Pre-Lenten Gathering 2012
Held at Calvary Korean UMC in East Brunswick on February 21, 2012
CUMI (Camden Urban Ministry Initiative) Christmas Celebration
Christmas Celebration
Camden: The children of Camden received over 2,000 Christmas gifts because of the generosity of United Methodists of the Gateway South District. The gifts were distributed by the churches of the Camden Urban Ministry Initiative (CUMI) and by the Camden Neighborhood Center. CUMI is a cooperative ministry of the United Methodist Churches in Camden.
The gift-sharing was designed as an attempt of United Methodists to demonstrate the love of Christ. The whole endeavor was timed to point out the true meaning of the Christmas celebration. As they visited the Gateway South churches during the Church Conference season, District Superintendent Robert Costello and District Lay Leader William Tilghman challenged the churches of the district to provide at least 1,000 gifts for the inner-city children.
Each gift was wrapped and marked for age and gender appropriateness. They were delivered to the Parkside and Asbury United Methodist Churches, and to the Neighborhood Center. The Parkside, New Beginnings, Asbury, Bethel, and Ferry Avenue congregations registered potential recipients of the gifts. Volunteers, led by Shirley Steward tagged the gifts and organized the distribution at Parkside.
The big celebration took place on December 11th at Parkside United Methodist Church. Youth from across Camden participated in the festivities. During the celebration D. S. Costello led the children in a birthday celebration, in which they enthusiastically sang “Happy Birthday” to Jesus. The Christmas Musical "Blessed and Highly Favored" was written and directed by Phil Hurtt, Media Director at Parkside. The program featured drama, music and humor. Joy filled the church as gifts were distributed after the Musical worship service.
Taize 2011
Pictures taken by Rev. Chris Heckert on the 2011 Taize Young Adult Spiritual Pilgrimage
Clearing The Clutter At The Neighborhood Center of Camden - 11/12/11
Several churches gathered to support the efforts to clear out the clutter at the Neighborhood Center of Camden. The day was a huge success!
