August 2017 Vol. 5 Issue 8

Signs of a Spiritual Awakening

I ran across an article I received several years ago at a continuing education event. I believe it has merit as we continue to work toward celebrating our faith as followers of Christ. The article is entitled, “Signs of a Spiritual Awakening.” Here are some of the signs:

-Frequent attacks of smiling.

-Frequent episodes of appreciation.

-An increased tendency to let things happen rather than make them happen.

-Feelings of being connected with each other and nature.

-An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment.

-A loss of ability to worry.

-A loss of interest in conflict.

-Gaining the ability to love without expecting anything in return.

These are only a few of the attributes that come with a Spiritual Awakening. It is a journey for sure, but something to think about as we offer time in prayer and re-flection. We find ourselves challenged as we dedicate ourselves living in the Spirit of Christ, yet this is what we are called to do.

From the Pastor… Rev. Mike Ratliff, Senior Pastor

From the Associate Pastor… Matt Jones

Page 2

I made a point in my message last week that the story of a man dying on a big wooden beam so that we could connect to God, makes no sense to someone without a church background. This brings up the question: “how do I talk to non-churched people about God if that is the story I know”?

First, start with YOUR personal story. How did you come to a point of want-ing to connect to God? What was happening in your life that convinced you to even consider that was something you wanted to do? No matter what the background of the other person, your story is important - because it is YOUR STORY and that makes it matter.

Second, tell them what you did once you made the decision to connect with God. Did you talk to a friend? Did you pray a prayer? Be specific on what you did and why you did it.

Finally, tell them what your life is like now that you have that connection. Don’t make it sound like it is better than perfect (it’s not), be honest. Share the good and the bad.

And after you have shared these things with them, simply ask if what you said makes sense to them, and if so, would they like to do the same? If they indicate they would like to, ask them what you can do to help make that happen. If they ask for prayer, pray for them. If they ask about church, offer to bring them with you. If they ask about something you have no clue about…let them know you will get back to them. Ultimately, it’s about relationships. You to them, and both of you to God, and it’s those relationships that will help us to be a really great church.

Latham has a Presence at Grissom High School Ribbon Cutting

Liz Hall Zeman

Several members of Latham’s church family attended the ribbon cutting at the opening of GHS, our newest neighborhood school. The facility is very impressive,

with phenomenal new courses and programs. Teachers and students seem very excit-ed. The band was practicing, the dance team was practicing, and students served as guides and just seemed to be enjoying the new school. We at Latham are pleased to be a participant in the endeavor with our outreach tutoring, school supplies and teacher support, and general “spiritual neighbor” efforts. Check with Edith Pickens to learn more about how you can be a participant.

Financial Update Rob Terry

Page 3

Year to

Date

Year to

Date

*Revised

Annual

Actual Budget

Budget Activity

Income 359,205 385,962 718,409 Expenses

Program Ministries

Worship 3,820 2,485 7,639

Connect 241 843 481

Communications 15,334 19,258 30,667

Disciple 4,750 3,458 9,500

Children's 1,828 1,287 3,655

Youth 8,483 13,016 16,966

In Reach 1,177 276 2,354

Outreach 4,658 4,538 9,316

Total Program 40,289 45,161 80,578

Trustees

Insurance 18,760 22,142 37,520

Utilities 32,000 20,414 64,000

General Maintenance 30,000 44,257 60,000

Committees 5,000 6,066 10,000

Information Technologies 7,750 6,182 15,500

Parsonages 750 325 1,500

Total Trustees 94,260 99,386 188,520

Staff, Parish Relations

Salaries 171,088 176,055 342,175

Business Expense 6,700 714 13,400

Continuing Education 2,750 262 5,500

Support Costs 41,101 32,344 82,201

Total Staff Parish Relations 221,638 209,375 443,276

Apportionments

Conference 3,018 8,947 6,035

Total Apportionments 3,018 8,947 6,035

TOTAL OPERATION

EXPENSES 359,205 362,869 718,409

Income +/- Expenses 23,093 -

Cash-Ending Balances Operations Foundation

Reserved Fund Account 33,825 254,566

Cash-Bank Account 57,817

Petty Cash 250

Morgan Stanley-Inv Acct 0

Liability Accounts -37,879

Total 54,013

*Original 2017 Budget

requested $ 871,406

Many program expenses

do not occur evenly over

the year-and will show

higher YTD numbers

due to that.

