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Footprints

A publication of UNITED METHODIST CHURCH OF LUDINGTON 5810 Bryant Road, Ludington, MI 49431 (231) 843-8340 Email: office@ludingtonumc.org www.ludingtonumc.org Believers seeking and sharing the character of Christ

2010

UMC Special Events and Committee Meetings

1,8,15,22,29 Rug/Sleeping Bag Ladies 9:00 am 2,9,16,23,30 Chancel Choir Rehearsal 7:00 pm; Praise Choir Rehearsal 8:00 pm 5 Communion, Food Pantry Day 6 Labor Day: Office Closed 7,14,21,28 Intercessory Prayer 9:30 am; Bell Choir Rehearsal 5:00 pm 7 BLOOD DRIVE 12:00-5:45 pm, Finance Committee 3:30, Trustees 7:00 pm 10,24 “The Outlet” 6:30-8:30 pm 12 First day of Sunday School; Appreciation Coffee & Cake for Musicians 10:15-11:15 am 13 Church & Society 7:00 pm 14 Staff-Pastor-Parish Committee 7:00 pm 15 Family Meals begin 6:00 pm 16,23,30 Women‟s Bible Study 9:30 am 16 Worship Committee 6:00 pm 19 United Methodist Women Sunday; Rev. Susan Bowman, preaching. Special offer-ing for United Methodist Community House, Grand Rapids 19 Triple 50th Anniversary Celebration at noon, Fellowship Hall 20 Evangelism Committee 6:30 pm; Council on Ministries 7:00 pm 26 Sunday School Commissioning 11:00; Second Grade Bibles 9:30; Blood Pressure Clinic 10:30-11:00 am 28 Administrative Board 6:30 pm 29 Becky Sopha‟s travelogue 7:00 pm United Methodist Women’s meetings and events are listed on page 4.

Fall Events at UMC of L

Jump in!

Thursday, September 2: Chancel and Praise Choir Rehearsals begin Tuesday, September 7: Bell Choir Rehearsals begin

Tuesday, September 7: American Red Cross Blood Drive

Sunday, September 12: Sunday School begins

Sunday School for ages 3 through middle school and adults, 9:30 am

Wednesday, September 15: Family Meals begin

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Community Events in Our Church This Month

1,8,15,22,29—Recorder Group Practice 7:00 pm in sanctuary 4—Sanctuary backup for wedding 8—Community Garden Year End Meeting at Pavilion 5:00-8:00 pm 9—Emmaus Board 7:00 pm 11—PEO Meal in Pavilion 4:00 pm 14—UM Clergy Cluster 10:00 am 15—Habitat for Humanity Board 5:30 pm 16—Mich. Assoc. of Retired School Pers. 12:00-2:00 19—UMC District Cluster Event 23—Garden Club 1:00-3:00 pm

September XYZ Meeting The XYZ (Xtra Years of Zest) group will meet at Noon on Thursday, September 2, in Fellowship Hall. The meeting will begin with a potluck lunch, with Dona Gottwald and Phyllis Larsen as hostesses. After lunch Phyllis and Versil Larsen will present an interesting DVD travelogue on South Dakota. Bring a dish to pass and your table service. If you have photos to share about a trip to South Dakota, please bring those along to share with us. Hope you will join us for a time of good fellowship and an in-teresting program. Allan Carlson

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Appreciation Coffee There will be an Appreciation Coffee (& Cake!) from 10:15 to 11:15 AM on Sunday, September 12 to honor all church musicians and sound/video techs. Everyone is invited.

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Parents, please remember to submit the college address of your college student to the church office. Thanks!

Wednesday Night Dinners will begin on September 15

The Evangelism Committee plans to have our Wednesday Night Dinners again this fall. These dinners will be at 6:00 pm on Wednesdays from September 15 thru De-

cember 8 except for November 24, the night before Thanksgiving. Marcia Sadler will once again pre-pare and serve our meals, and following each meal we will close our time together with devotions. So far we do not have a class session planned for after the meals and devotional period, but would be happy to consider having a class covering a topic of interest to you or a church group in which you‟re involved. Please let me know if you are interested in having a class. Allan Carlson, Evangelism Chairman Editor’s Note: Becky Sopha will present a travelogue on her recent trip to Europe after the meal and devotions Sept. 29.

