United Methodist Church (UMC) – Asbury United Methodist Church

“Barrels of Love” Loading Help Needed

Asbury Communications AIM (Asbury in Missions), Barrels of Love, Missions, United Methodist Church (UMC) June 2, 2025

Your help is needed to assist with the shipment of much-needed supplies for Liberia! Help to load a truck with already-packed barrels and medical supplies!

SATURDAY, JUNE 28

STARTING AT THROUGH THESE HANDS 10:00 AM (if you’d like to carpool, meet in the lower parking lot (outside of Asbury’s first floor) at 9:30 am)

Medical supplies will be loaded on a truck at Through These Hands (454 Chestnut Street, Slatington) before returning to Asbury to load barrels and other supplies.

PLEASE NOTE: This event consists of loading already-packed barrels and medical supplies onto a truck, not packing barrels. If you would like to help with a packing event, please watch for future opportunities to be announced.

PROVIDE FINANCIAL SUPPORT

Funds are needed to help with shipping. The cost of a barrel with shipping is $200. Are you able to sponsor one or more barrels? Please make checks payable to Asbury UMC with “Barrels of Love” on the memo line.

Thank you for your ongoing support of Dr. Chris Hena and other mission partners in Liberia.

If you can help – or if you have any questions – please use the form below to contact coordinator Dick McCreight.

Email Questions/Comments Name

Name *

First

Last

Email *

Questions/Comments

Phone

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ABOUT BARRELS OF LOVE

Barrels of Love has been providing support for those in need in Liberia through shipments of clothing, medical supplies, and more. Visit asburylv.org/BarrelsOfLove to learn more.

Annual Conference 2025 Report

Asbury Communications Annual Conference, Eastern PA Conference, United Methodist Church (UMC) May 25, 2025

Judy Ehninger, Asbury’s Lay Leader, shared a report on the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference’s 2025 Annual Conference this morning during worship. Watch a recording of her report below and find more information about Annual Conference on the EPA Conference website.

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“Barrels of Love” Packing and Loading Help Needed

Asbury Communications AIM (Asbury in Missions), Barrels of Love, Missions, United Methodist Church (UMC) October 14, 2024

Your help is needed to assist with the shipment of much-needed supplies for Liberia!

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 16 AT ASBURY 9:00 AM

Used clothing from the UWIF Bazaar will be packed into barrels for shipment to Liberia.

Estimated time commitment: 1½ hours.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 23AT THROUGH THESE HANDS 10:00 AM (if you’d like to carpool, meet in lower Asbury lot at 9:30 am)

Medical supplies will be loaded on a truck at Through These Hands (454 Chestnut Street, Slatington) before returning to Asbury to load barrels and school curriculum.

Estimated time commitment: 2 hours.

PROVIDE FINANCIAL SUPPORT

Funds are needed to help with shipping. The cost of a barrel with shipping is $200. Are you able to sponsor one or more barrels? Make your contribution via PushPay, Asbury’s online portal, now (choose “Barrels of Love” under the “Fund” drop-down).

If you can assist on either date, please

click here to contact Dick McCreight.

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ABOUT BARRELS OF LOVE

Barrels of Love has been providing support for those in need in Liberia through shipments of clothing, medical supplies, and more. Visit asburylv.org/BarrelsOfLove to learn more.

General Conference 2020-2024 Information Sessions

Asbury Communications General Conference April 3, 2024

Sunday, April 7, and Sunday, April 14, 2024, 5 PM – 6:30 PM, Room 217

Join General Conference delegate Judy Ehninger as she presents information regarding the UMC General Conference 2020-2024 (being held in Charlotte, NC, April 23-May 3). Petitions and resolutions for action at the General Conference will be discussed.

UMCOR “Project Restoration” Seeks Volunteers

Asbury Communications Eastern PA Conference, Missions, Service, United Methodist Church (UMC), Volunteer Opportunities January 8, 2024

An upcoming UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief) project will be taking place in Philadelphia on January 13 and January 27. For more information, please contact Jerry Schuler, Volunteer in Mission Coordinator, using the form below.

Contact the Volunteer in Mission Coordinator

Name *

First

Last

Name Email Questions/Comments

Email *

Questions/Comments

Message

About Project Restoration
An initiative of the Eastern PA Conference of the United Methodist Church (EPAUMC), Project Restoration is working to help residents recover from the severe damages – physical, financial and emotional – wreaked by floods caused by recent severe weather events in our region. People of all skill levels needed for them to be successful in their initiatives – a project manager will equip you with the tools and skills needed to help! Learn more on the EPAUMC website | Submit your volunteer information | (after submitting your information). After you’ve submitted your information, a representative from Project Restoration will reach out to you.

