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Weekly Updates
March 6, 2015
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Nicaraguan Cultural Event --
This Sunday, March 8th
After church
The Nicaragua Team invites you to a time of food, music,
dance and photos of our partnership work in San Juan del Sur. Please
join us! For more information, please see Soo
Laski
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Last Call for Donations to Boston Warm Day Centers
Two Boston Warm
Day Centers have been opened at Old South Church and Emmanuel Church in
order to give those persons displaced from the Long Island Shelters warm
places to stay during the day time hours. Over the past several
weeks the UCW has collecting items to support this effort.
There is a bin in
the Crocker Chapel ready to receive donations of: white socks, warm
gloves/mittens, backpacks, winter hats. Materials for hygiene kits
- items like soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, washcloths, deodorant,
combs, shampoo, tissues, hand sanitizers and feminine hygiene products
are particularly welcome.
On Saturday,
March 7th, from 9:00 - 11:00 a.m. we
will gather at church to prepare the hygiene kits, learn about
homelessness and the need for affordable housing. This service
opportunity will be great for all ages so bring your kids! Please RSVP to
Stacy (stacy@ucw.org).
Then On Sunday morning we
will bless the supplies during Children's Time before they are delivered.
Thank
you for your Support
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Holy Week at UCW
Palm Sunday, Sunday March 29th,
10:00 a.m.
Worship. With palms and song we will mark
Jesus' entry into Jerusalem. Special music will include an anthem
by the children's choir.
Maundy
Thursday, Thursday, April 2nd, 6:15 - 7:30 p.m. in the Vestry. The service begins with a simple
mean of bread, soup and salad and communion as we remember Jesus' last
meal with his disciples on the night that he was betrayed. After
supper, the service then moves into Tenbrae worship which is Latin for
"shadows" or "darkening." As scripture and song leads
us through the unfolding of events from that last supper through Jesus
death on the cross, the light will grow dimmer and dimmer until we depart
at the end of the service in darkness and silence. Child care will
be available. Suggested donation to help cover the cost of the meal
is $5/person with no more than $20/family. Sign up for this service is in
the Crocker Chapel or please rsvp to the office ucw@ucw.org so
that we can plan for sufficient food and child care coverage. There will
also be a sign up in the Crocker Chapel.
Easter
Vigil, Saturday, April 4th, 7:00 - 8:00 p.m. Traditionally on the Saturday
before Easter. newly baptized Christians would keep an all-night vigil
waiting with great expectation for the dawning of Easter's joy. Our
service, however is only an hour long but we embrace this same journey
from darkness into light. We start the service in darkness. Then
the Christ candle that was walked out of our Maundy Thursday service is
brought into the sanctuary. Through communion and the reaffirmation of
our baptism, the light rises and so do our hearts as we give thanks for
the joy of Easter morn that is coming. Child care will be provided.
Easter
Worship, Sunday, April 5th, 10:00 a.m. Our Easter Communion Service will
include a bell introit by the children's bell ringers as well as an
anthem by the children's choir. Lotte Olson a doctoral candidate at
Boston University will play the trumpet. .Children are invited to remain
in the service for the entire service to share in this joyful worship.
If, however, parents do need to step out with their children, the vestry
will be set up with some activities/crafts. The nursery will be
available for infants and toddlers. After worship, all children are
invited to participate in an Easter egg hunt. Please bring your Easter
blooms home to enjoy after the service.
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Council
The Council is the governing body of the church and
is elected at the annual meeting which is the first Sunday in June.
Council meets on the first Wednesday of the month beginning with
dinner at 6:00 p.m. and then business from 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. Council
meetings are open to the congregation so please do stop in and join us if
you are interested.
Votes from the
February Council meeting include:
- Pastor Stacy will be on Sabbatical
from August 17 to November 17th. Council voted to hire an
ordained minister to provide sabbatical coverage for 20 hr/week
during this time.
