Zion’s Social Ministry Committee, whose role is to reach out to our community, will be planning and preparing the first of these monthly meals which will be a nutritious breakfast served on Saturday, September 18 at the Community Center.

Your Help is Needed

In order to feed about 300 men, women and children :

1. Volunteers are needed to greet people, prepare and serve the meal. There will be shifts of volunteers between 7am and noon. on September 18. Please sign up at the information booth in the church.
2. To raise money to sponsor this event, the Social Ministry Committee will be asking for donations at our Ministry Fair booth on Homecoming Sunday, September 12. Make a contribution to help Zion feed people in need in Buffalo and the Social Ministry Committee will give you a box of candy!

But in giving, churches also benefit as Love INC:

• Assists churches in going beyond benevolence or simply handing out resources to connecting with people in need and developing relationships.
• Verifies that each request for assistance is legitimate so that churches can be good stewards of their resources.
• Helps churches prevent creating dependency in those they assist by discovering and solving problems at the root level.
• Identifies unmet needs or gaps in community services and informs churches of new opportunities for ministry.
• Lessens the strain on any one church as the network of churches work together to meet needs.
• Provides a more cost-effective approach to ministry by sharing resources and utilizing volunteers to meet needs.
• Helps churches assist those in need both inside and outside of the congregation.
• Demonstrates unity in the Body of Christ as churches come together to fulfill God’s command to love their neighbors—offering a powerful witness to the community.
• Connects un-churched people to churches, helping churches grow as they reach out to the community with the love of Christ.

Harvest of Hands is the perfect opportunity to share your talents and skills either at Tuesday craft mornings or Wednesday craft nights (the second and fourth week of each month) or by donating a special project to the Silent Auction. During September the Tuesday morning craft group will be finishing tree skirts and both craft groups will be making Christmas ornaments. Come, meet new people and share in the joy of Harvest of Hands. There will also be an organizational meeting in the Wilderness room at 7pm on September 8.

Don‟t forget when tending your gardens, to please keep Harvest of Hands in mind for dried flowers and canned goods. Harvest of Hands would not be possible without the wonderful people who volunteer their time and talents. Stop by the Harvest of Hands booth at the September 12 Ministry Fair to learn more about Harvest of Hands.

The committee certainly has learned from this experience. For many years Zion had a congregational connection in Tanzania with the Murnyaks and Heifer International. The Murnyak’s Buffalo connection made that our main international mission work. The same positive results have been seen in Zion’s relationship with Redeemer Lutheran Church, our sister church in North Minneapolis. “We can visit them and they visit us,” said Steve. “We again can feel connected. Our experience with trying to build a relationship with Shelleng was missing that personal connectivity and we feel that was a difficult situation to overcome.”

Committee members are very excited to continue to work with Redeemer and have recently chosen to support the wonderful mission work being done in Zambia at the “Village of Hope” through the All Kids Can Learn International (AKCLI) organization. There are so many ways that Zion can provide support to this organization, and a good congregational connection will help strengthen our relationship with this mission work.

The Global Mission Committee is excited about present opportunities and those opportunities that God hasn’t yet shared with us. “We are a committee that would like to do more mission work. We would like to extend an invitation to anyone interested to come join us. We meet the second Tuesday of each month at 7pm.”

God continues to bless Zion with abundance and the opportunity to share that abundance with others. Mission work, whether it is local to the Buffalo area or some place else in the world, is a gift from God that we at Zion are able to share.

After packing, the group enjoyed a picnic lunch at Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park.

Additional photos are posted on Zion’s Facebook page.

We were recently made aware that there was an investigation into the financial misconduct of an organization called “Feed My Children”. We would like to clarify that this organization is not connected in any way to Feed My Starving Children. For more information on the incredible work that FMSC does, visit WCCO.com to view several different reports they have done over the last several months about Feed My Starving Children.

For those still interested in riding the bus to Feed My Starving Children followed by a picnic in Coon Rapids on August 14, there are still spaces available!

Sign up is at the office and information desk, and more information is available on Facebook and in this article.

Successful candidate will effectively manage staff and volunteers ensuring sound practices and personnel policies and procedures. It requires excellent verbal and written communication skills that will cultivate and nurture relationships with area pastors, churches, agencies, and businesses. Participate in the development of budget‘s and fundraising plans. Bachelor‘s degree preferred or equivalent experience in non-profit management, social work, ministry, community development or related field.

