Church of the Apostles and Salem U.C.C.

Invite you to join us for

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL 2015

Place: Church of the Apostles – Rader Park
Dates: Sun., June 21-Thurs., June 25
Time: 6:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m.
Fee: $5.00 to help cover the cost of supplies

Make checks payable to: 
Church of the Apostles – VBS
1850 Marietta Ave, Lancaster, PA 17603
(Include child’s name when sending payment.)

All kids between the ages of 4 years
through 5th grade are invited to come
learn wonderful Bible stories, play games, make crafts,
and learn about the importance of caring for God’s creation.

Please complete registration form by June 15!

Baseball schedules are also available at the Welcome Center. Come to enjoy the games and support our team!

Food Bank
The food bank will be closed on May 25th.

Garden Helpers Needed
The garden is growing and so are the weeds! Please stop by on Saturdays between 8-10 a.m. to help remove weeds; someone will be there to garden with you.

Play Ball!
Our baseball team will be playing on our field at 6 p.m. on Thursday, May 28th. A second game will follow at 7 p.m. Bring your family to relax and watch the game.

New Beginnings
There will be an end-of-year picnic on Thursday, June 11 at 12 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall. Come enjoy a summertime favorite—hotdogs! Please bring a side dish or dessert to enjoy with the hotdogs. We will conclude with an old-fashioned hymn sing.

Village Corner Shoppe at Homestead Village
The Gift Shoppe is looking for additional volunteers to designate two hours per month for working in the Shoppe. There will always be two volunteers in the Shoppe. Please call Karen Longenecker at (717) 397-4831 ext. 132 for more information.

Worship
Do you have a passion for Worship? Do you have ideas for Worship? If so, please join the Worship Commission. They meet the second Monday of the month at 7 p.m. in the Choir Room, and would love to see you there. Please contact the Worship Chair, Bernie Fickes, at (717) 393-6644 for more information. All are welcome!

Volunteers Needed—Furniture Donation to Honduras
Penn Manor School District has donated the furnishings of Pequea Elementary School for use in Honduras through the direction of Central American Relief Efforts. Volunteers are needed! We expect to fill two shipping containers. Church of the Apostles has been a loyal supporter of education in Honduras—please help as you are able.

On Saturday, June 13 at 8:30 a.m., we will need to disassemble desks for space saving in their container. There will also be tables that will need legs removed for shipping. We will work until everything is ready for loading. Phillips head and Allen wrench bits will be needed.

On Saturday, June 20th at 8:30 a.m., the containers on site will need to be loaded; this work is more strenuous as lifting in required. There will also be a need for some volunteers to keep inventory as we load.

The only way we’ll be able to send this shipment to Honduras is if we can recruit enough volunteers for each Saturday. About 20-25 volunteers will be needed each weekend. Volunteers are being recruited from a variety of groups and Church of the Apostles’ presence has been significant in past efforts. If you can help either or both weekends, please contact Andy Appel at (717) 490-0093 or andyappel@epix.net and specify the day(s) and time(s) you are available. If you have friends or family who may be willing to help, they will be more than welcome! We will be meeting at Pequea Elementary School, which is located at 802 Millwood Road, Willow Street, PA 17584.

Weekly Announcements
If you would like to receive our new Weekly Announcements newsletter, please visit www.ApostlesUCC.org to sign up. On Mondays, the Weekly Announcements will provide you with our Sunday announcements if you were unable to attend services, but would like to stay informed about special events and updates.

40th Anniversary T-shirts are available to order! Completed orders must be received by May 31th.

Please use this order form:  40th Anniversary T-shirt Order Form

Our baseball team will be playing on our field Thursday, May 21st at 6 p.m. Thursday will even be a double-header. Please come support our team and bring a lawn chair…you can even picnic while you watch.

The next game will be played on our field at 6 p.m. on May 28th. A second game will follow at 7 p.m. Bring your family to relax and watch the game.

Food Bank
The food bank will be closed on May 18th and May 25th.

