From Karen Robertson, Kansas East Conference secretary:

If your group wants a special meal at Church of the Resurrection during Annual Conference, or if you have items for the Session News, I need that information this week. E-mail me at conferencesecretary@kansaseast.org with your catered meal needs and any plans for other meals or events that should be publicized in the Session News.

News

Haitian church members distribute UMCOR food to neighbors
�Good brothers and sisters, thank you so much for this food.�

Louis and Madame Felix, 74 and 76, were the first to receive a white plastic bag containing 18 pounds of rice, three pounds of beans, a quart of cooking oil and a one-pound bag of salt from the United Methodist Committee on Relief Jan. 29. Ten church members organized the food distribution and kept order. One hundred and seventy households were served.

Find out more at http://www.umc.org/site/apps/nlnet/content3.aspx?c=lwL4KnN1LtH&b=5259669&ct=7973471&tr=y&auid=5882725.

Donate to UMCOR�s Haiti Relief
Donations to support UMCOR�s Haiti Relief efforts can be made to Haiti Emergency, UMCOR Advance #418325. The entire amount of each gift will be used to help the people of Haiti.

Checks can be made payable to UMCOR with �Advance #418325 Haiti Emergency� in the memo line and put in the church�s offering plate or mailed to UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087.

Donations may be made online at http://secure.gbgm-umc.org/donations/umcor/donate.cfm?code=418325&id=3018760.

�Seminar speaker encourages analysis for deeper preaching�
Rev. Dr. Susanna Southard, a Kansas East Conference elder and professor at Phillips Theological Seminary, believes the Jewish scriptures, commonly referred to as the Old Testament, �tells us about people acting like people in the real world. Sometimes it�s messy, but that�s what makes it real in our lives.

�All of this helps us learn who we are and how we can live in this world as people of faith.�

Read more at http://www.kansaseast.org/news_detail.asp?PKValue=564.

Ways to improve attendance of current members
At least once or twice each year, perhaps in the New Year�s resolution season, teach and preach the importance of faithful worship attendance.

Know that it is important to respond to absentees before they drop out of active attendance. Once a regular attendee misses six consecutive weeks, it is hard to return to the habit of consistent Sunday worship.

Send a handwritten note (signed by the membership care team, not the pastor) to anyone who has missed three Sundays in a row. Say, �Looking through the attendance slips, we�ve missed your name! Hope to see you next Sunday.� In a smaller church, the wording can be more personal.

Find out more at http://www.churchleadership.com/leadingideas/leaddocs/2010/100106_article2.html.

UMCom offers communication ministry webinars on Tuesdays
Each week, United Methodist Communications provides a free 30-minute webinar, �Tuesdays @ 10 am Central,� to share up-to-date and relevant information, resources and tools that will enhance your church�s communications ministry. This free series is available as a live broadcast each Tuesday at 10 a.m. Central Time or as an RSS subscription and podcast with Web-based resources.

The February webinars:

• Feb. 9, Discover the ease and convenience of creating website favorites and social bookmarking.
• Feb. 16, Get updates and content delivered to you instead of checking every website by using RSS Feeds and Feed Readers.
• Feb. 23, Explore the world of Cloud Computing (for beginners) where you can accomplish most anything online without having to download software.

To sign up and learn more, visit Tuesdays @ 10am Central (http://www.kintera.org/TR.asp?a=ipJTKUOvElKTL7L&s=glL2IdPPLkI2IeMPLpG&m=hqLQJ4OzFgJ2G).

Washburn campus ministry among showhouses
The Washburn University campus ministry house in Topeka was chosen as one of the ERC Resource & Referral Designers� Showhouses, an annual fundraiser for the non-profit, community service agency.

The campus ministry house is located at 1621 S.W. Boswell in Topeka.

