A Magazine of Mesa Verde United Methodist Church
A Hand Up, Not a Handout: Habitat for Humanity in Orange County Stained Glass Windows: The Art and the Story I Got to Go to Rome! A Local Member Recalls the 1960 Olympics Welcome to Dadaab Camp: The Largest Refugee Center in the World Flamingo Flocking: The Latest Fundraising Craze
Vol. 1, No. 1
September 2012
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There are several stock photos in this issue. Attributions are as follows: Image credit: <a href=’http://www.123rf.com/photo_6037923_view-of-stained-glass-windows-and-rosacea-with-chandelier.html’>hugon / 123RF Stock Photo</a>, Image credit: <a href=’http://www.123rf.com/photo_8832533_south-rose-stained-glass-window-inside-notre-dame-cathedral-in-parisfrance.html’>alysta / 123RF Stock Photo</a>, Poor Mans bible Image credit: <a href=’http://www.123rf.com/photo_11992294_stained-glass-window-in-the-st-vitus-cathedral-praha.html’>azgek / 123RF Stock Photo</a>, Image credit: <a href=’http://www.123rf.com/photo_6514252_stained-tiffanyglass-table-lamp-with-dragon-fly-pattern.html’>mandj98 / 123RF Stock Photo</a>, Image credit: <a href=’http://www.123rf.com/photo_13911996_stained-glass-window-in-siena-cathedral-duomo--toscana--italy.html’>literan / 123RF Stock Photo</a>, Image credit: <a href=’http://www.123rf.com/ photo_13289381_france-stained-glass-window-in-the-church-of-les-mureaux.html’>packshot / 123RF Stock Photo</a>, Image credit: <a href=’http://www.123rf.com/photo_8615360_st-vitus-cathedral-forms-the-heart-of-the-prague-castle.html’>noelbynature / 123RF Stock Photo</a>, Image credit: <a href=’http://www.123rf.com/photo_12885586_jesus-turns-water-to-wine-at-cana-saint-peter-and-paul-catholic-church-completed-1924-san-francisco-.html’>billperry / 123RF Stock Photo</a>, Image credit: <a href=’http://www.123rf.com/photo_5908859_the-entombment-of-christ-shown-in-animage-on-a-medieval-16th-century-stained-glass-panel-from-the-c.html’>tonybaggett / 123RF Stock Photo</a>, Image credit: <a href=’http://www.123rf.com/photo_3524652_abstract-vector-color-map-of-kenya-country.html’>rusak / 123RF Stock Photo</a>
Table of Contents 2
A Hand Up, Not a Handout
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Stained Glass Windows: The Art and the Story
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The 1960 Olympics: I Got to Go to Rome!
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Welcome to Dadaab Camp
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Flamingo Flocking
On the Cover The cover art is an extreme close-up of a backlit stained glass window. The photographer is Kees Zwanenburg.
Copyright 2012 Š Mesa Verde United Methodist Church, Costa Mesa, CA. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher. The magazine reflects the interests, views, and opinions of Mesa Verde UMC. It is not an official magazine of the worldwide United Methodist Church.
A Hand Up, Not a Handout
W
hen Silvia Ibarra received the key to her brand-new Santa Ana house, her body language said it all. On an overcast day in mid-July, sunshine flooded her face. Tears hovered on her eyelashes, and her shoulders were squared in obvious pride. Silvia had worked hard all her life for her family, and they had all worked together to make this house a reality. A 1,344 sf Craftsman-style house, it fits perfectly in the neighborhood. After all the years of hardship and all the weeks of labor, they finally had a home. It was the 172nd home in Orange County, CA, and the 12th in Santa Ana that Habitat Orange County (Habitat OC) had built in partnership with a family. Two more were scheduled for construction in August 2012, with three others to come after that. Habitat OC expects to build a total of 17 houses all in Santa Ana over the next two years.
