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< Back Corey Bales Director of Childcare Email: clatta@aldersgate.net Phone:

Courageously living and sharing God's unconditional love every day, with everyone, everywhere. CREATION CARE "The earth is the Lord's and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it." Psalm 24:1 As Christians we are called to care for all of God's creation. As United Methodists, we believe that we are not called to merely be observers. Rather, we are called to actively love and tend to all of God's creation. The Social Principles of the United Methodist Church speak to the issues in the contemporary world from a sound biblical and theological foundation. One of the United Methodist Church's Social Principles is to care for the Community of All Creation . God has charged us to be stewards of God's creation. "Rather than treating creation as if it were placed here solely for humanity’s use and consumption, we are called to practice responsible stewardship and to live in right relationship with the Creator and with the whole of God’s creation (Gen. 1:26–31; Matt. 6:26–30; Rom. 8:22–24)." The Aldersgate Creation Care Team works towards living into the United Methodist Social Principle: Community of All Cration and our Aldersgate UMC Strategic Priorities of Missional Outreach and Social Justice. To help educate, disciple, and model ways to transform for the better those people and causes we seek to serve locally, nationally, and internationally. The Creation Care Team comes together every 2 months to find ways that Aldersgate can improve the way we care for God's creation. We talk about engaging this ministry in the following ways: Worship; Learning and Teaching; Lifestyle; and Community, National, and Global Involvement. Our key focus areas for 2025 are energy efficiency; native trees, shrubs, and flowers; and plastic reduction policy for Aldersgate UMC. We are open to all subjects and ideas for creation care education, events, and policies. Upcoming Meeting Dates Tuesday, November 11th • 1-2pm • Room 203 For more information, please contact Lorrie Rezendes (lorretired@aol.com or 571-309-6001). United Methodist Creation Justice Monthly Tips The United Methodist Creation Justice Movement provides tips each month to help us respond to God's call to care for creation and do justice with our neighbors. Share these tips with your family, friends, and neighbors. CLICK HERE to see more tips and to subscribe to receive the monthly tips in your email directly from the United Methodist Creation Justice Movement. For more about the UMC Creation Justice Movement, visit to umcreationjustice.org . July 2025 Tips July's Hot Topic is Heat! The effects of heat go deeper than just feeling too hot. Here are some cool tips for cooling off and consequently being kind to God’s creation, including people. From New Holland, Ohio, to New York City, communities are creating small parks and playgrounds. Research shows proximity to trees and green space does a lot of good, including keeping the air and tempers cooler. Look at your neighborhood for potential pocket parks. Then speak up to neighbors and local decision makers. As air temperatures rise, so do tempers. On hotter-than-normal days, nationwide, gun violence rises, robbing too many families of the lives of their children, teens, and parents. Work with others to identify “heat islands” and mitigate this justice issue. Plant a green oasis. Urban agriculture—cultivating crops within city areas—provides access to fresh and healthy food, reduces food’s carbon footprint, and creates a healthier social environment. People come together to transform rooftops, patios, backyards and front yards into gardens or simply to “stop by.” Either way contributes to the sense of a cool community. Air conditioners use a high amount of energy to cool a space, resulting in more greenhouse gas emissions. Ceiling fans, on the other hand, use minimal energy to circulate air and can make a room feel cooler without drastically reducing the temperature. Flip the switch to your fan. Work with nature this summer to stay cooler. Shut blinds and drapes where the sun beats down; open windows at night; amplify that breeze with a window fan. Take a cue from siesta cultures, where many people work morning and later afternoon, chilling out during the hottest hours of the day. Make your church’s property cooler. Consider removing the paving from a portion of the parking lot and planting trees in the newly reclaimed land. In the midst of urban heat-reflecting concrete and asphalt, a church with lots of trees stands out as an inviting sanctuary. Cool off the market for plastic. Refuse, reduce, and reuse strategies work; recycle is less available. Remember your reusable shopping bags; choose a non-plastic reusable drink container; buy bulk, refillable, or solid items such as shampoo bars that have no plastic packaging; switch to glass storage bowls; move away from “disposable” anything. Make it cool to be green. What you do and what you say have an impact on what others think and do. You have multiple circles of influence: family, friends, colleagues—even casual acquaintances and observers. Don’t hesitate to infuse your conversation with what is important to you. Cool your own temperature by reconnecting with nature. With life’s hot pressures assaulting you, take time to be in God’s creation to gain perspective and renewal. Shade offers a 10–15-degree respite from direct sunlight. Only seven states have laws to protect workers with outdoor jobs from extreme heat. Despite the dangers, others leave it up to employers to decide. Find out what safeguards are in place or not and advocate for lifesaving policies. Seek justice for those who cannot speak up for themselves.