Asbury Celebrates First Graduates of Liberian Sewing School

Asbury Communications AIM (Asbury in Missions), Missions, United Methodist Church (UMC) November 9, 2023

Asbury Celebrates First Graduates of Liberian Sewing School

The following article was written by Dick McCreight of Asbury in Mission. Dick has been instrumental in fostering the relationship with and infinitives for our friends in Liberia.

Asbury Church has had a relationship with their brothers and sisters in Liberia for over 20 years. It began when Asbury connected with the Reverend Jerome Kennedy, who at that time was the District Superintendent of the Voinjama District in rural Lofa County Liberia. After years of sending clothing, educational curriculum, and medical supplies through Asbury’s Barrels of Love ministry, it was suggested by a member of Asbury’s United Methodist Women that Asbury start a sewing school so that parents could earn an income to provide for the basic needs of their families.

In 2014 the first one-room school was founded in Paynesville, a suburb of Monrovia. The facility could accommodate only 14 students. In 2020 the school lost their lease on that space and was in need of a new, larger, space to accommodate more students. Through the generous support of Asbury members, construction of a new building dedicated to the sewing school began in 2021 on Tylers Island, another Monrovia-area suburb. Through the leadership of Rev. Kennedy and School Director Yamah Wymon, the school was completed and opened in 2022 with funds for sewing machines and instructors provided by Asbury.

Asbury was thrilled to hear news of the first graduation class of the Tylers Island Home Economic Training Center in October 2023. School Director, Yamah Wymon writes, “[I] am so happy to present to you the first graduates of Tylers Island Home Economic Training Center, a vocational school in Tailoring. I am so proud to be a part of history-making in Liberia. Thanks [to] the Asbury United Methodist Church [for] their continued support in the life of Liberians, They are the reasons behind our success today. May God continue to bless the work of their hands. To my students, go into the world and explore the new skills acquired and make a difference. Thanks [to] the teaching staff for their patience and tireless efforts doing every section. Thanks to our parents, friends, and well-wishers for gracing our occasion this past Sunday.”

Asbury is blessed beyond measure by being a blessing in the lives of our Liberian friends and looks forward to many more graduations from the Tylers Island school.

A Message from Bishop Schol on War in the Middle East

Asbury Communications Eastern PA Conference, United Methodist Church (UMC) October 15, 2023

The following is a message distributed by Bishop John Schol on Wednesday, October 11, 2023

Dear United Methodists of EPA&GNJ,

In the shadows of grief and concern, I reach out to you today regarding the deeply distressing events unfolding in the Middle East. The devastating acts of war by Hamas against Israel, resulting in the tragic loss of innocent lives and the taking of individuals as hostages, are heartbreaking and incomprehensible. Such acts of violence and brutality have historically intensified animosities rather than fostering resolution, and we must resoundingly condemn these actions.

What can you do? I humbly call all of us, and invite our pastors to call congregations, to the following responses:

Pray – Pray for the hostages, for those who have suffered losses, and for peace in the Middle East. Pray for leaders that they will make good, right and just decisions that value and protect life.
Empathize – Reach out to those impacted by the war. It may be family, friends, colleagues, or others from the Middle East. Share your concerns and listen.
Learn – Talk with people from the Middle East or read to better understand.
Be sensitive – Aggression and war affect people differently, especially those who have been to war or combat zones. Listen, pray as needed, assist the individual to receive additional help.

While this is an ancient conflict dating back to Abraham, we must never give in or give up on hope. Jesus has always shown through prayer and working together that God does bring peace.

I want to give thanks and prayers for several EPA pastors and laity who were in Israel during this attack. They have been safely moved to another country and are or will be returning home soon. We give thanks for their safety and pray for their continued safety and consolation as they travel home.

In this daunting challenge, let our faith be the beacon that guides us and our congregations to embody Christ’s message of love, hope, and peace.

Peace,

Bishop John Schol
The United Methodists of
Eastern Pennsylvania & Greater New Jersey

Help Needed for Disaster Recovery Project

Asbury Communications Eastern PA Conference, Missions, Volunteer Opportunities September 1, 2023

Help is needed with a project for the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference of the United Methodist Church’s Project Restoration.

