VBS - Monday through Thursday, July 26^th-July 29^th.

Who: Preschool age – 5^th grade

The St. John Council has decided that at this time we can resume normal activities. This includes Sunday School, After School, Confirmation, Wednesday night suppers, choirs & other activities that begin in the Fall.

Worship service will remain at 9:00 a.m. for the foreseeable future. Parish Ed will determine the time for Sunday School. Council is excited about having a fuller sanctuary on Sundays and allowing the whole congregation to be able to enjoy choirs, children's presentations, and special music together. Plus, having one service will continue to foster the sense of community they've been trying to strengthen.

Communion will be in the pews through July with the pre-packaged cups. Starting in August, we will return to communion on the 1^st & 3^rd Sunday of the month. Parishioners will have the choice to receive communion up front or use the pre-packaged cups in the pews.

Worship videos will be provided on July 25, August 1 & August 15.

The radio broadcast will continue EVERY Sunday at 9:00 a.m.

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KANS FOR KIDS – Wow! Has this ever turned out to be a super special outreach program. Your contributions have provided more than we ever could have imagined. We have received enough cans/bottles that we are able to provide enrollment support for all the children enrolled in our vacation Bible school program this year. That means VBS is FREE to all children who want to attend. How great is that? Thank you! If you haven’t signed your children up yet – there is still time! It’s a great experience for them as they learn about the love of our generous God and Father.

However, we have some housekeeping changes and requests. Please separate glass from cans. Cans fly over our fence very easily. Throw tightly bound bags of cans over. However, glass bottles don’t bounce! – Please sit them on the outside of the fence line. There is such a risk of injury if we have to deal with broken glass. Please be considerate of the individual gathering your cans/bottles and the recycling people who need to sort them. Please contribute only return deposit items (no water bottles, please). We would ask that you not send us crushed cans if at all possible. Please – no food waste. We have had cans mixed with food waste and that is not fun to deal with. At our last meeting it was decided that any bags containing food waste would be sent to the dump – regardless of how many cans or bottles are mixed in that mess. Thank you for all the support you have given with this Project. Keep passing word of our Kans for Kids project around the area! Thank you! Stewardship Board

FOSTER GRANDPARENTS NEEDED: The Foster Grandparent Program is looking for those who are 55 and older and interested in becoming a mentor and/or tutor for area children in schools, preschools, daycare centers and Head Starts. Many benefits including paid training, stipend, sick and holiday pay plus knowing you are making a difference in a child’s life. Call Jennifer today at (641) 257-6327 for more information or email at f.grandparents@mchsi.com. Bridging generations one child at a time with a touch of love.

St. John will be providing a worship service at 9^th St  Chautauqua on the second Friday of the month at 10:15 a.m. We will need volunteers to play piano & to help distribute communion. Contact the office at 641-228-3397 if you would like to volunteer!

St. John & Messiah have a team in the church softball league! They play at Westwood Park & their next game will be July 27th at 6:00 p.m. on the East Diamond. Go cheer on our team & enjoy an evening of softball!

Altar Flower & Radio Sign-up: If you would like to sign up to sponsor the Altar flowers &/or the radio broadcast contact Kathy in the office at 641-228-3397! We will continue to have flowers as they are on the online service & the radio broadcast reaches many of our at home congregation! There are still quite a few opportunities to sponsor these items. Kathy can tell you the dates that are open.

The next meeting for the Sesquicentennial Committee will be Sunday, August 22^nd at 10:15 a.m. We made good progress with many wonderful ideas. Anyone can come to this meeting, we need your insight and input on the items we discussed. You can contact e-skinny@stjohncharlescity.com for information.