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FLAME PLYMOUTH CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH |
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Volume XLI Number 7 July 2010 www.plymouth.org |
Summer Bible study Plymouth’s preachers will lead a Bible study on Sunday mornings at 9 a.m. during July and August. Study will be on the scripture passage the preacher will preach on one week later. There’s no need for advanced preparation. The class will meet in the Fireside Room beginning on July 4. There’s no need for pre-registration, but if you know you plan to attend, you can inform the minister. The July schedule and contact information is: July 4: Jim Gertmenian –
jimg@plymouth.org
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Affordable housing
update and summer opportunities
Currie Avenue Partnership To permanently house 150 homeless adults with disabilities With an overwhelming financial response from Plymouth members, this partnership was officially formed in December 2009 with funding from the Downtown Congregations to End Homelessness (DCEH; Plymouth is a member) and the Minneapolis Downtown Council. The project is administered by Heading Home Hennepin and works at finding permanent housing for people experiencing homelessness who have disabilities, often involving mental health or chemical dependency, which qualify them for the state’s Group Residential Housing program. Once enrolled, state and federal funds will provide continued support to ensure housing. As of June 1, 10 Housing Case Managers have been hired, 25 people have been housed and 25 more are waiting for their move-in date. An additional 25 individuals have begun the intake and housing search process. For more information: www.headinghomeminnesota.org/hennepin/ Habitat for Humanity To bring people together to create and preserve homeownership in our
neighborhoods At Plymouth we sponsor three work weeks a year. Sign up for the next opportunities with Bonnie Herr: bherr3@msn.com August 2-6 October 18-22 · The Homeownership program builds and rehabs simple, quality homes in partnership with low-income families and the community with zero percent interest mortgages, making a 30-year commitment to each new homeowner and to the community in which they live.· The A Brush with Kindness program preserves homeownership by helping low-income homeowners repair and maintain their homes. · The Mortgage Foreclosure Prevention program assists families living in Minneapolis who are facing foreclosure or who have fallen behind in their mortgage payments. Heading Home Plymouth To shift Plymouth’s focus from managing to ending homelessness Each year the members of this congregation are invited to join a five-month campaign to be an advocate to end homelessness. This year there were 291 Plymouth advocates who receive email action alerts and make regular contact with their elected officials via email, phone and/or letter writing. Some attended the Joint Religious Legislative Coalition’s Day on the Hill at the State Capitol and met face-to-face with their elected officials. Plymouth partners with the DCEH on the action alerts at the Take Five Table on Sunday mornings. The leadership team is currently looking for a few new members to join them. For more information: Jan Neville, janeville@comcast.net Downtown Congregations to End Homelessness (DCEH) www.dceh.orgDowntown Congregations to End Homelessness (DCEH) work together to end homelessness by using its civic voice to educate and push the community from managing homelessness and poverty to ending it through support of Heading Home Hennepin, congregations, volunteers and community organizations to affect the common good of our community. Projects: Looking for lawyers to donate time in the shelters to give advice to homeless people: Contact Annie Harms, annie@dceh.org Sign up to be an advocate and receive action alerts: Contact Jan Neville, janeville@comcast.net Members include: Augustana Lutheran, Basilica of Saint Mary, Central Lutheran, First Christian, First Unitarian Society, Gethsemane Episcopal, Hennepin Ave. United Methodist, Masjid An-Nur, Masjid Al-Ikhlas, Plymouth, Saint Mark’s Episcopal, Saint Olaf Catholic, Temple Israel, Westminster Presbyterian. Connie Marty is the staff person serving on the steering committee; Jim Swanson and Jan Neville serve as leaders on the Interfaith Team. Contact DCEH Congregational Organizer Heidi Johnson McAllister: heidi@dceh.org Plymouth Church Neighborhood Foundation (PCNF) Inspired by social justice and guided by our many faiths, creating homes for those in need, building community for all. A Night on the Street: April youth sleepover in our church parking lot. This year 400 people slept in cardboard boxes and raised $50,000 for affordable housing.Lydia Apartments housing: Across the street from Plymouth, for formerly homeless people living with mental illness. Members are invited to join the Lydia Connections working group to build relationships and enhance our community. Contact Renee Macomber: rgmacomber@msn.com Housing 150 Taskforce: Started for our sesquicentennial year in partnership with Westminster Presbyterian