Announcements for the week of June 1, 2025

by | May 30, 2025 | Sunday Announcements | 0 comments

QUICK LINKS

  • Sunday Morning Worship – Sundays @ 10:30am; Join Zoom Webinar here
  • Off-Topic Scripture Circle – Mondays @ 10am (NO meeting 05/26); Join Zoom Meeting here
  • Morning Café and Discussion – Tuesdays @ 10am Join Zoom Meeting here
  • Scripture Reader sign up – Click here
  • Usher sign up – Click here (needed 06/01, 06/08 & 06/15)
  • Flowers sign up – Click here
  • Coffee Hour Host sign up – Click here (needed 06/08 & 06/15)
  • Communion Server sign up –Click here (needed 06/01)
  • Community Kitchen sign up – Click here
  • Donate to First United Online – Click here
  • First United YouTube Channel (sermons & more) – Click here
  • First United Vimeo Channel (full worship services) – Click here

DON’T FORGET

First Sunday Food Drive

The Board of Outreach invites you to offer food donations on the first Sunday of each month. 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 on Sunday, June 1st. As always, all of the collected food and cleaning/hygiene items will go to Pathways (formerly MCUM), and pet food will go to Area 10 Agency on Aging. Click here to for a list of ongoing needs; they are currently most in need of cereal, helper meals, and Mac & Cheese. Donations are delivered each month. Thank you for your donations to meet ongoing community needs!

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, June 6th, 5:30pm-7:30pm. We’ll enjoy a time of informal, unprogrammed fun and fellowship in Fellowship Hall. As the name implies, pizza, drinks, and dessert will be provided. If you’re planning to attend, please let Pastor Jessica know by Thursday, June 5th so she can be sure to have enough food for all and account for any dietary needs.

NEW/UPDATED THIS WEEK

Happy Birthday!

Please remember in your prayers and give thanks for Sara Frommer who will be celebrating her birthday on June 6. We are blessed to have you in our lives!

First United’s Feminist 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 noon, 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. We have book club openings once again.  Feminist women of all ages are invited to join us.

The selection for Sunday, June 8th is “The Berry Pickers” by Amanda Peters.  A debut novel about love, race, brutality, and the balm of forgiveness.  A four-year-old indigenous girl goes missing from the blueberry fields of Maine, sparking a mystery that will haunt the survivors, unravel a family, and remain unsolved for nearly fifty years. In the 1960s a Mi’kmaq family from Nova Scotia arrives in Maine to pick blueberries for the summer. Weeks later, four-year-old Ruthie, the family’s youngest child, vanishes. She is last seen by her six-year-old brother, Joe, sitting on a favorite rock at the edge of a berry field. Joe will remain distraught by his sister’s disappearance for years to come.   While in Maine, a young girl named Norma grows up as the only child of an affluent family. Her father is emotionally distant, her mother frustratingly overprotective. Norma is often troubled by recurring dreams and visions that seem more like memories than imagination. As she grows older, Norma slowly comes to realize there is something her parents aren’t telling her. Unwilling to abandon her intuition, she will spend decades trying to uncover this family secret. A national bestseller and winner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction. 

Additionally, 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@iu.edu.

UPCOMING WORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Sunday Morning Hybrid Worship

Join us for worship each Sunday morning at 10:30am. This first Sunday of the month, we will gather at God’s welcome table and celebrate communion together. Note: Communion elements (bread and wine/juice) will be served in the pews for those gathering in the sanctuary; online worshipers are encouraged to prepare a “nibble” and a “sip” prior to the start of the service.  Craig Dalrymple will serve those who gather in person; sign up here to help.

This Sunday’s service will feature Rev. Jessica Petersen-Mutai in the pulpit; she will also offer a special message for the young and young at heart. Craig Dalrymple will present the day’s scripture and serve as our congregational lead. Mitchell Farmer will highlight some of the many ways we are invited to engage in the life of the church and our wider community. Guest Pianist Hyeyeon Ahn will lead us in song, and Eden Yoder will offer special music. Dave Meyer and Du Huynh will offer a warm welcome to those who will gather in the sanctuary; click 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 for a time of fellowship and refreshment hosted by Ted Wininger.

Join the Zoom Webinar by clicking here

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

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

Donate online by clicking here

Invitation to Offer Summer Music

The Vocal and Bell Choirs are on a break from rehearsing regularly until August. This hiatus offers a wonderful opportunity for members and friends of First United to share your creative gifts with our congregation. There are a good number of possibilities still available for the coming months.Please reach out to Michael Shell (shellmi@iu.edu) with the subject SUMMER MUSIC if you are interested!

Sunday Morning Tech Team Volunteers Needed

Do you like doing things behind the scenes and/or pushing buttons? If so, please join our Sunday morning volunteer tech team. Every week, it takes two people to run the sound, camera, and computer equipment; in many cases, having three people would be very helpful. This all-volunteer team ensures not only that people in the Sanctuary can hear what is being spoken or sung in the service, but it also ensures that members, friends, and guests have a way to experience the service virtually via Zoom if they cannot attend in person. Recently, the team has been consistently short-handed; therefore, we need people willing to be trained on our audio-visual system and help run the equipment during Sunday worship on a regular basis. If you would like more information on joining the tech team, please reach out to Kyle Hetrick or Pastor Jessica.

