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Neighbors to Neighbors
The business meeting portion of the Annual Meeting, scheduled to begin at 9:30AM, will be live streamed on our EOA/WRA YouTube page. Please note, and this is very important, if you wish to vote on items brought before the membership, you must be physically present at the business meeting.
Register Before it's Too Late!
Only a few days left to register for the Annual Meeting to be held on Saturday, November 4, 8:30AM-2PM at First UCC (201 Fair Ave NW, New Philadelphia). Why should you be there?
  • To worship together
  • To say farewell to Rev. Dr. Rita Root
  • To vote on proposed revisions to the constitution
  • To elect members to Council and Committee on Ministry
  • To learn about the proposed vision for a new Ohio Conference structure
Don't forget to review the annual reports and other documents available online.

Message of Peace Concert
The Life of John Boyle O'Reilly will be presented Friday, October 20, 7PM, at The Bath United Church of Christ (3980 W Bath Rd, Akron). This is a deeply moving and engaging story of a lesser-known Irish hero, John Boyle O'Reilly (1844-1890) who was persecuted, condemned and banished from Ireland to the Penal Colonies in Australia for his political beliefs and activities. Touring U.S. and Canada, this riveting stage presentation weaves together traditional music, song, words and poetry through the extraordinary talents of singer-bard Seán Tyrrell. A free-will offering will be taken.

Trip to Reformation Europe
Places are still available for pilgrims wishing to visit the heart of Reformation Europe in the summer of 2018. This revised version of the tour (slightly shorter and less expensive) will fulfill a year's continuing education credit for authorized ministers and the post-Reformation Church History course in the Northeast Ohio School of Ministry . Deadline to sign up is Friday, October 20.

Powerhouse 5
Powerhouse 5 is an ensemble of six musicians from Northeast Ohio which recently performed at ORMACO's "Jazz Under the Stars". This group performs the "Quintette" music of Raymond Scott (1908-1994) who, in the words of the Scott archivist, was a "composer, inventor, pianist, engineer, electronic music pioneer, and control freak (sometimes mistaken for a guy who wrote scores for Bugs Bunny cartoons)". Powerhouse 5 performs as part of the Music at the Meetinghouse concert series on October 22 at First Church in Oberlin (106 N Main St, Oberlin) and is free and open to the public.

Youth Leader Roadmap
The Xtreme Youth Ministry Team is excited that Dr. Jane Biehl, PhD will be the guest speaker on Tuesday, October 24, 10AM, at Congregational UCC (1530 Easton St NE, Canton). Jane has earned three advanced degrees and has had fulfilling careers as a librarian, rehabilitation counselor and college teacher. She presently is free-lancing articles on hearing loss and deafness, service dogs and struggling with myelodysplastic syndrome, a rare cancer. Jane has been a cancer survivor since 2010. All are invited to come and hear Jane's inspirational story. Lunch will follow at a nearby restaurant.
Wreath Sale
The Church in Silver Lake (2951 Kent Rd, Silver Lake) is selling decorated and undecorated Christmas wreaths. Support their ministries by buying either wreath! Decorated wreaths are just $39 and undecorated are $32. Sales are the whole month of October with pick-up of wreaths in mid to late November. All wreaths are made locally by Wes Brown Christmas Tree Farm in Michigan. Sales can be done online or in person. Any questions, you may call Brent Lauer at 330-203-6248.

AUCE Open House
The Association of United Church Educators Board (AUCE) will meet in Cleveland at the beginning of November. They are inviting educators and pastors to a gathering at Archwood United Church of Christ (2800 Archwood Ave, Cleveland) on Thursday, November 2 from 6-8PM. This open house will be your chance to meet board members and share your ideas and questions about Faith Formation in the UCC. Refreshments will be provided by the Board. Come as you are able and stay as long as you'd like. The Board looks forward to meeting you!
Fall Youth Event
The Fall Youth Event will be November 18-19 at Pilgrim Hills. This event is for high school youth and chaperones and is a retreat designed by youth, for youth. The creative team has been working together for over a year to learn creative leadership skills to lead this and other events.