Welcome Rev. Nora Smith
Rev. Nora Smith was ordained at Church of the Apostles in September 1981 and joined the ministry team with Rev. Glen Rader and Rev. Nevin Schellenberger as the Minister of Education. Nora then served First Congregational UCC in Boulder Colorado as their associate minister for ten years before moving from parish ministry into the hospital setting, where she directed spiritual care programs in two downtown Denver hospitals and supervised chaplains in a hospice program in Boulder Colorado. She completed a Merrill Fellowship at Harvard Divinity School, has a certificate in Buddhist studies from Naropa University and is presently in the Inaugural Class of the Living School, an alternative orthodoxy Christian wisdom tradition program with Fr. Richard Rohr, Rev. Cynthia Bourgeault, and James Finely, Phd. In retirement, Nora is adjunct faculty at Naropa Univeristy in Boulder, CO and teaches pastoral care in the Masters of Divinity program.

LCCC Food Hub Grand Opening
Lancaster County Council of Churches will be celebrating the grand opening of the Community Food & Resource Distribution Center at 812 North Queen Street on Tuesday, May 19th. The day will include a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 9 a.m. and a dessert reception at 6:30 p.m. Sweets will be served at the evening event, including Miesse Candies and various flavors of ice cream courtesy of Carmen and David’s. If you plan to attend, please RSVP to jmiller@lcchurches.org to advise which event(s) you will be attending.

Garden Helpers Needed
The garden is growing and so are the weeds! Please stop by anytime between 8-10 a.m. to help remove weeds; someone will be there to garden with you.

Grocery Cards
Please remember that today is the last Sunday this month to order grocery cards for next month.

Play Ball!
Our baseball team will be playing on our field Tuesday, May 19th and Thursday, May 21st at 6 p.m. Thursday will even be a double-header. Please come support our team and bring a lawn chair…you can even picnic while you watch.

Volunteers Needed—Furniture Donation to Honduras
Penn Manor School District has donated the furnishings of Pequea Elementary School for use in Honduras through the direction of Central American Relief Efforts. Volunteers are needed! We expect to fill two shipping containers. Church of the Apostles has been a loyal supporter of education in Honduras—please help as you are able.

On Saturday, June 13 at 8:30 a.m., we will need to disassemble desks for space saving in their container. There will also be tables that will need legs removed for shipping. We will work until everything is ready for loading. Phillips head and Allen wrench bits will be needed.

On Saturday, June 20th at 8:30 a.m., the containers on site will need to be loaded; this work is more strenuous as lifting in required. There will also be a need for some volunteers to keep inventory as we load.

The only way we’ll be able to send this shipment to Honduras is if we can recruit enough volunteers for each Saturday. About 20-25 volunteers will be needed each weekend. Volunteers are being recruited from a variety of groups and Church of the Apostles’ presence has been significant in past efforts. If you can help either or both weekends, please contact Andy Appel at (717) 490-0093 or andyappel@epix.net and specify the day(s) and time(s) you are available. If you have friends or family who may be willing to help, they will be more than welcome! We will be meeting at Pequea Elementary School, which is located at 802 Millwood Road, Willow Street, PA 17584.

Photo of The Apostles Children’s Choir at the Barnstormers game to sing the National Anthem in Clipper Stadium on Monday, May 18th.

Watercolor Classes through our Apostles Academy of Arts & Sciences
A watercolor class with artist Steve Wilson is open for members and friends on Monday nights from May 11-June 29th. It meets in Rooms 308-310 from 6:00- 9:00 pm.

Do You Know a Graduate?
It is the season when many who are in high school, post-secondary education, or training are preparing to graduate. If there has been a graduation in your family since last June, or if there will be one in the near future, please call the church office at (717) 392-5718 with their information so that we may honor them in worship on June 7.

Disaster Relief for Nepal
The UCC is committed to disaster relief globally and is already supporting the on-the-ground efforts in Nepal. Financial contributions are the greatest present need. You may donate by writing a check made out to Church of the Apostles UCC, noting “Nepal Relief” in the memo line, and placing it in one of the pew envelopes. Your continued generosity is how we are “Sharing Christ’s Love with All People.”

Celebrating 40 Years of Ministry
Our 40th Anniversary is next Sunday, May 17. Please plan to join us at either service. As part of the celebration, Rev. Nora Smith—the first congregant to join COA’s pastoral team—will be joining us. Memorabilia from the early years will be displayed, and our Parish Life Commission will host our fellowship time between services with plenty of goodies to enjoy.

Seeds of Hope Garden
Garden season is quickly approaching! Please sign up to help in the garden shed on the sign-up sheet located at the stairway in the Narthex. The shed is open Tuesdays and Fridays from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Women’s Exercise Classes
COA has been invited to sign up for new pilates classes being held on church grounds beginning Mondays on July 6 at 7:15 p.m., or Tuesdays on July 7 at 5:30 p.m. Sessions are 13 weeks and the cost is $130 per session; each class is one hour long. Pilates will address flexibility, core strength, balance, and focus.

