Upcoming Worship Events From our Pastor

Transcription

1 St. John United Church of Christ 308 North Evergreen Avenue Arlington Heights, Illinois (847) We are a family of Christians raising children in Christian faith. Upcoming Worship Events From our Pastor September 2016 Sponsored by Pam & Craig Mallar September 4 Communion Worship God Knows 9:30 a.m. September 11 Rally Day-Service in North School Park The Searching God September 18 New Members Joining Belief Worship 9:30 a.m. September 25 Stewardship Sunday Giving Back Worship 9:30 a.m. September often becomes a month of welcome in the church. We welcome families and friends back from summers of vacations and traveling. We welcome new visitors as the beginning of the school year and fall is often the time when families and individuals are looking for a church community. And, we once again welcome God into our midst as we transition into a new church calendar year. When Blake and I moved into our new house six months ago, we bought a new welcome mat. It s a pretty simple welcome mat, with the word WELCOME on it. Yesterday I noticed that the word WELCOME was faded and hard to read. I shouldn t be too surprised since we had a lot of visitors this summer, and it seems like the foot traffic on that mat has been pretty high. But now we have to decide whether to replace the mat or to assume and hope that future visitors know they re welcome, whether the mat says it or not! It s my hope that St. John UCC will continue

2 to be a place that not only actively welcomes all into our community, but also that those who enter St. John will know that they re welcomed by our atmosphere in worship, in our community gatherings like coffee hour after worship, and in the way we care for and support one another. Churches can place signs of welcome all over their building, in the bulletin, and in as many places as they can find, but most people sense whether they are being welcomed into a faith community by how the community worships, what they hear in sermons, how a community shows love to its members and those in need, and how we have fun together. Being truly welcomed into a faith community requires much more than a mat with the word welcome on it. We have so much to look forward to this September as a faith community, and I believe that all that s happening at St. John this month will continue to show that we want to open our doors to all so they can join us in worshiping God. Just so you don t forget, here are some of the exciting things going on in September at St. John: Communion Sunday (Sept. 4), our monthly celebration of God s presence and work through Jesus Christ, Rally Day (Sept. 11), where we celebrate the beginning of the Sunday School year and worship in North School Park and fun for all, new members joining (Sept. 18), when we celebrate the growth of our community and God working amongst us, and Stewardship Sunday (Sept. 25), where we celebrate God s call to support the church and thank the congregation for its commitment. Let s thank ahead of time for what will be a wonderful month of welcome at St. John UCC. Every Blessing, Pastor Michael WELCOME! WELCOME! WELCOME! WELCOME!

3 Joys and Concerns Thank you to Grace Hogaboom for filling the pews with pencils. Thank you to Marion Rayner, Pam Mallar and Mary Santi for working in the office while Amanda was on vacation last month. Thank you to Gabby Slonke for leading Sunday School during the summer. Congratulations to Gloria Vogel for winning the Luther Village contest to name the swans that had their babies there. Mom and Dad have been named Ethel and Fred. The babies are Mertz, Ricardo, Babalu, Ricky Junior and Lucy. John Franz asks for prayers for his 36 year-old niece, Erika, who is having open heart surgery. John Franz asks for prayers for his sister-in-law, Sharon, who needs surgery and her husband who has been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Please keep Gail Tiedel and family in your prayers while they mourn the passing of her aunt. Congratulations to Tom & Jen Riley on the birth of their daughter, Emma Mae on July 6. Thank you to Linda Forey for the donation of toys to the nursery. Thank you to Olivia Hanssen for helping clean the Sunday School rooms this summer.

4 Book St. John Club Book Club The St. John Book Club will meet September 19 at 2:00 p.m. We will discuss State of Wonder, by Ann Patchett. Sunday Attendance June 26: 92 July 24: 105 July 3: 97 July 31: 94 July 10: 65 August 7: 68 July 17: 120 August 14: 81 Tuesday morning Bible Study resumes Tuesday, September 6, 10:00 a.m. Music Director Search By Matt Temple The music committee has been hard at work this summer searching for a new music director. Beginning shortly after Stephanie announced her resignation, the committee called several special meetings to organize the search process. First, we had a brainstorming session at which we articulated our vision for the future of music ministry at St. John. From there, we reviewed and updated the job description for the position accordingly. The position was then posted on several popular church and music employment websites from June 15 to July 31 for interested candidates to apply. In total, we had over twenty applicants for the position, which was highly encouraging. After reviewing the resumes, the committee identified several candidates to interview in person. We recently concluded this first round of interviews. We envision bringing in the finalist(s) to work with the chancel choir before offering the position to anyone formally. While we were all saddened to see Stephanie depart, we are excited about the possibilities for the future. Thank you for your patience and support during this critical process.