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3 Photo courtesy of Habitat OC
S. Cooley
Many people mistakenly think Habitat for Humanity is a national organization started by former President Jimmy Carter. In fact, Habitat is an international non-pofit founded in 1976 in Americus, GA, by the late Millard Fuller and his wife Linda. President Carter and his wife Rosalynn, who live in nearby Plains, GA, have been long-time supporters and volunteers whose high profiles bring attention to the organization.
S. Cooley
All local Habitat offices in the U.S. are independent affiliates of the now international organization.Working under the umbrella of the larger Habitat for Humanity, they raise their own funds, run their own programs, and provide their own staff. They also tithe to the larger organization to help fund Habitat’s international builds. Habitat OC’s President and CEO is Sharon Ellis.
Qualifying for a Home Habitat OC holds open neighborhood orientations on a monthly basis. There they describe the program, the shared equity nature of home ownership (Habitat OC retains a “Right of First Refusal” to purchase the home when the owner sells it), and the amount of “sweat equity” required of each adult family member (250 hours). In general, potential homeowners must be legal citizens (as must all members of the family), and have a need for affordable housing. They must have the ability to buy the house they help to build,
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The Iberra family works with volunteers from throughout Orange County and Habitat OC personnel to build the house they will buy. “Sweat equity” is part of the down payment on the house.
paying closing costs and a 1% down payment; and they must be able to afford a long-term mortgage. In addition, their total debt-to-income ratio must be no more than 40%. Housing is affordable because the land and much of the construction materials and labor are often donated. Individual volunteers, businesses, civic groups, and faith groups work under professional supervision alongside Habitat OC families to build the homes. When a new build is given the go-ahead, interested parties who believe they meet the qualifications are invited to apply if they want to live in that location. In Orange County, about 150 people fill out an application for a Habitat OC home annually. Once an application is submitted, each of two Family Services teams, made up of two entirely different groups of volunteers, visits with applicants in their homes on separate occasions. Armed with a list of standard questions, they interview the applicants who may be either single persons or families. They work to determine whether the applicants: • • •
Have a legitimate need for affordable housing Have a good understanding of the program Are enthusiastic about the opportunity
• •
Are willing to partner with Habitat OC Are looking for a hand up instead of having an “entitlement” attitude
Once the interview process is complete, the volunteers have a “Selection Day,” where team members advocate for “their” families. They develop a blind spreadsheet whose numbers are then verified by Habitat OC’s CFO Lauri Reveles. A resulting short list is forwarded to the Executive team whose job it is to match approved applicants with the location in which the house will be built. For example, they try to place applicants without cars in homes not too far from their place of employment. In one case, a family had an autistic child who attended a special school; the committee worked to find a site near the S. Cooley school. The Executive team makes a final determination which they submit to the Habitat OC Board of Directors. During the entire process, recommendations are submitted “blind.” The race, religion (if any), and name of each applicant or family is not provided to decision makers. It takes two to six months on average to vet an applicant. Once one is approved and an offer has been made and accepted, other applicants are invited to apply again. Some
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S. Cooley
Above: Dedication day. The Iberra family and members of the Executive team of Habitat OC after the family had received the key—and the mortgage—to their new home. Right: The flower boxes that line the front walk were made by Girl Scout Troop 663.
have been known to apply as many as half a dozen times before a proper match is found.
The Houses Themselves While some Habitat OC homes are rehabs, most of them are built from the ground up. It’s Habitat OC’s Senior Vice-President Mark Korando, Sr., who is responsible for finding the location. Before 2012, local cities and the County of Orange provided the land through their redevelopment agencies. Today, Habitat OC relies on donations of land from individuals and corporations. The organization also occasionally buys land. 6
Once Korando finds a suitable site (taking into consideration key factors among applicants and the needs of the city to provide for low-income families), he basically envisions a house on a vacant lot, creates a budget based on the size of the house and the configuration of its design (taking into consideration such things as zoning and planning laws that impact cost), and has preliminary plans drawn up.
House Blessing by Pastor Mark Wiley In this day we gather here to ask you, O God, to celebrate with us in the dedication of this house.
