Verse of the Month

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for

and assurance about what we do not see.

-- Hebrews 11:1

Family Resource Center News

On October 1, Rev. Tiffany Hollums, Executive Director, submitted our application for 2.5 years of funding as a Family Resource Campus (FRC). Please continue to pray for the staff as they help the children and families of the Española Valley through this vital program that serves those in great need!

McCurdy Fall Festival

October 31

The McCurdy Ministries’ Fall Festival is right around the corner! Family activities are scheduled for Saturday, October 31, from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. on the lawn in front of McCracken Gymnasium. Community families are invited to attend the festivities, which will include lawn games and kid-friendly activities plus treats for children. Games being considered are cornhole, beanbag toss, sack races, lawn bowling, etc.

It is not too late to help! Local groups are needed to make this event another fun-filled afternoon for kids and their families. Let Rev. Tiffany Hollums, Executive Director, know if you and/or your group would like to help with this great family-friendly event. Contact Tiffany at thollums@mccurdy.org.

McCurdy Family

Christmas Store

During the Christmas season, McCurdy Ministries will open a Family Christmas Store to bless families in the Española community. Families will be invited to come and choose free gifts for their children. 

The Christmas Store will be set up in the Family Resource Center with donated gifts. Families will register on the McCurdy website to receive a special Christmas invitation to visit the Christmas Store for two days in December. The Christmas Store will be a wonderful way for families to have peace of mind and relieve the stress of providing gifts this Christmas.

 

If you would like to be a part of the Christmas magic, bring an unwrapped toy or gift to McCurdy campus by December 6, or visit our website to order directly from our Amazon Wishlist and see a list of suggested gifts by age.

LINK: www.mccurdy.org/christmas

Scrappy Sewing Ministry

The Scrappy Sewing Ministry has a new home in the former After School casita (the house north of the Kidspace playground). Members of the Claremore FMC team finished organizing the rooms and labeled all the shelves and drawers to help sewers easily find sewing supplies, fabrics, etc. in the new sewing center.

On October 16, Frankie Long and Lynn Hall visited with Julie, the owner of the Quilters Corner in Española. Julie graciously donated seven bolts of fabric, which were placed in the sewing center. In addition, Julie gave Frankie the material for three flannel receiving blankets, which Frankie will take home to make and will bring back in May.

Frankie also arranged for Julie to come to the sewing center to service the seven machines that are set up. The machines will be cleaned and oiled so they are ready for the spring rush of teams!

Julie shared that she has some friends that will possibly donate sewing items to the sewing center. She also has a longarm machine that she said she would be willing to quilt tops for the sewers. Julie knows ladies in the community that would love to come and sew in the sewing room. (We witnessed God at work yet again!)

Special note: You do not have to be at McCurdy to contribute to the Scrappy Sewing Ministry. If you enjoy sewing, you can serve at McCurdy from your own church or craft room! There is a great need for many handmade items, including welcome blankets, shopping totes, stuffed animals, or other items to share with friends who come to McCurdy Family Resource Center.  

Beating the Heat, Sharing the Love

Boston Avenue’s tenth mission team brought comfort and care to McCurdy Ministries, our National Mission Partner in Española, New Mexico. In just 2½ days, the team helped prepare the dorm for summer heat—and a warmer welcome for future mission teams. They removed 15 window air conditioners from the Kidspace building, filled the openings with plexiglass, cleaned and installed the units in dorm rooms, and retrofitted three existing dorm units. 

With the donation of a brand-new air-conditioning unit by Boston Avenue Members, Cisco and Sarah Maldonado, every dorm room used by mission teams in the Retreat Center now has an operating air conditioner.

In 2026, Boston Avenue has made three trips to McCurdy Ministries:

• In February a team of 8 members conducted a maintenance inventory and deep cleaning of the Mission Team Dormitory, doing minor plumbing, electrical and window maintenance.  
• In June a team of 14 members conducted a week-long Vacation Bible School as a part of the McCurdy Summer Stars Camp while several team members took on major maintenance projects.
• In October, the team brought a 6'x12' trailer to help transport clothing, sewing items, and five mini-library boxes to McCurdy for the Claremore First Methodist VIM Team. The clothing will be used in the Lighthouse Clothing Bank. The completed sewing items will be used in the Family Resource Center, and the other sewing supplies will be used in the Scrappy Sewing Ministry. The Library Boxes will be placed throughout the Española community as a part of the McCurdy LEER Literacy program. 

