ALTERNATIVE CHRISTMAS MARKET. November 6th & 13th

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1 With you on your journey Volume 40 Issue 22 October 27, 2016 Give. Empower. Transform. As November begins and we enter the season of giving thanks, I am personally thankful for the generosity of our church and your faithful stewardship over the past year. Recently, we paid off the bank loan used to make our capital improvements. That is a significant accomplishment and cause for celebration. Along with that, we re still on track with our debt repayment plan. Also thanks to your weekly offerings, we ve had a strong year in our operating funds and have no outstanding liabilities. We are confident that if everyone will complete their pledges for this year, we will finish 2016 on a great note with any surplus going to paying off our remaining debts. All of these great achievements are thanks to the faithfulness, generosity, and sacrifice of great people like you. I am thankful. Our administrative leaders are thankful. The entire staff is thankful. And as we read in II Corinthians, God is thankful Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. II Corinthians 9: 7. I hope you will be thankful as well. Over the next several weeks, you will be asked to pray about your giving to First Church for On November 20th, we will all offer our pledge cards to God as a sign of commitment. As you do, you can be assured that your gifts are being used responsibly and directly for mission and ministry. I will pray for your discernment of your pledge just as I am offering thanks to God for all you ve already done. Gracefully, David Twas the month before Christmas, And Fellowship Hall was jingling with shoppers All having a Ball! The Alternative Market was in full swing With just the right gifts to make the heart sing!! ALTERNATIVE CHRISTMAS MARKET November 6th & 13th Come shop till you drop at your favorite market for those special gifts that keep on giving. Market is from 8 am to 1 pm on Sunday, November 6th and Sunday, November 13th in the Fellowship Hall. Credit/debit cards accepted! Many of your favorite local and global charities/vendors are back - Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance, Heifer Project International, Arkansas Food Bank (formerly Rice Depot), Harmony Health Clinic, Equal Exchange Coffee and Candy, KIVA/FLAME, CDC and many other FUMC groups. You can also sign up to give to a needy child or family with our Caring Christmas Tree. For questions or to volunteer to help staff the tables, please contact Sarah James( or sarahpaulj@att.net). 723 Center Street Little Rock, Arkansas IN THIS ISSUE: News & Events Charge Conference - Nov. 6th Election Day Communion November 8th at Noon MISSION & OUTREACH Walk for CommUnity - Nov. 6th KIDS@FIRST A special Thank You! YOUTH It s basketball time! MUSIC & ARTS Check out the FirstArts mural! OUR VISION As a community and individuals, we seek to be good neighbors to make Little Rock a place where children THRIVE. We will use all facets of our everyday lives to work for the things children need: Trust, Health, Relationships, Imagination, Value, and Education. firstunited methodistchurch DOWNTOWN LITTLE ROCK

