Volume 43, Number 12 - December 2018 Westgater the Collegiate Presbyterian Church & The Vine Student Center l Ames, Iowa Advent 2018 First Sunday of Advent Sunday, December 2, 2018 Traditional Worship Service @ 9:00AM re:forming Worship Service @ 11:115AM Second Sunday of Advent Sunday, December 9, 2018 Cantata Worship Service @ 9:00AM re:forming Music Service @ 11:15AM Wednesday, December 12, 2018 Christmas Caroling @ 4:00PM Third Sunday of Advent Sunday, December 16, 2018 Traditional Worship Service @ 9:00AM re:forming Worship Service @ 11:115AM Fourth Sunday of Advent Sunday, December 23, 2018 Single Worship Service @ 10:00AM Christmas Eve Services December 24, 2018 Family Friendly Service @ 5:00PM Lessons & Carols Service @ 9:00PM
Welcome our Newest Members Anita Becker Carol Grant Bill LaGrange Drew Barker & Kara Bader Cheryl & Craig Lyon Poinsettias will grace our building for the Advent season! Our custom is to take these plants to folks in our congregation who are not able to get to church very often or who have experienced the death of a loved one in the last year. Sign up in the library to deliver a plant on Sunday, December 16 or purchase a plant in the office in honor, memory, or dedication to a loved one by Tuesday, December 18.
DECEMBER A D U L T S P I R I T U A L F O R M A T I O N C L A S S E S Sunday, Dec 2 - Westgate Center Advent Study 1 - Draw Near to Wonder Sunday, Dec 9 - Westgate Center Advent Study 2 - Draw Near to Truth Sunday, Dec 16 - Westgate Center Advent Study 3 - Draw Near to Justice Sunday, Dec 23 - Sarah Barlow Draw Near to One Another Sunday, Dec 30 No Spiritual Formation Classes Christmas Joy Offering The Christmas Joy Offering is the fourth and final special offering of the PC(USA). Collected during this season of Advent and Christmas, this offering provides financial assistance to individuals and families who have dedicated their lives to the church. This offering contributes to the well-being of those who have faithfully served the church. The Christmas Joy offering also supports leadership development and education for students attending Presbyterian-related racial ethnic schools and colleges. Diversity and inclusion are key teachings of Christ as well as important considerations for the future growth of the church. Presbyterian-related racial ethnic schools afford opportunities that young people might not otherwise be able to experience. 50% of the money collected provides opportunities for racial ethnic leadership development. 50% of the money collected gives to the assistance program of the Board of Pensions. In this time of Advent and Christmas please remember those who have served the church and those who will be future leaders. Please prayerfully consider giving to this offering which will be collected on Sundays, December 16, and December 23. We are excited to announce that we will be exploring Advent through church-wide materials designed to draw us nearer to God and each other. With the theme of Draw Near, we will name our individual and collective longing for God s closeness and for a world made new. Look for information on the many ways you can participate in this formative season as it draws near, including our Advent devotional, sermon series, and spiritual formation opportunities. Advent 1 Draw Near to Wonder (Luke 21:25-36) Advent 2 Draw Near to Truth (Luke 3:1-6; Luke 1:67-79; Philippians 1:3-11) Advent 3 Draw Near to Justice (Luke 3:7-18; Zephaniah 3:14-20) Advent 4 Draw Near to One Another (Luke 1:39-45, 46-55; Psalm 80:1-7) Be sure to pick up your Advent devotional in the Library, Sarah Barlow Lounge or in the church office during office hours. This beautiful devotional will walk us through each day of Advent and help us draw near to the One who leans down to earth to beckon us closer. We will engage our sense of wonder through art, poetic prayers, and written reflections adaptable to all ages. It may even spark some interesting conversations during coffee hour!
Spring 2019 Volunteer Help Needed It is definitely not too early to think about our Wednesday night needs for our Spring 2019 semester. Please check out our links to be part of a cooking or cleaning team on Wednesday nights or the link to provide desserts. This ministry supports our university students who participate in the Vine as well as our children and youth. Please consider how you can support these vital ministries of CPC! You may sign up at the links below or in the library. Club CPC Desserts: tiny.cc/cpcdessertsspring2019 Club CPC Cooking/Cleaning: tiny.cc/cookcleanspring2019 The High School Mission Trip Fundraiser Have you been craving a hot pancake breakfast but don t want to deal with the messy and sticky cleanup? Wait no more-pancakes are here! The senior high youth group will host a pancake breakfast and silent auction fundraiser on Sunday, January 6, following the 10:00a.m. worship service. Please join us for fun, food, friends, and fabulous auction items. Cost for the pancake breakfast is $5 for adults and $3 for children with no family paying over $15. MEALS Dec 5 - Walking Tacos Dec 12 - Chili Christmas Caroling Fa la la la la la la la la! How's your singing voice? We hope you've been practicing because CPC will be caroling on Wednesday, December 12. We will meet in Sarah Barlow Lounge at 4 pm and leave promptly at 4:15 pm. We will return around 5:45 pm and share a soup dinner together at 6:00 pm. Please come and share in festive caroling, good company and tasty Chili, Veggies & Dip, Cornbread, & Christmas Cookies! If you are able and willing to drive, please contact Betsy Thompson (betsy.thompson@cpcames.org or 292-2063) and let her know! SAVE THE DATE for VBS 2019 While it might seem early to be planning, Vacation Bible School is too important to wait! Please mark your calendars for June 24-28, 2019, from 9 am to noon for CPC s To Mars and Beyond VBS. Children ages 3 (and potty trained) through those finishing 5th grade are invited to join us as we explore where God s power can take us. Along the way, they ll learn how God walked with heroes of the Bible, and that God is always with them, too. Children will discover how they can go beyond with faith, boldness, kindness, thankfulness and hope. Relevant music, exciting science, creative crafts, fun recreation, and memorable Bible stories will help kids discover the wonders of God s universe! This fun filled week takes many, many, MANY hands. Middle and high school youth as well as adults are welcome to join us in our fun adventure. Questions or want to volunteer? Talk to Betsy (betsy.thompson@cpcames.org) or 515-292-2063.
