First United Methodist Church of St. Cloud

September 2022 Newsletter

From the Desk of Pastor Cathy

Dear friends!

How can it be fall already? I am waiting and anticipating the cooler weather. I love everything about fall, especially pumpkin! Last week I had one of those delicious Panera Bread pumpkin muffins! Yummy! I know, “It’s not on the Daniel Plan!” But as Prue Leith says, “Worth the calories!” I am a fan of the Great British Bake-Off Show. Rusty loves the fall because it’s hunting season and football season. We all have our reasons to love the changing of the seasons. We experience life together as we experience the changes in the seasons. In the church, this is the time for Stewardship series and Annual Charge Conferences. This year our Charge Conference will be held on Saturday, October 22^nd at 9:00 AM at our church. We will be the host site for Charge Conferences and so far, one other church is on the schedule. Charge Conference is the annual business meeting of the church. We will accept a draft of our 2023 Budget, vote on our Lay Leadership for the next year and approve the Pastor’s Salaries & benefits.

Our sermon series this fall is called “The Call: The Life and Ministry of the Apostle Paul.”

October 2nd Called Follow Christ

October 9^th Called to Go

October 16th Called to Suffer

October 23rd Called to Love

October 30^th Called to Give

November 6^th Called to be Faithful

The Apostle Paul’s writings have shaped the lives of millions of people. He is second only to Jesus in his influence on the Christian faith and his witness defines what it means to follow Jesus. I hope you will join us for this exciting series!

Wednesday, October 26^th from 6:00-8:00 PM is our Trunk or Treat event for children. We will circle our vehicles around the parking lot behind the Family Life Center. We will dress up in kid-friendly, non-scary costumes, and have lots of candy and treats for all our children. We are happy to have this safe alternative from door-to-door trick or treating for our children and friends. I hope you will join us and bring treats for the children!

Recently, Rusty and I traveled with our daughter, Sara, and her family on vacation. We were in four states, six National Parks/Sites, and put 1,500 miles on the rental car! We had never been to South Dakota and Nebraska before (we had been in Colorado and Wyoming). We were so blessed to see this beautiful part of our country! What gorgeous mountains and lakes and trees! The temperatures were warm during the day but cooler at night. We saw buffalo, deer, antelope, prairie dogs, Golden Eagles, jack rabbits, turkeys, big horn sheep and a coyote. Rusty was thrilled to see deer in our yard several days! I was reminded of the Psalms, “In his hands are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also.” Psalm 95:4(NRSV) and “Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains.” Psalm 36:6(NRSV).

It’s a joy to be your Pastor!

Pastor Cathy

Lake Legion at Custer State Park

Mount Rushmore

The Badlands

Crazy Horse Memorial

Mark, Sadie, Sara, Caleb, Cathy and Rusty

Worship Skit

Pastor Jim Kledis (Abraham), Eileen Perez (Sarah), and Jim Stambarger (the voice of God) recently performed a skit related to the sermon message.

Meet Monica Scarlett

Monica Scarlett has been living in Kissimmee since 2000 when she moved from Tallahassee. After moving she became employed at Walt Disney World where she met her husband, Mitchell. Mitchell has been working at Disney for 27 years now.

Monica and Mitchell have two boys, Wyatt and Blake. Wyatt is thirteen years old and in the 8^th grade and Blake is eleven and in the 6^th grade. Monica homeschools the boys and also works with her dad in their accounting firm. She is able to work from home in Kissimmee while the business is located in Tallahassee. She majored in Accounting and Finance in college and enjoys working in the family business.

Monica is involved in First Church’s youth program by leading the younger middle school student’s discussion group. She also helps the youth director, Amber Smith when needed. She came to FUMCSC a few years ago when Rijean Smith asked her to visit the church. After visiting she said that it felt like home to worship at First Church St. Cloud. The people she has met along with those she already knew, really make it a friendly church. She enjoys the relationships and connections that she has made with everyone at the church. This is what keeps her coming week after week. She also has enjoyed the social time and painting sessions during the Church-Wide Wednesday night dinner and activities.

When Monica has time to wind down from working, home-schooling and taking her boys to their extra-curricular activities she enjoys reading a good book, doing cross-stitch or gardening. She is a very active and fun woman. We appreciate all that she has been doing to assist with the FUMC youth program.

Wanted: Sunday Morning Nursery Worker

The church is seeking a nursery worker for Sunday mornings from 8 to 11:30 AM. This is a paid position. If you or someone you know is interested please contact the church office or Rijean Smith to learn more about the job requirements.

