Gift for Pastor Steve
New Member this Sunday!
Christmas Cantata by CUCC Choir - December 21
Caroling at Morningside
Christmas Eve Candlelight Service - Wednesday, December 24
A Request from Vandy Bradow
Christmas Fund
No Forum this Sunday
Youth Christmas Party – White Elephant Party
Earth Sabbath - Winter Solstice Celebration at Peacefalls,
Saturday, December 20
Monday Lunch Group
Tai Chi
“Jobs for Life” Volunteer Opportunities
Menu of Compassionate Gifts
Epiphany Sunday/Babies We Love – January 11, 2015
Loaves and Fishes Chili Sale
CSJ Annual Dinner Meeting – Monday, February 2, 2015, 6:00pm
Church Office Closed – December 24, 25, 26
Annual Reports
Gift for Pastor Steve
The Deacons will be presenting Steve a gift from the congregation honoring his service to CUCC and to help him remember us as he begins his next journey. We know this is a time of year when this request competes with many requests to open your hearts and checkbook, but please consider a donation for Steve’s retirement gift. You can bring/mail a check to the church office or put a check in the collection plate. Be sure to identify your donation as going towards Steve’s gift. We plan on making our presentation to him on his last Sunday, December 28th. Please contribute by December 21. – Submitted by Bill Lamb
New Members this Sunday!
Join us this Sunday as we welcome Emily Perkins and Joanna and Sam Woodrum to our church family. They have already shown us what wonderful additions they are to our congregation. Welcome! Welcome!
Christmas Cantata by CUCC Choir - December 21
Per Steve’s request, the Choir will perform Conrad Susa’s Carols & Lullabies: Christmas in the Southwest, for their annual Christmas Cantata during the 10:30am worship service on Sunday, December 21. In addition to Doug Barrick as accompanist, Mike Schafale will play the dulcimer and Jake Wenger will play cello. Please join us for this special Sunday.
Caroling at Morningside
Immediately after Fellowship this morning, all are welcome to go across to the street to Morningside Assisted Living and join the choir in singing Christmas carols to the residents. This is an annual event that everyone enjoys. All are welcome to join us.
Christmas Eve Candlelight Service - Wednesday, December 24
Join us for a Christmas Eve Candlelight Service on Wednesday, December 24. Our service will begin at 5:00pm. Afterwards, we’ll gather for bright fellowship and hot cider in the Vaughan Fellowship Hall.
A Request from Vandy Bradow
Vandy would like to bring her mother, Ida Klages, to the Christmas Eve Candlelight Service, but she will need some assistance from members of the congregation. She needs a couple of strong people to help her get her mother from the car into her wheelchair and then assistance in getting her back into the car. Please contact the church office or Vandy and let her know if you are able to do this for her. Thank you.
Christmas Fund
The Christmas Fund for the Veterans of the Cross and the Emergency Fund is a Special Mission Offering of the United Church of Christ that affords us an opportunity to recognize and honor those who serve the UCC. Christmas Fund offerings provide direct financial assistance to individual UCC clergy and lay employees. CUCC's collection for the Christmas Fund will be made at the 5pm Christmas Eve service.
No Forum this Sunday
Forum will not meet December 21st or December 28th. Forum will kick off the New Year on Sunday January 4th at 9:15am in the Vaughan Fellowship Hall for a monthly series on Homelessness and Affordable Housing. We'll look at issues statewide with our guest speaker Terry Allebaugh of the NC Coalition to End Homelessness who will give us an overview of their statewide initiative. Mr. Allebaugh is a member of our sister church, Pilgrim UCC in Durham, NC and his wife, Lori Pistor, is the interim pastor at West Raleigh Presbyterian. On later Sundays in the month we'll hear from other guests about local efforts to increase affordable housing in our area, with Frank Gailor leading a discussion about our own new rental units on the last Sunday of the month. Please join us!
