Hillsborough House of Hope, founded by Hyde Park member Margaret Palmer, helps formerly incarcerated women become the women God intended them to be.
In the September issue of the newsletter:
*October 2, 2021, Grand Opening of Walker’s Landing, Come check it out! The house will be open for tours 1 p.m.-3 p.m., serving fresh hors d’oeuvres.
*Abundant thanks to donors
*Donation and volunteer needs
*House updates and new residents
*Upcoming events
Read the Hillsborough House of Hope newsletter here.
Abe Brown Ministries’, one of Hyde Park’s mission partners, works to break cycles of incarceration by helping renew the minds of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated citizens, motivating them to change their behaviors and achieve purposeful lives as a compassionate demonstration of the Love of Jesus Christ.
Phillip’s Success Story
Growing up, Phillip had a difficult childhood in which he experienced physical abuse at home and constant bullying at school. That caused him to become resentful, angry, and cynical towards the people around him. As he entered his teenage years, Phillip involved himself in criminal activity by selling drugs, and committing robberies. At age 18, Phillip decided to take a chance and enlist in the Navy. However, due to repeated misconduct, he was given an other than honorable discharge. To Phillip, this discharge confirmed that he was unable to function as a responsible member of society. Shortly after his discharge from the Navy, Phillip committed the crime that would require him to spend his next 32 years in prison.
Little Dresses for Missions, a mission of Hyde Park United Methodist, heard the call from The Rev. Tamara Isidore, a pastor from Haiti who serves in Bradenton. In response to the recent earthquake and hurricane in Haiti, Pastor Isidore asked for first aid relief items to be shipped to Haiti. Little Dresses for Missions sent 200 dresses to Haiti through Faith United Methodist Church, Bradenton. The dresses were dropped off at Faith United Methodist in large plastic tubs. Billie Trocke, Hyde Park member and sewer for Little Dresses for Missions, reported the church “was delighted to receive the dresses and thrilled to get the plastic tubs. After the hurricane flooding, everything is sodden and they have no way to keep anything dry. That church works ongoing with two orphanages in Haiti, so they have need for the dresses”.
To donate other items toward this relief effort, contact Faith United Methodist Church, Bradenton, Michelle Millner, 434.770.0580 or support disaster response and relief recovery through the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) who will assess the storm’s impact and respond to immediate needs.
Shining the Light Ministries, our mission partner in Nicaragua, provides agriculture training and support to low income families in the area around Leon. Their focus is in three areas: Gardens, Poultry and Sewing.
Here is an excerpt from their latest newsletter:
EMPOWERMENT SATISFIES HUNGER
Greg Lentz, our associate director, recently spent two weeks in Nicaragua, working side by side with our staff, local pastors, and the communities where we minister. Below are some of his reflections from a day in the field.
Today I had the privilege of accompanying Pastor Alejandra Mendez as he evangelized in the Chacrasecas Community. In the community there are 42 houses with 3-4 families living in some of the homes. We spent time with church members that had not been attending or had been unable to attend worship services due to physical health.
Church membership at Asamulea de Dios (Assemblies of God), the church that Pastor Alejandra leads, began with about 17 Adults and 18Children. They have now increased to 48 Adults and 22 children. Pasto Alejandra has been having worship service 4 days a week.
Love INC, our mission partner, exists only to serve its member churches. Mobilizing churches, their members and resources produces volunteers that are Love INC trained to provide a variety of direct services to guests entrusted to our ministry.
This video series was recorded in 2020, an unprecendented year in so many ways. It provided an opportunity for us to examine racism, injustice and discrimination as we never had before. To gain a better understanding, we listened to the stories of people of color as they experienced these trials. We also listened to white people to better understanding how racism is learned in society. The videos provide a valuable insight into what must change for use to move toward the promise of liberty and justice for all.
Ann Pointer shares a poignant story of her life with a middle school friend. The two of them “got in trouble” and Ann remembers them being equally culpable in making the decision. Upon being discovered, Ann was given an out to place the blame on her friend. She said that to this day, she is haunted by this decision. Ann’s story illustrates how we are all infected by racism and demonstrates the need for us to strive to learn from past mistakes to make a better future for us all.
Anthony White shares an experience from his childhood that resulted in an interaction with the police. What happened and what he learned from it have caused him to caution his children that they might not be able to do what others do because of the color of their skin. He has helped them navigate through the society they live in and remains optimistic that good people outnumber those who fail to see the value in others.
Berton Newbill tells the story of being in the military and being denied the recognition of his rank due to the color of his skin. His initial reaction was anger because the men causing the problem were not looking at him from a military perspective, but judging him as a person who was not deserving of respect. Later, friends tried to deny his personal experience. Berton says it was even more hurtful that his friends didn’t believe him. Sharing his story allows for a broader conversation so we get to an acknowledgement that these situations exist.