Serving Others with

Our Mercy Ministries

Bags of Love

The number of people who come on Tueday and Thursday mornings for Bags of Love is increasing. FUMCSC is always in need of food to fill the bags! You may help supply the need of the Bags of Love lunches by bringing any of these items to the FUMC office; Vienna sausages, canned tuna or chicken, Beanie-Weanies, bags of chips, cookies, peanut butter or cheese crackers, fruit cups, pudding snacks, applesauce, bottled waters.

Gently used clothing are also distributed on Tuesday and Thursday when those less-fortunate come for Bags of Love.

As our numbers continue to go up we thank you for helping us serve the community! Volunteers are always needed to prepare a hot meal, fill and distribute bags of love, and sort clothing. There are many opportunities for those who wish to help out. Please contact the church office if you are interested.

Our Bicycle Ministry provides refurbished bicycles to those in need so they are able to have much needed transportation. If you know someone who has a bike they are not using please contact the church office.

Click on the image above to go to the Bags of Love Store page directly.

Elmer's Kitchen

FUMC of St Cloud serves as the host site of Elmer’s Meal Kitchen, partnering with the St. Cloud Ministerial Association. Each Sunday at 2:00 pm in the Family Life Center, a free nutritious meal is served to the unemployed or underemployed by a different church or local group.

First Sunday of month: First Presbyterian Church of St. Cloud

Second Sunday of month:

Boy Scouts & St. Thomas Aquainas Catholic Church

Third Sunday of month: Soul City Church

Fourth Sunday of month: Jehovah Jireh Community Church

Fifth Sunday of month: FUMC of St. Cloud

Volunteer Opportunities

There are many opportuities to volunteer at First Church St. Cloud. Donna Regn with the Mercy Ministries is always looking for help. Elmer's Kitchen can also use assistance.

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We are looking for someone to take over or assist with this monthly newsletter. Contact the church office if you are interested.

FOOD, FELLOWSHIP & FUN

Coffee Hour on Sunday Mornings

Join us for "coffee hour" between church services from 9:15 to 10:00 AM located in the Annex off the Sanctuary. Rhys Bibeau and Larry Dykes are your hosts each week. This is a special time to meet your church family for coffee, donuts, cookies, and other treats. Donations and volunteers are welcome! Please call (407) 908-4418 if you are interested in helping.

Don White, Sheran Rasmus, Larry Dykes, Samuel, & Barbara Watson

Monthly Church-Wide Wednesday Night Dinner

Each month we hold a Church-Wide Wednesday night dinner with physical distancing followed by an activiity starting at 5:15 PM. It is a great time to get to know your church family. After taking a break for the summer, we finally met again in September for burgers and hotdogs cooked by Larry Finch. Martha Anderson was on cleanup duty and Rijean and Amber Smith supplied the art materials and led the painting lesson. Everyone who participated made a beautiful fall painting and had a great time.

The next Wednesday Night Dinner will be held on October 12^th. Please join us for a delicious traditional Costa Rican meal prepared by our Costa Rica Mission Team. Plan to stay afterward to hear the team share about their summer mission trip to Costa Rica.

Enjoying a burger!

Steve and Julie

Painting: Blake, Brooke, and Ada

Carly Barnes painting with her daughter, Tesslyn and son, Kyton.

Ruth Upthegrove and her granddaughter

Rijean and her daughter Amber

Ruth Mosher and her daughter

Megan Phelps

Fellowship Circle

The Seasoned Souls women's group felt that other church goers would have no idea what a group called Seasoned Souls involved and perhaps a name change would remedy that problem and encourage more people to join them. So they discussed it, asked for God's guidance and became the Fellowship Circle. In addition to serving God they meet to serve the church by doing tasks and chores as needed or requested and there is also a social part to their group in that they strive to get to know each other better and thus enrich their lives, support each other and have fun. They meet twice a month on the first and third Mondays of the month, beginning on October 17. They will meet through May 15 this year and take a break again during the summer months. Please contact Myrna Lee at myrocket@juno.com to learn more about the Fellowship Circle.

Circle of Light

Another group of women who meet at the church is the Circle of Light led by Renda Collins. They meet on the 2^nd Wednesday of the month. They plan on having a guest speaker at their October meeting. Their primary goal is to mail out cards to the homebound (shut-ins) of our congregation. they are looking for other ways to serve our church. You may contact Renda at rccollins10618@gmail.com to learn more about the group.

Studying God's Word

Here at First Chirch St. Cloud there are several opportunities to study God's word.

