Penn Central Conference Weekly eNews

MEF launched this Spring as a new series of workshops designed to impact your ministry in the moment! This new iteration of the Clergy Leadership Series will be held 6 times a year with at least two of the sessions also open to lay leaders in the congregation. A certificate for one unit of continuing education in 21st Century Ministry will be issued for clergy who attend all three sessions in a season.

The first MEF, "Navigating Ministerial Whitewater", was designed to look at some of the rocks that help us navigate in a rapidly changing Church. Rev. Betsy Bruaw offered some best practices around leaving well and Stephanie Rader-Titzel talked with us about church web presence and best practices around intellectual property and streaming of services.

Last week, the Ministerial Education Forum featured a 3 hour workshop with the Samaritan Center focusing on helping clergy navigate the inevitable conflict that will occur in congregational life. Participants analyzed their congregation as a system, looked at systemic issues affecting conflict within a congregation and were given tools to use in their congregations for transforming conflict.

Our next afternoon of learning, "Hiking the Oceans," will be May 16th at St. Thomas on Linglestown Road in Harrisburg and will feature Rev. Dr. Steve Ohnsman, Rev. Dr. David Mellot and our Conference Minister, Rev. Dr. Monica Dawkins-Smith. We will focus on some of the shifts in congregational gathering, ways of being church and methods of preparation for lay and authorized ministry. Pastors and Congregational leaders are encouraged to register and attend.

As we look toward Fall, workshops are in the plans for preaching excellence, clergy self-care, politics and the pulpit, retiree ministries, and more! If you have suggestions for other topics please email me at [email protected]. Watch the weekly e-news and the Penn Central website for announcements as Fall draws near.

Shalom,

Nora

Rev. Nora Foust, Associate Conference Minister for Congregational and Ministerial Excellence

P.S. Just a reminder of our next Boundary Training, Basic Boundary Awareness, May 19 at Hummelstown UCC!

Annual Meeting - Share Your Love!

Mark Your Calendars - NEW

The call to the

Fifty-Sixth Annual Meeting

of the Penn Central Conference of the United Church of Christ

ALIVE IN CHRIST

Re-visioning Key Vital Signs

(Colossians 2: 6-19)

This year, opening worship begins Friday at 2:00!

We are excited to see you there!

This year we will focus on equipping local churches with practical tools and resources to thrive.

What are real ways that participation connects individuals to that which is holy?

How can churches collectively reflect on that?

How is the church a community connected spiritually in their missional work?

Annual Meeting will seek to answer these questions and also provide opportunities for fellowship, education and an opportunity to worship together.

Display Application and Workshop Application now due April 30!

Other Annual Meeting details on our Web site!

Business Items

PCC 2018 Annual Meeting Mission Project

Resolution Updates - Timeline and A Guide to the Proposed Changes

Costs:

Friday Registration - $35

Saturday Registration - $35

Friday Dinner - $13

Saturday Breakfast - $6.50

Saturday Lunch - $10.50

Double Occupancy - $40 OR Single Occupancy - $50

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TO REGISTER

Please register by May 15!

Children's Annual Meeting - NEW

Cultivating Vital Heart Beats

Lead by Rev. Nate and Kara Druckenmiller, please join us for fun, games, workshops, speakers and more in our Mini Annual Meeting for Penn Central Conference's children!

Flyer and Registration

ONA and the Bible with Andy Lang - NEW

Successful Practices of ONA Churches: Learn about the strategies used by churches within Penn Central Conference that has led to an Extravagant Welcome - Topic Areas include: Successful ONA Vote, A Community Presence, Spreading understanding with a particular focus on children and youth, and Welcoming and Healing.

June 8 - Before Annual Meeting at 9:30 at Susquehanna University

Flyer and Registration

Justice and Community Issues

Creation Justice - NEW

NEW Creation Justice Churches (since last Annual Meeting) - please reach out to Stephanie if you have new Creation Justice churches or Libby Loser if you are thinking of becoming a Creation Justice church.

Renewable Energy - On Wednesday of this week, a bipartisan group of 38 legislators in the PA House introduced a bill, (HB2132,) that acknowledges the problem of climate change, the need to transition away from fossil fuels to renewable forms of energy, and calls for Pennsylvania to make plans to accomplish this. Click on the link to HB2132 above to see the text of the bill and list of co-sponsors.

