Staying Connected to Your Church Community

STAYING CONNECTED TO YOUR CHURCH COMMUNITY

Thursday, April 8, 2021

A beautiful expression of Easter blessings!

A Cup of Morning Prayer

Begin each week in the quiet presence of God in the early morning hours and focus on prayer. Every Monday at 7 am.

Weather permitting, each session will be held in the sanctuary of nature, where church friends and families are invited to participate via Facebook LIVE. Find your special outdoor space, and practice an ancient form of prayer known as breath prayer.

If you cannot make it to the LIVE session, visit our Facebook page, or request to have the recordings sent to you via email. Please share your prayer requests in advance with Anne Marie. Your personal prayers of celebration and concern will be lifted up each Monday morning and held in gentle care by our virtual small and private Facebook Live group.

Noon Prayers from the Hills

Tune into the church's Facebook page at twelve noon on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays for a brief time (5-15 minutes) of reflection and prayers. Although we are not regularly in our offices at the church these days, please stay in touch!

Tuesdays: Rev. Anne Marie Holloway

Wednesdays: Rev. Matt Wooster

Thursdays: Rev. Judy Swahnberg

CLICK HERE TO GO TO FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO

WORSHIP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO

WORSHIP ON OUR WEBSITE

CLICK HERE FOR OUR

ORDER OF WORSHIP

Tuesday Morning Meditation

On Zoom from 9:30 to 10:30 am

We gather via Zoom every Tuesday morning. Whether you are new to meditation or practice it daily . . . please join us and be restored during this time together. Questions? Email Mary Hill Canavan or Rev. Judy Swahnberg.

Sunday Worship By Video

Worship services are now online with worship leaders recording their parts from different locations. Worship services will be available early Sunday mornings, and a reminder invitation with a link to the Order of Worship, will be sent out to everyone on our mailing list.

“The Birds and the Bees"

~ and ~

“The Flowers and the Trees"

Spring Tea Party

YOU ARE INVITED TO JOIN US!

Tuesday, April 13 ~ 2:00 to 3:15 pm

featuring

Tia Pinney

Senior Naturalist and Ecological Manager

Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary

Email Judy Swahnberg to receive the Zoom link.

BRING YOUR QUESTIONS!

CHURCH MOUSE CHATTER

Church Mouse (a.k.a. Susan MacDonald)

Our interim administrator works from home on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Tuesdays and Thursdays are usually spent in the church office, although this schedule changes depending on work load and meeting with vendors. Susan will be working "truly remote" (from Florida) on April 26, 27, 28, so she will be unavailable. Susan will work in the church office on April 29 and 30 of that week.

Old Computers and Parts

The Bell Room is full of old computers and parts that need to go to the Wellesley Recycling Center. Would you like to volunteer your time to do this? Contact Susan for this important task.

Shopping for our Shelter Families

Wellesley Hills Congregational Church is slated to “host” our shelter families the week of April 25. During COVID times, this means coordinating the shopping and delivery of groceries for our shelter families. If you would be interested in taking a partial shopping list and buying groceries or gift cards, please e-mail Tricia Frank and/or Neely Dodge. We should have the grocery lists by April 20 and will ask that the groceries be delivered to the church's big kitchen on the first floor, likely on April 23, before 2 pm (final details will be provided to you). Thank you!

Family Promise Metrowest

Something is happening right now at Family Promise Metrowest that has never occurred in our 12 years of existence: the four families currently in shelter are ALL ready to move out at once. This speaks to some incredible things afoot at Family Promise: changes in not just how we are serving our families, but incredible changes that they are bringing about themselves.

All four of these families are headed by single mothers who came to us with a spectrum of challenges they needed help addressing. They had credit issues, in two cases so severe they couldn’t secure apartments, and none of them had sufficient income or savings. Childcare, reliable transportation, and health insurance were lacking for some, and medical needs were going unmet. These mothers have proven to be one of the most hardworking, focused groups, we have ever served. They’ve all secured full-time jobs that align with school and daycare schedules, and they all now have health insurance and are addressing their families’ medical needs. But most impressively, every single mother has raised her credit score from the 500-range to as high as 780, eliminated her debt, and increased savings to address unexpected future expenses. What this means for these families is that now they can all secure apartments and none of them will need FPM to be a guarantor on their lease. And all of this happened in only 2-4 months in shelter rather than the typical 6-9 month stay. Talk about incredible changes!

