• Lucy Hess in celebration of Jim Schmidt
• Karl and Christopher Bandemer and Lissa Kiep in memory of Irwin and Maxine Bandemer
• Mary LaRocque in memory of Mary Lemina Shenmem Willet and John and Gussie Sherman
• Kris Conner in memory of her father, Floyd Skow
• Larry and Beth Walker in memory of Phil and Pat Steigerwald, Marcia Steigerwald, Ranelle Melton, and Dick and Nancy Walker
• Patty Pendleton in honor of the people of Plymouth Church
• Rob Getrost in celebration of Jim Getrost
• Laurie Eggers for Ahnee Conner and Nick Conner
• Dave and Barb Christianson in memory of Ann and George Christianson and Jeanne and Hilmar Wahl
• Gale Cunningham in memory of Doug Cunningham, Leon and Helen Wiesmer, and Dane and Madge Cunningham

ATTENTION! Do you have a recurring online donation to Plymouth set up with your bank account or credit card? Because Plymouth is moving to a new giving platform, these automatic payments will end by December 31. If you wish to continue with automatic payments, you will need to enter your bank/credit card info on the new platform by following this link. If you wish the payment to be posted to your 2023 pledge, please choose the Operations 23 fund and a start date of 1/1/2023 or later.

Thank you for your patience with this transition. This new giving platform provides you as a donor greater access and control over your giving and streamlines the recordkeeping for the church staff, so it's a win-win! If you have questions or need assistance, please call the office at (260) 423-9424 and ask for Tina Puitz, Office Manager or Stephen Cook, Financial Administrator.

For all those who have pledged for 2023, thank you! For those who have yet to pledge or fill out the time and talent form, there is still time. Just visit this link to set up your pledge. Every bit helps as we prepare the 2023 budget and look forward to a new year of community-building, service, and sharing the good news!

There will be no Education Hour (both Sunday School and Chapel Class) on Sunday, December 18. Instead, all are invited to gather in the Folsom room at 9:00 am for an hour of carols and cocoa before worship. Those with instruments are invited to bring them along to share a tune, and we will be taking carol requests! Hot chocolate will be available, as will the regular donuts, coffee, and tea. Hope to see you there!

In keeping with our long-standing tradition, Plymouth will be collecting special offerings to benefit Crossroad Child & Family Services during both Christmas Eve services. Sunday, December 18, we will have a Mission Moment from Kyle Zanker, representing Crossroad and sharing information and stories about the great work they and the children they serve accomplish through therapy, education, and a lot of support.

Should you be moved by what you hear and wish to contribute, you can do so online by clicking the button below and selecting “Crossroad Christmas Offering” in the drop-down fund menu. You can also donate by check, with “Crossroad Christmas Offering” written on the envelope and the check’s memo line

Please join us for services of celebration and anticipation on Christmas Eve night at either 4:00 pm or 10:00 pm. The 4:00 pm service will be a family-friendly service featuring carols, communion, and a special time for children, and the 10:00 pm service will be a service of lessons and carols by candlelight. All are welcome as we celebrate God’s incarnation in the world. Childcare will be available at the 4:00 pm but not the 10:00 pm service. Both will be livestreamed if you are unable to be here in person.

Christmas falls on a Sunday this year. For Sunday worship, folks are invited to wear Christmas sweaters or any other appropriate Christmas attire, and we will have an extended time of carol singing as part of the worship experience along with poems and reflections.

Wednesday night book study resumes on January 11, 2023 with the book Dear White Peacemakers: Dismantling Racism with Grit and Grace, by Osheta Moore. Written in the wake of George Floyd’s death, Dear White Peacemakers draws on the Sermon on the Mount, Spirituals, and personal stories from author Osheta Moore’s work as a pastor in St. Paul, Minnesota. Rooted in the life, ministry, and teachings of Jesus, this book is a challenging call to transform white shame, fragility, saviorism, and privilege, in order to work together to build the Beloved Community as anti-racism peacemakers. Wednesday night book study is part of Wednesday Night Live activities, and meets from 6:45 pm to 7:30 pm, following Wednesday Night Live dinner. All are welcome!

