Dryden United Methodist Church

06/27/2025

The last worship service of Dryden United Methodist Church will be this Sunday, June 29th. Please come and join us!

06/27/2025

Opportunities for Goodbyes, Reminiscing and Gratitude

The last Sunday in June is here, everyone is encouraged to attend!

June 29: Pastor Robyn will facilitate a service of music as we enjoy Evangeline’s talents at the organ and piano. We will sing favorite hymns as suggested by our congregation. This will be a difficult service for all. There will be a reception following the service. Hugs and tissues will be provided.

We are excited to announce that some previous pastors have stated that they will be joining us. Wayne Butler, Alan Kinney, Roy Hansen, Dave Nichols, and Harold Wheat will be attending the final service.

06/27/2025

Third Sunday After Pentecost/Last Worship at DUMC

Dear Friends,

When my Grandfather died, I couldn’t understand all the laughter and stories shared together with the tears and the grief. I didn’t understand how sadness and joy worked alongside one another. But they do. Now in almost every memorial service I lead, I try to bring this sense of joy and laughter into the grief and sadness. I invite people to remember the stories and the love and joy shared together. It is healing. It is so very human to share these experiences and these emotions together.
This week I hope to invite all of us who are grieving the loss of Dryden UMC to come together in our shared grief and share our stories, our witness to the love and joy we share as a faith community. There will be singing, there will probably be tears, I hope there will be laughter, but I am sure there will be a profound sense of togetherness and community. I hope to see all of you together this one last time we will worship God and celebrate our shared faith in this place.

Your Sibling in Christ,
Robyn

06/19/2025

Opportunities for Goodbyes, Reminiscing and Gratitude

The final two Sundays in June will be times for recognizing individuals and the ministry of our church and its members. Please mark your calendars and share these dates with any former members of our congregation. All are welcome to join in.

This Sunday, June 22: Janice Downey will be our speaker. In the time-honored tradition of Methodist fellowship there will be a Dish-to-Pass supper at the end of the service. Please bring your favorite food item, along with a place setting and eating utensils. Beverages will be provided. During the supper we will be honoring Evangeline’s ministry of music and Karen’s ministry working in our church office.

June 29: Pastor Robyn will facilitate a service of music as we enjoy Evangeline’s talents at the organ and piano. We will sing favorite hymns as suggested by our congregation. This will be a difficult service for all. There will be a reception following the service. Hugs and tissues will be provided. We are excited to announce that some previous pastors have stated that they will be joining us. Wayne Butler, Alan Kinney, Roy Hansen, Dave Nichols, and Harold Wheat will be attending the final service.

06/19/2025

Sunday, June 22 following the service, there will be a dish-to-pass luncheon. We will celebrate our time together!

06/19/2025

Second Sunday After Pentecost

Dear Friends,

Janice Downey is sharing her witness with you this Sunday, with the assistance of Susan Spear and Jennifer Dick. After worship there will be a dish to pass in honor of Evangeline and Karen. I cannot tell you how much these two women of faith have blessed my ministry here in Dryden.
I hope you will plan to stay and share how much their ministries have meant in your own journeys of faith.

Your Sibling in Christ,
Robyn

06/13/2025

Trinity Sunday/Dads & Grads/Celebration of Hays Family

Dear Friends,

This week we have a lot to celebrate. It’s Father’s Day, Trinity Sunday, and
Graduation Sunday. We are also giving our youngest members their very own Bibles.
This Sunday we will also have special music with Kate Cushing and Jo Hays. It will also
be my last sermon at Dryden.
Almost four years ago I preached my first sermon at Dryden. It was titled, “What
Has Been Handed On.” I was using the communion Scripture from 1 Corinthians 11
where Paul repeats the words of institution from the last super that had been handed on
to him as an apostle.
I used this idea of our faith being handed on or handed down as a springboard to
introduce myself to you as I shared how my faith had been handed down to me from my
family. Now as we prepare to be sent out to new places of worship, what will we take
with us, and what will we be handing on/handing down to the next generation?
I do know that we have handed on a portion of our faith to Diana, Patrick, and
Bella. Not only will they be receiving their very own Bibles from us on Sunday, but they
have also learned that Church is a good and safe place to be, filled with people who
care about them. This is no small achievement. Anytime we show that the church, this
fellowship of believers in Jesus, is a loving and safe place, we are handing on our faith
in the goodness of God. We are choosing love over fear. We are choosing light over
darkness.
I hope to see you in church this week as we once again show that we choose
light and life over fear and darkness.

