“Resurrection Hope” is

the theme of the 2014

Ohio Conference Annual

Conference Assembly

(ACA), which will take

place March 7-8 on the

campus of Bluffton Uni-

versity. The theme is

based on Luke 24.

This year the Friday evening

worship service will feature a

presentation of “Laughter is

Sacred Space” by Ted & Co.

The Saturday worship service

will feature Conference Min-

ister Tom Kauffman as speak-

er.

Registration for ACA will

begin Friday at noon in the

Marbeck Center, and the first

of four business sessions will

begin at 1:15 p.m. A special orientation session for new

delegates will be held from

12:30 to 1 p.m. ACA will

conclude at 4 p.m. Saturday

after the final business ses-

sion.

In addition to business ses-

sions, ACA will include two

worship sessions, special

Bluffton University to host 45th Annual Conference Assembly

‘Resurrection Hope’ is Assembly theme

Ohio Conference is sponsor-

ing its second Ohio Youth

Event June 27-29 at Bluffton

University. The theme will be

“Wastefully Extravagant: The

Parable of the Lost Son,”

based on Luke 15.

Confirmed speakers include

Doug Zehr, pastor at Oak

Grove Mennonite Church in

Smithville; Anita Hooley

Yoder, student at Bethany

Theological Seminary; and

Preston Yoder, pastor of

Cornerstone Mennonite Fel-

lowship in Plain City.

The Ohio Youth Event will

include times for worship,

workshops, recreation, small

group discussions and late-

night activities.

The early bird registration fee

for this event is $80 per per-

son for Ohio Conference

youth and sponsors. (Youth

and sponsors from outside

the Conference are also wel-

come to attend at a slightly

higher registration rate.) See

www.ohiomennoniteconferen

ce.org for more information.

One hundred youth and

sponsors attended the first

Ohio Youth Event at Bluffton

University June 29-July 1,

2012. �

Ohio Youth Event coming in June

JAN/FEB 2014

2 Editorial

Coordinator of volunteers takes

new position

3 ACA schedule

4 ACA workshops

Pastor-spouse

retreat

5 Ramseyer triplets

6 Conference

minister musings

7 The 80/20 rule

8 Resource corner

9 Donation for new

curriculum

10 About people

12 Back page

briefings

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

Ted Swartz of Ted & Co.

will perform “Laughter is

Sacred Space” during the

Friday evening worship

service at Annual Confer-

ence Assembly.

Con#nued on page 3

VOL. LXVIII, NO. 1

JAN/FEB 2014

Editor: Ann H. Leaman

Ohio Mennonite Evangel

(USPS 404-500) is pub-

lished six times per year

by the Ohio Confer-

ence of Mennonite

Church USA, Box 210,

Kidron OH 44636,

telephone (330) 857-5421.

All material for publication

should be submitted to the

editor at 5854 Sunland St.

NE, Louisville OH 44641, or

via telephone:

(330) 453-0150, or e-mail:

ohioevangel@earthlink.net,

one month prior to desired

publication date.

Ohio Mennonite Evangel is

distributed to all households

of Ohio Conference congre-

gations, other interested

individuals and church agen-

cies.

Ohio Mennonite Evangel is

printed at Carlisle Printing,

2673 TR 421 Sugarcreek OH

44681.

Send subscription information

and address changes to the

editor at 5854 Sunland St.

NE, Louisville OH 44641.

Periodical postage paid at

Sugarcreek OH 44681.

“To catch the reader's attention, place an interesting

Coordinator of Volunteers to take new job in Va.

Meeting Jesus along the road As I look at Luke 24, the

scripture passage which will

be the focus of our next

Annual Conference Assem-

bly, my attention tends to

be drawn to the story of

the disciples traveling on

the road to Emmaus.

These disciples had just

gone through a very trau-

matic series of events, in-

cluding the public execution

of Jesus. Then soon after-

ward they heard a perplex-

ing report that Jesus’ tomb

had been found empty. As

they walked, they talked

about the things they had

seen and heard, trying to

process these events.

As they traveled, they cer-

tainly didn’t expect to meet

Jesus, so it doesn’t seem

extremely surprising to me

that it took them so long to

recognize him. But Jesus did

meet them on the road,

and because they were

willing to listen, he was able

to explain many things that

Moses and the prophets

had said about the Messiah.

It strikes me that often-

times today many of us

(including me) also are not

expecting to see Jesus as

we go about our daily lives.

It’s easy to jump into action

without taking time to

study, reflect and listen to

the Spirit’s promptings. But

being grounded in a rela-

tionship with Jesus can

make all the difference in

how we live our lives.

