IN MEMORIAM: Bess Jones: June 17, 1917 - October 1, 2008
Dear Wesley Community Members,
It is with great sadness that I notify the Wesley community of the death of my friend and mentor Bess Jones on Wednesday, October 1, 2008. Her death came on the actual anniversary of the first day of classes and first chapel service at this campus 50 years ago. Bess was a member of the seminary staff in 1958 and was here on Tuesday, to celebrate that anniversary with the current Wesley community. In talking with her family and friends on Wednesday night, it is now clear to me that it was by sheer will that Bess gathered her remaining strength to be able to be with us at the service. For her, that meant the race was over and the battle done. How blessed Wesley has been to have her as such an outstanding and faithful member of the Wesley community these past 50 years!
Recruited by Dr. Trott, Bess described her move to Wesley's staff as her response to her "call to ministry." Bess served three Wesley presidents and mentored a fourth, the current president. During those years, she served as Administrative Assistant to President Trott and Director of Public Relations and then Director of Development from 1966 - 1982. She was the first woman to serve as Development Director in any theological seminary and the first woman to serve on the Executive Committee of the Association of Theological Schools. At Wesley, she worked closely with graduates, the Women's Guild and Epworth House. After her retirement, she served as President of the Women's Guild and Chair of the Norman L. Trott Scholarship Fund. Bess has often been called Wesley's best "friend raiser," bringing many friends into the Wesley community who continue to be among Wesley's most loyal and generous donors.
Bess was active in the Methodist Church since her childhood days in Alabama. She was a member of Metropolitan Memorial United Methodist Church since 1973 and served on many committees and councils there, including as President of the United Methodist Women. Her memorial service will be held at Metropolitan Memorial United Methodist Church on Friday, October 10, 2008 at 1:00 p.m. Inurnment will be at Wesley Seminary following the service.
David McAllister-Wilson
President
Calendar
Monday, October 6 - Friday, October 10 - Reading Week. NO CLASSES OR FOODSERVICE
Friday, October 10
Memorial Service for Bess Jones. 1 p.m. (Metropolitan Memorial U.M.C.-followed by inurnment at WTS)
Memorial Reception for Bess Jones. 2:30 p.m. (WTS Refectory)
Saturday, October 11
ELM classes. 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. (KG-05 & K-105)
Polity AME Zion. 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. (K-114)
Sunday, October 12
French Speaking Protestant Church. 10:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. (Chapel, Narthex)
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Tuesday, October 14 - Staff Meeting with President McAllister-Wilson 9 - 10 a.m. (Board Room)
Illinois Great River Conference Visit 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. (Bess Jones)
Volunteers in Mission 12 noon - 1:20 p.m. (K-105)
CPE Information Day 12:15 - 1:15 p.m. (Elderdice)
Empowerment Series on Economics 5 - 6 p.m. (Elderdice)
Plumbline 5 - 6 p.m. (Aiken)
Student Council Meeting 5:15 - 6:15 p.m. (Bess Jones)
Intentional Community Meeting 6:30 - 8 p.m. (Bess Jones)
WORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES THIS WEEK
No Wesley sponsored worship services are held during Reading Week.
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS / INFORMATION FOR THIS WEEK
LIBRARY SYSTEM MAINTENANCE: The Library catalog and system will be down on Monday and Tuesday, October 6 and 7 for an upgrade. We are sorry for the inconvenience. It should be available for use again on Wednesday, October 8.
LIBRARY HOURS - READING WEEK, FALL 2008
MONDAY-THURSDAY, OCT. 6-9 8:30 A.M.-8:00 P.M.
FRIDAY, October 10 8:30 A.M.-4:30 P.M.
SATURDAY, October 11 10:00 A.M.-5:00 P.M.
SUNDAY, October 12 CLOSED
The Library will resume regular hours on Monday, October 13.
EMPOWERMENT SERIES ON ECONOMICS: Tuesday, October 14, 5 - 6 p.m. in Elderdice Hall sponsored by the Association of Black Seminarians. This empowerment series will feature The Honorable Reverend Kerry Hill, D.Min., who is a former member of the Maryland House of Delegates and the current President of The Collective Banking Group which is a Christian ministry that draws together leaders from the faith, business, and public service sectors to develop and enhance economic empowerment strategies for its members and the communities they serve (www.collectivebankinggroup.org). EVERYONE IS WELCOME and STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO ATTEND! For more information, please contact President James C. Simmons at jcsimmons@students.wesleyseminary.edu.