Trustees expenses have

replaced/repaired two

a/c unit to date.

Requested Apportionments

are 10% of total receipts.

We are tracking that figure

and hope to pay all

apportionments by end of

year. However, our BOS vot-

ed to pay this item last due

to the significant reduc-

tion from the original budget

requested.

Page 4

Latham Farmers Market Jane Smith

The Latham Farmers Market is having a great year.

Thanks to our Latham folks for coming out and

supporting your local farmers and vendors. An

abundance of fresh produce as well as meats are

plentiful right now. We always have lots jellies,

goat cheese, and local honey to go with the home

baked breads and rolls. Stop by on your way

home from work and pick up a home cooked meal

ready to take home for supper.

The ANNUAL TOMATO FESTIVAL IS AUGUST 1ST. Neighbor garden-

ers are invited to enter the following categories: Largest Tomato, Funniest Tomato

and Best Tasting Tomato. Local artists & children are invited to enter the art contest.

This multi-media contest theme must be tomatoes. Applications are available in the

church office. Prizes will be awarded to all winners. Oh, I almost forgot…We will

have FREE TOMATO SANDWICHES at the Festival.

The children will enjoy a special treat that day in Farley Hall at 4:00 p.m. The

Huntsville Obedience Training Club’s Canine Co-Motion Free Stylers will bring ap-

proximately 10 dogs who will demonstrate obedience and training by their owners.

The dogs will even be dressed in costumes. You will not want to miss it.

Our farmers continue to tell us how much they love our market and our neigh-

borhood. The Farmers Market managers, Kim and Tom McFadden, the Farmers

Market Board, and our faithful volunteers all work so hard to make the market a

pleasant place to come on Tuesday afternoon.

We are grateful to our church for providing a

place for our local farmers to sell their goods

and make a sustainable living.

Jeremiah 29:5 – “Build houses and live in

them and plant gardens and eat their produce.”

Please join United Methodist Men as we return to our tradition-al Sunday morning breakfast on August 6th. Breakfast will begin at 7:00am, with a brief meeting and guest speaker to follow at 7:30am. We are pleased to welcome Elisa Ferrell, Huntsville City Schools Board President, as our speaker. A mother of five, recipi-ent of the National PTA Legislative Advocacy Award and graduate of Scripps College, Ferrell brings a fresh perspective to leadership on our local board. We are excited for her to share an update on the health of our city school system and what is planned for 2017-2018 school year. You don't want to miss this breakfast! For additional information please call Frank Barger, UMM Vice-President at 256-585-7787 or email Fbarger47@gmail.com.

Page 5

Casserole Ministry is Five Years Old!

The Casserole Ministry was started in 2012 to pro-vide immediate support with a quick casserole for families in an emergency situation (birth of a child, a death, unexpected hospitalization, etc.). From its beginnings, it has grown into a smooth process

with church members providing a casserole suitable for 2-4 people. The process starts with church members calling Marvene in the church office to let her know of a problem with another church member. The “runners” are church members who de-liver the casserole to the family at everyone’s convenience. To date this year, approxi-mately 20+ casseroles have been provided. This ministry is appreciated by the recipi-ents who feel Latham’s concern and care for them. It is also appreciated by the run-ners who enjoy being part of a meaningful exchange with the recipients. A special as-pect this year was the participation of the youth who donated left-over casseroles af-ter their inter-generational luncheon earlier this spring. This church-wide cooperation was heart-warming. To volunteer for this meaningful ministry, please contact Liz Hall Zeman at 256-881-4505.

United Methodist Men Frank Barger

In Reach Ministries Casserole Ministry Liz Hall Zeman

Sunday School Department Marty Bryant, Director

The Sunday school department would like to invite everyone to a Sunday morning small group. We would love to see everyone in a group. We have an average of 160 adults and about 40 youth and children each week. They study New and Old Testament, Bible study series, to online current events topics that are a scripture base lesson. You will see below the classes and room numbers that are offered. So come visit a class!