Courageously living and sharing God's unconditional love every day, with everyone, everywhere. ALDERSGATE WEATHER POLICY Weekdays If the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) closes the Federal Government, the church office will close and ALL activities/events at the church will be cancelled. If Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) cancels school, all scheduled children's and youth activities will be cancelled. NOTE : The Aldersgate Day School has its own policy which closely follows FCPS. Find out more here . Adult groups may meet at the leader's discretion. If you are unsure of your group's plans, please contact your group leader directly. If the Senior Pastor decides to close Aldersgate due to weather, the Receptionist or Executive Director will contact all event leaders to notify them of the closure. An announcement will be placed on the church website and posted to Facebook. Weekends A closure decision will be made as early as possible. An announcement will be placed on the church website and posted to Facebook.

Courageously living and sharing God's unconditional love every day, with everyone, everywhere. GIVE TO ALDERSGATE UMC Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:7 We consider it a privilege to give back to God what has been graciously given to us. We are committed to generosity because we know first-hand the change God can bring through our sacrificial giving. Thank you for prioritizing Aldersgate UMC in your generous giving. Your consistency provides stability, strength, and support to our ministry. METHODS OF GIVING In Person or by Mail 1301 Collingwood Road Alexandria, VA 22308 Online Make a tax deductible donation‏. Click to Give By Text Text "ALDERSGATE" to 73256. Online giving takes place on Aldersgate’s Realm site. Click on the buttons, below, to learn how to setup a Realm account and how to give online. How to Setup Realm Account How to Give Online in Realm ALTERNATIVE METHODS OF GIVING Qualified Charitable Distribution Publicly Traded Securities Legacy Giving CURRENT CAMPAIGNS Select a campaign to learn more 2025 Stewardship Campaign Shepherd Hall Debt Reduction 2024 Stewardship Campaign Select a campaign to learn more Stewardship Campaign Capital Campaign Abundantly Far More Stewardship Campaign 2022 "Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen." ~Ephesians 3:20-21 NRSV Our stewardship theme for 2022 is Abundantly Far More. The image of the grapes reminds us of God's abundance and how we are called to bear fruit for God. Our membership vows, professed before God and the church family, include support through five areas – our prayers, our presence, our gifts, our service, and our witness. We encourage you to be part of God's abundance and helping Aldersgate to bear fruit for God through your time, talents, and resources. A tangible way to bear fruit for God is to complete the online 2022 Commitment Card and 2022 Time and Talent Card . For more information, please contact connect@aldersgate.net . Thank you for your contribution and commitment to Aldersgate UMC!

Help build relationships and share a meal with Rising Hope UMC. MISSION INFORMATION < Previous Back to Local Missions Next > Sunday Lunch at Rising Hope Aldersgate provides lunch to the 50 or so worshippers at Rising Hope Mission Church on the 2nd Sunday of each month. Volunteers are needed to donate food and drinks that will be used to prepare a hardy lunch. Purchased food and drinks would need to be brought to the church the week before our assigned Sunday and dropped off at door 3. Volunteers can also sign up to make the vegetable soup (we have a recipe you can use or you can use your own) the Saturday before our second Sunday Lunch service. CLICK HERE to visit the Sign-Up Genius to see what items are needed. You can select as as many as you are able to purchase to donate. Purchased supplies can be dropped off by Door #3 at the week prior to our assigned Sunday. If you have questions or would like more information on this ministry opportunity, please contact Julie Pfister . < Previous Next >

