Local Church Updates

• Kingsport Honors Oldest Members
• 90-Year-Old Member Honored
• Sexton Chooses to Keep the Sabbath
• Women of Salt Lake Enjoy Tea
• Durban Youth Spend Winter Day at the Beach
• Ann Arbor/Detroit Christian Club Has Ladies' Day
• Oshkosh Bids Good-bye to the Haniskos
• Deacon and Deaconesses Ordained in Michigan
• Grand Rapids Says Good-bye to Kieviets
• "The Tie That Binds": Women's Weekend in Cincinnati
• Missouri Congregations Protected From Lightning
• Ladies in Washington Examine "Pearl of Great Price"
• ABC Chorale Visits Dayton June 10
• Houston South Improves Service
• Member Graduates From UCLA
• College Graduate Named "Outstanding Senior"

Kingsport Honors Oldest Members

On May 13, the Sabbath of Mother's Day weekend, the Kingsport, Tennessee, congregation honored the three oldest members.

Eliza Carico recently turned 97, Ethel Clubb is 93 and Macie Renfro will shortly turn 90!

A cake with a picture of the three ladies in the icing and the words "Thanks for Brightening Our Lives" was enjoyed by the congregation.

—David Dobson

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90-Year-Old Member Honored

The Austin, Minnesota, congregation honored Vera Bowman with a cake, punch and coffee on March 18 after Sabbath services.

Vera was born March 9, 1916, and grew up in Ellendale, Illinois. She attended business college in Sterling and held several jobs. On June 16, 1936, she married Eugene Bowman. They farmed two years in Illinois and then bought a farm in southeast Minnesota. Vera was widowed on Aug. 26, 1967.

She worked hard keeping up the farm, driving big trucks, milking cows, etc. She still works full time for her son, Bill, also a member, and has for the past 20 years, driving her own car to work. She says, "What else would I do, if I did not work?"

She is a very sweet, soft-spoken lady, with a warm smile, whom God called, along with two sons in 1980. She has been a faithful member and an example for all of us.

She was also honored at an open house hosted by her four children and attended by all but one of her 11 grandchildren (one is in the service) and 18 great-grandchildren. There are more babies on the way.

—Norma Nelson

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Sexton Chooses to Keep the Sabbath

(Reprinted by permission from the Mustang Daily, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, California, May 19, 2006.)

—by Kendra Deutsche

Two years of training suddenly for naught—that's how Bridgette Sexton felt when she found out the Big West heptathlon had been switched from a middle-of-the-week to a Friday-Saturday event.

Sexton, a Cal Poly track and field athlete, is a member of the United Church of God. While pursuing the sport she loves, she has committed to keeping the Sabbath, choosing not to compete from Friday at sundown until Saturday at sundown. That meant the sophomore heptathlete would have to switch to a different event for the Big West meet—the 3,000-meter steeplechase.

"I've been keeping the Sabbath my whole life, and to me, it's a gift that God set aside a day... to rest and recuperate from your week," Sexton said.

Sexton finished in eighth place in the steeple at the Big West finals last Friday despite just a few weeks of long-distance practices.

"It's just my one time where I get an opportunity to relax and really refocus my life, and it's been an awesome opportunity for me to... [set] my own desires aside for one day just to serve something greater than myself."

Keeping the Sabbath has always been Sexton's choice, and because of her strong convictions, she has never faltered with her decision.

"Although I love track and it's really important, I could so easily be injured and I would not have that [anymore], but this is something I always have," Sexton said, which is why she continually chooses not to compete during the Sabbath.

Sexton is no stranger to the sacrifice that results from this decision.

"My whole athletic career since I was in middle school has been basically one big barrier after another, one big obstacle, one hurdle, and.. . it's been really hard," Sexton said. "I can't say that I haven't left track meets or watched my team leave for a meet and not cried or not been frustrated, but there's never been a hurdle that I haven't been able to get over, and I'm going to keep fighting to get over them."

