Any Mission Center events, news, or prayer requests, please submit to Communications and Administrative Specialist, Brooke Schlenker at bschlenker@cofchrist-gpnw.org by Thursdays at 7pm.

Some announcements are posted on our blog - the Chinook - if they're too long to fit in the eNewsbriefs. Be sure to click "Read More" to see the announcement in full.

Prayer requests need to have permission from the subject person or their immediate family and will be included in the eNewsbriefs for three weeks, unless otherwise communicated with Brooke.

Faithfully Funding Our Future

The World Church Leadership Council shared an announcement about a historic investment in the church's future. This was made possible through the sale of the Kirtland Temple, the Joseph Smith Historic Site in Nauvoo, and other manuscripts and artifacts.

A lot of information has come out this week. Below are links to the resources provided by the World Church.



Faithfully Funding Our Future

Live Gatherings: Two Online Worship Experiences

Reflection Videos from World Church Leadership Council

Share Comments and Questions

A Prayer for Healing and Hope

We will keep you updated as more information comes from World Church.

Bridge of Hope Target Reached!

It is with a deep sense of gratitude and joy that I share the news that the Bridge of Hope retirement obligation, about which we’ve been talking for several years, has now been achieved. Please see the letter of thanks from Presiding Bishop Ron Harmon (link to letter here). YOUR efforts, both congregationally and individually, have helped the Western Field meet its target of $12M. I am especially grateful to the members of the Bridge of Hope Strategic Planning Team (affectionately known as “BoHSPlaT”) who for more than 2 years provided guidance, creativity and encouragement in exploring how the GPNW Mission Center could best meet its share of this target responsibly and with integrity. While we still have a wide gap in Worldwide Mission Tithes to close, we can celebrate the crossing of this “Bridge of Hope” knowing we helped secure retirement funding for many of our beloved former church ministers.  Thank you again for your generosity!

MISSION CENTER ANNOUNCEMENTS

The Mission Center has many wonderful camps and retreats planned for 2024! Below you can find flyers to save the date for these events for this spring, summer, and fall. Please share with your communities. You can also find these dates on our Mission Center Calendar . More details about themes and registration links will come in early Spring.

Caravan 2024

See Flyer here

See Registration Form here

Summer Camping: Reunions and Youth Camps

Save the Date Flyer

SPEC

Save the Date Flyer

Racial Justice Week, Workshops, and MC Conference, OH MY!

Check out this save the date for GPNW MC Events you won't want to miss!

Save the date flyer

GPNW North Youth Group Meetings

Here is the schedule for January- March. The Youth Group meetings will be located at either the Auburn or Crystal Springs Congregations.

Auburn Congregation:

Dates: March 19

Address: 31720 116th Avenue SE Auburn WA 98092

Crystal Springs Congregation:

Dates: March 12 and 26

Address: 20012 Filbert Drive Bothell, WA 98012

Contact Jean Cravy with questions and to let her know you will be attending!

cravyjean@gmail.com or 360-969-3188

Caravan Auction: April 13th at the Eugene Congregation

Caravan is looking for items to be sold at their annual auction. Any donations will be accepted. Homemade items are especially welcomed. Contact Michael Jaycox (jaycox.1@osu.edu) if you would like to provide something. We look forward to seeing everyone there to support a great youth mission.

Building Community Retreat: April 19- 21 or 26-28

Registration is open TODAY!

This GPNW sponsored retreat will continue, and go deeper into, our conversations about moving from "congregation" to "community!" The two retreats are open to anyone wanting to further explore the ways we can deepen our relationships with one another, whether beyond our geographical borders as new expressions of Christian community, or within our traditional congregational boundaries. Please join the GPNW Mission Center Leadership Team and guest presenters, Western Field Apostle Shandra Newcom and Gary Farnsworth at the Building Community Retreat.

Help spread the word with this flyer

This retreat is offered in two locations on different weekends.

Cost: $125 per person

Registrations is open!

April 19-21 (Northern Location) at Black Lake Bible Camp in Olympia, WA

Regster here!

April 26-28 (Southern Location) new location to be announced soon!

Register here!

February Climate Webinar: March 17

Come learn about permaculture! Permaculture designer Kelda Lorax is fascinated by how humans within industrial culture can repair and live within the means of abundant landscapes. Her own site is an experiment of food production with minimal harm, waste reduction, smart energy use, etc. We'll show how the permaculture design process can be applied to a church campground, and how to start seeing and promoting solutions everywhere.

March Flyer

Climate Webinar Info Page

2024 Spring Series Flyer

Faith & Formation

Chapter 3 of our Book Study will be moved to share the final week with Chapter 6. We will continue with our normal schedule discussing Chapter 4 of "Witness at the Cross" on March 13th.