Youth Christmas Party – White Elephant Party
Youth will celebrate Christmas with a White Elephant Party during Church School. Please bring a wrapped gift of under $5 or find something zany at home and wrap it up. Snacks and beverages provided.
Earth Sabbath - Winter Solstice Celebration at Peacefalls, Saturday, December 20
Please join us Saturday December 20th for a celebration of the sacred darkness and the return of the light: a time for closure and new beginnings. The Winter Solstice marks a full turning of the wheel of the year and offers a perfect opportunity for releasing the past and setting intentions for our journeys ahead. In preparation, whether you are joining us or not, consider what thoughts, habits, or patterns you are ready to release and what dreams and visions you would like to bring into the light. 11320 Peed Dead End Road, Raleigh 27614. Directions to Peacefalls are listed below. RSVP to Karen Bearden at chickadeebirders@earthlink.net
What to bring with you:
• a reading, poem, song to share that connects you with the solstice
• an open heart, ready to release the old and embrace the new
• a drum, if you have one
• an appetizer or dessert
• plate and utensils for your meal
• warm layers and dancing-around-in-the-dark shoes
• flashlight
Directions to Peacefalls:
11320 Peed Dead End Road, Raleigh 27614
Peacefalls is the home of Bob Davis and Judy Morgan-Davis.
From I-540 travel NORTH on Creedmoor Road (Hwy 50) about 4 miles to the traffic light at Mount Vernon Church Road.
Turn RIGHT onto Mount Vernon Church, then immediately LEFT onto Peed Road.
Continue half a mile until the paved road turns sharply to the left; do not follow the road to the left, but bear RIGHT onto Peed Dead End.
Carry on the gravel road about half a mile to the very end.
Questions? Call 919-830-6468 (Bob’s cell) or 919-780-9212 (Judy’s cell).
Monday Lunch Group
The Monday Lunch group meets every Monday at 12:15pm in the Hoffmann Room. After a bag lunch, the group has prayer time where they offer up concerns and healing. Newcomers and walk-ins are always welcome!
Dec 22: Our Christmas party.
Dec 29: Our goodbye-to-Steve party.
Tai Chi
There will be no Tai Chi for the rest of December. Have a wonderful Holiday!
“Jobs for Life” Volunteer Opportunities
We are very grateful for the CUCC people who are willing to volunteer with the Jobs for Life program at Loaves and Fishes in the spring of 2015. Because of their interest and generosity, we will be able to make the program available. This is really good news! We have two experienced and enthusiastic instructors on board and several mentors. It would be helpful to enlist a few more volunteers to serve as mentors. This would allow the mentors to share roles and meeting schedules and give volunteers more flexibility in their time commitments. If anyone is interested, please contact Susan Lane at lane.susan70@gmail.com.
Menu of Compassionate Gifts
What can you tell someone who wants to give you a Christmas gift, but you don’t really need anything; or perhaps you want to give a gift to someone who doesn’t need another tie or box of candy? We have just the answer! Go to the church website (communityucc.org), look at the Hot Topics (located near the upper right) and click "Christmas Menu of Compassionate Gifts." A page will open showing gifts that will fill a need for those in our community. The gifts go to some of our local neighbor organizations: The Food Bank, Interact, Method Day Care, Urban Ministries, PLM Families Together, and The Women's Center. There is an online donation form along with instructions to make out a check to CUCC for the gifts and mail it to the CUCC office. COM will also have a table in the Narthex so you can order your gifts after the 10:30am worship service if that works better for you. Please remit your gifts by December 31. Oh, and the gifts are tax deductible. Pretty nifty, right!