�We hope that with this transformation our building will enhance our ministry with the Washburn students,� said Rev. Eduardo Bousson, campus minister. �They will have a space dedicated exclusively for prayer, a place for study furnished with books that will help them in their spiritual life. They will also enjoy two additional spaces for gathering that will remind them of a coffee shop atmosphere. Outside the building, the landscaping will be park-like anchored with a full size sand volleyball court. All this transformation is things we have been dreaming off and had planned to achieve in the next five years. By the grace of God, we will be finished in three months!�

Normally, the homeowner has to pay for everything done in a Designers� Showhouse, but the Washburn University campus ministry will need to raise funds for the project.

Find out about adopting a room in the campus ministry house at http://wucampusministry.org/adopt-a-room.

Learn more about the Designers� Showcase program at http://www.ercrefer.org/images/pdf/showhouse/dsh%20release%201.10.pdf.

LifeBridge pastor featured
Rev. Mitch Reece, pastor of new church start LifeBridge UMC in Shawnee, shares a little bit about himself in a question-and-answer session at http://www.shawneedispatch.com/news/2010/jan/20/neighbors-mitch-reece.

Bishops support death penalty repeal
In a letter to the Kansas Legislature, eight bishops of the Episcopal Church, Roman Catholic Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church and United Methodist Church in Kansas signed a letter asking for reconsideration and repeal of the Kansas death penalty.

�As bishops leading the Episcopal Church, Roman Catholic Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church and United Methodist Church in Kansas, we write to share our deep concern about the continuing practice of condemning persons to death in Kansas,� the letter said.

Read more at http://www.morningsun.net/news/x1090830274/Bishops-support-death-penalty-repeal.

Music, worship arts scholarships available
Each year, The Fellowship of United Methodists in Music and Worship Arts awards higher-education scholarships to students planning a career in church music and/or worship arts.

The scholarships include:

• Memorial scholarships (music)
• Thom Jones Scholarships (in the arts other than music)
• Robert Schilling Music Scholarship for a rising college freshman or sophomore

The application deadline is March 1.

Downloadable applications and more information are available at www.UMFellowship.org.

Contemporary Ash Wednesday service from GBOD
The General Board of Discipleship has a contemporary Ash Wednesday service at
http://www.gbod.org/worship/default.asp?act=reader&item_id=48456.

Featured events

Legislative Event for Advocacy in Faith, Feb. 9
The annual Legislative Event for Advocacy in Faith (LEAF) will be Feb. 9 this year. It�s a way to express and learn about our faith journey with relationship to state legislation. The theme will be �Our Faith Journey in Advocacy - Christians Caring for Creation� through the scripture found in Psalm 8:6.

For more information, go to http://kansaseast.org/page.asp?PKValue=1023.

Designers� Showhouse tours, Feb. 18-21
A �bare bones� preview of both Designers� Showhouses in Topeka, including the Washburn University campus ministry house, will be Feb. 18-21 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., giving the public the chance to tour both properties for $5 before work begins.

An open house and chili supper will be Feb. 19 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at University UMC. The $10 fee includes the chili supper and tour of both properties.

Get more information at http://www.ercrefer.org/pages/showhouse.html.

Preaching workshop for licensed local pastors, Feb. 22
The Topeka District is hosting a series of preaching workshops for licensed local pastors and DSAs at First UMC in Holton.

Each workshop focuses on a specific skill or technique, and all are designed to grow skills and practices in preaching.

Get more information about the Feb. 22 workshop at http://www.kansaseast.org/event_detail.asp?PKValue=3159, or contact Melinda Harwood at 785-840-8882.

Small Church Leadership Institute, March 8-12
Mount Sequoyah Retreat Center in Fayetteville, Ark., will present the Small Church Leadership Institute March 8-12.

The event is designed to equip laity and pastors with the knowledge and skills to lead their small-attendance church to a higher level of health and vitality. Attendees will learn from noted experts on small membership churches and hear testimonies from small church pastors about their transformation experiences.

Register by Feb. 15 to receive the early-bird discount.

Get more information about this and other events at http://www.mountsequoyah.org/www.mountsequoyah.org/Programs_Training.html.

Visit the conference calendar at www.kansaseast.org/calendar.asp for additional events.