It's Your Money Seminar

The It’s Your Money seminar is a practical seminar on the Biblical principles of personal money management that was hosted here at Sligo on February 22 and 23.  This seminar was given by Elder G. Edward Reid, Director of Stewardship for the North American Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.  He is an ordained minister, author, licensed attorney and is certified as a teacher and counselor by Crown Financial Ministries.  

Sligo Member Assists Area Police Departments With Pedestrian Education

On Wednesday, December 19, the arrival of Santa Claus (Sligo member, Erwin Mack) in a 1909 Model T Ford with police escort kicked off a pedestrian safety event in the Takoma-Langley Crossroads area. Seven Takoma Academy students, accompanied by Guidance Counselor Kristina Flo, participated with other volunteers who assisted more than 20 law enforcement officers from Prince Georges County, Montgomery County and the City of Takoma Park. Bi-lingual pedestrian safety brochures were distributed and Santa was filmed by local Spanish language television stations as he gave instruction on how to safely cross busy streets. The event was covered by six media outlets.

The Takoma-Langley Crossroads area has unusually high pedestrian fatalities. This fact prompted Erwin Mack to organize the Multi-jurisdictional Pedestrian Safety Committee in 2002. Sligo Church is the venue for the Committee's quarterly meetings. State-funded construction in the crossroads area is the result of the Committee’s work and will significantly improve pedestrian safety with installation of media fencing ensuring use of crosswalks.

The police departments participating in this event report the following statistics:

- 70 warnings issued to pedestrians and vehicles combined for crosswalk violations (either the pedestrians failed to use a crosswalk or the vehicle failed to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk).

- 3 warnings for speeding
- 5 citations to vehicles that failed to yield to a pedestrian
- 11 citations for speeding
- thousands of candy canes, fliers and positive contacts with the community

Sligo Adventist School Collects Food for the Needy

Students, teachers and administration all prepared over 500 paper grocery sacks with stapled announcements about our school Christmas program, Sligo church calendar of events and memory verses to distribute throughout the Takoma Park community. The next day the students went back out and collected over 149 grocery sacks of food to give to Adventist Community Services for distribution to the needy in the area.

Distributing the grocery bags to the neighborhood

Results of collecting the bags of food the next day -->

Sligo works with AIM to Make the County a Better Place to Work and Live

by Kathy Johnson

For several years, Sligo has been active in Action In Montgomery (AIM). From time to time we hear about AIM activities or read about them in the church bulletin. But what is AIM and why should Sligo members care? How important is it to become involved in this effort?  

AIM is an interfaith coalition comprised of 29 different congregations throughout the county. AIM—thoroughly non-partisan—is a way for faith groups to assess the needs of our larger community and hold our officials responsible for addressing specific issues related to these needs. AIM asks our county to rearrange the way it thinks about using people power and other resources for the benefit of more, not less, of its citizens.

AIM works with officials to increase affordable housing, improve local community centers for our county’s youth, bring a full-service federal USCIS immigration office to our county, and improve pedestrian safety. Some of AIM’s past victories include $90 million for affordable housing since 2001, all-day kindergarten in the public schools, major reform of the local taxi industry, and $320,000 for community centers. It is important to emphasize that all of these key issues are developed through numerous “house meetings” held by AIM member congregations where participants are encouraged to say what they think AIM’s priorities ought to be. Sligo has held a number of these house meetings over the years and thus has helped to shape AIM’s agenda.

Annual Meeting Huge Success 

On October 18 AIM held its annual meeting, this time at Kehilat Shalom Synagogue in Gaithersburg. Over 500 persons of faith attended—94 of them from Sligo and Columbia Union College. Two primary concerns were articulated to county officials that night: improve neglected community centers, and provide affordable housing.  

We need to stop the hemorrhaging of affordable housing so that our children and our retired parents can afford to live here. We need to reverse the rapid loss of affordable rental and owner-occupied housing so that our many vital service workers can afford to live here. When they are squeezed out we all hurt. We need to reverse this rapid loss so that our teachers, our pastors, our nurses, our policemen and firefighters can all afford to live where they work.   

Perhaps this need was best articulated October 18 by a professional firefighter, a young woman whose husband is also a professional firefighter. They fight our fires and respond to our calls for emergency medical services, but they cannot afford a home in our county. Surely their experience is not unique. At Sligo more and more of our brothers and sisters are priced out of the community where we worship together. Our own congregation feels the hemorrhaging of affordable housing. 

In response to the issues AIM raised October 18, County Executive Leggett agreed to

1) Include funding in his 2008 budget to improve several long-neglected Community Centers.

2) Preserve all multi-family affordable housing or ensure at least one-to-one replacement of all affordable units. 

3) Appoint a senior-level housing chief within his administration. 

4) Expand the annual commitment to the Housing Initiative Fund to $80 million by 2010, including increasing this fund in the upcoming 2008 budget.  

These major commitments, responses to AIM’s bold challenge, represent major shift in public policy. County Executive Leggett emphasized that he will need AIM’s continuing help to make these goals a reality by pursing funding from the County Council. 