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Triple 50th Anniversary Celebration

Please join Dave and Bev Hamman, Dave and Donna Peterson and Larry and Sharon Wagner to help them celebrate their 50th wedding anniversa-ries. The date is Sunday, September 19 in Fellow-ship Hall at noon following the 11:00 service. A Women’s Fall Bible Study begins Thursday, September 16 at 9:30 am. The title is “What Can We Learn from the Remarkable Women of the Bi-ble?” The study will go into March, with a break for Christmas. Watch for a sign-up sheet in the office. The book we will be using is Women Like Us by Ruth Haley Barton, 2001 edition. Books will be available at the first meeting. More information will follow. Questions? Call Lynne Gohn at 843-4746.

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FINANCE COMMITTEE UPDATE

In our effort to keep the congregation apprised of the finances of the church, the following re-

port shows the status of the General Fund, Building Fund, and the Soaring in Faith Building

Fund campaign through the end of July, 2010.

General Fund:

July General Fund Income $28,143

July General Fund Expense $24,296

July Surplus $ 3,847

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Year to Date General Fund Income $208,147

Year to Date General Fund Expense $198,984

Current Liabilities $ 3,007

Year to Date Surplus $ 6,156

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Building Fund/Genesis Project:

Bryant Road Building Fund Balance – 7/31/10 $100,228

Genesis Fund Mortgage Balance – 7/31/10 $1,405,576

Monthly Mortgage Payment $10,353

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Soaring in Faith Building Fund Campaign:

Total Soaring-in-Faith Pledges $587,191

Receipts through 7/31/10 $449,533

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The church has paid its ministry shares (apportionments) to the West Michigan Conference for

2009 and is current on ministry shares payments for 2010. We are paying ministry shares pay-

ments on the basis of a tithe of 10% of our general fund income.

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More

Our annual Church Conference will be held Satur-day, October 23, at 6:00 pm. Staff-Pastor-Parish will meet at 5:00 pm.

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Beth Moore Simulcast, “Living Proof Live”

Saturday, September 18, 9:30 am-5:00 pm

Mason County Reformed Church, 45 S. Amber Rd.

Tickets are $5 (includes lunch), on sale at the three sponsoring churches: Greater Life Church (845-9596), Mason County Reformed Church (757-2088), and Path of Life Ministries (843-9050).

We will host another American Red Cross Blood Drive September 7 from 12:00 to 5:45 pm. Alice and Harold Wieland are recruiting blood donors, Belva Stocking is lining up people to staff the regis-tration table, and Cris Wegener is coordinating the canteen table. If you would like to donate blood or volunteer your time, please contact one of the above people. Thank you!

Dave Hamman needs a used laptop computer to give someone in Haiti on his next mission trip in November. If you have an old one to donate, please call him at 845-0174. Thank you!

United Methodist Women United Methodist Women would like to say a big Thank You to all who purchased UMW cherry pies; and to all the dedi-cated, talented ladies who made them! Just in case you missed out, there are still some pies to be pur-chased for your enjoyment. Ask a UMW member or someone in the church office.

Thank you to the UMW members who helped in the kitchen for the Kids Against Hunger event, provided snacks for the kids attending the Christian Athletics Kids‟ Camp, and donated cookies for the blood drive at City Hall.

September UMW Events

Sept. 8 Ruth Circle, 9:30 am

Sept. 10 Executive Bd., 1:00 pm, Fellowship Hall (FH)

Sept. 13 General meeting in FH, 1:30 pm. The program will feature a look at the UMW Read-ing Program, with short book reviews of favorite selections shared by two of our very own members.

Sept. 15 Lydia and Priscilla Circles, 1:30 pm

Sept. 19 UMW Sunday. We will have a very special service with Rev. Susan Bowman giving the sermon, special music, and many women involved in various roles in the service. We will also take a spe-cial offering for United Methodist Community House in Grand Rapids; one of the national mission institutions of the General Board of Global Minis-tries. The building is the property of the West Michi-gan Conference UMW.

