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Penn Northeast Conference UCC, 431 Delaware Ave., Palmerton, PA 18071
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Call to the Fall Annual Meeting of the Penn Northeast Conference
Saturday, November 3, 2018
Faith UCC, 22 Faith Drive, Hazleton, PA
Theme: Transforming
Guest Preacher: Rev. Bill Worley, Pennsylvania Southeast Conference Minister
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Disaster Response Ministry
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Communications Tip of the Month:
Here are some tips for when you do an audio or video interview with a disaster recovery volunteer or client to make the piece stronger and easier to edit.
- Get as close to your subject as you can while still showing some relevant background. "Props" such as a paintbrush or work clothes also can show context.
- Get out of any wind or breeze, and remove any jewelry that jangles. These will spoil the audio.
- As you begin recording, ask the person to say their name and spell it clearly, even phonetically
- Leave a little space around questions and answers.
- Keep quiet while your interviewee is talking! Give encouragement with body language such as nodding your head, but avoid any "uh huhs." They will spoil the audio.
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HELP is needed for communities in Eastern Pennsylvania
Work continues as we respond to the severe flooding throughout eastern PA and, now, central PA. Communities in Columbia, Susquehanna, and Bradford counties are moving from response to recovery. This is a place where many of our churches excel. See below if you can put together a team for rebuild and recovery.
As we have said before, help continues to come from all over the UCC. Most recently Bill and Ellen Matten have completed their assignment in Schuylkill Association. Now we prayerfully support our brothers and sisters in Penn Central Conference in their recovery.
We thank all the churches who have given funds, buckets and kits, volunteers, equipment, transportation, and so much more! Help is still needed -
- You can organize a work team or serve as a volunteer. For work in our conference you can contact Karl Jones at 570-617-4018 – kjones275@comcast.net. Or you can go to http://www.ucc.org/disaster_disaster-volunteers to discover more about any of the intermediate and long-term recovery volunteer opportunities that are currently open and seeing volunteers.
- There is a need for muck out and clean up “supervisors”. Our friends in the Southern Baptist Church have teams of volunteers ready to come to our area, but he does not have enough on-site management to support them. If there are possible candidates for this special ministry in your congregation, please have them contact Karl Jones.
- Your church can assemble clean-up buckets, hygiene kits, and/or school kits. Go to https://cwskits.org/assemble-kits/emergency-cleanup-buckets/ to learn more about these kits. Since we have moved to recovery in most areas of the conference we need the kits to replenish the supplies. Therefore, completed kits can be delivered to the PNEC office in Palmerton.
- You can raise funds for this important work. In long-term recovery funding is always one of the best ways to respond. This funding will be for the work of recovery. At this time, funds can be sent to: PNEC Disaster Response Ministries, 431 Delaware Avenue, Palmerton, PA 18071
- You can become a member of the Disaster Ministry Team. Contact Karl Jones for more information.
Please keep everyone affected by and who will help in the recovery process in your prayers.
~ Karl Jones, UCC Conference Disaster Coordinator
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Your Church Can Prepare for Emergencies
United Church of Christ Disaster Ministries encourages our churches to learn how to prepare for emergencies in September, which is National Preparedness Month.
“It is important for churches to be ready for a possible emergency,” said Eastern PA UCC Disaster Coordinator, Karl Jones, who also serves as the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) vice-chair of the Community Preparedness Committee. “It can be overwhelming to get started, but these simple tips will get you on the right path.”
- There is a fire in your church and you need to leave quickly. What are the best escape routes from your church? Find at least two ways out of each room. Now write it down, educate your people, and you’ve got the beginning of an emergency plan. Perhaps even have a fire drill.
- There is an accident or medical emergency at your church. Make sure you have people who know basic first aid or CPR and empower them to act.
- Learn how to turn off utilities in your church in the case of emergency. Make sure there is nothing blocking access to the shut-off valves and switches.
- Review insurance policies and coverage to ensure it is adequate for the hazards you may face.
- Build up an emergency fund. Could your church operate if you received no income for a month or more.
This year’s theme for National Preparedness
Month is “Disasters Happen. Plan Now. Learn How.” Churches can use this opportunity to train it’s leadership and members how to respond during an emergency and what to do when disaster strikes. The goal of this effort is to increase the overall number of individuals, families, and communities that engage in preparedness actions at home, work, businesses, school, and places of worship.
