Treasure Hunting: Reflection from the Rev. Jake Joseph

​Ahoy there , Plymouth! 

Some of my favorite memories of growing-up in Fort Collins are connected with the “sport” of garage sale exploring or “treasure hunting” as my mom would call it. Early Saturday mornings we would load into the family Jeep and comb the pages of the Coloradoan for the best and most promising garage sale advertisements. From this we would derive an itinerary and map of adventures: A Fort Collins Treasure Map! For my family (a family of extreme extroverts), the best part of those mornings had more to do with the people we would meet and the conversations we would have than any particular item we would find. That said, I did end-up with an extensive 8-Track Tape collection at one point as a result of these early morning expeditions. 
 
This childhood lesson about garage sales functioning both as community-building events and as actual selling/ fundraising purposes extends to Plymouth’s upcoming All Church Garage Sale on Saturday, August 18th from 8:00 Am until 2:00 PM! 
 
It was brainchild of the Progressive Evangelism Committee of Leadership Council as a way to offer a welcome to our neighbors at CSU (remembering that graduate students, post-docs, and new professors are of every age and stage in life) and others looking for household items! As the plan developed, our Plymouth Habitat for Humanity Ministry Team partnered to take the lead as a fundraiser for the local Harmony Cottages build site. Like my birthday, there is a Thrivent Financial Match to whatever we raise at the garage sale. I LOVE Plymouth partnerships that engage multiple parts of our mission like this! It shows how this congregation is able to multi-task in mission. In this case, we will raise money for an important local cause while also meeting and greeting our neighbors! 
 
It meets all three parts of our mission: inviting people to our church and the September Taste of Plymouth event, transforming the affordable housing in Fort Collins and our members’ evangelism, and sending people with hospitality and social justice. 
 
All hands on deck! We still need volunteers to help on Saturday 8/18 with set-up, clean-up, hospitality/ CSU welcome, and as cashiers! We likewise still need volunteers on Wednesday 8/15 and Thursday 8/16 from Noon to 6 PM and all day on Friday 8/17 for collection and sorting of donations. Finally, we need stuff! Bring your donations* next Wednesday 8/15 and Thursday 8/16 afternoons and ALL DAY Friday 8/17 to the Fellowship Hall! 
 
*We only will not accept TV’s with tubes, cribs, car seats, large appliances, metal desks, and mattresses. Otherwise, please help support welcoming our neighbors at CSU while also building homes for our neighbors working with Habitat for Humanity for affordable home ownership. 
 
With the local paper as a treasure map, the family Jeep as our trusty ship, mom as the captain, my sister as a crew, and many an island of garage sale surprises from the halls of Parkwood to the shores of Warren… a childhood of "treasure hunting" in Fort Collins taught me the importance of imagination, community, and the value of used and reusable things. 
 
On Saturday the 18th of August, Plymouth will be where “x marks the spot” for the most valuable treasure of all—a faith community that reaches out in love and in hope to those around us! This is undoubtably the greatest bounty of all. Let’s share this treasure of Plymouth with everyone. Aye Aye! 

Happy Treasure Hunting, 
The Rev. Jake Miles Joseph (or just Jake) 

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Author

The Rev. Jake Miles Joseph ("just Jake"), Associate Minister, came to Plymouth in 2014 having served in the national setting of the UCC on the board of Justice & Witness Ministries, the Coalition for LGBT Concerns, and the Chairperson of the Council for Youth and Young Adult Ministries (CYYAM). Jake has a passion for ecumenical work and has worked in a wide variety of churches and traditions. Read more about him on our staff page.