October UMW Events

We‟d like to have good participation by UMCL women. Let‟s fill up a car for each event!

Oct. 2 District Annual UMW Meeting in Petoskey

Oct. 16 West Michigan Conference Annual Meeting in Holland

Oct. 18-19 Mission School of the North in

Gaylord

Please contact Karen Genson, UMW President, for information about any of these events, or with sug-gestions that you have for including more women of all ages in UMW. Phone 843-2482.

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By Betty Tabor VBS News Eighty-six children and numerous adults participated in our annual Va-cation Bible School. The average

daily attendance was sixty-three students and we had thirty-four children with perfect attendance for all five days. The church pavilion was the center of our Baobab Blast: God‟s Great Get-Together during the week of July 19. The weather was warm and sunny with the exception of Thursday when activities were moved inside the church. Following the kid- friendly supper, children sang at the music circle seated on the new sturdy benches and then broke into groups for crafts, Bible stories and recreation. The younger children were housed in screen tents. The older children had their lessons in a huge white tent. As an example of activities, the older children made African drums out of balloons and coffee cans and the younger children had fun with the brightly colored parachute. Each evening closed with sing-ing and Marian Riffle‟s Puppets of Faith. This was truly a time of spiritual growth and camaraderie for the children, the youth and the adults involved. Many thanks go out to all who made this special week possible. UMC Fall Festival Mark your calendar now for Sunday afternoon, Oc-tober 3, rain or shine. Everyone, young or old, is invited for fun, food, music and fellowship. Our meal will be served in Fellowship Hall but S‟mores will be made out at the fire circle near the pavilion. Sunday School News

First Day of Sunday School will be September 12. We start at 9:30 AM and dismiss at 10:30. All children (Kindergarten through Fifth grade)

are invited to join us each Sunday morning for a time of Christian worship, music, Bible study, crafts and fun. Classrooms are located in the Gathering Area. Preschool children (age 3 and 4) meet in the preschool room with Nancy Kelley and Jonette Wil-son. They will have music in the KFC room.

Middle School students (grades 6-7-8) welcome Mr. Pat Shinn as their new lead teacher on Sunday morn-ings. This class meets 9:30-10:30 in the youth room for Sunday School. All middle school students are invited to attend and may bring a friend! Registration: All children attending VBS this sum-mer are registered for Sunday School. All other chil-dren will need to be registered on the first day of attendance. Ann Sleeman will register students on September 12 in the C.E. hallway starting at 9:10 AM.

Worship in the Woods: Students (kindergarten through fifth grade) and leaders will be walking to the church pavilion on Sunday, Sept. 19 to wor-ship in the woods. We will sing, have a

lesson led by Amy and Greg Patterson, a snack and return to the gathering room by 10:30 to meet par-ents. We will cancel our walking field trip if the weather is inclement. Comfortable walking shoes are suggested. Welcome Bags: Once again welcome bags will be given to visitors and guests when they come to Sun-day School for their first visit of the 2010-11 school year. Likewise, students bringing a friend with them will also receive a special coupon for a treat. This program resulted in many guests last year, especially in grades two through five. Mission Project: Each classroom has an offering basket for students to give their coins weekly for a Christian out-reach project. The CROP Walk will be our September - October mission project. Karen Disegna and Betty Tabor invite your family to walk with us on Sunday afternoon, October 10. Specials: Music is an important part of our Sunday School program. Karen Disegna and Emily Garland will be returning for vocal music, Krystal bells, and chimes. Puppets of Faith under the direction of Marian Riffle will visit the last Sunday of the month. Betty Tabor is the Sunday school coordinator and can be reached at 845-5972.

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VBS Volunteers 2010 Many thanks go to the following dedicated people who made “Baobab Blast: God‟s Great Get-Together” a most wonderful experience for the 86 children attending Vacation Bible School on July 19-23 at the Bryant Road pavilion with a rainy Thursday at the church.