- Deacons recommended and Council
approved that we extend our Sunday morning worship through the month
of June. (In years past the last Sunday of the year was
Father's Day weekend.) Deacons also recommended and Council approved
that we have summer Sunday services at 5:00 p.m. throughout the
month of July with no servies in August. (In years past, we had one
Sunday afternoon service in July and one Sunday afternoon service in
August,)
- The minutes are attached here. If you
have any questions, please reach out to Pastor Stacy
or to our moderators, Alicia Collins and Annie Gatewood.
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Help Needed
One
of Anya Bassett's former students needs help caring for her father, who
has just been diagnosed with cancer. He lives in Concord, MA, and
the family would like to hire a part-time non-medical person to help him
around the house and to drive him to some of his chemotherapy sessions in
Boston. If you know someone who would be interested, please email
Anya at anyabassett@gmail.com.
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Contact
the Union Church in Waban
Aidan Cunningham,
Office Manager
Karen Salides,
Director of Childrens and Youth Ministries.
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THIS SUNDAY
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Bible Study 8:00 a.m. in Stacy's
Study. We are reading
through the Gospel of Mark. Come once or come every time, All are
welcome!
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Choir Rehearsal at 9:00 a.m.
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Worship Service 10:00 a.m.
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Children's Choir Rehearsal 11:30 a.m.
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Nicaraguan Cultural Event after worship in the Vestry.
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Sunday
School classes continue this today. Children will begin in worship and
leave after the Children's Time. All children are welcome.
Our classes are:
Grades Lesson
Teachers
PreK-1st "Ten
Commandments"
Jane Purser
& Ryan Barry
2nd-3rd "Ten
Commandments"
Karen Salides
4th-5th
Jesus the Savior: Jerusalem
Jaap & Kathy
6th &
up Jesus
the Savior: Jerusalem
Sarah Drummond
Nursery care for infants to three year olds
will be in the Rainbow
Room with Lisa Woloski-Barry.
Sunday School teachers and assistants are needed. Please see
Karen
or a CE Committee Member if you are able to help in
Sunday School.
During Lent and Easter, the children are focusing
on remembering and retelling the story of Jesus' resurrection. Last
Sunday the children, working together, planted six resurrection gardens
for their classrooms. As we continue our journey during the Lenten
season, the children will care for the gardens and watch them grow and
remember that we are continually being made new by God's love and
saving grace.
March
Sunday School Schedule: PreK-3rd Grade
March
8th:-Ten Commandments (Exodus 20: 1-17)
March
15th:-The Light of the World (John 3: 14-21)
March
22nd:- Serve and Follow (John 12: 20-33)
March
29th: -Holy Week (Mark 11:1-11; 14:1-15:47) Palm Sunday
March
Sunday School Schedule 4th grade & up:
March
8th:-Jesus the Savior: Jerusalem
March
15th:-Lesson: Jesus the Savior: Last Supper
March
22nd:-Lesson: Jesus the Savior: Betrayal
March
29th:-Lesson: Jesus the Savior: Death
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Mission/Outreach
Upcoming Opportunities
PARENTS AND KIDS - SAVE THE
DATE:
March
22nd, following worship.
Parents
are invited to gather for lunch and a time to connect, while kids of
all ages enjoy some winter fun! Please RSVP to Karen Salides (Karen@ucw.org)
or Amy Feldman (amy@ucw.org).
 Consider Becoming a
Mentor
at the Russell School!
By
Mark Smith
For some time now, several UCW members have beenkicking around the idea
of becoming mentors to young boys at UCW's partner school in
Dorchester, the Russell School. With many questions and details
about the kind of project UCW members could commit to, Jaap and I went
to the school last week to meet with the school's principal Tamara
Blake. Ms Blake spoke of the needs for her kindergarten-age boys
to have positive adult interaction to help them develop the social
skills they'll need to do well in school this year -- and the years to
come. Together, we brainstormed how a mentoring project could
work for her students. Jaap and I left the school inspired to get
something off the ground this year - and the two of us have committed
to begin to work one-on-one with young boys at Russell and see where
the project (and the spirit!) leads. So, beginning on Monday
March 16, we are launching a new effort and we invite other to consider
joining us. To start, we are committing to a weekly one-on-one time
with students at the beginning of the school day (8:15am) for 15-20
minutes. We will begin by developing friendship and trust with
the boys, reading and drawing with them, playing games and other
activities. After two or three weeks, we will share our
experience with others at UCW and answer questions about what is
required to get involved with kids at the Russell. In the mean time,
please see me or Jaap for more information.
