Rio Texas Methodist Federation for Social Action

SXSW – First UMC hosts Loud Harp – March 14

First UMC Austin, 1201 Lavaca, would like to invite you to attend a free show during SXSW on Thursday, March 14th at 7pm.

The SXSW selected band “A Boy and His Kite” (featured on the critically acclaimed Twilight soundtrack, Breaking Dawn) has a sacred music project called “Loud Harp”.

If you haven’t heard of Loud Harp, begin now! You can download their album here for free.  Tim Coons will be joining up with Loud Harp for the occasion. Coons is an “Enter the Worship Circle” artist with a raw, indie sound.  Listen to his work here!  This is a free show, but we will be taking donations, so bring your hearts and checkbooks to support these guys.

Check in at the Facebook event page here.

Congratulations to First UMC in Austin for their recent affiliation with Reconciling Ministries Network.  There are now five UMCs in Austin and one UMC in Round Rock affiliated with RMN.  This conversation about loving all our neighbors continues throughout our denomination.

The Montopolis Friendship Community Center is a tax-exempt, non-profit corporation formed in 1957 as a United Methodist Women’s response to help meet some of the needs in the Montopolis community in southeast Austin.  FCC provides the following opportunities in the Montopolis area: Mother’s Day Out for children 2-4 years old; Clothing sales room open on the first and third Saturdays; Senior activities; and Rental space available for community events.  The Montopolis FCC desperately needs a new roof – the existing roof at Colorado Hall has been patched and re-patched.  The new roof, to be repaired by professionals, will cost $4,000.  Groups and individuals are being asked to contribute toward this need that is not covered as a part of MFCC’s annual budget.  You can help by buying one square foot of shingles for $3.33, or 3 sq ft for $10.00!

The goal is to raise the $4,000 by 3/30/2013.

Please make checks payable to Montopolis FCC and mail to:

MFCC Treasurer, Eva Jordan, P.O.Box 4691, Austin, TX  78765

Take a journey with

Kisongo Trek

March 13-17

Bethany United Methodist Church, East Parking Lot

10010 Anderson Mill Rd., Austin TX 78750

Free, family-friendly & open to all

Wednesday, March 13:  5 – 8 pm

Thursday – Saturday, March 14-16:  12 – 7 pm

Sunday, March 17:  9 am – 5 pm

No reservations needed

A powerful story of change through the eyes of a child.

Interactive exhibit brings to life the sights & sounds of Africa.

Step outside yourself and into a world you may never have known; a world where poverty becomes a part of the past and where children can dream about tomorrow.

Experience a powerful story of change through the eyes of 10-year-old, Babayetu. In the new World Vision Experience, Kisongo Trek, you can “travel” to Babayetu’s home and hear the real-life story of how his village has moved from poverty to hope with help from World Vision and their partners in ministry.

Following a “bus ride” down the roads of Tanzania, you’ll be immersed in the community of Kisongo, where you’ll meet a woman who spent her childhood walking miles on danger­ous roads to get water for her family; hear from a mother who feared malaria would steal her children’s lives; see a classroom where children finally have the chance to learn; and discover how bees are equipping a father to provide for his family.

This free, 20 minute, mobile semi-truck experience gives you and your family a firsthand feel for global poverty—no plane ticket required. Plus, you’ll learn about the proven solutions World Vision employs to help families build a better future and you’ll discover how you can make a difference in the transformation of a community like Kisongo, in Matete, Kenya.

Make the choice to step outside yourself.

www.bethany-umc.org/kisongo

An Event with Jim Comer

On Tuesday, March 12 at 6:30pm at First UMC Austin Family Life Center, author and professional speaker Jim Comer will speak about the journey of caring for aging parents – When Roles Reverse: A Guide to Parenting Your Parents. Register with Laurie at Laurie@fumcaustin.org  or 512-478-5684.  More information at http://library.constantcontact.com/download/get/file/1103875213779-304/When+Roles+Reverse2-1.pdf

Join us for this time of study, song, and dramatic presentation about the life and witness of Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

This event is sponsored by University UMC Austin, First UMC Austin, and SWT-MFSA

Friday & Saturday, April 26 – 27, 2013

University UMC, 2409 Guadalupe, Austin

Featuring: 

Dr. David Jensen, Professor in the Clarence N. and Betty B. Frierson Distinguished Chair of Reformed               Theology at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary

Rev. Susan Schnelle, Associate Pastor, Gethsemane Lutheran Church, Austin

 Al Staggs, Minister, Author, Performing Artist, One-person dramatization – “A View From the Underside: The Legacy of Dietrich Bonhoeffer”. 