Habitat OC’s Land Committee, made up of a board of architects, engineers, construction experts, and land developers, tweaks the design. City councils approve the build, and a team of design professionals is put together to handle detail design. Korando is in charge of program management, bidding, and construction. It is his responsibility to get the house built on time and within budget—somewhat of a unique challenge
You have been here before. You were here when the dirt was leveled. You were here when the concrete was poured.
considering the amount of volunteer labor that goes into the project. And then it’s dedication day. By then the crews feel like family and the family knows they’ve come home. Habitat OC has done its job. •
S. Cooley
You were here when the volunteers learned how to use power tools. You were here when the nails were pounded, the walls painted, the wiring installed, and the plumbing installed. You were here when the roof was put on, the tiles laid, and the front door installed. And so, God, we invite You to be here for the party, the reception, the giving of the keys, and the first steps of turning the house into a home. Amen
Pastor Mark Wiley (left), who gave the house blessing, and Mark Korando, Sr., senior vice-president, Habitat OC, stand in front of the Iberra home on the day of the dedication. Wiley is the senior minister and Korando is a member of Mesa Verde UMC.
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Zvonimer Atletic
Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem. The basilica is believed to mark the birth place of Christ. It is considered the oldest continuously operating Christian church in the world.
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Stained GlassWindows: The Art and the Story
H
istorians believe glass windows have been around since the late 1st century C.E., and stained or painted window glass has been found dating from as early as the 6th century. The oldest stained glass windows in situ are referred to as the Prophet Windows in Augsburg Cathedral, Augsburg, Germany, circa 1065. It is clear from the complexity of these windows, however, that the craft was well developed long before that date. Stained glass came into its own in the Gothic era of architecture, when European cathedrals, with their massive stonework and vaulted ceilings were made possible by the construction of flying buttresses. As the â&#x20AC;&#x153;wall spaceâ&#x20AC;? grew larger, the need to let in more light became more critical, and the art and science of stained glass flourished for more than three centuries.
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Dmitry Iakovlev
Right: The awe-inspiring Sainte Chapelle, Paris, was commissioned by Louis IX not as a cathedral, but as a place to house religious relics. The building was consecrated in 1248. Page opposite: The story of Abram preparing to sacrifice his son Issac. Les Mureaux Cathedral, France. Above and far right: A window depicting multiple stories came to be referred to as The Poor Man’s Bible. The roundel is 12th century stained glass, Sienna Cathedral, Tuscany. The window at far right is from St. Vitus, St. Wenceslas and St. Adalbert Cathedral in Prague.
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Hugon
Stained glass windows were designed to “illumine men’s minds.” They were meant to inspire a sense of awe. Medieval ecclesiastical windows often served as visual “Bible stories” for a largely illiterate population, although they could also depict the saints and earthly dignitaries, from kings and popes to church donors.
Sergey Mostovoy
Philippe Halle
One of the earliest Gothic cathedrals was St. Denis, built in Paris in the mid-1100s. It contained stained glass windows whose purpose, Abbot Sugar wrote, was to “Illumine men’s minds so they may travel through it to an apprehension of God’s light.” The abbot was a confidant to both King Louis VI and King Louis VII, and stained glass windows became very popular in France, later spreading primarily to Flanders, England, and Germany, although they can be found elsewhere, as well. As the craft of stained glass making became an art unto itself, images became more life-like, and subjects expanded to include donors and everyday medieval life. The 16th century heralded the dawn of the Reformation and the end of an era in stained glass windows. King Henry VIII’s break with Cathol-
icism, the Protestant movement, and religious wars in Germany led to the physical destruction of “popish” images and icons. Windows of the Gothic era were deliberately destroyed, and stained glass window manufacturing became a lost art. The 19th century saw the revival of interest in Gothic art and architecture and a renewal of interest in stained glass. It took some time for artisans to develop formulas for coloring glass and techniques for creating the mosaic-like windows, using enamel paint and stain only for details and shading. A huge effort was made to restore or reconstruct the stained glass windows of medieval times. Today, many of the stained glass windows in Gothic cathedrals are either replicas of the originals or are actually Neo-Gothic in design.
