and construction projects. He is making a wide appeal to all local church groups, including youth groups on up to older groups, to come and spend a week or so with him in Philadelphia building and renovating in these projects. In the future Dan will also be holding construction and home improvement workshops open to all insterested and a Friday Elective Service Learning class for PMHS.

The congregations employing Dan have already committed funds toward the project and Fred was very excited to note that Kingdom Builders and MCC Philadelphia has already received more than half of the money needed to fund this initiative. The project’s biggest needs now are tools, a pick-up truck and volunteers.

For more information on contibuting to this project or volunteering contact Dan Umstead at dumstead@mcc.org or 610-574-2959.

The Care & Share Shoppes’ are delighted to present to their customers the opportunity to purchase gift cards which can be used in the Clothing, Variety and Furniture Shoppes. Proceeds from these shoppes benefit Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) which is a relief, development and peace agency of the Mennonite and Brethren in Christ Churches.

These gift cards will be replacing the previous paper gift certificate program. Customers are encouraged to redeem their paper gift certificates by December 31, 2009, whereas after this date they will no longer be accepted.

Sarah Bergin, Executive Director of the Care and Share Shoppes, explained the benefit of these cards. “Your gift card purchase helps many. First, the person you give it too will benefit from a huge selection of high quality merchandise in our shoppes, where your dollar buys much more than if you were shopping at a new retailer. Second, the money spent at our shoppes then becomes your ‘gift to the world’ as MCC uses these funds to assist others.”

“Many people are often surprised to learn that 25% off MCC’s funding supports those here in the United States,” continued Sarah. “Customers and those that donate to our shoppes should feel good knowing that MCC does a remarkable job finding non-profit partners to facilitate our donated dollars in the most effective manner.”

The increasingly popular monthly half-price sale will now be on the third Friday of each month – the next one on March 20. Shop from 10am till 8pm, all items in the three Shoppes are half of the ticketed price with a few exceptions and must be removed the day of sale.

The Care & Share Shoppes have been serving the local community for over 32 years. The Shoppes are centrally located; 10 miles from Doylestown, 10 miles from Quakertown, and 8 miles from Lansdale. Local shoppers benefit from the availability of low cost, high quality items. Donors contribute to the recycling and conservation efforts that affect the broader community in positive ways. Volunteers become part of a special community which embraces service above self. The funds raised for Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) provide resources and aid for those in need, in North America and around the world.

During the first weekend in May, Eastern Mennonite University at Lancaster will partner with Sunnyside Mennonite Church to host “Ancient Christian Paths, Contemporary Lives” led by Frederica Mathewes-Green.

Frederica Mathewes-Green is a nationally known speaker and author on Christian spirituality. Her work has appeared in such diverse publications as the Washington Post, Christianity Today, Smithsonian, the Los Angeles Times, First Things, Books & Culture, Sojourners, Touchstone, and the Wall Street Journal. She is a regular columnist for the multifaith web magazine Beliefnet.com, and she writes movie reviews for National Review Online and Christianity Today Movies.

The weekend of events is scheduled for May 2-3 and includes a morning and afternoon session on Saturday and a Sunday morning service. All evetns will be held at Sunnyside Mennonite Church in Lancaster, Pa.

Registration is required. For more information and online registration visit  emu.edu/lancaster/seminary

With the resignation of Elaine Moyer as principal at Christopher Dock Mennonite High School (Lansdale, PA), the school’s Board of Trustees has implemented a transition process.

• The board’s executive committee has been named as the Transition Committee: Phil Bergstresser, LeeAnn Bergey, Henry Longacre, and Ruth Yoder.
• The Board reaffirmed and agreed on several foundational beliefs to guide their decisions during the transition. Dock will retain an unapologetic Anabaptist/Mennonite identity considered essential to retain Dock’s vision. Dock is committed to continued collaborative work with Penn View and Quakertown Christian Schools and on the GPS 2012 initiative.
• A Search Committee was named to to find a new principal and prepare a transition timetable. Members include: Joy Sutter, chair; Hunter Hess, Sharon Fransen, Jim Lapp, and Henry Longacre. Their intent is to employ a replacement by the beginning of the new school year.

The Search Committee also released the following employment advertisement. More information relating to the search process can be found online at dockhs.org by clicking on “DockSearch.” The Committee invites prayers and suggestion of possible candidates from leaders and members in the Franconia Conference community.

ADVERTISEMENT for Principal at Dock

Christopher Dock Mennonite High School, a leading secondary school in southeastern PA with 400 students and 40 faculty members seeks an outstanding educational leader rooted in the Anabaptist faith to serve as principal for the school beginning in July 2009. The successful candidate will embody a strong sense of community/team building, demonstrate well-developed leadership and administrative skills, display excellent interpersonal and communication skills, be an educator with a passion for leadership in a secondary school, and be an active member of a congregation affiliated with an Anabaptist church. Master’s degree and educational leadership experience required. Interested applicants should submit letter of intent and curriculum vitae to: Joy Sutter, chair of search committee, 2671 Crabapple Circle, Perkasie, PA 18944, or email to DockSearch@gmail.com. Further information for potential candidates can be found at www.dockhs.org.

On February 21, one of Perkasie Patchwork Coffeehouse’s favorite bands returns to sing and play the night away as we look forward to spring. DayBreak and opening act Glass Roses will perform folk music at the Perkasie Patchwork Coffeehouse in the Perkasie Mennonite Church hall at 4th & Chestnut Streets in Perkasie, PA. Experience the warmth and energy of DayBreak on a winter’s night.

Doors open at 7 pm with performances at 7:30. Adults $9, Adults over 65 $7, Students 13 and up $4, 12 & under free. Refreshments will also be available for purchase.

The musicians of DayBreak have been harmonizing together in and around the Lehigh and Bucks Counties of Pennsylvania since 1990. The group includes Cliff Cole playing the hammered dulcimer, guitar, and percussion; Anna Lisa Yoder on the violin, mandolin and bouzouki; Rob Yoder on concertina, guitar, bodhrán, harp and mountain dulcimer. DayBreak also incorporates the musical skills of their children: Emily Cole on voice and pennywhistle, Trudy Yoder on cello, Lydia Yoder on violin and bodhrán, and Seth Yoder on hammered dulcimer and keyboard. Everyone lends their voices to a growing repertoire of winsome and compelling songs. DayBreak has performed in various settings including The Bethlehem Musikfest, Longwood Gardens, Godfrey Daniels Coffeehouse, The Allentown Mayfair, Foy Hall at Moravian College, Celtic Classic, Perkasie Patchwork Coffeehouse, Kutztown Pennsylvania German Festival and at various clubs and churches. Along with their three recordings, DayBreak is featured in the soundtrack for Expressions of Common Hands, a documentary on Pennsylvania German folk arts. Visit www.daybreakfolk.com for more information.

Opening act Glass Roses features daughter/father duo Emily Rose and Cliff Cole in combination with friend Rob Fedorczyk. This team combines hammered dulcimer, voice, tin whistle, slide and electric guitar, bass guitar, and percussion in genres from folk to folk rock. All three are experienced musicians and composers.

Check out our website at www.perkmenno.org for directions or more information, or call 215-723-2010.

Upcoming Perkasie Patchwork Coffeehouse shows:

• March 21 – Wayfarers and Company + Steve Begley
• April 16 – Ken Kolodner + Boys of County Bucks
• May 16 – Kim & Reggie Harris
• October 17 – Gordon Bok
• November 21 – Charlie Zahm & Tad Marks + Unsafe At Any Speed