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Church Women United Plan World Community Day Nov. 6

Newtown Church Women United (CWU) in cooperation with the Danbury, Bethel, and

Brookfield units, will sponsor The World Community Day celebration on Friday,

November 6, at the Newtown Congregational Church (NCC) at 11:30 am with a

light luncheon following in the undercroft.

The Rev Janice Touloukian, associate minister at NCC, will give prayer prior

to lunch.

"The World Within Our Neighborhoods" will be this year's theme and will

feature Native American Barrie Kavasch of Bridgewater and representatives of

many cultures to share in the worship that honors stories of global women

theologians.

The public is invited to join in this celebration. Tickets are $3 and can be

bought from CWU members. A freewill offering will be taken to support the

women's ecumenical ministries of Church Women United for peace and justice,

including its commitments to advancing the social and economic power of women.

Child care will be provided by NCC Sunday School Superintendent Ester Nichols.

For more information, call Darlene Jackson, 426-5192, or Jeane Roberts,

426-9707.

Representatives of many different cultures from throughout the Greater Danbury

area will be participating in "The World Within Our Neighborhoods" celebration

that will be duplicated around the world next week.

E. Barrie Kavasch To Speak

E. Barrie Kavasch is an author/illustrator specializing in plants, mushrooms,

American Indian cultures, and complimentary pathways of healing. She is of

Scotish-Irish, German, Cherokee, Creek, and Powhaten Indian heritage, and she

is a direct descendent of Pocohontas. Her work reflects a deep respect for

multi-ethnic wisdom.

She is a research associate and an ethnobotanist / ethnomycologist at the

Institute for American Indian Studies (IAIS) where she originated the Native

American Spirituality Circle and the institute's "Herbaria" and "Native

Healing Plants" series.

Her books include Enduring Harvests, Earth Maker's Lodge, and American Indian

Earth Sense. Her first book, Native Harvests: American Indian Botanicals,

Mushrooms, and Recipes, is being expanded by the IAIS in an enlarged volume

celebrating its 20th birthday as a nationally prominent book in this field. As

a camera/naturalist, she has collected thousands of photographs in these

fields of her expertise. She lectures nationally and internationally.

Ms Kavasch also does drumming and workshops on making drums, many of which she

will bring with her and that will be used and displayed during the worship

ceremony, where she will be leading the procession of sacred storytellers and

reflecting on storytelling as theology. Colored streamers, native costumes,

candles, music, and scripture will highlight the ceremony.

Other Participants

Sue Klein, deacon of the United Methodist Church (UM) in Sandy Hook, will be

at the organ and Mary Andreotta, choir director and soloist of NCC, will be

song leader. The Rev Kathleen Adams-Shepherd, rector of Trinity Church, will

read the scriptures.

Ms Kavasch will call up Sister Jose Hobday to be honored. She is a Franciscan

of Seneca, Iroquois, and Seminole descent who has worked for more than 40

years on and off Indian Reservations.

Barbara Gates of United Methodist will be the second leader honoring Dorthee

Doelle, a German scholar whose writing opened a window for all on human

liberation as the gift and promise of God. Betty Williams of NCC will raise up

the name of Mercy Oduyoye, an African theologian who has served as a deputy

general secretary of the World Council of Churches and moderator of the

Education and Renewal Unit.

Jeanie Orr, daughter-in-law of Danbury CWU Annie Orr, will honor Chung Hyun

Kyung, a professor of theology at EWHA Women's University in Seoul, Korea, and

at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. Another representative will

honor Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz, a feminist theologian from Cuba and now an

associate professor of theology and ethics at Drew University in New Jersey.

During the service there will be a sharing of real-life stories of neighbors

helping neighbors. Gertrude Nagy (NCC) originally from Desden, Germany, and

Pat Stroud of St Rose, originally from England, will share stories as will

Doris Schoonmaker from St John's, Elneda McCarley of Danbury AME Zion, and

Evelyn Chen of NCC. Others from the congregation will be asked to share their

own stories with the group.

Bethel members from the First Congregational Church, Charlotte Thomas and

Barbara Johnson will usher and Jeanette Mayer of Prince of Peace Lutheran

Church will be in charge of registering.

Newtown CWU President Jeane Roberts will be welcoming people to the event,

which was coordinated by Marg Osterman of St Rose, Deacon Klein of United

Methodist and Mrs Roberts and Darlene Jackson of NCC.

The World Community Day is the third annual celebration of CWU. The World Day

of Prayer, celebrated internationally on the first Friday in March, came into

being in 1887, when Mrs Darwin James, the mother of 7 children and president

of the Women's Board of Missions of the Presbyterian Church had an idea that

all Christian women should pray together.

In the 1930s the National Council of Federated Church Women held

interdenominational women's luncheons in New York City, focusing on such

issues as child health, children of migrant families, slums and sweat shops.

From these events began May Fellowship Day, held each year on the first Friday

in May.

In 1941, just days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, representatives of three

interdenominational committees met in Atlantic City to give birth to Church

Women United. Amy Ogden Welcher of Connecticut was the first president.

Since then the CWU movement has been at the helm working for lifting the

burden of injustice and suffering. In 1944 Eleanor Roosevelt sponsored a

conference at the White House on "How Women May Share in Post-War Policy

Making." CWU set up a special Commission on Religious Ministries to Women in

the Services and organized women volunteers to assist women and children in

camp and defense communities. In 1946 the group made thousands of layettes and

500,000 bundles of clothes for Europe sent through Church World Service.

Human rights issues were raised and CWU reaffirmed the historic stand on the

inclusiveness of Christian Fellowship across denominational and racial lines.

They joined hands, prayed, marched, and spoke out for justice and human

rights. CWU joined with Cezar Chevez and advocated for the migrants and farm

workers. Shanti Solomon from India at the Asian women's conference promoted

the Fellowship of the Least Coin that created Christian community among those

of different national, racial, economic, and religious backgrounds. In the

Fellowship of the Least Coin, celebrated in every unit of CWU, members give

their smallest coins with a prayer for each.

The first Sunday in August was set aside as Peace Sunday and in 1998 there

were more than 40,000 Church Women United in the 50 states and Puerto Rico,

eight regions, and 298 units supporting Church World Service, SERRV (selling

native products of third-world countries to contribute to their economy), The

Least Coin, and local projects such as soup kitchens, youth programs, and

women in crises. Connecticut CWU sent $3,000 last year for wells for clean

water for Madagascar.

Newtown CWU was instrumental in the founding of the Displaced Homemakers Fund

in Newtown and gives regularly to that cause as well as supporting national

projects and attitudes of commitment to Christian ecumenicalism.