e-news from First Congregational Church of Pasadena, UCC

T O U C H S T O N E - A M i d W e e k B u l l e t i n

Second Sunday of Easter

April 28, 2019

Now Meeting at 500 E. Colorado Blvd.

Sunday Worship Service: 10:00 am, Chapel

Our Core Values:

Spiritual Growth. Welcome. Justice-seeking

We had a grand combined Easter worship with our church community and the Methodists! Almost 600 folks were in attendance to experience such a festive Easter Service. Alleluia! Christ is Risen Indeed!

Reflection for Worship. . .

Sharing Our Experiences

John 20:19-31

In our text for worship this week we hear of two difficult circumstances for those who would follow Jesus - one is having the openness and strength to receive the blessing of the Resurrected Jesus - what Borg refers to as the Christ of Faith - and the other is the courage and integrity to challenge Jesus with questions like those from Thomas. Sharing our faith, and questioning our faith are both not easy - and we rarely find the time or place to do either because we spend the majority of time trying to live our lives. In a sermon entitled Sharing Our Experiences, we will consider what we know about God and what we long to know about how God is or is not a part of our everyday lives. How does the Resurrection play out in our day to day existence - does it make any difference at all? Please invite a friend who might be nurtured by our community and join us for worship on Sunday in the Chapel at 11:30AM!

-Rev. John H. Pomeroy

Save the Dates:

April 27th-No FID food stocking

Friends in Deed Food Pantry stocking is on hold for now until their deliveries resume. We hope to help out with their school backpack sorting and delivery during the Summer.

May 4th

Central Association Spring Meeting featuring our church's history at the Altadena Community Church. More info in article below. Please RSVP

May 9th Pasadena Mayor's Prayer Breakfast 7:30-9:00 a.m. Last call if you wish to sit at a sponsored table with FCC and FUMC folks.

May 11th Women's Scholarship Tea

Please RSVP. The date is Saturday May 11th at 4:00 p.m.

Staff and volunteers are busily planning for the Tea. If you have some teapots that you can loan us for the event please let Sallie know! (not the beloved ones that break easily please!). Food sign-ups for the Tea are coming from Kevin Cordova-Brookey. Please help us put on another wonderful event for these women who will be receiving scholarships.

The Scholarship Selection Committee will be interviewing the finalists next week and are very excited about the pool of applicants this year! We can't wait for you to meet them.

Sunday August 18th Hollywood Bowl Summer Outing!

Membership Ministry has selected Smooth Summer Jazz for our annual trip to the Hollywood Bowl, featuring Dave Koz & Friends, and the Commodores. We have 30 tickets reserved at $36 each. We will start sign-ups in the next week and can turn in any unused tickets by the end of June. Let us know if you wish to join us. Once Marlene leaves on sabbatical please be in touch with Lu Nguyen (formerly Burd) to sign up and pay!! Should be another fun evening. The concert starts at 6:00 so we will meet earlier for a potluck and some fellowship time!

Worship Leaders

Rev. Marlene W. Pomeroy

Rev. John H. Pomeroy

Liturgist

Don Hughes

Ushers

Judi Tyler

Dana Pell

Mary Camacho

Jeff Tyler

Pianist & Music Director

Connie Washburn

Church School Teaachers

Combined Class led by Roberta White/Neva Orr upstairs in Room 302.

Church Nursery (for infants - K)

Lachlan Ashenmiller & Kaye Jenkins

This week everyone comes to the Chapel at 11:30am and stays through the Children's Time and then heads to the nursery with caregivers and parents.

Nina Kung

[email protected]

Visit us at: uccpasadena.org

Sermon Podcast:

D id you miss a worship service and want to hear the sermon? Please visit uccpasadena.org and select 'podcasts' from the menu on top of the home page or click below

http://uccpasadena.podomatic.com/

Office Hours

Mon. - Thurs.

9 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.

Lunch Hours

12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.

******

Tel. # 626.795.0696

Fax. # 626.795.0698

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In this Edition . . .

-Otis Knox, Jr. Memorial Service, April 26th

-From Rev. Anne Cohen

-Easter Baskets for Ronald McDonald House

-Pomeroys on Sabbatical

-2019 Women's Retreat Planned for April 26-28th

-Central Association Spring Meeting

-Pasadena Mayor's Breakfast

Otis Knox, Jr. Memorial Service

Our long time member, Otis Knox, Jr., Memorial Service is at 11am, April 26th at Friendship Baptist 80 W. Dayton Street, Pasadena, CA 91105.

From the Rev. Anne Cohen - Anne will be serving as our Sabbatical Coverage Pastor while the Pomeroys are away on their Sabbatical. Anne's first Sunday will be Mother's Day. See below for her request for you to bring a photo of your mom on May 12th.

Photo of Your Mother

On Mothers' Day Sunday, May 12th, please bring a photo of your mother or someone who mothered you. We will display them during worship and share stories. - Anne

Easter Baskets for Ronald McDonald House

We put together 21 Easter Baskets on Palm Sunday at the park and three of our youth helped to wrap and deliver them to the Ronald McDonald House. We had a chance to tour the house, located near the Huntington Hospital and see their beautiful and welcoming grounds. Did you know that almost 90% of the families who stay at the house are international families - traveling far for medical treatment? The house is am affordable respite for the families so they can focus on the medical needs of their children. Many thanks to all FCC folks who contributed to the baskets. Thanks to Lu Nguyen for coordinating this event.

FCC Staff hosted a post Easter Lunch in the beautiful cloister area for the FUMC Staff. Sallie and Pastor Marlene catered a lovely event so that the two staffs could have a chance to socialize and enjoy one another's company after a busy Easter. Our Sabbatical Pastor Anne Cohen was also able to be present to meet everyone. We hope to continue to partner with FUMC on events in the coming year. We are so grateful for their gracious welcome and hospitality that they have extended towards us!!

Pomeroys on Sabbatical May 12th- Aug. 4th

Our co-pastors will be away on sabbatical starting May 12th. They will be present for the Women's Scholarship Tea and will host the Choir Party before departing on a twelve week respite from work. Sabbaticals for pastors are designed to provide time and space for restoration, renewal and new revelations as pastors step away from the duties of work for a bit. The Pomeroys plan to do some traveling, engage in some education and visit some other faith communities during their time away.

They are pleased to announce that they have contracted with the Rev. Anne Cohen to provide coverage during that time. Anne will be working part -time, covering the office, organizing worship and overseeing administrative and planning during the sabbatical. She will be the primary preacher, but we will also have several guest preachers, including: Andy Schwiebert, Randy VanDeventer, and Leo Lynch among others.

The Rev. Leo Lynch will cover pastoral care during that time.

You may direct your questions to either of those two staff persons as well as our Moderator Randy Van Deventer or our Vice Moderator Krysty Leckrone. Our office Manager Nina Kung will have her usual schedule during this time. The Pomeroys are deeply appreciative of this time away for spiritual renewal and replenishment.

2019 Women's Retreat Planned For April 26-28th