January 2015

Volume XXI Issue 1

“In worship, fellowship and service we seek God’s peace as revealed in the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.”

The Madison Methodist The Madison Methodist The Madison Methodist

MessageMessageMessage

The United Methodist Church in Madison

24 Madison Avenue Madison, NJ 07940

“at the corner of Drew University”

church@umcmadison.org www.umcmadison.org

Tel: 973.377.1231 Fax: 973-377-0093

Plugged In? Sure, But Where?

As I sat down to write this article for January, by the way

Happy New Year, my computer suddenly went dead. It

just shut down. Not for a download or update, it just

stopped working. I did not panic. I had been through this

before. I unplugged the laptop and removed the battery

pack. I then installed it again and…nothing.

After trying several times I decided to phone Costco

support (a good service if you need it).

Additional “diagnostic” tests did not improve the situa-

tion. I was given a case number and distinct instructions

on boxing up the laptop to send it for repair.

Later that day for some reason I plugged in the computer

one more time, just for fun I guess. And suddenly it

turned on! Not a miracle, but close? Not really. Taking a

closer look I realized what I was plugging in earlier that

day was not the laptop but my printer. The laptop had

been unplugged the entire time! The battery just ran out

of juice. Later that day by chance I picked up the right

plug this time and when plugging in the computer …

amazing!. No miracle, no rocket science. I was just un-

plugged all day. I thought I was plugged in, and in a way

I was, just to the wrong thing.

A Message from the Pastor

For me it was a small inconvenience that day. How often

do we look back over months if not years and realize the

problem all along has been we are plugged in to the

wrong “things”? It is a matter of distraction. It is a loss

of focus on what is really important. Strangely enough

often the little things can make all the difference.

As we begin a new year perhaps it is a good question to

ask ourselves as individuals, as family members and as a

community of faith: What am I plugged into? A good

question to begin a new year.

I look forward to seeing you.

Grace and Peace,

Happy

New year !

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2015 Staff and Elected Officers

Pastor Rev. Robb W. Shoaf, Ph.D

Student Assistant Pastor Chelsea Jackson

Director of Music & Organist Susan McAdoo, D.M.A.

Director of Christian Education Kathleen Keane

Office Administrator & Message Editor Natalie Dines

Sexton Marlice Borecki

David Green Chair, Church Council Jim Balfe Treasurer Mac Cobb Assistant to Treasurer Scot Guempel Financial Secretary Alan Voorhees Finance Chair Gordon Fleming Facility Management Vic Schumacher President, Trustees

Program Facilitators Nurture Ministries

Lisa Moro Outreach Ministries

Jeanne Eisele Witness/Igniting Ministry

Kris Pfeifer Worship Ministries

Lisa Carballo Education/Youth

Kathleen Keane and Chelsea Jackson

Trustees

Vic Schumacher Gordon Fleming

Mike Kroeger Luke McKinnon

Shin-Ok Ha Wade Merrick

Dan Engel Nori Tadano

JoAnn Van Sciver

January 2015

United Methodist Women

The Naomi Circle of United Methodist Women met on

Thursday, December 18, for our annual visit to the Mor-

ristown United Methodist Church for the Music at Noon

series featuring The Christmas Singers with Patricia

Ruggles, in a very enjoyable concert of Christmas music.

This is the 27th consecutive year that The Christmas Sing-

ers have performed in the Music at Noon concert series,

which Morristown UMC presents each year as a means of

outreach and sharing of God’s gifts. After the concert, we

stayed to enjoy a soup and salad lunch. During the month

of January, the series will continue on Thursdays at 12:15,

and the Naomi Circle plans to return on Thursday,

January 22, 2015, when Patricia Ruggles is scheduled to

perform with pianist Paul Zeigler. We will leave the

Church parking lot at 11:30 am, so please call Laurie

Hagerich at 973-377-9407 if you would like to join us.

On December 15, our faithful friend, Margaret Geyer

passed away. Pastor Shoaf led a celebration of Marga-

ret’s life at a Memorial Service at our Church on Decem-

ber 19, family and friends gave thanks for her long life

and shared memories of our times together. We will miss

Margaret’s sweet spirit, good humor and Southern

elegance but find comfort in knowing she is at peace with

the Lord.

