January 2001 News Archive

Feature Articles

In addition to the news items below, you'll find some longer pieces, with photos, on separate pages.

• A piece about the opening of our new center on Taipa.
• An update from the Dan Wust family, in Honduras.
• An update from the Roger Skinner family, with OMS.
• An update from the Gordon Rohn family, with Paraclete.
• A belate story on a UB Hispanic VBS in Phoenix, Ariz.

1/25/2001

Death of a Missionary. Bethel Mote (right), a former six-term missionary to Sierra Leone, passed away December 30. She was 77. She served 22 years in Sierra Leone from 1951 to 1973. Initially, she served as matron at the Minnie Mull Girls School, taking charge of about 100 girls ages 5-13 in a boardinghome. Later, she transferred to Bumpe, where she became headmistress of the Bumpe Primary School.

Bethel returned to the States in 1973, settling in Lake Odessa, Mich., and attending the nearby Pleasant Valley UB church, where she grew up. Memorial services were held Wednesday, January 3, at Pleasant Valley.

Rev. Dave Burkett, another former Sierra Leone missionary as well as the Michigan Conference superintendent, officiated at the service. He recalled that when he first went to Sierra Leone as a child in 1951, his family traveled with Bethel--by train from Toledo to New York City, aboard the Queen Elizabeth to England, and then, after two weeks in London, by plane to Africa. Rev. Joe Abu, a Sierra Leonean now pastoring a UB church in Philadelphia, gave the message. The cause of death was cirossis of the liver, which a doctor said probably resulted from malaria she contracted in Sierra Leone.

New Castle, Pa. Alan De Cristoforo resigned as Pastor of Highland Heights UB Church effective December 7.

Illness in the Family. Betty Weaver, wife of Bishop Emeritus George Weaver, has been diagnosed with cancer. Doctors says the cancer is advanced to the degree that surgery and radiation will not be helpful.

Marion, Ind. Bill and Brenda O'Toole have moved into a home in Marion, Ind., to begin Central Conference's latest church planting effort.

Montpelier, Ohio. Patrick Burton became pastor of Central UB (Montpelier, Ohio) on January 1. He had pastored Victory Chapel UB in Liberty Center, Ohio, for the past five years. He replaces Dennis Rowe, who resigned July 31, 2000, to become the pastor of the Faith UB in Port Orange, Florida.

Fayetteville, Pa. The Good News Club at Cold Springs UB averaged 27 young people during 2000--an increase of nine over the previous year. Pastor Les Kauffman Schoening notes that many of these children come from broken homes. Two youngsters asked Christ into their hearts.

Dayton, Iowa. Pastor Dale Schoening reports, "Since September 1, our average worship attendance has doubled from the low teens to the high 20s. We now have 8-10 children on Sunday morning; before this, children in worship were few and far between. We have received two new members. Families that had left the church years ago have returned. An adult Bible study, meeting in a home, has begun. All this is happening in a now 35-member open country church located on a lightly-traveled gravel road on the edge of a wooded area, eight miles from the nearest town.

"Perhaps the best thing about all this is that I, as pastor, cannot take credit for any of it. I really have not done anything differently. I give the credit to the Lord moving in the hearts and lives of the laity, and their response to that movement. As a result, a church which looked to be slowly dying is showing a burst of new life! To God be the glory!"

McGuire Bend UB held its Christmas program December 3, with 59 people attending--the largest attendance at McGuire Bend since the congregation's centennial in 1990. The children presented their part of the program, then a group of the adults presented a musical program.

Chambersburg, Pa. King Street UB dedicated its new 24,100 square foot addition on Sunday, January 14, at 3:00 p.m. The Baker Center is named after Pastor Emeritus Dr. Paul B. Baker. The lower level houses the church's Student Ministry Center (seating capacity around 300), including a cafe area for after-school tutoring and gatherings. Upstairs is a regulation size basketball court area with full stage; the contemporary worship service meets here. The seating capacity is over 500 (over 400-plus at tables). The Baker Center also features three classrooms, and a full kitchen and dishroom. The Baker Center is tied into the current facility on all three floors.