Agape—Jackie Langhout Room 307

Nativity—Mr. Pat Sinopole Room 310—On summer hiatus

Faith—Howard Trowbridge Room 312

Anchor —Lauren Stiles Room 318

Sey—Fred Clemons Room 320

Genetians—Celia Seay Room 321

Live & Learn—Jane Smith Room 322

Searchers’—Betty Vaughn Room 10

Covenant—Don Beaver Room 14

Fellowship—Al Kidd Room 144

Wesley Class—Bill Barnes Room 151

Kairos—Rev. Damon Nolin Room 167

United Methodist Women Cairenn Martin

Each night is from 5PM to 7PM.

August 13 - Movie Night - bring a brown bag din-ner and we'll bring the popcorn. Movie to be de-termined. For those going into Kindergarten through those going into 5th grade.

August 20 - Family Pool Party @ Byrd Spring Pool. If you are not a member, we will pay your guest fees. Bring a brown bag dinner for your family. We will spring for frozen treats from the pool store. ALL ages invited!

August 27 - Game Night....especially WATER GAMES!!! Wear something that can get wet, pos-sibly dirty and bring a towel. We will bring pizza and lemonade. For those going into Kindergarten through those going into 5th grade.

Page 6

CHILDREN'S AUGUST

FUN NIGHTS

This month we are spotlighting Circle 4. This circle meets on the 3rd Tuesday at 10:00 in the Welcome Center. They take the summer off and will begin meeting again in September. Circle 4 has varied programs throughout the year. In May they usually take a day road trip somewhere interesting and their trip always in-cludes lunch! Their main project is mailing Starbucks gift cards to each Latham college student. They send these cards before fall semester exams and before spring final exams along with letting our students know that they are praying for them. For more information about Circle 4 or our Latham United Methodist Women, please call Cairenn Martin- 256-882-2471.

Outreach Opportunity Doug Seay

Page 7

Dare to Become a Superhero!

Or Superheroine!

Have you ever stopped to think what it takes to be classified as a Super-

hero? I’ll stop the double gender acknowledgement now for brevity; just

know I mean no one short shrift. Well I have it on high authority it

comes from a very few qualities. Oddly enough these heroic qualities have nothing to do with

fancy costumes, media exposure and advertising, or even personal physical attractiveness. To be

heroic the principal requirements just have to do with love, effort, and attentiveness.

Think about it. If you have love and passion about someone or some situation you will want to

do something to help, right? AND if you involve yourself in helping you automatically become

part of the solution, no longer the problem (my Dad always advised me that if I only sit and com-

plain about something I will only be part of the problem, not the solution). AND heroic actions

require some effort on our part and if we put forth an effort we must be attentive to assure we do

it well, which will always flow from our love of the matter.

Well, I contend our greatest problem locally and nationally is the seemingly endless cycle of grind-

ing poverty. It would seem obvious to any casual observer that if a reasonable person just thought

about, he would discover that the good jobs go to those with good educations because they are

better able to make more valuable contributions to our community. In fact elevating the level of

educational performance in the community would elevate the employment likelihood (decrease the

unemployment numbers) for those in the community, raising the productivity of the community

overall, thereby increasing the general wealth and living standard of the community overall!

So, if you contribute to this growth in educational performance you uplift the entire community.

NOW, that’s what I call a SUPERHERO! You might ask “how can I actually do this?“ I’m so

glad you asked. Help a young child as he is getting started in school. The best grade level seems

to be the third grade. Children learn to read up through the third grade; afterward they must read

to learn! AND there is a hugely easy and comfortable way you can do just this – volunteer as a

tutor at Morris P-8 School with the Latham UMC Panda’s Progress tutoring program.

Joining is easy because the in-roads have already been made for you. It is comfortable because some of your Latham friends are already there to greet you and answer any questions you may have. After school tutoring is conducted each Monday and Tuesday from 2:30 till 3:45pm, so, it’s only a couple of hours out of your week. Not a bad trade to become a SUPERHERO! BUT the rewards don’t stop there, you will receive the chance to meet and really get to know a child from a different neighborhood and maybe whose outlook I different and just might enlighten you some-what regarding his background, etc.

Continued ͢

Outreach continued

We welcome a new preparatory member to our congregation, even though he has been at Latham for a couple of years. Justin Springer was baptized at Latham on July 9th at the Orchard Service. Justin will be a 6th grader this fall at Mountain Gap Middle School, where he really likes reading but feels his best subject is math. He is active in the Boy Scout Troop 364 that meets at Latham. His other interests are basketball, football, Math Team and the Greenpower Team. He would like to eventually join the school track team.

