THE TIMES OF EPIPHANY UCC

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1 THE TIMES OF EPIPHANY UCC 9365 Clarence Center Rd, Clarence Center, NY (716) Website: Pastoral Care: Rev. Martin Hamann call Margaret Jones if Pastoral Care is needed Facebook: Epiphany UCC Family Office: 9:30-2:30 M, W. TH November 2017 Fellow Members, It was an extremely busy end of September and beginning of October at Epiphany UCC. We had a town hall to talk about our potential new pastor, then our new pastor came to preach, followed by a successful congregational vote and last but definitely not least, we honored our beloved Reverend George Cushing with the status Pastor Emeritus. The celebration for Pastor George was a wonderful way to recognize and honor someone who is such an important part of our past and the history of Epiphany UCC. He helped build the foundation for who we are today, and will always be a beloved member of our church family. I want to thank everyone who helped plan the event, led by Marlene Schlifke and Judy Oun. It was heartwarming to see al who came to enjoy the festivities. In addition to celebrating a key member of our past, we also successfully voted to hire a new pastor for Epiphany UCC; one who can help take us to new heights and a bright future. I am very proud of our Leadership team and the entire congregation for all the hard work and openness throughout our search process. We spent countless hours going through candidate profiles and discussing our church needs and trying to determine who could help lead our church and become a true member of the Epiphany family. Once we narrowed it down, we had a candid and open town hall to discuss the candidate and answer any questions. Finally, on September 24, 2017, our candidate came to preach and did an outstanding job. The membership overwhelmingly voted to officially offer the job to Pastor Lori Burns, and she accepted. Pastor Lori and her family will be a wonderful addition to Epiphany UCC. She has roots in Western New York and we will moving back here from Kentucky. She will be coming home, when she moves back to the Amherst/ Clarence area. She has already spend quite a bit of time with the Leadership team and the youth group. Pastor Lori will bring an outstanding level of energy, spiritual leadership and overall guidance to our church. I personally feel she is the perfect fit for where we are and where we want to go. Pastor Lori will begin on Sunday, January 14th, 2018, as she needed to give her church a 90 day notice. We can t wait for her to start and for everyone to get to know her. If you have not had a chance to meet her or hear her preach, please plan to do so. That is the only way to see and understand why there is so much excitement. Thanks again for continuing to be the Epiphany UCC that we all love to be a part of. God Bless and see you on Sundays, Scott H. Howell President, Epiphany UCC INSIDE THIS ISSUE President 1 Facilities, Office, Stats & Memorial 2 Sunday School, Women s Fellowship Fundraising, Family Events & Youth Group 3 Outreach, Wear N Share, Birthdays New York Conference My Thoughts 5 November Schedule & Calendar 6 Ads 7

2 THE TIMES OF EPIPHANY Page 2 Facilities Team Anyone willing to help on Friday, November 24th or Saturday, November 25th to put up the Christmas tree and on Sunday, November 26th (Hanging of the Greens) to put up the outdoor manger, please contact Dave at Youth Group November 17th and 18th, the Youth will be having a sleepover at the church. They will do a service project and watch a movie. Look for more information in the bulletin! Youth Group is selling the Country Meat Sticks again. There are 15 flavors and they are $1/00 each. If you are interested, please see Becky or Dave or one of our Youth. All proceeds will go to Youth Group, Mission trips and Youth Events. WOMEN S FELLOWSHIP NEWS Women s Fellowship met on Thursday, October 5 with 10 attending. The following was recommended and approved: $10.00 David Wells Scholarship in memory of Irmgard Pamer. $25.00 Youth Group for Trick or Treat candy at Dunkirk. The Samaritan s will meet at St. Stephen s Bethlehem on October 17 at Noon. Lunch will be provide for $3.00. There will be NO meeting in November. Looking Ahead Our Mother-Daughter Banquet will be held on Friday, May 11. Our next meeting will be Thursday, November 2 at Ruth s. Devotions will be led by Karen and Nancy will serve as hostess. This will be our soup luncheon. Stewardship Sunday November 12, 2017 Stewardship Envelopes have been mailed. Please return by Stewardship Sunday, November 12th! If you can donate your Talents & Gifts, the church would appreciate it! If you did not receive a Stewardship Envelope but would like one, there are extras located in the back of the church. Please see an usher. Thank you!

