Sage Wise Proceeding from wisdom; well judged; shrewd; well adapted to the purpose. Sage District Oregon- Conference United Methodist Women Winter 2020 Volume 8 Issue 2

Greetings to everyone! I hope you had a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. wonderful Thanksgiving, a very Merry We sorted donations for the Deseret Christmas, and a joyous New Year. For Industries store, with many words of those of you who have heard about the first thankfulness for volunteering, and went on a Great Sugar Beet drop in Rupert, Idaho, I tour of the site. am afraid to tell you I stayed home. I did not As I was sitting in the small auditorium want to fight the cold or the traffic. I like to waiting for a short film to start, I was reading be warm in the winter. However, it is a the posters of some of the mission work beautiful Sugar Beet, but its sugar content is done around the world and I realized many lacking. (Farmer humor.) different denominations do the same mission work, however, God places each I have received comments from one local denomination where they are needed so we unit regarding making changes in our do not ‘step’ on each other as we work to be meetings. I hope to receive more ideas and the hands and feet of Christ. We had a comments from other units before the wonderful tour of the Bishop’s Warehouse EMEE meetings in March and April. Please (our local Bishop’s Warehouse supports the look over the ideas I sent out to you. Open Hearts Food Pantry at the Rupert United Methodist Church), witnessed bread I was fortunate enough to go on another being sliced and packaged at the bakery, mission work trip to UMCOR West the first and talked about their different canneries week in November. Because the group from located in Utah and Idaho while touring the my church lives so close, we are considered main cannery. We were amazed the 178- day workers and usually do not stay for foot tall grain silo was built in eight days, more than two or three days. The first day, and then the best part was touring the dairy Monday, November 4th, all five of us (four and eating bread with peanut butter and from my church and one from M4C Church cheese samples while drinking a cold glass in Heyburn) worked on verifying hygiene of chocolate milk, all produced at Welfare kits at UMCOR. Tuesday morning, we did Square. It was a wonderful experience! We the same thing. Tuesday afternoon, we all went back to UMCOR and unloaded a went to Urban Crossroads Center to help semi-truck full of donations from North and sort the very large food donations given to South Dakota, which only comes once a them by local schools. It had to be done as year. Only one small box landed on me the truck from the Utah Food Bank was without injury. Overall, the work was hard coming the next day. We were awarded a and tiring, but I was so grateful for the tour of the center from the basement to the extremely rewarding second floor. Everyone who worked there extremely rewarding experience which were so thankful and grateful for having a reminded all of us to be thankful for the gifts covenant relationship with United Methodist and blessings God gives us each day. Women, as they would not exist without us. This firsthand experience caused me to “And God is able to provide you with every realize how important United Methodist blessing in abundance, so that by always Women and their work means to others. having enough of everything, you may The last day, we worked in the morning at share abundantly in every good work.” 2 Welfare Square, which is owned by The Corinthians 9:8 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

May 2020 be a blessing to all of you! Joyce H. Orem

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REGISTRATION INFORMATION

Options are available for those who cannot attend the full event. Check the sessions you can attend on the registration form. The registration packets will include informative materials to guide you in the legislative process. It is better to attend partially than not at all! Local Housing can be arranged if registration form is sent in by February 16, 2020. It is important to note if transportation will be needed as well as any allergies to pets or special needs. Locations: First United Methodist Church, 717 N. 11th, Between Franklin and Hays on N. 11th St. First Presbyterian Church, Lindsay Hall 9th and W. State St. Capitol - 700 West Jefferson, 8th St. between W. State St. and W. Jefferson Parking: Instructions for parking will be given Sunday evening. There are parking garages within walking distance of the Capitol. There is parking at Boise First UMC and First Presbyterian Church. On street parking at the Capitol is metered, 2-4 hour meters available. Who is your legislator? Contact your county clerk or check the web site: www.legislature.idaho.gov. If you contact your legislator before the event, you are more likely to get him/her to come to lunch with us. Senator Patti Ann Lodge reported this legislation session will particularly address:

1. Infrastructure, highways.

2. Criminal justice, as in programs to prepare prisoners for life when they are released, sentencing reform, and job training.

3. Legislation of hemp growing.

4. Education funding, especially for technical training.

5. Restrictions on vaping.

6. Requiring genetic testing for transgender athletes to keep competition “fair”.

Registration Form

Legislative Process Medicaid Expansion: What Next? Women in Idaho Prisons

Effective Communication with your Representatives

Visit Idaho’s State Capitol Attend legislative sessions & Committee meetings

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Meet your legislators Guided Tour of the Capitol

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JUST A QUICK THANKS TO THE UNITS WHO HAVE ALREADY SENT IN THEIR HEALTHY VITAL UNIT REPORT. THERE IS STILL TIME TO SEND IN YOURS IF YOU HAVEN'T . I WILL NEED THEM BY THE 21ST OF FEBRUARY IN ORDER TO MAKE OUT THE CERTIFICATES. ALSO, THANKS TO THE SHEPHERDESS WHO SENT IN A REPORT FOR THE UNITS THEY VISITED IN 2019 LET’S SEE IF THE YEAR OF 2020 WE CAN HAVE 100% REPORTING FOR ALL ASSIGNED UNITS VISITED. THANKS AGAIN FOR SENDING IN THE REPORTS.

