Bethany Fosdyck 
Mennonite Central Committee Needs Your Help!
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In response to a call from churches and individuals, MCC is creating an MCC toolkit on gun violence prevention! They would love your feedback so they can better understand your needs, concerns, and questions.
This resource will cover gun violence in all of its forms, including suicide, as 2/3 of all gun deaths in the US are suicide.
Please contact Krista Dutt, Program Coordinator for Chicago and Church Relations Associate for MCC Great Lakes, at 312.623.4227 or kristadutt@mcc.org
IMC Names New Associate Conference Minister for Hispanic Ministries
Illinois Mennonite Conference is excited to welcome Martin Navarro as the new Associate Conference Minister for Hispanic Ministries. This is a new part-time staff position within the conference.
Navarro is a Chicago native. He grew up in the Comunidad Cristiana Vida Abundante in Cicero, IL. He has an M.Div. from Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary. Currently, he holds the position of stewardship consultant and financial service representative with Everence. In that role, he serves exclusively Hispanic Anabaptist churches.
Navarro says, “In this position (with IMC) I expect to bridge cultural gaps and also strengthen relationships with the Hispanic churches within IMC. Also, I’m hoping that this will be a time where reconciliation can occur between the Hispanic congregations and the conference. Historically, Hispanic churches have been neglected or not well represented within IMC…”
Conference Executive Minister, Michael Danner, said, “I’m excited to have Martin on the staff of IMC. I’m hopeful that his work will help us begin to move towards being a multicultural conference in practice, not just on paper.”
Danner also said, “In my excitement, I’m also careful to guard against a quick fix mentality. The relationship between Anglo and Hispanic congregations in IMC has a long history. Moving towards a new way of functioning will take time. Having Martin on staff is a good first step. ”
Illinois Mennonite Conference leaders are excited about the possibility of growing relationships between our Hispanic congregations and the rest of the conference. Martin Navarro began his work with IMC on August 11, 2017. You can reach him via email at mnavarroimc@gmail.com
Bio: Martin and his wife Viri live in Elkhart IN. Where they both attend Prairie Street Mennonite Church. Martin enjoys spending time with family, and also vegetable gardening.
Martin and his wife are Chicago natives. He grew up in the Comunidad Cristiana Vida Abundante. He is also an MDiv alumni from Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary. He has a passion for the study of the intersection of Mennonite identity and Latino theology.
Church Spotlight: First Mennonite Church of Champaign-Urbana
The following is a snapshot of congregational life at First Mennonite Church of Champaign-Urbana, IL provided by Rebecca Bare. If you would like more information on news shared here, please contact the congregation directly. We’re sure they’d love to hear from you.
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First Mennonite Church Champaign/Urbana
The summer worship theme has been grace. Guest preachers were Randy Nelson and Cindy Breeze.
A group of pilgrims walking on the Potawatomi Trail of Death spoke at FMC on June 4, about the trail and their experiences.
Hazel Malekin participated in the Illinois State Special Olympics in June.
On June 11, 49 bells were chimed to honor the Pulse Night Club victims and other victims of gun violence.
The dedication of two Habitat houses, which FMC members helped build, was held on June 11.
Seven people attended the Central District Conference annual meeting at the end of June. Nine people, including three youth, were delegates to the MC USA convention in July. The youth and their sponsors planned the worship service on July 23.
On July 16, Menno Mugs were given to three members who are moving on: Paul Duncum is returning to Australia and Claire and Seth Morgan are moving to North Carolina for more schooling.
July 30 was the 5th Sunday of the month, so a number of people attended breakfast and Sunday School with other churches. Worship service began at 10:45.
Important Events
Births
Victor Peña Martin to Jeronimo and Pam Peña Martin on June 8
Marriages
Joyce Wyse and Bharat Philiph on June 17
MCC Immigration Grants
Is your church working with Immigration within your community? Would your church like to begin working with Immigration in your community? If so, Mennonite Central Committee has funding to help. The following is a list of activities MCC will be funding:
- Immigration Law Training – This is a 40-hour training in Akron, PA. The training will teach the fundamentals of immigration law which will help churches better explain and advocate around the tension in our country right now. The training will also teach skills for working with immigrant communities on their rights and pathways to citizenship.
- Immigration Documentation Programs – The grant will provide start up/support funds for churches who are offering immigrants assistance will preparing proper documentation and helping communities better understand the system of immigration and their rights.
- Know-you-right brochures – If your church needs the know-your-rights brochures and postcards, please contact MCC Great Lakes and we can assist with getting them for their specific communities.
- Trauma Healing Training – If someone in your church or community is interested in taking Trauma Healing Training, the grant will pay for classes in your area. WE have limited spots for this part of the grant, so if people are interested they should contact me soon.
- Translation – The grant will pay to have immigration material translated to Spanish.
- Advocacy Day – The grant will pay for a few people to go to Washington DC for advocacy training. The grant will also pay to bring Washington DC staff to your community and offer a training as well.
