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March 1, 2012
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Please send emails for the e-news or the Reporter to Anne Marie Gerhardt, Dir. of Communications at communications@umcnic.org. All submissions for e-news must be received, in writing no later than 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday each week. Deadline for the April Reporter is March 13. |
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Communicator's Corner
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Churches respond to deadly tornado in Southern Illinois
read more>>
UMCOR is helping assess the damages as the storms moved through the Tennessee Conference.
Read more on how you can help>>
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If you are an NIC member planning on attending the 2012 General Conference, would you please send your contact information to Natarsha Gardner at ngardner@umcnic.org.
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Local Church Events
| Local church events are posted on the web
Read about March Events |
Free Book
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A great opportunity for your church's small group ministry.
A free copy of a New York Times Bestseller The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander is being made available to congregations by GBCS.
This is a extraordinary opportunity to take action on the key Civil Rights issue of our day.
Click here for more info.
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UMC-NIC Mission Fair- March 3
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 Celebrating USA Ministries: Urban, Native American, Appalachian, Disaster
Sponsored by the NIC Board of Global Ministries and NIC VIM (Volunteers In Mission), come out to the Mission Fair, Saturday, March 3, 2012 at Downers Grove First UMC at 1032 Maple Ave. from 2-6pm. Download the flyer for more information.
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2012 Annual Conference - June 6-9
Documents due today!
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Legislative documents, historical reports, requests for presentation time during the plenary sessions, and notification of awards to be published in the awards booklet must be submitted to both Rev. Lora Zink and Rev. Daniel Diss no later than close of business (5 p.m.) Today! Thursday, March 1, 2012. Click here for more information.Popping Presentations
Those presenting at Annual Conference are strongly encouraged to attend a seminar on Saturday, March 17 from 1pm-2:30pm at the Elgin Program office at 217 Division St., Elgin to learn the dos and don'ts of making a presentation which will pop! Click here for registration and more information. |
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Chicago Lay Academies offer classes for Lay Speakers!
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The Chicago Northwestern and Chicago Southern districts are offering a variety of classes for Lay Speakers at their two-week Lay Academies, each taking place on March 3 & 10. Registration forms & online registration options are available on the District's pages at www.umcnic.org. Click here for Chicago Northwestern and click here for Chicago Southern. Sign up today!
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Adult Interfaith Bus Tour- March 23-25
|  Register Today!Join Bishop Hee-Soo Jung and a host of other guides as we visit several interfaith sites around the Chicagoland area. Cost: $195 which includes all travel, meals, and two nights single lodging.
$150 for double occupancy.
$75 commuter rate. Transportation provided by Dixon-Meyers Trailways. Registration extended to Mar. 8. Contact: Harriet McCabe at harrietmccabe@earthlink.net or by phone at 630-355-4617. Download the flyer |
Seeking United Voices for Children
Annual Award Nominations | |
United Voices for Children is seeking nominations from individuals, groups or organizations to receive the Bishop Jesse R. DeWitt Child Advocacy Award and the Katherine B. Greene Child Worker Award. These awards honor extraordinary volunteer service or advocacy efforts on behalf of children, youth and/or families throughout the Northern Illinois Conference.
Nomination forms and submission instructions can be found by clicking here. Deadline for submission is March 15, 2012. Questions? More information needed? Please contact UVC Coordinator Laurel Bault at 224-587-3611 or umovices4kids@yahoo.com. |
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One Great Hour of Sharing- March 18
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Join United Methodists everywhere by participating in this special offering that supports UMCOR's vital work. Your gifts to One Great Hour of Sharing lay the foundation for UMCOR to manifest God's steadfast love throughout the world. Please give generously. For resources and more information visit www.umcgiving.org |
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Committee Members & Chairs Needed
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The Northern Illinois Conference Committee on Nominations is currently seeking to fill several positions to serve as chairs and members of committees in the next quadrennium. This is a great opportunity to utilize your spiritual gifts and abilities in a wide range of conference ministries. All persons need to submit a new form for the terms- this includes those already serving and will continue on as well as new nominees. Click here to download the form Questions? Please contact the new Nominations Committee Chair, Cerna Rand at nominations@umcnic.org. |
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Women's History Month - March
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 The 2012 Women's History Month theme is Women's Education-Women's Empowerment.
Consider these sobering statistics from the United Nations Millennium Campaign and the United Nations Population Fund:
» Around the globe, more than 1.8 billion people live in absolute poverty; 70 percent are women.
» Women work two-thirds of the world's working hours and universally this work is accorded low status and no pay.
» Women earn only 10 percent of the world's income.
» Women make up two-thirds of the estimated 876 million adults worldwide who cannot read or write; and girls make up 60 percent of the 77 million children not attending primary school.
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Stewardship Free Webinar
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Many United Methodists hear the word "apportionment" and think only of a burden placed upon the local church, but they have only seen it from one side. What if they could see the countless ways lives are touched, and the how their church has made a difference by participating in our global shared ministries? Find out how you can help tell those stories!
Telling Our Mission Story: Put a Face on Your Apportionments
Presenter: Ken Sloane
Thursday, March 8, 2012
6:30 PM - 7:30 PM CST
Space is limited.
Click here for more seminar dates |
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Syria: Helping Displaced People
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The ongoing conflict in Syria has displaced thousands who are fleeing violence to seek security in towns and cities. The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is in contact with partners in Syria and the region to assess the needs of those individuals and families.
Initial assistance may include clothing, health kits, and household goods, such as a small stove or heater. UMCOR is preparing to respond in the most appropriate way.
Your gift to International Disaster Response, UMCOR Advance #982450, supports UMCOR's response to people in urgent need such as the suffering people in Syria.
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HIV/AIDS Awareness Days
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National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day is March 10 and National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day is March 20.
We are encouraging all of our churches to support these two dates and share with your congregations how HIV/AIDS often carry a large amount of stigma.
There is still much growth needed as we talk about HIV/AIDS in our faith based organizations. Healing cannot happen until there is a union of the mind, the body, and spirit.Health is the existence of peace and wholeness, not merely the absence of disease. The church provides the HOPE that can provide that union so please share some resources and testing on both dates.
Irma Clark NIC-HIV/AIDS, Ambassador
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Singing Praises
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 A 25-voice choir from six area United Methodist churches performed during an Ash Wednesday service at Bethany UMC in Aurora Feb. 22. Churches partnering in the service to open Lent included Fourth Street UMC, Wesley UMC, Bethany UMC and Nueva Vida UMC, Aurora; Sugar Grove UMC and Kaneville UMC. Pastors from Bethany, Wesley, Kaneville and Sugar Grove churches churches led the service. (Al Benson photo)
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