THE FORECASTER January, 2019 Official Publication of First Congregational Church, UCC 30 Main Street, Binghamton, New York 13905 No matter who you are or where you are on life s journey, you are welcome here at First Congregational Church! Jazz Vespers Jazz Vespers on January 13, 2019, will feature Rob Weinberger. Rob has played in many musical ensembles since he began performing creative music in 1974. Rob performed and recorded for 10 years in the NYC s Lower East Side music scene with groups as diverse as The Worms, Blues Traveler, and Joan Osborne. Upon his relocation to upstate New York, he has been active in all aspects of the regional musical community as a composer, arranger, teacher and performer. He has also been the music director aboard cruise ships based out of Hawaii. Rob is a musical chameleon and at the time of this printing, is deciding in what incarnation he will appear for this Jazz Vespers. No matter what it is, I can guarantee you will love the sound he offers and the ambiance he creates. Join us on January 13 at 5:00 PM in the church sanctuary. Annual Meeting of the Congregation January 27, 2019, is the Annual Meeting of the First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ. This is an important time in the life of the congregation. First, it is a legal meeting of the Corporation as required by the State of New York. Second, it is a time for members of the corporation/congregation to hear and receive reports from the various boards and committees of the church on activities of the last year. Third, the meeting is a time to elect new leaders and share ideas for the coming year. (Cont. on Page 2 Annual Meeting)
(Cont. from Page 1 Annual Meeting) After worship that Sunday, members and friends of the congregation will move to the social hall for a luncheon and fellowship time; following the meal the formal meeting will be called to order. Written reports from all boards and committees are due no later than Monday, January 7, 2019. It would help if the reports were sent to the office earlier. Leslie needs to organize them into a booklet of about 26 pages. Then they must be printed and ready to distribute by January 20. That gives members of the congregation time to review the reports before the meeting. With the change of pastor and new leaders in both boards and council, this is a very important meeting. Often we complain about what they are doing. They are us, so plan to be there! Trustees Report On Tuesday, December 18, the Board of Trustees held their monthly meeting. The normal business was discussed including review of current and year-to-date financials. While we are in a good position at a glance, we are going to be about 20% higher in our gas (heating) budget. The church is still projected to be under budget overall. Leslie and the Trustees are reviewing both the usage of the facility as well as the charges assessed to prepare the financial committee if changes are needed. We are still waiting on a couple of invoices for the entryway project to be submitted, but no surprises are expected. The old ramp on Main Street will be removed in Spring, 2019. The Trustees are looking into the need for new computers for various offices in church. While they are functional, some are 11 years old and will not be of much use shortly. The board is also entertaining bids for a projector system to be used in the sanctuary. An information center (video board) is being donated in our new entryway. The Board of Trustees is very excited about this upgrade! On the downside of things, our business manager, Leslie Lipski, will be leaving us in 2019, possibly as early as April. With Leslie s help, we are putting together a job description and will be looking for one or two persons to fill this position. The board is having a difficult time trying to decide how the job(s) should be performed and by whom. Further discussion was tabled until the January meeting. It was never more evident than during the discussion of office staffing, that all those in attendance are very concerned for the wellbeing of our church. All talk and ideas were on point but not in agreement. I can assure you that whatever decision is reached, it will have been well thought out by people who really care. Our lively meeting was ended at 9:20 PM, holding hands, reciting the Lord s Prayer. Art Price, Chair We spend January 1 walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives not looking for flaws, but for potential. -Ellen Goodman, American Journalist
Celebration of Rev. Dr. Art Suggs Pastorate Rev. Dr. Arthur Suggs is finishing his 11 years as our pastor on December 31, 2018. One of the activities that the Transition Team is organizing is a celebration of his ministry among us. With all the activities of Christmas in December, the party was put off until January 13, 2019. After morning worship that Sunday, there will be a luncheon in the social hall of church. After the meal he will receive some gifts from the congregation; cards from members of the congregation will be appropriate at that time. There will also be opportunity for members to share thoughts and memories of Art s time at First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ. While Art has joined our congregation, protocol requires him to stay away until a new pastor is settled in with the congregation. If you cannot attend, cards/letters may be sent to the church office with the designation, Art s Celebration. January preaching schedule and pastoral care The Transition Team has been interviewing candidates to serve our church as an interim pastor. They will present their suggestion to the Board of Deacons when they are done. Although they feel they are close to finishing, we enter January without a pastor for our congregation. In the four Sundays in January, we have four different worship leaders. January 6 Rev. Lisa Heckman, who recently was interim pastor in Owego, NY January 13- Clare Price, a lay preacher who was a licensed interim pastor in Newark Valley, NY January 20- Zach DuBord, a Minister in Discernment with the Susquehanna Association January 27- Rev. Jim Dunn, a retired minister in the United Church of Christ Should you need pastoral care in January, you may see Clare Price 237-6102, or any deacon in our church. We are blessed with a number of clergy persons in our congregation and a deacon can put you in touch with a minister who can help. At present, it looks very good that there will be an interim pastor in place by February 1, 2019. Faith Works Fellowship Please mark your NEW calendars for January 18, 2019 the first meeting of the new year for Faith Works Fellowship. This is the regularly scheduled planning meeting so please bring your ideas for monthly meeting programs. This will be a pot-luck supper. Here s an opportunity to try out that new recipe you ve been wanting to use! As always, supper begins at 6:00 PM in the social hall. See you on the 18th.
