Dear Mt Zion,

You have shown up for service to our Lord and Savior in mighty ways this year. Church attendance is up over previous years and new members are joining. The church council is positive about the future of our growing church. Here are a few highlights from our cluster leadership:

• Outreach Committee: In addition to ongoing efforts with Operation Christmas Child and Angel Tree, members have been supporting the Sawyer Road Elementary food bank.  

• Church members have gone above and beyond in giving toward building upkeep and maintenance. One member spent many hours installing a new Wi-fi network that saved the church tens of thousands of dollars in installation. The projects listed below have been a direct result of your generosity.  

• Trustees report: Since the last update in May

  • All exterior and interior church doors have been re-keyed, repaired, and locksets replaced as needed. 

  • Security and access control has been installed for the Preschool, church offices, lobby, and Bishop Lake 300 Hall. 

  • Handicapped door openers have been installed on the lobby doors and are operational. 

  • Gym and hallway have been painted; Chapel entrance ceiling, back stairs up to sanctuary, and miscellaneous other doorways and doors have been repaired and painted. 

  • New carpeting has been installed in the sanctuary, narthex, ushers closet, and prayer chapel.   

  • Reupholstering of Sanctuary pews, choir chairs, benches, and altar pads has been impacted by fabric shortages and lack of textile workers – this work will likely not be completed before the end of this year, though we are eager to get started. 

  • Scout Lodge was repaired and re-roofed. 

  • Preschool classroom trailer (aka “clubhouse”) was re-roofed after storm damage (covered by insurance) 

  • Parking lot drain cover near pumpkin patch was replaced (20+ year old problem) 

  • Trees removed from play area, near Scout Lodge, and at RV shed 

  • Church bus was sold and proceeds were placed in a transportation account to be used for trips and outings 

  • Plumbing repairs have been extensive – collapsed sewer piping near offices; leaks in Family Life Center (FLC); replacement of hot water heaters in office area and FLC for kitchen; installation of code-required backflow devices for water lines to Scout Lodge and FLC, and on fire sprinkler line in FLC have exceeded $20,000 

  • HVAC repairs on several units have occurred, but no major replacements required (yet) 

  • Needed repairs to the parking lot and re-striping are under consideration.  

• Worship Committee: We have enjoyed seeing some new faces leading during liturgy in the service. The goal is to have the liturgists reflect the diversity that is Mt. Zion. Worship committee is always welcoming new participants to our varied programs. Worship is an ideal location for someone who would like to volunteer in the life of the church but is unable to commit to a regular committee. Ushers, communion assistants, liturgists are all scheduled in advance and accommodate your schedule (and as a plus--you're already here on Sunday morning anyway!)

• Finance Committee: Although giving toward special projects is up, giving toward the general budget is behind at this time. Expected expenses are up and pledged giving is down. If you made a commitment during the stewardship campaign last year that you have yet to fulfill, please consider giving at this time. We would like to see a balanced budget by the end of the year.

• Stewardship: Looking forward to next year and working to wrap-up our stewardship program, the stewardship committee currently has estimates of giving for 2024 totaling $785,000. Thank you to those who have turned in your pledge cards. This interim total is about $28,000 less than the final total of pledges from last year. We still have not heard from about 100 of the households on our mailing list and are working to follow up with them. Our estimates of giving guide our overall budget planning and the level of church programming that may be supported. If you have not turned in your pledge card, please do so as soon as possible to help our Finance Team in the budgeting process.

• Youth: There are ten youth and other church members committed to going to Costa Rica for a mission trip in the summer of 2024. Your support of the pumpkin patch helps offset some of the costs of this trip. Thank you!

• Children’s Ministry: Attendance and excitement during Spooky Wow was wonderful for our children’s ministry. They are currently working on coordinating the Live Nativity Event scheduled for Wed. Dec 6th 6:15-6:45. Thank you for your support of this outreach opportunity.  

• Care and Support Committee: has offered programs for our aging members and special workshops on dementia and Care for the Caregivers. More lay ministers are needed to support our members!

• Since August we have had 9 new families visit Mt. Zion. One new member has joined. In addition, we have 6 family units who are continually visiting in that time period. With so many new faces please make sure to introduce yourself!!

The Lord is moving in and through Mt. Zion in exciting ways and we are thrilled to be a part of his ministry. Thank you for your support of our beautiful church and your care of its members. 

 

~ Mt. Zion UMC Council