NEW DEACONS FOR 2025

We are thrilled to announce the newest members of our 2025 diaconate. These individuals have shown a deep commitment to our community of faith and we are grateful for their willingness to serve in this way. Thank you to everyone who participated in the election process and to all those who continue to support our church. We look forward to all the gifts that each person will bring to this servant role within our congregation.

Please join us in congratulating and welcoming our newly elected deacons!

HANDBELL FESTIVAL

Our handbell choir, directed by Anna Anderson, participated in the Capital Area Handbell Festival this past weekend and led us in worship the next morning. They will ring again at the Hanging of the Greens service. 

HANGING OF THE GREENS & RECEPTION

Our 48th annual Hanging of the Greens service will be held Sunday, December 8, at 6pm, followed by a reception in the fellowship hall. We hope you will make plans to join us for this special service of readings and sacred music, as we adorn our sanctuary with greenery for the season of Advent.

As is our custom for this event, we are asking for homemade cookies (three dozen) from our church members and friends. If you are interested in bringing cookies, there will be sign-up sheets in the Sunday School boxes. You may also sign up to bring cookies by contacting Sheila Jordan. Please bring them on Sunday morning, December 8, so that they can be plated that afternoon before the service. If you have questions, feel free to reach out to Sheila or any member of the social committee.

HONOR A LOVED ONE

DURING THE HOLIDAYS



Our sanctuary is so lovely during Advent and Christmas when it is decorated with candles, fresh flowers, and greenery. This holiday “dress” transformation will occur as members of our music ministry share special musical offerings during the annual Hanging of the Greens service at 6pm on Sunday, December 8. You are invited to honor a loved one by making a donation toward the decorations for the service. With $15 for each honorific or memorial gift, all monies will help defray the cost of the trees, wreaths, fresh flowers, and greenery for the service. An insert in the December 15 bulletin will list the names of all for whom gifts were given. Please submit your request here. Checks or electronic payments should be received no later than Friday, December 6. Forms are also available in Sunday School boxes. Mail checks to: Financial Administrator, 99 N. Salisbury St., Raleigh, NC 27603; please write “Holiday Greenery” on the memo line.

SPECIFIC NEEDS FOR TOY JOY

We are quickly approaching Toy Joy on November 16! As we evaluate our current toy inventory, we have some gaps that need to be filled for the event this year. If you're shopping, we still need:

• Games (classics like Monopoly, Chutes & Ladders, etc. are popular)

• Stuffed animals

• Books for teenagers (thrift stores and used bookstores are great places to get a lot for your money)

• Gifts for boys ages 5-18

Gently used items are fine as long as they have all the pieces! Please mark "complete" on boxes, and be sure any stuffed animals are clean. Many of you have already donated items or money and we thank you so much. Any items you have to donate can be left in the marked bins in the church parlor. Make sure to check out our wish lists linked below!

Amazon wish-list

Walmart wish-list

Target wish-list

We're still in need of volunteers to make the event happen smoothly! It takes about 70 volunteers for each session, and right now, we don't have that number for either the morning or afternoon session. Our church family has always come through for this event and we have no doubt you all will this year too. Please click on the link below to volunteer! We can promise you a time of meaningful service and joy, and if you agree to be there all day, we'll provide you with lunch.

Volunteer with TOY JOY 2024

WHITE FLAG AT FBC

A few weeks ago, our church was asked to consider serving as a White Flag shelter for women during the upcoming winter months. Wake County provides various temporary emergency shelter sites for people experiencing homelessness on nights when the temperature drops below 35 degrees. The county does everything involved with housing people in a space — providing the staff to set up cots, staying overnight, and providing security and a cleaning crew for all used spaces the day after. Congregations are only asked to open their doors for an empty, warm space. After much conversation and consideration, we wholeheartedly believe that our fellowship hall would be a gift for this urgent need in our community. The ministers and staff are working hard to sort through the logistics of making this happen. We will be partnering with Edenton Street UMC to house the women on dates when we have conflicts with regularly scheduled events in our fellowship hall, and to bridge a gap of time on Wednesday evenings. There's no doubt that this is a significant ask for our time, space, and staff with many moving parts, but we are committed to doing what we can to open our space for these women in desperate need. We are asking and hoping that our congregants and all groups who share our space have a flexible posture over the next few months as we relocate and shift folks around to make this happen!

There will be a need for a small team of people who would be willing to help our custodial staff break down tables/chairs on the afternoons/evenings when we will be hosting. We will likely have a few days' notice on projected weather, so we can plan ahead and keep volunteers informed of the nights that will be needed. If you would be willing to serve on a team that could help prepare our fellowship hall for White Flag, please contact Leah.

NOVEMBER MISSION PROJECT

For the November mission project, we'll be collecting children's winter clothing for the clothing ministry. Currently, we have the following needs:

• Boys' winter clothing size 2T–youth XL

• Teen boys' winter clothing, adult size S–L (hoodies, casual running/sweatpants)

• Boys' and girls' winter coats, all sizes

As always, you may place your donations in the bin located just inside the parking lot doors any time the building is open. We are so grateful for your continued support of this vital community ministry!