New Members In December, six people officially joined our congregation. Brooke and Sherry Shadduck, who have done child care several years, and Allyson White officially joined. Rev. Dr. Arthur Suggs and Rev. Dr. Robert White are ordained ministers in the Presbyterian Church, and in that denomination do not join their congregation but belong to the Presbytery. In retirement Art wanted to join our congregation and Bob decided to join as well. Rev. Jim Dunn has been an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ and recently retired. He has previously been pastor of East Side Congregational Church in Binghamton; however, most of his work was in Pennsylvania in the area around Philadelphia. Jim has moved back to Endwell and decided to join and be active in our congregation. While most of these faces are not new, we extend a warm welcome to our community of faith! You came through again, FCC! This year is the eighth year the mission committee has reached out to the social worker in the Woodrow Wilson School on Prospect Street for names of families who could use a little help with Christmas gifts. This year we had four families that included about 25 people. Each person was given two gifts a toy type and garment that included over 50 gift- wrapped presents. It took seven large contractor garbage bags to pack them. Members of the mission committee met on Wednesday night, December 19, to sort and pack the beautifully wrapped gifts. They were delivered Thursday morning to the school for the families to pick up. Ms. Liverpool, the school social worker gives us the first names of the people and wishes and sizes of the people who receive the gifts. We don t know family name or address - but that really doesn t matter, for Jesus said, When you do it to the least of His children, we have done it unto Him. THANK YOU FOR CARING AND SHARING CHRISTMAS! Brooke, & Sherry Shadduck, Rev. Jim Dunn, and Rev Art Suggs. Allyson & Bob White not pictured
New Picture Directory Our current church Picture Directory was published in 2014. Being an active congregation, there are constantly changes. Almost everyone s picture is there in one place or another; however, with new staff changes and members it is time for a reprint. The last two Sundays in January the cameras will be set up for pictures. If you would like a new picture taken (of new wrinkles) try to come one of those days and smile after worship. We hope to have new picture pages in February. Questions - call Bob Neill or Clare Price 237-6102. A beautiful Christmas at FCC Christmas started on November 25, when members decorated the sanctuary. Decorations included a new 12 tall Christmas tree. December began with a cookie and tea party. Along with a candle lighting ceremony, Advent worship included a Christmas story or memory each week. Gift angels were all taken by members to buy Christmas gifts for needy families. The gaily wrapped gifts were taken to families of students at the Woodrow Wilson School. On the Sunday before Christmas the front of the sanctuary was filled with beautiful Christmas plants. Christmas Eve candle service wrapped up a lovely holiday season. As we celebrate again the birth of Christ, we pray that the Savior will be born again in our hearts! Board of Deacons Report The board met on Tuesday, December 18. Items discussed included: A review of the duties and responsibilities of the board. Discussed plans for activities of the Christmas season in church. Expressed appreciation for the Advent services organized by the Christian Education committee. Reported on visits by Deacons to shut-in members and friends. Heard plans from the Transition Team for interim minister search, & Art s celebration January 13. Expressed support for new members joining the congregation. Reviewed budget requests for music, outreach and Christian Education committees. Reviewed the membership rolls and proposed a list to present to the congregation for conditional membership letters. Discussed the office staff changes under consideration by the Trustees. The next meeting is January 15, to which new deacon nominees will be invited. Clare Price, Chair
Leslie Lipski Church Administrator Art Price Trustee Chairman Clare Price Deacon Chairman Nancy Wildoner Organist & Choir Director Judy Giblin Director of Jazz Vespers Sharon Shadduck Childcare Provider William Cuddeback Treasurer Martin Rorapaugh Financial Secretary Vanessa Warren Bookkeeper Cindi West-Davidson Custodian Julie Ann Johnson Evening Coordinator Toni Rorapaugh Librarian & Historian Arlene Price Membership & Forecaster Ed. How to contact us Mon-Thurs, 9:00 AM 3:00 PM fcc@binghamtonwireless.com Web:www.uccbinghamton.org 9 John Roberts 10 Chris O Neill 12 Rachel Youmans 13 Rev. Janet Abel Liana Railsback 14 Brandon Bucker Daniel Ray 21 Heidi Bowne Roberts 23 Shirley Sullivan Robert Winans 24 Devin O Neill 26 Debbie Van Dusen 27 Andrea Bucker 28 James Lewis 30 Steven Excell Connor Gyllenhammer Celebrating January birthdays