Plymouth's Women's Book Study will not be meeting in December, but it's never too soon to start reading for January! Our next book will be Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann and we will meet on Tuesday, January 17 from 12:00 pm to 1:15pm in the Amistad Room. It describes how In the 1920s, the richest people per capita in the world were members of the Osage Indian Nation in Oklahoma. After oil was discovered beneath their land, the Osage rode in chauffeured automobiles, built mansions, and sent their children to study in Europe.

Then, one by one, they began to be killed off and virtually anyone who dared to investigate the killings were themselves murdered. As the death toll surpassed more than twenty-four Osage, the newly created F.B.I. took up the case, in what became one of the organization’s first major homicide investigations. But the bureau was then notoriously corrupt and initially bungled the case. Eventually the young director, J. Edgar Hoover, turned to a former Texas Ranger named Tom White to try to unravel the mystery.  

As always, anyone who self-identifies as a woman is welcome to drop in for one or more of our sessions if the chosen book interests them. We meet on the third Tuesday of most months from 12:00 pm to 1:15pm in the Amistad Room.

As the Boar's Head Festival quickly approaches, the kitchen crew kindly asks that all food and materials in the refrigerators be removed by December 22 to make room for their supplies. We thank you for your cooperation.

Registration is now open for two classes of Our Whole Lives - the UCC’s comprehensive sexuality education program. A class for 1st and 2nd graders will meet after worship on Sundays from February 5 to March 26. A class for 8th and 9th graders will meet on Wednesday evenings from 6:30pm to 8:00 pm, from January 11 until May 3. These classes are free and open to kids at Plymouth and in our wider community. Students are expected to attend all classes. Please contact Katie Watson with any questions or to register your student.

Tickets for the 2022 Boars Head and Yule Log Festival will be distributed one last time on Sunday, December 18. Please stop by the Folsom Room and get your tickets. Just a reminder all church members are entitled to 6 tickets for this years Festival. You may also get 6 tickets as a Festival Patron, so if you’d like to become a Patron, we can get you set up at that time. We look forward to seeing you! 

Thank you in advance for being the church!

Now – January 1

During this season, we will be collecting unopened canned/boxed food items. From what is collected, we will work to help keep the community pantry in the parking lot stocked during the winter. Please ensure cans have “pop tops” so they can be opened without a can opener if necessary. Canned meats and beans, hearty soups and pastas, and potatoes are treasures! Peanut butter, shelf-stable microwave meals, and instant oatmeal are easy for kids to prepare! Canned fruit, canned veggies, and condiments really complete a meal! Shelf-stable milk is a miracle!

The pantry gets used quite a bit. Any time you are here and notice that it could use some restocking, feel free to grab a few things from the collection bin and put them out for people to use.

The Boar's Head and Yule Log Festival is December 29 and 30, 2022. Between the 5:30 pm and 8:00 pm services, the kitchen crew serves food to the cast, orchestra, and crew. The kitchen crew is always looking for additional volunteers to spend a few hours or the entire afternoon/evening in the kitchen preparing food. A big thanks to those kitchen crew members who return year after year. We also gladly welcome new crew members. Between making sandwiches and cutting fruits and vegetables, there is a lot of lively banter and conversation. We usually get started early in the afternoon each day. If you would like to be part of the kitchen crew on one or both days, please send an email to Diana Bauer at [email protected]. Boar's Head is a huge part of Plymouth and the kitchen crew makes an important contribution to the overall production!

The Indiana Kentucky conference of the UCC is hosting General Synod in June 2023, and it has been a tradition for the hosting conference to provide prayer shawls for delegates and others in attendance. Would you be willing to help by knitting or crocheting one or two shawls? Let Rev. Sara ([email protected]) know if you would like to commit to making one (or three!).

The following links can be found on our Linktree:

• Donate
• Habitat for Humanity Volunteer Sign Up
• Chancel Flower Dedication Sign Up Form
• Study Connection Volunteer Sign Up
• Plymouth Google Calendar
• Plymouth's Social Medias