Announcements for the week of July 28, 2024

by | Jul 26, 2024 | Sunday Announcements | 0 comments

QUICK LINKS

  • Sunday Morning Worship – Sundays @ 10:30am; Join Zoom Webinar here
  • Off-Topic Scripture Circle – Mondays @ 10am; Join Zoom Meeting here
  • Morning Café and Discussion – Tuesdays @ 10am;Join Zoom Meeting here
  • Scripture Reader sign up – Click here (needed 08/11)
  • Usher sign up – Click here (needed 07/28, 08/04, & 08/11)
  • Flowers sign up – Click here
  • Coffee Hour Host sign up – Click here (needed 08/04 & 08/11)
  • Communion Server sign up –Click here (needed 08/04)
  • Community Kitchen sign up – Click here (needed 08/15)
  • Online Commitment/Pledge Card – Click here
  • Donate to First United Online – Click here
  • First United Vimeo Channel – Click here

DON’T FORGET

Pizza & Play

Members and friends of First United of all ages and family configurations (and your friends and family) are encouraged to gather for Pizza & Play on Friday, August 2nd, 5:30pm-7:30pm. We’ll enjoy a time of informal, unprogrammed fun and fellowship in Fellowship Hall and surrounding areas, both inside and out (weather permitting). As the name implies, pizza, drinks, and dessert will be provided, so please let Molly Koontz or Pastor Jessica know by 5pm Wednesday, July 31st if you’re planning to attend.

UCC IKC Annual Gathering 2024

As we celebrate a significant milestone in our collective journey, it is with great joy and anticipation that you are invited to join with our wider UCC family for the IKC Annual Gathering including the celebrating of the 60th anniversary of the Indiana Kentucky Conference. This momentous occasion is not just a commemoration of our past, but a celebration of the enduring spirit of loving and serving like Jesus that has guided us through six decades of service, fellowship, and faith. This year’s gathering will be held August 23rd-24th at St. Mark’s United Church of Christ (222 E Spring St, New Albany, IN 47150). More information and registration materials (deadline for meals and hotels, August 1st) are available here. Contact Pastor Jessica if you are interested in attending as a delegate from First United.

NEW/UPDATED THIS WEEK

Happy Birthday!

Please remember in your prayers and give thanks for those who will be celebrating their birthdays in the week ahead: Ivy Yoder (July 28), Cindy Stone (August 1), Bill Perkins (August 2), and Liam Koontz (August 3). We are blessed to have you in our lives!

Happy 101st Birthday to Lora Johnson

Our oldest longtime member Lora Johnson will turn 101 on August 5th. If you would like to send Lora birthday wishes, her address is 2320 Covenanter Drive, Bloomington, IN 47401.

Guest Worship Leadership

All are encouraged to gather for worship on Sunday, August 4th, as Rev. Rebecca Hoke-McCall offers her extraordinary worship leadership while Pastor Jessica is on vacation. As is our custom on the first Sunday of the month, the service will include the celebration of communion.

Children’s Learning Time Resumes Aug 4th

Children’s Learning Time will be on break for one final Sunday and will resume next Sunday, August 4th. From that time forward, children in kindergarten and up will begin in the Sanctuary with their families each Sunday morning and then proceed to Room 2 with their adult leads for Children’s Learning Time (CLT).

Due to relocations, we have lost two of our regular CLT leaders. You are invited to consider whether you might be able to join our teaching rotation to enrich the program for the kids and gain so much from the experience yourself! Lesson materials and supplies are provided, and we have seasoned leaders to help get newer volunteers acclimated. If you are interested or have questions, please reach out to Molly Koontz, Pastor Jessica, or any member of the Board of Education.

