Volume 11, Issue 5 May 2013

2 SAMS 10:00 am3 Younglives Fundraiser 6:00 pm5 Children’s Team Meeting 11:45 am9 MOPS 9:00 am11 Men’s Breakfast 8:00 am Mother’s Day Tea 2:00 pm 14 Board of Elders Meeting 6:30 pm Quilter’s Guild 7:00 pm16 SAMS 10:00 am19 Newcomers’ Coffee 11:30 am23 MOPS 9:00 am31 Men’s Retreat

May At a Glance

Engage the present - Create the future

Choosing to Adoptby Andrea PellicerWhen we tell people about God’s call on our family to adopt, we get two questions: 1) Are you excited? and 2) How can I help? The answer to number one is an emphatic “YES!” and the answer to the second is twofold: prayer and financial support. We need prayer because we are following God into an arena that is beyond our natural capacity. He has called a six-year-old and a three-year-old to embrace a new sibling whose history is so different than theirs. Thankfully, our girls are so ready to be big sisters, but we ask for prayer that the readiness of adop-tion doesn’t overshadow the reality of adoption. Financial support, because start to finish, international adoption is close to a $32,000 endeavor. We are so blessed that God has provided so much so far, and at our fundraiser dinner two years ago, we raised over $2000 in one night! As travel costs loom large, we are hosting a Mother’s Day Tea and Silent Auction on Saturday, May 11th, in Baker Hall. Many local businesses have generously donated sizable baskets to our auction efforts, including Starbucks, Brights, Walla Walla Roastery, and Mannina Cellars, along with handmade artisan items. We are sure you can find something to make Mother’s Day brighter. Tickets are $10 per person, and are available in the lobby after church, or by calling us at 525-9544. Please come help us raise the money to bring Baby Anna home! Donations and prayers are appreciated!

The Connectiona publication of Blue Mountain Community Church

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May Birthdays and Anniversaries

What’s Happening at. . .by Candy Whittaker

Our community project for the month of May will be to collect canned food items for the food bank. Other events for May:The Preschoolers will have a Mother’s Day Tea, where they will prepare a refreshment and serve tea for their moms. We will also hold a flower show. The children may bring a flower from home in a vase and will re-ceive an award ribbon. The flowers will be on display in our foyer. We will continue registration for Summer and Fall. Most of the curricu-lum is centered around themes. Activities related to the theme will in-volve crafts, language arts, movement activities, science and more. We provide child care from 6:45 am — 6:00 pm.

From Pastor Jim Everything seems to have an expiration date. Milk does, but I have never seen a gallon of milk last two days in my house, so the expiration date on our milk doesn’t matter. Turns out that Orange Roughy can live to be 149 years old. The next time you are served Orange Roughy you may be eating something that was alive before your grandparents were born. Wild thought. Chuck Warnock asks, “What’s the expiration date on your church?” That is an interesting question to me. Even though our milk never expires, I still look for the freshest gallon when I’m in the store. Why would you buy a gallon of milk that was three days older than the one right beside it? Warnock says, “as a pastor you don’t get to choose the freshest church.” That is strangely true. Statistics indicate that if a church reaches 7 years of age (most churches don’t) then it will likely live to be about 80 years of age before the doors are closed forever. Our 80th birthday was some 35 years ago now. Have we beaten the odds, or are we living on borrowed time? Actually, church-es don’t have to die at all. They can continue to regenerate as long as they have fresh vision and freedom to change. I believe Blue Mountain Community Church is in a period of regenera-tion. Yet even as we identify fresh vision and who we are to be in this community tomorrow, it is good to pause and remember where we came from. On Sunday, July 21st, we will be celebrating Blue Mountain Com-munity Church’s 115th year of ministry in the city of Walla Walla. Plans are just now getting underway for this celebration but we are honored to have one of our former pastors, Rev. Jeannette Flynn, join us for this spe-cial occasion. Rev. Flynn is currently serving the Florida Church of God Ministries as their Pastoral Strategist. She will also be speaking at the Pa-cific Northwest Association Family Camp July 14-19 at Double K Ranch. You only turn 115 once, so mark your calendars and plan to join us as we mark this historic moment. Grace & Peace Pastor Jim

4 Michael & Wendy Baird7 John & Betty Hamby17 Bob & Diane Benfield25 Jim & Cindy Tackett

1 Andrea Gonzalez Ken Jurgensen Abby Snyder2 Linda Cline Teresa Maxwell4 Skip Harrold Joshua McDaniels5 Bettie Baker Cody Turner6 Darby Clark9 Frank Aichele Ki Bealey Dan Huntley Talise Minteer10 Bev Kuljis11 Kris Eagon Christene Thrasher12 Anna Rice Herb Smeed Maranatha Snider