Weight Training for Women may also begin that week, if the instructor signs up enough attendees. Using equipment provided by the instructor, as well as gravity/body weight, you will work to improve bone density, balance, and general strength.

Please bring an exercise mat and wear comfortable clothing. Classes may include equipment provided by instructor, and exercises can be modified to address all levels of fitness. Payment is due to the instructor, Karen Cox, on or before the first class. To sign up, or if you have any questions, please contact Karen at (717) 203-8081, or email her at kcox@ptd.net.

Volunteers Needed
Hospice & Community Care needs volunteers to solicit donated items from area businesses for the 31st Labor Day Auction. Volunteers will be asked to call a list of local businesses requesting a donation, pick up items, and deliver them to storage. Interested parties are invited to attend an informational meeting and brief training on May 21, 2015. The Labor Day Auction is Hospice & Community Care’s largest fundraising event and is essential to support patients and families who are coping with serious illness and end of life. For information, please contact Natalie Scolnick at (717) 735-2497.

Wishing Well Ministry 
We are collecting pajamas in support of Conner’s Comfy PJs for children undergoing cancer treatment. If you wish to participate in this wonderful ministry, please purchase pajamas for a boy or a girl (sizes 2T to 12) and place them in the Well by May 24. Please help a child feel more comfortable during challenging times. Thank you!

Sunday Morning Art Walk
Apostles Community Preschool is presenting a “Sunday Morning Art Walk” today for the congregation to visit the Preschool hallway and classrooms between services. Come and enjoy the beautiful artwork done by the children that is based on their studies of famous authors and illustrators, such as Eric Carle, Robert McCloskey, Mo Willems, Lois Ehlert, and Leo Leonni.

Do You Know a Graduate?
It is the season when many who are in high school, post-secondary education, or training are preparing to graduate. If there has been a graduation in your family since last June, or if there will be one in the near future, please call the church office at 392-5718 with their information so that we may honor them in worship on June 7.

Disaster Relief for Nepal
The UCC is committed to disaster relief globally and is already supporting the on-the-ground efforts in Nepal. Financial contributions are the greatest present need. You may donate by writing a check made out to Church of the Apostles UCC, noting “Disaster Relief” in the memo line, and placing it in one of the pew envelopes; or you may contribute online through our website or at www.ucc.org/disaster_nepal_earthquake. Your continued generosity is how we are “Sharing Christ’s Love with All People.”

Regional Prayer Summit
A Regional Prayer Summit will be held on Thursday, May 7 at 11:00 a.m. in Binn’s Park on North Queen Street (in front of the county offices). Prayers will be offered for first-responders (firefighters, police, EMT’s, etc.) as well as for communities and families threatened by violence and poverty. Please join us in this effort to pray for peace in our nation.

Celebrating 40 Years of Ministry—Save The Date!
On May 17, 2015, we will celebrate the beginning of our 40th year with an anniversary celebration. Please mark this date on your calendar and plan to join us at either service. As part of the celebration, Rev. Nora Smith—the first congregant to join COA’s pastoral team—will be joining us. Memorabilia from the early years will be displayed, and our Parish Life Commission will host our fellowship time between services with plenty of goodies to enjoy.

Special Offering: Missionary Support
For decades, our church has supported the missionary efforts of John Campbell-Nelson who has served through the Common Global Ministries Board of the Christian Church and the United Church of Christ in West Timor, Indonesia. He is part of the theological faculty that has helped train 90% of the pastors for the Evangelical Church of West Timor, our partner church. After many years of dedicated service, John will be retiring within the year. This will be our final opportunity to support his ministries. If you are interested in reading more about John and Karen’s experiences, please visit the Global Ministries website at www.globalministries.org.

Talent Show
Join us for a night of fun and talent on Saturday, May 9 from 6-8 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall. Everyone is welcome to share a talent; it can be anything from singing, dancing, playing an instrument, juggling, poetry, etc. To participate in the show, please register on the night of the show at 5:45 p.m. or call the church office at 392-5718 to pre-register. For more information, contact Judy Waltman, Erika Neiderer, Patty Rineer, or Leigh Breslin.