After their summer break, the Smooth Stone Bible Study started up again on Monday, September 12^th with a get reacquainted social hour. On September 26^th, they began a new study on the book of Hebrews. They are so pleased to have some new members and are looking forward to learning more from the Bible and from each other. Smooth Stones Bible Study meets on the second and fourth Mondays of the month. Vivian Kravitz leads this group and can be reached by email at vkravitz@aol.com.

Every Tuesday evening Pastor Cathy leads an in-depth study of the Sermon series which will be preached on the following Sunday. This study involves much discussion about the topic at hand. Please join her and others from your computer, tablet or smartphone at 7:00 PM.

https://us04web.zoom.us/j/4346020464

Passcode 623978

On Sunday mornings the Serendipity Sunday School Class meets at 9:00 AM in the classroom attached to the Sanctuary as a hybred format; some in person and others over the phone. For more information contact the church office.

The Genesis Sunday School Classs also meets on Sunday morning at 9:15 AM in the Youth room upstairs of the FLC. Currently they are studying from the book, More Parables from the Backside by J Ellsworth Kalas. Larry Finch leads this study and can be reached by email at Lfinch4945@aol.com.

The Power Hour Prayer Group meets each Monday morning at 8:30 AM for prayer and to lift up the prayer requests from the congregation. You are invited to join this lively group of prayer warriors each week. If you are interested you may contact the church office.

Spiritual Gifts Assessment

Pastor Jim would like to personally invite you to attend a powerful Spiritual event. He will be presenting Network – a Spiritual Gifts Seminar!

Network is a series of assessments, which will lead you to discover your unique blend of spiritual gifts, personal style, and ministry passion. Attendees will look at the biblical nature and purpose of the church as the Body of Christ and your unique importance to the body

Network is divided into six sessions. We will be working through 3 sessions on October 29^th and three sessions on November 5^th from 9:00 am. To 12:00 pm. Each three-hour session will enlighten and inspire our journey together.

Urgent! In order to make sure that we have enough books on hand, please contact Pastor Jim by emailing at

RevJamesKledis@gmail.com before October 1, 2022 to reserve your book. You won't want to miss out on this journey of faith.

by Lou Murray, Music Director

Looking ahead, our second annual Christmas concert will be December 18 at 4 PM. Your choir is practicing for this event, in addition to preparing the music for regular services. A belated thanks to Myrna Lee and Seasoned Souls for the much-needed covers for our keyboards. All singers are welcome but we especially need male voices! If you'd like to join us, just show up for practice in the sanctuary on Wednesday evenings at 7. You don't have to be a great sight reader, but some musical training is a big plus. I'm always open to comments or suggestions about the music.

Thanks for listening!

Chancel Choir at the Traditional Service under the Leadership of

Lou Murray is growing!

Handbell Musicians under the Leadership of Diana Walls

Praise Team at the Blended Service under the Leadership of

Scott Weyrauch

Mark Your Calendar

Upcoming Events

October 9 - Pastor Appreciation Sunday

October 10 - Smooth Stones Bible Study ~ 10:00 AM

October 12 - Circle of Light ~ 10:00 AM

October 12 - Church-Wide Wednesday night dinner ~ 5:15 PM

October 17 - Fellowship Circle Begins ~ 10:00 AM

October 22 - UMCSC Annual Charge Conference ~ 9:00 AM

October 24 - Smooth Stones Bible Study ~ 10:00 AM

October 26 - Trunk or Treat for the Children and Youth ~ 6 - 8 PM

October 30 - FUMCSC serves Elmer's Kitchen ~ 2:00 - 3:00 PM

Regular Meetings

Sunday

Traditional Worship Service ~ 8:15 - 9:15 AM
Hybred Serendipity Sunday School Class ~ 9:00 - 10:00 AM
Genesis Sunday School Class ~ 9:15 - 10:00 AM (FLC)
Coffee Hour (Annex off the Sanctuary) ~ 9:15 - 10:00 AM
Blended Worship Service ~ 10:15 - 11:15 AM
Newcomer's Luncheon ~ 3rd Sunday Quarterly, 11:30 AM
Elmer's Kitchen ~ 2:00 - 3:00 PM (FUMCSC - 5th Sunday)

Monday

Power Hour Prayer Group ~ 8:30 AM
Fellowship Circle (Formerly Seasoned Souls) ~ 1st & 3rd Monday, 10:00 AM (Resumes October 17)
Smooth Stones Bible Study ~ 2nd & 4th Monday, 10:00 AM
Boy Scouts ~ 7:00 PM)