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:

  • Mary Peckham
  • Jean-Paul & Kathy Etienne
  • Rebecca Keith & Jim True
  • Lisa Young and family (friends of Sara Ivey Lucas)
  • Lisa Kwong
  • Sara Cole
  • Jen Lane
  • Rachel Workman
  • Sam Troxal

Special Offerings – Abundant Generosity!

Thanks to your abundant generosity, we raised $405 for One Great Hour of Sharing through the April 13th special offering. In addition, $325 was raised for Pathways during the May 4th ecumenical concert offered by First United, First Christian, First Presbyterian, and St. Thomas Lutheran Churches. Thank you for your tremendous support!

Community Immigrant Support

Pastor Jessica has been actively partnering with community members and organizations to broaden our congregation’s support of our immigrant neighbors. If you are interested in getting involved with this important work, please contact her to learn about efforts currently underway and how to contribute.

Task of the Month for Earth Care

In early February, Rebecca Keith and Pastor Jessica participated in the Stewards of Creation workshop along with laity and clergy from over 20 different faith communities.  We learned some easy ways faith communities in our town can get involved in caring for creation. All within our congregation are encouraged to participate in the task of the month. Rebecca Keith will be making periodic announcements and encouraging participation at coffee hour. Check out this Task of the Month website (offered by Earth Care Indiana) to learn about the tasks that are scheduled. Even small things can make a difference.

CLT Care Packages—Request for Supplies

Throughout the year, children in CLT (Children’s Learning Time) put together care packages for people experiencing homelessness in our community (next scheduled time is Sunday, June 29th). They take the care packages with them to keep in their car and deliver, with the help of their families, to people they encounter. You are invited to donate items needed for this project by bring them to Room 2 on Sunday mornings or the church office during office hours. Items needed include: wet wipes, disinfection wipes, toothpaste, deodorant, lotion, and sunscreen. Thank you!

People’s Market

First United houses the People’s Cooperative Market in Fellowship Hall on Saturdays.The market is open every Saturday, 10am-1pm, to pick up fresh, locally-grown produce. They also continue to pack and deliver CSA every Saturday while offering a more limited schedule for fuller market days. They will host a Rummage Sale on the second Saturday of each month. Email (peoplesmarketmanager@gmail.com) to learn more about getting a booth or to volunteer with the market.

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 

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.

Tuesday Morning Café and Discussion

Join us in Roger Williams Hall or via Zoom (click here) 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 24-session study on “Beginnings of Judaism” during which Dr. Isaiah M. Gafni guides us in an exploration of the roots of Judaism, reaching back to the Hebrew Bible. How did Judaism develop from its biblical roots to the highly developed system we know today? What has changed, and what has remained constant? Join us in asking the questions and considering present day connections. Learn more here. Previous participation and perfect attendance are not required.

Children’s Learning Time

Each Sunday morning, children in kindergarten and up will begin in the Sanctuary with their families and proceed to Room 2 with their adult leads for Children’s Learning Time (CLT) following Children’s Time. Many thanks to Jessica McIntosh and Emily Mathes for leading CLT this Sunday.

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 Megan Merrick, Pastor Jessica, or any member of the Board of Education.

Nursery Care

Our youngest children are welcome to spend time from 10-11:45am playing in the nursery or on the playground, weather permitting. Brishna Arman and Noel Koontz 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 Jessica McIntosh if you are interested and with any questions.

CONGREGATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS

Congregational Meeting

Our 2025 Congregational Meeting will be held on Sunday, June 8th after worship. This meeting will include the presentation of proposed amendments to the church bylaws including: 1) Revisions to quorum requirements and 2) Updates to the structure and composition of boards and committees. Further discussion will also take place regarding replacement of Robert’s Rules of Order with a consensus-based decision-making framework. Additionally, the congregation will be asked to consider a proposal regarding First United becoming an Accessible to All congregation (an official designation within the United Church of Christ). This meeting will also include discussion regarding the election of officers and board members anticipating a positive vote on the board structure proposal. Finally, the meeting will include reports from church leadership regarding activities of the past year. All members are strongly encouraged to attend.

Accessible to All

If you were not able to make one of the recent information sessions regarding our congregation’s efforts to become Accessible to All (A2A), you are invited to watch a recording of one of those sessions here (~45 minutes). Discover what it means to be truly accessible, beyond ramps and signage, and how we can invite and include people with all types of disabilities. Many thanks to our A2A Team for offering these meaningful sessions and their leadership as we work together to widen our welcome!

Announcements Deadline

If you have information to include in our weekly announcements email, please send your item to Lisa Stanger by noon on the Monday before.

2025 Offering Envelopes and Direct Deposit

We are using leftover offering envelope boxes for 2025. This year, your number box will not be the same; please contact Lisa Stanger if you would like envelopes! 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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