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12 Alysta Inc.
Johannes Bockh
Early stained glass was referred to as Forest Glass and was manufactured using cylinder blown or crown glass. Colors ranged from yellow through rust to flesh and light purple and reddish purple and are thought to have been created through the heating and annealing process, particularly when the ingredients were beech wood ash (potash), silica, and lime, although the use of soda in place of potash was not altogether uncommon. The deliberate addition of trace metals introduced more colors. For example, red, blue, and green could be attained by adding copper oxides. After the glass was cut and set into place, details were added using enamel paint or silver stain (the latter of which created a golden yellow color). Left: The oldest stained glass windows still in situ are thought to be the Prophet Windows found in Augsburg Cathedral, Germany. The image at left is of the Prophet Daniel. Below: Augsburg Cathedral with its highly stylized Gothic architecture. Noel Tan
Vassil
Left: The South Rose Window of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris perhaps is typical of many medieval stained glass windows. Originally installed in 1260, it suffered the ravages of time and the French Revolution. It was repaired and restored in 1725 and again in 1861. The original central medallion is gone, replaced with what is described as an apotholyptic Christ. Surrounding circles include everything from the apostles to the saints to angels and include a number of Bible stories. Below the window are 16 lancet windows depicting 16 prophets. Four of them carry Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, four of the original disciples of Jesus and the authors of the New Testament gospels. The lancet windows are 19th century replacements of the originals. Right: The Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres, France, boasts 176 stained glass windows on three levels, a majority of which were created in the first half of the 13th century. It is estimated that 152 of the 176 windows are originals, more than any other medieval cathedral in the world.
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William Perry
Below: The Entombment of Christ, 16th century stained glass, Steinfeld Abbey, near Cologne, Germany. Note that during this time stained glass designers used a prodigious amount of enamel paint to create the fine detail found here. Right: Jesus Turns Water Into Wine at Cana, a Neo-Gothic stained glass window, 1924, St. Peter and Paul Catholic Church, San Francisco, CA. Nineteenth and 20th century America saw an interest in all things Gothic, and stained glass once again came into vogue.
Anthony Boggett
Page Opposite: Modern stained glass art. The Scientists and Technicians Window, known generally as the Space Window, National Cathedral,Washington, DC. The window includes a small lunar rock donated by Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins.
The best known stained glass manufacturers in America were Louis Comfort Tiffany, a member of the famous Tiffany silversmith family, and John La Farge. La Farge first patented opalescent glass, a technique whereby two layers of stained glass are fused to create the kind of texture previously attainable only by enamel painting and silver staining. Tiffany patented several variations and, hinting at a business partnership, convinced La Farge to give up his patent. Unfortunately, Tiffany did not follow through, and the two became fierce competitors.
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Today, stained glass manufacturing has again met with hard times. As most glass was designed for churches, the lack of new church building activities has severely impacted the industry. Even many newer churches tend to lack other than the most utilitarian stained glass in their sanctuaries. Interest in the art has once again waned. â&#x20AC;˘
Tim Evanson
Tiffany, with his wealth and family influence, eventually built a large glass and decorating studio. He was commissioned to do the stained glass windows
in the White House, recognized as original masterpieces. But his studios also produced multiple copies of single designs; take, for example, his Tiffany lamps. La Farge, on the other hand, continued to produce single one-offs. Despite the prodigious amount of stained glass manufactured by Tiffany, eventually the craze for the art once again died down, and Tiffanyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s studios went bankrupt.
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cstar55 James Phelps
Opalsecent glass is made of two pieces of stained glass fused together. It not only reflects but refracts light. First patented in the late 1900s by John La Farge, it was also used extensively by Louis Comfort Tiffany. Opalescent glass offered a way to create texture without painting on the glass. While opalescent glass lets in less light, the advent of electric lighting made this less important. Above and left: Tiffany glass. The window above is part of the First Presbyterian Church, Topeka, Kansas, 1911. Tiffany lamps were considered just an offshoot of Tiffanyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s stained glass business. Right: Window created by John La Farge, Unity Church, North Easton, Massachusetts, 1886.
