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| 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 |
First Sunday of Advent
Our Core Values:
Spiritual Growth. Welcome. Justice-seeking
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This Sunday is Our Second Annual Cookie Swap!! Bake 2-3 dozen goodies and drop off to Kevin Cordova-Brookey on your way into worship. See details below.
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Reflection for Worship. . .
"What's Next?"
Jeremiah 33:14-16
In our text for worship this Sunday - the First Sunday of Advent - we hear of a promise drawn from the Hebrew Bible - a promise about our God who will be the measuring stick and the backbone of our humanity, our lives! In the fading light of Advent days and evenings we have time to consider our lives in the darkness - we wait for better days, we work to stay afloat in times of challenge and struggle, we try as a community of faith to take steady steps toward compassion and justice together. In a brief reflection entitled "What's Next?", we will consider the link between our move to a new space and our re-invention as a congregation in that new context. Just as with the community of faith in Jeremiah's time, there are warnings, worry and fear around us - and we are called to discern the presence of God in a new way, in the hospitality of our host congregation, in the new streets surrounding our new temporary home, and in the promise of a debt-free community that is taking its first steps in a new chapter of its history. Come join us for worship - the best place to explore our future and ask for God's blessing and company as we begin to live out our values and mission in a new era! Worship is in the Sanctuary - all decorated for Advent and Christmas - at 10AM on Sunday!
-Rev. John H Pomeroy
Also This Week -
On Saturday Dec. 1st we will stock shelves at the Friends in Deed Food Pantry from 9-11 a.m. We need 5-10 youth/adults. Please contact Lu Burd or Pastor Marlene if you can join us. There is a LOT of work to do so we really need extra folks.
This Sunday we move into the sanctuary for the next five worship services (the four Sundays in Advent and then 6:00 p.m. service on Christmas Eve). As you know the weather in the sanctuary is unpredictable; may we suggest you bring a wrap to keep you warm and something to sit on if the wooden pews are too hard?
This is a Communion Sunday so we urge you to bring non-perishable food for Friends in Deed food pantry. There is also a Good Samaritan envelope attached to your bulletin for you to make an offering that will be used for outreach/need.
We will celebrate the first Sunday in Advent with our
Annual Advent Celebration/Cookie Swap
this week!! Lunch will be provided (thank you Sallie!), a Cookie Swap will be sponsored by Kevin and Membership, Connie will be selling jewelry and there will also be a craft to enjoy. Come! Enjoy! Please drop off your 2-3 dozen baked goods to Kevin in the church parlor before you go to worship. Please have them labeled and he will make cards while we worship.
This Sunday Dec. 2nd is the final date to reserve your seat for the Rose Bowl parade in front of the First United Methodist Church. We have had 40 seats held for us and now we must release them so they can sell them to others. The cost is $25 per seat and it is a folding church chair between Colorado Blvd. and the sidewalk - prime viewing. Please give a check to Pastor Marlene this Sunday made out to FCC Pasadena.
We are gathering gift cards and cash for the four children we are sponsoring for Christmas gifts this year. Our Church School children will shop for gifts - if you wish to donate money towards that please bring in Target gift cards or check/cash and give to Pastor Marlene. The gifts are needed by Saturday Dec. 15th. See below for ways to help further with this project.
Pledge Update
We have received pledges from many of you - thank you! We hope to hear from another 35 members/households. It is important to turn in your pledge cards so that Budget can put together a budget before and after the holidays. Extra pledge cards will be available on Sunday. You may also email Treasurer Barb Bonzo with your pledge. Let's start 2019 fiscally strong!!
Celebratory Lunch for our Pastors' 20th Anniversary Here at FCC!!
Please plan on joining us
on December 9th in the parlors
from 11:30-12:30 for a 20 year Celebratory Lunch in honor of our Pastors, Marlene and Jake Pomeroy. As there has been for over 20 years, there will be music, laughter, food and much, much love! Please contact the Membership Ministry (Lu, Kim, Kevin, & Tara), Grace and/or Neva if you have any questions, would like more information or would like to help out.
- from Grace Rinck and Neva Orr,
Event Co-chairs
Our Transition Continues
Staff and church members continue to sort and pack rooms in the building in preparation for our move in December/January. Several church folks have stepped up to help and things are getting packed up! If you see Elizabeth Lanski (Archives), Bettie Teel (choir room), Lu Burd (nursery), Teachers (Room 232 classroom), Roberta White and Sue Miele (parlors/chapel/narthex/sanctuary) please add your thanks to them for their work. We will head to our new temporary home at the First United Methodist Church on 500 East Colorado here in Pasadena starting Sunday Jan. 27th in a combined worship service with FUMC in their sanctuary at 10:00. On Sunday Feb. 3rd we will worship in the FUMC Chapel at our new time of 11:30.