5 MARK YOUR CALENDARS! Rally day is Sunday, September 11th! Please plan to join us after service for a fun gathering to kick off the year! There will be NO SIGN UP this year, so families with last names *A-M please bring a side dish, *N-Z please bring dessert The Christian Education Committee will provide hamburgers and hotdogs. Do you have a talent that would excite members of our congregation? Are you a magician or juggler? Can you draw caricatures, make balloon animals, or have karaoke machine? Please contact Amanda, Laurie Travis, or Maureen Temple if you have a talent to offer! We have a new section of the newsletter where we shine the spotlight on one of our members and/or their family. We want to feature YOU! If you would like to be featured in an upcoming newsletter send us the answers to the following questions. We will compile responses and randomly pick member(s) to feature each month. Let s get to know each other better! Tell us about yourself and your family. Where did you grow up? Where did you go to high school and college? What are some of your favorite childhood memories? Tell us about your faith journey What do you look forward to the most? What are 5 or so facts about yourself or family. Anything else you wish to share?

6 Spotlight on Linda Styzek Where did you grow up? I grew up on a corn, soybean and dairy farm in Minonk, Illinois (pop. 2100), which is 20 miles north of Bloomington. Where did you go to high school and college? I went to Minonk-Dana-Rutland High School. There were 77 kids in my graduating class. I graduated from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, with a Bachelor s Degree in Accountancy. At U of I, I met Frank in the Hopkins Hall dorm where he was the guys 3 rd floor Resident Advisor. What are some of your favorite childhood memories? Once a year, traveling from our farm to Chicago to go to a Cub game with my family. Senior High church retreats. Family reunions and homemade vanilla ice cream! My sister, Bonnie, and I riding our bikes to the cornfield to take dinner to my Dad. We would set up a blanket and eat with him in the field! (I could never understand why he would want hot coffee when it was 90 degrees outside!) One of my jobs was to gather the chicken eggs. One time after getting the eggs, a rooster ran towards me and charged me. I started screaming and ran away. I told my Dad and he shrugged it off (I think he thought I was being wimpy!) It happened again the next day and my dad told me to take a stick and hit him with it. A week later, that same rooster chased my mom. The next day..he was chicken stew! When I was in high school, being the piano accompanist for the community music group, The Village-Aires. Singing with my sister for any occasion. We even sang for the painters when they were painting the outside of our house..i m sure they were glad when that job was done!)

7 Tell us about your faith journey. I grew up attending St. Paul UCC in Minonk. Both of my parents were baptized, confirmed and married there and I had many relatives at that church. When we moved to Mt. Prospect, I began searching for a UCC church. Des Plaines and Arlington Heights each had 2 UCC churches, but Mt. Prospect had none. A friend suggested St. John and I found it to be very warm and inviting. Through baptisms, confirmations, vacation bible school and other events, I feel very blessed to have been a member of St. John all these years. What do you look forward to the most? I always look forward to spending time with my family. I also enjoy gardening, biking, exercising and reading. 5 or so facts about me... Frank and I have 4 children: *Frank, married to Jenny. They have a 5-month old son Jackson Dean Styzek. They live in Mount Prospect *Katie, engaged to Chris, and getting married on 8/5/2017. She lives and works in Chicago *Michael - Lives in Chicago, works in Rolling Meadows, and attends grad school at Loyola University *Mary Lives in Houston, TX and works for Shell Oil Co. Frank, our 4 children and I all graduated from the University of Illinois, Champaign. I am a diehard Cubs and Illini fan. I hope to see the Cubs win a World Series and the Illini win a championship! Soon! Someday? In my lifetime?? I love fishing! On the farm, we would often ride our bikes to the creek and catch minnows or dig up worms to use for bait. I was a 10 year 4-H member. I won Grand Champion Pair of Market Lambs for Woodford County twice! And I have the trophies to prove it!

8 September Birthdays 1st 2nd 3 rd 4th Georgia Runge 5th Mark Haberichter, Ashley Ilg 6th 7th Joyce Rosley 8th Annette Rost 9th Nancy Schweikert, Christina Guenther 10th Bob Burdick, Jordan Slonke, Owen Hong 11th 12th Jackson Travis 13th 14th Craig Mallar 15 th Erik Hanssen 16th 17th Dorothy Wagner 18th 19th 20th 21st 22nd Nancy Hofmann 23rd Herb Morath 24th 25th Pam Mallar, Michael Jones 26th 27th 28th 29 th 30th Do we have your birthday? If not, call the office a let us know!

