Dear Fellow Members and Friends of First Congregational Church,
If you were in church on Easter Sunday, or if you have read the April newsletter, you know that after twenty-five years of wear and tear, we are now planning to replace the tile in the kitchen, the kitchen lobby and the bathrooms off the kitchen, and the carpet in Pioneer and Blachly halls. The total cost of this endeavor, which will include leveling the floor in Pioneer Hall, will be $40,000. Sometimes it is easy to overlook the fact that maintaining our church building is part of our church’s mission. Our kitchen and fellowship halls not only provide us a space to conduct Christian education and have fellowship together on Sundays; they also provide space for Taizé worship on Thursday nights; for our ministry to the hungry, Second Helping, on Sunday nights; and for church board meetings and for meetings by a number of other service groups in the community, such as MAPJ, AAUW, and the MLK Committee. Over the life of the current flooring, we have conducted roughly 72,720 minutes of adult education classes, served 49,000 meals at Second Helping, and hosted 8,496 meetings by community groups. We have already received $19,000 in pledges from members and friends of the church who were eager to contribute to our Step Forward campaign. We have $21,000 to go. We invite you to join this campaign and contribute to our new flooring. If you received the No Fooling postcard in the bulletin on Easter Sunday, you know that you can make a one-time donation by simply depositing cash or a check in the offering plate, mailing your donation to the church, or through electronic giving. In each case, make sure you indicate what your donation is for. If you would like to pledge a larger amount and pay it in installments, using the pledge card, we would like to receive your pledge card by April 30, and your total pledge may be paid by December 31, 2018. You will be able to track the progress of our campaign by looking at a space on the floor of the main lobby where we will “fill the floor” with carpet samples as a visual representation of our progress towards our goal. Work on the new flooring will begin on Tuesday, April 10, and it should be installed by May 1. During this time, we will be having our after-church Fellowship Hour in Andover Hall in the basement. Thanks to all of you for your dedicated support for First Congregational United Church of Christ as we step forward into our renewed kitchen and fellowships halls. Yours in faith, David Smit Moderator Read Pastor Caela's reflection and invitation here. Read why Gretchen & Jim Lewis support the campaign here. UPDATE: Work is underway and photos are available here. Before Dr. King's assassination 50 years ago, he initiated the Poor People's Campaign to seek justice and policy reform related to racism, poverty and militarism.
You are invited to join us Saturday, April 14th from noon to 4pm to learn about the local work being done to re-invigorate his vision for equality and justice in our community, state and nation. The training session will be held in the Fellowship Hall of the First United Methodist Church in Manhattan (612 Poyntz Ave., ATA Red line). At the training, we will review the basic principles and goals of the Poor People's Campaign: ending systemic poverty, racism, militarism and ecological devastation. We will also discuss how these four core issues affect our local community and introduce how we can get engaged at the state and local level in making positive social change. During the training, we will video conference with participants in 40 other states as we hear from Rev. Dr. Barber and Rev. Dr. Theoharis. Together, we are building unity across lines of division as we support one another in our efforts towards morally just social change. To sign up for the April 14th training follow this RSVP link. We are working on plans to provide childcare and there is a place to indicate your need for childcare on the RSVP. For more info on the national Poor People's Campaign, you can visit their website. PLEASE HELP US SPREAD THE WORD! Share the Facebook event for the April 14th training Print flyers for the event (single page, two-to-a-page) Join us for our annual blessing of the animals on Sunday, May 13! We'll gather at 10:45 a.m, in (shady) Longs Park. Please bring along your own chair if you've got one.
During worship, we'll bless our pets. Childcare staff will be on hand to care for young kids who want to explore the playground or the rest of the park. After worship, stick around for a good ol' fashioned potluck. Bring a dish to share and your own tableservice. Drinks will be provided by our Board of Deacons. Living Room Worship Night
Sunday, April 8 6:30 - 8:30 pm A casual evening of acoustic guitar, singing, prayer, and fellowship. If you are hungry to deepen your connection to God and each other, join us in the living room! Location: 205 Cedar Drive, Manhattan 66502 The Board of Trustees invites you to help us with our spring clean up. There will be indoor and outdoor jobs available beginning at 9am on Saturday, April 7. Please bring along shovels, clippers, trimmers, gloves, etc. if you'd got them. Otherwise, just bring yourself. Many hands make light work!