Ed Payton

Boston Avenue UMC Team Leader

Tulsa, Oklahoma

Sulphur Grove UMC Mission Team

It was another great trip out to McCurdy Ministries. The beautiful fall weather and crisp valley air made perfect working conditions around campus. Our team had the pleasure of working with the Claremore team from Oklahoma. We cleared brush, weeds, and fallen tree limbs. We also painted inside the aquarium room in the Kidspace, decorated the walls of the LEER library with book covers, painted the curbing in front of Bachman, painted numbers on the buildings to comply with a fire department request, sorted clothes and books, and even painted the front door of Bachman Hall a beautiful turquoise.

During our time off, we enjoyed visiting the Taos Pueblo and the Puye Cliff Dwellings. Throughout the week, we also enjoyed the delicious flavors of New Mexico dining at the local restaurants around Española.

Overall, it was a great week. We got a lot of things accomplished and made new friends from the Oklahoma team. For the first time since 2020, we got to experience a full dorm. What a wonderful thing! So many people all gathered together to do the most we could to help McCurdy; it was fantastic. With so many people, we got a lot of different tasks done and really made a difference around campus. We look forward to returning next year!

Carla Oatman

Sulphur Grove UMC Team Leader

Huber Heights, Ohio

Claremore First Methodist Mission Team

The First Methodist Mission Team from Claremore, Oklahoma, had a bit of an ‘adventure’ traveling from Oklahoma to New Mexico this year. Our church bus overheated in Amarillo, but God took care of us. Frankie Long, our team cook, called a long-time friend who lived only three miles from where we pulled over. Danny arrived and led us to three different mechanics’ shops; however, no one could check the bus until Monday. Danny then led us to his house and called a neighbor to come over to help us. He and his nephew worked on the bus and were able to get it fixed. Praise God! Unfortunately, the problem caused a 5-hour delay to our 700-mile trip, so we decided to spend the night in Tucumcari (which is another story), and we arrived at McCurdy late Sunday morning.

Another amazing blessing was that Boston Avenue UMC from Tulsa had a mission team serving the week before us and graciously pulled our rented U-Haul trailer full of donations to McCurdy. Donations included 3 boxes of school supplies; 5 library stands (made by Nate Space, an Eagle Scout); 8 boxes filled with finished sewing projects, sewing supplies, and fabric; and 25 bags of donated clothing.

Our work throughout the week included sorting children’s books for LEER Children’s Literacy Initiative; sorting clothing; organizing and sewing in the Scrappy Sewing Ministry’s new casita; installing the new library stands; winterizing air conditioner units; and clearing the weeds out of the Kidspace playground. Under the leadership of Frankie Long, we also prepared and cooked all the meals for the Fall Retreat of the McCurdy Board of Trustees.

In our free time, we toured the Los Luceros Historic Site, Bandelier National Monument, White Rock Overlook, and El Sanctuario de Chimayo plus a driving tour of Santa Fe.

I have been leading mission teams to Española since 2015 and am so blessed to have witnessed how God has worked through McCurdy Ministries to help the children, youth, and families of the Española Valley, especially in the last three years. I have truly seen God at work…Praise the Lord!  

Linda Polson, Team Leader

First Methodist Church

Claremore, Oklahoma

Renovating the Historic McCurdy Chapel

In October 2025, Bishop Rapanut presented Rev. Tiffany Hollums with a historic designation plaque commemorating the McCurdy Chapel as the official National United Methodist Historic Site #581. This plaque was installed at the entrance of the beloved McCurdy Chapel. Unfortunately, the plaque has been stolen. We are hoping to obtain a replacement soon and will be mounting it inside the Chapel to keep it safe.

Currently, work has begun to do some minor renovations within the sanctuary so VIM teams can hold worship services in the building. To date, new pews have been purchased and a dropped ceiling panel removed. Stay tuned for more updates coming soon!