The disciples traveling to

Emmaus thought they knew

a lot about the life and

death of Jesus, but Jesus

had so much more to teach

them. As many of us pre-

pare to meet together in

Bluffton for Annual Confer-

ence Assembly, my prayer

is that we will be open to

meeting Jesus as we travel

through our daily lives.

— ahl

Personnel of the Ohio Conference of Mennonite Church USA

Moderator: Dean Beck — deanjean5656@gmail.com

Assistant Moderator: Rachel Kauffman — kauff5r@kauffmanfamily.net

Conference Minister: Tom Kauffman — ohconfmin@gmail.com

Credentialing Ministry Chair: Naomi Engle — pastornaomiengle@juno.com

Gifts Discernment Ministry Chair: Delmar Hostetler — hostetlerd@firstenergycorp.com

Stewardship Minstry Chair: Lois Bontrager — Lois.Bontrager@everence.com

Regional Pastor: Ralph Reinford — ralphreinford@gmail.com

Regional Pastor: Wanda Stopher — wstopher@gmail.com

Administrative Secretary: Judy King — ohmc@zoominternet.net

Finance Coordinator: Stan Helmuth — cboh1@zoominternet.net Coordinator of Volunteers: Sherah-Leigh Gerber — shergerber@gmail.com

Conference Editor: Ann Leaman — ohioevangel@earthlink.net

through VMM and enhanc-

ing the base of faith and

finances for VMM’s minis-

tries.

Sherah-Leigh joined the

Ohio Conference staff in

April 2009, coordinating

Conference projects and

volunteers. She will con-

clude her work with the

Ohio Conference at the

end of January.

See Virginia Mennonite

Missions’ website at http://

vmmissions.org/2013/12/

new-staff-members-

announced/ for more infor-

mation about Sherah-

Leigh’s new venture. �

Ohio Conference Coordi-

nator of Volunteers Sherah-

Leigh Gerber will be taking

a position as Advancement

Director for Virginia Men-

nonite Missions (VMM)

beginning March 1. In this

role she will lead the Ad-

vancement Team in com-

municating God’s work

Jan/Feb 2014 | Page 2

Annual Conference Assembly times for prayer, workshops

and displays, as well as special

breakfasts on Saturday hosted

by Ohio Mennonite Women

and Mennonite Men. Ravonn

Kauffman of Bluffton will be the

featured speaker the Ohio

Mennonite Women breakfast,

sharing about spiritual calligra-

phy. Dan King, pastor of Beech

Mennonite Church in Louisville,

will be the speaker at the Men-

nonite Men’s breakfast, sharing

reflections on the topic “What

is a Spiritual Man?”

A new feature of this year’s

ACA is a Prayer Path, which is

being planned by Ohio Confer-

ence Prayer Coordinator Dana

Short. The Pray-

er Path will give

attendees a

chance to walk a

path of prayer

based on the

Emmaus story

from Luke 24.

While journey-

ing on the Pray-

er Path, partici-

pants will have

opportunities to

interact with God through the

scripture passage at stations set

up along the way.

This year those attending ACA

are encouraged to donate items

for the Churches United Food

Pantry, which is located in Lima.

Requested items include peanut

butter and dry (not canned)

spaghetti. There will be a col-

lection box for these items in

the registration area of the

Marbeck Center.

More information about ACA

and a registration form are

available on the Ohio Confer-

ence website:

www.ohiomennoniteconference

.org. The website also has a link

to online registration.

This year, participants have the

option to pay one complete

registration fee for the entire

Assembly. The $85 registration

fee covers the cost of day fees,

workshops, Friday supper, the

Mennonite Men or Ohio Men-

nonite Women breakfast, Sat-

urday lunch and a ticket for the

Ted & Co. performance on

Friday night.

Those who prefer to register

for each item separately may do

so. Workshops and the Ted &

Co. performance are open (for

a fee) to individuals not regis-

tered for ACA. Please register

by Feb. 21. After that date, the

registration fee increases by

$15 per person. �

Jan/Feb 2014 | Page 3

Friday, March 7 Noon Registration Begins 12:30-1 p.m. Orientation Session for New Delegates 1:15-3 p.m. Business Session #1 3-3:45 p.m. Poster Sessions and Displays with Snacks 3:15-3:45 p.m. Conference Spending Plan Q and A 3:45-5 p.m. Business Session #2 5:15-5:45 p.m. Workshops/Displays 6:15-7:15 p.m. Dinner 6:15-7:15 p.m. Pastor Appreciation Meal (by invitation) 7:30-8:45 p.m. Worship #1 — “Laughter is Sacred Space” presented by Ted & Co. Saturday, March 8 7-8 a.m. Ohio Mennonite Women’s Breakfast 7-8 a.m. Mennonite Men’s Breakfast 8:10-8:25 a.m. Prayer Time 8:30-10 a.m. Business Session #3 10-10:45 a.m. Poster Sessions and Displays with Snacks 10:45 a.m.-noon Worship #2 12:15-1:10 p.m. Lunch 12:15-1:10 p.m. Women in Ministry Luncheon 1:10-2:10 p.m. Workshops/Displays 2:15-4 p.m. Business Session #4