Epiphany Sunday/Babies We Love of 2014 – January 11, 2015
Every Epiphany Sunday, CUCC celebrates "our" babies born the previous year. So whether the new baby is in your home or you are a loving grandparent, aunt, uncle, cousin, etc., we want to celebrate your baby's birth. Contact Cathy Marshall at the church office (919-787-6422 or office.cucc@gmail.com) BY JANUARY 1. Provide the baby's name and relationship to you, the parents' names, the birthdate & place, and send a photo if you have one. On Epiphany Sunday (January 11), we'll celebrate with a “Babies of 2014” display during our regular fellowship time.
Loaves and Fishes Chili Sale
It is time to place your orders for meat or veggie chili. Please order your quarts of meat or veggie chili by Sunday January 18, 2015. Price remains at $12.00 per quart. Pick up times at Hudson Memorial Presbyterian, 4921 Six Forks Road will be Friday, January 23, 2015, 4pm - 7pm or Saturday, January 24, 2015, 9am to Noon. Further information will follow at a later date. If questions or to order chili, phone Shannon Core at 919-833-6205. Thank you for supporting Loaves and Fishes Ministry!
CSJ Annual Dinner Meeting – Monday, February 2, 2015, 6:00pm
The Congregations for Social Justice will hold its annual dinner meeting on Monday, February 2, 2015, 6:00pm at Highland United Methodist Church. David Crabtree, Episcopal Deacon and WRAL-TV News Anchor, will be the guest speaker. The Annual Social Justice Award and Recognition will be announced. You may nominate someone who has carried the mantle of social justice advocacy for many years; someone who models for you what advocating for justice is all about. If you would like to attend, please contact Adrienne Little at 919-781-0829. For additional information go to https://www.facebook.com/CongregationsForSocialJustice.
Church Office Closed
The Church office will be closed Wednesday, December 24 through Friday, December 26, due to the Christmas Holiday.
Annual Reports
Annual reports from all ministries and committees should be submitted electronically to the church office and to the moderator by January 5. You may send the reports as email attachments to office.cucc@gmail.com or Lavon Page at lavonpage@gmail.com. For reference purposes, you can find copies of last year's reports at the church website:
http://www.communityucc.org/2013/07/essential-documents.html
New Member this Sunday!
Christmas Cantata by CUCC Choir - December 21
Caroling at Morningside
Christmas Eve Candlelight Service - Wednesday, December 24
A Request from Vandy Bradow
Christmas Fund
No Forum this Sunday
Youth Christmas Party – White Elephant Party
Earth Sabbath - Winter Solstice Celebration at Peacefalls,
Saturday, December 20
Monday Lunch Group
Tai Chi
“Jobs for Life” Volunteer Opportunities
Menu of Compassionate Gifts
Epiphany Sunday/Babies We Love – January 11, 2015
Loaves and Fishes Chili Sale
CSJ Annual Dinner Meeting – Monday, February 2, 2015, 6:00pm
Church Office Closed – December 24, 25, 26
Annual Reports
Gift for Pastor Steve
The Deacons will be presenting Steve a gift from the congregation honoring his service to CUCC and to help him remember us as he begins his next journey. We know this is a time of year when this request competes with many requests to open your hearts and checkbook, but please consider a donation for Steve’s retirement gift. You can bring/mail a check to the church office or put a check in the collection plate. Be sure to identify your donation as going towards Steve’s gift. We plan on making our presentation to him on his last Sunday, December 28th. Please contribute by December 21. – Submitted by Bill Lamb
New Members this Sunday!
Join us this Sunday as we welcome Emily Perkins and Joanna and Sam Woodrum to our church family. They have already shown us what wonderful additions they are to our congregation. Welcome! Welcome!
Christmas Cantata by CUCC Choir - December 21
Per Steve’s request, the Choir will perform Conrad Susa’s Carols & Lullabies: Christmas in the Southwest, for their annual Christmas Cantata during the 10:30am worship service on Sunday, December 21. In addition to Doug Barrick as accompanist, Mike Schafale will play the dulcimer and Jake Wenger will play cello. Please join us for this special Sunday.
