Join us for the 8th Annual Deerfield Beach Fall Festival this Saturday at Pioneer Park. Enjoy a day of fun with the entire family! This festival event includes story telling, arts & crafts, archery, hay rides, picking pumpkins from the pumpkin patch, enjoying live entertainment, and much more!

Zion will be there with a tent to greet our fellow residents and offer "prayers for all seasons." To sign-up to volunteer in our area, click here.

In last week's e-news, we featured a short biography of one of our newest members of Zion, Pastor Annemarie Noto. This week, we are delighted to share a little more about the others in this picture!

Nick Rato (pictured to the right of Pastor Noto) came to Zion because of a chance encounter at the local Starbucks. Three years ago, he moved to Florida from New Jersey. He is a newly-minted referral agent with Bellrose Realty, and enjoys DJing professionally and writing electronic music in his spare time.

The Tahal family have been worshipping at Zion for several years. Norman joined with his two daughters, Shelly and Melissa, and Melissa's husband Steve Hody. Before retiring, Norman worked as a manager at Walgreen's. These days, he enjoys keeping up with the news, doing crossword puzzles, and watching country & western movies. Shelly is a nurse practitioner, specializing in cardiology. She enjoys cooking and baking, yoga, family gatherings, and watching medical dramas. Melissa is a program coordinator for Sunshine Health, and enjoys Netflix, reading, and cooking in her free time. Steve is an insulator/engineer who works both in the construction of new buildings and at the state's nuclear power plants. He and Melissa love to go bowling. Norman's wife of many years (and Melissa and Shelly's mother) Yvonne rests in Zion's memorial garden.

We continue to hold Pat Belanger, also a new member, in our prayers. Though she cannot attend in person yet, we know she is connected to us in prayer, mission, and ministry.

All members of Zion are invited to remain after worship this Sunday for the monthly Congregation Council meeting. Pastor Jonathan Gantt, our vice administrative pastor and dean of the Broward-Bahamas Conference, will be with us as we continue to chart the present and future of Zion!

As part of the seasonal decor for our narthex (gathering space in the church), we are partnering with Art4Healing, a local visual art program, to host a painting workshop to decorate our own space. Using Bible verses for Advent and time for reflection, each participant will paint a canvas that will hang in the narthex for the remainder of 2021. (Each participant will also paint a small warm-up canvas to take home that day. The "Advent" canvases will be available to keep once the seasonal decorations come down in January.)

You do not have to be artistically gifted or talented to participate. This is a great opportunity to get your feelings on the canvas and bless the church's worship space in the process.

There are only 7 spots left. Don't miss out on this unique opportunity! There is a $25 fee to cover supplies. To sign up, please contact Cantor Kurt Schmidt by Sunday, October 31st.

In addition to hosting the event on our property, Zion will be there with a tent to greet our fellow residents and offer kind words from a supportive community. To sign-up to volunteer, click here.