A beautiful Christmas Tree again graced the rear of the Sanctuary. It was decorated with cards from members, former members, and friends- including Ruth Castañeda and Doris Kuchar.  Money gifts were sent to UMCOR or used to pay for the mailing of the Link.  It was good hearing from you!

2/3    Nancy Haines

2/5    Harriet Ludewig

2/10  Christopher Haines

2/12  Mary Ellen (Neubauer) Russo

2/13  Bill Taylor

2/14  Amy Kobell

2/15  Jennifer (Gallo) Fox

2/16  Glenn Cortese

2/17  Atsuke Takiguchi

2/22  Warren Lazelle

2/26  Matthew Bailey

2/27  Sondra Marra

2/28  Andrew Perdew, Julie Garrett

The January meeting of the United Methodist Women was hosted by Eleanor Heil. Adrianna Coe conducted the annual “Pledge Service” of the organization.

Jeanne Lazelle introduced the group to some of the writings of Mitch Albom, with the emphasis on his non-fiction best-seller “tuesdays with Morrie”

The next meeting will be held on Wednesday, February 8^th   at 12:30pm at the home of Mae Smith.  The program will feature another of Mitch Albom’s writing, “The Five People You Meet in Heaven.”

 All women and their guest are invited to attend.

            A Certificate of Appreciation was sent to our church from UNICEF stating “The U.S. Fund for UNICEF congratulates the Park Ridge United Methodist Church for helping UNICEF save kids’ lives.”  One hundred and thirty dollars was sent as a result of the “Trick or Treat for UNICEF campaign” in which our Sunday School were involved.

The Poinsettias in the vestibule are given by the Lewis and Montgomery families, in loving memory of Elizabeth, William and Donald Lewis

Given By:                                                        In Memory of:

Ed and Rue Abdelhak                       Loved Ones

Adrianna Coe                                      Husband, Parents, and Brother

Charlene Gungil and Family         Parent, Ronnie & Leonora Williams

Eleanor Heil                                         Loved Ones

Kaye Hong and Annie Hong         Glory of God

Aubrey Langdon                               Loved Ones

Dolly Lewis                                          Doc Lewis, Jedh, Ruth and Colby Barker

Harriet and Fred Ludewig             Loved Ones

Sondra Marra                                     Loved Ones

Marion McCarthy                             Parents, John & Nellie Holgren

Phyllis and John Mengler             Verna & Joe Bishop

Larry Morgan                                    Wife, Janet

Alice and John Morone                 Parents, Becky & Richard Wirt,  John &

                                                                 Louise Morone

Jeff and Jenny Morris                       Loved Ones

Olive Ottens                                           Loved Ones

Christine Peterson                              Joel & Elizabeth Peterson

Will and Mae Smith                            Their parents

John Thomas and Lillian Thomas     Wife & Mother Joy Thomas

Varian Family                                       Mom & Nana

Doris White                                            Husband, George (“Tex”)

Caroline Williams                              Parents, Leonora & Ronnie Williams

 Adrianna Coe                                   In Honor of: Son, Sachio Coe

My memories of Christmas in the Caribbean still fill me with excitement and joy, though it has been decades since my last one! I remember the thrill of Christmas Carols playing on the radio beginning from December 1 and all the way through to December 25. The stores in the city would all put out their toys on trays on the sidewalks to entice the shoppers. Special toys would include starlights, water pistols and Kadar dolls. The supermarkets and larger food stores would order red delicious apples, green grapes and pears, and sell them to discerning families. This was a big treat since none of those fruits grew in the tropics, and was available only once a year. The usual mangoes, bananas and sugar apple would take a back seat as we indulged in these imported exotic fruits.

For the children, the excitement built and reached a crescendo on Christmas Eve! This was a special day as most of their shopping took place on that day. The stores remained open until ten o’clock at night, and the city was abuzz with people, activities and lots of fun. It was quite an event, as it would be one of the few times that children could stay out late into the evening. The weather was a balmy 80 degrees Fahrenheit; the air smelled of spices as all the Moms baked their special Christmas cake; musicians came serenading in the wee hours of the morning with their banjos and harmonicas, singing in English and Spanish.

Everyone went to church on Christmas morning. Methodists, Catholics and Anglicans (Episcopalians) all worshipped at 5 AM! We walked the mile to church with all of the neighbors in the dark, but dressed in our newest clothes. We watched the morning break over the ocean from our church, a spectacular site. The worship service ended with all of the Church bells ringing, and congregants spilling out into the street filled with anticipation for what the day would bring. We would go home to homemade bread, fresh eggs, codfish salad and hot cocoa grown locally. Later in the day, steel orchestras would traverse through the island playing all the famous carols, but on steel drums with a calypso rhythm!  We would pack (six children and two parents) into the car, and visit our aunts, uncles and cousins to exchange gifts, drink punch de crème, eat cake and play with our new toys. At the end of our visits, we would pile back into the car, and head home, giddy with the joy and delight of another Christmas Day.