Alternative Gift Market The Alternative Gift Market, open again this year at CPC, helps feed the hungry, provide medical help for the sick, minister to victims of war and natural disasters, and educate children in impoverished countries. You can honor people on your Christmas list by giving a life-changing gift in that person s name. For more than 25 years, CPC and other Ames churches have been strong supporters of the AGM. As in previous years, you can choose from among 8 local causes and 30 national/international causes. The local causes include ACCESS, Food at First, Good Neighbor, the Story County Dental Clinic and four others. The national and international causes include STEM for Native Americans, relief for flood and hurricane victims in Louisiana and Texas, mobile clinics for at-risk families in Haiti, fresh water wells in South Sudan, pig pens and fish ponds for families in Thailand and 25 others. The Market table will be in Sarah Barlow Lounge between services on Dec. 2, 16, and 23. If you have questions about the Market, please get in touch with the Bolluyt s, 233-0493 (home), 460-2945 (Karen) or 460-2945 (Jim). Charitable Giving For those who have contributed to CPC through a charitable rollover from an IRA, CPC wants you to know that this tax benefit was made permanent in the 2018 tax reform legislation. Anyone 70 ½ or older who must take a required minimum distribution (RMD) from an IRA may wish to consider this convenient way to support CPC. For a gift to qualify as a qualified charitable distribution, it must be sent directly to CPC. If you have questions about how to do this or how it benefits CPC, please contact Jenny Foley. For detailed information about the tax law and how this might benefit you, please contact your tax preparer. NOTE: A 2018 rollover must be made prior to December 31. C P C S TA F F Brett Becker Pastor/Head of Staff drb@cpcames.org Betsy Thompson Children & Youth Pastor betsy.thompson@cpcames.org Julie Erkel Hagee Director of Campus Ministry & Adult Spiritual Formation julie@cpcames.org Doug Sweeney Choir Director dsweeney@carrolltigers.org Laura LaGrange Organist laura.lagrange@cpcames.org Jenny Foley Business Administrator jenny.foley@cpcames.org Victoria Knight Secretary/Graphic Artist secretary@cpcames.org Dear Belinda and Memorial Committee of the CPC, We received your letter and the generous gift from the bequest of the Amemiya family. After your description of your wonderful friend, we feel honored that you thought of our IowaWINs work with families in crisis after the ICE raid last May. We feel blessed that the majority of the detainees are staying with us, hoping for a good result when they are finally able to have a hearing in federal court to determine immigration status. Each case will be different. The group is holding together, even though the primary providers won t be eligible to obtain work permits again until after the hearings that are scheduled throughout the first part of 2019. Your donation will be used immediately, as we provide supplements to each detainee that can be applied to rent or utility bills. A retired couple in our congregation, Dr. Bob (veterinarian) and Barbara (architect) Welander recall attending CPC as a young married couple when Pastor Davies was serving the church. Though we have a lot of new members, many still remember the Larry Mitchell family and the good years they have spent with us. Your letter will be posted on our bulletin board as many people will be interested in reading it. Peace to your church in the work they do, Martha Wiley First Presbyterian Church Mount Pleasant, Iowa
December Sunday, December 2, 2018 Communion 9:00a Traditional Worship Service (Sanc) 10:00a Fellowship Coffee (Social Hall) 10:15a Spiritual Formation Classes 11:15a re:forming Worship Service (Sanc) Sunday, December 9, 2018 9:00a Traditional Worship Service (Sanc) 10:00a Fellowship Coffee (Library and SBL) 10:15a Spiritual Formation Classes 11:15a re:forming Worship Service (Sanc) Sunday, December 16, 2018 9:00a Traditional Worship Service (Sanc) 10:00a Fellowship Coffee (Library and SBL) 10:15a Spiritual Formation Classes 11:15a re:forming Worship Service (Sanc) Sunday, December 23, 2018 10:00a Single Worship Service (Sanc) 11:00a Fellowship Coffee (SBL) Sunday, December 30, 2018 10:00a Single Worship Service (Sanc) 11:00a Fellowship Coffee (Library and SBL) Collegiate Presbyterian Church & The Vine Student Center thewestgater