2 NEW & EVENTS Join us for Communion on Election Day! On Election Day, Nov. 8, there will be a lot of talk about all the things that divide us candidates, issues, policies, and ideology. However, when we celebrate Holy Communion, we celebrate the profound act of re-membering ourselves as the Body of Christ. This year we re holding a service of Holy Communion on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 8th at 12:00 in the chapel. On this day when we choose who will be our leaders, this 30 minute service of worship will be a time to remember that we are truly led by the love of Jesus Christ. By holding this service our church will be participating in a national movement of churches seeking to claim unity in the midst of such a divisive political climate. You can visit for more information. This is a great opportunity for you to invite your friends and neighbors to worship. Welcome Christi Harper Welcome Christi Harper as Office Manager. The Staff Parish Relations Committee is pleased to announce that Christi Harper will be joining our staff November 7th as our Office Manager. Christi has been an Administrative Specialist at the Arkansas Tobacco Control. A native of Little Rock, she received her degree from John Brown University in 2010 and has worked in Little Rock since then. Christi will be a great addition to our team. Join the SPRC and staff in welcoming her and praying for her in this time of transition. Church Women United Central Arkansas South s World Community Day will be on Friday, November 4 at Bethel AME Church, 815 W. 16th Street Registration and refreshments will be at 9:30 am and the program at 10:00 am. The speaker will be Mireya Reith who is the Executive Director of Arkansas United Community Coalition (AUCC), Arkansas first nonprofit working at the state level to empower immigrants. Inspired by her experiences growing up in Fayetteville, Arkansas as the daughter of a Mexican immigrant, Reith founded AUCC in order to more broadly foster the integration of her state s newly emerged immigrant population. Reith proudly served her country as a municipal development volunteer with the Peace Corps in El Salvador. Reith s commitment and passion for diversity further derives from her 14-year career in the field of international political development, where she worked across five continents with American nonprofit organizations and the United Nations to engage marginalized communities in the democratic process. Charge Conference & Town Hall Meeting - November 6th Join us for our annual Charge Conference and Town Hall meeting Sunday, November 6th at 6:00 p.m. in the Cokesbury Center. Charge Conference is the annual meeting of our church body where we celebrate what God has done through us in the past year and look to the future with excitement. CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER Over $9000 in Scholarships Awarded The CDC has been able to award $9100 dollars in scholarships for the school year. These funds have come from the Wollheb Remmel Scholarship Fund, Ardellia Womack Scholarship Fund, Mildred & Oliver Harper Scholarship Fund, and the Bettye Caldwell Memorial Scholarship Fund. CDC Participates in the Young Leader of the Americas Initiative CDC is participating in the YLAI program (Young Leader of the Americas Initiative). Dr. La-Tonia Arthur is from Barbados and has opened her own child care center. She will be spending approximately 3 weeks at the CDC to learn how our center works. We will be sharing strategies on how to provide quality care to children. MISSION & OUTREACH Sunday, Nov. 6th Please plan to join the FUMCLR team as we participate in the 17th annual Just Communities of Arkansas Walk for CommUnity on Sunday, Nov. 6, 3-5 pm, at the River Market Pavilion. It s a great way to live our message about being good neighbors to make Little Rock a place where children THRIVE! Please bring your friends and family and spread the word! Use the link below to join the FUMCLR team! firstunitedmethodistchurchoflittlerock First Church hosts Cornbread Festival Pancake Breakfast - Oct. 29th! FUMC is hosting the Cornbread Festival Pancake Breakfast from 9-11 am, as part of the Arkansas Cornbread Festival which runs from 11 am -4 pm! The Festival will benefit the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance, Our House and studiomain!

3 A Harvest Festival THANK YOU to Rush and Linda Harding! A special hug and thank you to Rush and Linda.the children loved the playground, tractor hayride, food and incredible opportunity to safely run and play in such large space in perfect weather! Our children s council, led by Julie Diamant, provided games, pumpkin decorating, etc. for our children. A big THANK YOU to Julie and all who volunteered to help her! Boomwhackers Boomwhackers, our children s musical group, offered their very first song in First Tradition this week and were great! The children, ages Kindergarten thru 6th grade, only had a few weeks to prepare and not only learned to sing a new song, but also learned notes and how to play new percussion tube instruments. The Boomwhacker tubes are used in teaching music and in music therapy. They are lightweight, hollow, color-coded plastic tubes that are tuned to pitch by the tube s length. That is why you so saw many different lengths bobbing up and down in worship. Thank you to Mr. Kent and Mr. Brent for helping Kyle teach and escort our children. Thank you to our Sunday school teachers for being hands-on classroom support in anyway needed! Check with Mr. Kyle on dates for the holiday rehearsal sessions.i can t wait until their next musical offering! FIRST YOUTH Sunday Morning at the Movies This Sunday we are continuing Zootopia, an animated Disney movie filled with many of the cultural issues we face in Join us as we explore the connections between a society of animals and a society that often feels very animalistic! Join us as we watch and discuss this fun animated film from 9:45-10:50 am. Church League Basketball It s time for church league basketball! There are leagues for 7-8th, 9-10th, and 11-12th grade boys and girls who are not already on a school or traveling team. The regular season begins January 7, and the tournament games will conclude by March 16. Our original rosters are due by November 8, so if you are interested in playing some ball this year, please contact Austin. MUSIC & ARTS Special Musical Guests - October 30th The Singers and Chamber Singers are the two choral groups in the Music Department at ASU-Beebe. The Singers is a nonauditioned group open to all students at ASU-Beebe, while the Chamber Singers requires an audition. Both groups participate in seasonal concerts and the Madrigal Feast (Dec. 2 and 3) while the Chamber Singers additionally sing for special events and high school recruiting visits. Both choirs will be singing on Sunday, October 30th during First Tradition. Please come and enjoy! FirstArts Mural off 7th Street Have you noticed the new mural on the old building the church purchased between Center and Spring Streets? If you are driving from Broadway to Center Street, take a peek and enjoy the new creation by FirstArts students! The Gift of the Shoe that Grows! During the summer our children decided to focus on our THRIVE vision and raise money to purchase shoes for children that would grow 5 sizes in 5 years. The diseases that occur from children going without shoes in areas of poor sanitation are heartbreaking. Our initial hope was to send the shoes to Cuba with Nechi Fullerton, but the arrangement became complicated due to baggage limits and shipping costs. The decision was made to give the shoes to children in the most desperate need, and that has been accomplished. Kids@First was sent a lovely thank you note and a plaque to be placed in our children s area for our donation.

