ROCK THE WEEK
October 7, 2020
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Here's the Buzz on Resuming In-person Services
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You should have received two emails recently about resuming in-person gatherings. The first, dated Oct. 2nd, detailed the numbers and metrics we're using to make our decisions. The second, sent Oct. 7th, contained details about the logistics for these gatherings. It also contained a link to the sign-up sheet for attending these services. Please read these emails carefully and contact the church staff if you have any questions.
That being said, church leadership is keeping an eye on our local COVID numbers each Thursday when they are published. If those numbers do not meet our standards as outlined in the Oct. 2nd letter, then we will not hold in-person gatherings for at least two weeks. Beginning this week, you will receive a "go" or "no-go" communication on Fridays to keep everyone informed on the status of in-person worship. We hope this consistent messaging will be helpful to you and your family. We want to remind you that online worship (as we have been doing) will continue to be available this fall.
Having all these plans in place ahead of time will make for a smoother transition to in-person gatherings, whether it's on Sunday the 18th (as we hope to) or later this year. We encourage you to ask questions if anything is confusing to you so we can work it out. Thank you for your patience and your support of Shadow Rock.
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Wednesday (10/7): Connections Count on Zoom at 7:00 p.m.
A weekly video highlighting a different spiritual practice or concept. The theme for Thursdays this month is OUTDOORS. Look for Facebook Live on Thursday from the Shadow Rock campus with a focus on embodied play. Spirituality Thursday is a series of videos available on the Shadow Rock Facebook page to support your spiritual wellbeing - you are free to go back and watch any video at any time.
Yoga Nidra will be on Facebook Live this week at 10:00 a.m. All are welcome to participate.
Monday (10/12): Small Group Ministry on Zoom at 6:55 p.m.
On Monday October 12, we're back to the Our Whole Lives bookclub! Readers, come ready to discuss parts 1 and 2 of this is how it always is. Get the Zoom link or learn more about this group by emailing Karen.
Sunday, October 11
Virtual Worship is delivered to your inbox first thing in the morning.
This week, Shadow Rock welcomes Michael Curry to its virtual pulpit. Michael is a child of this congregation and currently serves as the Southwest Conference Lay Minister for Disability Education, Advocacy, and Awareness. The Word About Life for Today is called,” Standing in the Way” based on Luke 5:17-26. We join with other congregations throughout the United Church of Christ as we celebrate Access Sunday. This discussion will include a message via Zoom at 11 a.m., breakout groups and then regather as a large group to summarize our discussion.
Adult Spiritual Formation is at 10:00 a.m. on Zoom. You'll find the link in Sunday's worship email. We begin a new discussion this coming week on allyship. How do we show up for others? How do we see allyship as a spiritual practice rather than a identity?
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Church of the Good Shepherd hosted the Southwest Conference Annual Meeting this past weekend. Because this meeting happened via Zoom, it was accessible to many more people throughout our geographically diverse conference! We had around 175 delegates conducting the business of our life together as the United Church of Christ in Arizona, New Mexico, and El Paso, TX. Delegates passed two delegates, which will be available for your review and study soon. We appreciate Shadow Rock's Annual Meeting delegates: Joyce and Gordon Schneider, Liz Curry, Michael Curry, and Karen Richter.
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We're in a season of heavy communication right now, and hope you are checking your inbox for all the messages from Shadow Rock. There have been a few emails in the past week - please go back and check to make sure you got them and you have followed up with anything that needs doing!
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While we're being all civic-minded, you completed your 2020 Census, right? If not, go take care of it really quick right here. We'll be right here when you get back.
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Amazon's Prime Day Deals are back from October 13-14. This is a great opportunity to support Shadow Rock through the Amazon Smile program. Learn how to sign-up here. Then shop normally! Shadow Rock is given a portion of your total from Amazon. To date, Amazon has given us just over $2000!
We also have a similar partnership with Fry's Community Rewards. We just received a check for the quarter from them, totally $174.97. That makes well over $4000 from Fry's! Thanks to everyone who supports Shadow Rock in these simple ways.
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A Message from Patricia...
It is time to talk about flu immunization and receive a vaccination. Public health officials are pushing to vaccinate 65% of American adults against the flu this influenza season. This is 25 percentage points higher coverage than a typical year. The goal: to reduce an onslaught of patients with flu from descending on the health care system at the same time COVID-19 patients continue to seek care.
The CDC offers a variety of educational information about vaccines and the diseases they prevent. For each vaccine, you can access information about who should receive the vaccine, when it should be administered, and what patients or parents should know about it. Resources are available in various formats—flyers, fact sheets, posters, videos, web buttons—and includes links to other useful websites. A link on this site connects to vaccination materials in Spanish. CDC materials can be downloaded, copied, and distributed to patients.
Influenza and pneumonia vaccination may be protective against the development of Alzheimer disease (AD) in older patients, according to two new research studies presented at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) 2020 in Chicago, Illinois.
--Patricia StandTal Clarke, MD, DMin; Minister of Wholeness
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Each week we'll be spotlighting an organization or site that's worth looking into. If you would like to suggest a future group to feature, please contact Abeth.
In order to reach Phoenix’s zero waste goal by 2050, the Zero Waste team provides education and community outreach to teach the community about waste diversion. These methods include group tours of the city’s North Gateway Transfer Station and Materials Recovery Facility (MRF), educational presentations to schools, neighborhood and community meetings and hosting informational booths at community events.
Now, they are delivering recycling education directly to your homes through their new page Recycle+ created to keep the interest and education on waste diversion ongoing. The team hopes that Recycle+ motivates you to take the extra step to recycle right and recycle more, so that 40% of Phoenix’s waste material is reused and reimagined as new products. Check it out by clicking the yellow "learn more" button!
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Reminders While the Campus is Closed
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- Our mail service is on hold and being picked up more sporadically. If you have important mail that needs our attention, please contact Heidi and she will give you an alternate address so we can receive it quicker.
- If you need any assistance securing groceries, medicine or toiletries, please contact us via email. We want to do our best to make sure everyone is safe and well.
- One of the most important things we can do for each other during this time of isolation and distance is to keep in touch. We're a very social church family, and it's hard to be apart from one another! Try to take time every day or two to call, text, or email one of your Shadow Rock friends.
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Thank you for your love and support of Shadow Rock! Your financial support and donations are more important than ever as we go through this unprecedented time of uncertainty. If you have questions about giving electronically, please reach out to Heidi and she'll be happy to help! You can also give to our Pastor's Charitable Fund or Facilities Improvement Fund by clicking the yellow donate button below.
Miss a week? You can find previous Virtual Worship services as well as older editions of Rock the Week by going to our website and clicking "News" at the top of the page.
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Rock the Week is published each Wednesday, and covers the upcoming week and future special events. To submit content for Rock the Week, please email abeth@shadowrockucc.org no later than noon on Monday. We welcome all comments, criticisms, concerns, critiques, and compliments at the same address.
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