Franklin, Pa. The Atlantic Avenue church put on a dinner theater for three nights, December 8-10. It was free to the community. Each night, all 144 seats were filled. Everything was done by the congregationï˜îwriting and performing the play, donating the food, preparing and serving the meal, and cleanup.

Mason, Mich. At Eden UB, 54 people participated in the church's first out-door live nativity November 24-26. It was a 20 minute drama, animals, lights and beautiful costumes. Milan Maybee reports, "God used this to reach many people in the community as we provided fellowship and refreshments following each showing."

Mt. Solon, Va. Mount Olivet UB had 113 people on Friends Sunday, November 12....Pastor Paul Rowe is holding periodic planning sessions with the worship leaders and Outreach Commission to dream, plan, and train. These sessions will continue throughout the year....This fall, the church started a quarterly newsletter and a children's church....On December 12, the congregation gathered at the pastor's home for a fun-filled Christmas Open House....The church's MMI and WMF did various activities in November and Decemberï˜îcutting wood for a lady in the church, holding Thank Offering services, providing a Christmas supper at an old restored house in Mt. Solon.

Franklintown, Pa. The Franklintown church will celebrate its 150^th anniversary throughout 2001. A special theme/event is planned for most of the months. Listed below is what is planned for each month.

• January 7: Kick-Off Sunday with the musical group "The Versetones."
• February 18: History of the Franklintown UB Church.
• March 11: Former living pastors invited to speak
• May 20: Honor veterans of the church
• June 10: Marriage Memories. Persons married in the church will be recognized, and couples wanting to renew their vows may do so.
• July 1: The church and war. August 12: Community picnic
• September 9: The Church and youth
• October 14: Homecoming Sunday
• November 18: The church and missions
• December 23: Anniversary celebration

A meal will be held at noontime on the Sundays of an event. Different members of the congregation are responsible for hosting and leading the theme of that particular Sunday.

A pictorial calendar of past events and activities, plus some historical photos, was distributed in December 2000. A local potter is making a brown and blue earthen crock with the name of the church and 1851--2001; these will be sold to persons.

A drawing of a large birthday cake is being placed a wall in the fellowship hall. Each $100 given to the building fund will get a candle placed on the cake. They hope to have 150 candles on the cake by the end of 2001, representing $15,000 given to the building fund.

A quilt will be made containing squares representing each family in the church. Each family will be given a square to "decorate" as they wish. Bible bookmarks will be given to all attending throughout the year. In April, pictures will be taken for a church directory.

Chambersburg, Pa. Not all motorcycle groups belong to the Hells Angels. The Christian Motorcycle Association roared into the parking lot of St. James UB on September 24. These bikers even preached the morning message to us. Many wore their black leather jackets and pants to church. Afterwards, Pastor Mike Rockwell straddled a Harley. Some says he now has Harley Fever.

Youth Summit. The 2001 UB youth pastors summit is set this year for May 14 in Chambersburg, Pa. This third annual summit will be held in the new youth ministry facility at the King Street UB church. These events have been very successful and encouraging times for UB youth pastors. Details and cost will be published soon.

Dimondale, Mich. For Pastor Appreciation Month in October, the West Windsor congregation surprised Pastor Dick Thorp with a grocery shower and enough money to replace his old ratty office chair.

Rockford, Ill. Kilburn Avenue UB helds its annual indoor Nativity Walk outreach December 2-3. Over 500 nativity sets are displayed at the church--cute ones, rare and precious ones, large and small, from all over the world. In addition, the church tree is decorated with over 100 nativity ornaments. The display is open to the public to view each day, with Christmas music playing in the background and refreshments available. Pastor Gary Reiber is available to talk to anyone about the Lord.

The church has been doing this for the past twelve years. The first year featured about 50 sets atop a few tables in the church basement. Now, the display covers most of the sanctuary. Some of the sets are lighted, musical, and/or moving. The church does a lot of advertising to tell the public about the nativity display.

