West Seattle Herald / White Center News - Religion/Churches

New church to clean SeaTac streets Sunday

ericm — Wed, 01 May 2013 21:14:13 +0000

Members of a new church in SeaTac are holding a street cleanup in their new city this Sunday.

The World Mission Society Church of God, located at 18435 42nd Ave. S. is sponsoring the cleanup. They will begin at noon along South 188th Street, go north on International Boulevard to South 176th Street and back to 42nd Avenue South. The event goes until 4 p.m.

The members are inviting other volunteers to join them.

“Living in a clean environment contributes much to a person’s well being and allows a much more pleasant life,” the church said in a press release.

For more information, contact Amanda Tello at 520-256-3142 or Deborah Kwon at 206-465-0255.

Do not display Byline

ericm

05/01/2013

5 - Front Page - TOP

Seattle Christian Schools Hosting School Wide Open House Event for Prospective Families

ericm — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 21:46:00 +0000

Press release:

Seattle Christian Schools will host an Open House for future families, Kindergarten through 12th grade, on Thursday, January 17, At 7:00 p.m.

The school wide meeting will take place for students enrolling for the 2013-2014 school year. The format will include opportunities to meet faculty, staff and SCS Superintendent, Gloria Hunter. Seattle Christian offers top-rated academics, a strong Biblical worldview, excellent athletics, fine and performing arts, co-curricular programs, as well as before and after school care.

The school has approximately 550 students on a beautiful 13.5 acre campus, just off Interstate-5 in SeaTac. For more information, contact Fran Hubeek, Admissions Coordinator, at 206.246.8241 or visit www.seattlechristian.org

Do not display Byline

ericm

01/09/2013

5 - Front Page - TOP

Burien-based Orphan Relief and Rescue cofounder inspires readers to action in new book

ericm — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:14:14 +0000

Press release:

Rebecca M. Pratt takes her readers to Africa, Central America and the United States to bring awareness to the needs around the world and stimulate people to help those who are suffering in “Inspired To Action: How Following the Promptings of Your Heart Can Change the World” (ISBN 1466409029).

Pratt shares her experiences and challenges in her own walk with God to inspire readers to trust God in the unseen.

She brings her readers into the lives of those suffering and hurting., and she shares about being faced with unbelievable decisions that will change the outcome of hundred of children’s lives in Africa, . Her book will challenge readers’ faith as they reflect on their own personal walks with God.

“You will be challenged to live your life purposefully and to embrace the concept that we each have the ability to make a huge difference in the world as we say yes to all that God may prompt us to walk forward in,” Pratt says. “In return, we will live this amazing, empowered and fulfilling life like we have never experienced.”

Pratt says her readers will get a glimpse into God’s redemptive heart for humanity. She hopes they will begin to listen to the promptings and nudges of their hearts and take action as a result of reading “Inspired to Action.”

“Inspired To Action: How Following the Promptings of Your Heart Can Change the World” is available for sale online at Amazon.com and other channels.

About the Author:
Rebecca M. Pratt has lived all around the world, including Benin and Liberia, West Africa for two years with her family. She is the cofounder of a nonprofit organization named Orphan Relief and Rescue (in Burien).

She and her husband have invested more than 13 years in humanitarian work in Central America and West Africa, and were awarded the “Champion for Children” award at the Portland, Oregon 2011 Child Abuse and Family Violence Summit.

Do not display Byline

ericm

01/26/2012

5 - Front Page - TOP

May 1 marks 22nd year for Highline CROP Walking to end hunger

ericm — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 20:14:01 +0000

Press release:
Walk with your Highline neighbors on May 1st as the Des Moines CROP Walk kicks off its 22nd year of CROP Walking to end hunger. Enjoy walking with neighbors and friends from Highline Community College (Global Health class) and six churches. We walk in solidarity with those who are hungry here and around the world. Each walk committee designates 25% of their funds to stay locally. The funds we raise help the Des Moines Area Food Bank, as well as the hungry in 80 countries.