Church, has funds to build affordable housing. Current project is Nicollet Square housing for homeless youth at 3700 Nicollet Ave. Current completion date is November 2010. Contact Jenny Mason: jmason@plymouthfoundation.org PCNF offers tours on the 4th Tuesday of each month. For this month’s location or further information: www.plymouthfoundation.org Simpson Housing Shelter As of June, the women’s shelter moved to the same location as the men’s shelter. Plymouth has booked July 6 & August 17 to buy, cook and serve a meal to approximately 110 shelter guests at the Simpson Homeless Shelter, 2740 First Ave So., Minneapolis. Prep starts around 4:30 p.m. Dinner is served at 7:00 p.m. Plymouth needs eight volunteers. If you want to be a part of this, contact Spencer Moffatt, Seminary Intern, sp.moffatt@gmail.com A new kind of fellowship group One more chair By Sue Specker Not too long ago, Jeff Sartain asked six of us (all members of the church and members of existing social groups) if we would be interested in starting a new kind of fellowship group at Plymouth. This group, he said, would always have room for more people. We would always have a warm welcome for our newest members and would also welcome longer-term members who enjoy a fun gathering and who seek a chance to meet new people and build new friendships. How, we asked, would we do that? Fellowship groups we’d been part of can ’t continue to grow because "it just doesn’t work – the group would get too big!," we thought. But we said we’d love to try it, and we decided to call ourselves One More Chair because we always have another "chair" or space that can be added to the group.During our first year we quickly recruited some interested people who became very involved. Our original six (Mariana and Craig Shulstad, Marcia and Ray Giske, and Gary and Sue Specker) quickly became eight in a leadership role with the addition of Estelle and Chuck Bennett. Others stepped up and provided the coordination and planning for individual events. Still others supported us with their regular attendance. We thank them all! The good times and new friendships have followed, just as we thought they would. At this writing, our current membership is nearing 50, and we foresee that this will grow quickly. During our two years of existence, we’ve had one social event most months with a wide range of themes; for example: a walk and picnic at the Arboretum, two Christmas parties, several theater outings, dinner and a ballet, a creative art event, several picnics in lovely back yards and a presentation and discussion group led by one of our members from Ethiopia. In August, we’re planning a Mississippi River Pizza Cruise aboard the Paradise Lady. In September, we’ll have a potluck dinner in a home followed by a program by Jeff. "Phase 2" of our existence involves "tweaking" how we organize events. We’ll plan events where a larger number of people can attend together and different kinds of events for smaller sub-groups. But we’ll stay one group. Will this work? Only time will tell, but we surely are having fun trying! If you’d like to be invited to our One More Chair events, please email jeffs@plymouth.org. If you don’t have access to email, call Jeff at 612/977-1274. Parking lots improved By Karen Hartz Improvements to Plymouth’s parking lots have been underway for almost a year. The church owns three parking lots – the main lot adjacent to the church building, the Village Mall lot on Groveland and one strip of spaces in the parking lot on Nicollet next to the Loring-Nicollet Center building. These lots provide parking space for Sunday worship and other events. They also provide parking space for customers of local businesses that lease space from the church. Rental income from these leases helps offset some of the costs of assessments, taxes, maintenance and upgrades. Plymouth is committed to keeping these lots – a visible part of the church and neighborhood – attractive, clean, safe and secure. The improvements will become more noticeable over the summer. • Major upgrades are being made to the Village Mall lot on Groveland. These improvements will reduce maintenance costs and make it a more attractive part of the neighborhood and more inviting to those who park there. • All signage in the lots is being replaced. Plymouth’s ownership of the lots will be more apparent. Consistency of signs will improve appearance. New wording and spacing of signs will make it easier to identify unauthorized vehicles and deter loitering and criminal activity. • All leases with local businesses have been revised. Rent and lease provisions are now consistent for all tenants and improve Plymouth’s ability to monitor the lots and address violations. Rent adjustments were made for many businesses which had not had an increase for many years. • We’re replacing and adding lighting in the Village Mall lot. We continue to partner with Stevens Square Community Organization in monitoring our lots for security. We might need a few volunteers weekdays to help us patrol after the signage is in place. This will help deter people who park in our lots and take the bus to a downtown location for work, etc.
