This Sunday, October 22, we will have our monthly Noisy Offering Collection for the Backpack Program benefitting Coltrane Webb Elementary School.

 Bring your change (dollars accepted too!)

Our discussion group has a revised meeting date!

We cordially invite you to join us at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 23, in The Commons as we begin discussing “How Far to the Promised Land: One Black Family’s Story of Hope and Survival in the American South,” by Esau McCaulley. We’ll take up the introduction and the first three chapters (about 40 pages) that evening.

We’ll meet every other Monday, sometimes adjusting for conflicts. (Meeting date changes will be announced in The Banner.) The selections we read and discuss are intended to broaden and deepen our understanding of the origins and history of anti-Black racism in America, and its effects in the present on both Black and white people.

McCaulley’s book examines the American church’s complicity in racism and suggests ways to foster a more equitable and inclusive environment among God’s people. That is part of our mandate as a Matthew 25 congregation. McCaulley is a professor of New Testament at Wheaton College, theologian in residence at a historically Black congregation in Chicago and a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times.

You are encouraged to order the book from a Black-owned bookseller such as Shelves, a mail-order service in Charlotte (orders@shelvesbookstore.com), or Mahogany Books (mahoganybooks.com)in Washington, D.C. It is also available on Amazon.com.

This group is informal, and you can join any time. For more information email sverner@yahoo.com.

The Deacon's Mission team at First Presbyterian Church has adopted W. M. Irvin Elementary School.

For the next three weeks (October 12-31) we will be collecting for their clothes closet.

They need boys & girls jeans, jackets, sweatshirts, sweatpants, shirts (short/long), and undergarments. (Basically everything...). They serve K-5th so the sizes range from 5/6 (children's size) to adult mediums.

A collection bin will be placed in the foyer of the fellowship house. Please check to see what you might be able donate. Thank you for your generosity!



If you have any questions contact Carol Lacy: grammytwins@yahoo.com

Every other month, we support our local partner, Esther's Heart, by volunteering on a Saturday in their "Love Feast on the Streets."

We still need eight volunteers to help set up tables, distribute warm food and clean clothes, and answer questions, this Saturday, October 21, from 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM at St. James Lutheran Church. This is a great and easy way to get to know and serve our neighbors in downtown Concord as the seasons turn to colder weather. If you are able to take part, please sign up below:

 https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0b4fa8ae2ea1fa7-love#/

We are collecting adult coats to be given out to the homeless that day. There is a bin in the foyer of the Fellowship House for your donations. Thank you!

On Tuesday, October 31, FPC will host a stop for Trick or Treaters as they make their way up and down Union Street.

We are now collecting donations of bags of individually-wrapped, store-bought candy to hand out that evening. We’d love a wide variety of options (nut-free, dairy-free, etc.) so that we have something for everyone.

Thanks in advance for your generosity! Contact Pastor Ellen with questions.

    Christmas Joy Offering Dinner

    Wednesday, December 6, 2023

            5:30 PM FPC Mocktails

           6:00 PM Dinner

    Entertainment featuring Jazz by

  Eric Landsperger and Chris Jones

    PLUS a Secret Special Guest!

LUNCH BUNCH

COME ONE! COME ALL!

Wednesday, October 25, 2023

Davis Hall 11:45 AM

Enjoy a delicious meal prepared by Margaret Campbell and learn about the history of some of the houses on Union Street from Heath Ritchie of our church family. It is a wonderful time for Christian fellowship.

Did you know there are two houses that were built by J. W. Cannon, the founder of Cannon MIlls, on Union Street North? He built the first house in the Italianate style in the 1870's, then around 1900 he built the beautiful Queen Anne style home that is across the street from our Fellowship House. It was used as Cabarrus Academy for a number of years and is now a private residence again.

Heath will tell you about the Ritchie House on Union Street South. It is a lovely home with lots of porches, just perfect for relaxing, or for children to enjoy their toys while playing with their siblings. The grounds are beautiful anytime, but especially in the spring. The house was recently used as an event center.

