A Vibrant Future

On Sunday, April 27,

many of us gathered in
the sanctuary following
the traditional worship
service to receive the
report of our Vibrant
Church Initiative
consultation team. This
report, based on data we
provided about our
congregation and our
community, reports
submitted by guests to
our morning worship
services, and information
gathered during the
consultation teams time
with us, outlined fve of
our greatest strengths,
fve areas of concern, and
prescriptions for a bright
future. Copies are
available at the church
ofce and online at bit.ly/
VCIReport.
A church conference,
in which all members of
Children and youth (pg. 2)
Help Wanted (pg. 3)
Important Dates (p. 4)
Calendar (p. 5)
Vol. 10, No. 5 May 1, 2014
(cont. on pg. 6)
In this Edition

Town Hall Meeting Dates:
Sunday, May 4th, 2:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 10th, 10:00 a.m.
Wednesday, May 14th, 7:00 p.m.
Called Church Conference (voting on VCI):
Sunday, May 18th, immediately following Traditional worship
Food Drive
HELP! The Middle School
back pack program needs
food! This vital program
sends backpacks flled with
food home each weekend
with students in need. Items
should be easily opened and
consumed by a child (nothing
requiring a can opener). Small containers and
single-servings are helpful, as well. I was
hungry, and you gave me food. (Matthew
25:35)
Join us on
WEDNESDAYS
from 6:00 to 7:00
p.m. in the Deen
building. Bring
your kindergar-
ten through 4th
grader for fun,
food, and
fellowship.
The Youth Group meets on Wednesdays from
6:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Come join us for food,
fun, and fellowship. We always have a great
time! Dont forget to bring a friend,
anyone in 5th through 12th grade is welcome!






Summer Camp
Mark your calendars now for Summer Camp at
Lakeview, in Palestine, Texas, for all children in
grades 4-12. Our week is set for July 7-11.
Registration forms and information will be
available soon!
Confrmation Class
We are holding confrmation class for 5
th
and
6
th
graders, as well as older youth. The class will
meet during the Sunday school hour in the
youth room. All youth are encouraged to
attend. Confrmation will be during worship on
Mothers Day, Sunday, May 11.

VBS
Children currently in grades K-5 are invited to
join us for a Weird Animals Adventure, where
Jesus love is one-of-a-kind, on June 23-27.
Mark your calendars. Registration information
will be available soon!
Help Jana on Her 3 Day Journey
Jana Davis, and her husband Damon, will walk in
their 2nd 3 Day 60 mile journey in November to
raise money for breast cancer research. They are
walking in memory of Linda Glover. If you would
like to help them meet
their fund raising goal,
forms will be available at
the church or you can
donate online at
the3day.org. Keep an eye
out for more
opportunities to give to
this cause.
Help Still Needed!
As you may know, Russell Memorial is
charter for our local Boy Scout Troop.
As such, we have a position as chair person
on their troop committee. This position has
long been held by Mary Keller. She has faithfully served for
many years, even after her son was long out of scouts. She is
retiring from scouts and we need to fnd someone to step into
this position. If you, or anyone you know, is interested, please
contact the church ofce (903-873-2569). We would like to
thank Mary for so many years of faithful service to the scouts
on behalf of the church. We appreciate all you do!








Attention Supper Club Members
Due to the busy agenda for our church in May,
Supper Club will NOT be meeting this
month. We do not meet during the summer,
and will start getting together again in
September. Have a great summer ,everyone!
Community Garden
Have you signed up to help
with the new Wills Point
Community Garden? Have
you placed a donation for
supplies in the red bucket at
the church? What are you
waiting for? We are excited
to be sponsoring this
wonderful opportunity
for our community! Please
contact the church office to
volunteer.

Birthday Girls
Birthday Girls are going to
Allure in Rockwall on May
14th. Please be at the church
by 10:20am if you need a
ride, reservations are for
11:30am. RSVP to Linda
Greenwald by May 11th.
Dont miss out on the fun!
Needed:
Adult child care
provider for our
church nursery.
Sunday mornings,
8:20 a.m.- 12:15
p.m. Contact the
church ofce (903-
873-2569) or The-
resa Turner (903-
873-3447)
Our Presence and Our Gifts
March 30 April 6 April 13 April 20 April 27
the early service 44 39 40 39 25
Sunday School 89 65 88 87 78
Traditional Worship 94 93 110 198 118
$4,585.97 $11,104.22 $5,252.06 $3,969.02 $2,612.50
Dates to Remember!
May 4, 2:00 p.m. Town Hall Meeting
May 10, 10:00 a.m. Town Hall Meeting
May 14, 11:30 a.m. Birthday Girls, Rockwall
May 14, 7:00 p.m. Town Hall Meeting
May 18, 12:00 p.m. Church Conference-VCI
vote, Senior Luncheon, Potluck
May 24, 11:00 a.m. Neighbor to Neighbor
May 25, Billys last Sunday, start of Annual Conference,
NO POTLUCK
May Worship Assistants