Feminist Women’s Book Club

Our feminist women’s book club meets after worship on the second Sunday of the month in Roger Williams Hall and via Zoom. We are women who have a lively discussion starting at 12noon, for about an hour. We read recent fiction “by women, for women or about women.” Members are equally split among women from our church and the community. Feminist women of all ages are invited to join us. Our August 11th book selection is “Our Missing Hearts” by Celeste Ng.Twelve-year-old Bird Gardner lives a quiet existence with his loving father, a former linguist who now shelves books in a university library. His mother, Margaret, a Chinese American poet, left without a trace when he was nine years old. He doesn’t know what happened to her—only that her books have been banned—and he resents that she cared more about her work than about him. His journey will take him back to the many folktales poured into his head as a child, through the ranks of an underground network of heroic librarians, and finally to New York City, where he will learn the truth about what happened to his mother and what the future holds for them both. Our Missing Hearts is about the lessons and legacies we pass on to our children and the power of art to create change. Check out our book club’s Pinterest listing: http://pinterest.com/reginammoore/feminist-book-club/. For Zoom information or more information about the book club contact facilitator Cindy Stone, stonec@indiana.edu.

Invitation to Offer Special Music

While our Vocal and Bell Choirs will soon return from their summer break, members and friends of First United are always invited to share your creative gifts with our congregation. Please reach out to Eric Meincke (ericdmeincke@gmail.com) if you are interested in providing special music during worship on an upcoming Sunday.

People’s Market

First United houses the People’s Cooperative Market in our Fellowship Hall regularly each Saturday, 9:00am-1:00pm. The People’s Market is an intersectional anti-racism farmers market and artisan vendor space that focuses on food justice work. All are welcome to attend the Saturday markets and/or order from their online CSA for pickup or delivery; food is always made available to anyone in need. You are also encouraged to consider volunteering with People’s Market; if interested, contact them directly at peoplesmarketmanager@gmail.com.

Additionally, we joins People’s Market in celebrating 300 local Project DASH deliveries as part of Project DASH’s National 100 Million Meal Delivered Milestone. Project DASH is DoorDash’s initiative to empower food banks, food pantries, and other social impact organizations to deliver charitable food to people experiencing food insecurity. Learn more about the impact of this program here.

Off-Topic Scripture Circle

You are invited to join members and friends of First United via Zoom (click here) each Monday morning at 10am to check in and explore the week’s lectionary scripture readings in a casual setting where you will never be asked to leave your brain or your heart at the door. Note: we will not meet on Monday, August 5th as Pastor Jessica will still be on vacation.

UPCOMING WORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Sunday Morning Hybrid Worship

Join us for worship each Sunday morning at 10:30am. During this Sunday’s service, Rev. Jessica Petersen-Mutai will invite us to engage with unique affirmations and rest practices as each participant receives a card from “The Nap Ministry’s Rest Deck” written by Tricia Hersey as we conclude our season focusing on rest. Sara Cole will present the day’s scripture and serve as our congregational lead. Additionally, Mitchell Farmer will share some of the many ways we are invited to engage in the life of the church and our wider community. Emily Mathes and Rebecca Keith will lead us in song, and Jean-Paul Etienne will join with Rebecca to offer special music. Dave Meyer and Keith Gerber will offer a warm welcome to all those who will gather in the sanctuary; sign up here to help.And, Kyle Hetrick and Jim True will welcome all who join via Zoom as they ensure the audio/visual pieces run as smoothly as possible. Finally, be sure to join us in Fellowship Hall after worship for a time of fellowship and refreshment hosted by Dave Meyer and Cindy Neidhart.

Join the Zoom Webinar by clicking here

Dial-in number: (312) 626-6799; Webinar ID: 828 3681 0281

The service will be posted on Sunday evening on First United’s Vimeo channel (where you can access all of our previous worship services).

Donate online by clicking here

COMMUNITY CARE

Keeping Up with Our Congregation

One of the gifts of being part of a community of faith is that we don’t face the ups and downs and middles of life alone. We invite you to share what is going on in your lives by contacting Lisa Stanger and/or Pastor Jessica so we can appropriately share information (with your permission) with our wider community of care that we might offer our support whatever you may be facing.