Your Sibling in Christ,
Robyn

06/06/2025

Opportunities for Goodbyes, Reminiscing and Gratitude

The final three Sundays in June will be times for recognizing individuals and the ministry of our church and its members. Please mark your calendars and share these dates with any former members of our congregation. All are welcome to join in.

June 15: Pastor Robyn will be delivering her final sermon to our church. There will be a coffee hour to honor Robyn’s ministry and to say goodbye to the Hays family. In addition, we will also be honoring our Grads and Dads.

June 22: Janice Downey will be our speaker. In the time-honored tradition of Methodist fellowship there will be a Dish-to-Pass supper at the end of the service. Please bring your favorite food item, along with a place setting and eating utensils. Beverages will be provided. During the supper we will be honoring Evangeline’s ministry of music and Karen’s ministry working in our church office.

June 29: Pastor Robyn will facilitate a service of music as we enjoy Evangeline’s talents at the organ and piano. We will sing favorite hymns as suggested by our congregation. This will be a difficult service for all. There will be a reception following the service. Hugs and tissues will be provided. There will be several Pasters that have served DUMC previously in attendance!

06/06/2025

PLEASE BE AWARE

They have started demolition next door!

Until they have the site cleared there is NO PARKING in the lot. You will have to park on the street.

06/06/2025

Pentecost Sunday

Dear Friends,
Yeah! This Sunday is Pentecost! It’s time for a party with the Holy Spirit. Lorraine Ballmer reminded us all to wear red this Sunday. Hopefully we will have our flame banners hanging down from the fans as the ‘winds’ of the Holy Spirit pass through our sanctuary. Maybe we will have some red balloons to help tell the story during the children’s time.
Anyway, this Sunday is when we celebrate the Holy Spirit activating the disciples in the Upper Room to a more active form of discipleship. The disciples went from praying behind locked doors to going out into the community to spread the word of Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection. They officially became the Apostles – those sent out by God to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.
We, too, are being sent out. Can we see ourselves also as apostles, those sent out to share the Good News od Jesus Christ? Can we dare to claim the title of apostle? Our Romans text reminds us that we can claim a much greater title, ‘children of God.’ Recently I’ve heard a commercial for religious texts to share with your children on the TV and it reminded me of the contemporary Christian song, “Hello, My Name Is” by Matthew West. One of the lines says, “Hello, my name is child of the one true king.” So, instead of being told that I am a Wizard and that I am enrolled at Hogwarts, we get to claim we are Princes and Princesses, children of the one true King. We are the beloved children of God, sent out to share the Good News of Jesus Christ on this Holy Pentecost. I’m looking forward to seeing red on Sunday!

Your Sibling in Christ,
Robyn

05/30/2025

05/30/2025

Opportunities for Goodbyes, Reminiscing and Gratitude

The final three Sundays in June will be times for recognizing individuals and the ministry of our church and its members. Please mark your calendars and share these dates with any former members of our congregation. All are welcome to join in.

June 15: Pastor Robyn will be delivering her final sermon to our church. There will be a coffee hour to honor Robyn’s ministry and to say goodbye to the Hays family. In addition, we will also be honoring our Grads and Dads.

June 22: Janice Downey will be our speaker. In the time-honored tradition of Methodist fellowship there will be a Dish-to-Pass supper at the end of the service. Please bring your favorite food item, along with a place setting and eating utensils. Beverages will be provided. During the supper we will be honoring Evangeline’s ministry of music and Karen’s ministry working in our church office.

June 29: Pastor Robyn will facilitate a service of music as we enjoy Evangeline’s talents at the organ and piano. We will sing favorite hymns as suggested by our congregation. This will be a difficult service for all. There will be a reception following the service. Hugs and tissues will be provided.