Finding a college team that would take her on despite her need to have the Sabbath off was a challenge because most track meets are held during this time. Sexton explained that she initially received offers to run at schools such as Columbia , Cornell and Harvard, but that they took back their offers when they found out about the Sabbath.

She then sent out about 500 e-mails to coaches across the country, writing to tell them that she would work diligently for six days, but that she needed one day off, and that this would not change. Of those 500 e-mails, Sexton received only two responses from schools that were genuinely interested.

At the time, Jack Hoyt was the coach at Seattle Pacific University , and he was willing to take a risk with Sexton, so she began college there as a heptathlete. Typically, heptathlon competitions, which are female versions of the decathlon, are held during the week, which would allow her to compete in this event.

"I knew she was a competitor, and her number one thing... was to compete in college athletics," said Hoyt, who is now the assistant track and field coach at Cal Poly.

"All she asks is that she has Saturday, the Sabbath, to do her worship and spend time with God and rest," Hoyt said. "And I can deal with that."

Sexton transferred to Cal Poly winter quarter of this year, continuing to train as a heptathlete. Then, about one month before conference, the event was moved to Saturday and Sunday.

"That was a really big blow for me," Sexton said. "I had been training for two years... for something I couldn't do all of the sudden."

But she and her coaches refused to give up. They decided to enter her as a wildcard in the steeplechase, a 3,000-meter race that requires hurdling five barriers and a water pit. Sexton had three weeks to train as a distance runner for an event she had only participated in once before.

Although her season is now over, Sexton will likely continue to train as a steeplechase athlete.

"I have this thing that is perceived as a weakness, the Sabbath, but really it's what makes me strong," Sexton said. "It's what makes me a better athlete."

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Women of Salt Lake Enjoy Tea

The women of Salt Lake City, Utah, were invited to the first annual "Friendship Tea," on May 7 at the home of Beth Hart, and cohosted by Carol Foy and Debbie Pierce. Nineteen of 22 women were able to attend, all sporting festive hats and gloves. A vast spread of savory and sweet treats had been prepared, and though everyone came with an appetite, there was much left over!

Women were also invited to share their favorite from an assortment of poems, prose and other small quotes on the topics of friendship and tea.

According to one longtime member, Pauline Park, this is the first all-women's activity to be hosted in this area in 25 years. Each of the women expressed a desire to make it an annual event, and several offered to host it in coming years.

—Debbie Pierce

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Durban Youth Spend Winter Day at the Beach

The Durban, South Africa, youth spent a day at the beach Sunday, May 28, at Amanzimtoti, a coastal town 12 miles south of Durban.

Although it is winter here, the climate is very mild on the east coast of Kwa Zulu-Natal, and everyone who attended had a very enjoyable day.

There were 13 present, and they spent most of the morning playing baseball and soccer on the beach. As usual lunch was the traditional South African braai (barbecue).

—Neville Smith

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Ann Arbor/Detroit Christian Club Has Ladies' Day

On April 30, the Ann Arbor/Detroit, Michigan, Christian Men's Speech Club hosted a ladies' day meeting for the ladies of the two congregations. The 29 attendees were treated to a delicious brunch at Weber's Inn in Ann Arbor.

After the meal, the spiritual feast commenced with a rousing session of table topics led by Ken Cooke. Then Brian McGuire and Terry Robison followed with thought-provoking speeches. Mr. McGuire spoke about the Proverbs 31 woman and connected this with how we are to fulfill this role as the Bride of Christ. Mr. Robison told us about the demons that attempt to infiltrate our minds if we do not resist them with the help of God's Spirit. These demons include bad attitudes and prejudice. The speeches also included a discussion period.

—Phil Schafer

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Oshkosh Bids Good-bye to the Haniskos

The Oshkosh, Wisconsin, congregation held a farewell party and buffet luncheon for Mike and Zelda Hanisko following services on June 3.

The Haniskos have served the Oshkosh and Milwaukee congregations for the past nine years and are being transferred to the Minneapolis, Minnesota, area to become regional pastor and to serve the Minneapolis and Little Falls congregations.