Sligo is thrilled that our own Pastor Rebecca Brillhart represents us as Co-Chair of AIM. Pastor Brillhart’s many hours meeting with civic and elected leaders on our AIM agenda, planning strategy, encouraging other churches to join, clarifying the theological underpinnings for our work, and holding all of us accountable—all these are invaluable to AIM. Her work together with the active involvement of many from our college and church represent the solid commitment of our congregation to this important non-partisan work within our community.   

AIM’s Work Continues…and You Can Help!

To learn how you can become involved with AIM, contact Sligo/CUC AIM Core Team Leader Ann Gray at 301.598.1299 or aim@sligochurch.org

Sligo Disciple Bible Class: An Opportunity for Growth

by Kathy Johnson

As Christians, we should each commit a significant amount of time in study and prayer every week. Now, thanks to some dedicated teachers, we can join a Disciple Bible Study Group this fall.  I have spoken to Bogdan Scur who is the leader of Sligo’s Discipleship Committee and here is what I have learned about this exciting study opportunity.

Each Disciple Bible Class offers the student an overview of large portions of the Bible as well as an in-depth study of smaller portions of scripture.  Working with the Disciple workbook and a Bible, students need to study their Bible daily and come prepared to discuss assigned texts.  A large segment of class time is also spent reflecting on how the text applies to our lives.  Each class begins with a DVD clip which introduces the lesson for the week and “sets the stage” for group discussion.

Disciple Bible Study Groups begin this week—the last week in September. There will be six classes meeting at different times throughout the week.  The  listing below gives the days, times, and leaders for each group.   I have talked to a friend of mine who took the class before and he said to me that the closeness and sharing in his class was “a life-changing experience!”

A portion of Psalm 1 says that we are to “delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night.”  It seems to me that Disciple Bible Groups offer each member of Sligo a wonderful opportunity to do just that—and make some new friends too!

Tuesday’s 7-9:30 pm

Leaders: Dee Taylor

Tuesday’s 7-9:30 pm

Leaders: Lawrence Taylor

Wednesday’s 9:30-Noon

Leader: Pastor Rebecca Brillhart

Thursday’s 7-9:30 pm

Leader: Marilyn Dimas

Sabbaths 9-11:00 am

Leaders: Eunice Alexander and Myrna Bas

Sabbaths 3-4:30 pm

Deena Rumford

City Council Honors Sligo Member
By Celeste Ryan Blyden

Earlier this month, the Takoma Park (Md.) City Council recognized Sligo church member Erwin Mack (pictured with Mayor Kathryn Porter) for the "tireless and determined efforts" he has shown during 20 years of leading the Takoma Langley Crossroads Development Authority (CDA). Mack, founder and executive director of the CDA, started the organization in 1987 to promote and market the businesses in the commercial district where the cities of Langley Park and Takoma Park, Md., meet. At the time, this church elder and school board member was the owner of a bedding store.

Upon retiring, Mack continued to work with the CDA's board of directors, successfully advocating for more effective crime prevention programming, pedestrian safety improvements, stronger code enforcement measures, streetscape improvements, and funding and resources necessary to maintain the economic vitality of the business community, etc.

"I'm not a pest, just responsibly persistent," explains the volunteer public servant who also chairs the Adventist Community Action Council, a coalition that engages leaders from all the Adventist schools, churches, and organizations in Takoma Park, in community service efforts.

The resolution to honor Mack for his "hard work and determination" was unanimously endorsed by Mayor Kathryn Porter and the entire Council. Each member then shared words of appreciation for Mack's contributions.

"When church members are so highly appreciated for their community involvement, I think other members will be inspired to similar involvement," says John Wagner, Sligo's pastor for administration, who was present for the presentation.
 

Could you spot an heirloom tomato? Could you tell the difference between a fire truck and a fire engine?

Well, The Kindergarten Class at Sligo Adventist School can!

On Tuesday, September 18, the class went on a double field trip to the TPSS Natural Food Market and the Takoma Park Fire Department.

At the Food Market, they taste-tested various fruits, soy products (yummy chocolate "milk") and hummus and smelled earth friendly hand soaps and lotions.

At the Fire Department, they learned all about all the equipment firemen use to fight fires and ways to keep their homes and school safe from fire hazards.  They also enjoyed hearing the siren for a mini-second.

Overall, the students enjoyed touring both facilities, learning about how a community works together for the good of all. 

In keeping with our Social Studies unit on Communities, we have set up our own "Grocery Store" in our classroom complete with cashier aprons, registers, shopping baskets and boxed goods.  Stop by and visit our "store" and one of the students would be happy to ring you up! And while you are waiting in line, you can try on a fire hat and coat too!

Sligo Participates in the Takoma Park's Fourth of July Parade

The Sligo Pathfinders marched with precision ahead of the "Sligo - Our Hands" float carrying the puppeteers singing with enthusiasm. Pastor Mark Sigue led the festive group.  Thanks to all who helped build the float, drove the vehicles, passed out flyers, marched with the pathfinders, maneuvered the singing puppets, and participated in lots of other activities to make this a success.  It was beautiful to see Sligo being a part of the community and representing our church family.