WESLEY INTENTIONAL COMMUNITY: Have you heard of the interest in Intentional Community at Wesley Seminary? We are a group of students who feel called to explore intentional Christian living in the heart of DC. We feel we have the potential to shape the way people live church and mission. If you have an interest in shaping the way people learn about and think of Christian life, and want to learn what it means to grow deeper in understanding as an authentic follower of Christ through this experience, please be present at our informational meeting. We invite you to be with us as we explore these questions and seek their answers in the following places at the following times:
Tuesday, October 14, 6:30-8:00 p.m. in Bess Jones
Thursday, October 16, 12:00-1:30 p.m. in Bess Jones
If you have any questions or want to know more of what this is about before the meeting, feel free to ask any of us: Drew Sutton (sutton.ad@gmail.com), Craig Moore (cpmoore@gmail.com), Amelia Din (amelia.din@gmail.com), Sara Jo Emmerich (sajay515@yahoo.com), Mark Schol (mjschol@hotmail.com), or Erica Benjamin (erica.benjamin@gmail.com).
A "DAY AT WESLEY" ADVENT EVENT OPEN TO ALL! The Equipping Lay Ministry Program is sponsoring a "Day at Wesley" on Saturday, October 18. This will be a unique opportunity for learning and refreshment as we move into the Advent Season. The morning session, "A Morning with St. Paul for Preachers and Teachers" will be taught by Craig Hill, from 10 a.m. - 12 noon. The afternoon session, "Worship Planning for Advent (Liturgy, Visuals, and Music) will be led by Eileen Guenther and Deborah Sokolove from 1 - 3 p.m. Registration will open at 9:30 a.m. The cost for both sessions is $110 (including a box lunch). The fee for a single session will be $65 (including a box lunch). The program is identified as course number LMCEU08, and CEUs are available! To register contact Carole Lee at clee@wesleyseminary.edu.
WHAT DO HOSPITALITY, PLAY, AND THE FUTURE OF CHURCH LEADERSHIP HAVE IN COMMON? They are important issues that our very own faculty members have written about! Come celebrate their work at a Faculty Book Celebration (and signing!) on Thursday, November 6, from 4:30-6:30 in Elderdice Hall. (Rumor has it that Amy Oden, Michael Koppel, Lovett Weems and Ann Michel will actually be there in the flesh.) Hors d'oeuvres and beverages will be provided. Please RSVP to Amy Serridge at aserridge@wesleyseminary.edu.
LECTIONARY GROUP: The Revised Common Lectionary is a great tool for selecting preaching texts, as well as guiding daily Bible study. If you regularly preach from the RCL (or are considering it), and are interested in a campus forum to share perspectives on the weekly readings, please e-mail Charlie Stribula at stribula@comcast.net with your preferred meeting times.
CALLING ALL COMMUTER STUDENTS! Be green by carpooling to school. Sign up for a ride share on the bulletin board outside the refectory
PREVIOUS ANNOUNCEMENTS
CLINICAL PASTORAL EDUCATION INFORMATION DAY: Tuesday, October 14, 12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m. in Elderdice Hall. All students interested in taking CPE during their seminary career will benefit from this gathering of area CPE Supervisors on our campus. This is the best time to collect information and meet your prospective supervisors. Students who have already taken CPE are invited to come and share their experiences.
Please bring your lunch to Elderdice and join us on Tuesday, October 14!
CONFERENCE VISITS. Conference Board of Ordained Ministry meetings have begun! Scheduled so far are the Virginia Annual Conference, Monday and Tuesday, November 12-13 and the Illinois Great River Conference, Tuesday October 14. Sign up at Sara Sheppard's office (TG-08-near the tunnel) for an appointment.
PLANNING TO GRADUATE IN THE SPRING? Reminder: the deadline to submit your Graduation Application for 2009 is fast approaching! Completed forms are due in the Registrar's Office by Wednesday, October 15. This form is available online at http://www.wesleyseminary.edu/forms or you can pick up your copy in Trott 104. Submitting this form is the first step leading up to this spring's Commencement at the National Cathedral -- it will trigger an automatic degree audit performed by the Registrar to determine whether your core requirements have been fulfilled. Students unsure if they have enough credits to graduate are encouraged to submit the form anyway. The degree audit will help you select the best courses to fit your program in Spring 2009!