When he goes to college, Justin would like to study to be an engineer or an architect, which makes sense because in his free time he loves building things with Legos. He also likes to play games with his brothers, play board games, read and go to the library. His fa-vorite vacation spot is the mountains of North Carolina.

Page 8

Preparatory Member’s Moment Susan Terry

The children just warm your heart. One child I tutored throughout the third grade seemed to

make no progress regardless of my wisdom, charm and personality. Along the way I learned that

his difficulty learning stemmed in part from a behavioral and chemical imbalance in his body. I

was too foolish to appreciate what this really meant, but I noticed that he began to improve (only

slightly, then more so) as his medications dosages were adjusted again and again. A year or two

later he flagged me down in the hallway to tell me that he had tested total proficient on all the

standardized tests this year – a HUGE improvement. After I congratulated him he said well it’s

not me it was you. (www…What you say? I felt I had been a total failure for him.) But, I

thought about it days later and decided I did pay some small role in his turnaround. I was there;

I did try to be friendly and encouraging and I did talk to his repeatedly about the mystery that I

saw from my myopic perspective.

I think that’s a problem with what the Greeks called agape – the kind of love that prompts you

to something for someone with no hope for reward, maybe someone you feel you barely know.

Sometimes you just don’t know the value of what you do for years later, maybe never, that’s just

the way God made this old world. So, please come join our SUPERHERO team at Morris P-8

School.

Doug Seay

256-883-7108 or 256-679-5714

dougseay@comcast.net

Outreach Opportunity Tutoring, Gene Wells

Page 9

LATHAM TUTORING PROGRAM – HELP FOR CHILDREN

Latham has had on ongoing tutoring program for over 20 years to help students of all

ages in the local area to excel in their educational efforts, but more importantly to feel

good about themselves knowing that there are people who care about them. As most

of us are aware, school can be a terrifying and demoralizing experience when grades

are low and stress is high. Our goal at Latham is to help each student with those bur-

dens by letting them know that we care and want to help. The only requirement for

the job is that you wish to help students in any way possible. This can be shown in

activities as simple as basic reading assistance. At Latham we attempt to match the

tutor’s area of strength with the student’s needs. Please note that no one will be

asked to tutor an area in which they do not feel comfortable. Our past and present

tutors have come from many professions (salesmen, librarians, engineers, teachers,

etc.) and I believe they have all had a rewarding experience knowing that they have

helped in even the smallest way. The reason for this article is that Latham is begin-

ning an outreach to Grissom High School (GHS) in response to their move into our

neighborhood. One area of this outreach is tutoring assistance. This will increase

our need for tutors. Additional support will be needed in 2 areas:

1. Tutors to help students on one evening a week – This support is to enhance our current evening program for all students/ages/schools.

2. Reading tutors to assist at GHS from 11 to 12 on weekdays-This support is provided at GHS and is limited to remedial reading assistance for 1 hour per day.

NOTE: Tutors do not have to be expert in all areas. We have students from almost

all age groups, so even basic reading or math assistance will greatly help these chil-

dren.

If you can help with either of these programs,

even on a part time basis, please contact

Gene Wells (gwells@knology.net).

Thanks for helping our students

through this ministry.

Featuring Lyn Sheehan

Lyn Sheehan was born in Balboa Naval Hospital in San Diego, California, the oldest of four girls. Af-ter the navy, her dad joined NASA, and so Lyn grew up in New Mexico, California, Maryland, Alaska, Madagascar, and Georgia! She graduated from Tift College (later Mercer College) with a degree in jour-nalism. After obtaining a Masters in Religious Edu-cation from a Baptist seminary in Ft Worth, Texas, she was the feature writer for a state-wide Baptist monthly newspaper.

She met Dave at a set-up meeting (unbeknownst to either of them) and were married nine months later. Dave became a Methodist minister with appointments in various smaller towns in Louisiana. They have a daughter and a son. While serving the many roles of a minister’s wife, Lyn also worked on various newspapers and magazines, served as a museum secretary and “Girl Friday”, and was the branch manager of a library.

