Now is a great time to get involved! Find a mission you’d like to serve and contact the liaison for more information. Contact the Rev. Vicki Walker, Minister of Outreach, at 813.253.5388 or e-mail. You can serve individually or with a group. What’s most important is that you get involved!

Stop by the donation and supply drive in the courtyard and make it a special Nicaraguan Christmas with a gift for the Nicaragua Mission Team. Donations can be dropped off in the church office or on August 29 or September 26 in the courtyard.
 
Donate items for the team to deliver:
Over-the-counter medicines and supplies: toothbrushes, toothpaste, pain relievers (aspirin, aceteminophen, ibuprofen), adhesive bandages and antibiotic ointments, expiration date after May 2011.
Please note: vitamins can no longer be transported.

Summer-weight clothing for infants and children

School supplies (paper, pencils, notebooks)

Old but serviceable suitcases to carry donations

Lightweight (disposable) plastic tablecloths to distribute with food in the barrio

Make a donation to purchase:
Medical supplies for the clinics
Food to distribute in the barrio

For more information, contact Mike Alford, Mission Team Leader or Vicki Walker, Director of Missions and Outreach. Click here for a flyer with more information about the mission trip and donation drive.

Hyde Park members Doug and Cheri Roland are responding this summer to a lifelong call to service, by moving to South Africa to volunteer at the new Seth Mokitimi Methodist Seminary about 350 miles from Johannesburg. Read Tampa Tribune reporter Michelle Bearden's article about them published June 26, 2010.

Click here for the Roland's blog.

If you would like to donate to the oil spill cleanup donation drive, the TradeWinds Island Grande on St. Pete Beach will be accepting donations on a 24/7 basis until further notice. If you'd like to help with a church donation drive, please contact Vicki Walker in the church office.
 
TradeWinds Island Grand
5500 Gulf Blvd.
St. Pete Beach, FL 33706
727.367.6461

The items listed below are being donated to Save Our Seabirds, Inc., Florida's first responder for oiled wildlife. Donated items will be deployed by Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection to areas where wildlife is affected.  Please refer below for an updated Wish List of needed items.

Donation Wish List:

1. AA batteries and AAA batteries (preferably rechargeable)

2. Bleach, bleach and more bleach

3. Laundry detergent

4.Heavy duty Playtex gloves and rubber chemical-resistent gloves

5. Scotch-brand Scrubbies

6. Wire cutters and bolt cutters to remove hooks out of birds

7. Pruning shears and landscaping tools, wagons, etc.

8. Paper towels and (counter) dispensers

9. Tarps (preferably green or camouflage) — large to small

10. Working vacuum cleaner

11. Heavy duty plastic storage boxes

12. Metal garbage cans (to store grains) 

13. WD 40

14. 5-gallon buckets 

15. Flashlights / big torches

16. High torque electric drill

17. Rags

18. Towels

19. Dawn dish detergent

20. Ice chests

21. Plastic dog carriers (large to small)

22. Wet mops

23. Hand sanitizer

24. Tie wraps / zip ties

25. Loppers / Hedge trimmers

26. 55-gallon (preferable rolling wheel) large garbage cans

27. Bungee cords

28. Sandpaper

29. Work gloves — medium/large/extra large

30. Staple gun

31. Household cleaners: Mr. Clean, 409, Lysol, Clorox wipes

32. Heavy duty rakes

33. Walkie talkies — 6

34. Crayons

If you are interested in volunteering with Save Our Seabirds, or in making a monetary donation, please contact SOS directly by calling 941.388.3010 or emailing.  Thank you for helping save our shores and wildlife and care for God's creation!

Hyde Park United Methodist's Salvation Army Red Kettle team received an award for having the second highest number of bell ringers and collecting $9,000! Great job Red Kettle ringers!

We received this update and word of appreciation from Iyari Villanueva, who was featured in the Winter 2010 issue of Hyde Park Life.  Thanks for your support which makes this possible!  Please keep Iyari in your prayers as she pursues her dreams. Read about Iyari here.
 
Hi,This is Iyari Villanueva again, one of the students that was awarded the  GSM scholarship  from Lennard High School. I just wanted to keep in touch and let you know about my grades I earned two A's and two B's, so far my GPA is 3.74, I wish I could say it was better but I would be lying if I did. Also I would like to share with you that I joined the Phi Theta Kappa club, which is an academic club similar to National Honor Society, and I received a certificate saying that I am on the deans list, I am not so sure what that is but I have heard that it is a good thing that I am on the deans list. I would also like to say thank you again for the scholarship and helping me pursue a higher education your scholarship has helped me a lot.

