This Week in PNEC --- September 28, 2017 - October 6, 2017

TO CONTACT US OR TO REGISTER FOR EVENTS

431 Delaware Ave., Palmerton, PA18071; www.pnec.org website

610-826-3113; FAX 610-826-5464

 

          Bonnie Bates  bonnieb@pnec.org         Gilberto Garcia Rodriguez   gilbertor@pnec.org   

          Barbara Jennings   barbaraj@pnec.org         Patty Rehrig     pattyr@pnec.org

 

IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING TO INCLUDE IN "THIS WEEK IN PNEC" PLEASE EMAIL IT TO   pattyr@pnec.org
For Your Information

Barbara Jennings and Patty Rehrig will be attending a Secretaries Seminar in Lancaster next week so...the office of the Penn Northeast Conference will be open on Monday, October 2 until 12 Noon.  The office will be closed from Monday at Noon and it will also be closed all day Tuesday & Wednesday, October 3 & 4.  Regular hours will begin again on Thursday, October 5.                 
Friends,
 
     I am happy to greet you as your new Conference Minister. I look forward to working together over the next weeks, months and years. I have a great passion for the church and its journey to improve the world through the Good News, grace, love and blessing of God.
     As some of you may know, I have recently begun my work here after spending 3-1/2 years in judicatory work in Eastern Ohio. Prior to that role, I was a local church pastor and have a deep understanding for the vocation and its responsibilities. As a denominational staff member in Ohio, I worked with search and call, new church development, interim ministers, and congregational vitality. I anticipate some of the same work here. Additionally, we are engaged in conversations with the Pennsylvania Southeast Conference to vision who we might become were we to work more closely together.
     I hope you will take an opportunity to stop in the PNEC office or make a phone call or plan an opportunity to have coffee with me. Two Meet and Greet Open Houses are planned for:
 
Sunday, October 8 at Christ UCC (Schoenersville), 5050 Airport Rd., Allentown from 3PM to 5 PM
 
Sunday, October 22 - Christ UCC, 459 S. Main St., Conyngham from 3PM to 5 PM
 
     I hope you can join us on one of those occasions.  In any case, I have been warmly welcomed to NE Pennsylvania and I anticipate fruitful work together. I encourage you to let me know if there is a topic of interest or concern to you. You may reach me at my e-mail address or by phone at the Conference Office.
    
Blessings,  Rev. Dr. Bonnie Bates, Conference Minister
               
Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Marie... and Mexico's earthquake...
To keep updated with the
UCC's Disaster Response
and resources, please go to
  
 
PNEC Disaster Ministries
Emergency Cleanup Bucket and Hygiene Kit Update
9/28/2017 
 to see the full update...
Please Click Here
         
 

Phoebe, Allentown (1925 Turner St.)

18th Annual Basket Social

in Moyer Hall

Thursday, October 5 from 4 to 8PM &

                     Friday, October 6 from 7AM to 4PM

Over 100 themed gift baskets will be raffled with values of up to $100 or more.  Tickets are 5 for $1 or 30 for $5.  Food available for purchase.  FMI call 610-794-5126 or email lplunkett@phoebe.org

Proceeds benefit The Circle of Live which funds programming to create a more homelike environment for residents. 
 
ONLINE  UCC History, Theology and Polity Course
Jan/Feb 2018
 
     A UCC History, Theology and Polity Course  ucc logo
that meets the requirements as set forth by the
UCC Polity Teacher's Network will be offered
online in Jan/Feb 2018. The instructor will be Rev. David Gaewski, Conference Minister of the New York Conference, UCC. Classes will begin at 9:30am and end at 4:00pm on the following dates: January 20&27 and February 3&10. The platform utilized will be Zoom Video Conferencing ( zoom.us ) The tuition will be $475. For more information contact course administrator, Ms. Diana Pelletier, at dkluscombe@msn.com.
     This polity course is sponsored by the Oneida Association of the New York Conference. Payments should be sent no later than December 23rd to: Diana Pelletier, 114 Munro Dr., Camillus, NY 13031. Make checks payable to Oneida Association UCC.
     A syllabus is available upon request.  Laity, Members in Discernment and Privilege of Call candidates are all invited!   Class size is limited to the first fifteen to register.  The course will be cancelled if we do not obtain seven registered students. A student is considered registered when full payment has been received. Students who cancel enrollment will receive reimbursements up until January 11th. Please note the last two online classes reached maximum capacity.
 