3 THE TIMES OF EPIPHANY Page 3 SPIRITUAL GROWTH & SUNDAY SCHOOL NEWS Spiritual Growth has not met this year (with Rev. Cushing s party and the congregational vote both falling on the days we were to meet) but will be doing so in November! We will make some decisions for the upcoming year! Sunday School- We have had decent attendance, but we would love to see more kids as always! We will be trick or treating on Oct. 29th with the change collected we will help a family in need this holiday season! Kids Wear your costumes and Members Get your coins ready! Hanging of the Greens will be Sunday, November 26 the adult project will be a driftwood Christmas tree. It is a table top craft approx. 20 tall. This year Christmas Eve is on a Sunday so the pageant will be on Christmas Eve I am hoping this will be a bit more involved than a crèche with the story being read I will need to see who wants to participate! REMEMBER Carole is always looking for greeters and the choir is looking for singers! We are all so blessed to be a part of this church no wonder Pastor Lori is joining us! Have an awesome Fall! Jennifer VITAL STATISTIC 09/16/ /15/2017 Please report any changes you may have in your address/ phone number. This will save the Church money. Thank You MEMORIALS 09/16/17-010/15/17 DONATIONS TO BUILDING FUND: In Memory Of: Irmgard Pamer From: Women s Fellowship to the David Wells MEMORIAL GIFTS HOW DO I MAKE ONE? If you would like to remember someone with a gift that is shared with your church, you may do so through a donation to any designated fund that you desire. Your donation can be made in memory of OR in honor of someone. Please call the office and the Pastor can discuss your options with you. Fundraising Thank you to all who helped, donated and attended our 2nd Annual Blues and BBQ Event!! The weather was perfect and everyone had a great time! We raised just over $600!!! Our next event will be a Holiday Vendor Fair on Friday, December 8th. If you would like to help out or know anyone interested in joining our vendors or crafters list, please let Kim know! Thank you! BUILDING RENTAL Both the Community Outreach Building (COB) and our sanctuary are available for rent. If you have an event that is getting too large for you to have at your home...why not consider having it here. There is now a kitchenette in the COB, plus tables and chairs available and you don t have to worry about the weather. The price is reasonable too, just a $50 donation for members and a $75 donation for non-members. We also ask for a security deposit (that will be returned) to hold the date. Please see Emmy for more information and the forms. You can also call the office for the forms and to check availability.

4 THE TIMES OF EPIPHANY Page 4 HANGING OF THE GREENS AN ADVENT CELEBRATION A Family Event for All Sunday, November 26, 2017 All are invited Schedule following church service: 11:20 am LUNCH (free will offering) PLEASE BRING A DISH TO PASS. Hot dogs, rolls, etc. will be provided. Noon Carol Fest 12:15pm CRAFTS & DECORATING Adult Craft TBA Children Crafts downstairs Christmas Flower Order Form 2017 Our flowers are purchased through Elaine s Flower Shop. ALL CHECKS PAYABLE & MAILED TO: EPIPHANY UCC 9365 Clarence Center Rd Clarence Center, NY Poinsettia Plants (Price TBA) Donation for Decorations DEADLINE FOR ORDERING: 12/3 NO ORDERS WILL BE ACCEPTED AFTER THAT DATE. Name Name Phone Type of Dish # Children: Lunch Craft # Adults: Lunch Craft Sign up through the offering plate or call the office by November 23rd! THANK YOU! In Memory Of: In Honor Of: PLEASE DESIGNATE ONE PERSON TO PICKUP YOUR PLANTS FOR THE FAMILY ON THE SUNDAY BEFORE CHRISTMAS OR CHRISTMAS EVE.