MEALS LEADERS HELPERS Jean Burtch Nancy Kelley Pat Waterchilde Ruth Wheeler Sally Reed Emily Garland Pastor Ken Tabor Laurie McKinven-Copus Angie Adams Eldonna Tabor Jill Sweet Michaele Kaatz Dona Gottwald Kristin Korendyke Sharon Wagner Carol Hunt Kathy Radtke Shelby Hughes Tina Ebright Karen Disegna Jonette Wilson Donna Stover Wayne Disegna Tanya Gasaway Dennis Tabor Dennis Tabor Niki Boerema Sheila McCallum Paul Garland Jyl Miller Kathy Radtke Amy Jacobs Pat Waterchilde REGISTRATION Brad Jacobs UMC Men‟s Group Ann Sleeman Penny Miller Garland Team Cindy Genter Dawn Mumford Sue Vengen Amy Taranko Jane Mengot Carol Pehrson Anne Flutur UMC MEN‟S GROUP PAVILION/GROUNDS Alison Timinski Ed McCumber Ted Radtke Renia Carrier Dave Hamman Bench Crew Katie McPike Lee Vaught Terry Pahoski Wayne Disegna PUPPETS Dave Hamman Marian Riffle Janet Raspotnik TENTS YOUTH Paul Garland Karen Disegna Skylar Korendyke Wayne Disegna Wayne Disegna Katie Davis Penney Quillan Zach Sweet Meredith Filter Al Carlson VIDEO/PHOTOS NURSERY COORDINATORS Penny Quillan Jody Dickinson Karen Disegna Jim Clark Betty Tabor Pat Waterchilde Jean Burtch served as chef and meal coordinator. Tuesday‟s meal of walking tacos/ mac & cheese was prepared and donated by the Garland family and friends. Thursday‟s meal of hot dogs/ mac & cheese was prepared by the UMC Men‟s Group. Menu Donations: Sanders‟ Meats of Custer (hot dogs), Indian Summer Co-op (apple juice & applesauce), Ellamae McDonald (dozens of bakery rolls, buns & bread), House of Flavors (ice cream). Ice was donated by Wesco Eastgate. Donated also: cookies (Loraine Abrahamson, Michaele Kaatz) and watermelon (Carol Pehrson). These gifts were greatly enjoyed and appreciated! Thank you.

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It is with an indescribable sense of apprecia-tion that I thank you for the way you recognized me at the time of retirement. The party surpassed any expectation that I may have had. How you filled Fellowship Hall still amazes me! Several people in the past weeks have apologized that they could not attend. I have acknowledged their desire and then added that there was no more space available. The gift of the three-piece mural really surprised me. It has a special place in our home. As for those who gave money, I am greatly in-debted. Most people gave with the understanding their gifts would be lumped together. Therefore, I have no way of thanking people individually. I do thank, however, the Staff-Pastor-Parish Committee specifically for their part in making the retirement party so special. Finally, I do express my gratitude to Al Bouda, who connived with my wife. You are a blessing! Thank you all. Ken Tabor Becky Sopha wishes to thank each one of you for your prayers and support for the recent Michigan Ambassadors Choir & Band trip to seven European countries in July. So many of you opened your homes to part of the choir for the two days of inten-sive rehearsals in our church. Your gracious hospi-tality and kind help will never be forgotten. I am so proud to have been a part of this trip of a lifetime where Michigan young people and staff were truly ambassadors to the world. I will present a travelogue Wednesday night, September 29 after the family meal and devotions. Thank you and God bless you all! Becky Sopha

Grateful to Summer Kids For Christ Leaders Though the summer KFC attendance was sporadic, we surely appreciate your willingness to lead if needed ~ or to be flexible if not! We still feel that it is a ministry we should be offering and we couldn‟t do it without your kind cooperation. Very gratefully, the Christian Ed Committee