4 HARVEST FESTIVAL 2016

5 FRIENDS & FAMILY Welcome New Member Congratulations Congratulations to Jim and Sharon Newell who were married on October 15th. Sympathy To Vickie Guthrie and family following the death of her father, Harry Parks, on October 17th. To the family and friends of John Ed Chiles, who died on October 19th. We welcomed Elizabeth Pearce into membership on Sunday, October 23rd during First Tradition. Elizabeth joins by transfer of membership from another Methodist Church. To Brent Wulf and family following the death of his grandmother, Helen Wulf, on October 21st. To Stacy Clark and family following the death of her mother, Doris Wells, on October 24th. Memorials & Honorariums In Memory of Gerald Mattox by Bequita Gray In Memory of Gene Eberle by Ruth Ann & Jim Johnson, Mr. & Mrs. Robert Cress, Eloise Allen, Keith Germer, James Bell, Cherry Light, Patsy Frost, Judy Lanford, Robert & Ginny Shell, Jackson & Rebecca Farrow, L.L. Deloney, David Field, Martha Faulker, Robert Wilson Congratulations Jonathan! Jonathan Caudle celebrated 10 years of employment at FUMC on October 27th. Thank you for your hard work, dedication, and the love you show every day. You are a blessing to our church! In Memory of Don Coulter by MC Webb Jr., Martha Faulkner, Stuart Jackson In Memory of John Ed Pope by Sarah Spencer & Fred Oswald In Memory of John Ed Chiles by Martha Faulkner, Mary Ellen Murray, Irma M. Jewell, Pat Smith, Faye Suitt, Glendon Acre In Memory of Susan Zook by Suzanne McDonald In Honor of Jonathan Caudle, JC Carpenter and the Maintenance Staff by Mabel Harris-Webb Thank You - Christmas in October The PALS JOURNEY GROUP helped to load the church van with all the wonderful new gifts that church members brought for Christmas in October for the Cookson Hills Center in Oklahoma. Thanks to everyone who brought new gifts for children, youth, women and men. They are really appreciated especially by the mainly Cherokee people who live in this very poor area of Eastern Oklahoma. Inez Stone and Carol Sherer are taking the gifts to the Cookson Hills Center on Thursday, October 27. WEEKLY BIBLE READINGS October 30, th Sunday after Pentecost Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4; Psalm 119: ; 2 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 11-12; Luke 19:1-10 November 6, th Sunday after Pentecost Haggai 1:15b-2:9; Psalm 145:1-5, 17-21; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17; Luke 20:27-38

6 firstunited methodistchurch LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS The First United Methodist In the First Place (USPS ) is published every other week for a total of 26 issues by the First United Methodist Church, 723 Center Street, Little Rock, Arkansas Editor, David Freeman ; Managing Editor, Lesley Andrews; Periodicals postage paid at Little Rock, Arkansas. www. fumclr.org. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to FUMC In The First Place, 723 Center Street, Little Rock, Arkansas PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID LITTLE ROCK, AR <<FullNameWithSalutations>> <<AddressLine1>> <<AddressLine2>> <<AddressLine3>> Follow us! facebook.com/fumclr The next issue of In the First Place will be published on November 10, Submission deadline is November 6.