United Methodist Women
2009 Charge Conference Report
Our unit membership is 47; total active members is 39. This year, we lost 4 members and gained 3 new members. We have 4 circles; 2 meet on the first Tuesday of the month and 2 meet on the second Tuesday of the month. Our unit meetings are divided into 4 evening and 6 daytime meetings. We hold executive Board meetings when it is necessary. Each of our members receives an updated yearbook and extra copies are available for new members during the year. At each circle meeting and unit meeting we read the prayer calendar and pray for our missionaries. Each circle receives Response and New World Outlook magazines. We encourage members to read books on the UMW Reading List and books from the church library. We use the United Methodist Women's program book at unit meetings.
One member of our UMW is in charge of maintaining the Food Closet at our church. This involves keeping it stocked throughout the year through donations. Our church provides food for the needy through Social Services on a scheduled basis. We make yearly contributions to the Samaritan House and to the Wesley Service Center. Our members are also involved monthly in the Meals-on-Wheels program. We provide free lunch on Mondays to volunteer workers at Chesapeake Free Health Center. Weekly visits are made to the shut-in members delivering tapes and bulletins and sometimes flowers or food. We visit members in the hospital as well as assisted living facilities on a regular basis. We have member knit prayer shawls which we give to our shut-ins. We had 73 health kits, 9 layette kits, 1 sewing kit, and 1 school kit that we sent to Annual Conference this year.
In February, we helped with the children's Valentines Day Workshop. We had 2 members to attend the Norfolk District UMW Women's Retareat. Also, in February, the UMW and members at Memorial collected UMCOR school kits to take to the Prayer Breakfast. In March, we had 5 members attend the Norfolk District Mission Adventure. In April, we were host for the Norfolk District Historical Society; they had 22 of their members to attend. In May, 5 of our members attended the Spiritual Life Retreat in Blackstone, VA. In July, 2 members went to the Virginia Conference School of Christian Mission.
Throughout the year, we continue to collect cancelled postage stamps and Campbell soup labels for the District. We also donate money to UNICEF.
I would like to thank our Pastor, Rev Cole, and all of the members who have supported the UMW.
Joyce Woodard
UMW President