Parting gifts included a family photo album of the Oshkosh congregation and activities, a handheld computer with GPS mapping and a basket of miscellaneous goodies for Zelda.

—Donna Myers

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Deacon and Deaconesses Ordained in Michigan

The brethren from the Kalamazoo, Grand Rapids and Cadillac, Michigan, congregations met for a very inspiring Night to Be Observed and First Day of Unleavened Bread at the Holiday Inn and Convention Center in Holland, Michigan.

Pastor Gary McConnaughey ordained three individuals who have shown over the years their heart of service to their brothers and sisters in Christ.

Ordained to the office of deacon and deaconess were Matt and Maria Wilkinson serving in the Cadillac congregation. Mrs. Lisa Williams was ordained a deaconess serving in Kalamazoo congregation.

—Gary McConnaughey

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Grand Rapids Says Good-bye to Kieviets

Longtime members and deacon and deaconess Ted and Wini Kieviet of Grand Rapids, Michigan, were given a farewell send off after services on May 13. With Ted Kieviet battling cancer, they were leaving to start a new life in Fairfield, Ohio, near their son, Bruce Kieviet, and family.

The Kieviets have always lived in the Grand Rapids area and have touched so many lives since their calling to God's Church in the 1960s.

Many of the members told short stories of how Ted and Wini had touched them. It was a very emotional and uplifting time as a testament of their years of dedicated service. They will be sorely missed.

—Gary McConnaughey

Editor's note: As we go to press, we received word that Ted Kieviet died June 27 with his family at his side.

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"The Tie That Binds": Women's Weekend in Cincinnati

May 20 and 21, 85 women attended the first women's weekend held in Cincinnati, Ohio. The theme for the weekend was "The Tie That Binds," encouraging women to work together while building strong relationships. The weekend kicked off with a sermon given by UCG IA President Clyde Kilough about Martha and Mary.

After services a tour was offered to all those who wished to view the home office. When the tour reached the president's office, visitors were warmly greeted by Clyde and Dee Kilough. Mr. Kilough gave each person a 10th anniversary coffee mug.

That evening, just before the ladies sat down for a very nice candlelight dinner, Margie Welty, the wife of Lyle Welty, pastor of the Cincinnati East congregations, welcomed the ladies to the event. Mrs. Welty asked each lady to find her partner and sit with her during the meal, giving both the opportunity to get to know one another. At the conclusion of the dinner, each lady was asked to introduce her partner to the rest of the ladies.

Sunday morning began with morning refreshments and check-in. Dee Kilough, the keynote speaker, started off the presentations with the topic "Mentoring Relationships." Mrs. Kilough covered the importance of becoming a mentor and gave tips on how to be a good one.

After her speech, a panel of five women shared their personal experiences in a presentation on "Encourage ment for All Ages." The five ladies were Laura Beth Childers, an ABC student; Becky Bennett and Kathy de Campos, both employees of the home office; Patsy Perkins and Laura Hitchin, both from Cincinnati, Ohio.

Becky Bennett spoke on the importance of encouraging young mothers. She said that it was the encouragement of others that helped her when her daughters were small.

Kathy de Campos spoke about life in South Africa. Kathy gave several examples of how God was involved with her life, in a very difficult place. Patsy Perkins gave accounts of how people encouraged her through her cancer treatments. Patsy encouraged us all to do the same.

Laura Beth Childers' experience as a young adult taught her the value of encouragement and the need to encourage our young adults in the Church. The panel concluded with Laura Hitchin keeping everyone laughing, while delivering a very encouraging speech on how God intervened and saved her life five times.

The weekend also included a personality workshop given by Amy Stephens, followed by "Necessity Is the Mother of Invention" by Cindy Phelps and "Many Hands Make Light Work" by Wanda Ward. All three ladies attend the Cincinnati East congregations.

Special music was performed during the weekend by ABC students. The activity ended with closing remarks from Dee Kilough and Margie Welty.