Our local UMW unit is pleased to report that in response

to our annual letter of information and appeal for support,

we realized the sum of $745. Our sincere thanks go out to

all who responded, and to everyone who has been a friend

and continued to support UMW over the years with their

prayers, presence and good works. These funds will help

greatly in our being able to continue to make a pledge to

the Gateway North District of United Methodist Women

and to support other worthwhile local programs, such as

the Neighborhood Center and United Methodist Homes.

The Naomi Circle will continue to collect for The

Neighborhood Center of Camden, New Jersey, which is

supported by United Methodist Women and the Board of

Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church. The

Neighborhood Center helps with the needs of young

adults, senior citizens, children and teenagers in Camden,

an area of extreme poverty. Our Circle has been collect-

ing funds for about 2 years, resulting in donations of $425

to date. Donations can be made by collection of quarters

in plastic medicine vials (please use your own vial) or by

placing a check payable to “United Methodist Women” in

the offering plate. Please note “Neighborhood Center” in

the memo portion of your check. If there are any ques-

tions, please contact Laurie Hagerich

Laurie Hagerich

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Other News ... Bits and briefs

January 2015

We are proud and grateful to Susan McAdoo for her

creative parament display during the Advent season.

Susan’s inspiration came from the Road Home theme as

well as her love of sewing.

M any thanks go to Lisa Carbolla,

Susan McAdoo, Vivian Bull and

Marlice Borecki for decorating the

church for the Christmas season. We also thank all who

contributed to the Christmas Flower Fund and delivered

flowers to shut-ins and others to whom we wanted to

show our care.

Christmas Flower Fund

Thank You!

JOIN US...

Monday,

January 19

Outreach

Planning

Meeting

Morris County Interfaith Food Pantry

T hank you for your ongoing support of the Food Pan-

try through your donations of food items.

An updated list of food needed is available at http://

www.mcifp.org/currentneeds.htm.

Confirmation Group 2015

Below is our young confirmation group being lead by our very

own Chelsea Jackson. From left. Mamie Tadano, Chelsea

Jackson, Katie Antmann, Dylan Pfeifer, Jake Antmann, Oliver

Dines and Emma Voorhees. (missing from the picture is

Gabriel Silliman).

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January 2015

February Newsletter Deadline: January 20

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1

2

3

4 Epiphany

10 am Family Worship 11:15 am Coffee Hour

5 10:00 AM Staff Meeting 8 pm AA

6

Trustees Meeting

8 pm AA

7

6:30 am Men’s Breakfast

8 8 pm Chancel Choir

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10

11 8:30 am Early Morning Service 10 am Family Worship 11:15 am Coffee Hour

12 8 pm AA

13 8 pm AA

14 6:30 am Men’s Breakfast

15 8 pm Chancel Choir

16

17

18 8:30 am Early Service 10 am Family Worship 11:15 am Church Plan-ning Lunch

19 Martin Luther King Day Office Closed

7:15 pm Out-reach Plan-ning meeting 8 pm AA

20 7:30 pm Church Council 8 pm AA

21 6:30 am Men’s Breakfast

22 8 pm Chancel Choir

23

24

25

8:30 am Early Service 10 am Family Worship 11:15 am Clean-up Buckets Project

26 3:30 pm The Crossing 8 pm AA

27 8 pm AA

28 6:30 am Men’s Breakfast

29 8 pm Chancel Choir

30 31

Newsletter Deadline

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January 2015

Sunday School

Happy New Year Everyone!

I hope you all had a great Christmas and New Year filled

with joy, relaxation and quality time with loved ones!

As we begin a new year, it is my hope that we take time to

reflect on 2014 as individuals, families and a church. Both

within and outside of the church it was a year filled with

both success and sadness.

Within the UMC in Madison it was a busy year filled with

new events and projects like Stop Hunger Now, Conversa-

tional English Class, and a new church blog, and old favor-

ites like Moving Food for the Food Pantry, the Angel Tree

and working with Future with Hope.

It is in the spirit of both reflection and anticipation that I

would like to bring attention to some of the upcoming activi-

ties we will be doing as we embark on this new year.

The youth will once again be participating in the Souperbowl

for Caring event, and will be accepting both monetary and

canned food donations on January 25th and February 1st.