HOLIDAY SERVICE OF HOPE

For over twenty years, the downtown churches of Raleigh have co-hosted a Holiday Service of Hope and Remembrance to provide space for those who have known loss to acknowledge their grief openly, to experience the encouragement of fellow believers, and to find comfort in the assurances of our faith. COVID shut us down for a couple years, and then we resumed this shared experience, but this year, three downtown churches are in the midst of pastoral transitions and thus unable to participate.

As a result, we are going to hold our own service on Thursday, November 21, at 7pm. We will include some traditional elements. We will read texts of assurance and pray for all dealing with loss, Music Made in Heaven will play, and we will remember loved ones we have lost. But we will do the latter in a slightly different way, gathering near the front of the sanctuary and lighting candles in memory of these loved ones. Everyone is invited to attend whether you are in need of healing or willing to offer support to others, and it is fine to invite friends who have known loss. This is not an exclusive service, just one that we are shaping as one congregation this year. We hope to return to a shared experience in 2025.



RALEIGH CHRISTMAS PARADE BISCUIT GIVEAWAY

This year, we're making a slight shift in our plans for the Raleigh Christmas parade. Instead of hot chocolate, we'll be giving out free biscuits from And Also with 'Cue and bottled water to parade-goers! We hope you'll make plans to join us on Saturday, November 23, as we share this gift with our neighbors. Volunteers will be needed to help wrap the biscuits individually beginning at 7:30am in the fellowship hall. Once they're wrapped, we'll stand in our usual spot on Hillsborough Street to hand them out!

Join the biscuit crew by signing up here, and email Leah with any questions.

NEW COLLEGE SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASS

College students, mark your calendars! A new Sunday School class is launching this month just for you. Stay tuned for more details in the coming weeks.

THANKSGIVING PRE-ORDERS

It's time again to place your pre-orders for your Thanksgiving feast from And Also with 'Cue! Please click here to place an order. For 2024, we've added some new and delicious items for your Thanksgiving spread. Pick-up information is included on the ordering site. Thank you for continuing to support us and our mission!

THIRTY-NINERS RESUME WEEKLY GATHERINGS

Come join us Thursdays at 10:30am in the fellowship hall for interesting speakers, mission projects, and once a month, a program that's a little out of the ordinary. We also have an outing each month, but mostly we enjoy spending time together, learning something new and useful, and always ending with a meal. Come check us out before you are “too old” to get here.                            

NOVEMBER 

14 Southern Supreme Fruit Cake (1699 Hoyt Scott Road, Bear Creek, NC) shopping trip with lunch at Bestfood Cafeteria, 220 11th Street, Siler City (12 noon)

21 Meals on Wheels of North Carolina, Non-Profit Statewide Network 

28 NO MEETING FOR THANKSGIVING 

DECEMBER 

5 Holiday monthly mission project: write Christmas cards to home-bound members, make ornaments for Lewis Lobby tree

12 Baptists on Mission Disaster Relief and More with Richard Brunson, executive director 

19 Thirty-Niner family Christmas luncheon: bring a gift for White Elephant exchange 

26 NO MEETING FOR CHRISTMAS 

JANUARY

2 NO MEETING FOR NEW YEARS 

CENTERPOINT THIS MONTH

In November, we will explore the intersection of faith and culture. How do expressions of Christian belief and heritage like the "He Gets Us" ad campaign, prayer apps on smartphones, and faith-based programs like "The Chosen" attempt to influence the secular culture? Do cultural expressions of Christian ideas make it easier to talk about faith issues or harder? What are the opportunities and challenges of communicating faith for mass audiences? On November 13 we will discuss the TV series "The Chosen."  

WHAT'S FOR DINNER?

We would love for you to join us for a mid-week meal! The supper line is open each Wednesday night, 5:15–6:15pm. You may reserve your spot at this link on the website or by calling the church office. Please note that every person eating Wednesday night supper must check-in with our volunteer collection team before getting their meal. Even if you have pre-paid online, please check-in with our volunteer. We accept cash, checks, or credit cards.



Ages 0–3: Free

Ages 4-12: $4

Adults (over 12): $8

Family cap (over 3 people): $24

The menus for upcoming Wednesday night suppers are as follows (all meals come with salad and bread):

November 13: taco soup w/quesadilla; kids: taquitos.

November 20: meatloaf with mashed potatoes and green beans; non-meat option: roasted and seasoned portabella mushrooms with sweet potatoes topped w/cranberries and chunked avocado

December 4: spaghetti with meatballs and tomato sauce, steamed broccoli, and garlic bread; non-meat option: spaghetti w/tomato sauce.

December 11: shrimp and grits with Texas toast and fresh fruit; non-meat: cheesy grits. 

December 18: vegetarian chili with cornbread