Fellowship Opportunities ...
Social Justice Team Update
Thanks to all who donated food, clothing and personal care items during the month of March, and for your prayers and continued support of the Stoughton Human Services Clothing Room, the United Methodist Church Food Pantry, and the Stoughton Food Pantry. For the month of April, look for dates to be promoted for two events being planned to care for the earth and to help celebrate Earth Day on April 22 nd. The first is Covenant Lutheran Church’s periodic Adopt-a-Highway cleanup event on April 18, which will be especially important after the accumulation of refuse that occurred over the winter months. The second event planned is a service event to go and clean and prepare a park for use this summer. Look for more information in the April weekly church bulletins, or contact Dan Oakland or Curt Hedman if you would like to participate in either of these upcoming events.
Finally, look for a bicycle rack to be available at Covenant Lutheran Church soon, which will make it easier to try this fun and healthy alternative to driving over to Covenant when the weather permits it.
The River Pantry:
To Bring a Message of Mercy and Hope to Those in Need!
The last Friday of every month a few members of our congregation encounter a mission trip to The River Pantry to serve people in need. This pantry and meal site is designed to primarily serve all of the low income neighborhoods concentrated along Northport Drive and the north-east side of Madison but is open to all Dane County residents. They provide pantry assistance, hot, nutritious meals and clothing. No family should go hungry, just because they cannot afford to buy food. We can impact so many lives by giving them hope. Serving the people at The River became an exchange of grace offered to us serving food - in that moment Christ ministered to us through the families that greeted us! Those who go and serve say they want to do it more often, so we offer rides for those interested. We leave the parking lot at 4:15 pm on April 24 th. If we have too many for one vehicle, you may be asked to drive.
Midwife/Hospice Kits – Supplies still needed!
Last year, through your donations of time, supplies and monies Covenant was able to deliver 210 Midwife Kits and 185 Hospice Kits to the South-Central Wisconsin Synod Assembly in May!!! Every single Midwife Kit contained a hand-knit infant cap! In our synod alone 1214 Midwife Kits and 1207 Hospice Kits were donated at the assembly. Following the assembly, the kits were delivered to Global Health Ministries in Minneapolis, MN where they were distributed around the world to midwives and families in need.
We continue to need your help to collect supplies and monies for this year’s health kit ministry. Through the generosity of your gifts and sacrifice, you can help bridge the gap between abundance and scarcity -- the kits contain basic equipment that is readily available to us and scarce for others around the world.
Donations can be brought to the church office. For questions, comments or suggestions please contact Bird Bahnson 205-9790 or bird.bahnson@tds.net.
Below are items that are needed. The items underlined we are very low on:
* Baby caps -- we have lots of yarn available for those who knit and crochet!
* Towels – gently used or new thin cotton bath towels
* Used sheets or yards/bolts of muslin fabric to be cut into 36" squares
* Gentlenon-deodorant soap such as Ivory
* Wash cloths – gently used or new wash cloths
* Toothpaste
* Infant t-shirts – small cotton blend or flannel shirts (to waist only as babies do not wear diapers)
* Receiving blankets
* Hair “pick” comb
* Nail clipper
* Petroleum jelly
* Heavy duty household gloves(kitchen type). Size medium
* $$$ -- with your dollars (which are a tax deductible donation) we have more purchasing power through bulk purchasing
Please pray for midwives and the new mothers that they may feel that they are not alone, that someone cares and that they can welcome the babies into a safer world. Please pray also for missionaries, their health care worker colleagues, and patients' families in third world countries who provide daily care to AIDS victims suffering from the symptoms of a devastating, end stage disease.
We will assemble the kits later in spring (date to be announced) to be delivered to the Synod Assembly in June. Thank you for your support of this ministry. Questions? Desire to help? Please call Bird Bahnson 205-9790
LSS – Storage Space Needed
LSS of Wisconsin will begin to resettle refugees in the Madison area through a satellite office, and they are in need of storage space to store furniture and other items donated for refugees. Ideally, the storage would be:
Free, a donation to the ministry of LSS and refugee resettlement.
- Relatively accessible from the Beltline or the Interstate
- Moderately temperature controlled with a clean floor and free of critters
- Large enough to store furniture donations for arriving refugee families (2000 to 3000 square feet would be ideal)
- Regularly accessible as donations come in or items go out to stock the apartments of newly arriving refugees
If you own this kind of space, or know someone who rents space like this that we could use, please contact Reverend Clint Schnekloth, 608-423-3017, pastor@bminet.com
Dear Baby Cap Makers: Guess What!
The deadline for completing baby caps for the Midwife Kits has been extended to May 1, 2009.
- Thanks to the efforts of so many, we currently have a total of 167 baby caps. Thanks be to God for all of you who are participating in this ministry of love!
- Given the challenge of 300 caps, that means we only have 133 to go!
- Completed caps should be deposited in the collection basket by Covenant’s library.
- The cap collection basket also contains yarn; feel free to take whatever yarn you would like to use for making baby caps. (Additional yarn is also available; please speak with Chris Doll or Carol Brekken if you would like different yarn.)
- Patterns are available under the basket.
Baby cap makers please note: Some of the completed caps in the basket are too big or too small for the Midwife kit requirements. The larger/smaller caps will be shared with a different ministry, so please know your cap-making efforts will always be appreciated.
To ensure a properly sized cap for this project, please follow these size guidelines:
Cap specifics:
- Caps should fit a head circumference of 14 inches.
- As a size guide, purchase a 5 inch styrofoam ball; the cap should fit comfortably on the ball. (Leave the plastic on the ball so Styrofoam doesn’t flake off into the cap.)