Invitation to Pollinate and Bee the Church

 

The next 30 days are a Season of Pollination in the UCC! Yes, that's right! This is your chance to bee the church! How might you do that? By

encouraging your friends, church members, and colleagues to subscribe to a fabulous UCC e-newsletter called... The Pollinator. This

newsletter has as its purpose the sharing of ideas

and inspiration in caring for God's creation. To

learn more about how you can help pollinate

via clipboard evangelism at church, social media,

and other ways, click here   
 
                    PNEC MINISTRY DAY
Thursday, October 19, 2017
Faith UCC, Center Valley
9AM - 3PM
Guest Speaker:  Lee Barrett
Lee Barrett is the Mary B. and Henry P. Stager Professor of Theology at Lancaster Theological Seminary where he has taught since September 1993.
Please click here for registration flyer
 
  ANNOUNCEMENTS
 & CLERGY CONNECTIONS
 

 
Children's Sermon
for Oct. 1(based on Mt. 21:23-32)  
Items needed:  two ropes or strings, each about three feet long. Hold the end of one of the ropes in your left hand and the other in your right.  Ask for a volunteer to pull on the rope in your one hand and another volunteer to pull on the rope in your other hand, so they are pulling you in different directions.  Now ask, since I am being pulled in different directions, which direction will I go in?  The answer is (let go of one of the ropes,) I will go in the direction of whichever rope I hold on to.  In today's Bible reading, Jesus talks about  something called "authority."   Authority means what I choose to hold on to, not just with my hand, but also with my heart.   If I give authority to God, it means I will try to hold on  when God pulls me in a certain direction.
- Rev. David Quinn
 
UPCOMING DATES  calendar

OCTOBER
1 - DEADLINE FOR Gwilym T. Williams Scholarship Fund Applications
1 - 3:00PM - INSTALLATION - Revs. Cecilia & Jameson Baxter will be installed as the pastors of New
            Creation UCC, 3730 Nicholas St., Easton
2 - 12 Noon - PNEC OFFICE CLOSED
3 & 4 - PNEC OFFICE CLOSED
(Office is closed due to Administrative Staff attending a workshop)
3 - Easton AMC Clergy - Forks, Stockertown
3-4 - ELCA Parish Secretaries' Seminary - Bird-In-Hand,
4 - 8:30AM Registration - 9AM to 3PM - Boundary Training Workshop - St. John's UCC, 183 South Broad St., Nazareth - host pastor: Rev. Jeff Brinks
5 - 8:30AM Registration - 9AM to 3PM - Boundary Training Workshop - Faith UCC, 21 Faith Drive, Hazleton - host pastor: Rev. Jane Hess
5 - 11:30AM-1PM - Southwest AMC (SWAMP) Clergy - The Alburtis Tavern
7 - 9AM to 1PM (please note the ending time change) - Joint Conference Vision and Development Team - Frist UCC Chapel, 151 S. 4th St., Quakertown
8 - 3-5PM - Meet & Greet with Conference Minister, Bonnie Bates - Christ UCC (Schoenersville), 5050 Airport Rd., Allentown
9 - 10AM - Licensing/Commissioning MID Committee - Conf. Office (??)
9 - PNEC OFFICE CLOSED - Columbus Day
 