9 Notes to St. John Members and Friends Dear Members and Friends of St. John, I would like to thank Ty Shurson, The Blye Family, Eric Holderrieth and Cliff Schultz for the mowing of the lawn. I would also like to thank the Thursday Work Crew: Dr. J. Paul Cochran, Wally Schultz, and Rick Grimes for all the hard work they do. If it is leaking and broken or just not right, they are there to save the day! Kelly Johnson Facilities Chairperson Dear Members and Friends of St. John, We cannot thank everyone enough of for the prayers, the cards, flowers and phone calls. Thank you to the Call to Care Ministry for the altar flowers and the Pocket Crosses. Also a big thank you to Pastor Michael and Rick Grimes for visiting Dick so often and to Holly Endicott who came to be with me while Dick was having a procedure. Dick is now at Abington of Glenview for physical and occupational therapy. There has been a big improvement since starting the therapy. We do not know how long he will be here. We just take one day at a time and pray for the guidance and strength to get through each day. Dick & Jackie Nilson

10 Dear Members and Friends of St. John, I want to thank the St John congregation for my parting gift. Your gift provided us with a three day stay on Lake Geneva at the beautiful Abbey Resort. We had such a wonderful time swimming, building sand castles, roasting marshmallows, and walking the lake front as a family. Thank you for your continued prayers and love for our family. You will always be in our prayers. Blessings and love, Stephanie Dear Members and Friends of St. John, Thank you for the cards, calls, and visits after my ankle surgery in June. Your good wishes were encouraging for a recovery I knew would take the whole summer. Thank you for your care and concern. Sincerely, Pat Riemer

11 Dear Members and Friends of St. John, Thank you for all the cards, phone calls, prayers and visits. Thank you for the beautiful prayer shawl and prayer cross made by the Called to Care ministry of St. John UCC. I am very grateful for such a warm, supportive church. Thanks so much! Judy Stanley Dear Members and Friends of St. John, Thank you for all the cards, visits, plants and prayer cross for my mother, Dorothy Wagner. Judy Moore Dorothy Wagner s daughter Metropolis Theater Sunday Soiree Sunday, October 2, :30-7:30 p.m. in Metropolis Ballroom shopping, wine, hors d oeuvers 7:45 Hooking Up With Second City performance on the Metropolis Stage. Tickets are $55 Metropolis Box Office If this would be a first for you, it is a fun afternoon/evening and a fund raiser for Metropolis Theater. There are boutique vendors, raffle and show. Invite a girlfriend and have a fun afternoon.

12 THANK YOU TO OUR VOLUNTEERS 9/4 9/11 9/18 9/25 GREETERS The Roessleins Rally Day The Santi Family ACOLYTE USHERS (need four per Sunday) Bob & Alison Burdick Dennis & Corrie Roesslein COFFEE The Swensons Rally Day Pam & Craig Mallar BULLETIN SPONSOR Judy Kriston Pam & Craig Mallar FLOWERS Rally Day Bob & Alison Burdick Pam & Craig Mallar CALLED TO CARE VISITOR Corrie Roesslein Holly Endicott Pat Riemer Lana Cochran and Pam Mallar SUNDAY SCHOOL SOUND TECH ALTAR GUILD SEXTON Grace Hogaboom and Janet Landeweer Dave Kaiser (September 4) Paul Giambarberee (September 11, 18, and 25)

13 St. John United Church of Christ 308 N. Evergreen Ave. Arlington Heights, IL (847) Fax: (847) Office Hours: 9:00 a.m.-noon, Monday - Friday Pastor s Day off: Friday Rev. Michael D. Jones, pastor mjones@stjah.org Cell: Amanda Spence Administrative Assistant office@stjah.org Sunday School Superintendent SundaySchoolSuperintendent@gmail.com Dr. J. Paul Cochran, Organist Linda Styzek, Accompanist Carin Zachar, Handbell Director The congregation of St. John United Church of Christ rejoices that our community of faith is strengthened by diversity. We declare ourselves to be an open and affirming congregation, extending God s extravagant welcome to all people regardless of culture, economic status, age, sex, ethnicity, race, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, marital status, or physical/mental condition. We invite everyone to join our journey of faith and participate fully in the life of our congregation.