 Offering supports Youth Programs in Arkansas

Marissa McDaniel has known many challenges in her life. From her mother’s addiction to drugs and alcohol to her relocation and adjustment to a strange new life, her life and the lives of her family has been transformed with the support of BCD, Inc. This is her story:             

At age 11, I watched my mother sink into a life of addiction to drugs and alcohol. As a result, my siblings and I were removed from the home and had to go live with relatives. Leaving my mother and being uprooted from familiar people and friends was very hard to deal with. Living in such a situation makes for a doubtful future. It’s hard to believe that you will go great places and do great things when the present is so uncertain.

About the time I turned 15, my mother found help in Better Community Development, Inc.’s (BCD) recovery program and, my siblings and I were uprooted once more to a different city and state. We went from a small town in North Carolina to what seemed like a huge city: Little Rock, Arkansas. The culture shock and becoming familiar with a new way of living was very difficult. So much so that, after a year, my older sister and I begged to go back to North Carolina. Her request was granted, mine was not. After she left, I became the oldest child in the family and responsible for my younger brother and sister. Your generous gifts to the Human Relations Day Offering supports programs like BCD, Inc. in Little Rock, AR.

I was heartbroken that I could not go home with my sister, but I put my faith in God, and I surrounded myself with good, positive people who were going somewhere in life. Moving to a new city was scary yet, the opportunities to do what I wanted and be who I wanted were limitless. I could have gone down so many paths. Having good friends and positive people in my life like those I found at Black Community Developer’s Youth Initiative Program have helped me stay on a positive path. I have been able to go places and experience so many things that I know I would not have if I actually had gone back to North Carolina with my older sister. It’s a blessing in fact. God knew what He was doing!

I now work for the New York City Department of Education as a Biology and Chemistry teacher for 9th and 10th graders. I teach in a small high school in the South Bronx. I love learning science, especially learning about the human body and I love helping people. So, my next endeavor will be to enroll in medical school, become a doctor and pursue a career in public health. After that, only God knows! Thank you, God! and thank all of you wonderful people at BCD who helped my mother find sobriety, and helped me build the foundation for my life.

“We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

– McDaniel, M. (2010) BCD Stories of Success Better Community Development Inc. Retrieved from http://www.bcdinc.org/index-14.html

–Adapted from the BCD,Inc.: Rebuilding Lives. Restoring Communities website

The article also appeared on United Methodist Church UMCOR website www.umcgiving.org

Our congregation has given long-term support to the blanket program sponsored by Church World Service. These blankets are produced and stored in many parts of the world to be ready when a disaster occurs and for the refugees living in camps and settlements. The focus of C.W.S. is especially on people with the most limited means to recover from catastrophic events, and they also stand by communities in need long after public attention has turned elsewhere.

Our Church is small in number but we put our major effort to fund the basic need for blankets. C.W.S is concerned with all kinds of aid, both short and long term. Their work is based on these beliefs:

We believe there is enough food

        that no one should go hungry

Enough water that no one should thirst

          And enough love that all children

Should reach their potential

          We believe in the right of peace with justice

 And a place people can call home.

We hope that our congregation will again give strong support for the Christmas Blanket program. Each five dollar donation provides a gift of real value.

 The Missions Committee wishes to express its appreciation to all who contributed time, effort, and money to the 2011 Upper Pascack Valley CROP Walk for Hunger.

 The total amount donated to Church World Service was $616.00

Once again, many thanks!

The Missions Committee thanks you for your support.

CROP Hunger Walk

            The Missions Committee wishes to extend a warm “thank you” to all who had a hand in this year’s Upper Pascack Valley CROP WALK.

HELPERS: Jeanne Lazelle, Glenn Lazelle, Warren Lazelle.

SPONSORS: The many persons who have pledged donations. A special “Thanks” to Glenn for supplying produce from his garden, which brought in $150 in donations.

WALKERS: Adrianna Coe, Charlene Gungil, Annie Hong,  Kay Hong, Brian Knowles, Jerry Lockwood, Marion McCarthy, Caroline Williams.           

Walkers are asked to approach each of their sponsors in order to obtain pledged funds – either in the form of cash or checks. Please note: checks MUST be made out to CWS/CROP (not to our Church).  When each walker has completed collecting pledges, he or she is to turn in the envelope with the donations and the name of each contributor, and the total amount received.