A repair project is being completed in Downingtown as part of recovery from damage incurred from Hurricane Ida. Tasks as determined by the Project Restoration team are as follows:

install a pre-hung door into half block as a garage fire door
a small drywall project to complete the installation

A project lead will be on-site; and coordinators estimate a half day of work (depending on the number of volunteers available). They are targeting a date of September 9 or September 16.

This project has been completed – thank you.

Flip Flop Collection for Liberia (Barrels of Love)

Asbury Communications AIM (Asbury in Missions), Barrels of Love, Collections, Missions, United Methodist Church (UMC) June 26, 2023

“How beautiful are your feet in sandals,
O noble daughter!”
Song of Solomon 7:1

Soil-transmitted helminth infection (parasitic worms) thrive in the warmer climates of the earth. Unfortunately, these are the areas of most of the world’s poverty. This poverty is accentuated by the presence of worms that cause the depletion of already scarce nutrients in the body. Worms enter the body in various ways. Hookworm larvae (immature worms) mature into a form that can penetrate the skin of humans. Hookworm infection is transmitted primarily by walking barefoot on contaminated soil. Flip-flops are a simple and effective means of combating the transmission of hookworm.

On July 15, Asbury in Mission will be making their next Barrels of Love shipment to Liberia. Your donation of flip-flops (all sizes) will help prevent parasitic infections in the villages served by Healthy Women, Healthy Liberia. Look for barrels to collect flip-flops in the Mission Donations Area across from the office. We will be accepting donations until July 13.

Questions? Please click below to

contact Dick McCreight.

Scouting at Asbury – A Message from the Trustees

Asbury Communications Church Leadership, Eastern PA Conference, Trustees, United Methodist Church (UMC) December 9, 2021

A message from Asbury’s Trustees on Scouting

As you probably know, Asbury has a long history supporting Boy Scouts and have Chartered Boy Scout Troop 12 and Cub Pack 12 for many years (dating back until 1958). We, at Asbury, have been privileged to see the best of Scouting. Our support for scouting and the development of youth has not changed.

Due to claims of sexual abuse and pending litigation that have occurred over the last many decades, the National Boy Scouts of America Organization had entered into Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020 while they put together a plan to settle with those abused. We want to make it clear that this is a national issue with no incidents occurring within our Troop or Pack.

But in July of this year our conference (the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference of the United Methodist Church) instructed us to not sign any charter renewal beyond December 2021. We communicated this with the Troop and Pack at the time and it made sense that they started looking for other potential chartering organizations, since without a charter organization they would cease existing, leaving their current youth without a home unit.

In October we were informed by our conference that the UMC and BSA were in active mediation to resolve matters related to BSA’s financial restructuring and have agreed, in the best interest of the young people who participate in Scouting, to strongly recommend to United Methodist chartering organizations and Boy Scout Councils to extend existing charter agreements and facility use agreements in force at this time through March 31, 2022. This extension was communicated with our Troop and Pack, but due to the continued uncertainty, they continued their search for a new charter organization.

At the end of November, the leadership of the Troop and Pack informed us that they found a new charter organization (First Presbyterian Allentown) and requested that we release them from our charter as of the end of the year.

While we are regretful for the end of our long relationship with the Troop and Pack, we are happy that they have a clear path forward so that the youth can continue with their activities and development.

“Barrels of Love” Featured in UM News

Asbury Communications AIM (Asbury in Missions), Missions, United Methodist Church (UMC) January 28, 2021

Asbury in Mission‘s Barrels of Love were today’s featured story in the United Methodist News! Read the article, “Wheelchairs provide freedom for 50 Liberians,” at https://www.umnews.org/en/news/wheelchairs-provide-freedom-for-50-liberians.

Category Archive

“Barrels of Love” Loading Help Needed

Annual Conference 2025 Report

“Barrels of Love” Packing and Loading Help Needed

General Conference 2020-2024 Information Sessions

UMCOR “Project Restoration” Seeks Volunteers

Asbury Celebrates First Graduates of Liberian Sewing School

A Message from Bishop Schol on War in the Middle East

Help Needed for Disaster Recovery Project

Flip Flop Collection for Liberia (Barrels of Love)

Scouting at Asbury – A Message from the Trustees

“Barrels of Love” Featured in UM News

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Category Archive

Asbury Celebrates First Graduates of Liberian Sewing School

“How beautiful are your feet in sandals, O noble daughter!” Song of Solomon 7:1

“How beautiful are your feet in sandals,
O noble daughter!”
Song of Solomon 7:1