Bethlehem News You Can Use

We have highlighted a few events below, but you can click a link below to read and/or download a full copy of the Bethlehem Star.

You can now read and/or download the Weekly Announcements (yellow pages) from the BLC website. Click here to go to the Announcements page.


Evangelism

First Friday Fellowship

Our next First Friday will be on June 7 at Larry and Tonja Twito’s house (230 Peppler Dr., Longmont), 6:00–8:00 PM. Just bring an appetizer to share and a beverage of your choice. This is a great way to meet other members. All adults are welcome. Join us! Also, new this month, the Baltrums have graciously offered to provide childcare so that parents of small kids may also come. Contact the Baltrums (303-817-5482) for details.

Save the Dates

Congregational Picnic/Pig Roast

Sunday July 7, noon—More details on cost will be available later. If you would like to help with the planning, contact Amanda and Steve Dawson.

Rockies Game

August 11—Contact Wanda Schnabel for tickets.

Social Action

BLC Serving Lunch at OUR Center

It is once again time to check your busy schedules and see if you can set aside a couple of hours on Sunday, May 26 to help serve lunch at the OUR Center. We will schedule two shifts: 10:00 AM–Noon for cooking, set-up and beginning to serve; and Noon–2:00 PM for serving and cleanup. Let us know if you can help and which shift you prefer. If you’d like to support the effort but cannot work that day, you can help with the shopping or make a donation to help purchase the food—just mark your check for OUR Center Lunch. If you know of someone who is interested in serving and might not see this, feel free to share the information with them and/or let us know how to contact them. If you have any questions, contact one of us: Colleen Beyer (303-651-2816, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ), Jenny Kelley (303-651-6226, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ), or Dean Wilder (608-385-1614, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ). Thank you in advance!

Thrivent/Habitat Build Days

Thank you to all the Bethlehem members who came on April 13 to help with the build of the Thrivent/Habitat home on the corner of 15th Avenue and Baker Street. Working with us was a group from Mead High School doing community service, and also Stephanie Rodriguez—the excited homeowner-to-be—doing her “sweat equity.” A thank you also to the BLC members who brought us the great lunch enjoyed by all 25 people working that day.

Our second build day for 2013 will be Saturday, June 8. Please mark the date on your calendar today and sign up to help when the ladder appears again in the narthex.

Stewardship

Profile of the Pine Ridge Reservation

An element of our Stewardship program is to ensure that the congregation is comfortable with how we are using the gifts we have been bestowed. We are beginning a relationship with the people of the Pine Ridge Reservation and would like to provide a view as to why we feel this is a good choice for our missionary efforts.

  • Pine Ridge Reservation, located in South Dakota, is home to the Oglala Sioux Tribe. The reservation is large (2,000,000 acres) and its needs immense, commensurate with grinding poverty. Many of the homes have no electricity, telephone, running water, or sewage system.
  • As of 2011, population estimates of the reservation range from 28,000 to 40,000.
    • 80% of residents are unemployed
    • 49% of the residents live below the federal poverty level (61% under the age of 18)
    • Per capita income in Shannon County is $6,286
    • The infant mortality rate is five times higher than the national average
      Native American amputation rates due to diabetes are three to four times higher than the national average
    • Death rate due to diabetes is three times higher than the national average
      Life expectancy in 2007 was estimated to be 48 for males and 52 for females. This the shortest life expectancy in the western hemisphere.
  • Alcoholism: Because of historic problems with alcohol use by its members, the Oglala Sioux Tribe has prohibited the sale and possession of alcohol on the Pine Ridge Reservation since its creation in 1832. The closest town has approximately 12 residents and four liquor stores which sold over 4.9 million 12-ounce cans of beer in 2010, almost exclusively to Oglala Sioux from the reservation. This contributes to widespread alcoholism which is estimated to affect 85% of families.
  • Education: Education on the reservation is severely lacking in multiple areas. The school drop-out rate is over 70%, and the teacher turnover rate is eight times that of the U.S. national average.