New Expressions Mondays in 2024

New Expressions Mondays are co-sponsored by the Greater Pacific Northwest and Rocky Mountain Mission Centers. New Expressions is journeying through the book, "The Art of Neighboring: Building Genuine Relationships Right Outside Your Door" by Jay Pathak and Dave Runyon. On the first Monday of every month from 6:30-8:00pm, we will join on Zoom as we take a closer look at the material found in this book. We hope that this experience will help us go deeper in considering the possibilities of creating New Expressions of Community in our neighborhoods. Though you can certainly participate without reading the book, doing so will help provide a richer experience. To order the book on Amazon, click here:https://a.co/d/dRq6eV8 

To sign-up to receive more information as we get closer and monthly reminders about our sessions, contact Ashley Whitham (awhitham@cofchrist-gpnw.org).

San Jose Center for Peace and Justice at Community of Christ: January 30- April 4

GPNW is invited to join the San Jose Center for Peace and Justice at Community of Christ in " A season for Nonviolence" presented by the Mahatma Gandhi Canadian Foundation for World Peace. 64 Daily practices that makes a difference.

The season beings on January 30 ( the anniversary of the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi) and ends on April 4 (the anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's assassination). Each practice, each day, takes only ten to fifteen minutes and includes quotes, an affirmation, reflections, art work, actions for teens and children, and an inspirational video.

The practices are like spiritual formation exercises and we find them to be of great value. Use the link below and scroll down to week one day one to begin.

https://www.gandhifoundation.ca/season-for-nonviolence.html

Samish Island Camp Work Week: Saturday, April 20 - Sunday, April 28

Samish Island Camp Needs Your Help!

A wonderful opportunity to give back to your sacred space is right around the corner with Camp Samish Work Week! Please come and stay in a cabin of your choice or bring your RV. There’s no charge for coming and being at the camp and we will feed you three delicious meals each day. We even have coffee break! If you can’t come for the full time, come and help when you can.

Participants, please wait to arrive AFTER 2:00 PM on Saturday, April 20, as we have a camp closing that day. We are including both weekends to accommodate those of you who work during the week or would like to come and work for a longer week. 

Our task list is long and varied and there is something to do for everyone. Tasks waiting are mowing and edging, cleaning inside buildings, wood cutting, splitting and stacking, cabin roofing, completing the inside of the rustic cabin remodels, furniture assembly and arranging, trail clearing and brush cutting, pressure washing and lots and lots of painting. Pick and choose your favorite activity. And, of course there’s the fellowship that always attends those of us who visit the camp and our friends who go there. 

We are also still looking for cooks for the week and volunteers who would assist cooks and help, with the food preparation.

If you have any any questions, please call our camp manager, Christine Campbell at (360) 510-5724 or Bill Campbell at (253) 709-8444. We hope to see you there!

See below in Community Connections Section and our

Mission Center Calendar for all events.

Ashley's Zoom Office Hours

Ashley's Mission Center Office Hour will now be Fridays at 10am. The link remains the same. Information is always available on our website: https://cofchrist-gpnw.org/our-staff/ashley-whitham/

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86099130723?pwd=mVx16nQjflXXRzd4Bk0bdBWbjovg20.1

Meeting ID: 860 9913 0723

Passcode: 399665

Lewis River Campground Seeking Creative Summer Intern!

Come embrace the gorgeous pacific northwest woods with the convenience of being 10 minutes from downtown Battleground, WA and 30 min from Portland, OR.

This is a 10 week summer internship program including 2 weeks PTO.

Interns are encouraged to choose an aspect of the campground, non-profit or business to develop and add to their resume and for future references. This could look like leading a community garden, landscaping, running social media, painting a mural, rescuing farm animals, renovating cabins, running the kitchen, life-guarding, etc.

Interviews will be held the last week of March 2024 and 2024 Summer Interns will be announced April 3, 2024

Email your resume and letter of intent to 

lewisrivermanager@gmail.com

Check out our website lewisrivercampground.org

must be 16 years+

Help spread the word with sharing this poster!

Generosity Minister Positions Open

The Presiding Bishopric recently posted two new ministerial positions on the Community of Christ website. These positions are for generosity ministers and have been identified as priorities for the Presiding Bishopric as the church continues to explore how to respond to current missional needs while also searching for strategies to connect with new generations of disciples. These two generosity ministers will work with church leaders and advisory teams to create entry points and missional expressions where new generations can encounter Christ’s transforming mission and respond through whole-life stewardship. 