Doretha Edgecomb shares the impact of growing up in the Jim Crow era and realizing the limitations placed on her hopes, dreams and aspirations based on the color of her skin. She relates the story of a college classmate who was brutally beaten simply for sitting in a bus station waiting room. In response, Doretha and her classmates organized a march to protest the attack. She realized that for things to be different, she would have to speak up, stand up and be a voice of change. Though progress has been made, we haven’t come as far as she had hoped. Change can come through legislation, but she believes that true change begins with changes in the human heart and mind.
Doretha Edgecomb is a lifelong resident of Tampa, apart from her years at a small college in Alabama. She was educated in the segregated school system during the Jim Crow years, then returned to education as a teacher, principal and member of the Hillsborough County School Board. Doretha shares her poem, “Being Black,” which speaks to her life experiences in segregated schools and society.
John Day shares a story from his youth where his mother explained the difference in describing white and black women. He accepted that as the way things were then. He also describes a current day event where he invited four men experiencing homelessness and a coworker for Christmas dinner. He shares concern for his grandson, who is black, and the need to have “the talk” with him as he gets older. John admits to not being very optimistic that we can make progress with racial injustice. For him, it begins with seeing each other as a human being then getting together to talk through these issues.
Rick Cabigas shares his experience of being on a business trip with two colleagues. At their hotel, the valets were of Filipino descent like Rick. He was approached by another hotel guest who mistakenly assumed he was a valet based on his appearance. He became very angry at the guest’s assumption. While his white colleague didn’t understand, his black colleague completely understood. Rick concludes by saying it’s everyone’s duty to make sure we move forward together.
Pastor Steve Nunn shares reflections of racial bias from his days in middle school and during a visit to the beach at Pensacola. In both cases, he was shocked at the interactions. His family was raised to be kind to others. In stark contrast, he tells the story of his great-grandfather, Julius Perry, who was lynched during the Ocoee (FL) election riots in 1920. Julius was wounded and arrested when white men came to his house. He was then taken from the jail in Orlando and lynched. Stephen’s hope is that we will be able to realize our prejudices are due to a lack of knowledge and that we can create change by educating future generations.
Shining the Light Ministries, our mission partner in Nicaragua, provides agriculture training and support to low income families in the area around Leon. Their focus is in three areas: Gardens, Poultry and Sewing.
Here is an excerpt from their latest newsletter:
As we all know, this is a very hard time for everyone around the world. Even though the news around us is not the best, we know who we are because we trust in God. He is our help, our supporter, and our healer.
The world is facing a very difficult time physically, politically, mentally, spiritually, and economically because of the pandemic. We have noticed Covid infections increasing in different cities around the country, especially in the city of León. But by the grace of God, we have still been able to serve many communities, churches, and families with the different projects through Shining The Light Ministries and Asociación Brillando La Luz De Cristo En Nicaragua.
Baltic Methodist Theological Seminary (BMTS), our mission partner, is the largest United Methodist seminary in Europe, and serves students from eight countries who study in three languages: Estonian, Russian and English. Their newsletter is titled Prayerchain, it begins with a message from Külli Tõniste, Rector. Here’s an excerpt:
FOCUS
Dear friend,
Is God ringing a bell in you? How do you discern a call to study at seminary?
I still remember the feeling of both excitement and anxiety when I first rang the doorbell at Apteegi street 3 where the Baltic Methodist Theological Seminary used to be located. I was young and nervous. I had done a few things in my Pentecostal church and I loved to read the Bible, but I was not a theologian and I did not have a clear plan for the future. I did not even know what the word “Methodist” meant in the name of that new seminary. I only knew that my pastor had said about the Methodist founder John Wesley: “He is our grandfather too”. So I guess they were alright. I had many unanswered questions about the content and origin of my faith and these questions motivated me to ring the bell.
Pat and Melenda Edmiston are missionaries with Wycliffe – Partners in Bible Translation, a nondenominational mission organization dedicated to translating the Scriptures and teaching people to read and write in their own language.
The story of the 5 loaves and 2 fish doesn’t have to be a miracle only witnessed in the Scriptures. Every day, we have the opportunity to participate in God’s provision for the world. We give what we have, and he is faithful to bless and multiply it in his hands.
When you partner with us, you are:
Equipping believers with God’s Word
Transforming lives for eternity
Growing the kingdom of God + multiplying churches
1.5 billion people still don’t have the full Bible in their first language. Imagine what’s possible with Scripture that’s accurate and speaks to their hearts.
Melenda and I want to thank you for your faithful gifts over the past few months. They have been a true blessing in these uncertain times. You can be sure that we continue to be faithful to our calling in seeing God’s Word translated into new languages and transforming lives. This is what Dahn, a fellow believer in Southeast Asia, had to say:
“I live in a rural area where there is no church. A pastor visits regularly, but because of Covid-19 we have not seen him much.
“During this time, people in my village have abandoned their former way of life and participate in evil practices, such as drinking to get drunk, burning charms, and worshipping ancestors. But God’s Word helps me walk in the path of righteousness. As I study the Bible, day by day my faith is strengthened and my heart is softened. Like it says in Proverbs 2:20, I pray to walk in the way of goodness.”
Pray more people in remote areas of Southeast Asia will hear His Word in their heart language and walk away from their evil practices and turn to the paths of righteousness.