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PD-US
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18 Photo courtesy of Carolyn House Helmuth
The 1960 Olympics: I Got to Go to Rome! By Carolyn House Helmuth
T
his summer the Olympics were held in London. I personally get very excited about watching the Olympics on television, especially the swimming, which brings back a flood of memories for me. Let me start at the beginning of my swimming career. My parents put in a backyard pool when I was four years old. I took to swimming like a duck to water. My parents heard about a great swimming coach and took me and my brother John down to the Los Angeles Athletic Club from our house in the Los Felis area to try out for the swim team. We both made it! I was 11 years old. By the time I was 12, I was the top swimmer in my age group in California, and I went on to Nationals. There, I came in fifth in the 1,500 meter freestyle. In two short years, the 1960 Olympics were coming up, so I trained hard six days a week; during the summer it was double workouts. The Olympic games of 1960 did not have my favorite events (800 and 1,500 meters) at the time, so I had to make the Olympic team in the 400 meter freestyle.
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Photo courtesy of Carolyn House Helmuth
The Olympic trials were held in Detroit, Michigan. For my event, only two females would be selected. I was lucky enough to come in second. I was so excited at the finish. A mature athlete but still just a girl, I remember jumping up and down and yelling repeatedly, “I’m going to Rome! I’m going to Rome!” As it turned out, I was the youngest member of the Olympic team. As a side note, my brother John missed the Olympic team by six-tenths of a second. My parents were happy for me, but sad for John. Later, he swam for USC.
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I did not go back to L.A. after the trials. Those of us who had made the cut went directly to New York to train for two weeks and then ON TO ROME! Onboard the chartered flight to Italy, we were with fencers, bicyclists, and boxers (including a young Cacius Clay, later choosing to call himself Mohammad Ali). As we were ready to take off, a man from the State Department got on the P.A. system and told us that we were representing the United States of America and had a very important role to play in world peace. Wow, how could I, a 14-year-old,
be on this amazing flight, representing this great country? I was overwhelmed.
in coming days in the swimming events. They had come by commercial airline.
We arrived in Rome and went to the Olympic village, a place we would call home for the next two weeks. It was so much fun; we were given trading pins to exchange with athletes from other countries. With so many countries and different eating customs, they had to have many kitchens set up. In addition, we toured the Vatican and were blessed by Pope John XXIII.
While I was working out in the pool, I met a female Russian swimmer. In perfect English, she asked me how I liked Elivs Presley. I was amazed she knew so much about him. It made me realize that we were the same people no matter where we lived. It was a novel concept in the Cold War years.
A major highlight for me was marching in the opening ceremony. I was very lucky that my famiy was there to watch me march that day and compete
I came in ninth at the 1960 Olympics but later went on to set two world records in the 1,500 meter freestyle as well as the 800 meter freestyle. I set American records in the 200/400 freestyle and won seven national championships. Now in my post-competitive days, I am a professional swimming instructor. When not in the water, I enjoy being a wife, mother of two grown children, and a great grandmother to a two-year-old. It’s a good life; I can’t imagine living any other way. •
Opposite page: 1960 Olympic swim team. I am fourth from the right in the front row. I placed ninth in the 400 meter but, in 1961, went on to break the world record in the 400 meter and 1500 meter freestyle. Those races did not become part of the Olympics until 1972. Left: My husband Dick and I on our trip to Italy last year. I am still drawn to water.
Photo courtesy of Carolyn House Helmuth
Carolyn and her husband are members of Mesa Verde United Methodist Church. 21
Welcome to Dadaab Camp D
adaab Camp in northeast Kenya is the largest refugee camp in the world. Perhaps that’s not so surprising considering the carnage of war in the countries that surround Kenya, including Ethiopia, Sudan, and Somalia. And now there’s famine in the Horn of Africa, where communities have experienced the worst drought in 60 years. The grass has withered, the streams have dried up, and the animals have died. While rain arrived last fall, it was too little, too late for many. What civil war hadn’t done to dislocate these people, hunger had. That Dadaab Camp exists and is so big is not so hard to fathom, either. But the fact that it’s been there for 20 years and provides refuge to second- and even third-generation families is mind-boggling. Children and youth constitute 52% of the total population. In this place where living is hard and hope is hard to come by, for some, it is the only home they’ve ever known.
