Newsweekly: 1-3-16

      Comments Off on Newsweekly: 1-3-16

Newsweekly for January 3

Local Events and Opportunities:

The Valley Brethren-Mennonite Heritage Center is building a Gingerbread Village!  This is a great project for a snowy day or for use by your Sunday School class (your church in gingerbread!) or scout group!  Create and bring your gingerbread building to the Heritage Center (1921 Heritage Center Way, Harrisonburg) during the week of January 4 – 8 during our open hours from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.  Guidelines and entry form available at www.vbmhc.org or by calling 540-438-1275.

The gingerbread village will be on display during our Gingerbread Pancake Breakfast & Open House on Saturday, January 9, and through Saturday, February 13, when ribbons will be awarded.  Come in at any time during our open hours (Wednesday – Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.) and vote ($1 per vote) for your favorite gingerbread creation.  Join us on the 9th for delicious gingerbread pancakes, games, children’s crafts and a gingerbread man hunt in our historic buildings.  Admission is $5/person; children 5 and under are free.

With the help of volunteer tutors, Skyline Literacy in Harrisonburg serves adult learners throughout the central Shenandoah Valley who need to improve their literacy and language skills. Skyline Literacy will teach you how to tutor adults at our free tutor training on either January 9, 2016, 9-11am or January 12, 2016, 6-8pm, at Skyline Literacy: 975 S. High St. Harrisonburg. Call our office at 433-0505 or go to our website at www.skylineliteracy.org to register today!

Interested in a one-day peacebuilding and facilitation training? On Friday, January 29, 2016, the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding is hosting SPI Community Day: Practical Tools for Building Just Communities. This is a one-day training for local community members who are interested in gaining practical peacebuilding, facilitation or restorative justice tools. SPI Community Day is modeled after the Summer Peacebuilding Institute (SPI) and will include a catered lunch presentation, two training workshops and a facilitated group processing activity. Registration costs $20 and can be done online at: https://www.emu.edu/cjp/spi/spicommunityday/. Space is limited, so register soon if interested! Contact Sarah Roth Shank at sarah.rothshank@emu.edu with any questions.

Upcoming VMC events:

  • Winter Delegate Session, February 6 at Waynesboro Mennonite Church, Waynesboro, Va. Cost: $15 for meal/expenses.
  • VMC Youth Workers’ Retreat on “Keeping Peace with God” with Carmen Schrock-Hurst, January 22-24 at Williamsburg Christian Retreat Center. Learn more at virginiaconference.org/ministries/youth-ministry/2016-youth-workers-retreat/
  • VMC Senior High Retreat on “Peace & Nonresistance” with Titus Peachey and Earl & Pat Martin, February 19-21 at Highland Retreat. Learn more at virginiaconference.org/ministries/youth-ministry/2016-senior-high-retreat/
  • VMC Ministry Retreat on “Changing World, Everlasting Word,” featuring Dr. John Roth, February 26-28 at Williamsburg Christian Retreat Center. Learn more at virginiaconference.org/news/2016-vmc-ministry-retreat/

Eastern Mennonite School Student Visitation Day for Middle and High School will take place Monday, January 18. Students may visit for a half or whole day to experience the EMS difference first hand. Parents are invited to a morning informational session and chapel as well. Contact admissions@emhs.net or call (540) 236-6021 to register.

Not sure if your child is ready for Kindergarten? Come to "Ready, Set, Kindergarten" on Tuesday, January 26 from 6 -7 pm at Eastern Mennonite Elementary School, 314 Cornerstone Lane, Harrisonburg. You'll learn signs of school readiness from a panel of early childhood experts and learn things to look for in a quality Kindergarten program. Babysitting provided for free. Register in advance by at admissions @emhs.net or call (540) 236-6021.

Experience one of the world’s 'best kept secrets.' Ethiopia is sometimes referred to as the tourist world’s “best kept secret”. Designed to lift the covers, our next Experience Ethiopia Tour is open for you.  Be our guest and we will introduce you to the unique and little known history, culture, and religions of Ethiopia!  You won’t be disappointed! This tour is sponsored by Meserete Kristos College, directed by Darrell & Florence Jantzi, and interpreted by Carl & Vera Hansen.  Plan now to join us February 2-20, 2016 for an experience of a lifetime!  For more information contact Darrell Jantzi at jantzi@golden.net or phone (519) 669 4356, or Carl Hansen at carlverah@yahoo.com or phone (540) 830 0902.

Registration is now open for the upcoming Nazareth/Bethlehem Work Group (May 6-23, 2016) sponsored by VMMissions as a Partners in Mission program.  The work group will engage in work projects at Nazareth Village (Nazareth, Israel) and at Diyar Consortium, a ministry of Christmas Lutheran Church (Bethlehem, Palestine).  The group will be co-led by Dorothy Jean Weaver (Eastern Mennonite Seminary) and Lee Martin (Mount Clinton Mennonite Church).  Registrations will be accepted on a "first come, first served" basis.  For more information, contact Dorothy Jean Weaver at (540) 432-4276 or at weaverdj@emu.edu.

"Markets, Museums, Mosques, and Ministries in West Africa" a learning tour to Burkina Faso, Benin, and Ghana, July 11-25, 2016, will be led by James and Jeanette Krabill along with Ed Bontrager. The Krabills were missionaries in West Africa for some 20 years, and now James works with Mennonite Mission Network as Senior Executive for Global Ministries.  For more information, contact Ed Bontrager at eebontrager@comcast.net or call 540-438-8304.  The full itinerary is online at www.travelventuretours.com

MCC SERVICE POSITIONS, AKRON, PA – Do you know someone interested in service? Mennonite Central Committee needs service workers in our Akron, PA, office for these positions: Administrative Assistants, Canner Operators, Instructional Technologist, Receptionist. Assignments are one- or two-year commitments. MCC covers the cost of transportation to and from assignment, housing, daily living expenses, medical insurance and assistance with student loans. For more information see serve.mcc.org or email akronconnection@mcc.org.

Community Mennonite Church
70 South High Street Harrisonburg, VA
office@cmcva.org
540-433-2148