                      FOR THE FULL LIST OF DATES...
NATIONAL UCC OFFICER, REV. JAMES MOOS
to address Immigration, Refugees
October 1, 2017
   The Liberty Bell Museum in Allentown will kick off their 2018 special series and exhibition "Immigration in the Lehigh Valley" on Sunday, October 1st with presentations by Rev. Dr. James Moos, UCC Executive Minister, Wider Church Ministries.
     At 4PM, Rev. Moos will give a presentation at the Liberty Bell Museum located in the lower level of Zion's church (620 W. Hamilton St., Allentown). His talk will focus on the Middle East and the Syrian crisis and the Syrian refugee population in the Lehigh Valley.  The public is invited. There is no charge for the museum event.
     The Liberty Bell Museum series will focus on historical waves of immigration to the Lehigh Valley, including German, Jewish, Syrian and Latino families. The series, which runs through mid-June 2018, will include speakers focusing on each of the cultural groups that have made the Lehigh Valley their home.
   The Rev. James Moos is co-executive of Global Ministries, a joint endeavor between the UCC and the Disciples of Christ denominations.
 

CONFERENCE ON THE FUTURE OF AGING SERVICES OFFERED BY THE PHOEBE INSTITUTE ON AGING

    
     A conference to educate aging services professionals and family caregivers about envisioning the future of aging by finding inspiration in the current dynamic health care and political environments. Speakers will explore opportunities and trends in order to forecast care needs and services in the next 20 years.
     The Future of Aging Services, presented by Key Bank, will takeplace on Tuesday, October 10, 2017 from 8:00 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. at DeSales University, University Center, 2755 Station Ave, Center Valley, PA 18034.
     The fee for the conference is $25 and includes a continental breakfast, pre-conference screening and discussion, a morning program, buffet lunch and a full afternoon of breakout session programs.
     The keynote presenter at the conference is Jeffrey C. Bauer, Ph.D., LLC, FAANP (H), Health Futurist and Medical Economist. In his keynote address, Dr. Bauer will present a comprehensive overview of multiple dimensions of aging, including implications for evolving needs and services to meet them. Dr. Bauer will also present one of 6 afternoon breakout sessions and lead a panel discussion following his keynote.
     The afternoon will feature three segments of break-out sessions which will center on the topics of partnerships in the industry, innovation, sex-positive environments, dementia services, community health workers, and communication technology for older adults.
     A pre-conference screening of three short films will begin at 8:00 a.m. and will focus on intergenerational housing models which are gaining popularity in Europe. Time will be allowed for discussion and brainstorming.
     Applications have been submitted for Nursing, Nursing Home Administrator, Personal Care Home Administrator, Social Work, Community Life, and Pastoral Care credits.
     Online registration and a full list of speakers and sessions are available at www.phoebe.org/piaconference . The deadline for registration is October 2.  Please call 610-794-5150 with any questions.
 
 

 

Keeping You Posted

Love of Neighbor Tool Kit

click the link below

 

http://www.ucc.org/kyp_living_out_love_of_neighbor?utm_campaign=kyp_sep26_17&utm_medium=email&utm

_source=unitedchurchofchrist
 
Update on the SleepOut for Homelessness 
which was held at St. John's UCC, Laurys Station

Thank you to St. John's UCC in Laurys Station for hosting the SleepOut for Homelessness for the Conference.  Results are in:
7 churches attended
with 48 youth and about 21 adults present.

Several other churches in PNEC that could not attend the SleepOut at Laurys Station held their own SleepOuts as well.

At Union UCC, Neffs they had 29 people participate and raised $1,000
 
IN SEARCH OF...

 

For the complete list of churches who are searching for organists, choir directors sextons, pianist, etc., etc., and also churches who are giving away items, please CLICK HERE
 
What's Happening in Our Churches
 
(PLEASE NOTE:  We love advertising the "happenings" in our churches, however the list is getting too long for this publication.)
 
FOR THE COMPLETE LISTING of
"What's Happening in Our Churches"

CLICK HERE