Annual Conference Assembly schedule

Con#nued from page 1

In addition to business sessions

and worship services, the Ohio

Conference Annual Conference

Assembly at Bluffton University

will include times for work-

shops. On Friday, March 7,

workshops will take place at

5:15 p.m., and on Saturday,

March 8, workshops will be

offered at 1:10 p.m.

Workshops are open to those

who are not registered for An-

nual Conference Assembly.

There is a fee of $10 per work-

shop for persons not registered

for the Assembly. The following

workshops are planned:

Dare to Dream: Welcom-

ing and Supporting Unau-

thorized Immigrants — Paul

Weaver, professor, and Luz

Varela, student at Bluffton Uni-

versity

Dreaming Beyond the

(Annual) Budget: Legacy

Gifts Planning for the Con-

gregation — David Miller and

Vyron Schmidt, representatives

from Everence Financial

Exploring the Lyrical Lan-

guage of Anabaptist Gos-

pelization — Rick Stoner,

associate pastor, Bethel Men-

nonite (West Liberty)

Giving Them the Good

News: Preaching in a Post-

Literate Age — Dave Maurer,

pastor, Bethel Mennonite

(West Liberty)

Healthy Crucial Congrega-

tional Conversations —

Terry Shue, MC USA denomi-

national minister

Making History OUR Story:

How Rootedness in Ana-

baptist History Can Effec-

tively Shape the Future

Story of Your Congregation

— Alex Dye, youth pastor, Oak

Grove Mennonite (West Liber-

ty)

The Necessity for a Con-

gregational Vision and

Strategy — David Eshleman,

pastor and church planter

New Abolition Movement:

Human Trafficking — Mari-

lyn Rossiter, pastor, Summit

Mennonite

New Wineskins: Evaluating

Your Congregational Struc-

ture — Gary Martin, transi-

tional pastor at Central Men-

nonite

Our Stories Untold — Hilary

Scarsella, co-coordinator for

MC USA’s Women in Leader-

ship Project and associate at

Our Stories Untold

The Prayer Path — Dana

Short, Ohio Conference prayer

coordinator

Speaking of Death — Tony

Doehrmann, pastor, Jubilee

Mennonite and Roger Kauffman,

physician

Supporting Caregivers –

Being “the Village” to

Caregivers and their Loved

Ones — Ginnie Horst

Burkholder, author of Relentless

Goodbye: Grief and Love in the

Shadow of Dementia

What’s Up with Young

Adults? — Kathryn Wengerd,

young adult, North Lima Men-

nonite

A workshop registration form

with detailed workshop de-

scriptions is available from the

Ohio Conference website:

www.ohiomennoniteconference

.org. Go to “Delegates/ACA”

to download a copy. �

Jan/Feb 2014 | Page 4

Annual Conference Assembly workshops open to all

Sutter, who serve as part of the pastoral team at Kern Road Mennonite Church in South Bend, Ind. Janice is Pastor of Worship and Preaching, and Dave is Pastor of Congregation-al Life and Vision. The theme

Twenty-six pastoral couples

attended the Ohio Conference

Pastor-Spouse Retreat at Mohi-

can State Park Lodge Nov. 8-

10.

Presenters for the retreat were David Sutter and Janice Yordy

of the retreat was “Creating Balance for Effective Ministry.” Thanks go to Mennonite Mutual Insurance and Ohio Mennonite Women who underwrote part of the cost of the retreat. �

Pastor-spouse retreat attended by 26 couples

Ramseyer triplets bring three times the fun to Goshen College By Mia Engle

GOSHEN, Ind. – Ask Mary,

Elise and Jenna Ramseyer what

it’s like to be a triplet, and they

might not know how to answer.

“We don’t know what it’s like

to not be a triplet!” said Jenna.

Said Mary, “It’s normal…for

us!”

The triplets from Wooster,

Ohio, are juniors at Goshen

College this year, and though

they share many similarities,

they have unique personalities

and different majors. Elise be-

lieves that their individual inter-

ests became evident when they

were young. One example was

Christmas 1996.

Before this day, their parents

were dedicated to making sure

each gift they gave the girls was

exactly the same.