In addition to the speakers, this very successful event was made possible by the hard work of Cindy Phelps, Kathy de Campos, Michelle de Campos, Terri Eddington, Becky Johnson, Dee Kilough and Margie Welty.

—Janet Treadway

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Missouri Congregations Protected From Lightning

The air was bustling with energy May 13 as brethren from the Columbia and St. Louis, Missouri, congregations gathered for their annual seminar, service and spring dinner/dance. There were 78 in attendance for the 10 a.m. seminar. Guest speaker Ken Graham gave an inspiring seminar about the canonization of the books of the Bible, after which everyone took a break for lunch.

As the lunch break was coming to an end, the clouds moved in and the sky grew dark. Then the rain came down in buckets!

The lightning was flashing and the thunder seemed to be getting louder. Then FLASH/BOOM! The lightning flash was almost instantaneously followed by the boom of the thunder. The short-lived chaos was only funny if you were not one of the startled flock.

The flash was so bright that those outside shielded their eyes away from it. The boom was deafening. There were people ducking as though a shot had rung out right behind them. Shaking hands quickly covered ears. Coffee jumped from cups. There was a report of flame or sparks coming from the outlets along one wall.

It was amazing how quickly everyone settled down when we realized it was only thunder that shook the building. Few knew the full extent of the event. The afternoon services began with 143 in attendance. Mr. Graham gave an edifying sermon on the authorized order of the Bible.

No one suspected we were part of a continuing miracle at this time. In fact, the lightning bolt had struck a power pole with a transformer on it just 40 feet from the building. The pole splintered at the very top. The swing-bars on the transformer were swinging back and forth but the transformer did not blow. The outlets still worked as services continued without a flicker. The sermon, dinner and dance all continued as if nothing had ever happened.

God performed a miracle on this day. The keyboard that worked after the lightning strike didn't work the following Sabbath. Had God not intervened, we would have been without electricity for the rest of the day, resulting in no Sabbath service and no dance. Experiencing these miracles with a group of brothers and sisters reminds us that God provides protection for His flock in everything we do.

Flavia Everman and her husband, Mark, coordinated this event.

—Linda Morgan

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Ladies in Washington Examine "Pearl of Great Price"

Thunder clouds and rain greeted everyone Friday evening, May 19, for the ninth annual Ladies' Retreat on Deer Lake north of Spokane, Washington. The rain was welcome, however, as the moisture is always appreciated in this area.

The theme this year was "The Pearl of Great Price," representing the blessing of the knowledge of God's coming Kingdom. More than 60 ladies gathered May 19 to 21, many for the first time. Four ladies came down from Canada, some making the journey from Grand Prairie, Alberta, more than 800 miles away!

We were privileged to hear Victor Kubik speak to us on the Sabbath. He told the story of his mother from the Ukraine and her great struggle to get to a land of freedom from the oppression of Nazism and Communism. Freedom was an example of her pearl of great price, physically speaking. She went on to discover the true pearl of great price in God's truth, but then had to give up her Ukrainian community in her new home, the United States.

Her story vividly portrayed how much we should be willing to sacrifice and struggle to attain God's pearl for ourselves.

The speakers told many stories of how people came to learn the truth and illustrated the parable of the pearl of great price more fully. Beverly Kubik spoke the opening night, telling about participating in the LifeNets program acquiring wheelchairs for those who cannot afford them. She also spoke about her mother-in-law and her struggles to obey God.

LeeAnn Luker gave a very informative presentation about pearls, their many characteristics and the spiritual lessons of each. Patty Sexton told the ladies how to look for role models among the many we know in the Church who are an inspiration to us and from whom we can learn.

Michelle Mickelson gave a wonderful insight into the pearls of Nigeria: the ladies in the Church there and the struggles they deal with daily. They face struggles Americans can't even imagine, yet through it all they have a warm and happy attitude.

The last speaker, Sandy Cafourek, dressed as "Minnie Pearl" and gave a delightfully amusing presentation on how and when we were called and what some of the ladies had to sacrifice for that calling.