Help students in your area receive healthy food. MISSION INFORMATION < Previous Back to Local Missions Next > Food for Neighbors Would you like to help students in your area receive the healthy food they need to succeed in school? Even in a county as wealthy as ours, one in four kids in our area are struggling with hunger. Through the Food for Neighbors Red Bag Program , you'll make a difference in a local student's life just by adding a few extra items to your shopping cart five times a year. And the best part - our students will immediately benefit from your generosity! Food for Neighbors has asked Aldersgate UMC to help them get the word out into the community and increase the number of donors. For more information about this organization, and to sign up to donate food and/or assist in donation pick up, please visit their website or you may contact Laura Wainwright , Area Manager for Fort Hunt. < Previous Next >

Courageously living and sharing God's unconditional love every day, with everyone, everywhere. GIVE TO ALDERSGATE UMC "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms." 1 Peter 4:10 (NIV) The theme for our 2025 Stewardship Campaign is based on the scripture passage in 1 Peter in which Peter encourages every person to put into practice the gifts God has given to serve those around us. Having the Heart of a Servant for Christ uses our gifts and talents to multiply the church's impact on our community. It takes all of us helping in big and small ways to run this beautiful church that means so much to us and our community. We invite you to make a commitment of your time and talents for 2025 using the online form accessed by the button, below. The areas listed on the form are just a sample of ways you can use your time and talents. Each section has an "Other" area where you can add suggestions that align with this ministry. We'd love to hear your suggestions on where you see your talents fitting. The ministry leaders for each team will be in touch with you in early 2025. Thank you for sharing your talents and skills to support your church and community. We appreciate you! Time & Talent Commitment Card Prayer Calendar Watch our video highlighting the ministries of Aldersgate UMC Doing All the Good We Can If you have not done so already, we invite you to make a commitment of your financial resources in 2025. Please consider renewing your pledge this year or making a new commitment if you have not been able to pledge in the past. Please know that all gifts of all amounts matter. Campaign Financial Pledge Form Stewardship Testimonial Videos Qualified Charitable Distribution View the church's monthly financial reports Monthly Financial Reports Campaign Progress 157 Pledges Received as of January 15th, 2025 Goal: $1,000,000 $884,905.72 Thank you for your contribution and commitment to Aldersgate UMC! Our Operating Budget The reason for making a pledged commitment is to support the annual expenses for the operating budget for the church. The operating budget is the cost of all the expenses of the church to include programs, missions, apportionments, salaries, overhead, etc. The total operating budget for 2025 is projected to be $1.583 million. We rely on pledged commitments, non-pledged donations, and other revenue to meet these expenses. Our goal is to receive pledged commitments for a total of $1,000,000. Note on Mission Funding in the Operating Budget The 5% for mission expenses does not include support from the UMM and UWF support of missions. Apportionments also support missions, and there are restricted funds designated for missions. Many members of the church support missions directly. Staff 44% Facilities 29% Apportionments 13% Mission Expenses 5% Administration 9% You are asked each fall to make a commitment through the "Stewardship Campaign" for the upcoming year so that we can appropriately plan which missions we will be able to support, events we can plan to have, repairs we can expect to be able to make, etc. The amount you give is a personal matter. When deciding on how much to give, remember that scripture indicates that tithing is the standard and that giving one-tenth of our income to God through the church is the norm or a goal to attain.

