Highlights April 26, 2015 Easter Season

Transcription

1 Highlights April 26, 2015 Easter Season In grateful response to God s abundant love, we bear in mind our integral connection to the earth and one another; we participate in God s work of healing and mending creation. (from...a Song of Faith) Highlands United Church 3255 Edgemont Blvd. North Vancouver, BC V7R 2P churchoffice@highlandsunited.org

2 Highlands Upcoming Events and Programs This list does not include rooms booked for outside rentals (Guides, AA, Alanon etc). Highlands Event Calendar can be viewed on our web site at: To book a room, contact the church office at: churchoffice@highlandsunited.org Sunday, April 26 9:30 am Welcome Café in the Foyer 10:00 am Sunday Worship Service 11:15 am Newcomers Orientation with Colleen Blair, Narthex 12:00 pm Book Study, We Make the Road by Walking Monday, April 27 9:00 am Highlands Quilters, Choir Room 9:00 am Sandwiches for First, Kitchen 1:00 pm Prayer Shawl Ministry, Choir Room 7:00 pm Guitar for Fun, Fireside Room 7:30 pm Badminton, Gym 7:30 pm Healing Hands, Chapel and Choir Room Tuesday, April 28 9:00 am Flea Market Sorting, Lower Hall 9:30 am ESL / ELL Beginner Class, Faith Room 9:30 am ESL / ELL Class, Room :00 pm ESL / ELL Country Dancers, Room 201 7:00 pm Book Circle, Faith Room Wednesday, April 29 7:30 am Men s Breakfast, Eighties Restaurant 3:00 pm Finance Committee Meeting, Choir Room 4:00 pm Tai Chi, Gym Thursday, April 30 9:30 am ESL / ELL Class, Room :30 pm ESL / ELL Speakers Group, Room 201 5:30 pm Thursday Community Meal (Last for the season), Gym 6:30 pm God s Free Spirits Choir Rehearsal, Choir Room 7:00 pm Eight Deadlies Rehearsal, Chapel 8:00 pm Spirit Singers Choir Rehearsal, Sanctuary Friday, May 1 7:00 pm F.L.Y., Youth Lounge Saturday, May 2 8:45 am Tai Chi, Gym 1:00 pm Saturday Lunch, North Shore Neighbourhood House Sunday, May 3 9:30 am Welcome Café in the Foyer 10:00 am Sunday Worship Service 11:15 am Birthday Celebrations, Fireside Room 11:15 am Newcomers Orientation with Colleen Blair, Narthex 11:30 am New Members Q & A, room 201 2

3 Belonging Membership made Accessible Membership at Highlands United Church has many different levels and expressions. Over the next few weeks there is an opportunity to become a formal member. A member is a person who does some intentional reflection and who makes a public affirmation within this community, to be a follower of Jesus. It is akin to the difference between people living together (informal membership) and people getting married (public declaration). We have designed a series of Sunday services that will fulfill the requirements of formal membership and we are inviting everyone in the congregation to participate. For some it will be a refresher for others it will be new material. On Sunday, May 31, we will formally receive those who wish into formal membership in The United Church of Canada and Highlands United Church. 3

4 Highlands Church Library April is Poetry Month Poetry books on display shelves outside the Church Library door. Earth Day display on the red library cart. Sunday Morning Greeters: If you enjoy welcoming people, join the team of greeters who gather at 9:15am on Sunday morning to prepare to welcome folks as they arrive. Orientation provided. Sign up for a month, at the action table. Speak to Colleen Blair for more details. Thursday Dinner At Highlands United Church 5:30pm 6:30pm All are welcome to our Community Meal on Thursday evenings a modest $4 per person (and $12 for families) for a delicious and nutritious meal such a deal! Please note that our last Community Meal for this term will be on April 30 th we ll see you back in September! 4

5 Members of Higher Ground Women s Ensemble May 6 5

6 Wellspring: Moving Forward on Climate Justice Report #2 -- Camp Fircom and Renewable Energy The morning workshop I attended at the conference was a presentation by Fircom s site director Neil Carrodus and solar engineer Eric Smiley of Viridian Energy Co-operative. Up to 2011, Fircom used diesel fuel to generate all electricity needed for its operations. The diesel cost for 2011 was approximately $100,000. Then the camp began to install solar panels and made a major reconfiguration to the architecture of the battery system: now it has three sets of panels on the roofs of two buildings, providing 12.5 kw which, when not directly used, is stored in large banks of batteries. Thanks to that solar energy and the reconfiguration, the cost of diesel in 2014 was reduced to approximately $40,000. photo: Viridian Energy Co-operative The flow of water in the creek that runs through Fircom has been measured, and a micro-hydro installation could provide another 5-8 kw. This could allow Fircom to operate nearly diesel-free except in the summer peak season, and reduce the diesel costs by another $10,000 annually. The cost of micro-hydro is estimated to be $30,000 to $40,000. Is this a project for which environmentally-conscious churches could provide financial support to Fircom? Jon Carrodus For more information, see and look at Fircom Part 1 and Fircom Part 2. 6

7 Celebrate Earth Day in North Vancouver! Sun, April 26 th, from 12-4pm at Moodyville Park Near East 2 nd Street and Queensbury Avenue (north of 2 nd, east of Moody) Join the City of North Vancouver, Evergreen and other community groups for an Earth Day celebration. Help remove invasive plants and plant local species in the park. There will be a variety of community displays, a scavenger hunt and great prizes to win. Fun for the whole family! Tools and light refreshments will be provided. 7