The highlight, as always, was the special dinner put together by a number of the ladies for the Saturday evening meal. As many as desired dressed up with their hats and pearls.

All too quickly the time passed, and attendees hugged and said good-bye. The ladies left looking forward to the next ladies' weekend, May 18 to 20, 2007.

—Nancy Czech

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ABC Chorale Visits Dayton June 10

The Dayton, Ohio, congregation had the privilege of hosting the ABC chorale at Sabbath services the morning of June 10. The chorale presented a variety of inspiring group songs as well as solos, quartets and octets, all led by Ken Shoemaker. The group has very fine talent and the members in Dayton appreciated their efforts to serve the brethren.

After a message from Dave Johnson, the ladies in the congregation served a wonderful buffet meal for all present.

Following the lunch Mr. Shoemaker and the chorale traveled to Auburn Hills Healthcare Center where they presented another enjoyable performance. The residents were very enthusiastic and appreciative of the singing. After the performance, the chorale members visited with the residents before returning to Cincinnati.

—Jean Dawson

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Houston South Improves Service

The Houston, Texas, South congregation of about 200 people is organized with 40 volunteer service teams under the leadership of the pastor, Ken Giese. These teams provide services ranging from "bulletin and calendar" and "cards and health status" to "Web page" and "young adults."

Houston South has prepared Service Area Process Descriptions that provide "how-to" details of one or more ways to carry out the process of providing the services in each area. The purpose of process descriptions is not only to enable improved, higher quality service to others by having a written process that can be changed, but also to allow those who may want to volunteer, but hesitate because they don't know what might be involved, to see in some detail how each service area carries out its functions.

When people can see a way that a process has been performed, they can be creative in changing to a new way that is an improvement—a higher quality service. This improvement is sought by members imagining being the recipient of a service, and then, with prayer, thinking of ways that would be more helpful, timely, show more love, etc.

One example of a new service added is the "Do You Know..." biographical feature in the bulletin with a photo of the person being featured that week. Getting to know each other better this way enhances fellowship, particularly when some are new or live far apart.

Houston South uses a specific, concise way of describing processes, so that only as much detail as is desired is presented. The idea is to describe the essence of each service area in a way that covers the services so that someone else could carry out the service process from the description.

—Jon Erickson

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Member Graduates From UCLA

Leslie Schwartz, 22, a member of the Los Angeles, California, congregation, graduated June 18, Summa Cum Laude from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a B.A. in mass communications and a double minor in education studies and applied developmental psychology.

Leslie completed both College Honors and Departmental Honors, was recognized as one of the Distinguished Seniors by the UCLA Alumni Association, as well as being selected as a BruinLife Senior of the Year. She is currently a member of the Alpha Lambda Delta Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society and Golden Key International Honor Society, in addition to serving as president of the UCLA chapter of Mortar Board Senior National Honor Society.

She is very passionate about leadership development and community outreach, and actively participated in numerous campus and community service organizations, including UCLA's Office of Residential Life and the Center for Women and Men.

Leslie has also been an active participant in the United Youth Camp program for over a decade, attending camp both as a camper and serving as a counselor at multiple camp locations. She also currently teaches Sabbath school for the Los Angeles congregation.

After graduation, Leslie plans to work professionally in the Office of Residential Life at UCLA as an assistant resident director in addition to assisting with graduate school research projects at the UCLA Higher Education Research Institute. Future plans include attending graduate school and working at a university in Student Affairs, and ultimately working with students in the area of leadership development in order to inspire future generations to use their skills and talents to improve society in positive ways.

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College Graduate Named "Outstanding Senior"

Caroline Kirkpatrick graduated with a B.A. in English from the University of Cincinnati on June 10, 2006, with a specialization in professional writing.

She graduated with highest honors (summa cum laude), and was honored as the "Outstanding Senior" in the Department of English and Comparative Literature.

Following graduation, Caroline is involved in planning for her August wedding to Ryan Luecke. Caroline is the daughter of Tom and Sarah Kirkpatrick, of Milford, Ohio.

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