Best for Last By the time you read

this, most of you will have heard the news announced in worship on Sunday, March 30: In June I will be leaving Russell Memorial to become the new pastor of Faith United Methodist Church in Orange, Texas. I covet your prayers for my family as we prepare for the

move, and I ask you to join me in prayer for the Bishop and the cabinet as they seek to discern the right person to serve as your next pastor at Russell. In the two months ahead of us, there will be ample time for all the goodbyes, well wishes, and tears that accompany these transitions in the life of a Methodist pastor and church. But first, we have

a great work ahead of us. Children and youth (pg. 2)

Help Wanted (pg. 2) Important Dates (p. 4) Calendar (p. 5)

Vol. 10, No. 4 April 1, 2014

(cont. on pg. 6)

In this Edition

Welcome Spring!

All-Church Workshop Please make plans to attend the All-Church Workshop on Satur-day, April 26th from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. in George Hall. All of the input received will aid the VCI team of consultants in determin-ing the prescriptions for our church. You dont want to miss out. We need everyones voice to be heard so that we can become the vibrant church God wants us to be.

Food Drive HELP! The Middle School back pack program needs food! This vital program sends backpacks filled with food home each weekend with students in need. Items should be easily opened and consumed by a child (nothing

requiring a can opener). Small containers and single-servings are helpful, as well. I was hungry, and you gave me food. (Matthew

25:35)

Join us on WEDNESDAYS from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the Deen building. Bring your kindergar-ten through 4th grader for fun, food, and fellowship. Come

at 5:30 p.m. for our K5 Kids Choir!

The Youth Group is moving nights! Starting March 19th youth will meet on Wednesdays from 6:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Come join us for food, fun, and fellowship. We always have a great time! Dont forget to bring a friend, anyone in 5th through 12th grade is welcome!

Opportunity Knocks... Are you looking for a way to help our K5 Kids and Youth Group? We need volunteers to help provide a light snack-supper each week. Or maybe helping directly with the kids is more your style. We are looking for folks ready to make a difference in the lives of these children. If interested, contact the church office.

Help Still Wanted! As you may know, Russell Memorial is charter for our local Boy Scout Troop. As such, we have a position as chair person on their troop committee. This posi-tion has long been held by Mary Keller. She has faithfully served for many years, even after her son was long out of scouts. She is retiring from scouts and we need to find someone to step into this position. If you, or anyone you know, is interested, please contact the church office (903-873-2569). We would like to thank Mary for so many years of faithful service to the scouts on behalf of the church. We appreciate all you do!

Confirmation Class We will begin a confirmation class for 5th and 6th graders, as well as older youth, in April. The class will meet during the Sunday school hour in the youth room. All youth are encouraged to attend. Confirmation will be during worship on Mothers Day, Sunday, May 18.

Help Jana on Her 3 Day Journey Jana Davis, and her husband Damon, will walk in their 2nd 3 Day 60 mile journey in November to raise money for breast cancer research. They are walking in memory of Linda Glover. If you would like to help them meet their fund raising goal, forms will be available at the church or you can donate online at the3day.org. Keep an eye

out for more opportunities to give to this cause.

Art Classes Art class is being offered for the month of April. 12:00 p.m. until 2:00 p.m, Thursdays in the Deen Building. Learn how to paint on black. Find what is hidden in the dark! Please contact Patt AuBuchon 214-535-8644

Community Garden Have you signed up to help with the new Wills Point Community Garden? Have you placed a donation for supplies in the red bucket at the church? What are you waiting for? We are excited to be sponsoring this wonderful opportunity for our community! Please contact the church office to volunteer.

Our Sunday school classes have been hard at work remembering

all the people on our prayer list.

Birthday Girls Birthday Girls are going to Tuscan Slice in Greenville on April 9th. Please be at the church by 10:30am if you need a ride, reservations are for 11:30am. RSVP to Linda Greenwald by April 7th.

