God is Still. Speaking... As I look at it... JULY Brookings United Church of Christ ISSUE. Whoever. you are. wherever you are on life s journey,

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1 Issue 7 JULY 2015 ISSUE 7 Brookingsucc.org th St. South Brookings, SD Brookings United Church of Christ God is Still Brookings, SD th Street South As I look at it... Speaking... Brookingsucc@brookings.net JULY 2015 Whoever you are, wherever you are on life s journey, you are welcome here Rev. Wade Schemmel Pastor buccpastor@swiftel.net Office Phone: Cell Phone: No matter who you are, or where you are on life s journey, you are welcome here This phrase represents a much longer mission statement which was adopted at a special congregational meeting June 14 th. While the focus for the mission statement is the welcome being extended to our brothers and sisters who are a member of the LGBT community, the real message is much more inclusive than just them. It simply says all are welcome, there are no boundaries, social or physical that could keep someone out. When you look at it this is really quite a statement. It is a declaration of where we see ourselves now and where we hope to be in the future. We say that in life s journey we see no barrier and we envision no barrier that could keep anyone out of the life of this congregation. That is a statement that says something very significant about us and about the God that we worship. For it says that we believe that we can welcome everyone regardless of what they bring with them, into the life and the fellowship and the praise of this congregation. It says that our faith will be stronger than the fear and anxiety that so often becomes a wall that makes real welcome impossible. We will not allow what we do not understand to stand in the way of true fellowship. The recent ruling of the Supreme Court opens the way for us to live fully the commitment we make. It removes government intervention from the rite of marriage, and from the ability of LGBT couples to adopt. There are, however, laws on the books that deny the civil rights of brothers and sisters in the family of God not because they have done something wrong but because someone else does not recognize their full membership in the human family. This is not just a problem for the members of the LGBT community it is our problem also. This is a call for us to be vigilant, attentive and supportive as we address this civil rights issues, and seek to remove this ugly scar from our definition of community. Finally I believe that our statement says that we are in this for the long haul. This is not a fad, or something we thought would look good on our letter head, it is a path we will follow into the future. It is our vision of who we truly believe God is calling us to be. Therefore it is with enthusiasm that I invite all to join us on this journey as we live into our vision of welcome and fellowship for all. Namaste~ Wade Schemmel

2 BUCC Night Out Pictured: Peg Schemmel, Krystal, Wade Schemmel, Randy DeBoer, Marlene DeBoer, Norita Henneman, and Jennifer Beyer BUCC Faithful Crafters Group~ Making Blankets! (Pictured: Joyce Brodersen, Marlene DeBoer, and Susan Helvig) The Faithful Crafters Group is still currently working with Child Protection Services of the Brookings area in providing hygiene products and blankets to young children that have been displaced from their homes and families. Child Protection Services will be the focus of our Fifth Sunday in August. Doug and Mary Ward and Boy Scout Troop 1 cordially invite you to attend the Eagle Scout Court of Honor for Nicholas Ward Saturday, July 25th, :00 am 319 Seventh Avenue South Brookings, SD *Reception following the ceremony, please RSVP to pckrswrd@aol.com or Nicholas Ward is receiving this award for building ten benches for the Lake Oakwood area.

3 Moderator s Report JULY 2015 Spring has left and summer is in full swing but members of the church continue to Spring Clean. On July 16 th at 5:30 pm the church is having a Shampoo Party. We will be shampooing the carpets in the educational wing. To save money we are asking for volunteers to help shampoo, donate the use of carpet shampooers and carpet detergent. I would like to have two volunteers to help me shampoo and a few strong people locating the equipment in the rooms to another place within the church until the carpet is dried. If you purchase carpet detergent please buy the detergent for heavy use areas, you can buy this at Walmart in the carpet shampooers- vacuum cleaners department. If you are unable, to volunteer at this time the church will be shampooing the sanctuary in the early fall. I also want to thank everyone who has been Spring Cleaning the outside of our church. The time and labor you have spent sprucing up the church s yard has been very much appreciated. One of the things about our small congregation is that everyone is willing to volunteer and help out in God s Home. NOTES FROM THE JUNE CHURCH COUNCIL MEETING The revised Brookings UCC mission statement to reflect our new Open and Affirming status was passed unanimously at the congregational meeting on June 7 th. Child Protective Services in the Brookings community is in need of foster parents. Pastor Wade will preach at the Brookings Arts Festival worship service. Richard Black Hawk Kapusta will be asked to provide the music. Offerings will be given to a local organization, perhaps the My Neighbor fund. An ethnic theme for Empty Bowls is being considered this year with the proceeds benefiting a local aid organization. Address signs have been installed on the exterior of the church. A water fixture for the east wall of the church and will be installed soon. Benches for the Memorial Garden have been assembled and will be installed soon. Rug shampooing is scheduled for July 16 at 5:15 p.m. A new South Dakota Conference minister has been hired and will start the third week of August. David Felton will retire at the end of August. By: Kristi Prunty Moderator Ruby Wilson, BUCC Council Secretary Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Communion No Yoga 13 BAF Service 8:30 am With Pastor Wade YOGA Class Noon 20 YOGA Class Noon 27 YOGA Class Noon 1 11:30 1 pm :30 1 pm :30 1 pm 21 Council Meeting 5:30 pm 22 11:30-1 pm Night Out 5:30 pm :30-1 pm 2 9 Faithful Crafters 2 pm 16 Carpet Cleaning 5:30 pm 23 Faithful Crafters 2 pm LifeLine BUCC 8am 6pm Birthday Breakfast 10 am Perkins Brookings Art Festival Eagle Scout Ceremony for Nick Ward 11:00 am

