Mark Calhoun

The Calhoun's are preparing for a move....

Last Wednesday, Julie and I stepped onto a plane in Wichita and stepped off the plane in Missoula, Montana. The primary purpose of the outing was for an "introductory" meeting with the staff parish ministry team of a congregation that had been discerned for us by the Bishop and cabinet of the Yellowstone Conference of the United Methodist Church. We were greeted by District Superintendent , Rev. Su DeBree, who then drove us about an hour north of Missoula to Polson, Montana. While a good portion of the drive was in the dark, we were glad to be greeted by a few snow flurries as we pulled into town. Our hosts for the two-day excursion were Bob (staff parish chair) and Diane Byers, who invited us to stay at there home on the lake. With the anxiety of the next day's meeting on my mind, and  curious thoughts of the town and the scenery consuming my thoughts, I had a hard time sleeping. After surviving the night, we awoke to the illumination of the sun,to the lake, to an island, and to the mountains that filled the window in our room. The sight was amazing.

Prior to our afternoon meeting, we were able to tour the town, the church, the schools, and some of the neighborhoods. Our morning ended with lunch at a local cafe located in the downtown Polson area, more touring and eventually our introductory meeting at the church in the afternoon. After a few hours of getting to know one another, and a brief time of deliberation, the church folks along with the DS, came to the conclusion that they would indeed like to have me as their new pastor and our family as part of their congregation. The reality of the news was overwhelming, but Julie and I were instantly excited about what the future holds for our family in this incredible town.

Polson, a town of over 4,000 people, is located on the Flathead Indian Reservation in the Northwest corner of Montana. The town sits on the southern edge of Flathead Lake and is surrounded by mountains. Our new church is First United Methodist Church of Polson.   The church has about 118 members with an average worship attendance of 54. Next year, Polson UMC will celebrate its 100th anniversary. The church moved into a portion of its current building in 1993 and into the sanctuary in 1997. We are extremely excited about the opportunities that await us in Polson, and we are especially excited about the chance to move back to our home region of the country. Please keep our family and the Polson church in your prayers as we both enter into a time of transition. We plan to arrive in Polson around the middle of June.

Here are a few pictures from our trip... Should you ever find yourself in this part of Montana, be sure to stop in and see us... and while you are there, be sure to stop in at one of the greatest stores in the valley...

We are the Body...

Well... Zach and I are back home, fresh off of the 2006 Middle School Retreat at Camp Horizon. It's hard to believe that we have a middle schooler in our house. Early on when Julie and I first started going to East Heights, about 15 years ago, we started by helping out as Middle School sponsors and faithful participants in the annual fall retreats. It's been about 10 years since I've been on a MS retreat, and I have to say... it was awesome!!! Our theme this year was..'We are the body.' This time around we spent the weekend focusing on four elements...Head, Hands, Feet, and Heart. Throughout the weekend Paige opened us up to several scriptures that helped us explore how we might grow in our faith and live our lives as participants in the world in which we live. We started each day with TAG time (time alone with God) and then participated in a wide variety of big group and small group activities that helped us to deepen our understanding of God and strengthen our relationships with each other. Throughout the weekend we had lots of free time to explore the camp (the river and the old cement factory) and play great games like capture the flag, which ended, this year, in a draw ( many of us on both team were so close that we could smell victory, but never actually put our hands on the blasted flags) ....there's nothing quite like CTF under the stars, in the crisp fall air. After a long night of sleep (about 5 or 6 hours) we started our day out with biscuits and gravy and then spent a little time developing our hearts for God within our small groups and as a big group. Before heading home we had about an hour of free time to spend hiking around the camp property, enjoying the fresh air. I have to say that I had an awesome time with Paige, Scott, and 25 incredible middle schoolers... Click here for a few photos....