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Communion on Election Day
It seemed like a good idea to the Rev. Frank T. Shomo. The church Shomo leads, Elizabeth Memorial United Methodist Church in Charleston, W.Va. will serve as a polling place today. As people come to the church to exercise their right to vote, they'll walk by a sign at the front door welcoming them to communion later in the day.
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Hurricane Sandy: West Virginia, Garrett County, Recover
Most of West Virginia is back to normal after Hurricane Sandy joined with a winter weather system last week that dumped inches, and sometimes feet of snow in parts of the state. Tyrand Cooperative Ministries in Mill Creek, W.Va. has served thousands of meals and served as an emergency shelter since the storm hit October 29.
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Belinda Toms and volunteers unload bottled water, delivered by the National Guard after Hurricane Sandy struck West Virginia last week. Photo courtesy of Tyrand Cooperative Ministries.
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"I've been told we will need to stay in operation until at least Friday," said Belinda Toms, the director. As of this morning, power has been restored to Tyrand, but many in Randolph County still lack power. "The National Guard has been going door to door to check on people, and searching for folks in areas that have been isolated due to heavy snow," she said.
The conference is compiling a list of churches and ministries that served their communities as shelters, and warming/feeding stations after Hurricane Sandy. If your ministry served after the Derecho or the flooding in southern W.Va. last March, we'd also like to hear about it. Please email us at wvumc@wvumc.org.
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How to help
Our brothers and sisters in New York, New Jersey, and the Caribbean were devastated by last week's disaster. This bulletin insert can be used to remind your congregation that contributions to UMCOR go 100% toward helping people in need.
In next week's enews, we will have more information on how you can help right here in the West Virginia Conference. Remember that individual contributions and church offerings may be sent to the Conference Treasurer, P.O. Box 2469, Charleston, WV 25329. Please designate them for the Conference Disaster Response Fund.
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In other news...
Don't forget to register youth from your church for Fall Workshop! The annual event takes place Nov. 16 - 18 at Cedar Lakes, near Ripley. Join us "under the big tent!"
Forty Days of Prayer for HIV/AIDS
Here's a resource designed to be used for prayer and discernment leading up to World AIDS Day, celebrated around the world on December 1. The United Methodist Church's Global AIDS Fund Committee offers this resource as a gift hoping it brings comfort, hope and healing.
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