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Friends,
We, as a conference, have been enrolled in Mission Insite, a demographic information site, for some moths now. Congregations involved in pastoral searches have received copies of reports from the Conference Office. Now we are providing you with individual congregational access to this powerful tool for assessing communities. Please refer to this
information to register
. The information can also be found on our website under the
Links
tab. - Bonnie, Bates
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Pennsylvania Academy of Ministry 3-part educational series called Consistory/Council 101
-
PNEC Sleep Out for Homelessness
- September 29-30, Forks UCC, Stockertown
Pastoral Leadership in Congregational Systems
- Three Sessions of Learning to Improve Pastoral
Leadership for Authorized Ministers - 3 days of experiential learning - October 10; February 27, 2019;
May 1, 2019 - 9AM to 5PM each day at Faith UCC, Center Valley - COST: $350 including lunch.
Understanding Addiction and Older Adults
- October 11 at DeSales university - online registration will
PNEC Ministry Day
- Saturday, October 13 from 9AM to 4PM, Faith UCC, 5992 Route 378, Center
Valley -
more details later
Greater Allentown CROP Hunger Walk
- October 14 at 1:30PM beginning and ending at St. Timothy's
Lutheran Church, 140 S. Ott St., Allentown - registration starting at 1PM - for sponsor form, info about
2018 Boundary Training Workshops
- "Essential Boundaries for Wise Leaders" - sponsored by NE PA
2018 "Widening the Welcome Conference - Living, Learning, Leading"
- November 1-3 at the
Sheraton Niagara Falls and the Niagara Falls Convention Center - Also, a Mental Health First Aid
class, November 1 - certified course with cont. ed. credit upon completion -
Detailed Flyer
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Children's Sermon from Rev. David Quinn-
For Sept. 9, based on Mark 7:24-37
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Items needed
: broom handle without broom on it (the longer, the better,) large, empty suitcase. After kids come up, put broom handle through the suitcase handle. Use broom handle to lift suitcase and carry a short distance. Tell them this is not easy. Ask for a volunteer. Volunteer will be Jesus. Direct volunteer to take other end of broom handle, on other side of suitcase. Then, together, lift up suitcase and carry--this is much easier! In today's Bible reading, Jesus helps some people feel better. There all kinds of different ways Jesus helps people get better. One way Jesus helps is that He helps us carry our load, just like (volunteer's name,) pretending to be Jesus, helped me carry this suitcase. Then ask for a couple more volunteers, to join the person playing Jesus on the other side of the broom handle. Another way Jesus helps is that he calls some of His friends to help us carry our load--this is called the Church. In different ways, Jesus helps people get better today.
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Here is the link to register for the Adventures in Advent Resource Day being held on October 6 (Please RSVP by October 1.)
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PSEC, PNEC planning rebuild Puerto Rico mission trip
A group of members of Pennsylvania Southeast Conference and Penn Northeast Conference met on Aug. 6 to discuss the possibility of the two conferences sponsoring a rebuild mission trip to Puerto Rico in 2019. The dates that we have requested are April 28 to May 4, 2019. PNEC Associate Conference Minister Gilberto Garcia-Rodriquez will be the group leader. Costs will be made available in a few months as we learn more about airfare and other related costs. You can learn more about the on-going UCC work in Puerto Rico by
clicking here
.
The next planning meeting will be held Tuesday, Sept. 4, at 6:30 pm at St John's U.C.C.- Mickleys, 2918 MacArthur Rd, Whitehall, PA 18052. If you would like to be on the list of potential participants and receive the trip information directly, please send and email to Gilberto at
gilbertor@pnec.org
and copy Karl Jones at
kjones275@comcast.net
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UCC RESOURCES
FALL CURRICULIM
- Don't forget to order your 2018 Fall Curriculum. You can order your Shine, The Present Word & Deep Blue Kids Curriculum from our 2018 collection
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UCC Environmental Justice
Webinar: What Faith Communities Need to Know about Carbon Pricing
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Lehigh Conference of Churches
Annual Domestic Violence Vigil - 9.26.18
Turning Point of the Lehigh Valley invites you to join them on Wednesday, September 26 from 5:30 to 7PM for a vigil to remember those who have lost their lives and to empower survivors with hope for the future. Event held at Allentown Masonic Temple, 1524 W. Linden St., Allentown
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The Phoebe Deaconess and
Old Folks Home
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