Caroling at Morningside
Immediately after Fellowship this morning, all are welcome to go across to the street to Morningside Assisted Living and join the choir in singing Christmas carols to the residents. This is an annual event that everyone enjoys. All are welcome to join us.
Christmas Eve Candlelight Service - Wednesday, December 24
Join us for a Christmas Eve Candlelight Service on Wednesday, December 24. Our service will begin at 5:00pm. Afterwards, we’ll gather for bright fellowship and hot cider in the Vaughan Fellowship Hall.
A Request from Vandy Bradow
Vandy would like to bring her mother, Ida Klages, to the Christmas Eve Candlelight Service, but she will need some assistance from members of the congregation. She needs a couple of strong people to help her get her mother from the car into her wheelchair and then assistance in getting her back into the car. Please contact the church office or Vandy and let her know if you are able to do this for her. Thank you.
Christmas Fund
The Christmas Fund for the Veterans of the Cross and the Emergency Fund is a Special Mission Offering of the United Church of Christ that affords us an opportunity to recognize and honor those who serve the UCC. Christmas Fund offerings provide direct financial assistance to individual UCC clergy and lay employees. CUCC's collection for the Christmas Fund will be made at the 5pm Christmas Eve service.
No Forum this Sunday
Forum will not meet December 21st or December 28th. Forum will kick off the New Year on Sunday January 4th at 9:15am in the Vaughan Fellowship Hall for a monthly series on Homelessness and Affordable Housing. We'll look at issues statewide with our guest speaker Terry Allebaugh of the NC Coalition to End Homelessness who will give us an overview of their statewide initiative. Mr. Allebaugh is a member of our sister church, Pilgrim UCC in Durham, NC and his wife, Lori Pistor, is the interim pastor at West Raleigh Presbyterian. On later Sundays in the month we'll hear from other guests about local efforts to increase affordable housing in our area, with Frank Gailor leading a discussion about our own new rental units on the last Sunday of the month. Please join us!
Youth Christmas Party – White Elephant Party
Youth will celebrate Christmas with a White Elephant Party during Church School. Please bring a wrapped gift of under $5 or find something zany at home and wrap it up. Snacks and beverages provided.
Earth Sabbath - Winter Solstice Celebration at Peacefalls, Saturday, December 20
Please join us Saturday December 20th for a celebration of the sacred darkness and the return of the light: a time for closure and new beginnings. The Winter Solstice marks a full turning of the wheel of the year and offers a perfect opportunity for releasing the past and setting intentions for our journeys ahead. In preparation, whether you are joining us or not, consider what thoughts, habits, or patterns you are ready to release and what dreams and visions you would like to bring into the light. 11320 Peed Dead End Road, Raleigh 27614. Directions to Peacefalls are listed below. RSVP to Karen Bearden at chickadeebirders@earthlink.net
What to bring with you:
• a reading, poem, song to share that connects you with the solstice
• an open heart, ready to release the old and embrace the new
• a drum, if you have one
• an appetizer or dessert
• plate and utensils for your meal
• warm layers and dancing-around-in-the-dark shoes
• flashlight
Directions to Peacefalls:
11320 Peed Dead End Road, Raleigh 27614
Peacefalls is the home of Bob Davis and Judy Morgan-Davis.
From I-540 travel NORTH on Creedmoor Road (Hwy 50) about 4 miles to the traffic light at Mount Vernon Church Road.
Turn RIGHT onto Mount Vernon Church, then immediately LEFT onto Peed Road.
Continue half a mile until the paved road turns sharply to the left; do not follow the road to the left, but bear RIGHT onto Peed Dead End.
Carry on the gravel road about half a mile to the very end.
Questions? Call 919-830-6468 (Bob’s cell) or 919-780-9212 (Judy’s cell).
Monday Lunch Group
The Monday Lunch group meets every Monday at 12:15pm in the Hoffmann Room. After a bag lunch, the group has prayer time where they offer up concerns and healing. Newcomers and walk-ins are always welcome!