Those who park in Plymouth’s lots during the week should be aware of one change. The parking area closest to the Jones Commons entrance will be reserved for handicap use at all times, not just Sunday mornings. All vehicles parked in that area will be required to have a state-issued or Plymouth-issued tag for handicap parking. Contact the church office if you need a Plymouth handicap tag. Reminders When you use Plymouth’s lots during the week, be sure to use spaces designated for church use. If you park in spaces reserved for a local business, your vehicle might be towed. Overnight parking continues to be prohibited. Vehicles left in the lot after midnight are towed at owner’s expense. If you expect to be at Plymouth very late at night or should you have a disabled vehicle, obtain a temporary overnight tag from the church office or leave a visible note of explanation on the dashboard to avoid being towed. If you have any concerns regarding parking availability or the appearance or security of a Plymouth parking lot, contact me, Karen Hartz, Director of Operations.
Profile in legacy gifts to Plymouth By Nancy Peterson
Twenty-five years ago and shortly after the arrival of their daughter, Mike and Rosanne prepared a will to ensure her continuing care should something happen to them. Periodically, they updated the will as their financial situation and range of interests grew and began to include modest gifts to organizations they loved and felt a kinship with. Mike and Rosanne have made Plymouth a partial beneficiary of their estate and intend to review more leveraged gift options as they enter retirement. In so doing, they’re helping to provide for a future Plymouth they cannot foresee but have great faith in. To them, Plymouth is different than other charitable interests they have, like social services and environmental causes. Plymouth is family, through thick and thin, in good times and bad. They hope to see our church continue to be a Twin Cities leader in progressive theology and a place of shelter, safety and warmth for people of diverse faith journeys, just as it very much is today.
YOUTH SUNDAY – Youth Choir closes the service (Youth Sunday photos by Mark Christman)
Mark your calendars... Bicycle to Plymouth It’s time to save some gas by biking to church on Sundays. Bike racks are near the Nicollet and Jones Commons entrances. Plymouth Bikers stickers are at the reception desk. Birth mothers honored There will be a Day of Recognition and Honoring for Birth Mothers – mothers who have relinquished their children for adoption, Saturday, July 17. It’s sponsored and funded by the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, but is open to all. There’s a minimal cost ($10 lunch). Information is also available at www.archspm.org or by contacting Plymouth’s Penny Needham at 612/616-3139. |
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Sunday
morning parking will continue to be the same for Plymouth members,
friends and visitors. All spaces in the Plymouth-owned lots, including
leased spaces, remain available for church use on Sunday mornings.
Plymouth continues its arrangements to use the Park-Nicollet lot, the
lot behind Village Mall Center, all spaces in the Loring-Nicollet Center
lot and the Minnesota Church Center lot behind Van Dusen Mansion on
Sunday mornings. 
On
a bright morning in May, Mike and Rosanne Monten sat down with me
and talked about their modest beginnings as a couple, the addition
of their daughter Katherine to the family with those attendant
responsibilities and how formative those years had been in
establishing their values and their view of responsible giving. They
went on to talk about their responsibility to each other as they
age, as well as to Kate and the communities they thrive in.
