News of the Week -May 21, 2020
Spotlight

Sunday, May 24, 2020: Worship at Home Online Service - 7th Sunday of Easter

  • 10:00am: Children's Worship on Zoom will be available Sundays at 10:00 am for a 20 minute with a Children's Worship teacher, will include songs, prayers, stories, and a craft or activity. We encourage all of our children to share in this time with friends, as we continue to celebrating our relationship with God.

(Please contact us at communications@stouffvilleuc.ca or Stouffville United Church Facebook messages for Zoom Meeting details).

Lesson Plans for both Primary & Youth : Link HERE
11:30am: After Worship Coffee Time on Zoom:
(Please contact us at communications@stouffvilleuc.ca or Stouffville United Church Facebook messages for Zoom Meeting details).

Sunday, May 31, 2020: Worship at Home Online Service - Pentecost Sunday
Mission and Service presentation
Sunday, June 7, 2020: Worship at Home Online Service


Current and Previous Services available at http://www.stouffvilleuc.ca/news/

The Bulletin will also be emailed to you , to view online or in print form soon. 
Copies available at the church in outside mail box at south doors. 

Our weekly Sunday Services will be recorded and lead by Rev. Elizabeth and our music director, Courtney Britten with readings and participation from congregational members.
The Stouffville United Gardening Group is excited to start planting this week for the 2020 season at our two raised garden plots at Sunnyridge Community Park. We are looking forward to planting lettuce, onions, carrots, radishes, zucchini and beans to distribute to the Stouffville Food Bank, while making sure we will need to adhere to new safety guidelines.  

We are glad to announce that we will also have a new garden area in our Church Prayer Garden that will help provide fresh produce for the OPEN CUPBOARD this summer. For more information, email eteillet@stouffvilleuc.ca
OPEN CUPBOARD is an initiative of Creating Community For All, through the Stouffville United Church. We have had an increase in numbers of individuals in need due to Covid 19. Donations Welcome. For information: CreatingCommunityForAll@stouffvilleuc.ca .
Camp Big Canoe & Our Vacation Bible School: After this week’s announcement from the Government of Ontario that overnight camps in the province will not be able to operate, Camp Big Canoe sadly confirmed that they will not be running their regular programs at camp this summer.
Vacation Bible Camp Postponed to 2021 - Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, there will be no Vacation Bible Camp at Stouffville United this summer. The VBS committee announced on May 20th, a decision to cancel the summer 2020 vacation camp. “We will certainly miss our fun week with your kids! We look forward to VBS in 2021 - Knights of North Castle.”  We will contact those that paid 2020 registration fees for a full refund.
Zoom meetings have helped us stay connected during this pandemic. Zoom meetings are happening for Children’s Worship, After Worship Coffee Time, Follow The Word Bible Study, Council Meetings, Friday Coffee with Rev. and more.

There are two options when joining a scheduled Zoom meeting. The first is with a computer internet connection using your computer’s video and microphone. The second option is with a dial up phone connection that allows participant to join audio only.  Please contact communications for meeting connection information at communications@stouffvilleuc.ca or 416-346-8532.
At this difficult and stressful time, we ask that you can call on your church family for anything that you need.  We may not be physically together, but through phone calls and helping hands we can be there for each other. Call a church friend, call the office and leave a message, call Rev. Elizabeth, as God calls us to be together in this difficult time. (Church office - 905-640-1163 or Rev. Elizabeth’s cell 416-801-8739)
This Week
Friday May 22nd | 9:30 AM |Coffee with the Rev. | Zoom Gathering. We will meet every week on Fridays for a Zoom gathering. Join This week's Zoom Gathering at :
(Please contact us at communications@stouffvilleuc.ca or Stouffville United Church Facebook messages for Zoom Meeting details).

Monday May 25 |MESSY CHURCH At Home
We miss having our MESSY CHURCH gatherings. We hope you are all well. We will be doing MESSY CHURCH differently for a little while. Once a week on Mondays, between Easter and the end of June, we’ll be providing a scheduled MESSY CHURCH at home session.  This week we will week talk about Jesus’s Ascension.

NEW lesson posted Monday on website posts, Messy Church page on website and Messy Church at Stouffville Facebook and twitter.

