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G R A P E V I N E

MARCH 2014 TRINITY LUTHERAN CHURCH

612 Main Street Westbrook, ME 04092

Karen, Pastor Bonnie, Editor Phone – (207) 854-5653 Phone – (207) 854-5653 Email – pastor@trinitywestbrook.com Email – office@trinitywestbrook.com

Banner by Elsie

Regular hours of Worship 10:30 am Sunday School at 9:15 am for all ages

PASTOR’S  REFLECTIONS

Several Sundays ago, the gospel lesson was about our being salt and light, from Matthew 5. During the sermon I asked those present to write a brief comment on sticky notes that were in the pew racks and then to post them on the poster paper in back of the church. First we were to comment about ways in which we observed people being salt and light in our congregation and then about ways that we personally are being salt and light. It is hard to summarize, but here are some of the main themes about how we are salt and light: warmth and friendliness of our church family; helping the poor, hungry, and needy; prayer group and prayers, especially in time of need; our Sunday School children and teachers; the choir and music; people from Ethiopia, Eritrea, Burundi and other countries; concern for the elderly; Rejoicing Spirits; fellowship and those serving in the kitchen; the weekly Community Meal and all who assist; phone calls and visits; hugs and smiles; caring for the sick; Breaking Bread with our Friends; providing rides to church  and  events;  worship;  Paul’s  Pals;  volunteers  who work hard on committees, altar guild, and ushers; parents who are committed to bringing their children to Sunday School; snow shovelers; pastors and music director. Which only goes to show that we are a tasty and lit-up group of  God’s faithful people. Thanks be to God! Pastor Karen

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Meet Barbara

Barbara grew up in Dearborn, Michigan with four sisters and one brother. Barbara was a 7th grade English teacher in Michigan before relocating to California. Barbara has three sons: Charles resides in California; David resides in Seattle, Washington; and Tim who resides in Westbrook, Maine. She has two grandchildren. Barbara lives at Seventy-Five State Street in Portland. She enjoys sitting in the TV room and visiting with her friends, attending plays and going out to lunch. She loves to have visitors and enjoys Breaking Bread with Friends from Trinity.

Valentine Tea Guests Valentine Tea & 94th Birthday for Emma!

Our Olympic Silver and Bronze Medalist! Choir Birthday Party for Betty Jenny

Baptism of Apollo Ethiopian/Eritrean Choir

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Hear Ye! Hear  Ye!    Don’t  miss  a thing at Trinity!

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT During the months of January and February, in the season of Epiphany, Pastor Karen has been preaching a series on the Fruit of the Spirit. You can find the nine evidences of this fruit in Galatians 5:22-23. Come and see how your faith can bear fruit!

SHROVE SUNDAY As has become a custom, we will once again celebrate the last Sunday before Lent, March 2, with crepes that will be served during fellowship time.

SLEDDING PARTY AND SPAGHETTI SUPPER On Sunday, March 2nd, all children, youth and adults are invited to a Breaking Bread With Our Friends sledding party at the Riverside Golf Course, 1158 Riverside Street in Portland. Dress warmly and bring your sleds, saucers, tubes, or whatever. There is also cross country skiing and snow

shoeing, but you have to bring your own equipment. We will head out around 1:00 after the fellowship time for a fun filled afternoon. There will be plenty of hot cocoa. A hearty spaghetti meal will be served back at the church once everyone is done playing in the snow.

ASH WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5 At 12:00 there will be a brief order of confession and forgiveness along with imposition of ashes. At 7:00 there will be an ecumenical service here at Trinity with imposition of ashes and Holy Communion. The offering will be designated to My Place Teen Center.

MIDWEEK LENTEN SERVICES Beginning Wednesday, March 12 through April 9 at 7:00, there will be a weekly midweek service with the Portland area Lutheran churches. This year the services will be held at First Lutheran on Auburn St in Portland. Trinity will provide desserts on March 19 and Pastor Karen will preach on March 26. DAILY DEVOTIONS Daily Lenten devotions are available online from Luther Seminary. To access the devotions, go to www.luthersem.edu/lent.

ADULT FORM Beginning March 9, Pastor Norm will be leading a 6 week Lenten series on Sunday mornings at 9:15 based on John 16 and 17.

