The biggest team with the biggest score that emerged from the NFL Super Bowl, Feb. 12, were the United Methodist churches of both competing areas that together collected about 180,000 pounds of donated food to fight hunger in their communities. …
Mission to Mama Land: Church bonds with UM orphanage in Sierra Leone
A “dream team” from First UMC Lancaster landed in Sierra Leone, West Africa, Feb. 1, on a mission to visit a children’s village known affectionately as MamaLand. The Rev. Dorcas Kamanda, an elder in Eastern PA, birthed the fledgling home …
Church hosts MLK Jr. Day of Action to End Gun Violence
On a cold but sunny Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Jan. 16, volunteers gathered on a street in Lansdale with T-shirts, rebar, PVC frames and mallets to install a Memorial to the Lost for the 66 lives taken by gun …
Support groups: a new chapter in youth ministry
I have been in ministry with youth, young adults and families for over 25 years; and over time I have seen ministry with young people change as their needs have changed. Still, I felt there was more we could do. …
Church’s ministry serves 30,000 breakfasts, opens warming center
New ministry aided by EPA Wholeness Center grant Anchor Lancaster, a ministry at First UMC Lancaster, served 30,000 hot breakfast meals in 2022. The breakfast ministry, which serves every weekday, including holidays, was recognized as “the best non-profit in Lancaster.” …
Giving to Advance Specials aids ministries in need
Jesus calls us to go the second mile (Matthew 5:41) in our sacrificial giving. Most Eastern PA churches do just that—giving beyond their apportioned askings to support conference and denominational ministries. And while many also fund causes in their own …
Church to dedicate Memorial to the Lost on MLK Day, Jan. 16
Lansdale UMC will remember gun violence victims during the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday by hosting a dedication of the Montgomery County Memorial to the Lost on Monday, Jan. 16, at 11 AM. The memorial, cosponsored by the advocacy group Heeding …
Church food pantry feeds hundreds of neighbors
Bridesburg UMC in northeast Philadelphia, established in 1834, provides food to about 250 families from the 19134 and 19137 ZIP codes, through the Bridesburg Community Food Pantry, located on its lower level. The church is fighting hunger in an area …
From Ashes to Rebirth: Centralia UMC’s legacy alive
On a gorgeous late-October afternoon, Oct. 22, an audience of about 50 gathered in the sanctuary of Zion UMC in Aristes for the “From Ashes to Rebirth” event: a celebration of the legacy of the Centralia UMC, which was closed …
District donates $20,000 to Ukrainian relief, resettlement, Aug. 1
The North District keeps showing its support for the beleaguered people of war-ravaged Ukraine. The district donated $5,000 in March to the Transfiguration Ukrainian Catholic Church in Shamokin, then more funds in April to the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Centralia …