GOOD SAMARITAN MISSION

URGENT NEED

We are in great need of volunteers to teach English. The waiting list has been long. We were just alerted of an opportunity for volunteers to learn to teach others to speak English. This is a method in which you need not know how to speak any other language. A workshop is being offered 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 15 in north Tampa (North Boulevard and Busch Boulevard)

For more information, contact Kathy McGartland, Community Liaison, Good Samaritan Mission.

ONGOING NEEDS

Always needed:

Pinto beans
Blankets
Beds
Sleeping bags (old and new)
Diapers/wipes
 
Volunteers needed:
 
Instructors for Tutoring, GED, and ESL – Will work around your schedule evenings or weekends. Bilingual skills helpful, but not necessary.
 
Programmer/Scheduler – This volunteer would be responsible for coordinating programs, rooms, instructors and students, keeping attendance and other records up to date. No need for bilingual skills. This individual may do most work from home, with minimal need to come to GSM, but will need computer and internet. Proficient phone skills a must.
 
Volunteer Pick-up team member or Coordinator – This team member would pick up and/or coordinate donations in the community, necessary to building, running and maintaining the quality of services provided by GSM. No need for bilingual skills. (We have to turn down many opportunities for free food, beds and such because we don't have the resources to do many pick-ups.)
 
Volunteer Fund Raising Coordinator – This leader would coordinate their team to plan and implement fundraising opportunities in an effort to make the Seeds of Change program self-sustaining and fiscally healthy. No need for bilingual skills. (This has become a critical need as our donations are down (55 percent less than past years) for the past 6 months. 
 
Sponsor a Good Samartian Day Care Student – Contact our front office for details on payment pledges or schedules. Even if you can only help with a portion of the weekly cost and everyone pitches in, we can reach our objective of continuing to provide quality, Christian care to children of families at or below poverty level.

Other volunteers needed – Volunteers to teach a six-week discipleship class; soccer or basketball coach; interpreters; worship team leader; support crew for loading and unloading food and equipment.

For more information or to get involved in the Good Samaritan Mission, contact Vern and Diane Dykema, church liaisons, by e-mail or call 813.641.2737. The agency’s liaison, Billy Cruz, can be reached at 813.634.7136 or e-mail. More information is available at the agency's website.

METROPOLITAN MINISTRIES

Metropolitan Ministries has four families in need of mattress sets, couches and dinettes.

Metropolitan Ministries will pick up the furniture on Saturday and Sunday only if necessary. If you need more details about the families, please speak with Kelly Fuller at 813.209.1051 or Javida Coonce at 813.690.5593 and they will be happy to help you.

For more information on Metropolitan Ministries or to get involved, contact Sally Ordway, church liaison, by e-mail or call 813.251.9116. The agency’s liaison, Andrea Giovanelli, can be reached at 813.209.1251 or by e-mail. More information is available at the Metropolitan Ministries website.

Missions of Hyde Park United Methodist – Hyde Park United Methodist supports various missions at the church. The Alternative Christmas Market is held each year and members of the congregation purchase gifts to benefit people in need. On Sunday mornings, Hyde Park’s Open Arms Ministry provides a nourishing meal to those in need. Click here for more missions and information on how to get involved.

Missions of Tampa and Hillsborough County – The church’s Faith Promise Mission Fund supports numerous activities in the Tampa Bay area such as Good Samaritan Mission, Metropolitan Ministries, Salvation Army and Steppin’ Stone Farm. Click here for more missions and information on how to get involved.

Missions of Florida and the Nation – The church’s Faith Promise Mission Fund supports activities in the state of Florida and other missions throughout the nation. Missions include United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) and Florida United Methodist Children’s Home. Click here for more missions and information on how to get involved.

Missions Worldwide – The Faith Promise Mission Fund supports activities worldwide. Missions include the Cuba-Florida Covenant, For the Love of Children and Upper Room Ministries. Click here for more missions and information on how to get involved.

Adult Mission Trips – In recent years, adult mission teams have traveled to Nicaragua, Cuba and South Africa. Click here for more information about adult mission trips and how to get involved.

Faith Promise Mission Fund — Each year a Missions Celebration is held in the early spring. At this time, we are asked to make a Faith Promise Pledge to support the ministries listed here. It is a promise to God. No one will ever come to you and demand payment for your promise; however, you can include your pledge with your other financial reports at your request, otherwise, it is anonymous. It is an act of faith. It is simply trusting God to supply the amount that God impresses on your heart to promise. It is a promise for one year.

Faith Promise Pledge Cards are made available during the Missions Celebration, anytime at the Ministries Office or here.