ANNOUNCEMENTS AND EVENTS


Meeting House Hearing Loop 

 

If you use a hearing aid that connects with the hearing loop in the Meeting House please be aware that where you sit in the Meeting House may affect your audio experience. The installer of the hearing loop recently met with our lead A/V technician and conducted a thorough test of the Meeting House hearing loop. The system is functioning properly but due to some of the structural features of the Meeting House there are some seating areas where it is possible to experience a noticeable diminishment in amplification. Specifically, the ends of some pews in the center seating section. If you are seated at the end of a pew (i.e., on the aisle) in the center seating section of the Meeting House and find the hearing loops amplification insufficient try moving either more towards the center of the section (i.e., inward toward the middle of the Meeting House) or shifting to a seat in the side section of pews. If you find you are still having difficulty connecting with the hearing loop, please notify the church office.


Bel Canto Concert

 

Bel Canto Ringers will play a short concert for First Church attendees on Sunday, April 21 at 11:30 am. Come to Fellowship Hall after the service to hear First Church bells played by this Kendal handbell choir. 

 

Prior to the performance, Gene and Sandy Matthews will provide a coffee hour. Be sure to stick around after worship!


Please fill out our Winter Retreat Survey!

 

With the closing of Templed Hills, we are looking at new places and ways to hold our annual Winter Retreat - and we need your input to create the best event possible! Please fill out the survey below by April 22nd, and help the Chirstian Ed. Committee determine the best course of action for future retreats! 

 

Thanks in advance for your time and your input. 


Wednesday Night Potluck on May 1st at 5:45 p.m. 

 

Please sign up on the bulletin board outside Fellowship Hall and let us know what you will bring. Sponsored by the Fellowship Committee.


Jen is on vacation April 15-21!



Our director of Faith Formation will be taking some time off in mid-April, and will not be checking email or phone messages between April 15th and April 21st. Please call the office if you have any questions or concerns. Thanks for allowing our staff the ability to disconnect during sabbath times! 


Join us for Broadway and the Bible! 

 

On Wednesday, April 24th, at 7 pm, in the JFO Room, join Jen Bertoni for Broadway and the Bible: the Outcast Edition! We'll be examining Broadway songs by and for people on the margins, starting with the first Biblical outcast - Eve, the mother of all. Refreshments will be provided.  


Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Discernment 

(But Were Afraid To Ask)! 

 

On Sunday, April 28th, after worship, Jen will be sharing about her journey as a Member in Discernment. Ever wondered about the process people go through to be ordained? (Ever wonder if it might be for you?) Come find out about how it all works, and how close Jen is to the finish line! Refreshments will be provided.  


Save the date! 

 

Saturday, May 11 we will host our second annual Spring Festival at First Church! Games, music, entertainment, non-profit groups, food, balloons, and lots of fun are in store, but your help is needed. We will need plenty of volunteers on that day, but also encourage those who can help organize and have good ideas to contribute to help plan now. If you have ideas to share or just want to be part of the fun, please contact Moderator Anne Sprague moderator@firstchurchoberlin.org


Climb the Christology Ladder!

 

As promised, here is the link to the podcast about Christology Jen mentioned in her Low Sunday Reflection. If you watch on YouTube, a transcript is available of the discussion as it happens. Click on the word "more" under the podcast video, and then click on the word "Transcript."

 

Happy Listening! 


Summer Camp Registration is Open!

 

Registration has started for the final summer of camp at Templed Hills. All the usual camps are here: MMADD, Grands and Family, Camp Out (for LGBTQAI+ youth), Sports Camp, and more! There is a NEW registration system, so be aware: if you would like help from First Church with camp expenses, please make sure to call Jen Bertoni FIRST, so she can provide you with the First Church discount code, which will enable you to only pay the $75 registration fee - we cover the rest!

 

You can find more information about the camps, as well as a registration link, at this link: 

https://heartlanducc.org/templed-hills/

 

Thanks to all for your continued support of Outdoor Ministries! 


Do You Enjoy Singing?