14 September 2016 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 Work Crew 9am St. John Crafters 1pm Communion Worship & Sunday School 9:30am 5 Labor Day-office closed 6 Bible Study 10am Spiritual Life Committee 7pm 7 Chancel Choir Rehearsal 6:30pm 8 Work Crew 9am Rally Day Stewardship Pledge Campaign Begins Bible Study 10am/ Friendly Circle noon/ Bell Tones 6:15pm/ Council 7pm 14 Chancel Choir 6:15pm 15 Journal Deadline 9am/ Work Crew 9am St. John Crafters 1pm Paint-a-Thon TBA/ Faithful Friends Potluck at St. John 5:30pm 18 Sunday School Teacher Training 11am/ Confirmation orientation noon/ 19 Book Club 2pm 20 Bible Study 10am/ Bell Tones 6:15pm/ Stewardship 7pm 21 Chancel Choir 6:15pm 22 Work Crew 9am/Staff Meeting 10:30am/ Worship Planning Rain date for Paint-a- Thon Confirmand/Mentor/Parent BBQ at St. John 5pm 11am 25 Stewardship Sunday Music Committee 11am Bible Study 10am/ Bell Tones 6:15pm 28 Chancel Choir 6:15pm 29 Work Crew 9am 30 St. John United Church of Christ 308 N. Evergreen Ave. Arlington Heights, IL

15 THE MANNA SCRIP FUNDRAISING PROGRAM The Manna Gift Card Program, sponsored by the Stewardship Committee, is a fundraising effort for St. John UCC as well as many other churches, schools and nonprofits. Gift cards can be used just like cash at hundreds of local and nationwide grocery and retail stores, restaurants, gas stations, theaters, hotels, specialty stores and online vendors such as Groupon, Orbitz and Overstock.com. For every dollar spent, St. John UCC receives between $.015 and $.50, depending on the discount agreed to by the vendor. Purchase only the cards you will use for your regular shopping, dining and entertainment or for special birthday and holiday gifts. The gift cards do not have an expiration date with the exception of Visa cards, which carry a 6 month expiration date, printed on the envelope. You pay no additional fees with your purchase. HOW DO I ORDER? Each time you want to order, use a Manna Gift Card Order Form, available in your Journal or in Fellowship Hall on the kiosk. The list is in alphabetical order by card provider. The dollar denomination of each card appears next to the name. Enter the total dollar amount of each card you want on the corresponding line and the total dollars in the Total line at the top of the page. Write a check to St. John UCC or pay with cash and include your order form. Place in the Manna wall file in the church office or hand in on the 1st Sunday of the month. Always use the most recent order form, included in the Journal or on the kiosk, which has the latest offerings and denominations and also excludes discontinued cards. WHEN ARE ORDERS DUE AND WHEN CAN I PICK THEM UP? Orders are placed on a monthly basis and are due on the first Sunday of each month. Orders are available for pick-up the following Sunday. Need them earlier? Call Connie Wayman ( ) to make arrangements. If you are not at church to pick up your order, it will be left secured in the church office. WHAT ARE MULTIPLE VENDORS? In several instances, individual stores/restaurants are not listed on the Order Form; only the parent company is listed. A complete list of vendors, with parent company in parenthesis, is available on the Kiosk in Fellowship Hall. When you purchase a card for a parent company, it can be used at any of the establishments it owns. Complete information is also available at