ARE YOU A CANDIDATE FOR ORDINATION IN THE UMC? If so, information sessions are being offered on Tuesdays October 21 and November 18 at lunch and dinner time. Joe Conte, the Director of Church Relations, will share insights about what to expect and how to navigate the conference waters. Sign up at Sara Sheppard's office, (TG-08 -- near the tunnel) for a lunch or dinner session.
GUITAR PLAYERS AND DRUMMERS NEEDED. We've had a great response from Wesley students who are interested in The Paul Project. However, we have a shortage of guitar players and drummers. And we know there are good ones at Wesley! We need your help as we rehearse original songs written by Wesley students. For more information, click on The Paul Project at www.faith360.org. If you're interested, contact Tom Houck at tom@faith360.org. Thanks!
INTERESTED IN HELPING TO SHAPE THE FUTURE OF THE SEMINARY? Then we need you! Wesley currently has several Faculty Searches open this year. We are looking to hire new Faculty members in Evangelism, as well as new Faculty Directors for the PMM Program and the Luce Center for the Arts and Religion. Wesley is committed to having student input in each of these searches, so we are forming student advisory panels to meet with candidates and provide feedback on the various candidates. If you are interested in serving on a panel, please contact Eleanor Gease in the Dean's Office: egease@wesleyseminary.edu, 202-885-8611. Participation in the student advisory panels is restricted to degree-seeking students who have attended Wesley for more than one semester.
A MESSAGE FROM THE DRAMA PRACTICUM: Seeking Fake Sheep: The fall Drama Practicum is seeking craftspersons who can help us create humorous-looking sheep and other simple backdrop pieces for our Advent production The Second Shepherds Play. If you're good with your hands and can create sheep, a puny tree, and/or a painted canvas backdrop reminiscent of England 1400, contact Deryl Davis at ddavis@wesleyseminary.edu or 202.251.1321 or leave a message in the Luce Center office, 202-885-8637.
ONGOING / DID YOU KNOW...
PAYMENTS CAN BE MADE BY PHONE! You can pay your bill over the phone and all you need is the ID number on your billing statement (this number is also on your ID cards-- for returning students, the number is on the back of your cards, for new students, it is on the front of your cards). The number for this service is: 1-866-498-4011. Payments will be posted within 24 hours - one business day. Please note: this service will not give you an account balance.
STUDENTS: IF YOU HAVE I.T. PROBLEMS such as difficulty logging in to any online resource, inability to access your wireless network on campus, or need to report a problem concerning the computer labs, you need to submit an eSupport ticket. The website address for this resource is http://services.wesleyseminary.edu.
WESLEY THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY FALL SEMESTER LIBRARY HOURS:
Monday-Thursday 8 a.m. - 10:30 p.m.
Friday 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Sunday CLOSED
Hours subject to change. Please check the board at the front entrance or telephone 202-885-8695 for current hours.
COKESBURY BOOKSTORE HOURS:
Monday-Thursday: 9:30 a.m. - 6:30 p.m.
Friday: 9:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Sunday: CLOSED
FOODSERVICE HOURS, MONDAY - THURSDAY (No foodservice on Fridays):
NO FOODSERVICE DURING READING WEEK
Breakfast: 8 - 9 a.m.
Lunch: 11:45 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Dinner: 5 - 6:30 p.m.
MAILROOM HOURS:
Monday - Thursday: 8:30 a.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Friday: 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Saturday 8:30 a.m. - 12 noon
Sunday: CLOSED
The Mailroom is closed for lunch Monday - Friday
HAVE A GREAT READING WEEK!
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PLEASE NOTE! The DEADLINE for all information to be include in the WTS Weekly Announcements is Wednesday at 12 noon for the following week's publication / posting. However, announcements / information will be gratefully accepted prior to the deadline! The WTS Weekly Announcements contain information about Wesley Theological Seminary sponsored events, OR, events that take place on Wesley's campus. Please send copy ready (Arial 10 pt.) information to: communications@wesleyseminary.edu. Classes and individual or closed office-sponsored meetings are generally NOT listed unless requested (or unless they take place on weekends).