“[Our mom] would count the

jelly beans and make sure that

we had the same color of

M&M’s in our Easter eggs,” said

Mary.

But this Christmas, each girl’s

gift was geared towards her

own interests.

“I had a fancy little sequined

dress and high heels,” said Elise.

“Mary got a little magnetic

word board and Jenna got a

mini-cleaning set.”

Elise said their mother felt bad

giving Jenna a mop for Christ-

mas, but “she was the happiest

kid you have ever seen on

Christmas. It’s not that Jenna

says, ‘Wow, I can’t wait to go

clean the apartment,’ but she

still loves getting things done.”

Though individualized, these

gifts didn’t exactly foreshadow

the Ramseyers’ career paths:

Jenna is a business major and

both Mary and Elise are in the

nursing program. Because of

their shared major, Mary and

Elise take the same classes,

which can be both good and

bad.

“We got a test back last week,”

Mary said, “and our prof told

us, ‘If you guys weren’t related,

I would have thought you

cheated.’ We looked and we

literally did answer all the ques-

tions the same.”

But being Goshen students has

allowed them to have their own

experiences, too. During the

summer, Jenna traveled in Eu-

rope and Elise and Mary com-

pleted Study-Service Term

(SST) in Nicaragua and Peru,

respectively. This was the long-

est they had ever been separat-

ed from one another.

In fact, Mary was surprised to

realize during the summer of

2013 when she returned home

alone from Camp Friedenswald

that she had never spent the

night without at least one of

her sisters. So SST was, to the

triplets, what many students

experience when they first

come to college and are sepa-

rated from their families. But

SST was very different — the

Ramseyers had extremely lim-

ited contact with one another.

Elise believes that homesickness

was more linked to missing her

sisters.

“I got a weird feeling of fear

when I realized there would be

things that they would never

know about me, things that I

would completely forget to tell

them,’’ Elise said.

Some of their adventures will

have to stay untold because the

Jan/Feb 2014 | Page 5

Con#nued on page 8

Mary, Elise and

Jenna Ramseyer,

pictured le, to

right, are students

at Goshen College.

Their home con-

grega#on is Oak

Grove Mennonite

Church in Smith-

ville. (Photo by

Grace Boehm)

tion, but getting up in the pre-

dawn hours worked well. Nev-

ertheless, I failed to even catch

one glimpse of the comet. I had

to relegate myself to looking at

pictures on the Internet.

What was my main problem?

Clouds. Even with all the plan-

ning and preparation, scouting

out locations, making sure my

spotting telescope was calibrat-

ed and ready, my primary im-

pediment to seeing the comet

was cloud cover. While this

was something I anticipated, it

was also something over which

I had no control.

Such is life in general. While we

may practice observation, prep-

aration and implementation

dutifully, there are certain cir-

cumstances over which we do

not have control. No matter

how diligent we may be, there

are factors beyond our control.

Because of the pictures I was

able to see on the Internet, I

knew the comet was there,

albeit not as bright as many had

hoped. It was also the Internet

that alerted me to the fact that

Comet ISON did not survive its

narrow brush with the sun as it

was slingshot around our heat

and light source.

Will this dampen my enthusi-

asm for the next comet? Maybe.

In the December 2013 issue of

Astronomy magazine the map of

the USA suggests that there

are, on average, less than 3.5

clear days during the month of

December in this part of the

country. As I’m writing this

halfway through the month, I

believe this map is pretty accu-

rate!

But our Christian life is also

filled with disappointments and

challenges beyond our control.

Even if much of our life has

been “cloudy,” does that mean

we give up? Or are we encour-

aged to pray more, and rededi-

cate our lives toward living as

faithfully as we can, regardless

of the circumstances beyond

our control? That approach has

certainly kept me going. While I

was not around for the star

that illumined the sky for the

Magi, I know the story and have

personally felt the impact in my

own existence of the life, death

and resurrection of the Christ

Child. While my life has not had

as many obstacles, or “cloudy

days” as some others I know,

the clouds that have gotten in

my way have not kept me from

continuing to observe, prepare,

and implement that which de-

termines and embodies my

faith.

“Even though

there will

likely be more

‘clouds’ in my

life, they will

not keep me

from living the

life of

faithfulness

that God has

called me to

live.”

Jan/Feb 2014 | Page 6

Dealing with ‘cloudy’ days C O N F E R E N C E M I N I S T E R M U S I N G S

By Tom Kauffman

Conference Minister

In my last column I wrote

about anticipating catching

a view of Comet ISON. It

was making its first known

pass into the center of our

solar system and hopes

were high that it would be a

spectacular celestial experi-

ence. I compared it to the

Magi tracking the star that

guided them to the Christ

Child. I observed that antic-

ipating these events takes

observation, preparation

and implementation if we

are to be successful. We

have to know where to

look, we have to find a

proper time and place to

look, and then we have to

actually do it!