Cost:            $30, includes Saturday lunch

Contact:      Susan Sprague, UUMC, ssprague@uumc.org

MFSA has posted articles about issues of immigration, family planning, and gun violence on their website http://mfsaweb.org/

National MFSA recent newsletter:

http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=dinh7qdab&v=001y4Ou-PBFbAYANP4E5zLvd1Nanz1133Y6husiyiBfFJ1fV7riMNuXOn4QoSce6gGVRPLM5mfm4vWT-Qtr7l42pPnGIEYvgWxBYMtaFq4S1YlA7h6IJwaQCjwLJhlMevZQPJ0wBE0rkpLhk3tQFdcaJ-vcQOj07QXJ9iCPIyfFfqgyalJUNRCyHg%3D%3D

Reconciling Ministries recent newsletter:

https://aws.predictiveresponse.net/view_as_a_page/index.php?org=475&lea=26-10000017710-8&ite=382

General Board of Church & Society – Faith in Action

http://umc-gbcs.org/faith-in-action

One way in which our local MFSA chapters can help our national organization and each other is through development of a network of volunteers who have expertise in researching the availability of grant funding for the myriad issues in which MFSA is involved.  It is clear at this time that individual donations alone are not sufficient to support the work that MFSA truly needs to do.  We are looking for volunteers to research grant sources, write proposals, and work with our national office to make this successful.  If you have skills or experience in these activities and would be willing to devote some time to this effort, please contact Rowland Curry at rcurry@austin.rr.com.

Annual Fundraiser

Join us on Sunday, February 10, 5:30p.m., Tarrytown UMC 2601 Exposition Blvd. for a Mardi Gras celebration and help support the pantry and its mission to help alleviate hunger in our community.  Tom Spencer, CEO Interfaith Action of Central Texas (iACT) will be the keynote speaker.  Enjoy Cajun cooking from Nubian Queen Lola, mac and cheese from Hyde Park Bar and Grill, Maine Root beverages, the cool sounds of the Khabele School Jazz Band, and register for great raffle items.

Reserve your ticket by emailing to info@hopefoodpantryaustin.org.  $25 in advance/$30 at the door.

Other ways to help:

1. Volunteer once a month or more on Thursday or Friday a.m., comfortable with computers, and knowledge of spanish helpful.

2. Coordinate a Food Drive through a group/work/community.

3. Randall’s Remarkable card holders: place #3830 on your card and donate to Hope.  A Randall’s employee can help you.

Contact: Stephanie at info@hopefoodpantryaustin.org

Makers: Women Who Make America

Tuesday February 26 | 7pm on KLRU. Meryl Streep narrates the compelling story of women’s advancement in America in the past 50 years.  It is a revolution that has unfolded in public and private, on grand stages like the U.S. Supreme Court and Congress, and humbler ones like the boardroom and the bedroom. The series features the stories of those who led the fight, those who opposed it and those — both famous and unknown — caught up in its wake.  Meryl Streep narrates the three-hour stack, which features commentary and the stories of Hillary Clinton and Condoleezza Rice, Oprah Winfrey and Katie Couric, and Gloria Steinem and Phyllis Schlafly, among others.  Check out the Makers website for more information and to watch videos with trailblazing women.

Tuesday February 12 | 7pm.Join us for preview screening of this program in Studio 6A. KLRU, the UT Center for Women’s and Gender Studies, and the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders are joining together for Inspiring Women Leaders, a discussion about cultivating

Saturday, February 23, 2013

St. Edward’s University 8:00am – 5:30pm

3001 South Congress Avenue Austin, Texas

TCADP Announces Annual Award Winners!

The TCADP Board of Directors is delighted to announce the recipients of the 2013 TCADP Annual Awards.  These individuals and organizations will be recognized at the TCADP 2013 Annual Conference – Changing the Conversation – on Saturday, February 23, 2013 at St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas.  Please make plans to join us in celebrating these extraordinary individuals and organizations!

• Appreciation: JC Dufresne, who played an instrumental role in the Texas Democratic Party’s decision to endorse abolition of the death penalty in its 2012 Platform.
• Appreciation: Methodist Federation for Social Action-Southwest Texas Chapter, for their years of involvement and ongoing contributions to the abolition movement.
• Media: Joe Bailey, Jr. and Steve Mims, Filmmakers of “Incendiary”, a documentary about the case of Cameron Todd Willingham, who was executed in 2004 despite serious flaws in the forensic science used to convict him and doubts about his guilt.

Plenary Session
In addition to the annual awards luncheon, the conference will feature a plenary session on how instances of wrongful convictions and evidence of wrongful executions are changing the conversation on the death penalty. Confirmed panelists are:

• Karen Boudrie, an award-winning journalist, news director, and public relations consultant who covered the trial of Carlos DeLuna in Corpus Christi in 1983 and was the last person to speak with him before his wrongful execution in 1989;
• Anthony Graves, a motivational speaker and legal consultant who spent 12.5 years on death row before being exonerated in 2010; and
• Professor James Liebman, Simon H. Rifkind Professor of Law, Columbia University School of Law, and the lead author of Los Tocayos Carlos: An Anatomy of a Wrongful Execution

Download 2013 Annual Conference flyer with complete information – Print and Share!