Tuesday

Bags of Love ~ 9 - 11 AM (Hot Breakfast to Go)
Online Bible Study with Pastor Cathy - 7:00 PM; Please join using your computer, tablet or smartphone. https://us04web.zoom.us/j/4346020464 use passcode: 623978
Cub Scouts ~ 7:00 PM

Wednesday

Circle of Light - Women's Group - 2nd Wedesday of each month 10:00 AM
Wednesday Night Church-Wide Dinner - 2nd Wednesday ~ starting at 5:15 PM
Youth Group ~ 6:00 - 7:00 PM
Children's program ~ 6:00 - 7:00 PM
Adult Choir Rehearsal ~ 7:00 - 8:00 PM

Thursday

Bags of Love ~ 9:00 - 11:00 AM

Please Note: Our Church Services can be viewed on

FACEBOOK LIVE on our FB page or later on our YouTube

Channel. Click on the links at the bottom of this newsletter to

find these videos.

New to our Website!

Office Administrator, James Wise has been working hard to update the church website https://www.firstchurchstcloud.org. Past newsletters are available by clicking on the Resources Tab and our Monthly Overview Calendar which is continually updated by James is also available. The calendar can be found by clicking the About tab and then the Weekly Schedule line or by clicking this link.

https://www.firstchurchstcloud.org/about/weekly-schedule

October 2022 CHURCH NEWSLETTER

Classes are in full swing and there is a whole lot of learning going on! God has blessed us with 54 students this year. The children participated in a wonderful STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) event. Each student had the opportunity to make a snow cone by using their own body as the power. A large walking wheel, cranks, levers, and pulleys were used, and the result was a snow cone! The children had an exciting time and learned new things from the experience.

On October 13th, the Saint Cloud Fire Department will visit and teach us all about Fire Safety in support of Fire Safety month. Follow us on Facebook to see day to day activities and happenings around the school. Our annual Storybook Parade will take place on Monday, 10/31 at 12:00 PM. Come on out and watch the children parade around the campus in their favorite storybook costume! www.facebook.com/firstumcpreschoolstcloud.

Smiles,

Ms. Denise

Making Snow Cones

The children of First Church meet on Sunday mornings during the 10:00 AM Blended Worship Service after the Children's Moment.

Rijean Smith lead the Children's Moment during the Blended Worship Service.

Brylee, Isabelle, and Charlotte recently participated in Acolyte training.

The three girls received a certficate for completion of the Acolyte Training.

Charlotte took her turn first as an Acolyte at the Blended Worship Service.

Acolytes Charlotte and Brylee working together.

Children's Church

BeExcitedAboutCelebratingHim

The Children's Wednesday evening program is called the B.E.A.C.H. Club (Be Excited About Celebrating Him.) Each week from 6:00 until 7:00 PM. They enjoy learning about Jesus, making crafts, learning about each other, playing games, and having a delicious snack. If you know of a child who would enjoy our children's program please contact Rijean Smith at rijeansmith@yahoo.com.

Our Children's Ministries will host a community Trunk-or-Treat event on Wednesday, October 26^th starting at 6:00 PM. Come to the parking lot behind the Family Life Center with your trunk decorated to greet our children at your vehicle by handing out Candy and Treats. Costumes for adults and children should be kid-friendly and non-scary. Volunteers and candy donations are needed. Share this information with your friends, neighbors and family.

Our Youth Group also meets each week on Wednesday evenings

from 6:00 to 7:00 PM.

The youth at our church, led by Amber Smith are very active with many of the events that we host. They also are involved with the Children's Ministry and help out where needed. If you know of a teen who would like to get involved in our church's youth program please contact Amber Smith at amber.10golf@gmail.com.

Some of our youth and children had a fun day at Island H2O.

October Birthdays

Oct. 3 - Jack Lovejoy

Oct. 4 – Faelo Donis

Oct. 4 - Ruth Lovejoy

Oct. 7 - Bonnie Gregory

Oct. 11 - Darlene McCland

Oct. 14 – Rusty Thacker

Oct. 15 - Rita Miller

Oct. 15 - Kate Walther

Oct. 15 - Amanda McConnell

Oct. 21 - Amy Allison

Oct. 23 – Ann Leavens

Oct. 24 – Celia Finch

Oct. 25 - Jill Anderson

Oct. 27 - Beverly Dix

Oct. 30 - Diane Spaulding

October Anniversaries

October 13 – Mitch and Monica Scarlett

October 17 - Dennis and Shireen Tripp

Note: We are working hard to keep our information accurate and regret if we have missed our birthday or anniversary. If you know of someone whom we have missed in this birthday or anniversary list please notify the Church Office.