As all of these moms now prepare to leave shelter, they were asked them about the most important changes they made while in our program. Here’s some of what they shared:

“I came into the program homeless, with bad credit, and in a deep depression. Family Promise helped me set and reach goals I didn’t believe I would be able to approach. I was able to eliminate my debt completely and raise my credit score 200 points. I have reached a level of financial stability that I have not had since I began living independently.”

—T.

I learned not to be afraid and always to stay positive and be strong. My best change was to save money to accomplish everything I always wanted and to have a home for my son. Words can't explain how happy and comfortable I feel.

—J.

The most important changes that I have made during my stay in the shelter are getting my kids into school and having a good place to live. I was broken and FPM helped me put all my little pieces together and be whole again. I'm so thankful and grateful.

—M.

Thank you to everyone that has continued to support our organization and our families during this last critical year. Together, we are changing the future for families facing homelessness.

Welcome to our new feature Faith @Home -- a weekly roundup of goodness focused on links related to faith and family, inspired articles, books, and activities that might encourage your faith journey @ home. Whether you are 2 or 92, there is something for you.

@ Easter Moment with Children — Happy Holy Week! Here's a sweet little EASTER PRAYER from Prayers for Faithful Families to share with your family.

@ Beautiful Downloadable Art and Gifts from Silver Tree Art — If you are looking for a meaningful Easter gift, we love THIS piece and THIS one, also THIS sticker… Or just get yourself a prayerful gift this Holy Week. :)

@ Who doesn’t love Easter? — Whether you celebrate the resurrection of Jesus or just get together with family, it’s one of the brightest and most joyful holidays of the year. Easter activities for kids are so much fun, too. HERE are some ideas for your family this week.

@ The Sandbox Revolution — Happy Book Birthday to THE SANDBOX REVOLUTION: Raising Kids for a Just World. The back of the book description says this: “The Sandbox Revolution calls upon our collective wisdom to wrestle with the questions, navigate the challenges, offer concrete practices, and remind parents of the sacredness of the work. Written by parents who are also writers, pastors, teachers, organizers, artists, gardeners, and activists, this anthology offers a diversity of voices and experiences on topics that include education, money, anti-racism, resistance, spirituality, disability justice, and earth care.” I am particularly taken by the STUDY GUIDE which has thoughtful questions and activities for group discussion or individual reflection.

Hills Church Weekly Calendar

THURSDAY

Organ Pipe Removal (Sanctuary)

Staff Meeting (Zoom)

Noonday Prayers with Rev. Judy (Facebook)

New Beginnings (Virtual)

Safe Church Meeting (Zoom)

FRIDAY

AA Meeting (Assembly Room)

Connections (Zoom)

SATURDAY

SUNDAY - Printed Order of Worship HERE

Coffee Hour (Zoom)

Worship Service (Online)

Middle School Faith Formation (Zoom)

Record/Practice - John (Sanctuary)

AA Meeting (Adams Board Room)

MONDAY

Cup of Morning Prayer

Locksmith (in-house)

Clergy Pastoral Care Meeting (Zoom)

Food Pantry (Assembly Room)

Property Maintenance Meeting (Zoom)

TUESDAY

Morning Meditation (Zoom)

Noonday Prayers with Rev. Holloway (Facebook)

Food Pantry (Assembly Room)

Spring Tea Party (Zoom)

Church Council (Zoom)

WEDNESDAY

Dumpster Pickup (on-site)

Noonday Prayers with Rev. Matt (Facebook)

Food Pantry (Assembly Room)

Confirmation Class (Zoom)

Choir Rehearsal (Zoom)

THURSDAY

Staff Meeting (Zoom)

Noonday Prayers with Rev. Judy (Facebook)

New Beginnings (Virtual)

"Events at the Hills" Newsletter Publications

Need to spread the word about an activity or event?

ARTICLES DUE MONDAY BY 5 PM

EMAIL // WEBSITE // 781-235-4424