St Johns Food pantry

Thank you so much for your generous support of St Johns Food pantry. The food you provided during September has been greatly appreciated ... and quickly distributed. The number of families needing food pantry assistance in our community continues to grow. 

Please continue to fill the grocery cart in the Grace fellowship hall with non-perishable items. (Note: On the first Sunday of the month, the grocery cart travels to the children's wing so the children can fill it with the items purchased from their Sunday School offerings. So if the cart isn't in the fellowship hall, place your items where it normally parks.)

Egg Cartons for Operation Rebirth

Over the last three months our adult Sunday offerings have supported Operation Rebirth, a ministry for young men needing a fresh start and a new focus. You have been generous in your financial support for this ministry. Another way you can continue to help is by bringing your empty egg cartons (both foam and cardboard) to the church. For now, we are collecting those in the receptionist's office (under the mailboxes).

Learn more about Operation Rebirth by visiting its website.

Email Issues

Ah, technology ... Wonderful thing when it works!

The Grace office staff is dealing with email issues today (Monday) due to a server glitch involving our website hosting company. We are able to receive what you send us, but our ability to respond has been severely restricted. So if you need a quick response, you probably need to call the office today.

We are working on this, of course. (Actually, our tech guy is doing the work.) Keep an eye on the Grace website (www.grace-nalc.org) for the latest information on our status. We are sorry for any inconvenience this might cause.

The Paper Plate Project

Are you familiar with the "Paper Plate Project." This project asks the clients of these agencies to write on a paper plate a description of their present life situation, how the current economic climate has impacted their lives, and what Ohio Foodbanks mean to them. The plates are then photographed. Organizers hope to collect 50,000 plates, which will then be taken to legislators at the Ohio State House.

Our Grace volunteers helped collect these plates while serving at St. John's Food Pantry and the Open Hands Free Store. Our plates are not posted yet, but you can view what clients wrote at other agencies across the state (including the Clark County branch of the Second Harvest Food Bank). Follow this link view photos of the plates that have been posted.

Many in our community and country don't grasp how vast the need for food is. Hunger is not only a problem in other parts of the world. People in Springfield are also starving. The stories you read are quite touching.

You can help by bringing non-perishable items with you to church. Place them in the grocery cart in the fellowship hall.

Have you RSVP'd for Consecration Sunday?

Have you RSVP'd for the Consecration Sunday dinner, held following the 10:45 worship service on September 25? The Grace Office needs to receive a yes or no answer from each Grace member by Sunday. Those not responding will receive a follow up phone call next week.

This dinner is a special time of fellowship for our Grace family. The meal will feature an Italian bake, salad, breadsticks and dessert. During the meal Pastor Powell will be sharing the total amount pledged by Grace members for the 2012 fiscal year.

You can RSVP right now by clicking here.

Talent Show for Malaria

Tickets are now on sale for "Grace Has Got Talent." This talent show fundraiser is happen on Sunday, October 2 All proceeds will benefit the Lutheran Malaria Initiative.

The cost for each ticket is $10 -- the same amount needed to purchase a treated mosquito net, train the recipients how to use it and even help build malaria treatment centers closer to where people live.

Each year there are 250 million new cases of malaria and nearly one million people will die from this treatable and preventable disease. Grace is pleased to be one of the leaders of efforts within Lutheran World Relief's goal of eliminating malaria worldwide.

A dinner will follow the show. Dinner tickets are also $10. Both show and dinner tickets are available at the table in the narthex on Sunday.

You can learn more about the Lutheran Malaria Initiative by clicking here.

You can learn even more about the Talent show by clicking here.

Blankets for a Family in Need

The Community Connector at Snowhill has asked if someone in our church might be willing to donate a blanket for a family in need. This family actually needs seven blankets, so donations of more than one would also be welcome. The mom in this family is going in for surgery and wants to make sure her children have the blankets before her surgery. If you can provide a blanket (or more), please let Tom Brodbeck know. Here is an email link for him.

Backpacks for Fifth Lutheran

We will be partnering with Fifth Lutheran again next school year (2012-2013) for their Backpack Ministry. Right now is a great time of year to be on the lookout for quality backpacks, many of which are on clearance sale and available to purchase for a great price. Margie Kuziak would be happy to store them until next year. Bring your purchases to church and place them on her desk or on the counter in the Christian Education win. Thanks to all who helped us collect 79 backpacks for the present school year!

St. John's Food Pantry

The shelves at St. John's Food Pantry need to be restocked. We are asking the Grace Church family to help meet that need by bringing non-perishable items with you when you come to church. Food and personal items of all kinds will be gratefully received, but according to Susan Kogler (the MTC for our Grace outreach ministry team) high protein items such as peanut butter and tuna would be high priorities. Other valued items include Mac 'n Cheese, rice and Spaghettios. Please place the items in the grocery cart located in the Fellowship Hall.

To learn more about this food pantry ministry, and Grace's involvement with it, you might want to read the recent article from page 13 of the August/September edition of the Grace Messenger. Click here to open a pdf version of the Messenger.

Motorized Scooter

Do you know anyone who might have need of a motorized scooter? It is approximately one year old. A family connected to our congregation no longer needs it, and would like to find a good home for it. Email Tom Brodbeck for additional information.

New Sunday Schedule

Our new schedule for Sunday morning officially launches this week (September 4). No need to reset the clock on your wall, but you might want to review the settings on your mental clock to make sure you are on time for all of the Sunday morning activities. Here is a review of the new times:

8:00 am      Worship service
9:15 am      Sunday School (concludes at 10:15 am)
10:15 am    Fellowship (concludes by 10:35 am)
10:45 am    Worship service

A new adult Sunday School class begins this week, too:  "Just Desserts."  Pastor Powell will be teaching this course, asking the question "Do people really get what they deserve?"

Remember ... you can always access the bulletin and all of the weekly announcement online. Those are usually posted by Friday morning (yes, two days before the service). Plus you can access Sign Up Central via the Grace website, too. Click here for the bulletin, here for the announcements and here for Sign Up Central.