Message to the Conference |
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Dear Friends and Members of Penn Central Conference,
Volunteers do not necessarily have the time; they just have the heart. – Elizabeth Andrew
(Elizabeth Andrews OBE (1882–1960) was the first woman organizer of the Labour Party in Wales.)
It is my pleasure to update you on the actions of your Board of Directors following our meeting this past Saturday. As you may have guessed from the quote above, one of the topics we discussed are the upcoming Officer positions that will need to be filled by people with very specific skills and talents. When Rev. Dwight Hein becomes the Moderator at our annual meeting in June, the position of Vice Moderator is open. After serving 12 years as our Treasurer, Mr. Ron Royer plans to retire from this position. In addition, Ms. Elspeth Williams is retiring from her position as Secretary. Both Ron and Elspeth have been key to the smooth operation of the Board and will be greatly missed. We know there are others in our Conference with the heart and talent needed to serve. If you are interested in learning more about any of these positions, please contact me at skeithknox@comcast.net or your local Nominations Chairperson. We are accepting nominations now.
1. Financial Updates: Revenue in December was exceptional. Thank you to local churches for fulfilling your OCWM commitments. With the sale of Hartman Center, $59,515 was added back into conference operating accounts. This was the amount that the conference spent to get the camp ready to sell, i.e. broken cables and sewer lines, cost of the survey, removal of the oil tank, etc. The remainder of the dollars will be used to support Outdoor Ministries.
2. The Strategic Plan was reviewed and updated. We are making considerable progress on our goals and new goals were added, including: 1) development of cultural humility modules for clergy; 2) developing lay leadership resources and workshops for times of transition; 3) Creation Care/Creation Justice; and 4) long term mission and ministry viability. The Strategic Plan is a living document that changes as the needs of the conference change. I am thankful to our conference staff and board for being attentive to our goals and for the progress made. Our Strategic Plan requires the conference to look to the future and prepare for a strong conference and faith presence. Rev. Dr. Carrie Call is forming a Futures Task Force to help us gauge the future of the conference.
3. The Board reviewed the 2023 budget that was prepared by the Finance Committee, Treasurer, and Conference Minister. Minor changes were made, and the board approved a budget that will be presented to the conference at the June 11 annual meeting. This budget represents what the conference needs ($813,074) from our churches to make the Penn Central Conference function.
4. The board approved a comprehensive and standardized evaluation process for the Conference Minister. Of course, this included the input of our current Conference Minister.
5. Rev. Nora Foust informed the board that the 1st Outdoor Ministry Commission meeting is scheduled for May 23rd. We were excited to learn that both board members and 9 additional folks have agreed to serve. One of the tasks is the establishment of the grant applications for outdoor ministries.
6. Planning for Penn Central Conference 60th Annual Meeting “Mission in Focus” is underway, and recipients of the E-News should have received some initial information. Rev. Dr. Karen Georgia A. Thompson, Associate General Minister for Wider Church Ministries and Operations in the UCC and Co-Executive for Global Ministries is our guest speaker. Annual meeting will occur the week of June 6-11, 2022. The week begins with an online Opening Plenary on Monday, June 6th at 6:30 PM. A selection of online workshops occurs on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights (June 7 -9 at 6:30 PM). Topics include: Pandemic Defeated- Congregational Care; Responsible Engagement with Sponsored Refugee Families; Planting, Growing, Sharing-The Ecology of Regenerative Agriculture and Church Gardens; Moving the Racial Justice Agenda Forward in the Local Church; God’s Church Post Pandemic-God’s Church in the 21st Century; A Mission Success Story – Opportunity International; Music and Worship in Smaller Congregations; and Understanding and Eliminating Systemic Racism. The online Business Meeting and worship service will be Saturday, June 11 from 9:30 AM – 3:00 PM. Stay tuned for details and registration information.
7. The board approved the Clergy Compensation Guidelines for 2023. Contact conference staff for a copy of the guidelines.
This will be my last board report to the conference. It has been a pleasure serving as the Moderator for the Penn Central Conference. I have been blessed by serving as the Board Moderator – getting much more than I gave! Elizabeth Andrew’s quote is right on. When I think of those serving alongside me on the board, I am so thankful. We are surely a group of very busy people, yet it is because of our heart and our faith that keeps us engaged in the work of the conference and our commitment to the Church and the United Church of Christ.
Blessings!
Shirley Keith Knox
Moderator
Penn Central Conference
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Ways to Support the People of Ukraine
Dear Colleagues and friends – please see the two links below for some specific information about ways we can assist those in Ukraine. The Global Ministries staff at the national UCC setting has worked diligently to make connections with mission partners in the area and there are several opportunities for giving as well as joining in prayer.