March 9 – John 16. 1-15 The Work of the Spirit March 16 – John 16. 16-24 Sorrow Will Turn into Joy March 23 – John 16.25 25-33 Peace for the Disciples (us) March 30 – John 17. 1-10 Jesus Prays for His Disciples, Glorifying Jesus What is eternal life? April 6 – John 17. 10-19 Belonging and Protecting-What God wants for the Christian community! April 13 (Palm Sunday) – John 17. 20-26 Oneness-Father, Jesus and Disciples (us), Jesus praying for us

(PFN) PENNIES FOR THE NEEDY – Social Ministry chose 13 children from Harrar, Ethiopia for sponsorship. Twelve are sponsored by members of Trinity. One 8 year old girl has not been sponsored. The cost per month is $18 which provides for her clothes, school fee, supplies, food for the family where she lives and many other necessary items. A picture of Berekat is in the

Fellowship Hall. Please consider this mission.

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News from Social Ministry

The “Souper  Bowl” of Caring was another huge success. The Youth of the church and the Social Ministry committee would like to thank everyone for their continued support of this annual program and mostly for the help that the donations will provide for the Wayside Community Meal Program in Westbrook. With your help our efforts raised just over $600 including the partial matching from Thrivent. The funds will help

the weekly meal with much needed items to continue with the storage of food and to help serve the meals. This community program has been a very welcomed and utilized program. The weekly program feeds on average, 150 meals each Wednesday to many elderly, families, singles and teens. The “Souper  Bowl”  of  Caring  is a national program geared to raise awareness of the needs in local communities and to provide a fun way to support these programs. Trinity has been involved for several years and each year our support seems to grow. Thanks  for  “Caring”  and  for  “Sharing”.

Come “Climb  Aboard  the  Food  Train” with  us!!!      We’re  gearing  up  for  this  awesome  event.  Last  year’s  program  was  a  month  long  event  and  raised  over  $2,000  for  the  Westbrook’s  Food  pantry  along  with  hundreds  of  pounds  of  non-perishable foods. This year we are going to extend the program for two months and have plans to change our

“train”  that  we’ll  be  using  for  collecting  food.    (We’re  keeping  it  a  surprise!!!!) The program will break ground in early March and end the weekend of May 16-18. We look forward to having the event become more successful each year as we discover new ways to grow the idea. The Food pantry has been very appreciative of the efforts over the past two years and we hope to surprise them this year with even more support. We are looking for volunteers to help us in several ways. If you are interested in joining in the fun please see Jane or Brenda.  We’ll  need  some  help  to  distribute  the  special  mason  jars  for  local  businesses  to  display.  We’ll  also  be  asking  for  helpers  for  our  “train”  idea  and  with  the  weekend  blitz  in May with the food drive and collections from local churches. Please consider joining us for this fun event. On behalf of the Social Ministry Committee: Brenda, Jane, Pastor, Deb and Kevin

BISHOP’S  VISIT On Saturday, April 5, Rev. Jim Hazelwood, Bishop of the New England Synod, will be visiting Trinity. He is on a mission to visit all of the ELCA churches in New England. He will arrive at 4:00 to participate in the last part of the Ethiopian/Eritrean worship. At 5:00 the entire congregation is invited to participate in a reception to meet and greet the Bishop, followed by a potluck dinner with both Ethiopian and American

food. Bishop Hazelwood will bring greetings from the New England Synod and is looking forward to learning about our ministries in southern Maine. The choir and Sunday School children will be singing. Join us to meet our Bishop! HOSPICE VOLUNTEER TRAINING - Seeking Caring and Compassionate Hospice Volunteers! This special 20-hour training will prepare you to be part of the VNA Home Health Hospice team bringing comfort to individuals and families facing a terminal illness. The gift of your presence for companionship, caregiver respite, and practical non-medical help will be treasured by those you support during this difficult time. Who: Caring volunteers to visit hospice clients; When: Four Fridays: March 7, 14, 21, 9:00 AM–2:00 PM, March 28 - 10:00-3:00; Where: VNA Home Health Hospice, 50 Foden Road, South Portland, ME 04106; How: Call Linda, 400-8714 for an application or e-mail hopkinsl@emhs.org A pre-training interview is required – Call today for more information! GRIEF SUPPORT GROUP STARTS MARCH 5th - Wednesdays, 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM, March 5 through April 9 at VNA Home Health Hospice, 50 Foden Rd. in South Portland. This will be a closed group (same group of people meeting for the 6 sessions) that works best if you are able to attend all sessions. You must speak with Linda to register to attend this group. For more information or to sign up for the group, call Linda, Bereavement Coordinator, 400-8714 or e-mail hopkinsl@vnahomehealth.org.