Altar Guild: Carolyn Hawkins (Chair), Marigrace Lang, Maxine
Page, Lucy Hill, Kathleen Bobbitt, Sara Bullard
Ushers: Gary Keller (Head), Danny Brown, Tricia Wyatt, Wayne
Watson
C
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f

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t
s

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A
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r
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Happy Birthday!
Bob Gilbreth 5-2
Carolyn Hawkins 5-2
Michelle Caldwell 5-3
Sarah Ellis 5-4
Nate Fincher 5-5
Betty Pratt 5-9
Whitney Kearney 5-11
Joni Tunnell 5-12
Martha Hesse 5-13
Becky Hardy 5-14
Kearstin Hulsey 5-14
Scott Teel 5-15
Jim Hawkins 5-18
Gary Keller 5-18
Dean Hesse 5-18
Beverly Roddy 5-19
Debbie Faulkenbury 5-21
Betty McCormick 5-22
Ed AuBuchon 5-26
Andy Anderson 5-26
Kelly Teel 5-27
Kathleen Bobbitt 5-29
Kimberlie Lumsden 5-31
Jordan Teel 5-31
Community Outreach Program
Neighbor to Neighbor Lunch
11 am-1pm
Fourth Saturday of each month
Deen Building - George Hall
OPEN TO ANYONE
WHO CHOOSES TO COME
Please contact Gerda David for
details (214-538-0192).
May
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
1 2 3

4
8:30 am Early
Service
9:45am Sunday
School
11:00am Worship
2:00pm Town Hall
Meeting
5
10:00 am Prayer
Group
6:00pm Trustees
6
7:00 pm Cub
Scouts



7
4:00pm Girl Scouts
6:00pm K5 Kids &
Youth
7:30pm Sanctuary
Choir
8 9

10

10:00am Town Hall
Meeting
11 Mothers Day
8:30 am Early
Service
9:45 am Sunday
School
11:00 am Worship

12
10:00 am Prayer
Group
6:00pm Finance
13
6:00pm Jesus
Girls
7:00 pm Cub
Scouts
14
11:30am Birthday
Girls
4:00pm Girl Scouts
6:00pm K5 Kids &
Youth
7:00pm Town Hall
Meeting
15

16

17

Cub Scout Blue and
Gold Banquet in the
Deen Building
18
7:30 am UMM
Breakfast
8:30 am Early
Service
9:45 am Sunday
School
11:00 am Worship
12:00pm Church
Conference
12:15pm Potluck
3:00 pm Crestwood

19
10:00 am Prayer
Group
6:30pm Day
School
20
7:00 pm Cub
Scouts
21
4:00pm Girl Scouts
6:00pm K5 Kids &
Youth
7:30pm Sanctuary
Choir


22
7:00pm Day School
Graduation
23


24
VCI

Neighbor to
Neighbor
Lunch 11 am1pm


25
8:30am Early
Service
9:45 am Sunday
School
11:00 am Worship
NO POTLUCK


26
10:00 am Prayer
Group






27
7:00 pm Cub
Scouts
28
10:00am Sunshine
Circle
4:00pm Girl Scouts
6:00pm K5 Kids &
Youth
7:30pm Sanctuary
Choir
29 30 31
Annual Conference
Russell Memorial can cast a vote, has been set for Sunday, May 18, 2014,
at noon (following traditional worship). At this meeting we will vote either to accept or reject the
prescriptions ofered in our VCI report. To help you make an informed decision, a series of town
hall meetings will be held for discussion, questions, clarifcations, and discernment. These are
scheduled for Sunday, May 4, at 2 p.m., Saturday, May 10, at 10 a.m., and Wednesday, May 14, at 7
p.m.
I would like to briefy outline the prescriptions here. Once again, a full text of the report is
available at the church ofce and online at bit.ly/VCIReport.