Our Presence and Our Gifts Feb 23 March 2 March 9 March 16 March 23 the early service 48 45 44 56 38 Sunday School 99 74 80 94 78 Traditional Worship 99 71 119 109 89 $3,093.75 $5,763.00 $7,836.25 $5,5279.60 $2,107.96

Dates to Remember! April 5th, 8:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. Rummage Sale April 12th, 6:30 p.m.-9:00 p.m. Supper Club April 17th, 7:00 p.m. Maundy Thursday Service April 18th, 7:30 p.m. Seven Last Words of Christ

April 25-27 VCI Consultation Weekend April 26th, 11:00 a.m. Neighbor to Neighbor April 27th, 12:00 p.m. Potluck

April Worship Assistants Altar Guild: Joni Tunnell (Chair), Beth Basham, Phillis Humphrey, Charlotte Conn, Bernadette Kolb, Sherry Moore Ushers: Robert Greenwald (Head), Barbara Lamb, Dave Lutzinger, Dee Lutzinger

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Happy Birthday! Linda Greenwald 4-1 Maxine Clopton 4-7 Lois Butts 4-11 Andrea Brown 4-12 Zac Moore 4-12 Scott Miracle 4-12 Daniel David 4-13 Thomas Butts 4-15 Jim Ruckart 4-17 Barb Lathem 4-20 Lori English 4-21 Michael Keller 4-24 Angie Smith 4-24 Abby Wilcoxson 4-25

Haley Fincher 4-26 Robert Whitaker 4-28 Suzanne Hetmer 4-29 Benny Scott 4-30 Daniel Turner 4-30

Community Outreach Program Neighbor to Neighbor Lunch

11 am-1pm Fourth Saturday of each month

Deen Building - George Hall OPEN TO ANYONE

WHO CHOOSES TO COME

Please contact Gerda David for details (214-538-0192).

April

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1 7:00 pm Cub

Scouts

2 4:00pm Girl Scouts

5:30pm K5 Choir

6:00pm K5 Kids & Youth

6:00pm Hand Bells

7:30pm Sanctuary Choir

3 4 5 8:00am Rummage

Sale

6

8:30 am Early

Service

9:45am Sunday School

11:00am Worship

5:00pm K5 Choir 5:30pm Youth

K5 Kids

7

10:00 am Prayer

Group

6:00pm Trustees

8 7:00 pm Cub

Scouts

9 11:30am Birthday

Girls

4:00pm Girl Scouts 5:30pm K5 Choir

6:00pm K5 Kids &

Youth 6:00pm Hand Bells

7:30pm Sanctuary

Choir

10 11

12

6:30pm Supper

Club in George Hall

13 Day Light Savings

Time Begins

8:30 am Early Service

9:45 am Sunday

School 11:00 am Worship

14 10:00 am Prayer

Group

6:00pm Finance

15

6:00pm Jesus

Girls

7:00 pm Cub Scouts

16

4:00pm Girl Scouts

5:30pm K5 Choir

6:00pm K5 Kids & Youth

6:00pm Hand Bells

7:30pm Sanctuary Choir

17

7:00pm Maundy

Thursday Service

18

7:30pm Seven Last

Words of Christ

19

20 7:30 am UMM

Breakfast

8:30 am Early Service

9:45 am Sunday

School 11:00 am Worship

12:00pm Church

Council 3:00 pm Crestwood

21

10:00 am Prayer

Group

6:30pm Day School

22

7:00 pm Cub

Scouts

23

10:00am Sunshine

Circle

4:00pm Girl Scouts 5:30pm K5 Choir

6:00pm K5 Kids &

Youth 6:00pm Hand Bells

7:30pm Sanctuary

Choir

24

25

VCI Consultation

Weekend

26 VCI

Neighbor to Neighbor

Lunch 11 am1pm

27 VCI

8:30am Early

Service 9:45 am Sunday

School

11:00 am Worship 12:00pm Potluck

28

10:00 am Prayer

Group

29

7:00 pm Cub

Scouts

30

4:00pm Girl Scouts

5:30pm K5 Choir

6:00pm K5 Kids & Youth

7:30pm Sanctuary

Choir

Seven Last Words of Christ-Good Friday Any inactive choir members that would like to join in for this moving performance are more than welcome. Please join us for rehearsal on April 9th and 16th at 7:30 p.m.

so we will be ready to go!

A little more than a year ago our congregation was invited to embark on the Vibrant Church Initiative, a process designed to help us discern where and how God is leading us into a vital future. Those involved in the initial phase gave greatly of their time to read, study, and meet with members of other congregations engaged in the same process. The lessons learned in those months have been making their way into the life of our church family through Sunday school lessons, discussions in the hallways, and messages from the pulpit. Phase two saw the Church Council complete a months long task of compiling data from our congregation and from our community to aid our discernment process. During this time we were also visited by guests who provided feedback on their time with us.

