We say thanks to YOU for being a part of Nebraska Statewide Reconciling Network!
We REJOICE that some of you are AIDS Ambassadors too! -We have about Sixty AIDS Ambassadors now in NE ! T
Thanks so much for all the volunteering hours and energy!
www.RMNetwork.org www.umcneb.org/AIDS www.umglobalaidsfund.org
Facebook : Nebraska Statewide Reconciling Network Blog: www.Nebraskarum.blogspot.com
WE REJOICE in the RAINBOWS of Hope ART SHOW at Christ UMC Lincoln in June - we hope you can view this show in the GREAT Hall or do one in your church! View it in June before it goes down this summer.
We REJOICE that nearly 200 Rainbow Stoles were given out at the RMN table and three boxes of info with lots of hugs! Thanks to Betty Dorr and friends again!
We REJOICE in the offering of $8,306.07 for UM Global AID Fund at the NE Annual Conference June 3 at morning worship! This is a MIRACLE to help others and help us be transformed! Thanks Bill Black for introducing the offering and all who worked at the UM Global AIDS fund task force table and organized it !
25 % will stay in NE to help with local AIDS projects (see www.umcneb.org/AIDS)
WE REJOICE in Becca Preisendorf, Grand Island Trinity UMC, being the 12th recipient of the NE MFSA Jimmy Creech Profile of Justice Scholarship!
We REJOICE in the news from the Presbyterians, USA on Gay Ordination! (along with UCC (former Congregational) , ELCA Lutherans, and the Episcopal Church!
We REJOICE IN the HEARTLAND STATEMENT of INCLUSION has been signed by 100 clergy in NE and the surrounding area with the Event at the Bob Kerry Pedestrian Bridge Bridge this Wed -- including River City chorus at 6 PM June 15 in Omaha! Contact Rev Jane Florence Pastor : janeflorence@gmail.com
She has a posting about this event our new Facebook about it : go to Nebraska Statewide Reconciling Network and Add friends too!
We REJOICE in the two statements to sign affirming Gay ordination as Clergy and laity : RMN has one on their website www.RMNetwork.org and Church Within a Church has one ( www.cwac.us )
Google the following for the one with CWAC: "End UMC discrimination against Gays and Lesbians": An Unprecedented Statement drafted and shared by 9 black clergy and scholars -- now they want ALL persons to sign on! They have 576 Signatures and invite YOU!
REJOICE : in Don Messer, Chair of the UM Global AIDS Fund, coming to NE last week to share his moving stories on Stigma and HIV AIDS at the NE MFSA Annual Dinner ~!
We REJOICE in Pride events and SING A NEW SONG CONVO this summer - www.RMNetwork.org Go to HRC as they need volunteers : www.hrc.org
We REJOICE in persons who volunteer to keep the Reconciling email going, meetups, support groups! We invite you to give to the Summer Email Offering!
We REJOICE in the UM Global AIDS Fund Task Force nearly two years old this September in NE!
We REJOICE in the 70 UMC Clergy in MN who have signed a Statement to do same sex unions recently (see links in recent reconciling emails or go online)
We REJOICE in the news from Jeanette Grenz from KS East and "Wide is God's Welcome" Reconciling Communicator that all GLBT Petitions to General Conference in KS East Conference passed with an overwhelming Majority! Way to go KS East folks! Did you know that KS UMC has eight Reconciling Communities?
We just received word that the FREEDOM TO MARRY Organization has events planned all over the USA this week and weekend - Evan Wolfson the leader of Freedom to Marry spoke at the RMN CONVO last year on a panel on marriage and spoke at NWU once during the DOMA discussions in NE. See his interviews and about the events planned across the USA June 18 and this week more:
http://freedomtomarry.org/lush
We REJOICE in the showing of the movie TWO SPIRITS this week on June 16 at NET with sharing after by Rev Stephen Griffith:
*/Two Spirits/* will be shown on Thursday, June 16, at 6 p.m. CT at NET,
1800 No. 33rd Street in Lincoln, as this season’s final offering of
NET’s “Coffee and Conversation in the Community” film and discussion
series. A discussion will follow the screening, led by Reverend Stephen
Griffith, Minister to the Community, Saint Paul United Methodist Church
in Lincoln.