Tuesday May 26th| 10:00AM | Follow The Word Bible Study | Zoom Gathering. (Bible study gatherings are weekly on Tuesdays) Newcomers Welcome

Rev. Elizabeth is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.   Join this week's Zoom Gathering
(Please contact us at communications@stouffvilleuc.ca or Stouffville United Church Facebook messages for Zoom Meeting details).
Upcoming News and Info
Worship Committee Meeting : Thursday, June 11 th (Zoom) at 10:30 am
Council Meeting: Tuesday, June 16 th (Zoom) at 7:20 pm
Annual General Meeting: Date for AGM will be confirmed soon.
The COVID-19 Pandemic is affecting the finances of our church. There are No Sunday donations and most rental revenue is on hold. Yet our expenses continue, with heat, hydro, insurance and many other costs continuing to come due.

Your support is greatly appreciated during these difficult times.
In the best interest of the collective health of everyone who interacts at Stouffville United Church, we have postponed or cancelled almost all our programs and activities due to the COVID -19 Virus until further notice. 
 
Each week our Sunday Services will be recorded and led by Rev. Elizabeth and our music director, Courtney Britten.  It will be available online http://www.stouffvilleuc.ca/news/ in video and print form. 

The Sunday Bulletin will also be emailed to you, to view online or in print form soon.  Copies available at the church in outside mail box at south doors. 
Prayer Corner
This week please pray for …
  • Joyce (sister of Doris Harvey)
  • John Virdiramo, friend of Cindy Duncan and niece Jordan
  • Alice Crawley, Granddaughter to Jane Neprily
  • Audrey, cousin to Carroll Blair
  • Melanie & Sharon, friends of Kathleen Stubbington
  • Oksana Vignan
  • Mark Hions (husband to Catherine Hions)
  • Dennis Goldman, friend of Elizabeth Carr
  • Rebekkah Nighswander
  • Jeremy Scott, stationed in Europe with the Canadian Armed Forces
  • Sandy LeGrow, friend/neighbour of Cap & Betty Cowan
  • Laura Best (Nikki's mother)
  • Garry and Jimmy Garrington, brothers of Keith Garrington
  • Cindy Duncan, recovering from broken leg
  • Lynn Gray
  • Jack, family friend to Courtney Britton
  • June Partridge and family
  • Al Whittaker

  • Prayers for the residents and staff of Stouffville’s senior’s residences during this time of heightened vulnerability from the Covid-19 virus. 

  • Doctors, Nurses and Staff serving in hospitals with Covid-19 initiatives. 
  • Dr. Andrew Green, son of Janet Green, on duty at Trillium Health Centre, Mississauga
  • Dr. Trevor Bardell, son-in-law to Judy Patten, on duty at Belleville General Hospital
  • Dr. Judith Littleford, daughter of Bev Littleford
  • Ashleigh Suits and Kristin Beaudin, daughters to Carolyn and David Duggan, on duty at Sunnybrook Medical Health Centre
 
  • First Responders and Essential Services tasked to serve in the community during this pandemic.
  • Chris Devereux, on duty with Toronto Police Service
  • Daniel Geremia, at Stouffville Longos
Things to Celebrate!
Happy Birthday to Ivan Harris, Marg Curtis, Ruth Wagg and Rachel Alden . Our heartfelt wishes and blessings on the wonderful occasion of your birthday. 
Happy Belated Anniversary Wishes to Dana and Kevin Shpak. Congratulations on your 21 st Wedding Anniversary.

Thank you to our wonderful Pastoral Care Team for their caring and loving response. Your kindness is appreciated.
Birthdays / Anniversary / Celebrations can be announced in the News of the Week newsletter. Send us an email at communications@stouffvilleuc.ca with the celebration details and pictures for us to share. 
Blessing to everyone in this difficult time. We will continue to keep you informed through this newsletter, our Facebook page and website in this ever changing environment
Important Information-Moving Forward
Bookings at the Church
As of this moment, due to the uncertainty of when our church building will reopen and to keep things simple, we have across the board cancelled all activities and future bookings of the church on our calendar. There are a couple of far in the future things left but the only other exceptions are online meetings which have booked to new category “via Video/Online”.

If you have a meeting or activity that you plan to do online please let us know so we can add it to the calendar.
When things open up again we will require that all meetings and activities be rebooked to confirm that they are happening plus when and where. We will NOT assume anything.
Thanks for your help and understanding with this.
The Booking Team: Info Email: renter@stouffvilleuc.ca
Housekeeping
Friendly Reminder
Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available. This is particularly important after taking public transport.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
If you feel unwell, stay at home, do not go to stores, work or in public areas.
Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in a garbage.
Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces in the home and work environment.
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Contact Us:
34 Church St | Stouffville | ON | L4A 1E3
Tel: 905-640-1163