You are encouraged to offer your prayers and actions of support for:

  • Anne Wright (Mary Peckham’s sister)
  • Sara Cole
  • Sam Troxal
  • Danielle Sheets Ivey (Sara Ivey Lucas’s sister-in-law)
  • Lisa Kwong
  • Christopher Meincke (Eric’s brother)
  • Jeanne and Norm Overly

First Sunday Food Drive

The Board of Outreach invites you to offer food donations on the first Sunday of each month. On Sunday, August 4th, we encourage you to bring donations of non-perishable food items for our community members in need placing them on the marked table in the narthex. As always, all of the collected food and cleaning/hygiene items will go to Monroe County United Ministries (MCUM), and pet food will go to Area 10 Agency on Aging. Click here to for a list of MCUM’s ongoing needs; note their special request for Carrots, Potatoes, Tomatoes and tomato sauce, Ramen, Baking mix, Crackers, Laundry soap, Shampoo, Conditioner, and Feminine hygiene products.Thank you for your donations to meet ongoing community needs.

A Heads-Up regarding Head Start

We have been grateful to support the impactful work of Head Start over the past several months providing space for two classrooms, an office, and storage following their displacement caused by water damage at another site. And, we will be sad to see them go as they return to their original site at the start of the new school year. Head Start will hold their final classes in First United’s building today, Friday, July 26th, and they will move out from the building completely by August 9th. We wish them all the best with their move and look forward to supporting their work in other ways into the future.

Thriving Connections Ally Opportunity

Have you ever wondered how people break the cycle of poverty? Are you interested in forming meaningful relationships with people working their way out of poverty with support from Thriving Connections staff and experienced volunteers? Have you ever wanted to be part of a diverse group, working to find community solutions, but weren’t sure where to begin? If you answered “yes” to any or all of these questions, then consider becoming a Thriving Connections Ally.

Thriving Connections, an initiative of the South Central Community Action Program (SCCAP), is a multi-generational community of diverse people cultivating intentional relationships across economic class. The TC community is a safe harbor where the focus is on achieving financial, emotional, mental, physical, social, and spiritual growth.

As a Thriving Connections Ally, you will provide friendship, encouragement, and advocacy to motivated participants working towards their personal goals. You and your group, called a Crew, consisting of one person or family working their way out of poverty, called a Captain, and at least two other Allies, will work together to accomplish specific goals set by the Captain in order to increase his or her resources. As you walk alongside your Captain, you will provide valuable knowledge and insight relating to a variety of life circumstances, whether it is financial or educational input, or social connections and networking. You will use your own knowledge and life experiences to help make a difference in the lives of Captains. You will also learn to see poverty in a different light, dispelling stereotypes about people who live in poverty.

If you are interested in making a direct difference in the life of a family and in our community, please consider attending an information session via Zoom to learn more about becoming a TC Ally at 1pm on Sunday, July 28th. RSVP here.

The Joy of Hosting

Our Member Relations Committee continues to offer support to weekly coffee hour hosts and encourage everyone to sign up to host—it’s easy, fun, and a great way to serve your church family with a one-time commitment. Sign up as buddies or families, invite someone you’ve been wanting to get to know, use the occasion to showcase a family recipe or try out a new one. Sign up to host by clicking here.

EDUCATIONAL OFFERINGS 

Tuesday Morning Café and Discussion

Join us in person or online Tuesdays at 10am-11:30am as we gather for a time of informal conversation followed by thought-provoking theological study and discussion. We are currently in the midst of a 24-sesson study: “The History and Archeology of the Bible” with Dr. Jean-Pierre Isbouts. Previous participation and perfect attendance are not required. Those interested and able are welcome to gather in Roger Williams Hall; those choosing to join online via Zoom can do so here.

Nursery Care

Our youngest children are welcome to spend time from 10am-11:45am playing in the nursery or on the playground, weather permitting. Lena Stosberg and Jessica McIntosh will ensure our little ones are safe and engaged in fun activities during worship this Sunday. We are always looking for additional volunteer assistants to help in the nursery occasionally. Contact Molly Koontz if you are interested and with any questions.

CONGREGATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS

2024 Offering Envelopes and Direct Deposit

We are using leftover 2023 offering envelope boxes for 2024. Envelope boxes are available on a table outside of the Sanctuary entrance closest to the chancel. Whether you’ve used them before or this is your first time, you are welcome to pick up a box! Alternatively, if you would like to give to the church through direct deposit, please contact Lisa in the office to make sure she knows you would like to give in this convenient way and has your updated information.

Contact Information

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