By now you may already know

that Comet ISON had a brief,

dim journey that finally, like

Icarus, brought it too close to

the sun, whose heat was too

much to sustain the comet’s

continued existence. This is not

a musing about Greek mytholo-

gy, however. My own experi-

ence of observing the night sky

and preparing a place to view it

and following through on my

preparations worked relatively

well. Locating the portion of

sky in which Comet ISON was

to be found was not difficult. It

took me a couple of trips to

find a relatively light-free loca- Con#nued on page 7

Musings Am I disappointed that I per-

sonally did not get to catch a

glimpse of ISON? Certainly. But

I am not devastated. I get to

view the pictures of others who

saw and photographed it during

its short visit in our solar sys-

tem. My life is much more than

this one event. Even though

there will likely be more

“clouds” in my life, they will not

keep me from living the life of

faithfulness that God has called

me to live. As this new year

begins for you, may there be a

Godly hope that propels you

into its future with all that God

has for you! �

Jan/Feb 2014 | Page 7

Con#nued from page 6

“As persons of

faith, the

journey to

generosity

should be

nurtured and

affirmed

within the

local

congregation.”

By David A Miller

Every fundraiser knows the

industry rule-of-thumb that

normally, 80 percent of to-

tal dollars given to a partic-

ular project or organization

comes from 20 percent of

their donors.

This phenomenon definitely

affects how fundraisers ap-

proach a capital fund pro-

ject and even their annual

fund. Knowing that a suc-

cessful fundraiser can’t ig-

nore this reality, deciding

how to relate to these key

donors compared to the

other 80 percent is always a

point of tension and strate-

gy.

It’s also known that no project/

organization can exist without

the broad support of the aver-

age donor. This is especially

true within the local congrega-

tion, which hopes that this

“rule” is less true for them.

However, studies show that the

average congregation substan-

tially reflects the same break-

down.

My hunch is that the 20 percent

are not only the donors with

the highest financial capacity but

also persons with average ca-

pacity who have caught the joy

and claimed the responsibility of

being charitable. More often

than not, this has been passed

on through modeling and train-

ing within the home, a spiritual

awakening, or a cultural experi-

ence that leads to a lifestyle of

generosity.

As persons of faith, the journey

to generosity should be nur-

tured and affirmed within the

local congregation. This cannot

be done with an annual sermon

on generosity or periodic an-

nouncements on how the con-

gregation’s budget is doing. I

believe this approach limits the

congregation’s potential.

It’s becoming apparent that

congregational leadership, in-

cluding the pastor, need to be-

come intentional with ongoing

teaching, monitoring and affirm-

ing. This role might be new, and

initially uncomfortable, but if

implemented through a process,

the end results will be a blessing

to the church members and the

congregation’s ministries. It

doesn’t matter if the giver is

part of the 20 percent or the

80 percent, being nurtured and

having some type of accounta-

bility seem to be keys in the

journey of generosity.

Generosity is a reflection of our

spiritual journey and priorities.

Just imagine if we had Moses’s

situation in Exodus 35:6-7: “The

people were restrained from

bringing; for what they had al-

ready brought was more than

enough.”

May each of us experience the

blessings of generosity in the

coming year(s)!

David A Miller is the Everence

Charitable Services Representative.

You may contact him at

david.miller@everence.com or

(330) 763-3191. �

Implications of the 80/20 rule O N B E I N G C H A R I T A B L E

Jan/Feb 2014 | Page 8

“These titles

are all written

by Mennonite

authors about

various

resources that

we are all

called to

manage to

God's glory. “

called to manage to God's

glory. Titles include the fol-

lowing:

• Talent Show: Your Faith in

Full Color

• Creation Care: Keepers of the

Earth

• Body Talk: Speaking the

Words of Health

• Time Warped: First Century

Time Stewardship for 21st

Century Living

Each book contains 12 chap-

ters/lessons and additional re-

sources or inventories. Each

lesson features sets of ques-

tions for reflection both to pre-

pare and to discuss. Biblio-

graphic references also allow

for easy supplementation with

additional texts.

Unfortunately, these books are

out of print. However, our local

Everence Church Relations

Representative entrusted the

remaining stock of her books to

my care, and I am willing to

loan them out. Copies are also

sometimes available on Amazon

and Ebay. (I saw the Creation

Care book for $63 on Ebay!)