*//*
*/Two Spirits/* tells compelling stories about traditions that were once
widespread among the indigenous cultures of North America. Through the
tragic events Fred Martinez, a /nádleehí/, male-bodied person with a
feminine nature, the film explores the contemporary lives and history of
Native two-spirit people — who combine the traits of both men and women
with qualities that are also unique to individuals who express multiple
genders.
http://www.hrcbackstory.org/2011/06/two-spirits-story-of-murdered-navaho-teen-to-air-nationally-on-pbs-independent-lens/
We REJOICE in the UNITY Walk planned in Grand Island June 25 Saturday along with the ETHNIC FESTIVAL: celebrate diversity! Registration is at 9:45 am at 1306 W 3rd Street - the first 100 people receive a t shirt!
WE REJOICE that RUMOLA (Reconciling United Methodists of the Lincoln Area) is 14 years old this summer in Lincoln as an official Reconciling community! Thanks to Liz Bady for doing the email for RUMOLA the last six years - their hope is to attend as many events as possible to support GLBT persons and rights: to take RECONCILING ON THE ROAD and attend events, give support and create safe places!
RUMOLA started with a gathering of a few folks on a hot summer night the summer of l997 and six emails were taken that night -- our whole network springs from these six emails - it was held at Cornerstone the summer of l997 with a small group of folks and a POTLUCK! If you were there that night contact Maureen mvetter@charter.net
We REJOICE that OPEN HEARTS Reconciling Community is five years old this Nov!
We REJOICE that Omaha First UMC has been a Reconciling Congregation for 11 years! They had their 10th anniversary Celebration last summer!
We REJOICE that now we have a Reconciling Main Emailer again in the North Platte Area for RUM's! Thanks to Robert Wheeler for giving time and energy to get set up and start emailing info -- with support from Jo Macintosh! THANKS!
REJOICE WITH US:
1) that we have over 300 RUM's in NE now - Betty and others signed up new RUM's last week : ( Betty do you mind checking to see if our numbers have grown this summer and get a new updated list for a few of us from RMN? ) If you are not an RUM, go to www.RMNetwork.org today and sign up! check out the website too!
2) Betty Dorr, Omaha First umc, PRN contact (parents reconciling network) and friends gave away almost
200 Rainbow Stoles last week at the Reconciling table and created a safe place at the table for questions, support and God's love -- they gave out 3 boxes of info and lots of hugs! Thanks to Bob and Betty for donating the cost of the table and copying for many years! I would guess there has been a reconciling table(s) for fifteen -TWENTY years now - it is time for change in the UMC!
3) We signed up about five or six new AIDS Ambassadors at the UM Global AIDS fund table so we have almost sixty AIDS Ambassadors in local congregations now in only two years! We invite you to sign up as an AIDS Ambassador by emailing Andrew Brackett : andrewb@nap.org or maureen vetter mvetter@charter.net
You mainly 1) promote the offering Dec 4 and other times 2) give to offerings yourself 3) send prayers!
Check out our new URL at the conference website : www.umcneb.org/AIDS
4) We had great offerings for UM Global AIDS Fund with a Special offering Friday morning $8306.07 --Thanks Bill Black, Lincoln Trinity UMC - for introducing the offering! We also had a spontaneous offering after Don Messer spoke at the MFSA dinner totally $900 that is part of the total a week ago - you will hear more about the 20/20 campaign - giving $20 whenever you can : Visioning an AIDS free world by 2020 www.umglobalaidsfund.org
5) Lighten the Burden IV the HIV AIDS conference is coming April 23, 2012 to Tampa, FL and organized totally by volunteers -- it was in Dallas last Oct and we had two people from NE attending - bill and maureen - we would love to have a TEAM go from NE this time! www.umglobalaidsfund.org
6) Sing a NEW SONG Convo is coming this summer organized by MFSA and RMN ! Check it out at www.RMNetwork.org We have THREE people going from NE that we know about : Bob and Betty Dorr, Zach Anderson LET US KNOW IF YOU ARE GOING! Some us went last time and will never forget the singing and spirit of inclusiveness!