Two more interesting facts about Lyn: She was in Alaska during the big 1964 earth-quake and during the 1967 hundred-year flood. When the family lived in Madagascar, Lyn went to a boarding school 500 miles away from her family in order to obtain a quali-ty education.

Lyn likes LUMC for its many caring people, Sunday school classes, and the support of the health ministries (especially the Alzheimer’s group). Her favorite lessons learned include: 1) “Be flexible; plans don’t always work out.” 2) “People don’t always have your perspective!” Lyn is currently the in-home caregiver for her husband and her par-ents.

Thank You

Page 10

Member’s Moment Liz Hall Zeman

My son and I want to thank the members of Latham UMC who provided meals and loving support to us during Rosemarie's recent illness. The meals could not have come at a better time. So many brought us meals that we lost count of every-body but please be aware that we really did need them and appreciated them very much.

Buddy Bishop

Children’s Ministry Susan Terry

Page 11

Cookie Class

Some of our Latham kids, ages 4 through 2nd grade, met in July to bake and decorate cookies for our 25 Latham home-bound members. They also made some beautiful cards to go with the cookies. We love our homebound members and thank those in the In-reach Ministry that check on them.

Page 12

Children’s Ministry Susan Terry

Sewing Class

This class was a first for us and we had a blast! Three of the children were not from Latham but came to us through the Farmer's Market and from friends of Latham members. With the help of some awesome women, the kids made their first aprons AND they can't wait to sew some more. Many thanks to Pat Sinepole, Gina Smith, Sandy Ekstrom, Windy Geisinger, and Mary Ellen Vaughn.

WE WELCOME RACHEL MISHEFF TO LATHAM U.M.C.

Rachel Misheff is a pianist and organist from Georgetown, Kentucky. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Eastern Kentucky University in 2017, with a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance and a Minor in French Studies. During her thirteen years of musical study, Rachel has participated in numerous recitals and concerts, as well as in competitions across the southeastern region. In 2016, Rachel was the winner of the EKU Concerto Competition and performed Saint Saens’ Pi-ano Concerto No. 2 in g minor with the EKU Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, she has received awards in the KMTA Bluegrass Piano Competition Young Artist Division, and in the Ashland Memorial Piano Competition. Rachel has received scholarships to study at the Montecito International Music Festival and the Indiana University Piano Academy, two highly selective summer music pro-grams, and has been invited to perform in masterclasses with distin-guished faculty. She has worked as as an accompanist and as a private instructor for the Richmond Area Arts Council and the Foster Acade-my of Musical Excellence. Rachel is an alumna of Sigma Alpha Iota, a professional music fraternity for women. In addition to piano and or-gan, she is also an accomplished saxophonist. Rachel recently moved to Huntsville to be closer to her boyfriend and plans to earn her Mas-ters degree in the future. Currently, her favorite thing about Huntsville its support of the arts and its plentiful amount of food trucks. In her free time, Rachel enjoys crafting, hiking, reading, and spending time with her cat and two dogs.

Outreach Ministry Doug Seay

Page 13

1

Pat Denholm

Jennifer Rutledge

2

Larry Weaver

Adam Vosahlik

Amelia Langston

4

Marrin Espy

Margaret Gatherer

5

Heath Thorson

6

Lori Cole

7

Bob Shipman

Pat Wyne

8

Ray Mitchell

9

Lorin Arnold

Keith Welch

10

Faye Cook

Sarah Lewis

11

Chris Rose

Luke Emerson

Page 14

Happy August Birthday

12

Aimee Yost

Melissa Boyett

13

Ginny Bentley

George Pugh

Joyce Smith

Bobby Clark

14

Neal Porter

Ann Simpson

Sara Robinson

Elizabeth Jones

Jeff Langhout

15

Nancy Carmichael

Jacob Porter

16

James Ryan

Al Bellingrath

17

Rhonda Ryan

18

Dorcas Pilgreen

Ramelle Holder

19

Jean Johnson

20

Robert Langhout

22

George Bracey

Porter Worsham

23

Joey Anderson

Will Simmons

Sylvia Mitchell

24

Ken Stephens

Blake Judy

25

Patrick Sinopole

Peter Loveman

26

Bill Vosahlik

Rich Broughton

27

Michele Gray

28

Alice Shipman

Brian Flynn

29

Kelly Brewer

Pat Killingsworth

31

Phil Ryan

If your birthday

was not listed in

the appropriate

month or date,

please contact

the church of-

fice to make

sure we have

your correct

birth date. We’d

like to honor

you during your

special month!

