Over recent years, the Lakeshore camping program has grown to include communities of youth and children where scholarship assistance is an absolute necessity. Many come from foster homes, single parent households, and low-income communities. Last year alone, according to figures provided by the Rev. Gary Lawson, Lakeshore executive director, the camp provided scholarships to 406 campers who otherwise would not have been able to experience Christian camping.

"The call for scholarship assistance is continually growing," Lawson said, "and the cost is becoming overwhelming."

Lakeshore is asking local churches to consider taking a communion offering or other special offering during June or July to support the needs of the poor in sending their children to camp.

Every penny raised during "Camp Scholarship Sunday" will go directly to the scholarship fund. For more information, contact Lawson at (731) 584-6102 or email: luma@aeneas.net.

Volunteers at Dyersburg First UMC are ready to help others in the church with a ride to church or to the doctor, light shopping, an errand to the bank, grocery or post office. The church has a directory of "Helpful Soles" willing to assist those who can’t quite do it themselves.

The children of Reidland UMC in Reidland, Ky. recently interviewed some of the older members of the church. A small booklet of the interviews is now available for church members. A sample question and answer:

Q. (Sarah Sykes) Tell me about when and where you were born.

A. (Pearl Wood) I was born in Oakland City, in 19– (laughs) 1934. I was born in the same bed and in the same room and in the same house that my mother was born in.

Four states defeated efforts to expand gambling during the last few months, according to the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling.

• On Feb. 1, the New Hampshire legislature voted 234 to 102 to drop all bills to legalize casinos.

• In Hawaii, the key legislative committee voted to drop all gambling bills. Hawaii is one of the three states that have no form of legalized gambling.

• In Maine, gambling proponents gave up on their plans to impose a $400,000,000 casino on the unwilling community of Kittery. Maine’s governor Angus S. King is adamantly opposed to gambling. "We want to have a clean, high-quality, outdoor, family image and, to me, a casino is not consistent with that image," King said.

• In Indiana, gambling moguls were pushing legislation to turn Indiana’s gambling boats into permanent dockside casinos. The bill would also have permitted electronic gambling terminals to operate at Hoosier racetracks and off-track wagering parlors.

Kentucky is now facing the issue of deciding between a gambling-free environment and allowing their racetracks to be turned into casinos, reports the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling. The eight Kentucky tracks are crying bankruptcy unless they can install slot machines. To persuade lawmakers, the gamblers are promising $1.7 billion to the state.

Murray loves fried pies

Southerners dearly love their fried pies.

The aroma steaming from a golden brown peach fried pie plucks at memories of afternoons spent around Grandma’s kitchen table waiting for the savory, sizzling crescents to cool.

Those memories and that love inspired Doris Robertson to suggest a new money-making venture for the United Methodist Women of Martin’s Chapel in Murray, Ky.

"When Doris suggested that we make fried pies and sell them to raise money, I didn’t think it would fly," said Shirley Robinson, one of the 10 women in the group.

"I didn’t think we’d get that many orders because a lot of people sell fried pies, but, boy, was I wrong!"

Not only do the women sell hundreds of pies each month, the profits they realize underwrite all the missions of their unit. And they’re able to contribute $100 every month toward their church’s apportionments.

Doris says she knew it would work.

"I worked and worked to perfect the recipe," said the long-time member of the little brick church at the end of Martin’s Chapel Lane.

Modifying a recipe she already had, Mrs. Robertson experimented at home until she had the proportions just right for the perfect fried pie.

"We make the crust like a mix," she explained, "and keep it in a plastic bag until we’re ready to use it."

The women and one man (honorary member Ralph Robertson, Doris’ husband) meet twice a month at the church to roll out the dough, cook the dried fruit they purchase from the Mennonites, stuff the crust, and fry the pies.

"We make about 150 pies at a time," explained Joyce Morrison.

Each pie costs only $1.25.

Shirley Robinson said the group sells them to friends and neighbors and to local businesses.

"We take orders," explained Doris. "Most people pick up their pies here at the church, but we do deliver a few. Crouch Auto buys 3 dozen. We deliver to the post office and the bank and to Murray Utilities, too."

The women said their customer list has about 25 names on it.

"Strangers call occasionally," they added.

The women have been selling apple and peach fried pies for three years. Last year, they realized a profit of $2300. With the money, they were able to support Reelfoot Rural Ministries, Western State Hospital, Calloway County’s Needline, and Relay for Life.

"We also purchased everything we needed to make health kits to send to Sager-Brown (the depot maintained by the United Methodist Committee on Relief in Baldwin, Louisiana)," said Shirley Robinson.

The next project on their list is building a pavilion in the planned mini-park on church property next door.

"This is just a great project," Shirley exclaimed. "We can keep doing it over and over."

And it’s fun. The women arrive at the church at 8 a.m. and they’re finished by 11–leaving them time to laugh and visit over a pot of beans and cornbread for lunch.

Fried pies. What a delicious way to raise money for missions.

The Office of Pastoral Formation, an organization of the Memphis and Tennessee Conferences, sent its first pastor to the Methodist Archives and Research Centre of The John Rylands Library in Manchester, England.

The Office of Pastoral Formation (OPF) focuses on the ministerial identity of both clergy and lay people within the church. OPF entered into partnership with the Methodist Archives to allow the rich resources of the Methodist tradition housed in the centre to strengthen clergy and to invigorate the life of local churches across Methodism.

From Feb. 25 to March 13, I occupied Study Alcove #6 and researched the historical records for early indications of the Annual Conference as a Means of Grace.

From beginning to end, the time of research proved more rich and refreshing than ever I had imagined. The careful preparatory work done by Gareth Lloyd, Methodist Archivist, made the research full and stimulating.

Sitting in a study carrel surrounded by the long-standing traditions and the substantial primary documents of the John Rylands Library, I was pushed to focus clearly on the distinctive Wesleyan notion of Conference as a Means of Grace.

Retired Professor Henry Rack from Manchester University’s Department of Religion and Theology served as tutor and guide, using many of the materials he developed as he prepared the Minutes of the Conference for the Bicentennial Edition of Wesley’s Works.

Rack’s vast knowledge of Wesley and his insight into subtle matters of Methodist development were most valuable and renewing. I will be chasing down references and materials for some time that Professor Rack mentioned or to which he alluded!

The solitary work of research was made all the richer by the conversations among the cluster of professionals who serve this study so superbly.

The design of this programme originated in discussions among Dr. Peter Nockles, Methodist Librarian, Gareth Lloyd, Methodist Archivist, and Dr. David Lowes Watson from the Office of Pastoral Formation. Plans continue to evolve to provide a mini-study sabbatical of 3-4 weeks duration twice a year at the John Rylands Library for Methodist preachers.

The continuance of this programme will undoubtedly be altered as the library enters its season of rehabilitation in the next two years. However, with the adjustments made and planned from this first research sabbatical, the programme has everything in place to grow into an important link between American Methodism and British Methodism, between church and university, between everyday religious practice and ancient tradition, between Methodism and Wesley, between current, primal faith concerns and primary documents of trusted guides.