MARALYN WELLS MEMBERSHIP, NURTURING, AND OUTREACH

SAGE DISTRICT SHEPHERDESS ASSIGNMENTS – 2019

Eastern Idaho

Bonnie Anderson - *Aberdeen, Ashton, *Chubbuck, *Shelley, Blackfoot, *Idaho Falls St Paul’s, Idaho Falls Trinity, Pocatello, Rupert (Upper Snake River Coop includes Aberdeen, American Falls, Chubbuck and Shelley)

Magic Valley

Joyce Orem - Burley, Kimberly-Crossroads, Paul, *Gooding, *Richfield *Shoshone, *Buhl, *Castleford, *Glenns Ferry, *Filer, *Hagerman, Jerome, Wendell, *Twin Falls, American Falls (High Dessert Cooperative Ministries includes Gooding, Richfield and Shoshone) (United Methodist Ministries includes Buhl, Castleford, Glenns Ferry, Filer, Hagerman, Jerome and Wendell)

Treasure Valley

Elinor Chehey - *Boise Crosspoint, Boise Whitney, Meridian Kay Haley - *New Meadows, Payette Vera Kenyon - Fruitland, Nampa First Lory Neser – *Amity Campus, Boise First, *Kuna Lucy Scopinich - Amistad Y Fe, Wilder Gena Waller - * Boise Collister, Boise Hillview Maralyn Wells - Nampa Southside, *Emmett, *Middleton Charlene Wimpy – Caldwell, *Eagle

Eastern Oregon

Ingrid Cook - La Grande, Wallowa Earlene Lamb – Joseph, *Vale Connie Johnson – *Nyssa, *Richland Jean Spence - Baker, *Haines *North Powder Kay Durham - *Cove (North East Oregon Circuit includes Cove, La Grande and North Powder)

*Indicates churches without active units.

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REMINDER! Please send to: [email protected] QUESTIONS? Maralyn Wells [email protected]

United Methodist Women Census 2019

Local Unit Presidents: Local Unit Presidents are asked to complete this form for the 2019 United Methodist Women census . Greetings Bold Women! United Methodist Women is celebrating 150 Years! Throughout the past (2) years your guidance and input has been invaluable as United Methodist Women position themselves for the next 150 years of mission.

This year’s census is focused on giving information and sharing ideas for sustainability and growth! However, we still need your full participation and count! Your Feedback As you have observed, over the past two years the census has evolved from a simple form into a more formal survey that would help inform the work at the national office and conference level. This important feedback was needed in order to plan for strategic growth and measurable impact.

Thank you for your overwhelming response! We’ve had a very productive two years!!! We would like to congratulate Western North Carolina Conference on being the highest reporting conference for the past (2) years. Highlights from the census:

• Social Media: Most units use FACEBOOK to promote work. Majority of units stated that they do not need Social Media training, Assistance needed in posting events for greater visibility (2), inviting others/marketing to new audiences(3), creating a social media page (4) • Assistance needed in expanding the reach of mission u and in passing the knowledge to the unit or to the church • Assistance needed in engaging members in mission studies • Social Justice Campaigns: Most units are working on Ending the school to prison pipeline (mission u 2020/2021 focus), Climate Justice(2) Living Wage(3) End Maternal Mortality (4) • For Education, most units use the program book for how to engage in the work of UMW, visited the UMW website for resources (2) • Building Relationships: Majority of units reached out to local or state groups to explore how to work on the priority issues • The last census supported that almost 50% of local units describe their unit as thriving

Strategies for Growth For several years you have asked us to develop tools to help our organization attract new women from various generations. Along with your feedback we’ve now conducted additional surveys across women members and non-members in the UMC and beyond to understand what new women are seeking. As a result, we are now in position to develop and test key ideas and strategies for organizational growth as well as, support local mission activities and relationship building. In 2020, the National office will begin developing new resources, launching targeted giving, piloting a soul care retreat model to introduce women to UMW and testing new, additional membership join options for potential members from various generations alongside of our current “join” model. Please continue to share your ideas to inform the way we change and grow into the next 150 years!

