Connections: January 5, 2023 |
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Happy New Year to All !
I hope you all have a clear vision for what you aspire to and for in 2023!
Clearly, the topic of the week is the weather—please stay safe and dry!
January is a month of action in the life of this church. Mark your calendars to be available on Sunday, January 22nd, for the Budget Forum and Sunday, January 29th, for the Annual Meeting, where members vote on the Budget and programming.
Be assured that your leadership teams are working hard on behalf of CCSM to make the right and difficult decisions for the future. There have been hundreds of hours of discussion through November and December related to the future of CCSM regarding the Senior Minister position and the Budget. Congratulations to the Search Team for officially posting the settled Senior Minister position as of December 30th. They are available to accept applications if you know of interested candidates.
If you have not pledged for the 2023 year, please do so as soon as possible. Thank you to many of you who have pledged your financial support and increased your contributions.
Bless us all as we begin another trip around the sun.
Peace and Grace,
Rev. Melissa
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Click on the video above for Sunday's worship service,
or click HERE for Rev. Jorge's sermon.
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PICK-A-PARTY SIGN UPS
JANUARY 8 AT 9:45 A.M.
Bring your cash, check, or you can pay online (see instructions below*.) As things will be crowded in Kloss Hall, please bring your mask as well. For those who haven't done this before (or who have forgotten), the ribbon is dropped at 9:45 and everyone can head for the tables on which the party sign-ups will be laid out. On the party sign-up form, you write your name (legibly) and your phone number. You then write down the party number, name and cost on the "Party Picker" form you will be given at the outset. You then head for your next party. It's a good idea to prioritize ahead of time so you can beeline first to the party with only 6 guests, and later to the party with 25 guests. Once you've signed up for all your parties, and noted them on your Party Picker, you tally the cost and head for the cashiers. You can pay with cash, a check made payable to CCSM with "Party" in the memo line, or pay online (see below*). If, despite all these reminders, you've forgotten your payment, you'll have until January 15 to get your payment to the church office.
Party sign-ups will continue during coffee hour immediately following the service.
Questions? Contact Sandy McNabb, sandra.j.mcnabb@gmail.com 650.678.5650; Michele Merfeld Hale, kaymerf@yahoo.com 206.612.6182; or Diane Kalliam, dkalliam@gmail.com 415.279.1359.
*Online instructions: (Note that CCSM is charged a transaction fee for online payments.) Text 73256 with the message "CCSM Party $___" [insert the amount you're paying]. Alternatively, use the Church Life app and select the fund "Pick-a-Party," or pay online at myCCSM to the "Pick-a-Party" fund.
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Youth and Family Events
All Sundays: Weekly Sunday kids' spiritual program at 10:45, led by Shannon (they/them) and Elaine (she/her) in the Community Room. Pre-K care is offered by Lily (she/her). Youth Group is led by Elijah (he/him) in the Fireplace Room.
Sunday, January 8: 11:45am Family Play Date! Please join us in the CE building's Community Room (2nd floor) for a fun time that will include pizza, music and singing, and a service project for LifeMoves where we will continue to decorate pillowcases to be used in family shelters.
Monday, January 16: Peninsula Multifaith Council's Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service. Each year there are projects for all ages - families are welcome to participate in any but we will choose one to do together as a CCSM community!
Sunday, January 22: 10:45am: 60 Minutes conversation for high school youth led by Mike (he/him) and Sheryl (she/her). Each month, high schoolers choose a discussion topic. This month the focus will be on the future of the church.
Saturday February 18-Monday February 20: Mid-winter youth camp for those in grades 7-12 in Palo Alto - please note the date and location change.
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FIRST SUNDAYS OF THE MONTH ARE COMMUNION SUNDAYS
If there’s a way you can be in person on the first Sundays of the month, communion is a meaningful time to be together.
If you’re not able to be with us in person, you’re invited to share in communion while online with us from wherever you are; just have some bread and juice ready and you can participate with us that way.
In January, we will celebrate communion on JANUARY 8
(instead of on the first Sunday, January 1).
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BRING YOUR BLESSING BOX CONTRIBUTIONS ANY SUNDAY OF THE MONTH!
The "Blessing Box" outside of the entrance of CCSM is a project of the Ministry of Service and Justice, responding to the need for families in our neighborhood to access food and an expression of our call to be the "hands, feet, and face of God" in our community. Before the pandemic, CCSM collected food for Samaritan House on the first Sunday of each month. We are now reinstating a non-perishable food collection for EACH Sunday, but it will be to supply our Blessing Box. Please take the opportunity to bring food (canned, dried and boxed, no fresh food please! donations must be full UNOPENED containers, no fruits, vegetables, or bread) on any Sunday of the month.
The container will be in the narthex to collect food for the Blessing Box every Sunday. There will be helpful reminders in the bulletin, Connections, and Pine Tree. The Ministry of Service and Justice suggests adding a few non-perishables to your grocery list. If we make this a habit, we can keep the Blessing Box filled with nourishing food for the people of our neighborhood. Thank you for your continuing generosity!
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MUSIC AND ART • Friday, January 20: Pianist Karen Hutchinson
The musician for our Music and Art program on Friday, January 20 will be pianist, Karen Hutchinson. We are thrilled to have such a wonderful and talented local person to share her musicianship with our group as well as any guests who would like to attend. Karen has performed at a variety of local venues including the recent concert in the chamber series at Music at Kohl Mansion, as well as the Congregational Church of San Mateo. You will want to hear this extraordinarily talented person who also had training in Paris under the tutelage of several famous pianists.
We will begin at noon with our program followed by our fellowship lunch in the Buckham Room. Be sure to circle the date on your new 2023 calendars and as usual make your RSVPs with Susan Duty, susanjd52@gmail.com, 650-533-6830. Join us for a great way to begin the new year.
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Pray for Ukraine Every Tuesday at 7:30pm
CCSM held a powerful live Prayer Ritual for Ukraine on March 6th. We have decided to premier this ritual ONLINE every Tuesday until the war ends. We hope you will join us online weekly to continue our prayers and heal our hearts. These are challenging times and this offering is a way to bring our community together and magnify our prayers.
Please share this link with your friends and family so we can extend this offering to as many people as possible.
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225 Tilton Avenue • San Mateo, CA 94401
(650) 343-3694
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Scan the QR code above or go to
to make a donation or pledge to CCSM.
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