Send resume with cover letter and two references to: Love INC-Big Wood by September 15, 2010: P.O. Box 368, Buffalo, MN 55313 (Attn: Hiring Committee) OR email:loveincbigwoodsjobs@hotmail.com

As we are quickly nearing another school year Zion‘s Social Ministry Team, along with Love INC-Big Woods and the Buffalo Food Shelf, will be collecting school supplies that will be distributed to children of these low income families. During the month of August, there will be collection bins in Zion‘s Narthex to collect needed supplies. Mailings are going out to these 491 students to advise them we can help them have a good start to the school year.

Please fill up the collection bins with these items and help Zion make a difference in the Buffalo Community:

• Notebooks
• Notebook paper
• Pocket Folders
• Hand sanitizer
• Pencils
• Pens
• Pencil boxes
• Colored pencils
• Glue/glue sticks
• Scissors
• Erasers
• Book bags/backpacks
• Crayons
• Rulers

Distribution of the school supplies will be at the Food Shelf in late August.

In August, Love INC will be partnering with the Buffalo Food Shelf to collect and disperse school supplies to children (see page 15) and begin the hiring process for an Executive Director (see page 18).

Love INC will also be participating and partnering with the City Community Center and Civic Agencies to have a monthly community meal served.

Next Steps

The organization has formed a Board of Directors but still needs to secure an office for the clearinghouse, hire an executive director, enlist more churches and send more people to training.

• The first goal of the Love INC board is to post the job description for an executive director beginning August 1. Please apply if qualified or pass the announcement on to potential candidates.
• The director and a couple of board members will complete Phase 2 training, and learn how to put a network together and train volunteers, among other duties. Volunteers will be trained in doing intake and finding resources for clients, as well as identifying people who are misusing church ministries.
• After the proper groundwork, the clearinghouse will be opening the first quarter next year.
• Another goal is to identify gaps in services, and work to fill those needs. For example, transportation to doctors‘ offices for children is a need not being met in this community at this time.

The eight churches already involved in the network have a hunger to be Christ‘s hands in the community, and to make a difference by sharing their particular services, such as a clothing ministry or furniture. Individual church members could share their special gifts, too; people with skills in law, carpentry, transportation and taxes, for example, could donate their services to those in need.

Idella Ziegler with some of the recycled sweaters she organizes each year for Harvest of Hands

When Idella Ziegler was in the second grade, she missed so much school because of frequent ear aches, that she told her mother “I better learn to sew because I’ll never get through school.” Idella did make it through school of course, but enjoyed the sewing and continues to enjoy sewing today. When she started teaching school, one of the things she bought with one of her first pay checks was the sewing machine that she still uses.

When Idella joined Zion in the early 1970s, she soon became involved with Harvest of Hands. It was an era when fewer women were in the work force, and a large group met one morning a week to make quilts and craft items for the fall sale. It was a time for members to meet and many lasting friendships developed. Idella remembers that at exactly 10am Gladys Gilbert would shout, “Time for coffee!” As more women joined the workforce, and the daytime group got smaller, an evening group was added. Now, the groups each meet twice a month. “We welcome new faces, there are so many talented people at Zion,” Idella says. “Try it, you’ll like it!”

Idella’s goal this year is to create 100 items for the sale, and she is well on her way. Families often bring in uncompleted projects after Mom is gone and someone will say, “I bet Idella can finish this,” and yes, Idella loves the challenge. She also feels privileged to speak in worship on behalf of the Harvest of Hands group, motivating others to get involved with preparations and attend the fall event. ” It is easy to speak about something that is so meaningful. Harvest of Hands is the most rewarding project I have been involved with at Zion,” she says. “It is an act of stewardship because we are sharing our gifts to feed the hungry locally and around the world.”

Idella’s family enjoys coming to the Harvest of Hands event each year to see what she has been working on. She  misses Flora Mohring’s lemon meringue pies and Ruth Cornell’s knitted Norwegian mittens, but is excited to see new additions like recycled sweaters and jewelry, and hopes that the tradition continues.

