November Newsletter 2015

Transcription

1 November Newsletter 2015 As I sit in my new office for the first time the words, Surely God is in this place keeps running through my mind. I know that I am blessed to have been called to serve God s church as your pastor. I can feel the Spirit of our living God in this church. I know that God has called me to this faith family for a reason and I am so excited to see where the Holy Spirit will guide us. I want to take this opportunity to thank Rev. Bob Robida for his ministry and for all of the love and compassion he shared with you. I would like to thank the Women s Fellowship for their kindness in providing a reception for me and to all of you who made time in your lives to meet me during the Saturday reception. My family and I also want to thank each of you for making our first Sunday so warm and welcoming. It is with deep gratitude that I thank you for making my first experience with you, so special. Thank You! Over the next several weeks I hope to get to know all of you. If you have any pastoral concerns, please feel free to contact me at the church office or on my cell phone (508) May the Spirit surround us and guide us as we begin this blessed journey together. Peace: Victoria

2 Page 2 November 2015 THANKSGIVING DINNER Will you be alone at Thanksgiving time? If so, please consider joining your church family for a delicious turkey dinner. It will be served on Thanksgiving Day at 1:00PM. The cost is $2.00 per person and you are asked to bring a side dish, veggie or dessert, to share. Turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes and stuffing will be provided. Also, bring your plates, cups and silverware. Sound good? So plan on joining us. There will be a sign-up sheet on the "events" table so we know how many to plan for. Hope to see you there. BLOOD DRIVE After church on November 15th A blood drive with the Methodist Church will be on this date until 2:00pm in our parking lot. If you DON T think that you are eligible to give blood, don t assume that- ask the folks on the bloodmobile for the answer to that question. Please contemplate giving and then go DO it! WATCH FOR THE NOVEMBER DINEOUT Watch your weekly bulletins for the location of the next restaurant giveback fundraiser. This one is scheduled for Monday, November 2nd at a new Italian Restaurant in the Trinity area. The restaurant has agreed to return to the church 10% of our checks when we turn in a flyer. TURN BACK YOUR CLOCKS AT 2:00 A.M. NOVEMBER 1ST CARDS AND GAMES The Cards and Games for Seniors Group welcomes all those who wish to attend. Our Thursday afternoons are open to everyone interested in joining them in Andrus Hall for an opportunity to have a bit of fun and the challenge of a game or two. Anyone interested in Bridge? we've had requests for some to make up a table or two. Let us hear from you. 12:30-3:30 p.m. each Thursday - $2 - call Georgia at for information. Monday Nite Movie Group We meet the first and third Mondays of each month at 6pm for dinner. If you wish to join us, there will be a sign-up sheet in Andrus Hall the day before the dinner telling you where the dinner will be. You must sign up if you're coming, as we have to give the restaurant a firm number the day before the event. On other weeks of the month we routinely gather for a supper and movie (but not always on Monday). Reservations are not necessary for this, as we are a much smaller group. Just check in at the table in Andrus Hall to see what's on the agenda and join us if you can. The Christmas Party will be Monday, December 7th. ATTENDANCE Sept Average 88 NOVEMBER COFFEE HOUR HOSTED BY BUILDING AND GROUNDS

3 Page 3 November 2015 Stewardship Corner November 2015 In the United Church of Christ, we proclaim, God is Still Speaking! And here at Community Congregational UCC, God did so loudly and dramatically on Sunday, October 11, when God guided us to vote unanimously to call the Reverend Victoria Snow to be our pastor. That marvelous, electric moment reminds us also that God is Still Giving in this case, an inspiring new spiritual leader for our beloved community of faith and that we, as Christians, are called to be aware of the richness of all of God s gifts and goodness to us and, therefore, of our identity as stewards of that generosity and love. Speaking of stewardship and God s generosity causes me to reflect back some forty years to when I was copastor of Church of the Master UCC in suburban St. Louis. Every summer we took dozens of our junior and senior high youths on a ten-day work camp at the Shannondale Ozark Center in Gladden, Missouri along the Current River. Daily we labored in that rural community, strove to enhance the environment, worked alongside the residents, and then took one day to canoe the rapids of the river. But every night, sweaty and grubby, we gathered around the campfire, worshipped God, talked about the day, and sang. One of our favorite songs was Pass It On. It only takes a spark to get a fire going, And soon all those around will warm up in its glowing. That s how it is with God s love, once you ve experienced it, You ll spread the love to everyone, you ll want to pass it on. This is God s word to us as God s stewards Pass It On! God s generosity and love Pass It On. That s Stewardship, folks Pass It On. As William C. Green, a UCC minister and stewardship guru explains, At heart, we give because God is a giver and that s how we re created, how we are. We are meant to be givers of God s own act of giving, as we know this in Jesus Christ. Notice those two words: at heart. You see, in the life of the church, stewardship is at the heart of it all. It is right at the heart of changing lives, of growing people of faith, of creating people full of God, people who explode with God s generosity and pour it out into the world around them. Let us keep these words, Pass It On, in our minds as we bring our Estimate of Giving Cards to worship on November 22, Consecration Sunday. It is proper that we do so in worship, for worship is the home of God s generosity and the place where we praise God in the setting of our giving. It is also where we encounter Somebody greater than ourselves. That Somebody is the very reason for our giving.