 

We are looking for people who enjoy singing to join the Finney Choir. We meet Thursdays 6:45-8PM, and at 9AM on Sundays before the service. You don’t need to have a lot of experience or read music - there are many friendly people in the choir to help you out! If you just want to come for part of the year, like preparing for Advent or Easter, you’re very welcome to. You can write Tom at musicdirector@firstchurchoberlin.org if you have any questions.


First Church building rental opportunities

 

The First Church buildings offer numerous opportunities for meetings, rehearsals, concerts, weddings, and family events. After long study, a reasonable rental fee schedule has been worked out to offer fair use of the facility to our members and our neighbors. Large rooms (the Meeting House, Fellowship Hall, or JFO Room) and small rooms (upstairs classrooms, Room 4, Reading Room) can be reserved by the hour or by the half day. Discounted rates for church members and community partners may be available. The city of Oberlin has limited spaces available for events, and we are happy to offer our facility to help fill that need for our neighbors.


There Are Requirements for Making Submissions to our First Things First eNews!

 

In an effort to make our eNews more readable and shorten the length, we have created new guidelines for submitting posts! The guidelines are as follows.

 

  1. As usual, the deadline for submissions for the upcoming First Things First is Wednesday prior to 10 AM.
  2. We will not be putting in any non-First Church job postings.
  3. We will not be putting in any full flyers as the submission (however, we will put in a button that links to a PDF of the flyer).
  4. There is a word limit of 100 words for the text of a submission.
  5. You may insert links into the text post for more information, either by button or hyperlink in the text.
  6. You may insert PDFs (accessible by buttons) for more information, a flyer, or anything else that would be helpful for the post, but the document must be in PDF format. Any other document format will not be included in your submission.
  7. You may send one picture that you have the rights to use (i.e. a picture that is not subject to copyright, we suggest using the site pexels.com).
  8. The submission will run for a maximum of 2 weeks in the eNews. These 2 weeks do not have to be consecutive.

 

When sending in your submission, you must have

 

  • The title of the post
  • The text of the post (maximum of 100 words)
  • Which 2 weeks you'd like for your submission to run

 

 

When sending in your submission, you could have

 

  • If you'd like, one picture
  • If you'd like, PDFs (and what you'd want the title of the button that links to it to be)
  • If you'd like, the links for spots in the text post (and which word(s) you'd like to be the hyperlink or what you'd want the title of the button to be)

 

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we try to make our eNews experience more manageable for our readers!


RECURRING EVENTS:

  • Worship - Live Streamed and in the Meeting House on Sundays @ 10am
  • Children's Church (grades K - 5) 10:15 AM each Sunday. Will resume in the Fall
  • Summer Storytime - 10:15 AM each Sunday.
  • Sunday School (grades 5 - 12) 11:30am each Sunday (Hot Topic discussion on the 4th Sunday each month). Will resume in the Fall.
  • Friday Night Hangout (all grades) - first Friday each month from 7:00 PM - 7:45 PM via Zoom
  • Sunday Night Youth Group (grades 5 - 12) - last Sunday each month from 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
  • Finance Committee - 3rd Monday each month
  • Facility Committee - 1st Tuesday each month
  • Stewardship - 2nd Tuesday each month
  • Office Staff Meetings - Mondays at 10:00 AM
  • Book Group  - Tuesdays at 4pm via Zoom
  • Witness and Membership - 2nd Wednesday each month
  • Christian Education Committee - 1st Thursday each month
  • Outreach and Service Committee - 1st Monday each month
  • Executive Council - 4th Tuesday each month
  • Friday Night Hangout - 1st Friday of each month
  • Green Team - 1st Wednesday of each month

Faith Formation News!

 

  • Children's Church: 10:15 AM on Sundays resuming in the Fall
  • Sunday School: 11:30am-noon on Sundays (Hot Topic on the 4th Sunday) resuming in the Fall
  • Summer Storytime is beginning! Children are invited to join us on Sundays at 10:15 AM for a story
  • Friday Night Hangouts: First Friday at 7 pm resuming in the Fall
  • Sunday Night Youth Group: Last Sunday at 6:00 PM resuming in the Fall

 

As always, call Jen or the office to get a link for any and all of these events!

CALENDAR OF EVENTS