Dear Pastor Tom and the UMC of Ludington Congregation, Thank you so much for once again letting the Ludington Soccer Club use the Fellowship Hall

for our soccer registration. We had a great turnout since so many people know where to come for soc-cer, thanks to your generosity in sharing your build-ing with us. Patty Gottwald and the Ludington Soccer Board The Rug Ladies had a very successful two days at the Gold Coast Arts & Crafts Fair. We sold 52 rugs and turned in over $1500 to our United Methodist Women treasurer. I want to thank the ladies who worked in our booth—Anita Freeland, Dona Gottwald, Marcia Olmstead, Donna King, Joan Maclam and Elta Vander Veer. A special thanks to Bill and Marcia Olmstead for hauling our tables and rugs to and from the park on Saturday and Sunday. Another big “thank you” to John Rodgers for setting up, re-moving and storing our canopy. Last, but not least, thank you for setting up our United Methodist Church sign on the front of our booth, Dave Ham-man. This thank you would not be complete until I thanked our congregation for keeping the Rug La-dies supplied for over twenty-five years with your donations of fabric, sheets and clothing which we recycle into beautiful rugs. We need yellow, red, green and brown. Mona Halladay Come to the Lord for he is good, his love endures forever (Ps. 136:1) We all know how good the Lord is, but sometimes we forget about his mighty works and how he holds us in his hands during our time of need. So it is with our family before, during and after a serious surgery a couple weeks ago. I‟m doing well thanks to all your prayers, cards and the many people who brought food for us. (The food was grand!) I still have my recovery from my surgery to go through, but I know all will be well and my voice will come back in time. I‟m sure the Lord will be with me during that time of recovery also. Thanks to all of you. God bless you. Maralee McCumber

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Donna DePeel Johnny Dobb and family of John & Vivian Dobb Ralph Fowler Millie Frederick Bruce Gillett Doris Hamilton Aiden Harper Bob Herlein Robert Jones Arlene Kelsey Carolann Klinkhammer Shirley Larson Kristie Leclair Jennifer MacDonald Maralee McCumber Sean Nelson Karen & Pat O‟Brien Joseph Penrod People of Haiti Gail Piper Jerry Ponko Alyce Prescott Chesna Saxton Donna Shafer Priscilla Shaw Rachael Stewart & Family Dennis Tabor Linda Wolven Geoff Wooster MILITARY Tech Sg. Matt Bowling, OK, friend George Cone Jr., GA Son-in-law of Lee & Bonnie Vaught Travis DeMeester, CA Son of Alan & Suanne, Grandson of Vi Daron J. Diepenbruck, Afgh., grandson of Wally & Nina Wrege

Benjamin Gottwald, Okinawa Jonathan Gottwald, TX Dona’s grandsons, Patty’s nephews Jose Granados, friend Greg Heimall Jr. RI, son of Gregg and Phyllis Tyler Iteen, IL son-in-law of Brenda and Steve Begnoche Eric Luteyn, MO Grandson of Dave & Bev Hamman Michael M. Marquez, friend Adam Miller, LA Linda’s son Jonathan Oliver, friend Eric Piper, Afgh. Gail’s son Blaine Reed, Afgh. nephew of Mike & Ellamae McDonald Mark Shaw, Iraq Neil Williams’ son-in-law Christopher Stevens, friend Sgt. Jonathan Wagner, Iraq son-in-law of Karen Genson Tony Wagner, VA Ramona Myers’ son MISSIONARIES Bob & Sue Martin Paul Webster Pastor Bernard & Betty Lumene Delbert & Sandy Groves COLLEGE Jenna Luke, WSCC Patrick Luke, Mich. Tech. Mallory Pehrson, MSU Emma Post, Alma Katelin Post, Ferris

SEMINARY Cory Young NURSING & ADULT CARE Cherry Blossom Manor Margie Cauchie Ludington Woods Alice & Warren Abrahamson Don & Iva Randall Rosegate (Indiana) Idah Gearhart Autumn Winds AFC Helen Burmeister Oakview Leone Benedict Margaret Lunde Eileen Thiel

Tendercare (Baywood) Billie Jabrocki Doris Johnson Gladys Martin Tom McCumber Robert Laird Joan Rasmussen Clark Retirement Community Emma VanHorn Bill Nickelson Jr. Pine Crest Helen Blum Other—Texas Marjorie Boardman