4 Page 4 November 2015 Cookie Walk Time It's that time again. Time for our Cookie Walk/Christmas Bazaar. This year it will be held Saturday, December 5th, from 9:00-2:00. Now we need cookies...lots OF THEM! We ask each lady to bake 3 batches of 1 recipe. It can be your favorite cookie or a new one you'd like to try, but 3 batches, please. Last year our cookies earned over $1, and the Bazaar earned $1,378.00, for a total of 2,540. That s fantastic! Let's do it again! People in the community watch the newspaper for our ad and our members have been telling their friends and they will ALL come, so we have to be ready. Please have your cookies to the church kitchen on Friday morning, December 4th, with the name of the cookie. We need your participation to have a successful event. We are looking for some lovely items to be included in the Christmas Bazaar, which can be brought in any time now. Lunches will be available for purchase at a very reasonable cost. Thank you for your support of this great fundraiser. Women s Fellowship

5 Page 5 November 2015 Moderator s Corner It is with great joy and a privilege to announce that Community Congregational Church UCC voted unanimously to call The Reverend Victoria Snow as our next Settled Pastor at a Special Congregational Meeting held on October 11, 2015 following the worship service which was conducted by Rev. Snow. The congregation was offered an informal time to meet Victoria at a sandwich and dessert reception held on Saturday afternoon in Andrus Hall. There was a large turn out for this event which was sponsored by the Search Committee, with the refreshments provided by the Women s Fellowship. Rev. Snow s called start date is October 19, 2015 with her first Sunday in the pulpit being October 25, Our sincere thanks to the Search Committee for their many months of dedicated work on our behalf. The Search Committee was composed of the following persons: Cynthia Hodges, Chair; Heidie Budny, Chaplain; Carolyn Pike, Corresponding Secretary; Jan Hunter, Recording Secretary; Caroline Dager; Steve Diller; Solomon Evans; and Barbara Jautze, Alternate. As we close the Interim period and express our deep appreciation to Pastor Bob Robida for his service to this church, we extend a warm welcome to our new Pastor, Victoria Snow and her daughters, Kathryn, Miranda and Sophia! With thanks and joy, Candy Atchison - Moderator Rev. Victoria Snow, Kathryn, Sophia and Miranda

6 Page 6 November 2015 To Dan Rowland: I just received your care package you sent on the 8 th. The guys loved it. We plan on sending you a picture or a few once we finish our wall (going to draw our logo and other things on it) and we will be wearing our shop shirts. We greatly appreciate what you guys have done for us. I distributed everything with everyone. For requests, the guys asked for the follows - Twinkies, tasty cakes, krunchy kurls, shampoo, body wash (soap works as well), chips, Oreos and Gillette fusion razor blades. Some people wanted me to ask if it was possible for us to get some gym shorts since it s getting too hot out here to be wearing sweats. I understand if you can t. Thanks again to everyone Dear Dan Rowland and friends from the Community Congregational Church, First off, thank you for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers. It s always good to know people are thinking of the 100 second, thank you for your generous donation of snacks and things. What you guys put in the box was great! Just having stuff from the States is awesome. I hope the best for you all and your families. Again, thank you. Very respectfully, Brittney U. S. Coast Guard Patrol Forces South West Asia Bahrain The following gifts to our Memorial Fund have been recently received and we are grateful to those who remembered loved ones in this manner. In Loving Memory Of Bob Kellar From: Tom and Gwen Walters To All My Church Family, Thank you to everyone for making my 95th birthday celebration so special. I really appreciate all of the cards and well wishes. Love, Vi Tesch A coincidence is God s way of remaining anonymous. Unknown Doris Perry Who joined our church October 24, 1993 and died September 26, 2015 Virginia Denise Who joined our church July 7, 2007 and died September 27, 2015 Dear Carol and Other church Friends, I m so glad to have the fine line of connection with Community Congregational Church through the monthly newsletter. I really appreciate the years I was privileged to spend time and learn from my church and my friends in the choir and congregation. I will be joining a wonderfully giving and loving church here in Tavares for the rest of the years God chooses to give me. Bless all of you and the new pastor. Sincerely, Bea Curtis