5 THE TIMES OF EPIPHANY Page 5 Outreach News Save the Date: FUTURE IN OUR HANDS USA Annual Fundraiser An Afternoon Interlude IV Saturday, November 18, 2017 Clarence United Methodist Church Greiner Rd, Clarence, NY For the past 3 years we have supported this event, and have had enough attendees to reserve a table The event consists of a luncheon, a boutique with many handcrafted items and a fashion show highlighting clothing from Christopher & Banks. The cost is $25 which helps fund a very worthwhile charity helping others in Zambia and Kenya. If you are interested in attending, please contact Helen November Birthdays HAPPY BIRTHDAY! If we have missed your birthday, please give our office a call Adults 08 Krista Ulrich 09 Cheryl Milka 10 Nicholas Vacanti 12 Paula McKinnon 22 Judy Oun 29 Carole Mathews Children 03 Hayley Schnaufer 21 McKaya Bohne 26 Joshua Brown 26 Lucy Reese 30 Adeline Weber Your Outreach Team would like to wish everyone who is part of our Epiphany family a Happy and Healthy Thanksgiving It is a time to gather with loved ones to celebrate our blessings and give thanks for all we have been blessed with! The Birthday money collected is going into our Building Fund to help with our mortgage payments. Have your coins, dollars or even checks ready for the Celebration on November 5th! Upcoming Events: Stewardship Sunday November 12th Hanging of the Greens November 26th Breakfast with Santa December 16th Christmas Pageant- December 24th *Check your bulletin for more information and dates!! Rev. Martin Hamann has agreed to be our Pastoral Care contact.. He will be available for Emergencies only. If there is the need for funeral or memorial services, those will be handled directly with the family. Any questions or if you need his services, please contact Margaret Jones at Thank you. Share Your Good News!! If you have any news that you d like to share with your Epiphany Family, please let the office know and we will try to have the information included in our next newsletter.

6 THE TIMES OF EPIPHANY Page 6 Happenings Around Our Conference (as stated in the weekly online editions) Or to read the actual weekly newsletter My Thoughts reprinted from October 4, 2017 From Marjorie: One tragedy follows another, leaving us with scarcely a chance to catch our breath. Senseless violence follows close upon the havoc wrought by wind and water. The people of Puerto Rico do not yet have the barest necessities, and our attention is pulled away by another horrific scene of suffering, as we try to comprehend the scope of chaos and grief caused by a lone gunman in Las Vegas. My impulse is to hunker down, to keep my head low, and try to ride it out, so as not to be overwhelmed. Now hunkering down can be an effective strategy in the short term: we need to be kind to ourselves and limit our exposure, perhaps, to images that haunt us. However, although the hurricane season will end, this season of senseless violence in our country and our world may be with us for a long time. Hunkering down cannot become a habit. In the space between the storms, I hear the call to do what I can to ease suffering and to resist with all my might the fragmentation of diverse communities into splinters of sameness. May we, as the church, an emergency response team of sorts, encourage and support one another, as we listen together to our still-speaking God and find ways to build and rebuild beloved community. From Freeman: What makes the horror in Las Vegas both confounding and perhaps all more chilling is that Stephen Paddock did not fit the profile of one who would commit the carnage on Sunday evening. He lived in a 55+ community. He was not on a terror watch or no fly list. He did not appear to have any issues making ends meet. He passed all the required background checks to purchase ammunition. Stephen Paddock s only experience with law enforcement officials was a traffic violation. But something was apparently missing in Stephen Paddock s life that drove him to take other lives and his own, and in an interview his brother Eric pointed to one possibility: community. Stephen Paddock s community appeared to be mostly the poker table. He ties to his family were such that another brother Patrick did not recognize his photo. He had neither any political nor religious affiliation. While investigators are connecting the dots at this writing, a New York Times article described Stephen Paddock s history as one pointing to an unmoored life. God knows as the Church we need to pray for the souls of our dead, the hundreds wounded, and all those affected by this horrendous event. Yet former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, another affected by gun violence, rightly spoke that our thoughts and prayers are not enough to stop the next shooting. Perhaps this is our time ot be the Church to pray, to give comfort, to advocate for change, to work for what we envision as the United Church of Christ. a just world for all. Yet perhaps this is our time to also be th Church, a place where people can find true, authentic loving community a place to belong. God, through Jesus Christ invites all time and time again, to a moored life to a place where no one has to be alone and live with internal pain that can lead externally to disastrous and destructive consequences, Perhaps, this yet another wake up call for us as the Church to strive all the mor to be the place where people can find, community, belonging, affirmation, and love, so that all, as our recent UCC Be the Church slogan encourages, can enjoy life. From Marsha: In the immortal words of Thomas Paine, These are the times that try men s souls. In the aftermath of such horrendous acts of violence I, like many others, continually find myself struggling with the questions of how could something like this happened in a civilized society? Where is our common decency and respect for human life? When will all of these killings stop? I must admit that while these atrocities indeed try and grieve my soul, my faith remains un shattered. Despite the pain we all are feeling as we attempt to make sense of the senseless, I find refuge in knowing the God who is our Comforter. Despite the tears that will be shed in the weeks and months to come, I find refuge in knowing the God who has promised to wipe every tear from our eyes. While some cower in fear and dismay, there is comfort in trusting the God who provides peace that passes all understanding. As we mourn the dead, pray for the injured, and support those who grieve, I take refuge in knowing that earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot heal. From Ryan: A prayer of lament O God of Grief and Hidden Sorrow Our prayers ache in the swell of raising healing petitions Our hearts ache in senseless violence on the innocence of others. Our souls swoon from being worn down by crying and pain. Yet The psalmist says My flesh and my hear may fail but God is the rock of my heart and my portion forever (ps73:26) However that does not make anything easier. only bearable Holy One Wrap us in your compassion with such boldness that we can make your Just world for all Reel Amen My Thoughts from October 18, 2017 I was The New York State Thruway, traveling eastward from Buffalo. As the road took a gentle turn downward, approaching the New York State Fairgrounds and the western suburbs of Syracuse, it suddenly appeared... out of nowhere... a rainbow! Suddenly, what had been a fairly ordinary journey was suddenly filled with beauty and wonder as the array of colors contrasted against the shades of gray in the skies over Central New York. Wikipedia defines a rainbow as a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky" Yet my understanding of a rainbow has never been a scientific one. It has been, and is, far more mystical: God's promise and covenant made to humanity through Noah that no flood or storm would ultimately prevail in this world. As I marveled at the sight, a song from my youth that I re-learned with the gospel choir at Middle Collegiate Church came to mind that musically underscored this divine promise. The soloist was the incomparable Benjamin Smith, who could vocally leap from a perfect baritone to a perfect soprano in an instant. I still feel chills when I think of Ben, who passed away this year, leading us in declaring the following lyrics: God put a rainbow in the sky God put a rainbow in the sky Oh, God put a rainbow in the sky God put a rainbow in the sky When it looked like the sun Wasn't gonna shine anymore My God put a rainbow in the sky He put a rainbow in the sky There are several versions of this song on YouTube, notably by Mahalia Jackson. My favorite is by gospel pioneer Sallie Martin with the Mass Choir of the National Convention of Gospel Choirs & Choruses, founded by her collaborator and the 'Father of gospel music", Thomas A Dorsey. Here is the link: God knows we've seen a lot of storms this year. September was the most active month on record for hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean. People from Texas to Florida to Puerto Rico and other parts of the Caribbean are still reeling even as they attempt to rebuild. And many more are rocked by these stormy political, social, and economic times. Against that cloudy sky, what a blessing it was to be reminded by that rainbow of the lyrics of another favorite hymn, How Firm a Foundation (New Century Hymnal). When through the deep waters I call you to go, The rivers of woe shall not over you flow; For I will be with you your troubles to bless, Delivering you from your deepest distress. Thanking God for the promise, Freeman Rev. Freeman L. Palmer Associate Conference Minister for Congregational Development freemanpalmer@uccny.org