- Any knitted or crocheted cap pattern is fine as long as the cap size is correct.
Please contact Denise Pigarelli at 873-0296 (evenings) if you have additional questions about this project.
CRAFT NIGHT - Friday, April 17
This month, the Craft Night activity is a service project SURPRISE!
Time : 7-8:00 pm (note the new ending time)
Location : Covenant’s Fellowship Hall
Bring : Yourself, any school-aged (or older!) children and any friends you would like to invite (children should be accompanied by an adult since they may require assistance with the project)
Fee : None
Leaders : Gloria Hirsch & Denise Pigarelli
Light refreshments will be provided! See you there!
(No sign-up sheet will be posted for this event—come one, come all!)
Please contact Denise Pigarelli at 873-0296 (evenings) if you have questions.
P.S. This will be the final Craft Night until fall. Also, Craft Night will be changing a bit when it resumes—make sure to check the September Promise for details
P.P.S. If you have ideas for future Craft Night projects or would like to lead Craft Night yourself, please call Denise Pigarelli or email: dlwpigarelli@pharmacy.wisc.edu.
TOSO BENEFIT
Almost 800 meals were served Friday, March 6th at Covenant Lutheran Church at a benefit for Tammy Toso, who has pancreatic cancer. Some members of Covenant decided to raise money in support of the family’s struggle. What started as a simple bake sale, quickly evolved into an “all you can eat” Spaghetti dinner organized in just two short weeks. The benefit was developed by Julie Hanson, AnnMarie Lightner, Lori Hedman, and Dennis Hilgendorf. They would like to thank all of the volunteers, participants, and the community, who raised a substantial amount of money for the Toso family In total Covenant was able to raise over $15,000, which Thrivent matched $5,000 of, giving the Toso family a total gift of over $20,000. Norm Toso, Tammy’s father-in-law, showed his gratitude to the diners, by standing at the ticket line for several hours thanking each person who bought a ticket. The continuous line of people included the Stoughton High School Basketball team, Karate America, Employees of CUNA (where Tammy works), Evergreen Bank, former classmates (from as far back as her childhood), friends, and strangers. One of the volunteers, Andy Sarow, commented that “it was heartwarming to see the community come together in such a time of need for the Toso family.” If you were unable to attend the dinner, and would still like to make a donation, you may do so by sending a check to Covenant Lutheran Church - Toso Benefit at 1525 N. Van Buren, Stoughton, WI 53589.
HOSPICECARE
LEARN ABOUT “HELP FOR YOUR AGING PARENTS…AND YOU”
Learn what community resources are available to help you help your parents find the assistance they need as they age at HospiceCare’s next question-and-answer seminar, “Help for Your Aging Parents…and You.” If you are struggling with Medicare, housing or healthcare, find out how to access local resources and organizations and discover solutions for family caregivers who are caring for aging parents, relatives or friends. This free seminar will be held on Tuesday, April 14, 6:30–8:00 pm at HospiceCare Inc., 3001 W. Memorial Drive, in Janesville. Pre-registration is requested; call Lisa Brown at (608) 755-1871.
LEARN ABOUT “HELP FOR YOUR AGING PARENTS…AND YOU”
Learn what community resources are available to help you help your parents find the assistance they need as they age at HospiceCare’s next question-and-answer seminar, “Help for Your Aging Parents…and You.” This free seminar will be held on Tues., April 14, 6:30–8:00 pm at HospiceCare Inc., 3001 W. Memorial Drive, in Janesville. Pre-registration is requested; call Lisa Brown at (608) 755-1871.
HOSPICECARE GRIEF SUPPORT GROUPS FOR APRIL
HospiceCare Inc. will begin a grief support group series and offer two recurring support groups in April for those grieving the death of a loved one. They are open to the public, free of charge and all groups take place at HospiceCare Inc., 3001 W. Memorial Drive, in Janesville unless noted otherwise. Journey Through Grief will be held Tuesdays, April 7 – May 19, from 6:00– 8:00 pm. This seven-week series is for those grieving the death of a loved one . Pre-registration is required. Men’s Gathering is held the first Friday of every month, from 8:30–10:00 am. This monthly drop-in group is for men who have lost a partner. Janesville Social Group is held the third Tuesday of every month, from 6:00–8:00 pm, at the Milwaukee Grill, 601 Morse St., in Janesville. This monthly group is for those who have shared in a HospiceCare grief support group and would like to continue the meaningful connections they have made. For more information about the groups or to register, call HospiceCare at (608) 755-1871 and ask to speak with a grief counselor.
Alzheimer’s Association
SAVVY CAREGIVER TRAINING PROGRAM
The Savvy Caregiver Training Program is an exciting new program option being offered by the Alzheimer’s Association for family caregivers. Taking care of a person with Alzheimer’s is specialized work that goes beyond the usual role of spouse or child. To do this work successfully, you need special skills and knowledge and the awareness to take care of yourself. Savvy Caregiver training focuses on the skills needed to accomplish the principal task of the family caregiver.
This training goes beyond introductory education offerings - it can be thought of as professional-level training for non-professionals.
Join us on Wednesdays, April 15 - May 20, 2009, 9:30 - 11:30 a.m. at the Alzheimer’s Association, 517 N. Segoe Rd., Madison. Cost is $30, which includes 12 hours of training and a caregiver’s manual. Scholarships and respite available. Registration required: call Danielle Thai at 608.232.3403 or 800.272.3900.
Last modified 4/11/2009
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