And, like all things of the spirit, stay tuned...
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Nicaragua
Planning and preparation for our next trip to
Nicaragua in the Spring of 2016 is under way.
If you think the you may be interested in joining the UCW
group on our next trip, or would simply like to
learn more about the program, Sue Hadley and Judy MacDonald will
be available in the Crocker Chapel after service this Sunday to
answer any questions you may have. Also please take a moment to
answer this survey.
Results will help in the planning of the trip. Paper copies
are available in the Crocker Chapel as well. Thanks you!
Nicaraguan Cultural Event:
After
church on Sunday, March 8th, The Nicaragua Team invites you to a time
of food, music, dance and photos of our partnership work in San Juan
del Sur. Please join us! For more information, please see Soo
Laski.
NICA Trip Planning Meeting:
Our next NICA trip
planning meeting is schedule for March 15th after worship in Stacy's
study.
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Stewardship Team
Monday, March 9
6:00 p.m.
Stewardship season
begins March 29th!
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 Prayer Group
Wednesday Mornings
at 7:30 a.m.
Prayer Group meets
every Wednesday. Throughout the season of Lent, please consider
walking the labyrinth that is laid out in Memorial Chapel.
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 Coffee with Stacy
This is a drop in
time to share a cup of coffee and conversation. Please also feel
welcome to set up a time with Stacy by emailing her here.
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Thursday at 8:00 p.m. (Please note the later
start due to worship team meeting at 7:00)
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Coffee with the
Moderators
Sunday,
March 15, after worship on the stage
Do you have a question or concern about the life of
the church? Do you want to know more about what Council is
working on as we move towards the end of this year and plan for the
next? Are you looking for a way to deepen your involvement in UCW
but not exactly sure how? Please consider having coffee with
moderators Alicia Collins and Annie Gatewood, after church on March 15th on the stage.
All are welcome for this informal time of conversation.
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 Our Lenten Journey:
companion on
the path.
In
our "go it alone - pull yourself up by your bootstraps"
secular culture, it is good to remember that as people of faith our
life is a life lived together. We are members of the body of
Christ, beloved to God and beloved to each other.
During
Lent, the worship team invites you deeper into this reality by taking
up an intentional practice of praying for another person or praying the
prayer of another person within our community.
Here
is how it will work. You will find in the pews a basket with
cards in it. Take a moment to write down a prayer that you have
for yourself, someone you love or for the world. For example you
could write "Please pray for me -- your name" or
"Please pray that I may have greater insights as to where my
career is to go -- your name" or "please pray for the
end to childhood hunger -- your name". Whatever prayer
is on your heart write it down and then place it in the offering plates
as they pass. You can include your name or leave your
prayer anonymous. Whatever feels right.
The
deacons will then take the prayers and place them in a basket in the
front of the church by the prayer station. On your way out of the
sanctuary you are invited to take a prayer from the basket. This
will be the prayer you commit to praying throughout the Lenten
season. You are free to take one or many. But please pray
these prayers intentionally through the season. As a sign of your
prayer, please light a candle and place it as an offering in the prayer
station. As the season progresses so too will the light of our
prayers.
These
offering of prayer will not replace our spoken prayer time during the
service but will provide an opportunity to deepen our prayer over a
sustained period of time as we hold each other and the concerns of our
hearts very intentionally and personally for each other.
In
the words of Lord, Alfred Tennyson "More is wrought by prayer that
this world dreams of." May it be so!
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