Courageously living and sharing God's unconditional love every day, with everyone, everywhere. ALDERSGATE MENTOR PROGRAM It can be hard to adjust to a new area and a new church. The Aldersgate mentorship program is designed to help new members meet people and build authentic relationships, find a ministry area or small group that matches their talents and interests and to encourage a deeper connection to Jesus. Mentor Program Information If you are interested in becoming a mentor, please fill out the survey, below, and a member of the Aldersgate Connect Team will be in touch with you. If you have questions or require assistance, please contact JD Driscoll , Co-Lead of the Aldersgate Connect Team. Aldersgate New Member Form Please complete this form if you are interested in becoming a member of Aldersgate UMC. Adult Family Member #1 First Name Middle Name Last Name Preferred Name Title Title Title (if Other) Suffix Suffix Suffix (if Other) Gender Gender Birth Date * required Relationship Status Relationship Status Date of Marriage Phone Number (Primary) Additional Phone Number #1 Additional Phone Number #2 Primary Phone No. Type * Home Mobile Work Additional Phone No. #1 Type Home Mobile Work Additional Phone No. #2 Type Home Mobile Work Preferred Email Additional Email Occupation Have you been Baptized? * Yes No Baptism Date (if known) Joining By: Choose an option Name of Previous Church Address of Previous Church Add AnotherAdult Family Member Adult Family Member #2 Delete 2nd Adult First Name Middle Name Last Name Preferred Name Title Title Title (if Other) Suffix Suffix Suffix (if Other) Gender Gender Birth Date Relationship Status Relationship Status Date of Marriage Phone Number (Primary) Additional Phone Number #1 Additional Phone Number #2 Primary Phone No. Type Home Mobile Work Additional Phone No. #1 Type Home Mobile Work Additional Phone No. #2 Type Home Mobile Work Preferred Email Additional Email Occupation Have you been Baptized? Yes No Baptism Date (if known) Joining By: Choose an option Name of Previous Church Address of Previous Church SUBMIT Thanks for submitting!

Courageously living and sharing God's unconditional love every day, with everyone, everywhere. OUR MISSION JOYOUS RISK-TAKING WELCOMING GENEROUS FAITHFUL JOYOUS We embrace fully the joy of the Lord; it pours out from us and strengthens us as we live, serve, give, worship and praise in the name of Christ. Nehemiah 8:10 RISK-TAKING We courageously step out in faith to pursue the vision that God has given us for Aldersgate and the community. 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 WELCOMING We show hospitality at all times to all people and welcome them with open arms as we serve God together. Mark 9:37 GENEROUS We selflessly give our time, talents, money, and resources to bring about God’s kingdom on earth with gratitude for all God has so generously given us. 2 Corinthians 9:11 FAITHFUL We are dedicated to the Great Commission to “go and make disciples” by growing our faith and our relationships as we love God and others. Hebrews 10:23

Courageously living and sharing God's unconditional love every day, with everyone, everywhere. GIVE TO ALDERSGATE UMC Legacy Giving to Aldersgate UMC For where your heart is, there your treasure will be also. Matthew 6:21 Honor the generations that have built Aldersgate UMC and bless the generations to come by including the church in your estate plan. How Can I Make a Legacy Gift? Include Aldersgate United Methodist Church in your will. ~~~ Name Aldersgate United Methodist Church as a beneficiary of all or a portion of your retirement assets, donor-advised fund, or life insurance policy. ~~~ Consider gifts that provide income for you for the rest of your that will ultimately support the ministry of the church. Your financial advisor can tell you about income-producing gifts for Aldersgate UMC. ~~~ Consider making your gift unrestricted so that the church can use your gift where it is most needed at the time it is received. ~~~ You may designate your gift for unrestricted endowment, in which case only the interest will be expended in the future and that interest may be used wherever the need is greatest at the time as determined by the trustees. ~~~ Donate assets from an IRA to Aldersgate United Methodist Church. If retirement assets are given to Aldersgate United Methodist Church, the assets are not subject to payment of taxes and the entire asset would go to the church. Retirement funds designated for your heirs may be subject to income tax if the funds were not taxed previously and only a portion of the assets would go to your heirs. Designating assets other than retirement funds to heirs and designating IRA funds to Aldersgate UMC are both ways to maximize your giving to both the church and your heirs. Disclaimer Aldersgate United Methodist Church does not provide financial or tax advice. You should consult with your personal financial advisor before making any gift of this type. Legacy Gift Intent Form Suggested Wording for Bequest Informing the Endowment Committee, the Trustees, or one of the pastors of such a Legacy Gift intent would be appreciated so that you can be thanked during your lifetime, and so that any restrictions or questions about your gift may be addressed to make sure your gift will be used as you intended it. You may choose to be anonymous, or you may decide to allow Aldersgate United Methodist Church to list you as a member of the Legacy Circle. By acknowledging your intent to give, you may be encouraging others to follow your example and make a provision for Aldersgate in their will or estate plan.

