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We are immensely blessed by their choosing to become part of our church family! In February, we had the first of two Confirmations. We confirmed Joshua Belmonte and Declan Lee!
During the 2025 Lenten season, we began Lenten Lessons. Each Wednesday night throughout the Lenten season, we gathered for a meal and a lesson leading us to the Resurrection of Jesus. Our Lenten Lessons were well received, often with 60 plus members in attendance. We rarely went under 40 in attendance. The Living Last Supper was a thing of beauty! It was a Holy Spirit-led, and meaningful evening. Likewise, the Crucifixion of Christ Passion Play, at Frisch Park was so realistic, there was hardly a dry eye in the bleaches. We shared an awe-inspiring Easter Sunrise Service at the park. Thank you to EVERYONE who made our Lenten season so special.
Right on the heels of Easter, came our National Day of Prayer. As usual, the table decorations were amazing. Thank you to our readers for that event.
At our second reset meeting in May, attendees decided we did not have the resources to begin the new Sunday afternoon service we were considering. We pivoted and opted to focus on, “inviting, inviting, inviting.”
The 2025 HTCUMC Annual Conference (the first one) was very different last summer. It was held in Abilene, Tx. The meeting set up was a bit challenging for those with mobility limitations. So, Ken and Debbie Smith missed AC for the first time in 40 years!! However, they followed the conference closely online. Nevertheless, Bishop Saenz, Jr. completed the goals of the Annual Conference. We had quite a few clergy commissioned/ordained this past year. The future of the HTCUMC will be in good hands.
We hardly caught our breath before it was time for VBS. We felt we got a late start; but we pulled it off, thanks to a hard-working team. The theme was Road Trip. The rooms/stations were well done and expertly decorated to reflect the theme. We even had a real stoplight. The students had backpacks and to the children’s delight, “Scout the dog” made a daily appearance! Thank you VBS Committee members!
In July, Rebecca Caldwell and Beth Robinson preached in my stead. Thank you for allowing me to take that much needed time away, with family. We enjoyed our time at Cape Cod.
In the summer of 2025, the Trustee and Finance Committees embarked upon a Building Improvement Campaign. Keith Caldwell constructed a lifelike, miniature replica of our church. Our “Raise the Roof Campaign” gained so much traction. People donated significant amounts of money for our various projects. Others participated in creative fun-raisers: Baylor Concert/Concession Stands, the youth did a car wash, raffles sale, etc…Thank you so much to the Fun-Raising Committee and to Sara for advertising the events. The greatest thanks go to YOU! Whether your donation was large or small, every penny helped us to meet our goal. We have new projectors. The new roof is on the building! (Although it was not one of the building improvement projects, due to a generous donor, we now have a police presence in the building). Only one of our intended projects is still outstanding; but we are working on it (getting new lighting in the parking lot). The Fleets had their annual Jelly/Jam sale on behalf of the church. We are always humbled and happy to purchase those jars of deliciousness!!
In October, we held our second Confirmation Class, which we called, Open Confirmation. This Confirmation was for older youth and any adults who wanted to attend. We had fourteen in attendance and confirmed the following youth: Alana Kendall, Spencer Madrid, and Josiah Townsend. Alana was baptized on Open Confirmation Sunday.
The end of the summer found us furiously getting ready for Harvest Jubilee 2025. Glenn Morrison gets the prize for the most tickets sold. Wisely, the Harvest Jubilee Committee made some important and necessary changes, which proved to be HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL! Since the events were on the FRONT LAWN this year, no doubt EVERY parent with children, who drove down Elms Rd., was excitedly urged, to stop and see what was going on. We may have hit record numbers in participation this year. The Lord held the forecasted rain “at bay” until the festivities ended and clean up was done! THIS was an answer to our many prayers about the weather!
By Nov., members were exhausted; and many were experiencing planned surgeries. We still went “nuts” over the Abigail Circle Nut sale during the Thanksgiving season. Thank you to our Congregational Care Team who gave out gift cards to those who needed a Thanksgiving blessing.
We decided not to have the Bethlehem Village Christmas Event. Instead, we had Carols, Cocoa, and Cookies! Oh, what fun…! We had over 60 people in attendance. Emma Barclay did a dance that rivaled any professional dancer one might see on television! Lucy Arevelo-Rainwater gave us a sample of her gymnastic skills (she was amazing), and Jeremiah Hogan gave us a preview of his part in a dance song prepared by his drama class. There were cookies galore, hot chocolate with whipped cream for everyone and the fellowship hall was filled with the sound of laughter and Christmas songs! Julie McBride provided the music. She invited a guest who, literally, as we ate and fellowshipped, created the most jaw-dropping painting of the shepherds making their journey to the manger, that we had ever seen! We marveled as we watched the painting come to life right before our eyes. Timothy Duke drew the winning door prize ticket number. To Timothy’s delight and much to the despair of Stephanie Greene (who was ready to offer a bribe or give her right arm to win that painting), 😊Timothy picked HIS OWN TICKET NUMBER!! Congratulations to the Duke family!!
There were many annual Christmas Events: The UMM’s Breakfast, which was opened to the entire church, Son N Fun Party, Choir party, Youth Party, SS celebrations, Circle Celebrations, and a Christmas Choir with the Seventh Day Advent Church (at their church and ours). We had great fun at the Children’s Christmas Crafts event. We had more adult helpers than children this year. We wonder if we may need to change the time. Be on the lookout, for a survey to inquire about what we might do differently next year.
Finally, the Christmas Eve Service is always a sacred event. Since many of our members were out of town for the holidays, we were expecting attendance to be much lower this year. THAT IS NOT WHAT HAPPENED! We had a full house! We saw several new faces at the service. As usual, everyone was touched as the dark Sanctuary lit up, as we sang, “Silent Night,” with candles in hand. Before parting, we shared fun and fellowship in the Welcome Center. A good time was had by all.
Well, that was a lot; but I have presented the MAJOR events experienced in the 2025 Church Year. Happy New Year! We will do many of these things all over again! LET’S DO THEM EVEN BETTER THIS YEAR!
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