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THRIVENT CHALLENGE GRANT AWARDED TO TRINITY Our congregation has been awarded an opportunity to receive up to $5000 with a Thrivent Challenge Grant. Money donations made and received for storage space (shed) and freezer for our Community Meal between December 1, 2013

and March 31, 2014 will be supplemented 50 cents for each dollar raised up to a total grant of $5,000. If you would like to contribute, a check can be made out to Trinity Lutheran Church with "Meal grant" on the memo line. ELDA - Evangelical Lutheran Deaf Association would like to welcome all of you to the 2014 ELDA Conference in Chicago, Illinois this summer. Please see bulletin board for more information, including deadlines for reservation. The dates for the conference for the general assembly are from Thursday, July 31 to Sunday, August 3rd, 2014. The dates for the church workers and leaders are from Sunday, July 27 to Sunday, August, 2014. Note: these are the correct dates for the church workers and leaders. Please consider joining ELDA in Chicago! Our conference theme is We Are the Church Together. For more information on ELDA or the 2014 conference, please contact: Linda Fairbanks, ELDA Board Vice President #218-325-4791 (evenings and weekends) or send text message to lindafairbanks22@gmail.com

ON-GOING EVENTS

ETHIOPIAN AND ERITREAN FELLOWSHIP IN SONG AND PRAYER – Our Ethiopian and Eritrean brothers and sisters from Westbrook and greater Portland are meeting weekly at Trinity every Saturday at 3:00 pm in the fellowship hall for a Celebration of Prayer and Praise in their native languages.

REJOICING SPIRITS – Third Sunday in the month at 4:00 pm: Casual and user friendly for those with disabilities or mental challenges. We have a sign language interpreter. Families and

caregivers, as well as anyone else who would like to attend are invited. The next worship service will be Sunday, March 16 fellowship meal hosted by Parish Care.

PRAYER GROUP – Meets Wednesday at 11:15. Many prayer concerns have been lifted up and many thanksgivings raised. We invite all who cannot attend to consider praying with us at 11:15 on Wednesday from wherever you are at that time. There are prayer request cards and a box to place them in after they are filled out on the table next to the office door.

WOMEN’S  BIBLE  STUDY meets the first Wednesday of the month at 10:00am. We would love to have you join us!

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PAUL’S  PALS (Paul’s  Pals  meets  on Sunday afternoons, one Sunday a month at 2:00 PM, to sing at an area Nursing Home.) March 30 – Wardwell Gardens in Saco

SENIOR SAINTS (Senior Saints meets on Wednesday, the third Wednesday of every month at 11:00 at North Deering Congregational Church for Bible Study and lunch. Please contact Mary Ann Gagnon ahead

of time to reserve a spot for lunch. At 2:00 PM, they gather to sing at an area Nursing Home. Wednesday, March 19, we will sing at Falmouth by the Sea.

COMMUNITY MEAL: Every Wednesday at My Place Teen Center, from 5:00-6pm, a free meal is served for anyone in the community. It is sponsored by Trinity Lutheran Church doing food prep, serving and cleanup, with the Wayside Food Programs providing the ingredients. This

Outreach Mission is in need of volunteers on Wednesday afternoons to cook and later to serve or clean up. Please contact Jane Sinclair. BLOOD PRESSURE CHECKS are being offered at the community meal.

THURSDAY NOON COMMUNITY MEALS Westbrook-Warren Congregational Church at 810 Main Street - Thursday Noon Community Meals. If you have questions, call 854-9157 Monday through Friday, 8am-3pm. MENU – 3/6/14 Chicken & Gravy; 3/13/14 Ham & Mashed Potato;

3/20/14 Beef Stew & Cole Slaw; 3/27/14 Chicken with Stuffing; 4/3/14 Roast Pork

To My Church Family – Words cannot adequately express my thanks to you all for your expression of love and concern during the past few weeks. Both Joleen and I appreciated your visits, calls and cards, but most of all, your prayers. They were powerful prayers. With Christian love, Doug and Joleen P.S. The cards from my pals at Sunday school were awesome.