These donations will be collected after service both Sundays,

and all proceeds will go to The Interfaith Food Pantry.

Also, the UMC in Madison will once again host Stop Hunger

Now! We will be packaging even more than the 10,000

meals we did last year! We are also looking to open the

event up to others, and are currently in the process of reach-

ing out to potential churches and organizations who would

like to partner with us on this endeavor. The Stop Hunger

Now event will take place in the Spring, so keep an eye out

for details and start inviting others to join us!

I would like to take a second to update you all on Confirma-

tion. First I want to thank all the confirmands, parents and

guest teachers we have had thus far. Everyone has done a

great job, and have helped this year’s Confirmation program

be successful thus far. We have an amazing and energetic

Confirmation class this year. These seven 7th-8th graders

are doing a wonderful job both within our church services

and in our classes. Their willingness to explore and grow in

their faith, and their wonderful attitudes make it a joy to

teach and grow with them. If you see them around church be

sure to tell them good job, and encourage them as they con-

tinue their Confirmation journey.

Lastly, I will be traveling for 2 weeks to El Salvador for

school. I will be back at the end of January and hope to

share my experiences and stores with you.

Thank you all for a great 2014 and I look forward to a won-

derful 2015!

Message from our Student

Assistant Pastor

The Christmas Pageant evening was a huge success!! The

children were wonderful, all of their bright smiling faces

bursting with pride. What a way to celebrate Christmas!

A personal thanks to the children in the pageant, the par-

ents who put up with our extended rehearsal times, and to

everyone who came out to enjoy the evening with a Pot

Luck dinner. Susan McAdoo, Kate Silliman, and Nori-

yuki Tadano… the pageant would never have happened

without you!

Looking to January, Sunday School will resume regular

classes on the 4th. The Apple Seeds and Sunflower Seeds

will continue to learn the stories in the Bible beginning

with the story of the Three Wise Men. The Pumpkin

Seeds and Mustard Seeds will continue to explore the

Bible and begin to study what each part of the service is

about.

Sunday School will also continue to learn new songs to

sing in church each month. This month we will also

begin to learn the doxology.

Warmest Wishes for the New Year,

Kathleen Keane

Some of our Pageant stars in action

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January 2015

OUTREACH—EPIPHANY—THE DAY OF GIFTS Honoring God’s gift of Jesus by sharing with others

Christmas decorations are coming down but the celebra-

tion of the gifts of the Magi will remind us of the wonder-

ful generosity of our congregation and friends during the

Christmas season. The Church School Baby Shower for

Jesus filled a pack-n-play with

many essentials for families who

are clients at the Interfaith Food

Pantry. These much needed

items included formula, diapers,

wipes, baby snacks and baby

food for all ages and stages. It

was an extra special offering at

the Christmas Pageant to fulfill

the needs for some very young

Food Pantry clients.

The Angel Tree donation project led by our youth

brought in two dozen gift packages that were then

wrapped by our youth and delivered for the joyous holi-

day celebration where current and former Family Promise

guests gathered. Holiday gift giving helps us turn our

hearts to others less fortunate or who are struggling just to

fulfill the basic needs of life

The Advent/Christmas Offering is shared by two or-

ganizations. Abigail House is a local transitional housing

project sponsored by Family Promise and Christ Church

of Rockaway. This home shelters five families in Morris

County where finding affordable family housing is very

difficult to find.

United Methodist Committee on Relief EBOLA Response is an international relief project pro-

viding essential supplies to the effected region in Western

Africa. Watch the bulletin for a report on the total dona-

tions, but we are counting on your generosity

Local Outreach News Benjamin Colao, is a 9-year-old

Madison resident, who was inspired to write a series of

short books to raise funds for Family Promise of Morris

County. . Ben and his friend, George Csaltos, the illustra-

tor for the books’ covers, enjoy using their talents to make

a difference. They learned about Family Promise through

St. Vincent Martyr church which is a host congregation

for the organization’s guests. UMC in Madison is a sup-

port congregation when the guests are staying at St. Vin-

cent’s. So far, the books created by these generous youth

have raised more than $2,000 to help the families in the

program. You can find them at Short Stories in Madison.