4 Celebrate! Birthdays in July1 January July 3 Leonard Henneman Tiana Holmes 8 Jody Satterlee 14 Kaylee Raven Starling 18 Brian Dokken Clarence Bauer 22 Susan Rosen Marlin Brandt 25 Celia Dobrenski 28 Loye Holmes JULY Anniversaries: 10 Leonard & Nortia Henneman 25 Marlin & Carolyn Brandt Stuart & Melissa Apland Kathy Apland Jihong Cole-Dai Steve & Kristi Prunty Dennis & Darlene Dokken February August Chris & Sue Hay Clarence & Darlene Bauer Kyle & Tiffany Eide Larry Rogers & Ruth Harper Matt Chang & Brandy Donaldson March September Chad & Laura Gloege Susan Helvig Dave & Julie Huebner Christina & Justin Wiemer Shanta Messerli Ministry Teams 2015 If anyone has any concerns or possible conflicts, Please contact the church office Or at brookingsucc@brookings.net. Thank You! Special dedication of food items~ April October Jim & Joanne Satterlee Leonard & Norita Henneman Don & Nancy Marshall Scott Meyer & Taylor Mertz Steve & Jean Chappell May November Jim & Ruby Wilson Helen Anderson Brenda & Carl Kline Doug & Mary Ward Raul & Marisol Galvan-Murillo June December Tom & Susan Rosen Loye Holmes Randy & Marlene DeBoer Wade & Peg Schemmel Linda Langner During each month we collect food for three special ministries that distribute food to those in need. These include Feeding Brookings The Food Pantry and The Harvest Table. There are receptacles and carts to receive each of these offerings. That food will be dedicated each 3 rd Sunday and will be distributed shortly after that. Help us to have nice full bins to share and dedicate. HARVEST TABLE: A warm-no-cost meal served every Monday night from 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm at the First United Methodist Community Life Center, The meal is offered for anyone in the community looking for good food and fellowship! If you have questions, contact Vonda Kirkham, Harvest Table Director, If you have participated in the weekly Harvest Table, you know that it is more than a hot meal for those in need. They also distribute food stuffs and supplies for families to get through the week, such as soap, toothpaste, diapers and baby wipes to name a few. The number of people being served each week has grown significantly over the last few years. In July 285 people were served a hot meal, grocery items were distributed to 145 households, 110 packages of diapers and baby wipes were handed out to families all at no cost to the families. The cupboards are BARE!! The Harvest Table is desperately in need of supplies. Non-perishable foods, (canned goods, pasta, rice, peanut butter, beans, cereal, baby food, formula, fruits and juice, canned meat and other pantry staples), personal care items (soap, toothpaste and brushes, shampoo, mouthwash), baby supplies (diapers and baby wipes are especially needed), paper goods (paper towels, toilet paper). The needs run the gamut. If you need it for your house, the Harvest Table probably needs it as well. If you aren t sure what is most needed, money is always the right size and color. With your tax-deductible donations, the Harvest Table staff can shop for what is needed the most. FEEDING BROOKINGS Bags of food are distributed every Thursday from 4:00 5:00 p.m. at the Ascension Lutheran Church rd Street JULY food item of the month: Pasta & Rice (box Helper meals) 217 4TH Street BROOKINGS, SD IMMEDIATE NEEDS: Crackers Canned Fruit Carrots (canned) Cereal Spag. Sauce Egg Noodles Refried Beans Instant Oatmeal Tomato Sauce Pantry is open: Monday, Wednesday & Friday 1:00-4:30pm