7 THE TIMES OF EPIPHANY Page 7 November /05 11/12 11/19 11/26 GREETERS: Lori Nettin Margarate Jones Helen Matthews Carole Mathews Linda Hill USHERS: Paul Wollenberg Scott Howell Ed Miller Ron Tremblay Bob Metz Pat Schultz Bev Miller Ed Stepien Greg Trietley Robert Knaus Roger Hoeltke Chris Stepien Shirley Wollenberg Dave Brockner Carol Leible ELDERS: Ron Tremblay Chet Jarmusz Pat Jarmusz Ed Stepien Chris Stepien PLEASE NOTE: Gluten Free options are available for congregants taking communion. If anyone has a gluten allergy, they should let the usher know and they will be served gluten free a communion. LAY READERS: Bev Miller Marlene Schlifke Helen Matthews Debbie Paden ALTAR: Chris Stepien Shirley Wollenberg Sharon Hamerski Carol Leible CHURCH SERVICES & Sunday School **coffee hour begins at 9:30am OFFICE HOURS: 9:30-2:30 M, W. TH 10:00am** Callers & Women s Fellowship 1st Thursday 10:30am Meet at Ruth s home, 67 Lou Drive, Depew Samaritan Society meet at St. Stephens/Bethlehem UCC Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Don t forget to turn your clocks back to be on time for church on Nov 5 5 Communion Brunch w/ Friends 1 2 Women s Fellowship 11 am Leadership 6:30 pm Veterans Day 12 Stewardship Sunday Facilities 7 pm Outreach 7 pm Happy Thanksgiving Hanging of the Greens

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