Service In Our Midst

"What a wonderful day. It fills my heart to know that we are working together for such a nice cause. You truly feel the spirit among the sisters. 'Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me'. Everything was wonderful. I think with winter ending, this was such an uplifting day. "

Heading to Heritage Park Nursing Home

"The Event was great and everyone just loved it..." ~ Beth Ramm, Fredonia Branch

Baskets for Young Women

Filling the Baskets

Nursing Home

St. Susan's Center

St. Susan's Center Chemo Caps

Bed Pockets

Bed Pockets

Rice Socks

Chemo Caps

Chemo Caps

Chicken Noodle Soup

Baked Goods

Baked Goods

Chicken Noodle Soup

Greeting Cards

Quote Books

Quote Books

Squares to be donated to Roswell Park Cancer Center

Scarves and Hats

Lap Quilts

Socks

Walker Bags

Chemo Caps

Greeting Cards

"This experience today has filled my heart and spirit with goodness. To be around so many of our sisters and perform good works. To join our efforts together for the benefit of someone else….even though we don’t know whom it will help. This is what it means to be a Latter-Day Saint Lady….and try to understand how our Savior could do so much for us…..We are making this a reality today."

Learning and Bonding in Service

The Erie 1st ward has been getting ready for the stake "Service in Our Midst" enrichment. It has been so fun getting together with the sisters in our ward as we prepare for the big event...which is tomorrow! The Relief Society had a combined "cookie making" activity with the Young Women and a "card making" activity earlier in the month. In addition, many of our sisters have enjoyed learning how to crochet and knit as they have been making hats and scarves in their own homes. Julia Reynolds, a very talented women in our ward, crochets and knits beautiful hats, blankets, and scarves. She taught several of the sisters in our ward how to make these items so that they could donate to the "Service in Our Midst" activity. It was a wonderful opportunity to not only serve, but to learn new skills and share talents. Here are a few pictures of times we spent together. We look forward to meeting tomorrow in Jamestown as we enjoy good friends and company and serving one another.

Filling the Food Storage Pantries

Meadville Ward's Service Project for the fall took place at Andrew's Farm where 4300 pounds of local soft red winter wheat was packed into 85 six gallon buckets. Sisters Klaphaak, Reynolds, Scander, Tidd and Andrew washed, filled, sealed and labeled. Brothers Ketcham, Williams, Klaphaak and Andrew, along with Sis. Tidd's son-in-law assisted the sisters.

The project benefited all of the Jamestown Stake by making this wheat available for food storage for all members.

We followed this task by fellowshipping and laughing together, using snacks that were purchased for a "Snowed Out" Relief Society fleece blanket service project several days earlier.

A Friend... Just When a Friend is Needed

I was having a bad weekend, and a very dear friend, KlH, stopped by at work to cheer me up. She is the greatest...

The Beginning of Many Service Projects to Come

This is a picture of the one of the first projects of many we hope to be able to do in our community. The church has a Humanitarian Fund that will allow you to obtain $500.00 worth of food, etc for any organization in your area. The Joint Neighborhood project received $500.00 worth of food which was delivered by the Jamestown Young Men.

YSA Service

Recently, I came home to Jamestown ( I am living in Massachusetts) so I could attend the YSA Conference that was being held. It really impressed me how much the singles in the stake took the time to get everything ready. There was so much that was done behind the scenes to get it up and running, from the advisors on down to everyone who pitched in with the decorations and preparing the food. On Saturday night, we had Jamestown Idol. We had three people who were the judges and who were acting like Paula, Randy and Simon from American Idol. I really appreciated them taking the time out of their busy schedule to come and participate in this activity with us.

Also on Saturday night, they had my grandmother and cousin come up to help teach us a few dances. It was nice of them to take the time to come up and teach us. I know I had a great time doing it and so did everyone else. On Sunday, we had a testimony meeting. Even though we did not have a ton of people there, you could definitely feel the spirit. I think that everyone who was there on Sunday was crying or had tears in their eyes because of how strong the spirit was. I am glad that I was there for the weekend and that I was spiritually uplifted.
Tiffany Ognibene, Lynnfield, MA Ward (formerly- Jamestown Ward)

ALL FOR ONE ……….ONE FOR ALL

January was ward unity month. All organizations participated in service projects in one way or another with the culminating of a Ward Trek on January 31st.

A nine mile unity trek on a frigid winter day was hard, long and lots of fun. Members of the Warren Ward, Jamestown NY Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recently undertook an amazing task: a pioneer-unity trek on January 31st with a high of 14`F.
Leading up to the trek were several service-oriented activities. One Saturday the men’s Priesthood groups (Aaronic, ages 12-18,and Melchizedek, ages 19 & up) made scarves for the entire congregation. Primary children (ages 3-12) learned songs of faith, courage, and endurance to sing while they walked in the trek. The Young Women’s group (ages 12-18) made a flag representing unity, faith, compassion, service and love, which was carried on the trek. The Relief Society women’s group began making a book of each family in the ward as well as putting together a memoir book of personal experiences of those who participated.

Two drivers accompanied the trekkers to aide in safety, to transport for bathroom breaks, and to carry extra supplies of water, hot cocoa, and heat for the breaks. To add to the 9-mile trek’s challenge, was a 500-pound sled, which the participants pulled up the long, non-maintained Sherman Hill. The trek began in Wrightsville, ending with Happy Town Road in Bear Lake and a home south of the lake on Route 958.

The Relief Society members who weren’t able to walk the trek formed a “chuck wagon” crew so that hot beef stew, homemade biscuits, pies, and cobblers, and hot cocoa or hot cider awaited the trekkers. Twenty-four made the trek.

After warming up and eating dinner, a fireside program was held with speakers sharing feelings about the adventure and ending with President John Ashley’s remarks, president of the Jamestown, New York Stake. Forty-four members attended.

Sister Snook, Warren Ward

RAOK (Random Acts Of Kindness)

At a recent, YSA Conference in January held at the Jamestown Chapel, there was plenty of chili left over, so when we saw a US Postal truck outside in the parking lot eating his lunch, we gave him a hot bowl of chili to eat, a roll and brownie. He gave me a "kiss".

Anonymous, Jamestown NY Stake

Spiritual Service

Giving service to others has always been a way of life for me as I learned it at home from my mother. She was many time the president of the woman's organization of her church. She often carried meals, helped out with cleaning or laundry to members in need. She worked with a gleaner's group in the Dunkirk-Fredonia area. As I became an adult, I was often involved in the same type of things with her.

After joining The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I learned a different way of doing service. We also carry meals or aid in family care but our services extend to more spiritual things as well. One of the most important things we can do to provide a great service to all is to serve as a temple worker. For the past year, I have been working at the Palmyra Temple two days a week. It has been the most satisfying year of my life. I was hesitant because of my age and the distance to travel, but Heavenly Father has been at my side the whole time, so I had no mis-haps on the road and was able to learn the routine and word-for-word ordinances with relative ease. I feel that I have been blessed out of proportion to the effort involved. Anyone can serve and every one should, even if only as a patron for family file names. It is service with eternal blessings.

Sister Janet Dickinson, (Janet just recently moved away from the Fredonia Branch)