Census Submission Deadline: Monday, March 30, 2020. The United Methodist Women will never share contact information outside the organization without permission.

https secure convio net umw site SPage avigator ensus html

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Just a quick thanks to the units who have already sent in their Healthy Vital Unit report. There is still time to send in yours if you haven't . I will need them by the 21st of February in order to make out the certificates. Also, thanks to the Shepherdess who sent in a report for the units they visited in 2019 let’s see if the year of 2020 we can have a100% reporting for all assigned units visited. Thanks again for sending in the reports. Maralyn Wells Membership, Nurturing, and Outreach

End of the year, has gone! It’s time to send the reporting form(s) to me for the 2019 Reading Program. Here is where you can find them of the United Methodist Women’s web site https://www.unitedmethodistwomen.org/Media/PDF/2020ReadingProgramReportingForm.pdf The Reporting Form can be sent to me: Earlene Lamb, 2315 E L Ave, La Grande, OR. 97850 or e-mailed to [email protected]

EVERY MEMBER ENRICHMENT EVENT 2020

“Breath of ew Life”

March 14 - Fruitland, Idaho

March 28 - Pocatello, Idaho

April 25 - La Grande, Oregon

The Every Member Enrichment Event will be For those women who are not officers, we will hosted in three locations this spring. We are have a special class called United Methodist continuing our theme of Maternal and Child Women 101. It will be a 150 year history lesson Health one of the four United Methodist Women based on the Mission u study book “Women Initiatives. Our emphasis will be on the health of United for hange 5 Years in Mission” pregnant migrant women and the dangers they face with air, water, and chemical pollution. You Women are asked to bring items that could be will gather information from a skit, a fact sheet, used at a local health clinic or women’s shelter and a speaker. related to baby care.

There will be a time of worship and song, Registration starts at 9:00 am with the program learning about legislative and advocacy events beginning at 9:30 and ending by 3:00 pm. The concerning women and children, and recognition EMEE’s are an opportunity for women to learn, of achievements. We especially encourage all to share about events in their own units, and officers of our unit to come for officer training. have fellowship. Check the date of the EMEE Has someone taken on the role of secretary or closest to you and plan to “bring a car full of treasurer for the first time? The training will ladies guide them and make their job easier.

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More women die in the U.S. from pregnancy complications than in any other developed country. The U.S. is the only industrialized nation with a rising rate of maternal mortality–increasing 26% over the past fifteen years. The global rate has decreased by almost 50% over the last thirty years. Rates are even higher among African American women, who are three-four times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications. People in rural areas of the U.S. are 64% more likely to die.

Severe maternal morbidity during pregnancy and in the postpartum period has increased 75% between 1999-2009, and that trend is expected to increase. It is suspected that an increase in the number of women with underlying chronic health conditions, coupled with poorly understood racial/ethnic and socioeconomic health disparities, contribute to the increase in maternal death and morbidity. The root cause is not clear, but the majority of these incidents are preventable.

Leading causes of maternal deaths include heart disease, a stroke from high blood pressure, severe bleeding, serious infection and blood clots in the lung. Today, more pregnant women in the U.S. have chronic health conditions such as hypertension, substance abuse and diabetes. Many are overweight or obese, and they are older.

To address this situation 34 states have formed Maternal Mortality Review Committees.

In Idaho Governor Brad Little signed legislation in March of 2019 to create the Maternal Mortality Review Committee, a panel of doctors and medical professionals to study maternal deaths. The Idaho committee is charged with gathering data about maternal deaths during pregnancy or within a year of giving birth and making recommendations about how to reduce such deaths.

Idaho’s maternal death rate is slightly higher than the national average at about 27 per 100,000 births. According to the State of Babies Yearbook 2019, 4.5% of Idaho mothers receive late or no prenatal care.

The Oregon legislature created a Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Review Committee to study and review maternal death cases and to investigate specific cases. For every incident of maternal death, there are at least 50 cases of severe morbidity, or near misses. The committee will make recommendations on how to prevent future deaths and make pregnancies safer. They will

address problems women face because of social determinants of health, such as domestic violence, mental illness, stable housing, access to primary care and prenatal care

With these statistics Sage District United Methodist Women has chosen maternal mortality among marginalized women as the topic for the spring EMEEs. You will find dates and locations for the EMEEs in this Newsletter.

Talk to your units and plan to attend.

Mary is pregnant with Jesus and Joseph has his doubts

Issues: Unwed teenager pregnant

o Having her baby away from home - traveling to Egypt after Jesus is born o Male and family support or not in her situation o In today’s world, where does any marginalized woman married or not find support o What are the statistics for her chances of having a successful pregnancy?

Matthew 1:18-21 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah[i] took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly.