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The PCC Virtual Choir has recorded a Ukrainian Kyrie for use in worship. It is just over a minute long and makes an excellent break between different parts of worship, or during communion, etc. Please feel free to use this piece as a witness to our hope for peace in Ukraine.
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Scheduling notes:
March 26 - April 4 - Rev. Dr. Marisa Laviola on vacation
April 3 - Maytown Reformed UCC, Mayrown - Rev. Dr. Carrie Call preaching
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Save the Dates:
PCC's 60th Annual Meeting
Opening Plenary: 6:30PM, June 6, 2022
Workshops: 6:30PM, June 7-9, 2022
Business & Worship: 9:30AM, June 11, 2022
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Prayers for Penn Central Conference
Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. Ephesians 6:18 (NLT)
This week, we pray for each other as we continue to live into God's calling...
St. John's UCC, McEwensville
St. John's UCC, McKnightstown
St. Paul's UCC, Mechanicsburg
Trinity UCC, Mercersburg
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Printable eNews are available. Pastors and secretaries, please feel free to share with your congregation members that don't get this weekly email. Download and print this PDF with the weekly message to the conference, prayers for Penn Central and brief list of events. |
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Outdoor Ministries
Watch for Rev. Nora Foust's emails on Thursdays for links to register for Outdoor Ministries events and a taste of the summer camp curriculum. Read last week's here or on our Facebook page. If you aren't getting these emails, contact Paul to be added to the mailing list.
Coming events:
* Summer Open House (April 10 from 2-4:30 p.m. at Kirchenwald & Nawakwa)
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HC Spirit Week - What's in a Name?
"Naming and Claiming Who God Made Us to Be"
Saturday, August 6 through Friday, August 12
Camp Mt. Luther
New this year: help design a T-Shirt for our HC Spirit Week!! Learn more in the brochure. (Deadline for entries is May 1, 2022.)
See the full brochure here for all the details! Brochure is printable, please share with your congregations or anyone interested in camp.
Register online here or mail your registration form to the PCC offices. |
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Have you always wanted to work at camp?
The Lutheran Camping Corporation is hiring a motivated, faithful, independent worker to join our community as the Maintenance Manager for Kirchenwald and the Wittel Farm. This person will be responsible for the care and appearance of grounds and facilities on both sites. This is a year round position with an estimated 30 hours per week from September through April and 40 hours per week May through August. Interested applicants should contact Zach Weiss at zweiss@lutherancamping.org. Start date- immediately. Watch the ad here or read the full job description here. |
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Salem UCC Rohrerstown in Lancaster has 25 gently used green choir robes they no longer has need for.They would like to see them go to a good home. Call Eileen Shipe at 717-575-9966 and leave a message if you're interested. |
Colonial Park UCC, 5000 Devonshire Road, Harrisburg (near the Best Buy on Rt. 22) is hosting an outdoor Flea Market on Saturday, May 7 from 8am - 1pm. Rain Date is may 14. Food for sale too! Call 545-3782 to reserve a spot or for more information. We look forward to having you to sell shop & eat! |
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April 24 - 2:00PM - Northern Association Spring Meeting
May 1 - 2:00PM - Central Association Spring Meeting
May 1 - 2:30PM - Gettysburg Association Spring Meeting
May 7 - 9:30AM - Harrisburg Association Spring Meeting - St. Paul's UCC, Sacramento
May 15 - 3:00PM - Mercersburg Association Spring Meeting
May 1 - 3:00PM - Ecclesiastical Council for Allyssa Boyer - St. Paul's UCC, Mechanicsburg with a Zoom option
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Rich Christensen's book, Learning to See: A Memoir of Southern Africa, has now been published by Wipf & Stock. To obtain a copy, you can find it on Amazon and on the publisher’s site.
Below is the back cover blurb.
Teaching in the southern African nation of Botswana in the early 1980’s, Richard Christensen faced a new world, one endlessly fascinating and challenging. Experiencing warm hospitality from many people, sharing both joyful celebrations and painful struggles with students, he and his family encountered a deeper sense of the true meaning of community. Travel in apartheid South Africa and war-weary Zimbabwe gave him a fuller understanding of the reality of oppression and how people of faith endured their plight and kept hope alive. In this experience, so surprising in many ways, he came to a deepened realization of the genuine freedom of the Gospel and the hope it affords us. He saw that relationships are what save us, that the salvation of God in Christ is not merely personal and individual, but communal, and that we are thus more dependent upon one another than we realize. Learning to see the world with new eyes, he discovered not only a more expansive vision of the Church and the world, but also a more honest and complete understanding of himself as a product of an affluent and segregated society.