16 Manna Express Order Form As of 08/26/2016 Participant: Date: Total: Disc Amount Disc Amount Disc Amount Ace Hardware $25, $ Family Express $25, $ Omaha Steaks $ Adidas $ Famous Footwear $ Once Upon A Child $ Aeropostale $ Fanatics $ Options $ Amazon $10, $25, $50, $ Fandango $ Oriental Trading $ AMC Bundle $ Fannie May $10, $ Outback $25, $50, $ AMC Theatres $10, $ Finish Line $ Overstock.com $ American Airlines $ Foot Locker $ P.F. Chang's $ American Eagle $ Fuddruckers $ Panda Express $ American Express $50,$100,$ GameStop $ Panera Bread $5, $10, $ American Girl $25, $ Garden Fresh Market $ Papa John's Pizza $ Angelo Caputo's $25, $ Gino's East $ Payless ShoeSource $10, $ Applebee's $10, $ GNC $ Petco $ Arby's $ Golf Galaxy $ Pete's Fresh Market $ Arco $ Golfsmith $ PetSmart $ Auto Zone $ Goodrich Quality Theaters $ Pier 1 Imports $ Avis $ Gordman's $ Pizza Hut $10, $ Bakers Square $ Gordon Food Service $25, $ Plato's Closet $ Barnes & Noble $5, $10, $ Great American Bagel $5 8.0 Qdoba Mexican Grill $ Bass Pro Shops $25, $ Great Harvest Bread $ Quiznos $ Bath&Body Works$10, $ Groupon $ Red Robin $10, $ BedBath&Beyond $25,$100 BONUS 8.0 Guitar Center $ Regal Entertainment $ Best Buy $25, $ Gymboree $ Regis Salons $ Boston Market $10, $ Hair Cuttery $10, $ REI $25, $ BP Gas $50, $ Hallmark Gold Crown $ Restaurant.com $ Brio Tuscan Grill $ Hard Rock Cafe $ Rock Bottom Brewery $ Brookstone $ Heinen's Grocery Store $25 NEW 4.0 Rocky Mtn Chocolate $ Brunswick Zone $ Heinen's Grocery Store $50 NEW 4.0 Ross Dress for Less $ Buca di Beppo $ Home Depot $25, $100, $ Ruth's Chris Steak $25, $ Buckle $ Home Run Inn $ Safeway $25, $50, $ Budget $ Home Shopping Network $ Sally Beauty Supply $ Buffalo Wild Wings $ HoneyBaked $ Sears $25, $100, $ Build A Bear Workshop $ Houlihan's $ Sephora $ Buona $10, $ Hyatt $25, $100, $ Shell $25, $50, $100 GIVEAWAY 3.0 Burger King $ IHOP $ Shoe Carnival $ Burlington $ itunes $10, $15, $ Shutterfly $ Cabela's $25, $ J.Crew $ Six Flags/Gr America $ California Pizza Kitchen $ Jack In The Box $ Smashburger $ Carson's $25, $ JCPenney $25, $ Spa & Wellness Gift Card $ Champps Kitchen & Bar $ Jewel Osco $25, $50,$100 BONUS 5.0 Speedway $25, $50, $ Cheesecake Factory $ Jiffy Lube $ Staples $25, $ Chevron $50, $100, $ JoAnn Fabric & Craft Store $ Starbucks $5,$10,$25,$50,$ Chili's $25, $ Journeys $ Steak 'n Shake $ Chipotle $10, $ Kmart $25, $ Stein Mart $ Choice Hotels $25, $ Kohl's $25, $50, $ Subway $5, $10, $25, $ Chuck E Cheese's $ L.L.Bean $25 or $ Super Cuts $ Cinemark Theatres $9 9.0 Landry's $25, $ Sweet Tomatoes $ Circle K $50, $ Lands' End $25, $ T.G.I. Friday's $ Claire's $ Lane Bryant $ Taco Bell $10 GIVEAWAY 4.0 Classic Cinemas $ LettuceEntertainYou $25, $ Talbots $ Cold Stone Creamery $ LettuceEntertainYou $50, $ Target $10, $25, $50, $ Columbia Sportswear $ Little Ceasars $ Texas Roadhouse $ Cracker Barrel $10, $ Logan's Roadhouse $ The Childrens Place $ Crate & Barrel $25, $ Lone Star Steakhouse $ The Container Store $ Crazy 8 $ Lord & Taylor $ The Limited $ CVS/pharmacy $25, $ Lou Malnati's Pizzeria $ TJMaxx $25, $ Dairy Queen $ Lowe's $25, $100, $ Toys R Us $ Darden $25, $100 FLASH 14.0 Macy's $25, $ Ulta Beauty $ Dave & Buster's $ Marathon $25, $ Ultra Foods $25, $ Dell Computers $ MarcusTheatres&Hotels $25,$ Under Armour $ Delta $250, $ Mariano's $25, $50, $ Universal Orlando $25,$100 NEW 3.0 Dennis Uniform $ Mario Tricoci $25, $ Universal Orlando $500 NEW 3.0 Denny's $10, $ Meijer $25, $50, $ Uno Pizzeria & Grill $ Dick's Sporting $25,$50,$ Men's Wearhouse $ Visa $50 NEW & IMPROVED 2.0 Dillard's $25, $50, $ Menards $25, $100, $ Walgreens $25, $ Disney $25, $100, $500, $ Michaels Craft Stores $ Walker Bros $ Domino's $ Mimi's Cafe $ Walmart $100, $250, $ Dunkin' Donuts $5, $10, $ New York & Company $ Walmart $5, $10, $25, $ Edwardo's Natural Pizza $ Nike $ Watch Station $25, $ Egg Harbor Cafe $ Noodles & Company $10, $ Wendy's $ Einstein Bros Bagels $ Nordstrom $25, $ Whole Foods $25, $50, $ Express $ Oberweis Dairy $ Williams-Sonoma $25, $ ExxonMobil $ Office Depot $25, $ Yankee Candle $ Fairmont Hotels $ Old Country Buffet $ Zappos $25, $ * - Please circle denomination required. Discounts subject to change without notification.