Please contact me at

kris@kidronmennonite.com or

(330) 857-3461 if you wish to

borrow any of these. Be sure to

plan ahead as the supply is lim-

ited, and you may need to wait

until another group is finished! �

By Kris Nussbaum

Ohio Conference

Resource Advocate

The vast majority of ques-

tions I am asked by adult

class teachers all boil down

to one thing: “Where can I

find material that lends it-

self to discussion and is

written from a Mennonite

perspective?” Not long ago,

I stumbled upon a great

series published by Ever-

ence called Living Steward-

ship. These titles are all

written by Mennonite au-

thors about various re-

sources that we are all

Study series offers Mennonite perspective R E S O U R C E C O R N E R

introducing herself to someone

new on SST, Mary would often

say, “We’re from Ohio.”

Jenna, too, slips up sometimes.

“I always say, ‘We’ll see you

later!’” Jenna said.

While the Ramseyers lived in

different rooms in the dorms,

they still lived on the same

floor. Now in the student

apartments, they live in the

same unit, one of their last op-

portunities to do so before the

end of their college ca-

reers. Afterward, they aren’t

sure where they’ll end

up. “Ideally, we have talked

Ramseyers cannot read each

other’s thoughts using triplet

telepathy. They are asked this

question frequently, and it’s

one of the more annoying

things about being a

triplet. Sometimes they go

along with it, acting as if they

read their sisters’ thoughts all

the time.

Though the Ramseyers don’t

hear their sisters’ voices in their

heads, some people may acci-

dentally get the idea that they

are schizophrenic.

“We talk in plural form,” Mary

said, simply by habit. When

about how we would want to

be able to live close,” said Elise.

Through their experiences at

Goshen College, both together

and apart, the Ramseyers have

grown to appreciate their

unique relationship even more.

“It made us realize how much

we appreciate each other and

really do love being together,”

Elise said.

This story was originally published

in The Record, Goshen College’s

student newspaper. �

Ramseyers Con#nued from page 5

“Although

written for a

Mennonite

audience,

these materials

also target

those outside

Anabaptist

circles who

value the

biblical themes

of peace,

justice, and

community.”

Jan/Feb 2014 | Page 9

ish. (There are plans to trans-

late it into other languages as

well, pending funding.)

Although written for a Mennon-

ite audience, these materials

also target those outside Ana-

baptist circles who value the

biblical themes of peace, justice,

and community. Rachel Sciretti,

a leader in the Freemason

Street Baptist Church in Nor-

folk, Va., said that she and oth-

ers in her congregation who

have been teachers for more

than 30 years thought they had

seen every possible way to tell

the Bible story.

“But Gather ’Round tells the

Bible story in a fresh and excit-

ing new way,” wrote Sciretti.

“Our teachers love it and come

away feeling refreshed. The

perspectives from the stories

are right in line with our way of

thinking. We are so happy to

have found this curriculum.”

Sciretti indicated that she will

check out the new Shine curric-

ulum and website

[www.ShineCurriculum.com].

“If it is as good as Gather ’Round,

we will definitely be using it,”

she wrote.

In 2012, MennoMedia, the pub-

lishing agent of Mennonite

Church USA and Mennonite

Church Canada, embarked on a

campaign to raise the $400,000

up-front funds needed for a

small publisher to produce

these materials for children.

During the first 15 months of

the campaign, they raised more

than $250,000 in cash and

pledges, including $10,096 from

a special offering at the Men-

nonite Church USA biennial

convention in Phoenix, and

$10,000 from Mennonite

Church Canada’s Formation

Council.

Steve Carpenter, MennoMedia’s

director of development, has

visited nearly all of the 50 larg-

est users of the Gather ’Round

curriculum in the U.S. and the

33 heaviest users in Canada.

“Ed and Carol’s gift was a tre-

mendous encouragement and

vote of confidence for all of us

at MennoMedia,” remarked

Carpenter. He went on to say,

“I love Lori Guenther Reesor’s

description of fundraising. She

says it is ‘the joyful and holy

task of telling people about the

garden and inviting them to

water it.’”

Ed and Carol have watered the

garden, says Carpenter, quoting

the Nofzigers as saying, “In all

areas of life we like to remem-

ber to ‘make a difference’ while

we have this short span of time

during our lives on earth.” �

HARRISONBURG, Va., and

WATERLOO, Ont.—

MennoMedia, which produces

Sunday school curriculum to

help children form an Anabap-

tist faith, recently received a

$25,000 donation and a pledge

of an additional $75,000 to help

fund the new curriculum devel-

opment now underway for

MennoMedia and Brethren

Press.

The gift came from Ed and Car-

ol Nofziger of Archbold, mem-

bers of Central Mennonite

Church. The Nofzigers have

been Sunday school teachers,

and their children and grand-

children have grown up using

denominational materials. They

have used the Foundation Series,

Jubilee!, and most recently, Gath-

er ’Round.

