ANNOUNCEMENTS AND EVENTS
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND EVENTS
Summer Childcare Positions
We have two childcare positions available for the summer starting May 7th. Work is from 9:30-11:30 on summer Sundays, and workers are paid $15 an hour. Applicants should be 18 years of age or over. For a job description, please see the link below. Please share this information with anyone you think might be interested!
What if God is Joy
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Please click on the button below or on this link to see the poem, What if God is Joy, that David read on Music Sunday.
Congratulations to Gene Matthews -
For receiving Oberlin College's Award for Distinguished Service to the Community. Rob Thompson, professor emeritus of chemistry, presented the award. This award is conferred upon “persons from the Lorain County area who have made significant contributions to the welfare of the community and its residents.”
Can you spare 15 minutes here and there?
As programming and use of the church has begun to increase, we've realized that there's a need for a team of people who are willing to do occasional room set-up for various events. The work is not terribly strenuous, and typically lasts 15-20 minutes - but we need a group of people to be on call for moments where furniture needs to be moved. Would you be willing to join this group? Please contact the church office at 440-775-1711 to put yourself on our call list for these moments. Thanks so much for your willingness to help!
Office Closed for Memorial Day
The office will be closed on Monday, May 29th for Memorial Day. We will be back in the office on Tuesday, May 30th.
Lost and Found
Have you lost anything in the last year? Come check out our lost and found before we empty it!
Enjoy your summer vacation!
Our youth fellowship events (Youth Group and the K-5 Hangout) are going on their traditional vacation - so we'll see you in the fall! Watch this space for some summer fellowship events - and if you have an idea for an event, please talk to Jen!
See you in the fall for more music!
Our Music and Movement class is taking a summer break. Please join us in the fall when classes resume! Thanks to all who supported this pilot project!
Upcoming Vacation and Juneteenth
The Pastor is taking some time off from Monday, June 5 through Monday, June 19. In his absence, Barbara Davis will serve as the contact person for Pastoral Care. Should you wish a pastoral visit please contact Barb on her home phone at (440)774-1660.
Our Guest Preacher for Sunday, June 11, will be Rev. Roberto Ochoa, Minister for Ethnic Inclusion & Congregational Support for Rural & Small Churches, UCC National Offices.
On Sunday, June 18, the congregation will worship in the Fellowship Hall for a special service led by our Visioning Task Group. This is the first of many chances for you to participate in this important process.
Additionally, Jen is away from the office from Sunday, June 11 through Saturday, June 17.
Finally, the office will be closed on Monday, June 19th, in recognition of Juneteenth. We will be back in the office on Tuesday, June 20th.
Ed Long - Ordination Anniversary Reflection
As part of our worship service on Music Sunday, we celebrated the 75th ordination anniversary of Ed Long.
Reflecting on his years of service as an ordained minister, Ed provided a brief memoir.
Hard copies are available for pick up on the Welcome Table, and you can also read the full document via the button below.
Bulletin Board Switch!
The organization of which events go on which bulletin boards have recently changed - take some time to wander around the hallways to discover the new organization!
Got Tablecloths?
Have you taken any First Church tablecloths home to wash them and forgotten to bring them back in? That's alright! Please bring them into the First Church office as soon as possible! Thank you!
Guest Columnist: Ed Long
Public Authority and Private Behavior: Lessons from Prohibition for the Abortion Controversy
From time to time, we would like to feature articles and reflections from members and friends of First Church. If you have a piece you've written that you would like considered for inclusion in First Things First please email it to the Pastor at pastor@firstchurchoberlin.org.
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.
When sending in your submission, you must have
When sending in your submission, you could have
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we try to make our eNews experience more manageable for our readers!
Open and Affirming Committee Openings
June is Pride Month and a perfect opportunity for growth. (https://openandaffirming.org/ona/why/grow/). The Open and Affirming Committee (ONA) has openings. What is the ONA Committee you ask? It is a committee without meetings. It is a team of committed people supporting the ONA Statement of The First Church in Oberlin adopted in 1995 and amended in 2013. If you want to help make sure our congregation is living up to the welcoming and affirming spirit of the following statement, please contact Marty Buck @mbuck@oberlin.net or 440-225-7160 or a member of the Outreach and Service Committee @ outreach@firstchurchoberlin.org. Let us make the ONA Committee an ONA Team!
We know that as the Church we are many members but are one body in Christ. Each bringing individual pieces and gifts, only together do we find completion. With Christ we affirm that we are called to love our neighbors as ourselves, and that we are called to act as agents of reconciliation and wholeness within the world and within the church itself. Recognizing the presence of ignorance, fear, and hatred in the wider church and in our culture toward specific members of Christ’s body:
We pledge to welcome people of all races, ages, genders, gender identities, gender expressions, abilities, socioeconomic levels, and sexual orientations into the full life and ministry of the church.
We seek actively to include and support those who because of fear and prejudice find themselves in exile from a spiritual community.
We commit ourselves to caring and concern for all.
RECURRING EVENTS:
Faith Formation News!
As always, call Jen or the office to get a link for any and all of these events!