Missions at Grace
Grace United Methodist Church
Lake Bluff, Illinois
Vision Statement
SERVE YOUR WORLD.
GRACE YOUR LIFE.
Mission Statement
Grace United Methodist Church is a vibrant, grace-filled congregation for all who see God. As a community of Christ in the heart of Lake Bluff for more than 125 years, Grace Church reaches out to serve our local and global neighbors. Through worship, song, fellowship, education and mission, Grace Church inspires all to use their unique gifts to serve God and work for justice and mercy in the world.
Our mission work includes:
* The Philippines, where we are actively helping the people of Iling Island become self-sufficient.
* McCurdy School, New Mexico, where a mission team helps with maintenance and renovations.
* Lake County and the Chicago area, where a variety of mission efforts are underway, which include support of
PADS (Providing Advocacy, Dignity and Shelter) in Lake County, ChildServ, and others.
Upcoming Mission Trips
Members of Grace will volunteer in May for an adult mission in downstate Illinois. In November there is a trip to St. Simons Island, Georgia, for a learning and mission experience. If interested in either opportunity, see Don or Kathy Pierson. There is limited space.
The Midwest Mission Distribution center is a disaster relief facility located in Chatham, Il., four miles south of Springfield. It is related to the United Methodist Church and is a cooperating
depot in the UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief) supply network.
Volunteers pack kits, sort items, sew school bags, hospital gowns and blankets. Volunteers box goods, help with mailings, build crates and desks, repair bicycles and sewing machines, help unload items, fill shipping containers and organize materials. No matter what your abilities, there is an important job that needs you.
Grace volunteers will stay in a motel for three nights and work at the site May 9-12. On Saturday afternoon, May 12, there will be time to visit the Abraham Lincoln museum. Participants will pay room, board and transportation. Scholarships are available.
November 11-16, Grace will participate in a "Primetimers" event organized by the General Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church. This trip is called "Remembering, Understanding, and Honoring the Gullah Geechee Culture." The cost is $800 per person. Participants will stay in Epworth-by-the-Sea, named for the English boyhood home of John and Charles Wesley, who both lived in Georgia in 1737. Time will be spent revisiting our Methodist heritage through tours and lectures. There also will be time spent learning about an almost forgotten culture: the Gullah Geechee community of Sapelo Island. The Gullah people are descendants of former slaves of the 19th century on the island.
The service portion will take place on Sapelo Island with the University of Georgia Marine
Institute. This will involve general upkeep of the grounds and facilities.
Primetimers events are designed for older adults, although there is no age restriction if
participants don't mind what is described as "a slower pace."