The Nofzigers feel it is im-

portant that children “learn

God’s truths, as well as the

Anabaptist faith,” they said in

response to being asked what

motivated them to make this

donation and pledge. “We trust

MennoMedia to produce the

materials Sunday school teach-

ers need in their important faith

formation ministry.”

The current Sunday school ma-

terials, Gather ’Round, are in the

final year of an eight-year cycle.

The new Anabaptist curriculum,

Shine: Living in God’s Light,

planned in cooperation with

Brethren Press, will be released

in the fall of 2014. Shine On: A

Story Bible accompanies the Sun-

day school curriculum and will

be available in English and Span-

Ohio couple pledges $100,000 for new Shine curriculum for children

Matthew Williams was licensed

toward ordination and installed

as pastor at South Union Men-

nonite Church on Nov. 17,

2013. Regional Pastor Wanda

Stopher officiated. Matthew

preached a sermon titled “Black

Friday vs. Good Friday: Part

One of Giving Thanks,” from

the Gospel of Matthew 6:24-34.

The service was celebrated

with a meal by the friends and

family who joined the congrega-

tion for the day. �

Bluffton University

Jan/Feb 2014 | Page 10

Pastoral notes

On May 26, 2013, Bob Yoder

retired as pastor, ending nearly

nine years of ministry at Sharon

Mennonite Church in Plain

City. Bob was ordained July 19,

1992, and served previously at

Leetonia Mennonite Church in

Leetonia for 14 years. Bob and

his wife, Vickie, will continue to

reside in Plain City. �

A B O U T P E O P L E

Regional Pastor

Wanda Stopher

congratulates

Ma9hew

Williams at his

licensing cere-

mony at South

Union Mennon-

ite Church Nov.

17.

BLUFFTON, Ohio — Prayer is

not a one-way conversation

with God, according to Joel

Shenk, pastor of Toledo Men-

nonite Church, who served as

minister in residence at Bluffton

University Oct. 30-31.

Shenk, who had spoken at a

Bluffton chapel service last year,

gave an Oct. 31 message at

chapel about learning to listen

to God, becoming dependent

on Him for strength and learn-

ing to follow boldly. “We need

to cultivate the internal spiritu-

ality God gives us,” he said,

“because if we are not in touch

with this, we limit our connec-

tion to God.”

He practices contemplative

prayer, which he said “is listen-

David Falls concluded his minis-

try of four years at Grace Com-

munity Church in Bryan on

Dec. 22, 2013. David

and his wife, Wendy, have dis-

cerned a call to church planting

in the greater metropolitan

area of Charlotte, N.C. �

ing to God and allowing God to

speak to your spirit rather than

you speaking directly to Him.”

Through this type of prayer,

Shenk said we become aware of

our dependency on God and

recognize how He is active in

the community, Scripture and

all other things.

He was happy to deliver the

chapel message because he sees

Bluffton as “a place where the

school keeps its Mennonite

traditions and does so in a way

that students can learn.”

Ministry was a place Shenk felt

he belonged because he had

participated in a church youth

group as a teenager in

Scottdale, Pa. He began to take

his faith even more seriously

during his undergraduate stud-

ies at Hesston College and East-

ern Mennonite University, and

he went on to earn a Master of

Divinity degree at Fuller Theo-

logical Seminary in Pasadena,

Calif., in 2010.

Shenk has been the pastor for

three years at Toledo Mennon-

ite, where he said the members

have a passion for service. The

church offers an after-school

tutoring program for early ele-

mentary children in math and

reading and is affiliated with the

Mennonite Church of Dodoma

in Tanzania. �

Con#nued on page 11

Goshen College Five students from Ohio Con-

ference congregations are

members of the 2013-14 Go-

shen College Women’s World

Music Choir.

Annette Conrad is a freshman

elementary education/special

education major from New

Carlisle. Her home congrega-

tion is Southside Mennonite in

Springfield.

Kathryn Friesen is a senior Eng-

lish major from Archbold. Her

home congregation is Zion

Mennonite in Archbold.

Kelly Miller is a senior nursing

major from Bellefontaine. Her

home congregation is South

Union Mennonite.

Alisa Murray is a junior music

major from Orrville. Her home

congregation is Martins Men-

nonite in Orrville.

Olivia Ressler is a junior nursing

major from Apple Creek. Her

home congregation is Sonnen-

berg Mennonite in Kidron.

The goals of the choir are to

discover and perform spiritual

music of many cultures, both

national and international, fo-

cusing particularly on indige-

nous cultures.