Dec 22: Our Christmas party.
Dec 29: Our goodbye-to-Steve party.
Tai Chi
There will be no Tai Chi for the rest of December. Have a wonderful Holiday!
“Jobs for Life” Volunteer Opportunities
We are very grateful for the CUCC people who are willing to volunteer with the Jobs for Life program at Loaves and Fishes in the spring of 2015. Because of their interest and generosity, we will be able to make the program available. This is really good news! We have two experienced and enthusiastic instructors on board and several mentors. It would be helpful to enlist a few more volunteers to serve as mentors. This would allow the mentors to share roles and meeting schedules and give volunteers more flexibility in their time commitments. If anyone is interested, please contact Susan Lane at lane.susan70@gmail.com.
Menu of Compassionate Gifts
What can you tell someone who wants to give you a Christmas gift, but you don’t really need anything; or perhaps you want to give a gift to someone who doesn’t need another tie or box of candy? We have just the answer! Go to the church website (communityucc.org), look at the Hot Topics (located near the upper right) and click "Christmas Menu of Compassionate Gifts." A page will open showing gifts that will fill a need for those in our community. The gifts go to some of our local neighbor organizations: The Food Bank, Interact, Method Day Care, Urban Ministries, PLM Families Together, and The Women's Center. There is an online donation form along with instructions to make out a check to CUCC for the gifts and mail it to the CUCC office. COM will also have a table in the Narthex so you can order your gifts after the 10:30am worship service if that works better for you. Please remit your gifts by December 31. Oh, and the gifts are tax deductible. Pretty nifty, right!
Epiphany Sunday/Babies We Love of 2014 – January 11, 2015
Every Epiphany Sunday, CUCC celebrates "our" babies born the previous year. So whether the new baby is in your home or you are a loving grandparent, aunt, uncle, cousin, etc., we want to celebrate your baby's birth. Contact Cathy Marshall at the church office (919-787-6422 or office.cucc@gmail.com) BY JANUARY 1. Provide the baby's name and relationship to you, the parents' names, the birthdate & place, and send a photo if you have one. On Epiphany Sunday (January 11), we'll celebrate with a “Babies of 2014” display during our regular fellowship time.
Loaves and Fishes Chili Sale
It is time to place your orders for meat or veggie chili. Please order your quarts of meat or veggie chili by Sunday January 18, 2015. Price remains at $12.00 per quart. Pick up times at Hudson Memorial Presbyterian, 4921 Six Forks Road will be Friday, January 23, 2015, 4pm - 7pm or Saturday, January 24, 2015, 9am to Noon. Further information will follow at a later date. If questions or to order chili, phone Shannon Core at 919-833-6205. Thank you for supporting Loaves and Fishes Ministry!
CSJ Annual Dinner Meeting – Monday, February 2, 2015, 6:00pm
The Congregations for Social Justice will hold its annual dinner meeting on Monday, February 2, 2015, 6:00pm at Highland United Methodist Church. David Crabtree, Episcopal Deacon and WRAL-TV News Anchor, will be the guest speaker. The Annual Social Justice Award and Recognition will be announced. You may nominate someone who has carried the mantle of social justice advocacy for many years; someone who models for you what advocating for justice is all about. If you would like to attend, please contact Adrienne Little at 919-781-0829. For additional information go to https://www.facebook.com/CongregationsForSocialJustice.
Church Office Closed
The Church office will be closed Wednesday, December 24 through Friday, December 26, due to the Christmas Holiday.
Annual Reports
Annual reports from all ministries and committees should be submitted electronically to the church office and to the moderator by January 5. You may send the reports as email attachments to office.cucc@gmail.com or Lavon Page at lavonpage@gmail.com. For reference purposes, you can find copies of last year's reports at the church website:
http://www.communityucc.org/2013/07/essential-documents.html