These are a few areas in which MCC has funding for local congregations and communities. If you would like more information about these grants, please email Cyneatha Millsaps, MCC Program Director for the Great Lakes Region.
Plow Creek Fellowship Closing at End of 2017 – Hungry World Farm Emerging -by Cal Zehr
Tiskilwa, Illinois – August 4, 2017 – Plow Creek Fellowship, an intentional Christian community established in 1971, a mile south-east of Tiskilwa, Illinois, is announcing the close of its operations at the end of 2017. At its peak the community had up to a hundred participants in worship and common meals. Plow Creek Fellowship has been widely known for its u-pick strawberries and its sales of garden-fresh produce at area farmers’ markets.
Plow Creek Fellowship members shared in a common treasury. It was closely affiliated with Plow Creek Mennonite Church, a member of the Mennonite Church, USA. The Fellowship was guided by a commitment to share life, needs and resources according to the teachings of Jesus and the practice of the early Church as told in Acts 2-4. Peace-making and solidarity with refugees gained the community both respect and criticism. Over the years, many weary city-dwellers took retreats at Plow Creek, appreciating the natural beauty of its woodland trails, starry nights, campfires, and good pot-luck food. Plow Creek Fellowship was the site of several summer camp meetings for Shalom Mission Communities of which Plow Creek Fellowship was a member. One camp meeting in 2008 hosted a music festival with inspiring teachings for more than seven-hundred campers.
One of Plow Creek Fellowship’s most well known members was writer and pastor, Rich Foss, who, for a decade, wrote a weekly column in the Bureau Valley Chief until his death in January of 2017. Rich’s passing, plus the deaths of David Gale and Jim Harnish in late 2016, left only a dozen members who concluded that it was time to close up community operations and pass the property on to another non-profit ministry. This turned out to be Hungry World Farm, an offshoot of Willow Springs Mennonite Church.
Hungry World Farm is a new organization applying for not-for-profit status. It will receive the Plow Creek Farm and transition it into a new ministry utilizing the facilities and farmland. The idea of Hungry World Farm began through local conversations and a review of other farm-based ministries that teach about growing and consuming healthy food. Dennis Zehr of Coneflower Farm, Tiskilwa, and Calvin Zehr, Pastor of Willow Springs Mennonite Church, Tiskilwa, created a proposal which Plow Creek Fellowship accepted.
Hungry World Farm will focus on the following activities: educating people about food production, distribution, and consumption; addressing spiritual hunger in people’s’ lives; training local and international interns in farming techniques; and providing retreats for holistic growth and health. The transition will officially take place at the end of 2017.
If you would like to explore ways to partner in this new organization, or for more information, please contact Cal Zehr, 815-646-4819, hungryworldfarm@gmail.com.
Contact Information:
Mark Stahnke, Plow Creek Fellowship, stahnke1@gmail.com – 19201 Plow Creek Rd., Tiskilwa, Illinois 61368, 815-646-4851
Cal D. Zehr, Willow Springs Mennonite Church. hungryworldfarm@gmail.com – 16621 Kentville Rd., Tiskilwa, Illinois 61368 815-646-4819
Season of change at DOOR
Andrea Sawyer Kirksey the new DOOR Interim Executive Director. Photo provided by DOOR staff.
Friday, August 4, 2017
Denver, Colorado (DOOR Network/Mennonite Mission Network) – DOOR is experiencing a season of change. Effective August 31, 2017, Glenn Balzer has resigned as DOOR Executive Director. DOOR is sad to lose his leadership after 23 years, but celebrates all that he has given to the organization. DOOR blesses him and wishes him well as he also embraces a season of change.
DOOR is happy to welcome Andrea Sawyer-Kirksey as the Interim Executive Director, effective August 1, 2017. Andrea moves into this role after five years as the Chicago City Director. She brought to DOOR her experience as an educator, justice advocate, and program development professional. She has created curriculum for youth through undergrad and graduate levels dealing with issues of justice, inequality, racism, and poverty. During her time as the Chicago City Director, Andrea shared her passion for Chicago, best summed up by the 2017 program theme of “Chicago: Beautifully Complicated.” She challenged all participants to look beyond the surface of the city and individuals to find the richer stories. Andrea has been particularly passionate about raising up local youth of color to be leaders in DOOR’s Discern program and in Chicago.
DOOR is excited to see how Andrea’s experience and passions will shape the organization and its programs.
In partnership with Mennonite Mission Network and Young Adult Volunteers, DOOR is a faith-based network of cities that provides opportunities for service, learning, and leadership development within the urban context. DOOR is an opportunity to encounter the city through the eyes, ears, and heart of God. We are dedicated to providing high quality, life-changing experiences for our participants, staff, board members, and the people in the communities where we are established. Our programming is rooted in the strength of local churches and communities, mutual respect, a culture of welcome and hospitality, and thoughtful reflection. To learn more about DOOR, visit www.doornetwork.org.