Photo right to left: Pastor Steve, Emily Stemper-Layton, Pastor Jonathan, Laura and Tony Mancari (Acts 11:15 Leadership Team members)
Be A Blessing receives a Gift
Small groups were an important component of the former Acts 11:15 ministry of Bridgewater United Methodist Church. The "Acts of Service" small group spent time assisting an area crisis organization and was gifted a large amount of hotel-sized toiletries (shampoo, lotion, soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, feminine hygiene products, etc) that they could not use due to funding guidelines. Some of the items we used for outreach, yet we found there was still a large number of items left over. Then, with the Covid lockdown, the remaining items sat in a storage room, until recently! We reached out to Be A Blessing, a local community service organization that provides toiletries to area schools, among others in need. Emily Stemper-Layton, the co-founder of the organization, told us that school nurses give these items to students in need, and tend to pay for the toiletries and personal hygiene care packages out-of-pocket. She said the need is great in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County schools.
Pastor Steve has encouraged us all to think (and act) outside of our comfort zone and enthusiastically invite friends, family, and neighbors to BUMC, especially for the 'Back to Church Sunday' on September 19th, and beyond. The large "Hope is Here" banner that hangs outside the church not only provides a visual sense of hope and invitation for the BUMC family, but also for the community in which we live and work. Though the Acts 11:15 ministry was suspended, its primary focus was reaching our friends and neighbors (who were not affiliated with any traditional church) with a message of hope, relationship, and community. We are happy to be able to assist Be A Blessing with their service of providing tangible hope to others in our community and we thank them for caring for our local school children!
Be A Blessing receives a Gift
Small groups were an important component of the former Acts 11:15 ministry of Bridgewater United Methodist Church. The "Acts of Service" small group spent time assisting an area crisis organization and was gifted a large amount of hotel-sized toiletries (shampoo, lotion, soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, feminine hygiene products, etc) that they could not use due to funding guidelines. Some of the items we used for outreach, yet we found there was still a large number of items left over. Then, with the Covid lockdown, the remaining items sat in a storage room, until recently! We reached out to Be A Blessing, a local community service organization that provides toiletries to area schools, among others in need. Emily Stemper-Layton, the co-founder of the organization, told us that school nurses give these items to students in need, and tend to pay for the toiletries and personal hygiene care packages out-of-pocket. She said the need is great in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County schools.
Pastor Steve has encouraged us all to think (and act) outside of our comfort zone and enthusiastically invite friends, family, and neighbors to BUMC, especially for the 'Back to Church Sunday' on September 19th, and beyond. The large "Hope is Here" banner that hangs outside the church not only provides a visual sense of hope and invitation for the BUMC family, but also for the community in which we live and work. Though the Acts 11:15 ministry was suspended, its primary focus was reaching our friends and neighbors (who were not affiliated with any traditional church) with a message of hope, relationship, and community. We are happy to be able to assist Be A Blessing with their service of providing tangible hope to others in our community and we thank them for caring for our local school children!