20 But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

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EVERY MEMBER ENRICHMENT Registrars: EVENT Fruitland, Idaho - March 14th April 25th Iran Trenkel Earlene Lamb 3832 Butte Dr. 5 East “L” Street Ontario, Oregon 97914 La Grande, Oregon 97850 541-212-2918 541-786-8039 [email protected] [email protected] Pocatello, Idaho - March 28th Debbie Wheeler La Grande, Oregon - 14513 W. Reservation Road Pocatello, Idaho 83202 208-251-4180 [email protected] DIRECTIONS March 14, 2020 Fruitland United Methodist Church: 317 SW 2nd St, Fruitland, ID 83619 I-84 W . Take exit 3 for US-95 toward Fruitland/Payette ,turn right onto US-95 N ,turn right onto SW 2nd St . March 28, 2020 First United Methodist Church: 200 N 15th Ave, Pocatello, ID 83201 Traveling on I-84, merge onto I-86 following the road signs. Do not use GPS or navigation, follow the road signs. Merge onto I-15 via Exit 63A. Take Clark Street Exit 69 and keep right. Follow E Clark St to N 15th Ave, Turn right onto N 15th Ave. April 25, 2020 La Grande United Methodist Church: 1612 Fourth St, La Grande, OR 97850 I-84 W, Follow I-84 W to OR-82 W/Island Ave in La Grande. Take exit 261 from I-84 W, Merge onto I-84 W , Take exit 261 for OR-82 toward La Grande City Center ,Continue on Island Ave. Drive to Fourth St, Turn left onto OR-82 W/Island Ave , Turn right onto N Ave Turn right onto Fourth St .

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REGISTRATION FORM

Sage District United Methodist Women 2020 EMEE Every Member Enrichment Event

A “Breath of ew Life"

Cost per person which includes lunch is $8.00

Unit/Church______

Special Dietary needs: ______

Please List the names of people that will be attending ______

If needing childcare - number of children ___ Ages______

Please bring a sack lunch for each child.

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Sage District Officers for 2019 – 2020

President Joyce H. Orem Kay Durham (208) 859-5780 (541) 962-1002 (Home) [email protected] (541) 975-3997 (Cell) [email protected] Vice President Ingrid Cook (Class of 2022) (541) 263-1519 Charlene Wimpy [email protected] (208) 642-4304 (Home) [email protected] Secretary Lucy Scopinich (Class of 2023) (208) 387-0661 (Home) Kay Haley (208) 409-2067 (Cell) (972) 835-2027 [email protected] [email protected]

Treasurer Legislative Event Coordinator Elinor Chehey (By appointment only) (208) 343-8018 Mary Getchell [email protected] (208) 860-2715 [email protected] Communications Coordinator Gena Waller Sage District Conference Officers (208) 340-7661 for 2019 – 2020 [email protected] Secretary/Communications Coordinator Resource Room Manager Gayle Woods Earlene Lamb (208) 938-5964 (Home) (541) 786-8039 (Cell) (208) 571-0945 (Cell) [email protected] [email protected]

Mission Coordinator for Education and Interpretation Mission Coordinator for Education and Interpretation Jean Spence Leona Whitcomb (541) 656-6630 (Cell) (541) 889-9477 [email protected] [email protected]

Mission Coordinator for Membership Nurture and Mission Coordinator for Social Action Outreach Judy Halvorson Maralyn Wells (208) 327-0541 (Home) (208) 989-0917 (208) 859-2049 (Cell) [email protected] [email protected]

Mission Coordinator for Social Action Mission u Dean Connie Johnson Bonnie McOmber (541) 216-8342 (208) 939-4219 (Home) [email protected] (208) 867-4846 (Cell) [email protected] Mission Coordinator for Spiritual Growth Bonnie Anderson Mission u Assistant Dean Idaho (208) 221-8047 Mary Getchell [email protected] (208) 860-2715 [email protected] Chair of Nominations (Class of 2021) Language Coordinator Vera Kenyon Yuni Rueda (208) 989-7535 [email protected] [email protected] Western Jurisdiction Nominating Committee Nominations Committee Members Dixie Jacky (Class of 2020) (208) 680-5112 Lory Neser [email protected] (808) 286-4829 [email protected]

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Sage District United Methodist Women c/o Gena Waller

2880 W. St.

Boise, Idaho 83705

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Idaho Legislative Event Mark your calendar for Mission u 2020

February 23-24, 2020 TBA

EMEE Dates for Spring 2020 Studies this year are ~

March 14, 2020 Fruitland, Idaho Spiritual Growth Study:

March 25, 2020 Pocatello, Idaho Finding Peace in an Anxious World

April 25, 2020 La Grande, Oregon Spiritual Growth Youth Study:

Western Jurisdiction Managing Anxiety

April 17-19, 2020 Tempe, Arizona Spiritual Growth Children’s Study:

Managing Our Emotions Issue Study: Pushout –

The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools Special Publication:

Women United for Change: 150 Years in Mission

The organized unit of United Methodist Women shall be a community of women whose purpose is:

to know God and to experience freedom as whole persons through Jesus Christ;

to develop a creative, supportive fellowship; and

to expand concepts of mission through participation in the global ministries of the church.

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