We need your help in identifying individuals who might have the skillsets and talents to help the church connect and engage with young adults between the ages of 25-45 and adults ages 46-65 opening doors for engagement with the church’s mission that flow into opportunities for generosity. 

You can find a full description of these two positions and the types of skillsets the Presiding Bishopric is looking for at:

https://cofchrist.org/generosity-minister-1-independence-missouri/

https://cofchrist.org/generosity-minister-2-independence-missouri/

Celebrations of Life

Passing of Burt Sargeant

To our beloved church family,

Burt Sargeant passed away peacefully on Friday, 2/23/24, at Swedish Seattle.  

He had celebrated his 90th birthday in January. His children surrounded him with love as he left this world. 

He will be greatly missed by all who knew his kind and generous heart.

A memorial service will be held later this year, (most likely June), location and date to be determined.

He was a regular member of both the Renton and Samish congregations, and very involved with the Samish Island campground.

Any questions can be sent to Burt's son Todd Sargeant at todds@wattenbarger.com. 

Thank you to all for sharing your kind memories and sentiments with Burt's family at this time.

Passing of Paul Hargorve

The daughter of Paul Hargorve would like to share that her father passed away on Thursday, February 22, 2024. Paul was a member of the Long View, Salem, Auburn, and University Place congregations over the years, and I know the church was very important to him. We are anticipating a celebration of life this summer.

ONLINE COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS

Breakfast Club - Zoom Change

Beginning Saturday March 9th, Breakfast Club will use a different zoom link. Join Breakfast Club on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 9am Pacific using this zoom link from now on:

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82127748100?pwd=AFJQ3gA3DFA0GUbqKaAWJadHiUzk1Z.1

Meeting ID: 821 2774 8100

Passcode: 571937

Sunday Evening Online Worships

Click here to learn more.

Community Connections

Join us as Greater Pacific Northwest USA Mission Center and Rocky Mountain Mission Center continue to co-sponsor Community Connections, our New Expression of Community focused on Online Community. Sean Langdon will be the lead for the Rockies and Ashley Whitham will be the lead for GPNW. Sean will continue to coordinate our Sunday Evening Online Worships which will now be feature ministry, and attended by, folks in the GPNW and the Rockies, among other locations. For questions about Community Connections, please reach out to Ashley Whitham, awhitham@cofchrist-gpnw.org

All are invited to join Community Connections for "Music of My Heart", the new Worship Series for our online Sunday Evening Worships. In this series, we use a popular song to serve as the theme for a worship which goes deeper in exploring one of our Enduring Principles.

Upcoming Worship Schedule

Sunday, March 10, 2024

Theme: "If I Could Turn Back Time": Responsible Choices

Worship Leader: Kim Naten

Speaker: Deborah Towner

*This is a Communion Service*

Sunday, March 24, 2024

Palm Sunday

Theme: "Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken": All Are Called

Worship Leader: Tom and Susan Webber

Speaker: Susan Oxley and other Storytellers

To connect to the Online Worship, click here: https://zoom.us/j/841448115?pwd=WDFQTzdIYWpPM0p1MWJyTlF0aHZDZz09

Don't have internet access? You can always call! To listen in to the worship, dial 1-669-900-6833.

Meeting ID: 841 448 115

Password: 043423

A separate bulletin will be sent out the Friday before the service.

Prayer Concerns

Please contact Brooke Schlenker with any prayer concerns.

Beyond Horizons

WORLD CHURCH ANNOUNCEMENTS

To view all recent World Church Announcements, click here.

Outreach International Announces New President

Outreach International announces that Dr. John Herron will serve as their new president and chief executive officer. Founded in 1979 and based in Kansas City, Missouri, USA, Outreach International sustainably addresses poverty-related issues. Read more here.

"Witness the Word" Release

New "Witness the Word" video release today! Watch sermons by Ron Harmon, Carlos Enrique Mejia, and Joelle Wight, along with Disciples Generous Response moments from Carina Lord Wilson, Glenn Johnson, and Erica Blevins Nye on our Youtube channel. Read more here.

8 April Marks 150 Years of the Church Seal

On 8 April, Community of Christ celebrates the 150th anniversary of the church seal, originally a seal/stamp used on church legal documents. After World War 1, the seal began to be used on church books, stationary, and church buildings, becoming the beloved church logo. Read more here.

A Guide to Lent and Easter 2024

This year's Lenten theme, A Hopeful Future Awaits, reminds us that though the call to discipleship leads to sacrificial love through the cross, it also leads to resurrection and new life in Christ. Read more here.

Reunion 2024 Theme

The 2024 Reunion Theme has been released! The theme is.... "Heal the Earth: A Restoration Imperative."

Read more here for the description.