Dear Trinity, Thank you very much for volunteering as bell ringers in support of the 2013 Christmas Kettle Campaign. We are pleased to share that you raised  $419.15  during  this  year’s  Christmas Kettle Campaign. Your donation of time to help others is greatly appreciated. By the efforts of many individuals and groups, over $111,000. Was raised to help those in need! These

funds will be used locally to assist our neighbors in need now and throughout the year. May God Bless You in 2014! Sincerely, Major Steve Ditmer, Commanding Officer

Dear Trinity, On behalf of those whose lives were touched by your generosity this holiday season, thank you for your gift of 89 gloves and hats and 137 toiletries. While too many of our neighbors have no place of their own to sleep, or shower, or make a meal, your generosity has helped us meet their immediate needs and provide hope and opportunity in the midst of extreme hardship. Thank you for sharing in the Preble Street mission and making our work possible. Sincerely, Ray Hepler, Resource Development Assistant

Dear Friends who participated in Alternate Gift Giving - Warm greetings from Lutheran World  Relief!  What  a  blessing  you’ve  shared  with  your  brothers  and  sisters  in  need  around  the world. Whether you choose Honey Bees or Fruit Tree Seedlings, a Goat or a Gravity-fed

Water Filter, Coffee Tree Seedlings or a Dairy Cow, one thing remains true – your special gifts help people out of poverty and into futures of promise. With LWR Gifts, you have indeed helped a person living in poverty

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unwrap a better life.  On  behalf  of  LWR’s  global  staff,  our  partners  and  those  we  serve  in  Christ’s  name,  thank  you for this life-changing gift of $4,286. God bless you. In Gratitute, Jeff Whisenant, Interim President and CEO Thank You From Long Creek - Dear Friends, Thanks so very much for your very generous gift of $629 to our Ministry here at Long Creek. It will really make a difference. Dear Friends of Long Creek, Thank you for all the Christmas  presents.  They  were  wonderful.  If  it  wasn’t  for  you,  children at Long Creek would not have a Christmas. Once again thank you and have a Happy New Year! Dear Friend, Thank you all so much for everything you do for us here at Long Creek. It is greatly appreciated that you make the effort to help us all during such a difficult time of our lives. We are all very thankful. As we welcome 2014, we are humbled by and so very grateful to our community.

KID’‛S CORNER

Knock Knock Who's there?

Irish! Irish who?

Irish you a happy St. Patrick's Day.

FOOD GROUPS

Find and circle all of the Food Group items that are hidden in the grid. The words may be hidden in any direction.

BREADS, CEREAL, RICE, PASTA, VEGETABLES, FRUITS, MILK, YOGURT, CHEESE, MEAT, POULTRY, FISH, BEANS, EGGS, NUTS

FATS, OILS, SWEETS

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A Bit from Bonnie

The Golden

Phone

t seems a man in Topeka, Kansas decides to write a book about churches around the country. He starts by flying to San Francisco and working east from there.

He goes to a very large church and begins taking pictures, etc. He spots a golden telephone on a wall and is intrigued with a sign which reads "$10,000 a minute." Seeking out the pastor, he asks about the phone and the sign. The pastor answers that this golden phone is, in fact, a direct line to Heaven, and if he pays the price he can talk directly to God. He thanks the pastor and continues on his way. As he continues to visit churches in Seattle, Denver, Boise, Milwaukee, Chicago, New York, and on around the United States, he finds more phones with the same sign, and the same answer from each pastor. Finally, he arrives in the east. Upon entering a church, lo and behold, he sees the usual golden telephone. But THIS time the sign reads "Calls: 25 cents." Fascinated, he asks to talk to the pastor. "Pastor, I have been in cities all across the country and in each church I found this golden telephone, and I have been told it is a direct line to Heaven and that I could talk to God, but in the other churches the cost was $10,000 a minute. Your sign reads 25 cents a call. Why?" The pastor, smiling benignly, replies, "Son, you're in Maine now. It's a local call."