We are anxious to get involved with this group of people to help, to establish a relationship, to learn from them, and to spread God’s message.

A Thank You from the Round Pantry

One of the ministries that we help support is the Round Pantry, a local food bank run by Westview Presbyterian Church. At the recent Palm Sunday 10:15 AM service we shared with Light of Christ, the loose offering was designated for the Round Pantry. They sent us this note:

On behalf of the Round Pantry at Westview Presbyterian church we would like to say thank you for your generous donation of $110. We appreciate your commitment to partner with us financially. Your ongoing support of our mission to feed those who are hungry in our community is a tremendous blessing to us and to our guests.

Blessed to be a Blessing

We ended 2012 with a budget surplus and were able to share it with an number of our mission partners. Here is a thank you note received from Rainbow Trail:

Wow! Thanks for your tremendous gift of $5,000 to Rainbow Trail’s Land Exchange Fund. We have raised $687,000 for the land so far. (The land exchange with the forest service will allow Rainbow Trail to finally purchase the land the camp sits on and eliminate the rent they pay.) You’ll be a part of history. This gift will make a huge difference for generations to come.

~Dave Jarvis, Executive Director, Rainbow Trail Lutheran Camp

Choice DollarsSM Update

This month the church council approved that $1,000 Choice Dollars be given to support the Nicaraguan Mission.

Also, we have been adding to the Education Endowment Fund with Choice Dollars over the years. This month we hope to award $2,600 in scholarship support to our graduating high school seniors.

Thanks to all the Thrivent members who have made Bethlehem the recipient of your Choice Dollars. They are making a difference in people’s lives.

News/Events

Bethlehem Book Club

We meet the second Thursday of each month at 6:30 AM, Ziggi’s Coffee House (4th & Main) in Longmont. Everyone is welcome!

May: The Harbinger: The ancient mystery that holds the secret of America's future by Jonathan Cahn.

If you have any suggestions, questions or are interested in joining the group or the email list, please contact Colleen Beyer (303-651-2816, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ) or Jenny Kelley (303-651-6226, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ).

Thrivent News

Retirement & Estate Strategies Workshops

There are several Retirement & Estate Strategies Workshops coming up May 6th-9th all around the Front Range area.There are 14 different sessions scheduled in Boulder, Longmont, and Loveland, led by Kevin Ruebesam of the Thrivent Front Range community. Please see the fliers posted at church for a complete listing of all the workshops held at local churches. Find a workshop that you can attend! Bethlehem is hosting two of the sessions: 1) Monday, May 6 at 4 pm and 2) Wednesday, May 8 at 1pm. A great workshop for people saving for retirement of all ages! All are welcome! RSVP: Lita Lummis, Thrivent Financial (303-532-1215, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ).

Rockies Game with Thrivent

Save the date of Sunday, June 16th (Father's Day). Our Thrivent Community is going to the Colorado Rockies Game at 2:10pm, and the Rockies are doing great!! Tickets are only $10 for Thrivent members and guests, will include seating in the Upper Section and a $15 voucher for food or merchandise in the park. Also, part of your ticket price will be donated to an area nonprofit! What a great way to spend the day with Dad and the family! More details will be coming by email, postcards, and the Thrivent Community/Front Range website.

Star and Weekly Announcements

The online submission form for both the Star and Weekly Announcements submissions is being retired for the time being. Please do not use the website to send submissions. Star submissions may be sent directly to Carolyn Buck-Gengler at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; please put “Star submission” and any other useful information in the header so that she can differentiate it from her other email. You should expect an email acknowledgment typically within one day; if you do not receive an acknowledgement that we received it, please re-send your submission and mark it as re-sent. Items for the Star will run in the next issue (based on submission deadlines) only.

Submissions for the Weekly Announcements should be sent directly to Nancy Tiff at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . If your submission needs to be in both the Star and the Weekly Announcements please send it to both of us and indicate which weeks you want it in the Announcements. If you have any questions or changes to your information, please contact Nancy (303-776-3290, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ). Thank you.