OUR VCI PRESCRIPTIONS
A Day of Prayer and Repentance to fully prepare us for Gods vision for our future.
A Day of Visioning workshop to help us gain clarity on our mission and vision.
A Congregational Unity Task Force to build bridges between our worship services, multi-
generations, newcomers to Wills Point, and the Day School.
A Discipleship Pathway Team to develop a clear discipleship path and help connect all
ministries and persons into this path, together with a Small Group Team to identify needs for
new small group connections, and a Connection Team to help connect and disciple new
persons.
A Bridge Building Team to improve signage at the church, to fully integrate the Day School into
the mission and ministry of the church, to explore ways to reach out to children, youth, and
young adults, to identify needs of the community to which RMUMC can respond, and to
conduct community events to reach new people, build relationships, and invite them to
worship.
Alignment of all staf position descriptions with our mission and vision, alignment of elected
church leadership positions with our mission and vision, a leadership retreat for all staf and
elected leaders focusing on alignment with our mission and vision, and a Lay Leadership Task
Force to develop a long-term plan for identifying, recruiting, training, supporting, and
deploying new leaders.

I invite you to prayerfully consider these prescriptions, attend and participate in the town hall
meetings, and cast your vote at the Church Conference on Sunday, May 18. Together, may we
discern Gods vibrant future for Russell Memorial.
Grace & peace,

P.S., A Personal Invitation
My time as your pastor will soon draw to a close. There is something about knowledge such as
this that lends itself to added clarity about what really matters. During the Sundays of May, I will
be sharing from my heart those things which I fnd most essential to faithfully following Jesus.
While I always want you to be in worship, I want to issue a special, personal invitation to you to
attend worship each Sunday this month. If you remember nothing else I have said or done in my
time at Russell Memorial, I hope and pray you will remember what I will be sharing with you in my
teaching series, Focus: What Matters Most. Ill see you in worship.
(cont. from pg. 1)
Love Ofering
As you know, moving day is fast approaching
for our pastor and his family. We would like to
send them of with a special love ofering. We
will be collecting funds in our beautiful
orange bucket this month. Dont forget to
join us for our potluck on May 18th so you can
wish this wonderful family well!
Remember in Prayer:
Family of Robin Pruitt
America
Bennie Scott
Bill Lacy
Billy Bruster
Bo & Maxine Clopton
Clif Rabal
Cotton & Lue Miles
Chris Cagle
Danny Harris
Dennis Basham
Don & Judith Hollister
Eldon Hiler
Ft. Hood Victims
Methodist Church (RMUMC)
Henry Watson
Inez Wade
Israel, Egypt, Russia, Ukraine,
& Venezuela
Jane Webber
Jay & Marty Miller
Jennifer Langford
Johnny & Laura Bates
Joni Tunnell
Judy & Walter Cook
Ken Davis
Kim Hutto
Larry Zirkelbach
Liz Ellis
Louis Carter
Londell Green
Lopez Miles
Mack Waller
Margaret Butler
Mary Helen Castleberry
Nadine & Charles Mills
Norma Hundley
Our Armed Forces
Our World
Phil Looney
Ron Turner
Sharon Akins
Thomas Hill
Thompson, Goss, & Garcia
Family
Tornado Victims
Travis
Vivian Pine
Wick Wilkerson

Memorials
In memory of Frances Fletcher
Given by Billy & Dorothy Bruster,
Tommy & Sylvia Wingo Huckabee, Jean Miracle,
and Weldon & Judy Powers
In memory of Joyce Jamieson
Given by William & Joan Lanford, and Weldon &
Judy Powers.
In memory of Jean Silvers
Given by Bob & Fritz Gilbreth, The Chancel
Choir, Charlie, Stacey, Sarah, & Elizabeth Ellis,
and The Friendship Class.
In memory of Wana Whitson,
Given by Mabel Reynolds.
In memory of Marie Sales
Given by Mabel Reynolds.
In memory of Freida Hill
Given by Mabel Reynolds.

The Russell Report
Russell Memorial United Methodist Church
A Family Rooted in Christ and Reaching Out in Love
201 S. Fourth Street
P. O. Box 335
Wills Point, TX 75169

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED








NON-PROFIT
ORGANIZATION
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
PERMIT #2
Wills Point, TX
Dr. Billy Watson, Pastor Dr. Bob Gilbreth, Music Director
Nancy McDonald, Ofce Administrator Fritz Gilbreth, Organist
Theresa Turner, Ladies Hand Bells Director Mary Keller, K5 Kids Coordinator
Denise Ross, Pianist Jackie Cockerham, Financial Administrator
Ofce Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Monday-Thursday
Join us Sunday Morning!
Contemporary Worship @ 8:30 Sunday School @ 9:45 Traditional Worship @ 11:00