Saturday, February 4 7:30 pm
Latin Jazz Jammin’ right here in New Gloucester! Jazz guitar great Gary Wittner brings his trio to our stage for an evening of original and traditional Latin music.
They call themselves Dos Canosos, Un Joven (Two Gray-heads, One Young Guy): Raul Freyre on lead vocals and percussion, Gary Wittner on 7-string (yes, 7) guitar and vocals, and Rafael Freyre on bass and vocals.
Admission: $10 for adults; $5 for seniors and children
Coffee and Tea are FREE and you can have munchies for a little donation.
The schedule of camps at Pilgrim Lodge has been posted on the PL website. Check it out: www.pilgrimlodge.org/2012tentativeschedule
There are a few commitments still be finalized which is why the schedule is listed as “tentative.” Please note that several camps filled very quickly last summer.
Can’t wait to see you at camp!
Rev. Bryan S. Breault, Director of Outdoor Ministries, Maine Conference, United Church of Christ
Together, we advance the dream of peace, justice and equality on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
We have such characters among the children at church…and many of them LOVE to sing. If you’ve got one (or more!) of those in your family, this opportunity is for you.
Beth Barefoot, our Minister of Music hosts almost-weekly HALF-HOUR singing sessions with children who are in the first grade and up. It meets right after worship almost every Sunday except for the first Sunday of the each month and holidays. Here’s what Beth says: “It’s joyful fun. Nothing too stressful or demanding. They learn to put a little praise in their lives.”
See ya Sunday…10:45.
We have a limited first edition of professionally printed note cards available now. Each set contains 8 lovely views of the church, exterior, aerial and interior.
Each package of 8 cards is $15.00…a little more if you want us to send them to you.
These beautiful photos were taken by Bob Cadigan (Dick’s brother) as a gift to us for a special project or ministry. This first printing will be used to buy a projector for worship and Christian Education.
If you’d like a set (or more) reserved for you here at church, call 926-3260 or use the Contact tab above to send us a note.
A Message for You from the Heart
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:21, NIV)
Tim and I think pretty prayerfully about donating―talent or treasure.‖ What good acts will be supported by our donation? Are our family’s values fairly reflected in the places and the people to which we donate? Will we make a difference in the world? Confidently, I tell you, FCCNG is the place where we know our treasure will do good, uphold important values, and make a difference in the world. Look at your own pledge and intention and hopefully you’ll say the same. Then think about what you can do next year to continue those good acts, to uphold those values, to make a difference. Our congregation has been very faithful in these past few years – difficult years – about pledging, promising, and helping the Trustees plan. We can be proud of that helpful commitment of time and planning, and we can be proud of that vital investment of funds.
And what about the treasure of your time? These days, there’s nothing that feels more valuable to our family than our time, and there’s no better time spent than in the community we share with you all in New Gloucester. The more time/treasure/talent we as a family invest in the church, whether it stays at 43.9N 70.3W, or goes out to the wider world, the stronger the ties that bind our hearts to you, to the church, and to God’s work on Earth. I hope you will join us in thinking prayerfully, planning ahead, and pledging generously of your family’s treasure, because your heart will follow, and there’s no better place for your heart!
Marianne Nolan Cowan, for the Stewardship Committee
Please be looking for the Stewardship Mailing on or after December 5th. If you want to receive a pledge letter, and have not, please call the church or use the contact tab to let us know. And thank you for making a pledge!
Church Work Day, Saturday, December 10, 8:30 am
The Property Committee went all bug-eyed when they saw how many items had accumulated on the “Honey, Do” list. (Hey, shouldn’t that be “Honey Didn’t?” then?) So they’ve called for an All-Church Work Day this Saturday. Chairperson Alan Hahnel says, bring the kinds of tools for the kind of job YOU want to do. No matter what that is, we almost certainly have a need for what you’re willing to do!
UPDATE: A crew of 12 energetic church folk turned out to tackle quite an array of jobs–painting in the vestry, cleaning and furniture moving in the sanctuary, insulating ductwork in the attic, trimming trees, pulling up shrubs, installing electrical wires to prevent ice dams and a rain diverter above the kitchen door. A hearty WOO-HOO to you all! And THANK YOU!
…about children and homelessness. Watch this 60 Minutes feature by Scott Pelley for a better understanding of the impact of homelessness on the education of children.
For some children, socializing and learning are being cruelly complicated by homelessness, as Scott Pelley reports from Florida, where school buses now stop at motels for children who’ve lost their homes…
This 14-minute piece was recommended to us by Mary Seaman, Lewiston High School liaison with homeless teens, whose program has been the recipient of school supply donations, clothing, and the greater part of the proceeds from our recent Ravioli Dinner.
Sadly, we must say a partial goodbye to our terrific Office Administrator Sharon Vandermay. Sharon has accepted a plum of a job at Medtech, a company with offices at Pineland. We know she’ll just wow ‘em there, ’cause she did such a great job here. The good news for us is that Sharon’s not going anywhere; she’s as active a church member as she has always been. Say “Halleluia!” someone.
The Trustees are responsible for the transition. Want-ads have been posted in the most economical of local papers and in the Maine Conference All-Church E-mail. If you or a friend are interested, please reply as indicated in the ad.
The Board of Missions members and friends put on an elegant and scrumptious ravioli dinner on Saturday, November 12, and it was a smashing success as a benefit, too! As you can see, all the ravioli were made by hand–1,700 of them–and all gone by the end of the meal. More than 50 people enjoyed the meal in the romantically lit vestry, while as many others opted to savor their ravioli and sauce on take-out. We won’t list here all the people who made donations of time and produce and groceries and decorations and good will; their names were mentioned at the dinner and in church on Sunday, and we do sincerely thank them all! Organizers of this, our 4th Ravioli Dinner, were Kelly Anderson-Russo and Paul Russo. Our friendly ghost of the evening was Paul’s Grandma Josephine, whose recipes for the ravioli, sauce and pies we all enjoyed.
The dinner was a fundraiser for two causes championed so well in recent years by the Board of Missions. One is to put a little money aside to be made available to folks needing support for mission project travel; $681 of the dinner proceeds will be added to that fund. The primary beneficiary of the dinner proceeds will be the Homeless Teen program led by Mary Seaman at Lewiston High School. (Mary is pictured below, helping to make the ravioli.) Tabulations are incomplete, but we are nearing the goal of a $1500 gift to that program, and hope to make that gift in person in worship during the Advent season! This is amazing!
Thank you, everyone, for your most generous support.