If you feel so moved, please write, call or email your rep as well to thank them for co-sponsoring or to encourage them to do so. If you need the address or e-mail address, just click on this link to find your legislator in PA: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/findyourlegislator/.

DR&R - NEW

Webinar (4/26/2018) - Be Ready Financially: Resources to Help Individuals and Families with Financial Preparedness

Global Ministries is offering a unique experience for young people - college graduates to age 30 - to serve as a Global Mission Intern.

Global Mission Interns serve one to three years in a country where Global Ministries works. More from Global Ministries

UCAN National Conversation on HIV

UCAN National Conversation on HIV

Tuesday, May 8, 2018 at 2.00 pm, Eastern Time

Online Registration Required:

https://ucan-hivtesting-8may2018.eventbrite.com

Everyone has a status - The church and HIV Testing

On May 8, UCAN launches the first in a series of online national conversations on HIV with a focus on HIV testing. A popular HIV testing slogan is, "Everyone has a status, do you know yours?" In preparation for National Testing Day, Wednesday, June 27, Rev. Mike Schuenemeyer will moderate this conversation via Zoom about the importance of everyone knowing their HIV status and the status of the church in promoting and facilitating HIV testing.

Resource Links

Join Our Weekly eNews Mailing List

PCC UCC Links

Links to Our Partners

Phoebe Messenger

Pennsylvania Academy of Ministry

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Lancaster Theological Seminary

UCCR

Calendar of Events

Link to Our Web Site Calendar

Printable Calendar

PLEASE SAVE THE DATE!

Partners in Peace - July 5, 2018

Mid-Atlantic Regional Youth Event - July 19-22, 2018

California University of Pennsylvania

Widening the Welcome (Disability Ministries) - November 1-3, 2018, Niagara Falls, NY

General Synod, 2019 - June 21-25, 2019, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Church News

Church Events

May 1 - 3 - Penn Northeast and Southeast's 24th Annual Clergy Convocation

May 1 - 3 - UCC Clergywomen Leadership Event

May 17 - Northern Association Spring Banquet at Hartman Center, Milroy. Registration 6:00 and Dinner at 6:30. For details.

Organist/Choir Director

First Reformed UCC in Sunbury is looking for a Organist/Choir Director. Please reach out to Bill Unger.

Events and Training

PCC Classes and Resources

Ministerial Education Forums - Join us May 16 at St. Thomas UCC on Linglestown Road in Harrisburg for Workshops that will impact your ministry at the moment!

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work - Join us May 12 for a workshop geared to support you in your life beyond ministry to learn new principles to enhance your relationship.

Communities of Practice Groups Sign up for a place where the focus is ministry and shared knowledge is practice and experience based. These communities covenant to offer care, support and accountability while they nurture practices of spiritual discipline.

Sabbaticals can be such a crucial part of healthy ministry for pastor and people. Intentional planning, knowing what resources are available to support the sabbatical (grants, supply preaching, pastoral care, etc.) and activities for the congregation during sabbatical are just a few things to consider.

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work

Please join us May 12 at Hayshire UCC to learn new principles to enhance your relationship. Open to all couples in Penn Central Conference (lay, clergy, LBGTQ).

Saturday, May 12 at Hayshire UCC in York.

Details and Registration

Pastoral Care Class

Pennsylvania Academy of Ministry is offering its PASTORAL CARE class on Saturday, May 12, 2018 from 9:00am to 4:00pm at First UCC in Schuylkill Haven.

For more information.

Mount Gretna Tabernacle 2018 - NEW

The Friday Nights in June Ecumenical Series

GOD IS is the common theme for Friday night worship services during June at the Mt. Gretna Tabernacle. Come, enjoy and learn.

June 1 - 29

June 29 at 7:00 PM "God Is... Therefore We are" Rev. Holly MillerShank, Director of Ministerial Excellence

ONLINE Polity Course

ONLINE

UCC History, Theology and Polity Course

June/July 2018

A UCC History, Theology and Polity Course that meets the requirements as set forth by the UCC Polity Teacher's Network will be offered online in June/July 2018. The instructor will be Rev. David Gaewski, Conference Minister of the New York Conference, UCC. Classes will begin at 9:30am and end at 3:30pm on the following dates: June 16, 23, 30 and July 7. The platform utilized will be Zoom Video Conferencing ( zoom.us ) The tuition will be $475. For more information contact course administrator, Ms. Diana Pelletier,

Generosity

Strengthen the Church

The suggested offering date is

Pentecost Sunday, May 20, 2018.