Church World Service is the hunger-fighting agency that directs the funds. Because CWS is already working with local communities & partners around the world, they are usually the first to arrive at the scene of a natural disaster. For over 65 years CWS has provided disaster relief and long-term recovery for war-torn countries, flood and earthquake victims, and refugees. CWS works with local community groups to address their needs: literacy, education for girls and women, safe water, agriculture and job skills. Yes, CWS is working with 32 local agencies in Japan right now.

Highline's first CROP Walks involved more than 20 churches/organizations & a choice of 5 or 10 miles to walk from North Burien along First AVE S through Burien and Normandy Park to Des Moines (DM Gospel Chapel or DMUM). Participants were bused back to the starting point. We appreciated Pastor David Herwick's organizing skills for the first 9 years. 1999 was the start of the Des Moines CROP Walk that involved half the number of organizations. Lake Burien Presbyterian and St. Francis Catholic Church organized a couple fall walks. All these walks have raised nearly a quarter million dollars to combat hunger!

Registration and sign-in for the May 1st Des Moines CROP Walk at the Des Moines U Methodist Church, 22225 9th AVE S, is at 1:15 pm. The full walk is 4.5 miles. To donate or learn more, find the Des Moines CROP Hunger Walk online at www.cropwalk.org. For further information on the Walk email Marilyn at mjhoff43@clearwire.net.

Do not display Byline

ericm

04/20/2011

5 - Front Page - TOP

SLIDESHOW: Westside Unitarian cuts the ribbon for their new home

patr — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 06:12:11 +0000

The ribbon cutting for Westside Unitarian Universalist Congregation at 7141 California Avenue s.w. took place today shortly after 10:00 a.m
Sept. 12 to formally introduce the building to the community as well as the congregation. The first service was held just after the opening ceremonies.

CLICK THE PHOTO ABOVE TO SEE MORE IMAGES

The congregation purchased the building that once housed the Gatewood Baptist Church in April and needed to make many renovations to improve the facility and get it ready. The process lasted from May, when they first acquired the property until mid-September. With a 60 year old building, they completed an extensive repair & renovation prior to moving in. These repairs included installing a new sound system, accessibility upgrades, painting, electrical and plumbing upgrades, new furnishings, kitchen upgrade, garden design and more.
There are still a few loose ends but the process is essentially complete.

Community Liason Laura Matson said, "The thing that makes it feel like home is the volunteer labor that went into it. People just kept coming and coming and coming. People who didn't know how to paint or construct would bring lunch to those who did. It was a community effort. We had kids here who were helping vaccum and paint and wash. Paula Van Haagen said, "The other night we had two meetings and the marimba band practicing all at the same time and we couldn't do that before."

Burt Gulhaugen, is the new music director (known by many through his affiliation with the West Seattle Glee Club) and should find the space, including multiple music spaces, a pleasure. But beyond the space one member donated a brand new Yamaha Baby Grand Piano that now sits on the stage of the Sanctuary. There's also a member donated upright piano in the basement.

The Sanctuary, the primary space for the congregation has all new paint, new carpet and other fixes including wheelchair accessibility.

One new room is the Fireside/Comfy room with large comfortable furniture and a member donated electric fireplace. "I'm thinking the next room I want to name it The Spa," Matson said laughing. There is plenty of new carpeting (covering old linoleum) throughout much of the facility.

Another room, built for meetings, has been named The Cloud Room up on the third floor with a great view out the oversized windows.

Many of the windows have been replaced and one, the stained glass window at the end of the entry hall, is being removed and given to the former Gatewood Baptist church (now the LIfe Church) for whom the symbols have meaning. It will be replaced by a window being created by Seattle Stained Glass that will feature an image of the chalice that holds special meaning for the Unitarians.

Some windows had been painted, inadvertently but the effect was to reduce the amount of light that got through. UUC paid (and had volunteer help) to have all the functional windows scraped and cleaned. The result is a flood of natural light.

Downstairs the daylight basement had walls that divided it and the space was broken up. This large space has been fully renovated and opened up making it far more functional. It's suitable for community meetings and the church will rent out the space though no rates have yet been determined.