Sadik Gulec
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And it’s bulging at the seams. Originally, the land was set aside for Somalis facing civil war and famine. The facility was built to house 90,000; it was slated to be open for three months. Today the camp holds somewhere in the neighborhood of half a million people, and once again those who arrive in the largest numbers are from Somalia—and for the same reasons. The sprawling compound of more than 30 acres is actually made up of five camps surrounding the small village of Dadaab—IFO East and West, Dagahaley, Kambioos, and Hagadera. Refugees continue to arrive at a rate of about 1,300 a day, living on the perimeter of the camps in native tukels they build of sticks and mud or tattered tents camp administrators had originally planned to send to the rubbish heap.
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The sprawling metropolis is managed by the ACT alliance under the auspices of the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNCHR); ACT is an international group of 125 churches and church-related agencies that responds to emergencies throughout the world. ACT members with offices in Kenya are the Anglican Church in Kenya, Christian Aid, Christian Reformed World Relief Committee, Church World Service, Diakonie Emergency, The Lutheran World Federation, Lutheran World Relief, the National Council of Churches in Kenya, Fin Church Aid, Norwegian Church Aid, and Diakonia Sweden. They work hand-in-hand with other aid agencies, as well, including Oxfam, Save the Children, CARE, and the International Relief Committee, among others.
In July, the Los Angeles Times, citing a recent briefing paper released under the signatures of several aid agencies, noted, “There are two health units for 78,000 people…164,000 youngsters—70% of the camp’s children—do not go to school… Violence and insecurity are rife. Rapes of women and girls are common, and reports of sexual violence increased by 36% from February to May, but funding for protection of children and women has declined.” (“In Kenya, Dadaab Refugee Camp Faces $25 Million Shortfall,” Robyn Dixon, July 13, 2012.)
The briefing paper cited by the Los Angeles Times, “The Human Cost of the Funding Shortfalls for the Dadaab Refugee Centers,” was sponsored by CARE, Catholic Relief Services, the Danish Refugee Council, the International Rescue Committee, The Lutheran World Federation, the Norweigan With the overwhelming number of refugees in the camp, even the most basic needs, such as water, are stretched to the limit. Women and children stand in long lines in the hot sun for hours waiting to bring water back to their families.
The host country of Kenya feels the pinch as the camp’s population competes with local communities for firewood, water, and land. Because of potential conflict, the Kenyan government will not give camp inhabitants residence status, will not allow them to work officially in-country, and restricts travel outside the camp without a pass.
Sadik Gulec
For those who have grown up in Dadaab Camp and consider Kenya their second home, the restrictions chafe. Restlessness, overcrowding, subsistence living, and a feeling of being second-class citizens tend to sway young men to escape the camp by joining local rebel militias in nearby Somalia. 25
Refugee Council, Oxfam, and Terre de Hommes. The agencies called for additional funds, estimating a $25 million shortfall by the end of September of this year. Fifty thousand refugees will be without water or sanitation by then, leaving them at risk for cholera. Imagine that spreading throughout the camps. Shelter follows a close second on the list of needs. Tents cost about $700 each, and an estimated 60,000 are needed, according to the briefing paper. Unfortunately, tents only last about six months in the sub-Saharan climate of the region.
TSgt. Steve Staedler
Security is a major challenge, as well. While there has been an uptick in violence against women and girls in the year, security has become a more visible issue with the recent abduction of several aid workers. Last October, Spaniards working for Medecins San Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) were kidnapped and are still being held hostage. In July of this year, a Kenyan driver was killed and four aid
UNCHR increased its budget requirements for the Kenya operation from $55 million to $230 million in 2011 and to $236 million in 2012, and still there is a shortfall.