5 How You Can Help: MISSION MOMENT: UCC Responds To Nepal Earthquake By The Numbers Prayers & Donations Generous donations to the International Emergency Fund allow Disaster Ministries to respond to global disasters. To send your support, please give to this fund. GIVE generously to support emergency relief and rebuilding efforts by visiting the National UCC website or donations may also be made out and sent directly to Wider Church Ministries, Financial Services - 6th Floor, 700 Prospect Avenue, Cleveland, OH In our ongoing work with the recovery efforts in Nepal, UCC Disaster Ministries has joined forces with the Fuller Center for Housing to begin rebuilding homes. 7.8 Magnitude Earthquake 8,669 Dead 17,870 Injured 500,717 Homes Destroyed 267,477 Homes Damaged 1,383 Schools Damaged 8 Million Affected (over 1/4 of the population) Worst Earthquake in Nepal in 80 years EMPTY BOWL UPDATE: $40,000 provided by UCC Disaster Ministries The Empty Bowl Committee uncovers their new plans. The plans are just starting to come together for the Empty Bowl committee. The celebration scheduled for November 19 th will focus on addressing poverty in the Brookings area and beyond. It will take on a Hispanic flavor as we will look at the plight of recent immigrants that are struggling to find their place in our community. Please keep a close watch as we uncover our future plans. WIDENING THE WELCOME~ 2015 INCLUSION FOR ALL SEPTEMBER 24-26, 2015 HARTFORD, CT WideningtheWelcome.com The Widening the Welcome Conference is a sign of the movement in our UCC to address concerns and issues around disabilities, mental health challenges, and cognitive / developmental disabilities. It will feature 15 different workshops and special guest speakers: Rev. Dr. Christina Jones Davis and Rev. Dr. Brett Webb Mitchell. (Sponsored by: United Church of Christ (UCC) Disabilities Ministries and Mental Health Network) NEW CONFERENCE MINISTER: for South Dakota UCC Rev. Gordon Rankin has been elected to be the new conference minister during the Conference Annual Meeting, June 5-7. What has drawn him to our Conference Minister position is not geography but rather a profound sense of congruity with the mission and the vision of the South Dakota Conference. Gordon believes the foundational purpose of the Conference is to support, resource and nurture local churches. He looks forward to building a relationship with the full diversity of our South Dakota churches small and large, established and new. Because of his service work on the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Reservation, Gordon has expressed a particular affinity for working with our Dakota Association churches to find ways that their ministries can thrive in their unique context. Further, Gordon is excited about the potential for joint ministry that is being discussed between the Iowa Conference, the Nebraska Conference and our own Conference.

6 Upcoming Events in the month of July July 13, 20, & 27th at 12:00 Noon all are invited to come to the education wing of our church to share in Introductory Yoga classes. The classes will be an opportunity for all that are interest experience the physical and spir- There will be no Faithful Crafters meetings in July. Meetings will resume in August. All are invited to come and share in. The services that will take place on Thursday Evenings beginning at 7:00 pm will follow a different format than the Sunday morning worship. The theme for the service will be the 10 commandments for the 21 st century. July 11 th & 12 th the Brookings Arts Festival will take place in Pioneer Park in Brookings. Pastor Schemmel will be the guest speaker at the worship service that takes place at 8:30 am on July 12th. Blackhawk, will provide the special music. There will be an offering taken at this service for the My Neighbor outreach of the Brookings Ministerial. My Neighbor is designed to help people at special critical times in their lives. We are looking for helpers at this early service to take communion and hand out some literature. If any are interested please talk with Pastor Schemmel. We will be sharing the sacrament of Holy Communion on Sunday July am. All are invited to come and share in this very special time as we gather about the table that our Redeemer has set. Any who cannot be with us but who wish to receive the elements of this sacrament are invited to call the church office and make arrangements. Birthday Brunch July 11th, 2015 Perkins~10 am All are welcome to join us in this time of good fellowship and good food! BUCC Council Meeting July 21st, :30 pm Potluck 6:15 pm Meeting BUCC Night Out July 22nd, 5:30 pm We will soon have our worship services on you tube. We are still looking for a few more volunteers to assist us in this exciting development. We have purchased a video camera and are looking forward to starting this project very soon. Life Line Screening July 31st, am-6 pm