8 Seeking accommodation Brendan Wanderer (our former Youth Minister), his wife and 7 month son, are coming to Vancouver and would like to find somewhere to stay on May and then again on May This will be their last big trip before they move to Newfoundland later this summer for Brendan to attend film school. Can someone without cats offer them a space. They will be out and about during every day visiting people and returning each evening. Contact info for Brendan: Brendan.wanderer@gmail.com Home: / Cell: Highlands Book Circle Please feel free to join us any month for our wide-ranging and laughter-filled discussions. We usually meet at 7:00pm on the Last Tuesday of each month. The variety of books that we have chosen for the next few months are: April 28th - "Us Conductors" (2014) by Sean Michaels May 26th - "A Tale for the Time Being" (2013) by Ruth Ozeki June TBA - "Too Much Happiness" (2011) by Alice Munro 8

9 Helping Hasna to Highlands! Hasna Mohamed is a 27 year old Oromo single woman from Ethiopia. Hasna sought refuge in Egypt and is considered to be at high risk by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), as a victim of violence and torture. She has now been approved to be sponsored to Canada by Highlands. Your generous donation to the Highlands Refugee Fund will contribute to Hasna s settlement and living costs for the 12 months of our sponsorship, including accommodation, food, clothing, furniture, basic household needs, transportation, medical and dental fees. Donation forms available Sundays at the Action Table or weekdays from the Church Office and will receive Income Tax receipts. We have no details yet on Hasna s arrival; however we will let you know as soon as we are updated by United Church of Canada. Oromo Fundraising Lunch! Sunday, 14 June 2015 (after 10:00 am service) All are Welcome! Tasty Oromo Foods Silent Auction Oromo and Ethiopia Info As a fundraiser, this lunch will be paid for differently than the usual Sunday meals. We will be asking individuals or families for donations for their lunches, rather than the usual charge for cost-recovery at a set price and Highlands will give tax receipts for donations. Enjoy great food and camaraderie as you Help Hasna to Highlands! Our research has shown that the Oromos consider their food distinct from that of predominant Ethiopian culture. We ll present our best renditions of Oromo cuisine, to suit available Canadian produce and local taste buds!. Please visit the Action Table or call Catherine Alkenbrack ( ) with any questions. 9

10 Community News Message from Van-Burrard Presbytery: Sandra Bruneau, a congregation member at West Point Grey, is the co-chair of the Vancouver Burrard Pesbytery Reconciliation Committee. She recently sent the following message to us: As we prepare our congregations during these weeks leading to the final Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report (May 31-June 3) in Ottawa, our news media (it seems to me) are giving more attention to Aboriginal matters, issues, and culture. This includes reminding Canadians of our historic relationships with First Nations, Metis and Inuit populations, good, bad and indifferent. I work with the BC Deans of Education (9 BC teacher education programs), and am the only non-aboriginal member of the 7- person Aboriginal Education sub-committee. Our committee is making good progress in exploring ways to attract and retain students of Aboriginal descent to the profession of teaching, and to zero in on what needs to be done to improve hiring practices at universities and in school districts. My hope is that Vancouver-Burrard presbyters will share their experiences and projects, both those undertaken by individuals and by congregations. Reconciliation is in the air; there is so much to learn and do including reaching out to our Aboriginal neighbours, person by person. Message from Van-Burrard Presbytery: A covenanting service with Rev. Dan Chambers, the congregation of St. Andrew s Wesley, members of the Vancouver-Burrard Presbytery and the BC Conference will be held at the morning service at St. Andrew s Wesley on Sunday, April 26, 2015, 10:30 noon. The Rev. Dr. Brian Thorpe will preach and the Gospel Choir will sing. If you are worshipping in your own congregation, blessings to you and, if appropriate, we ask that you hold us in prayer. If you would like to join us for this service, please know that you are most welcome. Underground parking is free and is accessible from the alley between Thurlow and Burrard. The Sanctuary is also wheelchair accessible. Soli Deo Gloria! 10

11 Community News PROPS AND THANKS! A special shout-out and thankyou to all the folks who participated in this year s Run- Walk for the Homeless! The weather was beautiful for the event on Sunday, and donations are pouring in from our intrepid supporters. A BOUNTIFUL SPRING FOR THE DONATION DEPOT: Our Operations Manager Jerri says: This year the Thrift Store has been very very blessed with sooo many great donations, that again at this time we are unable to accept donations of 3 garbage bags or more until we can work through what we have received. Please direct donors to call my cell phone should they have any questions or concerns. We should be back to receiving donations of all sizes in a few weeks. DID YOU KNOW? Even among university students, homelessness is a serious problem. Many campuses have homelessness outreach committees and even staff members to network with homeless Turning the Page Together The Committee on Indigenous Justice and Residential Schools of The United Church of Canada This newsletter, which replaces the Residential Schools Update and the Living into Right Relations news, is published by the Committee on Indigenous Justice and Residential Schools. The logo, with symbols from the Christian and Indigenous spiritual traditions, was designed by an Ontario woman with Cree ancestry (Michelle Harland), an Alberta Cree man (Brian Wildcat), and an Ontario woman with Scottish and English ancestry (Heather Hobbs). We invite you to join your hands with ours and with the many others who are striving to turn the page by working together for healing and reconciliation. As the TRC concludes its historic work, there are many ways to stay involved in the work of reconciliation and right relations between Aboriginal and non-aboriginal people. The Spring issue of the newsletter can be found on the UCC website at:

12 Camps are filling-up! don t delay Register today on-line at: 12