PRAYER REQUEST CARDS are located in the pews, the narthex and the Volunteer‟s Desk. Requests are prayed over on Tuesday mornings and are kept confidential. They are

prayed over for 30 days unless updated for a longer pe-riod of time. All prayer requests are kept in the office. If you have a prayer request of an urgent nature, you may activate the prayer chain by calling the church office at 843-8340. If the church office is closed, you may call either of the following: Lynne Gohn 843-4746 Anne Estle 843-6263

Ongoing Prayer Concerns

Robert Wolff

March 11, 1938 - August 14, 2010

Beloved husband of Janice

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JOB POSTING

After consultation with the Youth Board, Zach Sweet and Pastor Tom, the Staff-Pastor-Parish Re-lations Committee (SPPRC) created a job description for a full-time Youth and Education Leader. With Administrative Board approval, the SPPRC is beginning a search. The Committee will place an ad in the Ludington Daily News, and the church office will send out application forms and copies of the job description to several colleges, universities and seminaries. You can see a copy of the job description posted on the Volunteer Office bulletin board.

Editor’s Note: Loraine Abrahamson told me about the following experience and I found it inspira-tional. I asked her to write it for publication in our newsletter. I enjoy watching birds at my feeders. Just outside my kitchen is a feeder. Many kinds of birds enjoy the feed I put out: jays, cardinals, finches, nuthatches, snowbirds, etc.; each with its own unique features and colors. As I go to my sink, just inside the window, they fly away. “Why?” I ask myself. “I am the one who feeds you.” Then I realize that is the way I sometimes treat God, who gives me all that I have. I remember to be thankful and not run away. “Every tomorrow has two handles. We can take hold of it with the handle of anxiety or the han-dle of faith.” Henry Ward Beecher, in The Newsletter Newsletter, August 2010

The Beginnings of Sunday School

Englishman Robert Raikes, born in 1735, was a Christian layman who was pained to see un-schooled children working six days a week in factories or mines. On Sundays, children roamed the streets, often getting into trouble. Most didn‟t know how to read or write and knew nothing about Christ or the church. As Raikes labored to reform England‟s prison system, he noticed that many children were im-prisoned, stirring him to action on their behalf. He arranged for halls and homes to be used for educational purposes on Sundays, the one day children didn‟t have to work. He found volun-teers to teach reading, writing and math, as well as the Bible and Christian beliefs. The first Sunday school class was held in July 1780. Amazingly, by 1788 some 250,000 chil-dren were attending such schools. This oc-curred despite some people‟s opposition to the education of lower-class children. Countless boys and girls have attended Sun-day school classes since then, thanks to Raikes, who brought Christ‟s light and love to children around the world. From The Newsletter Newsletter, September 2010.

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INSIDE THE SEPTEMBER 2010 ISSUE OF FOOTPRINTS

Footprints A publication of UNITED METHODIST CHURCH OF LUDINGTON

United Methodist Church of Ludington

5810 Bryant Rd., Ludington, Michigan 49431 (231) 843-8340 Fax: (231) 843-0070

Email: office@ludingtonumc.org Web site: www.ludingtonumc.org

Rev. Tom Evans, Pastor

Laurie McKinven-Copus, Office Manager /Footprints Editor Rebecca Sopha, Music Director

Deb Wooster, Handbell Choir Director Jac Russell, Praise Choir Director

Renia Carrier & Sharon Dostal, Nursery

OFFICE HOURS Monday - Thursday, 9:00 am - 4:00 pm

Friday, 9:00 am - 12:30 pm

SUNDAY EVENTS Contemporary Worship 9:30 am

Fellowship 10:15 am Traditional Worship 11:00 am

Nursery 9:30 am - 12:15 pm

The Footprints deadline is the third Monday of each month.

United Methodist Church of Ludington 5810 Bryant Road Ludington, MI 49431 Address Service Requested

Non-Profit US Postage

PAID Ludington, MI Permit No. 163

Bits „N Pieces………....….....2,4 Calendar/Birthdays……….....10 Finance Committee Report…...3

Kids‟ Page…………..………...9 Prayer Ministry……...….…...…8 Sunday School News………….5

Thanks……..……………….………7 United Methodist Women…………..4 You Can Help……………....….....…4