The Strengthen the Church offering supports the expansion of ministry and growth of UCC local congregations. Your support of this offering will help the UCC fulfill on its commitment to creating a just world for all by investing in new ministries and practices that meet the emerging needs of local communities.

As God calls our congregations to be the church in new ways, your generosity will plant new churches, awaken new ideas in existing churches and develop the spiritual life in our youth and young adults.

Promotional items for the 2018 offering:

2018 Strengthen the Church Worship Insert

2018 Strengthen the Church Facebook Post

2018 Strengthen the Church Twitter Post

Clergy News

Hellos and Goodbyes

Hellos

Robin Keating begins as Interim Pastor at Bethany, Ephrata on May 1^st
Caroline Saxton begins as Settled Pastor at St. John's, Chambersburg on May 1^st

April - May - June

May 6 - Ecclesiastical Council for Donald Snyder, Jr - Trinity UCC, Watsontown - 3:00 PM

June 3 - Installation of Bonnie Whittier - Grace UCC, Hanover - 3:00 PM

Hartman Center - Camp and More!

Hartman Center Team Needed

We are working to develop a team of people who are able to assist and serve the needs of Hartman Center. This is open to anyone who values the ministry of Hartman Center and this can be long term or one time commitment.

Duties may include:

Working during camp work days

Communication of Hartman Center activities and events

Driving fund raising and development initiatives

Hartman Center News and Resources

2018 is shaping up to be another epic summer at Hartman Center! In addition to popular weeks like Fishing Camp, Soccer Camp and Water World, we've expanded our popular MADD Camp theme into a whole week of arts camps for all ages! Plus, we have added a music-focused Getting Started Camp, Arts and Crafts Camp for grades 4-6 and Creative Writing Camp for grades 7-10.

As always, activities will include hiking, climbing, swimming, arts and crafts, music, theatre, campfires, games, rafting, archery, fishing and navigating the co-op trail obstacle course. Hartman Center is a great opportunity to grow in God's love, form friendships and make memories that will last a lifetime! View our Camp Schedule ! To register

Nurses Needed:

Nurses (LPN/RN) needed for summer camp as well as for the retreat weekends. If you are able to assist, please reach out to Patty.

Snacks:

This year we are providing our own snacks for campers. Please contact Pastor Patty if you can help with food items OR with grocery store gift cards (Dollar General, Weis, or Giant)

Hartman Center Work Weekend:

Please join us May 4 and 5 for Hartman Center's annual work weekend as we descend upon the camp to undertake various projects to repair and upgrade Hartman Center for summer camp. We need assistance with several projects.

Click on Work Camp Assignments to see the kinds of things we hope to accomplish if people with the right skill sets can come. To sign up or for more information, please contact Dave Bushnell

Hartman Center Golf Outing is Now Full! --- ---

And don't forget these other upcoming events:

May 4-6 Elementary Retreat - To register and Poster to hang/distribute in your church

Summer Camp June 24 - July 28

Youth and women's retreats November 16-18

Hartman Center Wish List

----Elementary Retreat - May 4-6, 2018

More details on the Hartman Center Web site!

Thank you for your continued support!

Prayers for Our Churches

Prayers for Penn Central Conference Churches

"Finally, brothers and sisters, pray for us, so that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly and be glorified everywhere, just as it is among you." (2 Thess. 3:1)

Beginning in 2018, we have created a prayer list to invite you to pray with us as we pray for all of our congregations. Each week we will list names of various churches in Penn Central Conference hoping you will add them to your prayer list, and hold them in prayer throughout the week.

Church of the Redeemer UCC, Hershey
Emmanuel UCC, Jacksonville
Hummelstown UCC, Hummelstown
Faith UCC of Ickesburg, Ickesburg

PCC Bay

Hammond Organ

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Grace UCC in Spring Mills has a Hammond organ, C-3 model, that is in good condition. It was probably built in the early 1960's and includes the original book that came with it. A date in the book says 1961. The asking price for the organ is $3,000.

If interested, please contact Leigh Pick at 814-422-8075 or at [email protected] .

14 Robes - Free to a Good Home

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For more information about them, contact the church office, Geri Neese, Administrator, Saint Paul's United Church of Christ, (570) 568-1433.