So friends,

After a flurry of responses and research, we have landed on an event for Wednesday. While the age honored classic, River Float, can’t be replaced and will surely be back next year, I think we’ve got a great day planned for this coming Wednesday. This day is intended for all Sr High and College types plus parents who want to join in for the day.

Here’s the scoop:
Meet at Bethel at 8am (One hour extra sleep
New York, Jewish bagel festival {Noah’s}
Washington beverage delight {Starbucks}
Spend the day swimming, tubing, kayaking on the Russian River {Johnson Beach}
check out johnsonbeach.com for info on rentals and food
American BBQ lunch {Johnson Beach}
Pro Status Italian Dinner in world famous Occidental {Union Hotel}
Return to Bethel between 8 and 9pm

So here’s what you need to bring:
1. A $30 check (or cash) made out to Bethel Lutheran Church (this covers transportation, umbrellas at the beach, and the most delicious dinner ever
2. $ for Noah’s / Starbucks & Lunch at Johnson Beach (you can bring a sack lunch too)
3. $ to rent a tube ($5 per day), or canoes, single/double kayaks, and pedal boats ($10 per hour).
4. A beach chair or you can rent one for $6 per day
5. Swim wear, a towel, and sunscreen
6. A change of clothes for the ride home
7. Snacks to share
8. A great attitude for a great day !

Please email me at th----@------.net or text me at 408-309-9975 to save your spot (and for a friend or two). Do it soon because space is limited.

Peace, Tom

Since some people asked, here are the links to the videos we showed during both services on Sunday, January 2, 2011:

• SermonSpice.com – New Year’s Inspiration
• SermonSpice.com – New Years Transformation
• SermonSpice.com – First and Most: New Year’s 2011

Upcoming Events

Wed. the 14th:
7p.m. Bethel School Christmas Program & Yogurtland(bring money)

Sun the 19th:
9: 30 A talk about Christmas traditions
12-7p.m. Skating & Caroling
Who: All Jr Highers, Sr Highers, and College Age+
Where: Meet in the Bethel Pk Lot –>Winter Lodge in Palo Alto–> Caroling–>Pizza @ Tony & Alba’s on Steven’s Creek
How Much: $20
Sign up in the youth room or on Facebook

Wed the 22nd:
8a.m.-6p.m.
Who: Sr. High & Alumni
Where: Meet in the Bethel Pk Lot –>SF–>Home
What to Bring: around 20 dollars to cover food and transportation, more if you want to shop, and walking shoes (a jacket would be nice too!)
Sign up in the youth room or on Facebook

Love,
Jackie and Kenzie

Put things in a much more fun perspective, as oppose to Jackie’s bureaucratic approach. Tomorrow, Wednesday the 12th, we will be viewing a rocking performance from the Bethel School program. All the coolest kids will be in attendance, so make sure you don’t miss out.
On Sunday, we will be discussing different Christmas traditions. Those who are in attendance will have the privilege of hearing all of my wacky traditions.
Later that Sunday we will be doing our ever-famous Ice Skating/Caroling/Pizzing Extravaganza
This you will most certainly shouldn’t miss, as you would be missing out on a defining moment for your young lives.
Finally, the San Francisco Walking tour will be taking place on the 22nd. I do not know but about this event but I can tell you that walking will be involved, most likely in San Francisco. We will be departing at 8 am. Boring details are listed for all said events listed above.

Hope to see everybody there

Love
Jeff (only Jeff)

Hi Again Mexico Friends,
I’m uploading the six files again, this time in the correct format even. Sorry about that. If you have any questions, please email me at th----@------.net or call me on my cell at 408-309-9975. Talk to you soon.
Peace, Tom
2010 Adult Mission to Mexico Fact Sheet (50.3 KiB) 2010 Adult Mission to Mexico Itinerary (52.6 KiB) 2010 Adult Mission to Mexico Release (584.2 KiB) 2010 Adult Mission to Mexico Med Rel (1.5 MiB) 2010 Adult Mission to Mexico Checklist (27.9 KiB) 2010 Adult Mission to Mexico Donate Rcpt (63.0 KiB)

Hello Friends,
We’re drawing close to this year’s Adult Mission to Mexico Trip and I wanted to post all the important forms for you. Attached are 6 pdf’s with the goods. If you have any questions please email me at th----@------.net or you can call me on my cell at 408-309-9975. Please also pass this on to others who might be interested.
Peace, Tom
2010 Adult Mission to Mexico Fact Sheet (50.3 KiB) 2010 Adult Mission to Mexico Itinerary (52.6 KiB) 2010 Adult Mission to Mexico Release (584.2 KiB) 2010 Adult Mission to Mexico Med Rel (1.5 MiB)

Good day fellow church goers. This is the most important and coolest of the new youth assistants, Jeff Brouillette. Tom has asked me to share a wee bit about myself, which may have been a poor decision on his part, but I digress. As the cliche goes, I enjoy long walks on the beach, good poetry, and of course Baxter here (Anchorman for those of you who did not get the reference). My main priorities are to make sure y’all have another great year with the youth group and learn how to say y’all without laughing or smiling. As you can tell, I was asked to write a paragraph and I ran out of things to say. So now I will pass the keyboard over to MacKenzie (not as cool as Jeff). I hope to see you all (y’all) tomorrow at the Shoreline picnic which I know you have all (y’all) been looking forward to for months.