New VIM Tri-Fold Brochure

To aid VIM Team Leaders in recruiting team members, a new tri-fold brochure has been created. This brochure is available to download on the McCurdy website. Simply open the Volunteer tab on the website. Below the “Volunteer in Mission Teams” article, use the tab labeled: Share Our VIM Brochure. 

LINK: https://www.mccurdy.org/missionvolunteers

New VIM Display Board

Another great aid for recruiting team members and visually sharing information about McCurdy Ministries is a new tri-fold display board. The materials to be printed for creating the display are available to download on the McCurdy website. Simply open the Volunteer tab on the website. Below the “Volunteer in Mission Teams” article, use the tab labeled: Share Our Tri-Fold Board Display.

You will need to purchase the tri-fold board and large lettering, but all other display materials are available to print.

LINK: https://www.mccurdy.org/missionvolunteers

Questions? Contact Linda Polson at lpolson1966@gmail or call her at 918-855-8783 with any questions on how to assemble the display.

VIM Fundraising Idea:

Host a Trivia Night

A fun way to engage your congregation while raising funds for your next mission week is to host a trivia competition at your church.  Plan a 90–120 minute “Fellowship Trivia” or “Fundraiser Event” using a mix of Bible/faith‑based questions with general trivia. Charge $20-$40 per person or sell tables of 8-10.  Serve some simple refreshments or earn some more mission dollars by selling concessions. And do not forget to reward the evening’s Trivia winners with some great gifts or some sweet treats to take home.

HAVE A GREAT VIM TEAM TIP? Share it with Linda Polson at lpolson1966@gmail.com to help other teams fund their McCurdy mission 

Register a VIM Team for 2027!

Calling all team leaders to start recruiting a Volunteer in Mission (VIM) team for the 2027 mission season. Now is the time to get started in recruiting team members, planning the mission week, and raising mission dollars to fund the mission team.

There is always a wide range of ways to serve. Here are a few of the projects that teams with special skills can help complete:

• painting/updating the adobe color on buildings campus-wide;
• updating the Teacherage for offices;
• renovating the Chapel; and
• installing a new kitchen in Cole.

There also is a strong need for volunteer teams who can:

• help level books for the Enchanted Forest of Reading;
• sort and organize clothing for the Lighthouse;
• assist in the food and diaper pantry;
• sew bookbags and other items for children;
• help in the Gift Shop (especially in the spring when teams are on campus);
• help with the maintenance of campus buildings; and
• help with mowing and maintaining the campus green spaces.

To schedule a volunteer team for 2027, please contact our Volunteer Registrar, Eufemia Romero, by phone at 505-753-7221, ext. 210 or by email at: eromero@mccurdy.org.

To register your mission team, use the links found on the McCurdy Ministries website:  https://www.mccurdy.org/missionvolunteers

Los Luceros Historic Site

The Los Luceros Historic Site is a 148‑acre New Mexico Historic Site near Alcalde (only 9 miles from McCurdy). The site features a 19th‑century Hacienda, an 18th‑century chapel, a Victorian cottage, orchards, farmyard areas, and over 1,000 years of cultural history.

In 1775, “Martín Serrano would gain a land grant of over 51,000 acres, including the land of Los Luceros Historic Site. Martín Serrano would make his mark on the property and on nearby communities, by contracting the building of the acequia madre. The 5-mile-long ditch, fed directly from the Rio Grande, is still used by farms and community members to this day.

Martín Serrano’s family inherited his land, splitting it up among the family members for years until a young descendant of Martín Serrano’s, Julian Lucero, decided to buy his cousin’s shares and piece much of the land back together under his ownership. Julian Lucero would lead a prosperous farm and orchard, with thousands of fruit trees. He was also a very well-to-do individual in his community. Julian Lucero is the namesake of the community and site of Los Luceros.”

Los Luceros is open 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM, Wednesday – Sunday (closed Monday and Tuesday). Admission is $7 for adults and is free for children 16 years and younger.

Basic information is from the New Mexico Historic Sites website.

LINK: https://www.nmhistoricsites.dca.nm.gov/los-luceros/

Financial Support for

McCurdy Ministries

Financial contributions to McCurdy Ministries help support our ongoing ministries and programs that serve the children, youth, and families of the Española Valley.

A quote from Muhammad Ali:

Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.