7) Steve Griffith, Saint Paul UMC attended the RMN SUMMIT meeting this past year and is reflecting after the movie TWO SPIRITS this Thurs evening at NET!
8) We have collected $120 so far for our SUMMER EMAIL OFFERING in NE : as our yearly commitment of $250 to RMN ministries. Our Nebraska Statewide Reconciling Network (the email network of friends) is an official RECONCILING COMMUNITY in NE along with one in G Island, two in Lincoln and Omaha First umc!
Donors : Lloyd and Joan Byerhof, Cathy Denman for Maureen Vetter's birthday, Wendy and Eric Smith, Jenna and brian, Jim and Donna Lightbody, Maureen and Jay Vetter for birthdays of friends
We invite you to make your checks to RMN and send to Maureen Vetter, 4422 Drake lane, G Island, NE 6880l Maureen will record them and send them on as our NE Statewide yearly gift together as an email community!
9) Becca Preisendorf is the 12th Recipient of the MFSA Jimmy Creech Profile of Justice Scholarship in NE. Becca is a member of Trinity UMC, G island and is headed to Hastings College this fall - she has been taking college credit classes and started the First GSA in G Island this past year with many challenges along the way!
You can see Becca on the Jimmy Creech Adams Gift Facebook - go to - Jimmy Creech Adam's Gift!
This $1000 yearly Scholarship honors a student active in Justice ministry each year and honors Jimmy Creech and his witness among us for GLBT Justice - was given May 31 at the Annual MFSA Dinner in Lincoln at Trinity UMC - We rejoice in the new GSA that was started in Grand Island by Becca! She shared at our February meeting for Open Hearts and was nominated by the Open Hearts Reconciling Community in Grand Island, NE.
10) Go to our new FACEBOOK and ADD Friends! Search : Nebraska Statewide Reconciling Network
11) Go to our new blog for info, Annual conference recap and comments, Events this summer in the Archives to the right, sign onto statements of inclusion, gay ordination : www.nebraskarum.blogspot.com
12) in Pride events this summer, AIDS Walks are coming Sept 18 across NE www.nap.org Coming out Day is Oct 11 - do a meetup with friends, form a support group, do a book share, have a Rainbow ART SHOW
13) in building collaborations with students at NWU this summer for HIV AIDS work
14) in four Reconciling communities in NE, one congregation, email contacts, local contacts and growing a circle of Friends across NE who care about a fully inclusive UMC and creating SAFE PLACES for all God's children!
15) a nearly two year old UM Global AIDS fund Task force that meets again Sept 19, 1 PM at Central Health Center, Grand Island (let us know if you are an AIDS Ambassador and have an interest on the task force or if you can be an AIDS ambassador in your local church, let us know! We need YOU!
Go to our new URL for more info : www.umcneb.org/AIDS for info on NE and www.umglobalaidsfund.org
16) that we have a new Email contact in the North Platte area :
Thanks to Robert Wheeler with help from Jo Macintosh and the Way West folks too : Carolyn Dickinson Scottsbluff and Mary Ellen Kilmer Harrison, NE
REJOICE IN THE LORD ALWAYS - AGAIN I SAY REJOICE!
Maureen Vetter and Wendy Smith, NE Contacts for NE Statewide Reconciling Network of friends
PRN Contacts, Email contact, local contacts and recruit youth and young adult RUM's locally!
COLLABORATE with other GLBTgroups, GLBT Faith groups for Reconciling work, other faith traditions -- Health groups for HIV AIDS : become an AIDS Ambassador, start a task force locally: do a project with NAP in your area, start a testing site at your local church, learn where testing sites are in your area, contact NAP offices and collaborate with them --- GROW the circle of reconcilingfriends doing MISSIONS and reaching out to All of God's Children!
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