A GIVING SPIRIT

     I recently had the privilege of being interviewed by a Professor of Missiology. What, you ask, is missiology? It's the study of missions! Our District Superintendent, Rev. Sam Royappa, asked if I, along with three other UM pastors in Madison, would individually meet with Rev. Dr. John Joshua from Selly Oak College in Birmingham, England. The purpose of the time together was to share with Dr. Joshua what our congregations were doing in Missions. I was delighted to be included and to have the opportunity to meet this friend of Rev. Royappa's.

     "I was pleased to share with Dr. Joshua the myriad of ways in which our congregation acts out our faith through our mission and giving efforts. In order to prepare fully for my time with the good professor, I put together a list of all the ways I could think of that we were engaged in mission here at Bashford. Then I passed the list along to Amy Yackovich, our Missions chairperson, and to Mary Lu Anderson and Jill Sweeney of our Church and Society committee. They added a few more which I had overlooked.

     The results of putting everything down on paper produced quite a remarkable and impressive list! In some ways, we take all of these quite for granted. And, I do believe that we should remain rather humble in our attitude of giving, but at the same time we often tend to dismiss all the wonderful ways in which our congregation assists because of our faith. Dr. Joshua was quite impressed by the number and type of mission opportunities in which we are engaged! And remember, he studies missions!

     I invite you to read through the list and celebrate with me the meaningful ways in which we share our faith with others through giving and caring! It's remarkable!

MISSIONS AT BASHFORD
UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

1. Food Pantry. Operated five days/evenings a week. Serves over 5,000 persons a year. Owned and operated by the church utilizing volunteers
2. Plant and maintain a Garden for fresh produce for our Food Pantry.
3. Men's Drop-In-Shelter for Homeless Men. Located at Grace Episcopal Church on Capitol Square. Our church provides the evening meal, breakfast, and lunch for 65 or more men once a month on the fourth Friday of each month.
4. Two or Three Missions Projects per quarter chosen by the Missions Committee. These are organized by the following areas: Bashford Missions, Local Missions, National Missions, and International Missions. Money is collected over the entire quarter and then divided and sent to the projects. The National and International projects are always approved Advance projects of the UMC.
5. Sponsor Boy Scout Troop 29.
6. Provide meeting space for the following neighborhood associations: Emerson East, Eken Park Neighborhood, Upham Street Neighbors, and East Isthmus Planning Council.
7. Organize an annual Neighborhood Safety Informational Gathering incorporating the neighborhood associations listed in point 6 above, Police Department, and outreach by the Madison Children's Museum.
8. Sponsor annual summer Ice Cream Social for neighborhood. Food provided at reasonable price with intent to only charge actual cost of the meal.
9. Belong to Red Cross One-a-Week Club. Members give blood to at least equal 52 pints per year.
10. Annual School Supply drive for Emerson Elementary School which is located three blocks from our church.
11. Mittens and hats collected for winter and given out through our Food Pantry clients.
12. Buddy church four times a year with Lake Edge UCC church who houses homeless families for The Road Home (an Interfaith Hospitality Network) on a rotating basis. We provide lunch for 14 persons for the week.
13. Provide space for Girl Scout and Brownie Troops to meet.
14. Adopt a Highway cleanup for a stretch of road on Highway 51 three times a year.
15. Provide space for the SHARE cooperative food program.
16. Toys collected at Christmas to be distributed by East Madison Community Center.
17. Participate in the Madison Circuit Annual Service Day. Over 200 participants from the United Methodist Churches within the Madison City limits provide service in the city on a Saturday in October each year.
18. Provide ½ of the cost of a camp scholarship for church members and families who attend one of our conference sponsored United Methodist camps.
19. Support Annual Conference In-Gathering Projects. This year we provided 13 layette kits with hand knitted sweaters done by our church members.
20. Collected books for a children and youth summer lending library in Willow Alaska.
21. Annual Habitat for Humanity work day. Both workers and lunch provided by our church.
22. Visitation team that visits our shut-in members at least quarterly.
23. Bus Ministry to bring people to church worship.
24. Active United Methodist Women who are involved in various mission projects.
25. Monetary donation to Porchlight, an organization who deals with homelessness.
26. Monetary donation to The Road Home (an Interfaith Hospitality Network).
27. 100% payment of our Annual Conference Apportionments. A significant percentage of these go to National and International missions and it's our financial sharing beyond ourselves through the United Methodist Church.
Unknown individual mission work done by our individual members.

Peace,
Rev. Fran Deaner

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