May 19 Colonial Church News

"Spirit Poured Out: Dare to Dance Again" Pentecost Worship

Photo by Ricardo Gomez Angel on Unsplash

Pentecost – May 23

It is time to dance!

This Sunday we celebrate Pentecost and the Baptism of Cecilia Cochran.

It's going to be a day of joy!

We will also be recording our Jerusalema Dance immediately after the in-person worship service. Have fun with it!

Come to Colonial Church to worship at 10:15 a.m.
Connect to livestreamed worship at 10:15 a.m. at https://colonialucc.online.church/
Connect via Zoom to worship at 8:30 a.m. at http://bit.ly/CC830Zoom
Or, you can worship anytime via YouTube at https://bit.ly/CCYouTubeVid.

Online Children's Sunday School. This week's Sunday School Bible story will go live on Sunday morning at 9:30 a.m. https://bit.ly/CCYouTubeVid

Online Coffee & Conversation

Immediately following our online worship service (at 9:15 a.m.) grab a mug and come over to our community's Coffee & Conversation online.

You can connect at https://bit.ly/CCCoffeeCon

Upcoming Town Hall Meetings

We are carefully inching back together in worship and different groups in the church are considering gathering in person again. The re-entry process has Pastor Aaron and the leadership team looking forward to what the future holds for the church and congregation. The church is emerging from the COVID crisis in a strong position to look ahead faithfully and prophetically. We feel like it is important to reconnect with everyone and share our hopes and dreams with one another.

We are hosting a series of both in-person and online Town Hall meetings over the next several weeks to give you a chance to catch up with members, hear what the leadership team is working on, and share your input. Back in February, most of you participated in the congregational survey about a possible capital campaign. These Town Halls will be a follow up to that and offer a more personal and interactive conversation. Those held at the church will include building tours while those held online will include a virtual tour, so we can really see what the conversation is about.

We are working to keep each Town Hall to 15 to 20 people and will run about 45 minutes to an hour, so they can be relaxed and enjoyable. We will take time to share prayer concerns, hear from the leadership team, and dream together. Each Town Hall will be facilitated by Rev. Dr. Mark Holland who is working with Pastor Aaron and the leadership team on what is next.

Please review the dates and times below and click here to sign up.

Sunday, May 23–11:30 a.m., Social Hall
Wednesday, May 26–9:30 a.m., Einstein Brother's in Prairie Village Shops
Wednesday, May 26–1:00 p.m. via Zoom
Sunday, June 6–9:00 a.m., before Worship
Sunday, June 6–12:00 p.m., following Annual Meeting
Wednesday, June 10–7:00 p.m. via Zoom

We will add or change times as needed to accommodate everyone. If you are a part of a group at the church who would like to have the Town Hall as the topic of your next meeting, let us know and we can make those arrangements.

Congregational Meeting on June 6

Colonial's annual meeting will be Sunday, June 6 following the 10:15 a.m. service in the sanctuary and via Zoom. We will vote on the slate of officers for the new Church Council and the annual report will be presented.

Nominees for Church Council are:

Marylee Battaglia Assistant Moderator

Marylee is a retired educator and has been a member of Colonial Church since June

1983 when her daughter, Meredith, was baptized. Meredith is our youth group leader. Marylee has enjoyed Colonial's support through the highs and lows of the past 38 years.

Cindy Burgdorfer

Board of Worship

Cindy is a retired medical technologist and has worked in hospitals in suburban Chicago and suburban Kansas City. She is an avid member of the church's quilting group and has lead a gardening club at her homes association.

Ashley Chavez

co-chair with Elizabeth Upmann-Marquez Community and Member Development

Ashley is a Marketing Manager for Hallmark Cards. She and Jesse Chavez were married at Colonial. In 2017, they welcomed their son, Levi.

Mickey Gehring

Member-at-large

Mickey and her husband, Lou, joined Colonial Church a little over two years ago and found kindred souls with open hearts and minds and a welcoming spirit. They have two children and three young grandsons. Mickey’s lifelong work and passion is music: piano teaching, accompanying and performance.

Chad Leabo

Property Management

Chad and Ann started attending the 8:30 service in spring 2019, and love the people they’ve met and the inclusive, positive spirit of this church. Chad develops custom radio stations for sports venues, water parks and fitness centers.

Mary Penrose

Parish Life

Mary is extending her term as chair of Parish Life. She is a retired real estate appraiser and a member of the Kansas Silver Haired Legislature. At Colonial, in addition to Parish Life, she serves on the Colonial Women Board and works with our Artists Helping the Homeless outreach.

We're Going to Dance Together on May 23

We are postponing creating our video of the Jerusalema until Pentecost, May 23, but keep practicing. The Jerusalema is a line dance...and we can do this together. On May 23 we will record ourselves dancing together. We’re going to put together a video and challenge our friends at Plymouth Church in Lawrence to do the same.