The Wednesday evening Harvest of Hands craft group working on some jewelry projects

• Create crafts at home or with one of the craft groups at Zion.
• Help distribute flyers.
• Donate grocery items for egg rolls, cookies, brunch, etc.
• Help make egg rolls, cookies, or brunch.
• Donate white elephants, a silent auction item , jellies, salsas, etc. for the festival
• Work at the festival on November 6
• Help set-up or clean-up after the festival.
• Coordinate an area or project for the festival.

Sign up at ZionBuffalo.org or contact Joy Arens or another committee member for more details. They would love to hear from you or see you at a craft group.

• During August, the Tuesday morning group will be working on organizing and pricing jewelry and assembling kits to be crafted at home.
• The Wednesday evening group will be working on beading projects.

Some kits with craft or sewing projects will be available at the information desk for those wanting to work on something at home.

Love INC determines what help the client has already received from agencies or churches, and ensures the need is manageable and specific. Love INC then connects the need to the most appropriate church ministry, church volunteer, and/or local agency to meet the need.

The outcome is reviewed through a follow-up program that evaluates both the immediate need and core issues as well as providing an opportunity for the recipient to become connected to a local church if he or she desires.

The group will meet at Zion at 10am, bus to Coon Rapids and serve at Feed My Starving Children from 11:30-1:30, and then go to Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park, which is very near the facility and Pastor Karri‘s home, for a picnic hosted by Pastor Karri. Estimated time back at Zion is 4pm.

Sign up for this event is at the information desk only.

Spots are available for 75 participants. Facility policy is that all children must be in grade 3 or above, and student-to-adult ratios range from one adult per 3 students for grades 3-6 to one adult per 5 students for grades 10-12.

For more info on the facility and what can be expected you can visit http://www.fmsc.org.

Mission Jamaica (MJ) is a mission experience best described as “a vacation with a purpose.” Each year members of over 60 congregations from around the United States travel to this mission field, from January through April, to serve God using their varied and unique skills and talents. The trip combines a service project with time for reflection and spiritual rest. It allows a person to experience an international mission field that is close to home yet far enough away to immerse into another culture for a week.

The program began in 1990 when St. Andrew‘s Lutheran Church in Mahtomedi, MN sent 19 missionaries to Hope Valley Experimental School in Kingston. Since then it has grown to include several mission sites in the capital of Kingston and around the Montego Bay area. The work ranges from pouring cement to working in medical or dental clinics using professional skills and knowledge to simply holding an orphaned child. Whatever your gifts or talents are, you can use them to serve the Jamaican community. Mission Jamaica provides a way for anyone to love and serve our neighbors just as Jesus taught us through his love and service to others.

Please join Pastor Ted at for a short informational meeting to learn how you can be a part of this life changing experience at 5:45pm on Wednesday, August 11 or 11:45am on Sunday, August 15.

One of Zion’s local mission partners is Love INC (In the Name of Christ)-Big Woods of Buffalo, Maple Lake and Hanover. The Love INC program is based around these core values.

• We are Christian. Everything we think, say, and do is in the name of Christ.
• Prayer is an integral part of who we are.
• We follow Christ’s example of valuing the poor and needy.
• We value unity of the Body of Christ.
• We value transformation in the lives of people and communities.
• We value churches living out the two great commandments to love God and love their neighbors.
• We value building Christ-like relationships.
• We value the connectedness of the Love INC movement.
• We model excellence.
• We value continually maturing in our capacity to meet people’s needs.

People on Bikes offers many benefits to the community:

• Improved safety in the neighborhood through increased activity on the streets with biking
• Increased health for the children in terms of stamina, balance, coordination and heart health
• Increased connection to the outdoors, thereby reducing fear of outdoors
• Increased psychosocial skills through increased confidence and reduction in fear and stress.

Redeemer Center for Life hopes that this fall, People on Bikes can get out of the basement garage and into a low-cost storefront that is at the apex of seven existing or planned bike trails in Minneapolis, the city voted #1 Best Bike Friendly City 2010. People on Bikes is the only bike shop in North Minneapolis at this time.

• WCCO news story about People on Bikes (spring 2010)
• People on Bikes youtube video by Redeemer youth (summer 2009)

Zion’s Garden Exchange begins this Sunday, July 25. Gardeners, bring in your extra garden produce to share with others at Zion. The produce is available to anyone who can use it, with a free-will donation  towards ELCA World Hunger. Look for the brightly colored table in the Narthex from now through the fall.