14 Ed Voss15 Frankie Weed16 Cindy Blair Judi Easton Kelly Hutcherson Deborah Minteer17 Jared Burns Jarod Mings Adora Osborn19 Dora Wilson20 Dianne Mosher21 Dina Anderson Lin Myers Teri Turner Chelsey Wood25 Beverly Lemons Bernice Shivley31 Jerry Musick Donna Raugust

Page 3Junior Camp

The Full Armor of GodJuly 25th - 28th

Double KFor kids ages 9 – 11(Children entering grades 4, 5, & 6 in the fall)Cost: $160.00 ($140 for each additional family member) by June 7th. $180 ($160 for each additional family mem-ber) between June 7th and June 30th. Registration Forms are available in the church office or at the welcome center. Registrations must be postmarked by June 30th.Questions? Please contact Danna Jones at 529-9387 or dannajones6@gmail.com.

Upcoming Mission Trip Team Partners with Embracing Orphans

The children of Jamaica are waiting for us to arrive and we need your help to get there. This July our group of 19 will head to Montego Bay, Jamaica, to serve the abused, ne-glected and orphaned children who call Jamaica “home.” We need your support to get there.

Upcoming Fundraisers:May 10 – 11:

Balloon Stampede Parking LotIf you’re headed out to enjoy the Balloon Stampede, come park in our parking lot off of Tietan St. directly behind the horse trailers. $5.00/car and of course, dona-tions are accepted.

Young Lives FundraiserAn outreach ministry to teen moms and their babies.We are raising money for camp this summer. Camp is a place where the girls can go and be a kid, learn how to be a mom to their child/children and experience the relevancy of Jesus. We would love to offer babysitting for anyone interested on Friday

May 3rd from 6-9pm. The Young Lives mentors and staff with be there babysitting. This gives the girls an opportunity to earn money for camp. Please give a donation when you drop your child off. Contact Jill Gentry @ jillmariegentry@gmail.com or 540-0474 for more information.

Thursday, May 16 6:00 PM – close @ Blue PalmCome out and enjoy an evening of friends, frozen yogurt and live music. Twenty percent of all proceeds will go toward our trip. Invite your friends and help us spread the word through your networks.To simply donate to the team, contact a team member or send your gift directly to the church.Thank you and may God’s peace go with you.The Team Members of the 2013 Embracing Orphans Ministry TripJosh, Ryan, Jim, Steve, Leslie, Cindy, Heather, Hope, Karen, Elizabeth, Lauren, Brittany, Maddie, Theresa, Cathy, Vanessa, Jean, Taylor, and Jennifer

A monthly publication of Blue Mountain Community Church 928 Sturm Ave., Walla Walla, Washington 99362, (509) 529-1212, www.bluemountainchurch.com, Editor: Julie Caton, bmccbulletin@gmail.com. Deadline for submissions: 9:00 AM, the second Tuesday of the month prior to publication. Editor reserves the right to edit for content and space. Unsolicited materials welcome. © 2013 Blue Mountain Community Church

May 11 8:00 am

SAMSMay 2nd and 16th

10:00 am Laughter is the best medicine. Come join in the fun and fellowship.

MOPS exists to en-courage and equip moms of preschoolers. All moms are welcome.

MOPS meets May 9th and 23rd from 9-11 am in Baker Hall. Contact Lauren Kruzsewski at bmc-cmops@gmail.com for more information.

Register Today by mailing this form to:

BMCC 928 Sturm Ave., Walla Walla, WA 99362

Sports CampJuly 8-12, 2013

6:00 - 8:30 pmFor children 4-12 years of age

Cost: $25Scholarships

Available

Sports Camp RegistrationMedical Release Form

Registration FormCircle Your Choice (only choose one):

Soccer Basketball Cheer (girls only) Team 45

Shirt Size: 6-8 10-12 14-16 AS AM AL AX

Medical and Liability ReleaseWe realize that no activity is without the possibility of unforeseen hazards which could result in injury to an individual. As a parent or guardian, you are to be aware of your responsibility to instruct your child of the importance of conduct which will insure safety and enjoyable time while participating in this activity. By signing this form, you, as a parent, guardian or other respon-sible party, agree to assume the risks and hazards which are inherent in this kind of activity. You also agree to absolve and hold harmless the sponsor-ing organizations and their representatives for damage, loss or injuries to the child for whom you sign.

I further give my permission for the use of any photo or likeness of my child to be used by the sponsoring organizations for their use in promotional materials.

I give my child permission to participate in this activity, and give my permis-sion to the leaders of this function to authorize any treatment deemed neces-sary by a licensed physician due to accident or illness during this activity.

Parent’s / Guardian Signature: ________________________________

Date ________________