The kitchen has been cleaned extensively and served last weekend for a "soft opening" for a pancake breakfast that served 240 people.

Outside in addition to the paint around the foundation and other improvements, is a new and custom designed railing on the back stairway to the main parking lot. Member Creighton Depew said, "They were rusty pieces of wobbly pipe," he said describing the previous railing. Mike Cox, another member did the design and it was built by RAFN.

Rev. Peg Morgan said, " We have loved every inch of this place into beauty."

The total number of workers who completed the renovation was estimated to be more than 150.

"The best part of this for me, "said Morgan,"is the way in which this congregation has come together to make this our new church home. The way they have enthusiastically come and organized the tasks and set them out into motion, working together day and night. The other night I was here and I was turning off all the lights and I realized there was one more light down the hall and I was going to reach in and turn it off and there was Ron Corley, painting a door."

The formal dedication for the building will take place Oct. 24. More than 50 clergy from throughout our Pacific Northwest District will participate. The President of the national Unitarian Universalist Association will keynote the event.

patr

09/12/2010

3 - Normal Article - Top

http://www.westseattleherald.com/sites/robinsonpapers.com/files/images/www.westseattleherald.com/2010/09/UUC%20RibbonCutting.jpg

Primary Image, Cropped:

http://www.westseattleherald.com/sites/robinsonpapers.com/files/imagecache/thumb/images/www.westseattleherald.com/2010/09/UUC%20RibbonCuttingcrop.jpg

Photo credit:

Patrick Robinson

Westside Unitarian Universalist Rev. Peg Morgan and Paula VanHaagen cut the ribbon to officially open the Congregation's new facility on Sept. 12.

Ballardites' 98-year-old home more than just a house

michaelh — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 18:00:41 +0000

"Everything you need is here," Bryan Johnston said about his 3,500-square-foot, 98-year-old Ballard house. "There is a room for everything."

He isn't kidding.

There is the spacious living room and dining room, complete with fireplace and original woodwork. The sunroom that Bryan's wife Susan used while making calls for the 700 Club and now holds a half-played board game. A former bedroom with its own private stairwell to the kitchen so the children could eat without interrupting their parent's parties. Another former bedroom, now converted into a dressing room with tiered walk-in closet.

Add to the house's interior accommodations and surprises, the views of Puget Sound from second and third-floor balconies and a double lot-sized yard, and it becomes clear that Susan and Bryan Johnston's home isn't just any house.

"The moment you walk in, you feel something," Susan said.

In 1975, Bryan bought the house at 8344 32nd Ave. N.W. from his parents, who had purchased the house in 1943 when Bryan was 6 months old. In 1976, he started redoing the house.

Now, 34 years later, the remodel is nearly complete. He has replaced wiring and plumbing, moved walls, added skylights and capped the house with a third story, all the while maintaining the century-old style of his home. The only thing left for Bryan to do is rip out the carpet in the living and dining room and reveal the original hardwood floors.

Susan said the house, unlike most houses today, feels like a home not a condominium.

But, it isn't just the physical niceties of the Johnstons' home that makes it special to them.

In 1969, Susan physically died from a drug overdose. She said she left her body, arrived in heaven and personally met Jesus. She asked him if she could return to Earth.

Nobody in her life had told her about God's love before that, Susan said. After four days, she accepted what had happened to her and her life changed.

Since then, she said she has been involved in local ministries, given speeches in California and Oregon and met a number of prophets.

The manifestation of Jesus she felt in her life also manifested itself in her and Bryan's home, she said.

"Almost everyone who's been through this home has had an encounter with Jesus," Susan said.

She said people started showing up to their home in the 1980s to 1990s, drawn for spiritual reasons, turning the house into Shekinah Glory Ministry.

"Still people will drive by or walk by and be motivated to come up to the door," she said.

Susan, who grew up in a small house full of aunts, uncles and cousins, does not take for granted her new home she calls a mansion.

"What's special about this house?" she said. "Just about everything."

