The Adult Education Committee is exploring various Christian Education opportunities at Church of the Apostles. To discover whether there is interest among members in occasional events (not necessarily weekly), we need your help! Please check all that apply.

The COA Book Club meets every second Tuesday of the month at 2:00 pm in the Parlor. Please join us on Tuesday, May 8 to discuss the book Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult. The next Book Club will meet on June 12 to discuss The Testimony by James Patterson.

We are happy to have new people join us (even if you haven’t read the book)! If you have any questions, please contact the church office at (717) 392-5718.

Food Bank
Needs: cold cereal, potatoes (dry or canned), mac ‘n cheese, tuna or hamburger helpers, cookies, canned items including: tuna, fruit, soups, and canned meat

Apostles Assistance Fund
Needs: laundry detergent, women’s deodorant, paper towels, toilet paper, shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, toothbrushes. Financial gifts are also appreciated.

Heritage and Horizons
Heritage and Horizons will continue on Tuesdays April 24 and May 1. The five-week series costs $15 for as often as you choose to attend. Sessions will be held from 9:30 am—11:50 am and includes a 20-minute break with snacks and refreshments. Program brochures are available on our website and in the church office.

Crown Concert
Please join us today, Sunday, April 22 at 4 pm for a Crown Concert as we welcome the Ephrata Cloister Chorus. The concert is free and open to the public. An offering will be received.

Hondurans Visiting Church of the Apostles
On Sunday, April 29, Beatrice Espinal and Marel Hernandez will be attending our 9:15 am service. For those who have visited Honduras, Beatrice is the “angel on earth” who provided our wonderful meals and ran an amazing pharmacy. Marel helped us in many ways, including translating for us. They are looking forward to seeing not only those who have been to Honduras, but all members of Church of the Apostles—which built a school in Honduras about three years ago. Please come to this special time of sharing.

Let’s Clean Up Good Drive!
Today, Sunday, April 22 from 6-8 pm, Outreach and the Youth Group invite you to help pick up trash along Good Drive. We will meet at the parking lot of Community Aid and follow with a meal together in the Youth Center. All help will be greatly appreciated!

Race Against Racism
Please join our COA team in the Race Against Racism on April 28^th at 9 am. For more information, please visit www.ywcalancaster.org. Register under COA. If you have any questions, please contact Leigh Breslin at (717) 421-8655.

Cottage Meetings & Survey
The Growth Task Force is looking for your wisdom to create a strategic growth plan. To achieve this, we will be hosting Cottage Meetings. Join us to be a part of this important process as we get to know one another better while discerning the future into which God is calling us. Please see the bulletin board and sign-up sheets in the lobby for meeting dates, times, and locations.

Wishing Well
We will continue to collect children’s pajamas for boys and girls ages 18 months-18 years to support Conner’s Comfy PJs through May 24^th. Last year we collected 67 sets of PJs, and we would like to set a goal of 100 this year!  Thank you for your support!

Fellowship Host
Volunteers are needed to host the Fellowship Table on Sundays between services. To sign up, please visit www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4fafa9229-fellowship or contact Erika Neiderer at erikamn@comcast.net.

Scholarships
The Education Commission is pleased to announce that there are two scholarships available for graduating seniors – the Helen Elmer Scholarship for a student
going on to college, and the Ken Bernhardt Scholarship for someone attending a trade or technical school.  Interested seniors wishing to be considered for either of these scholarships should submit a letter of interest to the office in the mailbox of Barbara Achtermann.  Letters should include the student’s involvement in Church of Apostles activities, and are due back by May 1^st.

New Beginnings
Kick off your summer on Thursday, June 7^th at 12 pm in the Fellowship Hall with our End of the Year picnic. Hotdogs, rolls, condiments, and beverages will be provided.  Please bring a side dish or dessert to share. Following the picnic, entertainment will include a hymn sing and a presentation by Rev. Kathryn Kuhn focusing on her travels while on sabbatical.

Be Stroke Smart…Learn to Recognize Stroke Symptoms
Join us at Church of the Apostles UCC on Tuesday, May 8 at 10 am to learn the basic information about strokes, risk factors, and symptoms. Find out what you can do to protect yourself! RSVP by May 1 to the church office at (717) 392-5718. There is no charge to attend this event.

Please join us for a Crown Concert on Sunday, April 22 at 4 pm as we welcome the Ephrata Cloister Chorus.

During the 1700s, music played an important role in the Historic Ephrata Cloister community. Nearly 1,000 hymns were composed by the community’s founder, Conrad Beissel, and his followers. Yet, the sound of Ephrata’s music remained silent for nearly two centuries. In the 1950s, Dr. Russell Getz began transcribing a selection of early Cloister Chorales into a readable modern notation. Under his direction in 1959, a group of volunteers set out to revive Ephrata’s musical heritage by forming the Ephrata Cloister Chorus.

In recent years, Dr. Lucy Carroll worked to continue the transcription of Ephrata’s music, adding nearly a dozen pieces to the modern repertoire.

In 2018, Christopher Dylan Hebert, a doctoral candidate at Julliard School of Music, based his dissertation on Ephrata’s music. For this concert the Chorus will be premiering Rose-lilie-Blume Sequence, composed by the Ephrata community, and transcribed by Dr. Herbert.

The Ephrata Cloister Chorus is composed of volunteers under the direction of Mr. Martin Hinckley and accompanied by Becky Degan. The Chorus has made several concert tours of Europe, visiting Eberbach, Germany, home of Ephrata’s founder, Conrad Beisel. They also traveled to restored Shaker communities in Massachusetts and New York. The group has recorded two CDs.

The concert is free and open to the public. An offering will be received. For more information, call the church office at 717-392-5718.

The spring 2018 season of Heritage & Horizons will be held on Tuesdays, April 3, 10, 17, 24, and May 1.  It is our 31st year of providing adult learning opportunities, and we have a variety of interesting speakers coming to make presentations on topics such as: Making a Difference in a Child’s Life, Four Dozen Lancaster Tidbits, How 18th & 19th Century Architect C. Emlen Urban Redefined the Architectural Landscape of Lancaster City, and more.

Sessions will be held in the Sanctuary of Church of the Apostles at 9:30 am—10:30 am and 10:50 am—11:50 am with a 20-minute refreshment break. The registration fee is $15 for each person for the entire five-week program.

For more information, click here to view the spring 2018 brochure.