{"id":26104,"date":"2025-10-23T09:21:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-23T09:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/?p=26104"},"modified":"2025-10-24T22:31:05","modified_gmt":"2025-10-24T22:31:05","slug":"brethren-bits-90","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/2025\/brethren-bits-90\/","title":{"rendered":"Brethren bits"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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— Remembrance: Anne M. Myers<\/strong> (82), a former Annual Conference secretary and former staff of the Church of the Brethren Pension Plan and of Timbercrest Senior Living Community, died on Oct. 16 at Timbercrest in North Manchester, Ind. She was born on April 24, 1943, in Elgin, Ill., to Richard and Irene (Winger) Myers. She spent many years in Elgin, where she was an active member of Highland Avenue Church of Brethren, serving on several boards and commissions of the congregation and singing in the choir. She was employed by the Church of the Brethren Pension Plan at the denomination\u2019s General Offices in Elgin. In 1990, she became development director at Timbercrest until she retired in July 2009. When she was elected Annual Conference secretary, she was selected to fill a position that is one of the three officers of the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference alongside the moderator and moderator-elect, and served two five-year terms ending in 1997. When she moved to North Manchester, she became an active member of Manchester Church of the Brethren. In other involvements while living there she served on the town\u2019s Park Board, eventually as president, being instrumental in construction of the Strauss-Peabody Aquatic and Fitness Center and also serving as building manager of the Town Life Center for several years; and joined the North Manchester Kiwanis Club, becoming its first female president and being honored most recently for 35 years of membership in the organization. She was a graduate of the Frances Perkins Scholar Program for non-traditional age college students at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Mass. She is survived by her children Bonnie Booth (Randy Shaw), Brian Booth (Amelia Finch), and Becky Laskowski (Joe); their father Douglas Booth; and grandchildren and great-grandchildren. A celebration of life service will be held on Sunday, Nov. 23, at 1:30 p.m. (Eastern time) at Manchester Church of the Brethren. Memorial gifts are received to Manchester Church of the Brethren and Timbercrest Senior Living Community restricted to \u201cCharitable Assistance.\u201d Find a full obituary at www.mckeemortuary.com\/obituaries\/anne-myers<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Nov. 30 is the deadline for applications for Brethren Faith in Action Fund (BFIA) grants<\/strong> to be funded with moneys available in 2025. Generated from the sale of the upper campus of the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md., the BFIA funds outreach ministry projects that serve communities, strengthen congregations, and expand the reign of God. Such ministries will honor and continue the legacy of service that the center has epitomized while also addressing the dynamics of the present age. Grants of up to $5,000 per congregation or ministry project per year are awarded with a maximum of $15,000 allocated to any one ministry project over multiple years. Camps may apply for grants up to $2,500 every other year. Any United States Church of the Brethren congregation, fellowship, or project, and any Church of the Brethren camp may apply. Find out more at www.brethren.org\/faith-in-action<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The latest issue of \u201cRooted,\u201d<\/strong> the newsletter of the Brethren Creation Care Network, is now available online at https:\/\/mailchi.mp\/brethren\/rooted-2025-10?e=df09813496<\/a>. This issue includes a reflection by Hannah Nelson on food and harvest, and a \u201cPolicy Corner\u201d by Marcia Sowles on the Bureau of Land Management\u2019s proposal to repeal the Conservation and Landscape Health Rule.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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— \u201cOutwit: Biblical Stories of Regular People Taking Down Tyrants\u201d <\/strong>is the title of an online class offered by On Earth Peace. \u201cIn a time when faith is often co-opted to support authoritarian politics, many are left disheartened,\u201d said an announcement. \u201cAn upcoming online class\u2026offers a different path, exploring the Bible\u2019s deep roots of resistance. Facilitated by former pastor and writer Dana Cassell, this six-week series will introduce participants to often-overlooked stories of everyday people resisting tyrannical leaders. In an intimate classroom setting, we will explore these ancient narratives from both the Old and New Testaments and connect them to our present political moment.