For more on Ballard's old homes, take the Ballard Historical Society's Ballard Classic Homes Tour June 6. Tickets are available at 9:30 a.m. at the tour's starting point at the Sunset Hill Green Market.

michaelh

06/04/2010

3 - Normal Article - Top

http://www.westseattleherald.com/sites/robinsonpapers.com/files/images/www.ballardnewstribune.com/2010/06/DSC_0087.JPG

Primary Image, Cropped:

http://www.westseattleherald.com/sites/robinsonpapers.com/files/imagecache/thumb/images/www.ballardnewstribune.com/2010/06/DSC_0087%20cropped.jpg

Photo credit:

Michael Harthorne

Bryan and Susan Johnston on the porch of their nearly century-old Ballard home, for which both have deep personal connections. CLICK IMAGE FOR MORE PHOTOS.

Group looks to create safe harbor for car campers

michaelh — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 16:31:15 +0000

Barb Balden lives in her vehicle on the streets of Ballard. She works but can't afford rent and homeless shelters are full.

It's a noisy and difficult arrangement – parking enforcement officials target and harass homeless people, having to move her vehicle every 72 hours uses up her gas supply, and there are few places left to park due the the proliferation of "No Parking 2 a.m. to 5 a.m." signs, she said.

Ballard Homes for All Coalition, started by State Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson in 2007, is launching the Congregation-Hosted Safe Parking for People Living in Vehicles project to create a safe place for homeless people to park their vehicles and have access to restrooms, waste disposal and showers.

"Everybody has to be someplace," Sally Kinney, a member of the Interfaith Task Force on Homelessness, said at the first meeting for the project June 3. "Even though we don't like the idea of people living in vehicles, we have to give them someplace to live."

The Safe Parking project is reaching out to 34 Ballard-area churches and religious organizations to convince them to host a small number of car campers on their property.

Each congregation's involvement would depend on how much they are able to do. Ballard Homes for All Coalition has identified three levels of possible car camping programs:

Basic level: One or two vehicles allowed on the parking lot. No other services provided.
Medium level: Car campers allowed to use outside water faucets. Portable toilet provided.
High level: Car campers allowed to use inside water/shower/toilet facilities. Congregation provides resource information and personal counseling. Limited meals and/or use of kitchen facilities.

Each Safe Parking car camp would have a code of conduct its residents would have to sign, similar to shelters, basically saying they will be good neighbors, said Jean Darsie, acting chair of Ballard Homes for All Coalition.

The coalition has received a $10,000 grant for the project. The money could be used to hire a screening agency to screen prospective campers, recruit more congregations, establish a code of conduct or purchase portable toilets and showers, said John Skans, a member the coalition.

Ballard Homes for All Coalition is in the early stages of the Congregation-Hosted Safe Parking for People Living in Vehicles project, and no timeline or locations for camps have been decided on.

But, there is a definite need and time is a factor, according to many at the meeting.

"Services are very short here in our neighborhood, and we need them," Darsie said.

James Wlos, who lives in his vehicle, said if this project doesn't get underway soon, he will be in real trouble because of mounting parking tickets.

Wlos said he doesn't currently earn enough to afford bills and rent, but it is hard to find steadier work when he is constantly being forced to move and worry about his vehicle. He needs a home base to get back on his feet, he said.

Many meeting attendees were worried about how some neighbors will react to the Safe Parking project car camps, based out prior outcries over other shelters and negative comments on online forums.

Kinney encouraged those in attendance to talk to their neighbors about the project. Hopefully Ballardites will see it as a solution because vehicles will be off the streets on private property and the people who live in them will be getting some aid and supervision, she said.

Rev. Bill Kirlin-Hackett, director of the Interfaith Task Force on Homelessness, told attendees to make sure their neighbors are aware that Ballard is not bearing the brunt of this situation. There are similar problems and projects all over the city, he said.

But, if some neighbors still don't like the idea of car camps, Kirlin-Hackett advocated plowing on despite the protests while not losing sigh of the vision and reasons behind the Safe Parking project.

"Just do it," he said. "Let them scream their fool heads off."

The congregations who wish to host car camps have state and federal law on their sides and a new mayoral administration that is less likely to make a fuss, Kinney said.

The Federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalize Persons Act gives religious organizations permission to follow their mission of helping people, Kinney said. The government can not restrict them without good reason, she said.

She said a recent similar state law gives added protection and allows churches to host camps inside or outside on their property. The city can only step in if they break a low or pose a serious public health or safety risk, she said.

The next Ballard Homes for All Coalition meeting to discuss and plan the Congregation-Hosted Safe Parking for People Living in Vehicles project is at 7 p.m. on June 17 at Crown Hill United Methodist Church, located at 8500 14th Ave. N.W.

michaelh

06/04/2010

3 - Normal Article - Top

http://www.westseattleherald.com/sites/robinsonpapers.com/files/images/www.ballardnewstribune.com/2010/06/DSC_0092.JPG

Primary Image, Cropped:

http://www.westseattleherald.com/sites/robinsonpapers.com/files/imagecache/thumb/images/www.ballardnewstribune.com/2010/06/DSC_0092%20cropped.jpg

Photo credit:

Michael Harthorne

Jean Darsie, Ballard Homes for All Coalition's acting chair, discusses the group's new project to move people living in their vehicles off the streets and onto church properties at a June 3 meeting.

Former Disney artist finds a new mission

rachel_solomon — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 17:59:32 +0000

Davy Liu wasn’t a straight-A student. He wasn’t even a straight-B student.

Growing up in Taiwan in a culture that puts a lot of pressure on getting good grades, he felt like he didn’t fit in until he excelled in his first art class after moving to the United States in eighth grade.

Interjecting Chinese phrases and Bible verses, Liu, a former Disney artist who now heads his own production company, entertained families during an April 3 presentation at Ballard’s Evangelical Chinese Church with stories of faith, art and the importance of following your passions, even if your report card isn't quite perfect.

“The message he gives the parents here is really important because parents push their children to do the best,” said Jaya Conser, a member of the congregation. “Each person has a unique gift to do the best.”

Liu’s resume includes animation work on "The Lion King," "Beauty and the Beast," "Aladdin" and "Mulan."

With a six-digit salary by the time he was 23, he said he felt too self-serving. So, he merged his two greatest joys, religion and art, and sought to develop more Christian-centric entertainment.

“Everyone knows 'The Lion King,'” Liu said. “What if they knew the 'King of Kings?'”

"The Lion King" was the highest-grossing animated film in history until "Finding Nemo," and it was the charm of the anthropomorphic savannah animals that appealed to kids’ imaginations, Liu said.

In order to inspire this demographic that often recognizes Ronald McDonald before Jesus Christ, Liu said he decided to use animals to depict biblical tales.

He has begun writing and illustrated children’s books—three so far with a fourth on the way—that use animals to depict biblical tales.

The first story translated to the silver screen produced by Liu’s company Kendu Films is "The Giant Leaf," due in 2012. Liu described it as an interpretation of how people view Jesus Christ.

Liu played a trailer for "The Giant Leaf," featuring visuals of underwater creatures, embracing koalas and graceful leaping foxes. He said he hopes to produce 12 films in 12 years.

“I think finding a passion is more important than money,” Liu said.

To conclude his presentation, Liu invited an audience member to the stage, giving the crowd a drawing lesson as he drew a princess caricature on a giant easel.

As he moves forward with more faith-based media, Liu said he hopes his work will spark discussions of God among children.

“It would be wonderful if one day our films could be in churches,” Liu said. “Kids who admire Harry Potter—now they can admire the gospel.”

rachel_solomon

04/05/2010

5 - Front Page - TOP

http://www.westseattleherald.com/sites/robinsonpapers.com/files/images/www.ballardnewstribune.com/2010/04/davy.JPG

Primary Image, Cropped:

http://www.westseattleherald.com/sites/robinsonpapers.com/files/imagecache/thumb/images/www.ballardnewstribune.com/2010/04/davy%20CROP.JPG

Photo credit:

Rachel Solomon.

Artist and filmmaker Davy Liu sketches an audience member during his April 3 presentation at the Evangelical Chinese Church in Ballard.