Liberty Center, Ohio. Victory Chapel celebrated its 100^th anniversary on November 5. All of the former pastors who are still living attended the event. The congregation started in a schoolhouse in 1895. The original church building was erected in 1900; Bishop Milton Wright officiated at the dedication. A new building was dedicatedin 1966. Rev. Rick Burton is the current pastor.

Churchville, Va. The junior high and high school youth group at Jerusalem Chapel got off to a great start under the leadership of the new youth pastor, Brad Mowery. Annette Sites writes, "The Fall Kick-Off in September included some wild and crazy games with watermelons and bananas. People got good and messy, but had a great time!

"Our first outreach event, a Barn Bash held in October, was a great opportunity for the teens to bring along a non-churched friend or two to hear about Jesus. Over 50 kids participated in games, shared testimonies, and ate until their heart's content. One young man gave his heart to Jesus at our Barn Bash and several other teens made recommitments that night! We believe this is just the beginning of seeing God do some awesome things in the lives of our great teens!"

25 Years with Wycliffe. On November 6, Dave and Becky Spencer were recognized for having served 25 years with Wycliffe Bible Translators. They have served on the field in Brazil, and stateside at the Wycliffe headquarters (now in Orlando, Fla.).

Traverse City, Mich. Northland UB is taking 13 men and women to Yoro, Honduras, to help build the church there. Members of the congregation were there last February building houses. This trip will stretch from February 1-16. Pastor Carlson Becker adds, "We are taking 200 Bibles to give out and are making arrangements to show the Jesus movie in the town square while we are there. King Street UB in Chambersburg, Pa., has a group going just before us, and Gary Dilley of First Love UB in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, is leading a group which will arrive just as we leave. I hope that with three groups, we can get the church up in one year."

STUMP. Applications for STUMP are due in February. If you have youth who might be interested, make sure they send in their applications.

India. Our missionaries returned to India at the end of November. They report that there are plans to expand the Christian school to include a junior college, which is the equivalent of high school in North America. While in the States, she had surgery for a thyroid nodule; the biopsy proved benign.

News from Macau:

• Bishop Emeritus Wilber and Mossie Sites left Macau on December 9 after serving three months as volunteers.
• Byrdena Schuneman arrived on January 2 to serve as a six-month volunteer.
• Living Water Church held its annual camp at the beginning of November. Church members gathered for a three-day camp at a new facility on Coloane Island.
• Paul Coy went to the Philippines for Thanksgiving, spending the time with missionary friends. This was the first time in six years he hadn't spent Thanksgiving in Macau.
• As of December 20, Macau had been part of China for one year, and Hong Kong had been part of China for three years.
• Jayne Mote, a two-time volunteer in Macau, arrived in mid-December to spend a few weeks in Macau. A week later, Melissa Hull, a Huntington College student, arrived to begin a one-month interhship for her Elementary Education degree.

Dimondale, Mich. On Saturday, October 28, West Windsor UB held a dinner at the church for 80 people. After the dinner, the WMF raised over $1300 through an auction.

Youth on the Way to Honduras. Next summer, various UB youth ministries will cooperate for a missions effort in Honduras. Thus far, these churches are participating: College Park (Huntington, Ind.), Fowlerville (Fowlerville, Mich.), King Street (Chambersburg, Pa.) and Emmanuel (Fort Wayne, Ind.). The trips begin in mid-June and will go all the way through the middle of August. The teams will build a gymnasium and be involved in daily ministry to local children.

Joe Miller writes from Swaziland: "The Voice of the Church is getting ready to step out on its own, totally indigenized. This is the siSwati-language ministry to the local people on FM. It took the government 20 years to give us permission to broadcast in the local language. VOC started off as just another of the two-dozen-plus languages we broadcast in from here, but over the past couple of years it has expanded and now TWR has set aside one wing of the studio building (where we live) entirely for VOC operation. They will have their own studios and technicians. We might say it's TWR's Christmas gift to the country which has been our host for so many years.