On the weekend of April 25-27, we will be visited by a team who has poured over the data provided by our Church Council and the feedback from our guests. To this they will add the fruit of meetings and interviews conducted the Friday and Saturday of their visit. I urge all of you to

attend the workshop they will be holding on Saturday, April 26, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in George Hall, where they will continue to seek your input. Then on Sunday, April 27, following the 11:00 worship service, they will provide us with their final report, based on the data they have gathered from us: a finding of the five greatest strengths of our church family, the five greatest challenges we face, and five prescriptions to help us overcome those challenges, that we might be the vibrant church God is calling us to be.

In the weeks that follow we will hold a series of town hall meetings, where we as a church family will wrestle with those prescriptions. We will ask questions, seek clarifications, and consider the implications of the prescribed actions for our future. Then, at a called Church Conference, a meeting in which all members of our congregation present possess both a voice and a vote, on Sunday, May 18 (date to be confirmed and time to be determined by the Church Council in April), we will vote to either accept or reject our prescriptions.

Yes, we have a great work ahead of us in my last two months as your pastor. It may well be the

most significant two months of our four years together, as our response is certain to drive the foreseeable future of this church family. Indeed, it is as if God has saved the best for last. Isnt that just like him? I cant wait to see what he has in store for us! Grace & peace,

(cont. from pg. 1)

STEWARDSHIP REPORT We have received 50 pledges for 2014 for a total of $151,794. These pledges equal 60.24% of our proposed budget for this year. In addition we have another $5,220 pledged specifically for the Deen Building I want to thank you all for your response to our pledge drive. If you have not yet sent in your pledge, its not too late! Mail your pledge card or place it in the offering plate. If you

dont have a card, you can get one at the church office, or if you contact me, Ill enter your pledge in the pledge log. Frosty Tunnell, Stewardship Chair frosty@powerlabinc.com, (903)873-2693

Thank you for the lunch you provided at the Lone Star. Very nice of you to do this for the family. Elizabeth (Ellis) was a great Hostess. Mary (Fletcher) Monning RMUMC Thank you for allowing us to use your beautiful Deen Building for the play, Brick. We appre-ciate your generosity and all you do for the betterment of Wills Point. PAC Board, Jane Hunter

April Supper Club Dinner and Dancing Saturday, April 12, 6:30-9:00pm, we will host the Supper Club dinner at George Hall. Music of all kinds will be provided. Well be calling members with food requests; and you may also include your favorite music requests. We invite everyone to join us to welcome in spring---just bring a

side dish! Call Marilyn Roddy or Kelly Teel with any questions.

Remember in Prayer: Family of Jean Silvers Families of the passengers

and crew of Flight 370 America Auction Chairperson Bennie Scott Bill Lacy Bo & Maxine Clopton Caleb & Stephanie Stephens Cotton & Lue Miles Chris Cagle Danny Harris Dennis Basham Don & Judith Hollister Eldon Hiler Methodist Church (RMUMC) Henry Watson Ida Mae Jones Inez Wade

Israel, Egypt, Syria, Russia, Ukraine, & Venezuela

Jane Webber Jay & Marty Miller Jennifer Langford Johnny & Laura Bates Joni Tunnell Judy & Walter Cook Ken Davis L.N. Hill Liz Ellis Louis Carter Londell Green Lopez Miles Mack Waller Margaret Butler Marie Shastid Martha Waldrop Mary Helen Castleberry Matthew Burgess

McKenzie Williams Norma Hundley Our Armed Forces Our World Richard McCambridge, Sr. Ryan Massey Robin & Gigi Pruitt Shari Magar Thomas Hill Travis

The Russell Report Russell Memorial United Methodist Church A Family Rooted in Christ and Reaching Out in Love 201 S. Fourth Street P. O. Box 335 Wills Point, TX 75169

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

NON-PROFIT

ORGANIZATION

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PERMIT #2

Wills Point, TX

Dr. Billy Watson, Pastor Dr. Bob Gilbreth, Music Director Nancy McDonald, Office Administrator Fritz Gilbreth, Organist Theresa Turner, Ladies Hand Bells Director Mary Keller, K5 Kids Coordinator Denise Ross, Pianist Jackie Cockerham, Financial Administrator

Office Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Monday-Thursday

Join us Sunday Morning! Contemporary Worship @ 8:30 Sunday School @ 9:45 Traditional Worship @ 11:00