Courageously living and sharing God's unconditional love every day, with everyone, everywhere. CONNECT MINISTRIES CONNECT CONNECT CONNECT CONNECT Connecting People with Christ Connecting People with Christ Connecting People with Christ Connecting People with Christ Through Our Ministries & Programs Through Our Ministries & Programs Through Our Ministries & Programs Through Our Ministries & Programs Ministries/Strategies that welcome; introducing and encouraging people into a relationship with Jesus and a commitment to the church and relationships we established in Engage . Ministry Areas Connections Team, CHEER, Support Groups , Communications, Fellowship Time, Meet the Pastors Events, Music Ministries , Newsletter, Social Media, Website, etc. To learn more about the Connect Ministries at Aldersgate UMC, please contact our Connect Team at connect@aldersgate.net .

Courageously living and sharing God's unconditional love every day, with everyone, everywhere. GENERAL CONFERENCE 2024 After a four-year delay, the 2020 General Conference of the United Methodist Church will take place April 23rd - May 3rd, 2024, in Charlotte, NC. As stated in a UM News explanation of General Conference , “The United Methodist Church has no pope. But it does have a General Conference — the only body that can set official policy and speak for the international denomination. General Conference brings together lay and clergy delegates from four continents whose decisions will affect how millions of United Methodists do church for years to come." General Conference typically gathers every four years. General Conference was scheduled to meet in 2020. However, the global COVID pandemic resulted in multiple postponements of the 2020 General Conference. When the General Conference meets this April, it will have been eight years since our primary denominational governing body came together. Since the last meeting in 2016, the denomination has seen a quarter of its U.S. churches depart under a disaffiliation policy that began in 2019 and expired at the end of 2023. General Conference 2024 will determine what happens next in the United Methodist Church. In order to prepare our Aldersgate UMC family for the Town Hall meeting that will occur on May 19th following the 2024 General Conference, we are providing information and links to resources that have been compiled and vetted by the pastors, staff, and Equip ministries team. The following are resources that we believe provide accurate information about the upcoming General Conference. The Northern Virginia District invites you to pray for the upcoming General Conference. Each day from April 1- May 5 we offer the name of a person or persons (beginning with each VAUMC delegate) as well as a theme or idea to help focus your prayers. General Conference Prayer Calendar Post General Conference Panel Discussion The Virginia Conference held a post-General Conference Zoom webinar on Thursday, May 9th, at 7pm. The panel included Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson; Rev. Lindsey Baynham Freeman, head of the Virginia delegation; and delegates Rev. Mark Ogren, Marshall Bailey, and Rev. Dr. Jonathan Page. You can watch the webinar on the Virginia Conference YouTube Channel. Watch the Recorded Post-General Conference Webinar Due to the large volume of questions received during the webinar, a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) was created by the Virginia Conference Connectional Ministries Office. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) It is important to note that the deadline for disaffiliation has passed. Aldersgate UMC will not be considering disaffiliation in our Town Hall meeting. At this time, there is nothing to vote or decide upon regarding Aldersgate UMC's status until more information is received after General Conference. ALDERSGATE UMC'S PLAN April 14th, 21st, & 28th: We will offer a three-part sermon series on John Wesley's "Three Simple Rules". We invite you to read the book (available on Amazon and Cokesbury ) and follow along in prayer. April 17th: Clergy pre-brief for General Conference offered by our district leadership. Pastor Randy and Pastor Jon will participate in this. April 23 – May 3, 2024: The 2024 General Conference (also still being called the “2020 General Conference”) will take place in Charlotte, NC, to further discuss and vote on plans to address the issues under debate for the past eight years. May 8th: Following General Conference, there will be a debrief for all laity and clergy. This will be held via Zoom. Information on how to participate in this will be provided to the congregation when we receive it. May 19th: We will hold a Town Hall at to discuss what is next for Aldersgate UMC following the 2024 General Conference. More information on this