Hiya kids, Miss Mackenzie here! As you may have noticed from above we have to write some information on ourselves. I would like to inform you all that I enjoy eating lots of food, doing embarrassing things, and making FRIENDS. I am definitely looking forward to seeing all of your smiling faces at every single one of the events! I just had Chili’s so I am EXTREMELY full of delicious fried shrimp yummy yummy! Now it’s time for Miss Jackie to say Hola! See you ALL tomorrow!

Oh hai! Jackie Barr signing in. I am super stoked about youth events this year especially Common Ground woot! Outside of church, I enjoy taking pictures and playing field hockey(the better hockey ^_^). I look forward to seeing you all at youth events this year and if you don’t….you will have to deal with the consequences(aka many many calls from ME) RAWR.

Love your youth assistants for the coming year <3

Hey everyone! Time for another senior high/Revive event! We’ll all be trekking out to Malibu Grand Prix after church on Sunday, August 22.

Mini Golf is $7.99
Turbo Go Karts are $4 per lap but there are discounted rates for multiple laps
Grand Prix is $4 per lap but there are discounted rates for multiple laps (must be at least 16 years old with drivers license)
Bumper Boats are $6.99 for the driver, $1.99 for a passenger
Batting Cages are $2 for 15 pitches
There’s also a game room with a ton of video games and arcade games (like skee ball!!!)

If you have any other questions, visit the website at:

http://www.malibugrandprix.com/site/Redwood/attractions.html

Also, please let us know if you need a ride in your RSVP to Lexi Baker at ba----@------.com. We wanna make sure everyone who can go has a way of getting there!

Peace, Lexi

Hi Sr High and College Friends,
This coming Wednesday, August 18th we’ll begin to wrap up this summer with our annual Beach Bonfire night. Meet at Bethel at 5:30pm with $5 for gas and money for Togo’s. We’ll spend some time just hanging out and then have a chance for the upper classmen college kids to share some tips they’ve learned over the past years. This is a great event to bring a friend. Make sure to sign up on “The Wall” in the youth room or email me back at th----@------.net to save your spot. See ya Wednesday!
Tom

Hi Friends,
I just got off the phone with Eduardo (our Esperanza Coordinator) and the word is that the earthquake was relatively gentle on Tijuana. The bulk of damage in Mexico was in the town of Mexicali. Tijuana is also experiencing relative calm related to violence, unlike what is being portrayed in the media.

We are continuing to hold safety as a paramount concern as we travel this coming week. Please keep us in your prayers, not only for safety, but also that all hearts will be open to experiencing God in a new way through the relationships we will build with our friends to the south.

If you are a participant and/or parent and have any concerns, please contact me and I’d love to chat. You can email me at th----@------.net or call me on my cell at 408-309-9975.

On a related note, please bring all forms and as much money as you’ve raised so far to Bethel tonight between 7:15 and 9:00 pm. Please make checks payable to Bethel Lutheran Church. I need your stuff!

Peace, Tom

Hi Friends,
I know you are concerned, as I am, about the latest reports of violence in Mexico. We will be researching the facts of what has been happening and determining if the environment is safe for us to travel to the Tijuana area.

Esperanza is also very actively pursuing the safety concerns and I am including an email from the Chair of the Esperanza Board as to her personal commitment to get the accurate facts.

Please contact me with questions and/or concerns. I will keep you posted as to our plans.

Peace, Tom

Here’s Jan’s letter:
March 15, 2010
Dear Esperanza groups,

Yesterday, March 14, 2010, the United States Department of State web site upgraded the Mexico Alert to a Warning. We immediately became aware of this status change and met this morning to determine the course we will take and share that information with you.

As a group leader of 19 consecutive years and board member since 2001, I will be going to Posada this Wednesday to observe, ask questions, and try to assess. We, as a board, remain committed to your safety and take our duty seriously. We pledge a thorough investigation of what impact this might have on our valued groups. We also have a contact with the American Consulate in Tijuana to determine what increase danger might be present. Statistically at this time, Tijuana is increasingly safer with a sizeable reduction of violence during the past 12 months.

Please look for an update later this week.

Jan Kline

–
Aimee Khuu
Esperanza Registrar
206-228-2082
es----@------.com
www.esperanzaint.org