We need to leave our church nursery and our Co-Pastor's office by the end of the day on Dec. 26th. Large portions of our building will be leased by the Providence Christian College and they will be renovating and moving in during late December and early January. Pastors Marlene and Jake will make their office available starting Dec. 27th. Our nursery will be shifted to the youth room from Dec. 30th through the month of January. Our church school children will be meeting in Nina's office area between Christmas and the end of January.
Our offices and first floor have been full of workers this week as they are bringing in internet for the college that will be renting space in the building. Thanks to Nina and staff for their patience through this transition.
In addition, Sallie and several of her staff have put up our Christmas decorations: the beautiful wreaths on the outside doors, Christmas trees in our narthex and sanctuary, and some swags in our sanctuary. Many thanks to Sallie and staff!
Two Tours Planned for our new interim church home
We had one tour of FUMC and will have a second one if folks are interested. Please let one of the pastors know of your interest. The next scheduled date for one is Sunday Dec. 16th for a group tour. It is just two blocks away on Colorado Blvd. We will head over around 11:50 after worship/coffee hour to have a tour of our new worship space and offices. More info to come - plan to come and see our new space on either date!
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Rev. Marlene W. Pomeroy
Rev. John H. Pomeroy
Liturgist
Sue Miele
Ushers
Aren Burd
Julie Burd
Peter Keller
Brian Brandenburg
Church Nursery (for infants - K)
J. Rodriguez and TBA
Nursery opens at 9:15 a.m. for early birds and then everyone comes to worship at 10:00 and stays through the Children's Time and then heads to the nursery with caregivers and parents.
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Nina Kung
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
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 . . .
-Final Thanksgiving Feast in our Current Building thanks
-Rose Bowl Tickets and Pancake Breakfast at FUMC
-Youth Fall Outreach Happenings
-Save the Dates!
-Children and Youth to Sponsor four Children
-Christmas Flower Request Form
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FINAL THANKSGIVING FEAST IN OUR CURRENT BUILDING
For almost fifty years our FCC congregation has hosted a Thanksgiving Feast for our church members, their extended families and friends on the Sunday prior to the Thanksgiving holiday. The event gives everyone a chance to enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving meal and spend relaxed time together. The event would not have been possible without all the great food that was prepared and donated by all who attended and without the help of many volunteers.
After our worship with great music by The Tradical Bros & our Chancel Choir, we had coffee time in our east parlor. Then about 80 persons gathered at dining tables for the final Thanksgiving Feast in our current building. (Our crowd was a little smaller than usual because most schools gave children an entire week off, so families got a chance to go on vacation.) It was wonderful to have long term members Ken Biery, Lois Harris and Irene Phillips join us!
Thanks to the custodial staff for moving furniture, putting up tables and chairs and helping in the kitchen. Tandy, Griselda, Lachlan, Theresa and Jackie were an amazing help doing preparations, helping during the meal and doing hours of kitchen clean up. (We finished at 2:30 pm, they got done at 5:30 pm.)
Thanks to those volunteers who came for three hours to set tables and decorate on the Saturday afternoon before the dinner: Lu & Judy Burd, Elizabeth Lanski, Varnell Lewis, Irene & Peter Keller, Bob & Marie Spencer, Kim Story and Roberta White. Table decorations were provided by Irene & Peter Keller, while Alice Smith & Barbara Klein loaned decorative Thanksgiving items. Lu Burd displayed historic poster boards and flyers from our Building Celebration.
Kim Story
did all the reservations and balanced the food assignments. Tandy and Peter Keller accepted the food as it arrived that morning.
What would a Thanksgiving Dinner be without turkey? We are thankful for five turkey cookers: Irene Keller, Leo Lynch, Dana Pell, Bob Rinck and Moises Torres and the turkey carvers: Anthony Kung, Philip Kung, Leo Lynch, Dana Pell and Moises Torres. John Johnson was in charge of the turkey carving room and getting the platters of turkey out to the serving tables. We also thank those who helped get the food ready to serve: Lu Burd, Nina Kung, Varnell Lewis, and Kim Story, all arranged and balanced on both tables by Tandy. Food highlights were Leo's gravy, Moises Turkey Mole and Elizabeth's vegetable corn bread stuffing and Connie's Pumpkin Praline Pie.
