NEWSFLASH! NEWSFLASH!! NEWSFLASH!!!
The Worship Committee is currently immersed in the present moment of Advent. This is a short announcement so that we can all look forward to January's focus of "Journeying". We will be spending some time looking at our inward journey, our discipleship and our spirituality. We will use some articles from The Mennonite Confession of Faith along with such topics as: journey to forgiveness; our journey in the wilderness; journey of faithfulness; journey to redemption; journey of transformation.

In February we will re-visit the topic of peace. We are excited to have one of the Peace Evangelists, Michael Banks, coming to SAMC along with offering some workshop experiences at La Casa. We'll keep you all posted via church announcements! —Stacey Merkt

Greetings to all and thanks for your thoughts and prayers during the past weekend. Once again, we had a great experience during the Texas Mennonite Sale & Auction for World Relief.

The overall total for the sale will be almost exactly $40,000, pending the report on the actual amount of pennies collected. This includes:

$15,510 from the quilt auction

$6,639.50 from woodworking and other items auctioned

$10,343.50 from Ten Thousand Villages

$4,009.77 from crafts and books

$2,880.50 from food and baked goods.

The amount is about $8,000 less than the amount from last year, with most of the decline coming in the auction. Our quilts this year included more small quilts and more tied comforters. Also, attendance at the auction was down—maybe too chilly for some people?

The craft area was a highlight (up over 20%) due to Linda Ensminger's good work in that area. Her efforts have included "Adopt-A-Craft" where she prepares kits containing a completed item, written instructions, and all materials needed to make more. She has been successful in getting a number of people to take kits home with them and bring back finished crafts.

Another highlight was the puppet show—our first effort at children's activities. We brought in a person who is President of the Houston Puppeteers Guild and she presented "Queen Esther". About 200 people were present for her show and it was very well received.

It was a special treat to host the South Texas organizing committee and to witness their enthusiasm first hand. I hope the time they spent with us over the weekend was beneficial for them—it was inspiring for us!

Our financial picture is pretty good, although expenses are slightly greater than our income for the year. The money from our Savings account that was designated for various organizations has been disbursed. Thanks for your generous support of building God's kingdom.

—Merle Miller

Continuing a SAMC tradition

On the weekend of October 13-15, many SAMCers enjoyed gorgeous weather, a beautiful riverside view, and last but certainly not least, good company. Some of us arrived on Friday evening at the Wind Song campsite at the HEB camp outside Leakey, TX, while others arrived Saturday morning. Margaret and Abigail organized a special activity for the kids on Saturday that involved taking a nature walk and making "trees" using items they picked up along the way. Danielle and Stacey also led the kids in a scavenger hunt. Other popular activities included canoeing, hiking, fishing, playing basketball, holding babies, chasing kids, and playing card and table games. Saturday night featured the annual SAMC talent show emceed by Charlie Peterson, with poetry from Emily B. and Linda, and music from Celina, Charlie, Jonathan, Deb W. and Matthew, and Marilyn and Isabela, as well as a song by a few choir members that was "full of laughs". (Sorry if I’m missing anybody; it’s been a month and it’s hard to remember the details.) After the talent show we enjoyed making smores over the campfire. We concluded the weekend with an outdoor worship service Sunday morning. Thanks to the retreat planning committee and others who made this enjoyable weekend possible.

Anyone on the Steering Committee at La Casa will probably tell you that my favorite word these days seems to be transition. It’s not necessarily my favorite word but that’s simply where we find ourselves. We’re transitioning from one director to another, transitioning from the SALSA-busy activities of the summer to house guests and small retreats, transitioning from one assistant director to a new one at the turn of the year, transitioning and emerging into a broader and deeper ministry of service and learning.

Currently the day to day efforts are to get the house, office, and correspondence into working order for what we hope to be a fuller 2001 calendar of activities. Six SOOPers will be joining us this winter and will be helping to repair, paint, clean, garden, and organize the facility. We’re even looking at replacing carpet, some furniture and accessories on a room by room basis. It is our hope that from the moment someone inquires about La Casa through the moment they leave after their visit with us, their experience is one of quality and hospitality.

Besides the SALSA activities of the summer and the rare event of having a television crew live at La Casa for a month or so, La Casa has been somewhat quiet with a few houseguests and a couple small meetings. The calendar picks up again in December with mostly families wanting to share some holiday time together. One extended family will be filling La Casa for a week and be participating in local service activities as their Christmas gift to each other!

Some "new-to-La Casa" activities that are being considered and developed...

...a local dialog on peacemaking across racial boundaries led by peace evangelist, Michael Banks from the Bronx. It is hoped that this dialog might help open up a much needed area of conversation among San Antonians.

...partnering with the peaceCENTER to offer peacemaking skillshops on a national level. Ads have been displayed in the November/December issues of "The Other Side" and "Sojourners." Inquiries are already coming in. It is hoped that students of nonviolence from other parts of the country who come here will help to cross-pollinate and give San Antonio participants some new ideas. Skillshops are open to local participants as well.

...a "mystery night" is being explored by some local churches as an overnight immersion experience for high school-aged young people. After sharing a meal, participants will be divided into small travelling groups of 4-5, receive an envelope with directions to their mystery site, proceed to the site, spend 1-2 hours there, and then return to share their experiences. Some mystery sites that are being explored are the children’s emergency room, the newspaper, a fire station, a shelter, etc.

There are some other ideas swirling around but in all of the above it is hoped that the results will more deeply root La Casa in the transforming of community through service and learning in the San Antonio area. By the way, transforming is one of my favorite words! It is my prayer that in this time of transition that a beautiful path to transformation be created among us.