Our own Tamara Carson has put together a video instruction for how to do the Jerusalema - there's also a low impact and accessible to dance-challenged people.

Upcoming Events

June 5 - Youth Movie Night featuring "Madagascar." Saturday, June 5, 7:30 p.m. outside at Colonial. Popcorn, candy and drinks provided. Bring lawn chairs and blankets.
July 16-20 - UCC Synod Youth Online Events

For more information, email or call Heather in the office.

Erin Bender – Graduating from Shawnee Mission West. Attending Pittsburg State University to major in Nursing.

Nick Herbst – Graduating from Olathe Northwest. Attending the University of Kansas to major in Aerospace Engineering.

Meet Mere, Colonial Youth Group Leader

Meredith Griffiths has enthusiastically accepted the position as our Youth Group Leader. Meredith was baptized at Colonial in 1983, attended Sunday school as a child and was confirmed in 1998. She graduated from Shawnee Mission West High School and Johnson County Community College. Meredith has a growing business for herself as a self-employed master hair stylist and is a entrepreneur in Kansas City. Meredith is passionate about travel, Kansas City Sports, art, music, her pets and watching The Food Network. She is looking forward to developing a healthy spiritual connection with her fellow Youth and growing together through all their experiences......and the fun and memories they will make together.

Colonial Women Activities

With the return of nice weather and many of us already having received COVID vaccinations, we are returning to in-person Colonial Women’s activities.

Colonial Women Book Group - 7:00 p.m. Friday, June 4, Stacey Algren's home. We will discuss "The French Lieutenant’s Woman" by John Fowles.
Colonial Women Coffee - 9:30 a.m. on Monday, June 7, Heritage Room for Town Hall conversation.
Colonial Women Blue Moose Tuesday - 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 8. Blue Moose

Worship Volunteers Needed

Returning to the sanctuary means we need worship volunteers again, although the roles have changed a bit. Click here for updated job descriptions. to see descriptions for greeter and usher. Please register your willingness to volunteer and we will put together a schedule.

https://colonialucc.breezechms.com/form/d2371f74.

No doubt our volunteer needs will evolve as time goes on. Thank you.

Strengthen the Church Offering

The Strengthen the Church Offering reflects the shared commitment of people across the United Church of Christ to cooperatively build up the UCC. Conferences and the national setting equally share the gifts given by members and friends through their local congregations. The funds raised support leadership development, new churches, youth ministry, and innovation in existing congregations.

Our sister church, Plymouth Congregational Church in Lawrence, used STC fund to partner with the Haskell Foundation, a nonprofit whose sole mission is to support Haskell Indian Nations University, to address the needs of Haskell students during the pandemic. Read their story here.

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. We will receive this special offering on Pentecost Sunday, May 23. Contributions can be made online at any time. Select "Give to Strengthen the Church" from the dropdown men.

Front Garden Renovation

The garden in front of the church has been reinvented! Formerly known as the Shade Garden, several years ago trees were removed resulting in insufficient shade to properly sustain many of the plants. The garden required constant maintenance that was provided by the garden club, of which Honey Hannah and Lee Rowe were members. The club disbanded last year and made a generous donation to cover the expense of relandscaping the garden.

A new landscape plan was developed and a contractor was hired to remove all the old plant material, install sod, mulch and a variety of low maintenance plantings. The result is an attractive addition to the front of our church. As part of a larger Eagle Scout project, Nick Herbst, along with several Scouting associates prepared and painted two benches that are located in front of the garden.

VANish the Void Supplies

Pre-pandemic, Colonial helped Kar Woo and Artists Helping the Homeless by providing and serving a meal in Mill Creek Park once a month for homeless people. We hope to resume that outreach eventually. In the meantime, the Colonial Board of Outreach is providing funds for non-perishable food items for Woo to hand out when he is out in the Be the Change van helping disadvantaged and homeless people in Kansas City. You can give to that effort here by selecting AHH from the dropdown menu.

Giving Statements

Giving Statements will be emailed for contributions from January 1, 2021 thru April 30, 2021. This email will be sent approximately the 20th of May. Those members who do not have an email will receive a statement in the mail.

If you have any questions about your statement, you may email or call Jayne Quimby, Financial Recorder, or Heather Winker in the church office.

Your Support Matters

Our work together matters - to each other and to the community. Your pledges help Colonial do its work. You may mail in your pledge checks, as well as any other payments. An easier alternative is to make contributions online. You just fill in your banking information or provide a credit card and your name and email and what fund you are paying (Stewardship, food pantry, etc.) and the amount. Click the donate button below.

If you have any questions, you may email or call Heather in the office or Jayne Quimby, Financial Recorder.