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PCC has launched a new monthly email just for clergy, with news, events and clergy transitions. If you did not get this month's email on Tuesday, please let Paul know.
We will be including some items in the eNews (see below), but please check out the full email here for more events and news! |
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Building a Just Peace in an Unjust World:
Learning with and from Our Anabaptist Colleagues
Pastoral Colloquy 2022
Sunday, 24 July, through Friday, 29 July, 2022 - Learn more and register here.
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Ministerial Excellence Forums
See the rest of the winter/spring educational opportunities here.
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UCC Webinars
These webinars are designed to help you enhance your local church ministries. Most are free to attend. Check out the calendar here.
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From our friends and partners |
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Clergy Wellness Boundaries Training
Lexington Theological Seminary (IB 582)
April 18-30, 2022
Register by March 9, 2022
This half-credit, two-week online course will help equip clergy for pastoral leadership across ministry settings by addressing issues pertaining to boundaries in the Church. The goal of the course is to facilitate authentic and healthy fellowship and communication with God’s people in congregational and denominational life. Students will grow in their identification and development of healthy boundaries. Contact admissions here.
Instructor: Dr. Yvonne Martinez Thorne
Costs: $25 Registration Fee / $30 Tuition / $30 Tech Fee
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Pennsylvania Academy of Ministry (PAM)
The Future of Multivocational Ministries, April 21–May 17, instructor Darryl W. Stephens. For lay and clergy leaders seeking to understand the benefits and challenges of bivocational and multivocational ministry. Participants will receive a copy of the forthcoming ebook, Bivocational and Beyond. $125* (supported by a grant from the Walters Trust). Register by April 18.
Personal and Spiritual Development, May 24–June 28, Tuesdays, 7–8:30pm. This Ministerial Institute class is taught by PCC Conference Minister Carrie Call. Participants will learn about spiritual disciplines, congregational systems, and vocational discernment. Appropriate for lay leaders, clergy, and MIDs. $325. Register by May 18.
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Position: Music Director
Effective: Immediately
As a part of the United Church of Christ denomination, we at Hamilton Park UCC seek to provide a welcoming, inclusive, and caring environment where people of all backgrounds and from all walks of life can experience the support of a community where they are valued and loved and where they can experience the love of God given by Christ.
General Responsibilities:
In support of the Pastor and the vision of Hamilton Park United Church of Christ, this year-round, part time, salaried position will coordinate the total music ministry program of HPUCC, to include playing instruments, such as piano, organ, guitar, etc. in a manner that enhances the spirit of worship and enriches the congregation's appreciation of music.
Primary Responsibilities:
The Music Director plans and oversees a diverse musical program that enhances the total worship programming of the church that includes worship services and special events.
If interested, please mail or email resume to: Hamilton Park United Church of Christ, Attn: Search, 1210 Maple Ave., Lancaster, PA 17603.
Email: admin@hpucc.org.
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MINISTRY OPPORTUNITY AT LOCUST LAKE STATE PARK Summer 2022
The Schuylkill Association of the PA Southeast Conference, UCC, has a ministry opportunity for a part-time chaplain at Locust Lake State Park near Tamaqua, PA. If you are a Christian (Clergy or lay) who can function in an unstructured situation and who has a love of God, God’s creation, and God’s people, then this might be the opportunity for you.
The chaplain represents the church as a Christian presence and quiet witness among those who camp at this beautiful state park. The responsibilities of the chaplain include:
· Conduct campsite visitation weekly.
· Provide informal, inspirational weekly worship services.
· Provide availability to park/campground staff and campers for crisis situations.
· Provide informal programs such as campfires, hymn sings, special musical events, and activities for children, as needed.
Training and ministry support and resources will be provided by the PA Council of Churches Chaplains in the Park program and the Locust Lake Committee.
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St. Matthew’s UCC (Carlisle) is seeking a part-time
church administrative assistant. Starting pay 15.00 or higher
based on experience/credentials. 10-15hrs/week. Read full description here.
If interested, please contact Pastor Tim Dugan
Preferred contact phone number: 570-428-4290.
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Directory
Rev. Dr. Carrie Call, Ph.D.
Conference Minister
Phone: 717-433-3196
Rev. Nora Driver Foust
Associate Conference Minister
Phone: 717-433-2587
Rev. Dr. Marisa Laviola, Ph.D.
Associate Conference Minister
Phone: 717-433-3564
Rev. Rick Luciotti
Coordinator of Care to Clergy & Clergy Families
Phone: 717-433-6306
Anne Rankin
Outdoor Ministries Liaison
phone: 717-945-4585
C. Paul Keller
Office Manager
Phone: 717-652-1560
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