\u201d The sessions take place on Tuesdays, Nov. 11 through Dec. 16, at 7 p.m. (Eastern time) via Zoom. Cost: no set fee. Participants are invited to support On Earth Peace\u2019s ministries. Register at www.onearthpeace.org\/2025_11_outwit_biblical_stories<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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— Elizabethtown (Pa.) Church of the Brethren appears in a documentary<\/strong> that has won awards recently, titled An American Pastoral<\/em> and directed by French filmmaker Auberi Edler. The film \u201cchronicles the contentious 2023 campaign for Elizabethtown Area school board, focusing on the hot-button social issues that defined the race and drawing back with a wider lens to gauge community reaction,\u201d says an extensive article on the documentary and the community it reveals in LNP\/Lancaster Online. \u201cEdler won best director for the film and the film had been nominated for best feature-length documentary at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam,\u201d the article notes. \u201cThe filmmakers don\u2019t directly interview anyone in the film and refrain from commentary. Their voice isn\u2019t present except for text at the film\u2019s opening, explaining that schools in the U.S. are governed by publicly elected officials \u2014 school board directors \u2014 and the 2023 election featured a contest of five Democrats and five Republicans, four of which they characterized as \u2018far-right.\u2019\u201d Find the article at https:\/\/lancasteronline.com\/news\/local\/award-winning-french-documentary-chronicling-2023-elizabethtown-school-board-race-makes-us-debut\/article_8f17a577-ded7-4240-997a-436f53afa6ab.html<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

— \u201cIt’s election season! (for the Church of the Brethren),\u201d<\/strong> said an announcement of the next \u201cnominations party\u201d sponsored by the Womaen\u2019s Caucus. \u201cWhether you’ve been elected to a denominational leadership position, or have no idea how to even nominate someone, join us on zoom for an informative, active session: November 4 at 7pm Eastern.\u201d The announcement listed the open positions on the ballot at next year\u2019s Annual Conference including moderator-elect, Program and Arrangements Committee, Mission and Ministry Board both Area 3 and Area 5, and the Pastoral Compensation and Benefits Advisory Committee\u2013Laity. For more information about the nominations process go to www.brethren.org\/ac\/nominations<\/a>. The link for the \u201cnominations party\u201d is https:\/\/us02web.zoom.us\/j\/81646071794<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

— The Death Row Support Project is holding informational sessions<\/strong> for people who are interested in exploring the possibility of writing to a person on death row. Letter-writers are asked to commit to writing one letter per month to their pen pal. Writers can choose between sending letters by mail or using an electronic messaging app. During the Zoom session participants will learn basics of how the project works, meet members of the team who are there to support, and talk about how to get started with writing. These sessions are for informational purposes only. Potential writers will decide after the session whether they want to move forward with this commitment. Contact drsp@brethren.org<\/a> with any questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saturday, Nov. 1, 2-3 p.m. (Eastern time)<\/strong>
https:\/\/us06web.zoom.us\/j\/86223939155<\/a>
Meeting ID: 862 2393 9155<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monday, Nov. 3, 2-3 p.m. (Eastern time)<\/strong>
https:\/\/us06web.zoom.us\/j\/87295521849<\/a>
Meeting ID: 872 9552 1849<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monday, Nov. 3, 7-8 p.m. (Eastern time)<\/strong>
https:\/\/us06web.zoom.us\/j\/84837453532<\/a>
Meeting ID: 848 3745 3532<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thursday, Dec. 4, 2-3 p.m. (Eastern time)<\/strong>
https:\/\/us06web.zoom.us\/j\/81952186611<\/a>
Meeting ID: 819 5218 6611<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saturday, Dec. 6, 2-3 p.m. (Eastern time)<\/strong>
https:\/\/us06web.zoom.us\/j\/84768897919<\/a>
Meeting ID: 847 6889 7919<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#MissionAndMinistryBoard #StrategicPlan #RacialJustice #LoveOurNeighbors #Discipleship #NewTestamentGiving<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Find more Church of the Brethren news:<\/p>\n\n\n