The clean-up crew was headed by new member Michael Hutchinson. The others who stayed to clean up, fold tables & chairs and put things away were: Sandy Biehler, Lu Burd, Mary Camacho, Varnell Lewis, Dana Pell, Jake Pomeroy, Kim Story, and Bettie Teel.
- Roberta White, Event Chair
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Rose Bowls Tickets and Pancake Breakfast at
First United Methodist Church New Year Day
On New Year's Day our new home at FUMC has offered us reserved seats in front of their church (chairs set up between the sidewalk and Colorado) for $25 each. We have 40 seats set aside for us. Please let Pastor Marlene in writing - either email or a note on Sunday - if you would like a ticket. Please give her a check made out to FCC Pasadena marked "Rose Bowl Parade." The deadline is Dec. 15th to reserve a seat.
FUMC makes a pancake breakfast each year. If you would like to help cook, let Pastor Marlene know. They set up and cook VERY EARLY, but there is also a lot of fellowship. You may also cook and then head outside to watch the parade. Pancake breakfast cost is around $9.95 and you pay at the door. There is also access to bathrooms!!
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Youth Outreach Work - next date is Saturday Dec. 1st
Here are our pictures of our hard working and fun morning together doing the work God calls us to do! Thanks to our adults and youth for helping out.
Other upcoming projects will include:, putting together care packages for Ronald McDonald House, sponsoring a family for Christmas through Friends in Deed, and visiting members of our church. The Youth Outreach Planning Committee is: Lu Burd, Meagan VanDeventer, Jeff Tyler, Neva Orr and Pastor Marlene.
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Save the Dates!
Our Children's Christmas Pageant will take place over 4 Sundays this year. Each of the Sundays in Advent we will profile a piece of the story in word, story and song. Connie is working with the children to offer music each week and the teachers are arranging each piece of the story. Come and join us for the Christmas Pageant in four parts this year!!
Sun. Dec. 2nd
First Sunday in Advent. Focus: Mary and Joseph and innkeepers.We will worship in our sanctuary all of the Sundays in Advent as well as Christmas Eve. Membership is sponsoring an Advent Festival. We will have lunch provided, a craft or two, and our 2nd Annual Cookie Swap!!! Please bring between 2- 4 dozen cookies that day and drop them off to Kevin Cordova-Brookey before worship. After worship you will be able to take home the same amount of cookies you brought. Bring your best baked goods for another yummy cookie swap!!!
Sun. Dec. 9th
Second Sunday in Advent. Focus on Angels.
Lunch in parlors to honor the 20th Anniversary of our Co-Pastors Jake and Marlene Pomeroy
Saturday Dec. 15th
Adults needed to sort and prep gifts to be handed out to kids. Please see Pastor Marlene if you can help. Many hands are needed!
Sun. Dec. 16th
Third Sunday in Advent. Focus on Shepherds.
Our 2nd FUMC tour will take place today - folks can walk or drive over at 11:50 for this tour.
Sun. Dec. 23rd
Fourth Sunday in Advent. Focus on the birth of Jesus and the Kings. Enhanced coffee hour to follow worship.
Monday Dec. 24th
Christmas Eve Candlelight Worship Service at
6 p.m. in our Sanctuary (
Please let everyone know of the time!!) Wassail Bowl and fellowship to follow in our parlors.
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Children and Youth to Sponsor Four Children Through Friends In Deed
Children and Youth to Sponsor Four Children through Friends in Deed for Holiday Giving
We have received the names of four children who we will be buying gifts for this year. If you would like to donate money or Target gift cards, please give them to a teacher or Pastor Marlene in the next two weeks. Our children/youth will buy gifts the week before Dec. 15th. We need about $300 to buy all the gifts.
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Christmas Flower Request Form
Please help our sanctuary look glorious with a display of poinsettias. You may purchase one or more plants in honor or memory of a loved one. We will list all remembered persons in our Christmas Eve bulletin.
Your name _____________________________________________________
In honor of ____________________________________________________
In memory of __________________________________________________
Number of poinsettias ______$8.50 each
Please make check payable to First Congregational Church of Pasadena
Poinsettias will be displayed Dec. 19th - 24th. You may take your plant home after the Christmas Eve worship service.
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