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workers from the Norwegian Refugee Council were taken when their vehicles were attacked outside the camp. And some Kenyans claim the camp is a breeding ground for terrorists. Looking at needs, schools are in short supply. The Luthereran World Federation estimates that $31 million would be needed to pay for teachersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; salaries, the building of 800 classrooms (and 1,429 toilets), and the purchase of 174,000 exercise books. According to the briefing paper, for those who are in school, conditions are primitive. There is only one textbook for every 13 pupils; there are over 100 children per classroom; classes run in two shifts per day; and only one in five teachers has any formal teacher training.
Sadik Gulec
An estimated 60,000 tents are needed to house the thousands of refugees swarming into the camps every day. Camp administrators are so desperate for tents they’re recycling those recently thought fit only for the rubbish bin. For many, tents like these have been the only shelter they’ve ever known.
In the briefing paper, there is a call for a strategy that not only deals with the emergency situation, but provides for the long term needs of the camp population that includes education, vocational training, and community-based self-reliance. “Refugees,” the statement noted, “should be able to use their time in exile to foster knowledge, attitudes, and skills critical for their eventual return.”
tative in Kenya, as saying, “Countries like Kenya and Ethiopia host some of the largest populations of refugees in the world, making it easy to forget that refugees are the responsibility of the international community. We must all support the efforts of countries who host refugees to take care of them.” The alternative is just unthinkable. •
In a statement released by Nigel Tricks, head of Oxfam in Kenya, “Refugee camps are only temporary solutions, and the situation is increasingly untenable. Funds are needed now to save lives, but we can’t keep pumping money in year after year while the camp keeps getting bigger.” The website Alert Net quoted Lennart Hernander, The Lutheran World Federation country represen-
The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is the worldwide church’s official relief organization. UMCOR supports partner organizations ACT Alliance, Church World Service, and GlobalMedic in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Somalia, through its Horn of Africa Crisis program with emergency grants to meet immediate food, water, and shelter needs of people displaced by the crisis. Mesa Verde UMC donates to UMCOR through its Mission Bucks program.
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Flamingo Flocking H
as a flamboyance of big, black-beaked, pink, plastic flamingos standing on sturdy wire legs landed on your front lawn, drawing attention from friends and strangers alike? Have they added a certain, um, tackiness to your neighborhood? Have you had to pay to have them removed? If so, you’ve been flocked! Flamingo flocking is the latest craze in fundraising. A person pays to have a flock of plastic flamingos furtively placed in another’s yard. In a new twist, “flockees” can “flock it forward,” having the birds placed on yet another lawn—for a fee, of course.
The fund raiser is especially popular among the younger generation— schools, Scouts, and church youth groups. However, others get in on the act, too. One is currently running in New Orleans, a fundraiser for the local Susan G. Koemen for the Cure affiliate. With pink being the organization’s corporate color, it seems particularly appropriate. •
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S. Cooley
Mesa Verde United Methodist Church Mesa Verde United Methodist Church (MVUMC) is a part of the worldwide UMC. Built in Costa Mesa, CA, on land originally called Goat Hill, it is now part of Costa Mesa proper and has been part of the community for more than 50 years. There’s an old joke about a group of elementary students who are asked to bring symbols of their religion to school for show-and-tell. The first child stands up and says, “I’m Jewish, and this is a Torah.” A second child stands up and says, “I’m Catholic, and this is a crucifix.” The third youngster stands up and says, “I’m Methodist, and this is a casserole!” Potlucks are a great symbol for Methodists. Everyone brings something to the table. You won’t like everything, but you will find something new that is wonderful. The conversation is good. The plates are always full, and desserts are free. Methodists like to get things done. We love the Bible and love to worship together. But spirituality isn’t just what we do for ourselves but what we do for others. Our founder, John Wesley, had a saying that has become our motto: Do as much good as you can With all the people you can In all the ways you can In all the places you At all the times that you can. Faith means making a tangible difference in the world. If you’re ever in the neighborhood, feel free to stop by. Everyone is welcome! www.mesaverdeumc.org.