I always enjoy receiving reports about the work of WMU in churches and associations. It is exciting to see what committed WMU members get done. This week I received the WMU report from Three Forks Association. Three Forks is in far eastern Kentucky and includes places like Hazard, Hyden, Neon, Jenkins and Whitesburg. The association has 34 churches. Thank you Joyzette Fields and WMU leadership team for planning and inspiring great participation.
Officers for 2012-2013
WMU Director – Joyzette Fields
Assistant Director – Estella Brashear
Prayer Coordinator – Lisa Harvey
GA Leader – Vera Stacy
Treasurer – Sharlene Lockenvitz
2012 – 2014 WATCHWORD: “As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” Acts 4:20
October 25, 2012
Event: Fall quarterly WMU Associational Meeting
Host: Smithsboro Baptist Church
Attendance: 58 from 8 churches
Program: Testimonies from members of Big Creek Baptist, which has been an Acts 1:8 church since 2007. Speakers included Vera Stacy, Rosie Smith, Grant Smith, and Brad Dean. They chose to give the $100.00 honorarium we give to our program speaker to the disaster relief shower trailer. Everyone encouraged to collect 125 of some money denomination from pennies to dollars in honor of this being the 125th birthday of WMU. The money will go into the Heritage Fund. The mite boxes were displayed and encouraged to be used to collect the money.
January 24, 2013
Event: Associational WMU Meeting
Host: Big Creek Baptist Church, Hazard
Attendance: 64 from 13 churches
Speaker: Deacon Steve Jones & Pastor Lowell Parker, Consolidated Baptist and Pastor John Morris, Lothair
Program: Partnership Ministries of local churches, Consolidated & Lothair
Offering: $148.00; $100.00 was given to the Homeless Shelter Ministry at Consolidated
At this meeting we began the drive for prenatal bundles for Melissa Newell (FBC, Whitesburg) to take to Haiti in March of 2013. A list of needs were given to attendees.
April 5-6, 2013
Event: State WMU meeting
Host: First Baptist Church, Hopkinsville
Attendance: 9 from 4 churches
Theme: “The Story Lives On”
Speaker: Rosalie Hunt, theme monologues of Lottie Moon, Eliza Broadus, and Annie Armstrong
We were asked to bring to our home WMUs and associations ways to celebrate the 125th birthday of WMU and the 100th birthday of GAs.
April 19-20, 2013
Event: WMU Retreat at Laurel Lake Baptist Camp in Corbin, KY. Joy attended with the women from Central Baptist Church in Corbin.
Theme: Being a Grape in a Raisin World
Speaker: Nicole Coomer
April 25, 2013
Event: Spring Associational WMU Meeting
Host: Rockhouse Baptist Church, Hyden
Attendance: 59 from 15 churches
Speaker: Peggy Balou, Mt. Zion Baptist in South Union association. She spoke about the work in Haiti where her granddaughter serves as a missionary. She taught the local women to make jewelry out of cereal boxes for their income. Peggy had some jewelry on display that the WMU ladies could purchase. The money went to the Haitian lady who made the jewelry in order to send her children to school. The attendees were asked to bring cereal boxes for Peggy to send back to Haiti.
Program: Martha Shaw from Mt. Zion church had a demonstration on making sleeping mats from plastic bags. These are often made for the homeless. We had the WMU Centennial quilt displayed that the Big Creek WMU made 25 years ago to honor the WMU Centennial year. It was from this meeting and encouragement from our WMU that these ladies and a former WMU member from Three Forks, Patricia Campbell, went back to her home church, Central Baptist in Corbin, and started having Associational quarterly meetings.
July 25, 2013
Event: Celebration of 125th birthday of WMU picnic
Place: Perry County Park, Hazard
Attendance: 50 from 9 churches
Program: “Memories”
Speakers: Mildred Ritchie, WMU Director at FBC, Hazard; Imogene Maggard, WMU Director, Lothair Baptist; Kim Dean, WMU Director, Big Creek Baptist; Estella Brashear and her two daughters, Glenna Gamble and Amy Stidham, shared how the “Story Lives On” in their family.
Music: “Happy Birthday, WMU!”
Prayer Calendar: Consolidated WMU. We released red, yellow, black, and white balloons and sang “Jesus Loves the Little Children of the World.”
We announced that our birthday celebration for 125 years of WMU work would continue into our October 2013 quarterly meeting. We hope to make a DVD of the history of WMU work in the Three Forks Association.
September 12-14, 2013
Event: Baby Changing Station, Perry County Black Gold Festival, Hazard
Sponsors: Three Forks Association and First Baptist, Hazard
Staff: 18 from 3 churches
Served: 48 babies, whose mother received a hospitality packet which included a Gospel tract, a devotional booklet, and a copy of John & Romans if they had no copy of their own.
September 28, 2013
Event: Women of Worth conference
Host: Big Creek Baptist Church
Attendance: 158 from 20 churches
Theme: “Finding Joy in Serving”
Speaker: Carol Brashear
Door prizes: 5 WMU groups from TFBA churches
WMU Mission: To inform and inspire the Christian woman to influence her world for Christ.
As I compile this annual report, I realize how blessed Three Forks still is by having as many active WMU groups as we do. Knowing most of these women, I feel grateful to have so many friends who have a passion for WMU work – women who pray, give, and GO! Ladies, thank you for attending our quarterly meetings and being host churches. I love you all dearly! Joyzette Fields, Associational WMU Director
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In response to this report and the concluding reminder of the WMU mission, I would like to say “mission accomplished,” yet for WMU the mission is always before us as we keep on informing and inspiring our churches. The International Mission Board sums it up well in their theme “The Unfinished Task.” While there are yet lost people in our world, the task is unfinished and we must continue to inspire and inform so that more people join in the Great Commission. Joy Bolton