Directed by Debra Brubaker,

professor of music, the choir

highlights the role of women in

diverse cultures, celebrating the

unique spirit, faith and energy

that women bring to the world

as creators and sustainers of life

and art. �

Directed by Scott Hochstetler,

associate professor of music,

Chamber Choir is an auditioned

group of 39 students perform-

ing secular and sacred music

from the Medieval through

Modern periods. In addition to

Alisa Murray, a junior music

major from Orrville, is a mem-

ber of the Goshen College

Chamber Choir for the 2013-

14 school year. Her home con-

gregation is Martins Mennonite

in Orrville.

performing with area and re-

gional orchestras, the choir

performs numerous solo con-

certs both on and off campus

during the school year. �

Alexander Matthews is a junior

informatics major from

Wauseon. His home congrega-

tion is Zion Mennonite in Arch-

bold.

Founded in January 2004, the

Men’s Chorus follows in the

long tradition of Goshen Col-

lege male singing groups begin-

ning with the men’s glee clubs

and the Rambler Quartet of the

early 1900s. Directed by Scott

Hochstetler, associate profes-

sor of music, the Men’s Chorus

performs music from all genres

and time periods with special

emphasis on sacred a cappella

literature. The men perform in

on-campus choral concerts and

represent the college on peri-

odic tours. �

Two students from Ohio Con-

ference congregations are

members of the Goshen Col-

lege Men’s Chorus for the

2013-14 school year.

Andrew Leaman is a junior

physics major from Louisville.

His home congregation is Beech

Mennonite in Louisville.

Jan/Feb 2014 | Page 11

Con#nued from page 10 A B O U T P E O P L E

The symphony orchestra is a

group that varies in size and

repertoire from that of cham-

ber orchestra to full philhar-

monic dimensions. Formed in

the 1950s, it has actively per-

formed standard symphonic

repertoire ever since. The

Annette Conrad, a freshman

elementary education/special

education major from New

Carlisle, is a member of the

Goshen College Symphony Or-

chestra. Her home congrega-

tion is Southside Mennonite in

Springfield.

group presents concerts of ma-

jor orchestral works each se-

mester. Directed by Christo-

pher Fashun, assistant professor

of music, the orchestra also

accompanies the choirs, operas

and student winners of the

Concerto-Aria Competition. �

Back page briefings... For more Ohio Conference

news, visit the Ohio

Conference website:

ohiomennoniteconference.org

celebrates the contribu-

tions of Mennonite artists

by bringing together artists

and members of the wider

church for a weekend of

worship, workshops,

presentations and perfor-

mances. More information

and a registration form can

be found online at http://

mennoniteartsweekend.org.

ELKHART, Ind.

(Mennonite Church

USA) – “On the Way/

En el Camino” has been

chosen as the theme for

Mennonite Church USA’s

next biennial convention, to

be held June 30–July 5,

2015, in Kansas City, Mo.

The theme scripture for

the convention week is

Luke 24, a passage that

includes stories of the

women finding Jesus’ tomb

empty, the disciples’ en-

counter with Jesus on the

Road to Emmaus, and Jesus’

ascension and commission-

ing of the disciples.

For more information on

convention, visit

www.MennoniteUSA.org/

convention.

A learning experience

like no other! This sum-

mer, Youth Venture invites

young adults ages 14-22 to

serve and learn together

with churches in Philadelph-

ia, Ft. Myers, Japan, Spain,

and more! For more infor-

mation and applications, see

MennoniteMission.net/

Serve. �

The biennial Mennonite

Arts Weekend, hosted by

Cincinnati Mennonite Fel-

lowship, will take place Feb.

7-9, 2014. The weekend

Conference Calendar JAN 2014

24-25 Mother-Daughter Retreat, Camp Luz

FEB

7-8 Youth Leadership Project Retreat, Camp Luz

21-22 Healthy Congregations Workshop, Quality Inn, Mansfield

MAR

7-8 Annual Conference Assembly, Bluffton University, Bluffton

21-23 Men’s Retreat, Camp Luz

APR

3-4 Fairlawn Haven Auxiliary Open House and Auction, Founder’s Hall, Archbold

5 Spring Day of Inspiration, Ohio Mennonite Women, Lee Heights Community

Church, Cleveland

M A Y

16-18 Latino Families Encounter, Camp Luz

J U N

20-21 Black Swamp Benefit Bazaar, Fulton County Fairgrounds, Wauseon

27-29 Ohio Youth Event, Bluffton University

A U G

8-10 Girls’ Jamboree, Camp Luz

S E P T

13 Leadership and Anxiety in the Church Seminar, Central Mennonite, Archbold

19-21 Ohio Mennonite Women’s Retreat, Camp Luz