August 2017

Page 15

1

10a Alzheimer’s

Support Group

3p Farmer’s Market

2

9a Bob Ross Paint-

ing class

1:30p Wesley Singers

6p Bible Study

6p Body Scouts

6:30p Bible Study

3

8:30a Bend &

Stretch

4 5

6

7a UMM

Breakfast &

Program

5p Youth Group

7

8:30a Bend &

Stretch

8

9:30a Circle 3

3p Farmer’s

Market

6:30p Lay Lead-

ership

9

1:30p Wesley

Singers

6p Bible Study

6p Boy Scouts

6:30p Bible

Study

10

8:30a Bend &

Stretch

10a In Stitches

11 12

13

8:30aBlood

Pressure Check

830a Food Pan-

try Sunday

5p Youth Group

14

8:30a Bend &

Stretch

2p Jo Walton

Literary Group

15

3p Farmer’s

Market

16

1:30p Wesley

Singers

6p Bible Study

6p Boy Scouts

6:30p Bible

Study

17

8:30a Bend &

Stretch

10:30a Elderber-

ry Board Mtg.

11:30a Elderber-

ry Luncheon &

Program

18

19

20

5p Youth Group

21

8:30a Bend &

Stretch

22

3p Farmer’s

Market

23

9:30a UMW

Board Mtg.

1:30p Wesley

Singers

6p Bible Study

6p Boy Scouts

6:30p Bible

Study

24

8:30a Bend &

Stretch

10a In Stitches

25 26

27

5p Youth Group

28

8:30a Bend &

Stretch

7p Circle 7

29

3p Farmer’s

Market

30

1:30p Wesley

Singers

6p Bible Study

6p Boy Scouts

6:30p Bible

Study

31

8:30a Bend &

Stretch

6p Backpack

Food Packing

Party

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

SUNDAY SERVICES

8:30a Holy Communion Service

9a Contemporary Service

10a Sunday School Small Groups

11a Traditional Service

109 Weatherly Road

Huntsville, AL 35803

Phone: 256-881-4069

Fax: 256-880-0305

On the web: lathamumc.org

Connect with the Staff

Rev. Mike Ratliff, Senior Pastor

Matt Jones, Associate Pastor

Susan Terry, Minister of Connect & Children’s Ministries

Youth Ministry

Jim Geisinger, Associate Music Director

Marvene Borntrager, Staff Coordinator for Inreach

Anita Banks, Business Administrator

Traci Harris, Director of Child Development Center

Eleanor Hollobaugh, Pianist

Rachel Misheff, Organist

Michael Bryant, Custodian

mikeratliff@lathamumc.org

mattjones@lathamumc.org

susanterry@lathamumc.org

lathamumcyouth@gmail.com

jim.geisinger@yahoo.com

office@lathamumc.org

admin@lathamumc.org

lumcdc@lathamumc.org

Latham United Methodist Church

1st Sunday Chancel Rail Offering

Gifts were given to the Buchanan Scholarship

fund in memory of…

Rosemarie Bishop by Bob & Alice Shipman

Rosemarie Bishop by Wes & Gina Smith

Gifts were given to the Lillie Latham Scholarship

fund in memory of…

Rosemarie Bishop by Phil & Rhonda Ryan

Rosemarie Bishop by John & Carolyn Glaese

Gifts were given to the Memorial fund in memory

of …

Rosemarie Bishop by Don & Ramona Bowden

Rosemarie Bishop by Ben & Kathy Blanchard

Rosemarie Bishop by Cal Blevins

Rosemarie Bishop by Tom & Kim McFadden

Gifts were given to the Music fund in memory of . .

Rosemarie Bishop by Damon Nolin

Rosemarie Bishop by Bill & Maureen Lokken

Rosemarie Bishop by Laura Rau

Memorial Contributions

Every 1st Sunday, contributions left in baskets or

chancel rail during communion will go to the

Pastor’s Discretionary Fund which is used to help

people that need assistance through Huntsville

Assistance Program, and to provide children’s

lunches at our local schools.