BLC Weekly, May 28
Hello Bethlehem,
Bethlehem’s All Boards Night is coming up on Monday, June 3. We invite all board and committee members to join us at 5:30pm in Grounds for Joy for pizza and conversation.
community announcements
BLC Community Garden plots are now available for sign-up! Plots are available on a first come, first serve basis and plots are limited. Sign up online or contact Sarah Morgan to reserve.
Centenary United Methodist Church will host a Plant Sale on Saturday June 1 and Sunday June 2 from 8:00 am until noon. Stop by 501 South Second Street to purchase hostas, pollinators, asters, ornamental grasses and more. All proceeds support Holy Grounds, serving community breakfast 6 days a week.
June 19th, also known as Juneteenth, is a holiday to celebrate the emancipation of enslaved people in the US. The Mankato Juneteenth celebration will take place on Wednesday, June 19th from 2-7 pm. We are looking for volunteers to represent Bethlehem by marching in the Freedom Walk and/or working the booth during the event. Help us show our community that when we say ALL are welcome, we mean it! Look for the sign-up sheet in the narthex. -Welcome & Inclusion Board
Family Faith Formation
We are looking for 24 summer trip prayer partners for our kids and youth attending camp and the ELCA Youth Gathering. You’d send them a postcard and pray for them during the summer, and receive a response from your prayer partner before the summer is over. Email our Family Faith Director Anna at annawencl@blcmankato.org if you’d like to be a partner!
Our VBS Registration is now live! All youth ages 3 years to 6th grade are invited to join us July 22-25. Our theme this year is Wholly Holy and together we will remember Jesus’ words from John 10:10b, “I came so everyone would have life, and have it fully.” We will learn about wellness and our connection to God.
Service and Sun is coming up in June! Youth who are going into 6th-12th grades are invited to participate in this half-week of service and fun with Mankato-area ELCA youth. Cost us $20/day or $60 for all three days. Scholarships available. Register by June 16th. https://blcmankato.breezechms.com/form/ServiceandSun
Monthly Mission
Monthly Mission Match! We are excited to share BLC Endowment will match your contributions $1 for $1 for the next four Monthly Mission Projects: May, House of Hope; June, Lutheran World Relief; July, Partners for Housing; and August, Crossroads Campus Ministry. Give to any or all of these missions and your donation will go twice as far!
Bethlehem’s May Monthly Mission partner is House of Hope, an organization which provides outpatient services to adults with substance abuse disorders. House of Hope has been serving the Mankato area for more than 50 years and contracts with the Blue Earth County Drug Court. The program is compatible with but not limited to AA and NA approaches. Contributions will be used for scholarships as well as start-up funding for new programs. Thank you for giving generously to those among us who struggle with substance use and mental health. You can give online or with a check.
THANK YOU!
Thank you to everyone who made it to the Blood Drive last week! Eight BLC members donated. The goal was 34 Units and that was achieved! Bethlehem has hosted 15 Blood Drives in Grounds for Joy, with 412 donors and 432 Units collected. The next Drive will be August 20.
Music Scholar reflections
Music Scholar - Matthew Olson
“I'm extremely grateful for my time at Bethlehem. Over the past few years, I have been offered a safe space and to be a part of a loving community. The connections I have felt here have deepened my faith and I have been able to share that with my family and friends and make new ones during my time here. I feel truly blessed to be able to make music and to worship in such a kind and caring environment with such kind and caring people.”
Music Scholar - Mya Santelman
“For the past three years I have been blessed with the community of the Bethlehem congregation! Every day I have felt welcomed, loved and supported. Thank you Bethlehem for providing me and so many others with a beautiful place to worship together.”
This Week in our Prayers
Curt Halvorson Marian Mallory Pete Wachtel
Les Biesterfeld Anna Moses Jim Freyberg
Barb Girtz Mark Woelfel Tracy Carter
Amy Grams Haugesag Jodi Orchard Don Grotta
Michael Buesing Shirley Davis Mark Krieger
Arendahl Lutheran in Peterson Christ Lutheran in Faribault
St. Olaf Lutheran in Austin Light & Life Ministry in Colombia
Mission la Victoria in Colombia CELCO (Colegio de la Evangelica Luterana de Colombia) in
Sogamoso, Colombia