Organizational Meeting for Preparation -- Asbury Hills pop-up Camp in the Florence District (June 27-28)

When: Wednesday, April 22, 2025

Time: 6:00 pm

Location: Bethesda UMC, 2000 Cade Rd., Kingstree SC

Coordinator: Ann Marie White, Summer Camp Director, Asbury Hills

District Coordinator(s): Bethesda UMC

Please contact the district office if you have any questions or concerns.

Thanks for all that you do!

Angela O. Bethea

Florence District Administrative Assistant

PO Box 408, Florence SC 29503

843-669-5992

Leading a Mission Team for the First Time? Let’s Learn From Each Other!

UMVIM will be hosting two co-hort training opportunities for first time Mission Team leaders, who are leading short-term volunteer mission teams from local churches. Each training will be broken up into 4 ninety minute sessions for the following date options:

Wednesday evenings: March 19, 26, April 2, 9, 2025, starting at 6pm Central time/7pm Eastern

or

Saturday mornings on April 12, 19, 26, and May 3rd, starting at 9:30am Central time/10:30am Eastern.

Participants must attend all sessions, and any re-scheduled trainings will need to be approved by the whole group.

Participants are encouraged to download and read the Team Leader Handbook at umvim.org/handbookdownload before the event.

This training will focus on theology of mission, the UMC connectional structure, practical advice for leading a team and mission travel, and more!

The Wednesday co-hort will be led by Tammy Kuntz and Ray Yarnall, and the Saturday training by Matt Lacey and Eddie Irwin. Co-horts are open to all with a minimum of 4 participants and maximum of 12 participants will be needed for the training.

If you have questions, contact Rev. Tammy Kuntz at ncj@umvim.org or Rev. Matt Lacey at matt_lacey@umvim.org

Participants will be sent a Google Classroom link for the training dates.

Click here to register for the Wednesday Night Co-Hort

Click here to register for the Saturday Morning Co-Hort

There is a suggested donation of $20 for participants, but not required.

Team Openings

Are you interested in participating in a mission journey but can’t find a team to serve with? UMVIM has you covered with the “Team Openings” webpage! Team leaders and projects can email sejinfo@umvim.org to advertise any openings on the UMVIM website.

Here are a few opportunities recently listed:

-Cuba- October 3-13th, 2025, led by Mike Burgamy, experienced Cuba team leader

Join Mike Burgamy, experienced team leader to Cuba, for this eye-opening mission journey. Travelling Oct 3-13th, 2025, with a $350 deposit, total cost approximately $2200. More information found on the application, which you can download by clicking here.

-El Ayudante- June 6-14 in Leon, Nicaragua

Projects will include vacation bible school at the HCN and public schools, delivery of Food Blessing bags, Health kits, and Water Filters to families in need. Click here for more info [scroll down to Nicaragua].

-Other openings include Kenya, Honduras, Illinois, and more! Click here to view all openings.

The South Carolina Department on Aging is pleased to be hosting the following free webinars in the coming weeks:

Dementia 101: The Basics (virtual) provides a general introduction to dementia with topics including dementia types, stages, warning signs, risk factors, navigating a diagnosis, current treatments, care planning and support resources available. The next webinar will take place WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 5th from 1-2pm.  Click here to register for Dementia 101: The Basics.  

SCDOA Dementia Seminar Series (virtual) – new in 2025! A quarterly webinar providing expert speakers on various dementia-related resources and topics.

The first seminar in our series is one you will not want to miss!  Taylor Wilson from the Alzheimer’s Association will be presenting Advancing the Science: The Latest in Alzheimer’s and Dementia Research. This seminar will provide the latest research and cutting-edge tools for early detection and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.  Learn about biomarkers, pharmacological treatments and what clinical trials are telling us about the future of these diseases. This seminar will be offered on THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13th from 1-2pm. Click here to register for Advancing the Science.  

Dementia 201: Positive Interactions (virtual) provides practical communication and problem-solving strategies to support meaningful relationships through a dementia diagnosis. This is most appropriate for family caregivers and those providing support for a person living with dementia. 

Our next Dementia 201: Positive Interactions webinar will be offered TUESDAY, MARCH 18th from 3-4:30pm.   Click here to register for Dementia 201: Positive Interactions.