Please consider providing some financial assistance for McCurdy Ministries by simply sending a check to:



McCurdy Ministries, 362 S. McCurdy Road, Espanola, NM 87532

Or donate by visiting the online giving tab on our website: LINK

Your donation may be designated for any specific ministries or programs by making a notation on your check or when donating online. Please know that all unspecified donations are applied to the General Fund which provides support for all expenses of McCurdy Ministries.

Items Needed for the FRC Families

You can help support the families coming to the Family Resource Center by donating the following items. Every donation makes a difference!

DIAPERS & BABY NEEDS

• Diapers for newborns and for Sizes 1-6
• Pull-ups for 2T -6T
• Baby wipes and diaper cream
• Baby wash and baby shampoo

HYGIENE PRODUTS

• Toothbrushes and toothpaste
• Shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and bar soap
• Deodorant, lotion and razors
• Feminine hygiene products and hand sanitizer

CLEANING SUPPLIES

• All-purpose cleaner and disinfecting wipes
• Laundry detergent and dish soap
• Sponges, scrub brushes, and cleaning gloves
• Trash bags, paper towels, and toilet paper

Amazon Wish List

One easy way to support our vital programs is to order some items from the McCurdy Amazon Wish List. Needed items include toys, sensory items, cleaning supplies, snacks, paper goods, and school supplies. These purchased items help us serve the children of Española.

McCurdy Wish List: LINK

Donate Children’s Books

You also can purchase books online for the LEER Children’s Literacy Program with the Amazon book list that was created to help establish a leveled library. To purchase new books, go to: Amazon Book Wishlist: LINK

New or gently used children’s books can be dropped off or shipped using USPS ‘media mail’ to: McCurdy Ministries, 362 S. McCurdy Road, Española, NM 87532.

Thank you for your generous support

of all our ministries and programs!

QUESTIONS? Email Rev. Tiffany Hollums, Executive Director, at thollums@mccurdy.org. 

Join Us in Prayer

Each Day at 3:20 p.m.

We invite you to join us each day at 3:20 p.m. to pray for God’s guidance for the future of McCurdy Ministries. Our staff, board members, and supporters join together in prayer each afternoon. We pray for God’s help and guidance in providing the ministries and programs needed for the children and families of the Española Valley. Simply take a couple of minutes to join us in prayer every day using Ephesians 3:20 as a prayer guide.

Now all glory to God, who is able,

through His mighty power at work within us,

to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

Here is a fun recipe to try this month! It is from McCurdy’s very own collection, Recipes of a Century Past, published in 2012 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the ministry. The recipe was contributed by Lois M. Coover.

Forgotten Cookies

• 2 egg whites
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup chocolate bits
• 1/2 cup broken pecans

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Cover cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Place egg whites in mixing bowl along with sugar and beat until egg whites stand up when beaters are removed. Do not under beat. Fold in chocolate bits and pecans. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a foil-lined pan. Place in oven and close door. Turn oven off. Get lost and do not open oven door for 4 hours. Remove and enjoy. (I mix them up in the evening and go to bed. In the morning I remove cookies.)

A Prayer for Children’s Safety for Halloween

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for the joy of this season and for the gift of our children. As they go from home to home, wrap Your protection around them — over their movements, their conversations, and their choices. Shield them from danger, guide them with wisdom, and keep their hearts safe from fear and harm. Let them know that You are their refuge and strength, and that no matter where they go, Your presence is with them. We ask for Your guardian angels to walk beside them, and for our family to be united in trust and peace.

In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen

Prayer from https://www.perfect prayers.com/

McCurdy Ministries creates hope and empowers the lives of children, youth, adults and families through education, life skills, and faith-based programs in Española, New Mexico.

Please join us in praying for the children, teachers, and staff members who are a part of the vital ministries and programs of McCurdy Ministries. Ask God to help each of them to feel safe and to know that they are loved by God…and by us!

On behalf of the McCurdy Ministries Board and Staff as well as the families we serve, we thank you for your ongoing prayers and financial support that continues to help so many children and families. May God bless you and yours!

Blessings,

McCurdy Ministries Board and Staff

McCurdy Ministries creates hope and empowers the lives of children, youth, adults and families through education,

life skills and faith-based programs in Española, NM.

www.mccurdy.org