Town Hall meeting will be provided as it comes together. This will be open to the entire congregation. HOW DID WE GET HERE? A TIMELINE May 2016: Divisions among delegates at the 2016 General Conference were apparent in regard to church teachings on marriage and human sexuality. A plan was approved to table all legislative action on human sexuality. The Council of Bishops was empowered to form a commission to study the divisions in the denomination and to come up with a plan. 2017 – 2018: Three plans emerged from the Commission on the Way Forward . The Connectional Conference Plan recommended re-organizing the church into two separate but connected entities. The One Church Plan (endorsed by the Council of Bishops) would allow conferences, clergy, and local churches to make their own decisions on same-sex marriage. The Traditional Plan recommended keeping all of the current language in the Book of Discipline and enforcing disciplinary actions such as removing openly gay clergy from their churches. February 2019: A Special Session of the General Conference was held to vote on the plans from the Commission on the Way Forward. The Traditional Plan was passed with amendments made and voted upon at the Special Session of the General Conference. Summer 2019: Following the decision of the 2019 Special Session of the General Conference, a number of Conferences in the United States passed resolutions against the Traditional Plan . A 12-person group of centrist, traditionalist, and progressive church leaders drafted a plan for the amicable split of the United Methodist Church denomination that would provide a future for the denomination, its local churches, and its clergy. This plan addressed issues such as ownership of church property, pastoral pension plans, etc. It was to be discussed at the 2020 General Conference. January 2020: A group of 16 United Methodist bishops and church leaders offered a proposal that would allow traditionalist-minded congregations to form a new denomination ; this plan included provisions for funding and allowed local congregations who disaffiliated to keep their local church property. March 2020: The pandemic caused the 2020 General Conference to be delayed – first until 2021, then until August/September 2022, then until April 2024. March 2022: The formation of the Global Methodist Church was announced, allowing adherents of the Traditional Plan to disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church to join the Global Methodist Church. December 31, 2023: This was the last day that churches were allowed to disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church. April 23 – May 3, 2024: The 2024 General Conference (also still being called the “2020 General Conference”) will take place in Charlotte, NC, to further discuss and vote on plans to address the issues under debate for the past eight years. WHAT IS GENERAL CONFERENCE? What is General Conference and what does it do? Watch this quick overview of the General Conference from the United Methodist Communications team and find out how it serves the United Methodist Church. You can find additional resources to learn more about General Conference in this "beginner's guide" to General Conference put out by UM News . ADDITIONAL INFORMATION RESOURCES Here are some additional helpful resources to learn more about General Conference: VA UMC Guide to General Conference General Conference FAQ Document published by the Virginia Annual Conference that describes the Christmas Covenant and the Regionalization Plan that may be voted on at the 2024 General Conference: Christmas Covenant Regionalization Plan WHAT IS "DISAFFILIATION"? This article will provide additional information on what "disaffiliation" is. It is important to note that the deadline for disaffiliation has passed. Aldersgate UMC will not be considering disaffiliation in our Town Hall meeting. Disaffiliation in the UMC: What You Need to Know WATCH PANEL DISCUSSIONS TO LEARN MORE Watch a panel discussion that took place at Floris UMC in Herndon, VA, on February 6th, 2024, about preparations and legislation related to the 2024 General Conference. Disclaimer: The panelists have similar viewpoints to one another in regard to the issues they are discussing, so it is somewhat less objective than other resources. However, there is an excellent description of the history of the contentious issues that may be addressed at the 2024 General Conference. Also, there is a lovely statement by our Bishop regarding the working of the Holy Spirit in us as we work together. Pastor Adam Hamilton moderates a panel of pastors who have started new churches in areas with disaffiliating churches. There is also a discussion with a pastor from a church in Africa about the issues faced by UMC churches in African countries.