Open Positions
Kent UCC in Kent is seeking an Administrative Assistant. Excellent verbal and written communication skills and the ability to switch from task to task amid interruptions are required. Competence in use of standard office equipment and software including MS Office Suite and familiarity of all social media platforms essential. Duties include managing the church office, worship bulletins, monthly newsletter and maintaining the church database (Church Windows, Google, Constant Contact). 30 hrs/wk. No additional benefits. See the complete job description. Send resume and references to Kent UCC, Attn: Nancy Bubenzer, 1400 East Main St., Kent, OH 44240.

Kent United Church of Christ in Kent is seeking a part-time Financial Administrator with payroll, purchasing, and accounting and church software experience. See the complete job description. Send resume and references to Kent UCC, Attn: Nancy Bubenzer, 1400 East Main St, Kent, OH 44240.

First Congregational Church of Akron is seeking a nurturing and compassionate part-time childcare worker who has experience caring for babies up to age three. This position would include providing care on Sunday mornings (4-6 hours), during holiday services and at other times when childcare is needed. If you are a nurturing, patient, organized professional with a background in childcare, we hope you will apply for this position. Please read the full job description and email Deborah Anderson, phone 330-253-5109 x112, or mail your resume to 292 E Market St, Akron, OH 44308.

Trinity UCC in Wadsworth, an open and affirming congregation, seeks experienced educator, preferably seminary trained, to lead a faith formation program for parents and children. Duties include, but are not limited to, preschool through 4th grade, youth development programs middle through high school, and assisting pastor with confirmation. Ideal for current seminary student or teacher seeking secondary income. Minimum 20 hours per week with potential to expand. Please email resume with three references to the church. No phone calls.

West Park United Church of Christ in Cleveland is in search of a contract custodian. The position entails daily cleaning of the church hosted preschool and bathrooms as well as weekly cleaning of the sanctuary and educational building. This is a part-time (15 hours per week) position. Please email the church office or call 216-671-7228 if interested.

The Ohio Conference is seeking a skilled administrator who brings passion, creativity and a heart for people to work with an organization that serves the needs of approximately 360 churches throughout Ohio, West Virginia and Northern Kentucky. An ideal candidate will thrive in a fast-paced and adaptive environment, and enjoy managing a wide variety of projects simultaneously. Join this creative and adaptive team today for this position which has a future for growth and change depending on the organization's needs and the gifts and skills the candidate brings to the position. Download the complete job description.
Association Ministers' Schedules
Here's where your Association Ministers will be the next few Sundays.
October 22
10AM
106 N Main St ♦ Oberlin

October 29
10AM
379 S Main St ♦ Amherst

1:30PM
120th Anniversary
9900 Denison Ave ♦ Cleveland

November 12
10AM
1530 Easton St ♦ Canton
October 22
1:30PM
200th Anniversary
German's Villa
3330 Liberty Ave ♦ Vermilion

November 5
9AM
100th Anniversary
7853 Main St ♦ Olmsted Falls

November 12
10:30AM
23500 Center Ridge Rd ♦ Westlake
Your Associations' Staff
Rita Root
Associations General Minister

Gary Halstead
Associations Associate Minister

Machelle Miller
Office Manager & Bookkeeper

Cheryl McGraw
Communications & Administration

Committee on Ministry Registrar


Margaret Borrelli
Faith Formation Coordinator
Mark Frey
Pastoral Excellence/Communities of Practice

Don Hill
Financial Development Consultant

Gene McAfee
Dean of Northeast Ohio School of Ministry

Bob Richardson
Coach Coordinator

Maureen Webber
Spiritual Formation Coordinator

Lori Wick
Youth Ministries Coordinator
Submission Guidelines
If you'd like to share information about an upcoming event or past event sponsored or co-sponsored by a church in our Associations, please send your article of 100 words or less in paragraph format to support.center@eoawraucc.org by Tuesday noon of each week. Be extravagantly welcoming by including in the article the name, location, address, date, time and contact information of the event. Items will run for two consecutive weeks. Fliers may be sent in addition to the 100 word article and a link will be provided in the article to the flier. Fliers should be less than 5MB and in Word or PDF format. Photos (which display next to your article) may be sent in addition to the article. Photos should be less than 5MB and in JPG or PNG format.