ALONG LORI'S JOURNEY

Lori was with us a few Sundays ago. She explained the purpose of her pilgrimage along The Camino Francés from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, France to Santiago de Compostela, Spain. It is 500 miles; it will take her 5 weeks to walk. You can follow Lori ALONG THE JOURNEY, her blog about the people, places, and experiences of her pilgrimage to the end of the world.

EMMAUS ROAD'S FUTURE; BEYOND 40 DAYS

Over "40 Days" we asked God to guide us; we took time to listen; we gathered to speak. What did he say? Read more.

WELCOME RYDER NELSON, BORN MAY 18!

Emmaus Road thanks God for another healthy child! We celebrate with Mark, Christina, and big sister Ella, the birth of Ryder John Bradlee Nelson, born May 18.

GROUNDWORKS MAY 29; KIDS; MEANING

This Sunday May 29 we will be Church Beyond the Building together in Belltown. When churches venture into new territory, an inevitable question arises: "What about the children!?" Last Groundworks Sunday, one of our moms, Beth, organized a task for kids, along the lines of previous efforts to create kid-friendly, adult supervised volunteer work. Recently, Beth shared with me that her daughter Quinn asked, "Mom, when am I going to get to go out and pick up trash with you and Dad again?" It dawned on Beth that what Quinn most enjoyed about Groundworks Sundays was working side by side with the adults; the event had a special energy and excitement that Quinn was able to catch. She drew this picture after going along with her parents to work along 2nd Avenue. Beth shared with me how her daughter's question resulted in an epiphany for her as a parent, about what a great opportunity this is to disciple our children, let them experience Church Beyond the Building as a normative part of their faith family, see another form of love of neighbor, and see the needs of our city up close. This Sunday, rather than organize a special activity for kids, I encourage parents to find and choose something to do with your child(ren). I acknowledge, and know from personal experience, the challenge this is for parents of toddlers, but I have taken a long view: as our children grow and Emmaus Road continues to honor this opportunity, they are shaped by what they see and hear around them. Even if all you can realistically manage is a little cleaning or straightening up inside New Horizons or around the parking lot, they benefit from the joy and enthusiasm they see among the crowd (not to mention the 11:45am pizza). Kids who are a little older can come along with parents who venture further out from Third/Cedar to clean and landscape around the 'hood.

We began devoting "fifth Sundays" to neighborhood service, foregoing worship liturgy, to serve and connect with people outside our worship crowd, hoping to lay the "groundwork" for long lasting relationships with neighbors (read more). Response has been positive. Along with our Americorps volunteer David Anema, I have the privilege of meeting neighborhood activists and ministry partners on an ongoing basis; I hear appreciation for our volunteer service on these Sundays. More importantly, individuals from Belltown have been greatly encouraged to have met several of you from the church (read more). We know God works in our lives through multiple, diverse encounters with his people; we trust he uses our service and love of neighbor - even those we do not know very well - to bless them.

10:30am Arrive as usual

10:45am groups disperse:

BRING GARDENING OR CLEANING SUPPLIES!

• Simon Senior Apartments to assist residents with deep cleaning - Kristen VanderLinden
• Street cleaning/landscaping around 2nd/Bell - David Anema
• Painting @ New Horizons - Kurt Munson
• Cleaning, sorting, maintenance @ New Horizons - Biff Gaitan and Cornell Blackwell

11:45am Pizzas emerge from oven

12:00PM Groups begin wrapping up, returning

THE WALK: NEW HORIZONS ANNUAL FUNDRAISER

Saturday June 4, 10am

This is one of New Horizons Ministries' annual fundraising events. It is a great opportunity to support the work going on among street-involved youth. In case you haven't been for a few years, the WALK now takes place in Belltown, from the ministry center north along the water.

Dr. T3K & the PREACH'R AMP UP THE BEAN MAY 20

Emmaus Road's spawn, Dr. T3k & the Preach'r, will make noise to AMP UP THE BEAN, in an effort to raise $2000 this summer to buy sound equipment for Street Bean Espresso. This will empower Street Bean to fulfill an aspect of their mission, to become a vital neighborhood gathering place and artist showcase, featuring live music regularly. Come join the effort, Friday May 20, beginning at 7PM; cheer on your Emmaus Roadheads and offer some $ to bless and invest. No charge for admission; donations invited between sets.

2ND AVE. FOOD DRIVE

This comes directly from Central Seattle News, Seattle Dept. of Neighborhoods and an Article from Seattle PI Blog

A BELLTOWN BLOCK IS HOSTING A MASSTIVE FOOD DRIVE

Belltown’s 2nd Ave is known as a street that has many nightlife options. Now, parts of 2nd Ave may be soon known for its generosity. Businesses on the 2200 block of 2nd Ave (between Bell and Blanchard) are hosting a mas- sive food drive that will send all collected items to North- west Harvest. Stop by one of the locations before May 14th and donate (see the recommended items below):

Concept One Apartments 2219 2nd Ave

Cafe Casbah 2219 2nd Ave

Belltown Barber 2219 2nd Ave

Bedlam Coffee 2231 2nd Avenue

Clever Bottle 2222 2nd Avenue

Pintxo 2207 2nd Ave

The Senior Center 2208 2nd Avenue

The Humphrey Apartments 2205 2nd Ave

Recommended items:

Infant and baby items - Baby formula, Canned milk, Infant cereal, Jars of baby food, Powdered or canned milk, and baby diapers.

General food items - Oatmeal, Whole grain pastas, Brown rice, Tomato products, Canned vegetables, Canned fruit (especially with low sugar, but not artificial sweeten- ers), Canned fish or meat, Shelf-stable milk, Beef stew, chili and similar meals with low sugar and saturated fats.