Michiana MEDA Presents: The Stewardship of Creativity

The Michiana MEDA network hub invites you to join us for ‘The Stewardship of Creativity’ presented by John D. Roth, Project Director, Anabaptism at 500 Initiative, MennoMedia. John will explore the themes of creativity, risk, beauty and entrepreneurship as gifts to be stewarded within businesses and churches on Thursday, April 13th, 2023.  Location: Everence Corporate Office, 1110 N Main St, Goshen, IN 46527 at 7:00 pm.  Free event, coffee/tea and snacks will be provided. Registration encouraged online at:  https://www.meda.org/event/ 

New Resource for Saving Congregational Dollars

Did you know that you can save money on some of the digital tools many of us use in our churches? Many tech companies offer discounts or grants to use their products as registered non-profit organizations. We’ve started collecting these on our website, so check out what we have so far to see if you can save some money and send any additional tips you have!

Non-Profit Discounts

Special Offering for Amigo Centre

Hello from Amigo Centre!

My name is Jessica, and I am the new Executive Director at Amigo Centre.  For those of you that I have not yet met, I hope that we will have a chance to meet soon.

As most of you know, 9 months ago Amigo was hit by a devastating storm. The support that we have had from both individuals and congregations has been incredible. We are SO grateful for the volunteers who have given us hundreds of hours of time and energy as we have worked to recover from the storm.  We are also extremely grateful for the continued financial support that so many of you have provided for us! Your generosity has sustained us during these difficult times.

Working together, we have made an awesome amount of progress in cleanup and repairs to our facilities and grounds. However, as we continue to recover and get all of our spaces ready for this summer, we find that there is a need that rises to the top for us: we need a tractor!

Specifically, we need a utility tractor with a grapple hook attachment. After much conversation and advice from our team of technical advisors (who have also graciously brought their own tractors to work at Amigo!) we are looking to purchase an L2501 Kubota. This tractor, including the grapple and other accessories, will cost roughly $28,000. Through the generosity of a few individual and corporate donors, we have already raised $10,000!

I am writing to ask you to invite your congregation to help us raise the last $18,000 by taking up a special offering this week for the purchase of this tractor.  

If you would like further information – such as technical specifications, what the tractor will be used for at Amigo, or our process of deciding on this purchase, feel free to email me or give me a call! I would be glad to talk it through with you.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out if there is anything that Amigo can do to support, offer resources to, or partner with your congregation.

With Gratitude,

Jessica Weseman
Executive Director

Mennonites Against Militarism Seeks Volunteers Interested in Counter-recruitment Efforts

Mennonites Against Militarism – a collaboration of Mennonite Central Committee, U.S. (MCC) and Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) – is seeking to launch an initiative to counter military recruitment of U.S. youth. The vision for the project, Alternatives to Military Enlistment Network (AMEN), is to connect young people with volunteer advisors who can help them find non-military career, service and training opportunities.

Mennonites Against Militarism invites interested volunteers to complete a brief survey that identifies areas in which they may engage with AMEN, including administration, web and graphic design, publicity, budgeting, fundraising and guidance/career counseling. Veterans and others who understand the realities of war and military recruitment are also encouraged to complete the form.

“This project goes beyond traditional counter-recruitment efforts by working with individual youths to find meaningful opportunities,” said Titus Peachey, a legacy peacemaker and retired coordinator of peace education for MCC. “In a highly militarized society, it is a practical way to embody our faith commitment to peace.”

In a 2021 blog for Mennonite Women USA, Executive Director Cyneatha Millsaps, co-pastor of Prairie Street Mennonite Church in Elkhart, Indiana, asked, “How do we Mennonites — traditionally anti-military — address the fact that, for many recruits, the military is their only option for peace? If we seek to direct young people away from enlisting, we need to provide them with viable options for achieving economic and physical security at home.”

“Through AMEN, we envision a dedicated group of trained counselors around the country ready to help youth resist the militarization of their futures by finding viable alternatives to military enlistment,” said Peachey.

The AMEN initiative will be comprised of various components, including:

• A website that will serve as the primary entryway for youth, parents and pastors to connect with a volunteer career counselor.
• A network of trained and vetted counselors around the country who provide young people with the resources and step-by-step guidance they need to find viable post-high school options.
• A shared database of resources related to educational scholarships, service-learning  opportunities, internships, job training, work camps, gap-year experiences and employment by region and nationally.
• An outreach program to help make families, congregations and church agencies aware of these alternative opportunities.

The United States Armed Forces needs 150,000 new recruits each year to meet its goals. Graduating high school seniors are the military’s target recruiting demographic, according to Military Times. Since the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act (2001), military recruiters have the same on-campus access to high school students as college recruiters. In addition, the military reaches young people through a variety of other means, including onsite programming (i.e., Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps) social media, mobile apps and even video games.

The best predictor of whether a young person will join the armed forces is their familiarity with the military, often through an enlisted family member or proximity to a military base. However, sign-on bonuses and offers of training, education, health benefits and travel provide strong incentives for recruits, especially for those lacking resources. In fact, a down economy and high unemployment provide fertile ground for military recruiting.

“At this point, we are testing the viability of this concept and seeking volunteers to get it started,” said Peachey. “Our hope is that AMEN will grow and thrive as a constituent-run initiative to counter these powerful recruitment efforts.” 

News Release Editorial Contacts:

• Jessica Buller, Jessica Buller, Peace Education Coordinator, Mennonite Central Committee, US, jessicabuller@mcc.org, 574.523.3068
• Camille Dager, Director of Marketing and Communications, Mennonite Church USA, CamilleD@MennoniteUSA.org, 574-523-3077