Other Outreach News

Human Relations Day is January 18, 2015 and is one of

United Methodism’s six church wide Special Sundays. Hu-

man Relations Day calls us to extend a helping hand to

those in crisis so they can overcome formidable obstacles.

The offering supports Community Developers, United Vol-

untary Services and Youth Offender Rehabilitation pro-

grams.

Displacement of Syrians due to the internal and re-

gional conflict has reached a dramatic high. The UN

calculates that Syrian refugees number about 3 million

refugees abroad and about 7 million inside Syria. The

global total for all refugees is estimated at more than 50

million people which is the most at any time since World

War II. The United Methodist Committee on Relief

(UMCOR) continues its work and commitment to support

the displaced in partnership with well-placed local humani-

tarian organizations in Syria and in several of its neighbor-

ing countries—Turkey, Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan.

A Future with Hope—continues its mission

The work continues down at the Jersey Shore to repair and

rebuild homes and churches even as we pass the two year

anniversary of SuperStorm Sandy. Some statistics: 114

homes completed, 51 homes under construction, 8,885

volunteers, 15 host sites, and 383 person hosting capac-

ity. AFWH Disaster Case Managers have worked with

more than 340 families to date; their households include

more than 600 people, with more than 100 seniors and

more than 100 youth

Jeanne Eisele

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The North Family Pat Warbasse

Charlene Hanson Hiromi Chiba

Our Church Family People we remembered in prayer

January 2015

Known January Birthdays

“And the beat goes on…” The Board of Trustees voted to replace the failing win-

dows in the Sunday School/Education Building, the office

and the lounge. The windows, with the exception of two

rooms on the second floor destroyed by the December 21,

1982 fire, were installed in June of 1952 when that build-

ing was constructed some 62 years ago. The 1986 vintage

windows in the Parsonage, well worn, leaking and tired,

will also be replaced. Drainage alongside the sanctuary’s

west side will be redirected and below ground drainage

pipes will be installed to carry the water from the roof

toward the street. Several minor exterior jobs will also be

completed at #22, right next door.

Vic Schumacher

Trustees News

Benjamin Engel

Jen Engel

Janine White

Erin Bolstad

Jason Grzymala

Lynsey Studer

Salvatore Cantrini

Julie Guempel

Devin Koep

Greg Kroeger

Lauren Kroeger

Lucas Liston

Danielle Lozier

Erik Paul Manz

Alexander Scott Merrick

Elizabeth Miller

Thomas Paddack

Dylan Pfeifer

Maggie Price

Family Promises’s December 2014 newsletter has lots of

encouraging news about the families and program, includ-

ing a guest success story and a need for support for a

guest’s education in her effort to become self-sufficient.

One very uplifting article in the newsletter is about a 9-

year-old boy from Madison, Ben Colao, who has written a

series of biographical books about inspiring individuals

and is donating all book sale proceeds to Family Promise

of Morris County. The books are available for purchase

at Short Stories in Madison for only $5 each. To date,

Ben has raised over $2,000 and he is planning to inter-

view Family Promise guests and write a book about

homeless families. To read the full article about Ben, the

newsletter can be accessed through the Family Promise

website, www.familypromisemorris.org.

Please contact me if you are able to help during our week

in February or would like more information.

Laurie Hagerich

Family Promise News

2015 Church Directory

A new church directory will be

available soon. Please contact

the church office with any changes in

your directory information no later

than Feb. 20.

Call 973–377–1231 or email

church@umcmadison.org. Thank you! Amanda Rohrs-Dodge with her twin girls, Auden and Amelia.

The girls had a huge part to play (baby Jesus) at this years

Christmas Pageant.

Posing with Susan McAdoo and Marlice Borecki.

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Worship Schedule

Early Morning Worship 8:30 a.m.

Family Worship & Sunday School 10:00 a.m. Childcare is available for infants and toddlers.

Coffee and Fellowship 11:15 a.m.

Coming up: January 6 Trustees Meeting

January 11 Two Services resume (8:30 am and 10:00 am)

January 19 Martin Luther King Day

January 19 Outreach Planning Meeting (7:15)

January 20 Church Council Meeting

Christmas 2014

UMC Annual

Christmas Pageant

was held on

December 21, 2014

A special thanks to

Kathleen Keane and

her actors for a won-

derful performance.

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