7 Page 7 November 2015 A day of gratitude and friendship November 3 Harold Cherry 8 Nancy Marsh 10 Jim Lawrence 12 Melanie Kozuch 13 Linda Van Nelson Millie Olson Gwen Walters 14 Elizabeth Ahlgren 16 Frederick Lake 19 Jim Watt 23 Dan Rowland 25 John Bachelder 29 Jan Shuman 30 Bea Curtis Lizzie Ramsey November 26 Ginny and Chet Butler 27 Harold and Jeanette Cherry Most Americans, learning about Thanksgiving s origin, hear or read about the destitute Pilgrims who suffered greatly during their first bitter winter in America. Many Pilgrims got sick, and half of them died. What we don t focus on enough is the fact that Native Americans took pity on the Pilgrims. They befriended the newcomers and gave them food. They taught them how to survive the vicious cold months. Then, when the earth grew warm again, the Indians taught the Pilgrims how to grow various crops and how to store any surplus. It was primarily because of the natives friendship and helpfulness that the Pilgrims began to eke their way from disaster to fruitfulness. It s no wonder that when the Pilgrims had their first successful harvest, they invited their Indian neighbors to celebrate with them. The natives didn t come empty-handed. They furnished venison, wild turkeys and probably vegetables from storage. It was, more or less, a potluck affair. The Pilgrim leaders prayed gratefully at the occasion. At the October meeting we had an interesting presentation on personal and home security. There were only 16 women present to hear this timely and important topic. The next meeting of Women s Fellowship will be Friday, November 13th at 1:00 p.m. Final plans will be made for the Cookie Walk/ Christmas Bazaar which will be on Saturday, December 5th. ALL WOMEN OF THE CHURCH ARE MEMBERS OF THIS GROUP AND ARE INVITED TO ATTEND. We can be confident that an unseen but not unexpected Guest was very much present that day.

8 Page 8 November 2015 Bob and Lee send their thanks for the wonderful send-off, the great wishes, the delicious cake and everything that the congregation did to acknowledge their contributions to CCCUCC. Much love, thanks and prayers. Bob and Lee Our Gifts to God September YTD Budget 15, , Received 12, , Difference -3, , During September pledges were down 10% as were other areas of giving. We will hopefully increase with additional members and friends returning during the last quarter of the year. Our Expenses Budget 13, , Paid Out 10, , Difference 3, , In September and year-to-date our expenses have been below budget since we did not have a full time Pastor. That will change in the last quarter as we have now welcomed our Settled Pastor.

9 Page 9 November 2015 VOLUNTEER TAX PREPARATION United Way of Pasco County, the IRS and AARP Foundation Tax-Aide sponsor free income tax preparation for elderly, low and moderate income taxpayers from mid-january to April 15 each year. Tax law and computer training is provided in early January for individuals who would like to volunteer to prepare relatively simple tax returns. Volunteers should have good computer skills. For more information, or to volunteer, call Bill Humphrey at or send an to taxvol@earthlink.net. For an appointment to have your taxes prepared for FREE, call the Pasco County Information and Referral Line by dialing 2-1-1, after January 15, The beginning of Advent November is the month of Thanksgiving, but it often also includes the beginning of a new church year. This year, November 29 is the first Sunday of Advent. The season of Advent is about Jesus, the Word, coming. It s about anticipating and preparing for Christ s arrival. God comes to us in many and various ways. He speaks to us through the prophets and saints. He comes and speaks to us when we are listening. He comes in the beauty and mysteries of nature. Most of all, God comes in the person of Christ, speaking to his listeners face to face. Pastor Edmund Steimle put it this way: The Christian story is a story of God coming into the middle of life, of our lives, opening the dialogue with us. That s what Advent is really all about: God visiting the earth in person to speak with anyone and everyone who is ready to do so. Several of our church family members and friends need our prayers: Chele Brumley s friend Doreen; Karen Duffy s Mother-in-law; Barbara Jautze; Jessie Smith; Dianne Raphael; Claudine Landrum; Lars Linden; Helen Engel; Trey Hill; Margie Olsen s daughter-in-law, Betsy Kelberlau; Alan Miller; AnneMarie Barnard s son Robert, Jr; Jan Arellano; John Batchelder; the Jacob s great grandson, Tyler Johnson; Nathan Henley; Mo Raphael and Betty Black s grand-son. Condolences are extended to the families of Doris Perry and Ginny Denise who passed away recently.

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11 November 2015 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 Worship Service Coffee Social 2 AA 7:30 p. m. 3 Bible Study K & C 10 a.m. 4 Choir 5:00 p.m. AA 7:30 p.m. 5 Al-Anon Noon Games 12:30 6 N.A. Meet 7:00 p.m 7 Junk in the Trunk 8 Worship Service Coffee Social Finance Board NA Dist Deacons 9 a.m. AA 7:30 p. m. 10 Bible Study Bldg& Grnds 7:00 p.m. 11 Choir 5:00 p.m. AA 7:30 p.m. 12 Al-Anon Noon Games 12:30 Exec Board 7:00 p.m. 13 Women s Fellowship 1 p.m. Salvation Army 3:30-5:30 N.A. Meet 7pm Worship Service Coffee social Blood Drive 16 AA 7:30 p. m. 17 Bible Study K & C 10 a.m. IAWT 6:00p.m. 18 Choir 5:00 p.m. AA 7:30 p.m. 19 Al-Anon Noon Games 12:30 20 N.A. Meet 7:00 p.m 21 AA District 7:00 p..m. 22 Worship Service Coffee social 23 AA 7:30 p. m. 24 Bible Study Salvation Army 3:30-5:30 25 Choir 5:00 p.m. AA 7:30 p.m. 26 THANKSGIVING Al-Anon Noon Games 12:30 27 Office Closed N.A. Meet 7:00 p.m Worship Service Coffee social 30 AA 7:30 p. m. December Deadline Newsletter Nov. 18th

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