We are honored to have Rabbi Moti Rieber speak at our service on Sunday, March 18. Reb Moti is the Executive Director of Kansas Interfaith Action (KIFA) and a life-long activist on peace, social justice, and environmental issues. He is a regular presence at the state capitol and testifies at hearings and meets regularly with legislators in pursuit of KIFA goal of bringing a faith-based moral voice to public policy in Kansas. KIFA acts on the belief that everyone deserves equal opportunity and equal protection, and the right to live in peace per their principles, which includes discrimination based on religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and other variables that describe marginalized populations. Reb Moti will speak on non-violence as a faith-based action for change. The Vitality Committee will host an extended Fellowship time with a light brunch and the opportunity to meet Reb Moti and learn more about KIFA and his current work in Topeka.
![]() Mark your calendars… Monday, March 5 - Stand with Muslim Neighbors Advocacy Day. KIFA and CAIR-Kansas are once again co-sponsoring Muslim Advocacy Day. All of us - Muslims, Christians, Jews, Unitarians, agnostics, and others - will visit the state capitol to let our legislators and the people of Kansas know how important our Muslim neighbors are to the well-being of our communities, and our refusal to see them victimized or singled-out, legally or politically. A rally will begin at 10AM in the 2nd Floor Rotunda, and there will be activities throughout the day. For more information and to register go to the KIFA website, www.kansasinterfaithaction.org Thursday, March 15 - WEALTH Day. WEALTH stands for Water, Environment, Air, Land, Transportation and Health. This is our chance to make our concern for Creation visible to everyone! The day will start with an interfaith climate vigil at 9 AM, followed by a legislative briefing/training, meetings throughout the day, and a lunch with legislators. For a full agenda and to register for the event check the KIFA website. Saturday, March 24 – Turn Off Your Lights. Annual Earth Hour, 8:30 – 9:30 PM local time. April 3 – 5 - Unite to End Racism. The National Council of Churches invites us to unite to end racism! Join faith leaders in Washington, DC April 3-5 in the clarion call to heal the soul of the nation as we commemorate the 50th anniversary of Dr. King’s assassination. Visit www.rally2endracism.org Wednesday, May 9, 6:30pm. KIFA Annual Event, First Christian Church, Topeka Exciting announcement about the guest speaker is coming soon! Stay informed… Want to keep up with UCC social justice actions at the national and global level? Sign up for info-packed newsletter, Take Action, of the United Church of Christ, Justice & Peach Action Network, at www.ucc.org They also have a FaceBook page. Make a difference in 2018… Last month, we started a short series based on the Southern Poverty Law Center’s (SPLC) Five Ways to Make a Difference in 2018. The February newsletter discussed #1: Start a Conversation (don’t stay silent when you hear words of hate), and suggested SPLC’s, Speak UP: Responding to Everyday Bigotry, available free at their website, www.splcenter.org #2 is Be Informed. Martin Luther King, Jr. once wrote: "Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity." Make a pledge to stay informed in 2018 about your government, your community and the injustices occurring to those around you. SPLC recommends On Tyranny, The March Against Fear, and The Blood of Emmett Till. You can sign up for the UCC newsletter, Take Action, or follow the SPLC on Facebook or request their newsletter. #3 is Stay Engaged. SPLC suggests volunteering with a cause that is important to you. We have many opportunities at First Congregational! Many community organization request help and there will be many opportunities to work for candidates and to get out the vote this fall.
Living Room Worship Night
Sunday, March 4 6:30 - 8:30 pm A casual evening of acoustic guitar, singing, prayer, and fellowship. If you are hungry to deepen your connection to God and each other, join us in the living room! Location: 205 Cedar Drive, Manhattan 66502 Questions? Contact Kerry Priest, Rachel Shivers, or Lisa Tatonetti. |
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