Heath will share with you many other "tales" of Union Street houses. Some will surprise you. He might tell you about his famous cheese straws and where he got the recipe. He can probably answer most of your questions about Union Street too. Come enjoy some history and fellowship! Make your reservation by Monday, October 23. Call the reservations line: 704-788-2100 #7

Fall is in full swing at First Kids. 

Last week we enjoyed a beautiful autumn day at Almond Farm. From a corn maze, hay ride and pumpkin picking, to multiple play areas and learning stations, the day was filled with hours of outdoor fun.

With over 160 in attendance we were thrilled that so many of our family members could join us. 

Learning and Playing Together,

Ms.Maureen 

The Grounds Beautification day is set for the morning of November 4, 2023 starting at 8:00 AM.

It's a great opportunity for volunteers to meet new and greet old friends WHILE helping to keep our campus beautiful.

Some tools will be provided AND please bring some from home. You may want to bring some gardening gloves to protect your hands. Wear comfy clothes, shoes that can get dirty, and a smile.

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Presbyterian Women

Fall Spiritual Event

"Come to the Table"

Advent Communion and Lunch

12:00 PM

in Davis Hall

Cost: $12 per person

We continue to serve huge numbers of households through the CCM Food Program. September was not quite the record month of August, but it was close, and overall we’re still serving 44% more households than a year ago. Food Drive season is upon us, and we encourage all of our partners to take part in helping to restore our supplies of non-perishable food.

A reminder if you are delivering food to the Crisis Center —The City of Concord has closed Country Club Drive for at least nine months to replace the culvert down below us. We WILL remain open throughout the road closure. However, everyone needs to come to us from the Concord Lake Road/Branchview Drive direction. It is OK for local traffic to drive past the barricades.

Currently, the pantry items we are in biggest need of are:

·    Canned Chicken

·    Other Canned Meats (Hash, Chili, Vienna Sausages, etc.)

·    Canned corn, peas, carrots, potatoes and mixed vegetables

·    Pasta Sauce

·    Any kind of canned beans (baked, Chili, Kidney, etc.) except for pintos

·    Peanut Butter

·    Macaroni & Cheese

·    Pasta (other than spaghetti)

·    Rice

·    Any Canned Fruit (Mixed, Pears, Pineapple, etc.)

·    Soup

·    Shelf-stable Milk

·    Cereal

·    Diapers

As always, we especially seek low sodium items, no-added-sugar items, and whole grain items. 

Currently we have plenty of:

·    Tuna

·    Green Beans

·    Canned Tomatoes

·    Pinto Beans

·    Spaghetti

·    Canned Peaches

Thank you for the continued support from our church and community partners. Our Crisis Center at 246 Country Club Drive NE in Concord serves as the warehouse for most of the food. We will gladly accept all donations at that site from 9:30 am to 1 pm Monday through Friday. Bethel Baptist Helping Hands Food Pantry, located at 1209 1/4 Opal Street in Kannapolis, will gladly accept donations from 9 am to 1 pm on Monday and Thursday. The food pantry located at Westford UMC on Highway 49 and the Kannapolis Food Pantry at West Point Baptist Church can accept donations on Saturday morning from 8:30 am to 11:30 am. The Feeding Our Souls Food Pantry at Bethel Church in Midland, and North Kannapolis Baptist Church Food Pantry will accept donations by calling the church in advance.

Todd Hobbie Sunday School Class: From Jesus and the Gospels to Paul and his Epistles

Last week we continued discussing Jesus' view of life beyond death within his Jewish and Palestinian context. I was not able to record the class, although the first half of our discussion about Jesus and life beyond death is available below. This week, we will turn to the apostle Paul, and the way a Christian hope in heaven as a human destination begins for the first time takes form in biblical literature. We will ask how Paul's experiences, education, and pastoral intent come together in his letters and in the Acts of the Apostles.

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/your-union-rev/episodes/Turned-Upside-Down-Life-Beyond-Death-in-Jesus-and-the-Gospels-e2ac3l4

We are continuing to finalize the sale proceeds, but are so excited to report that our expectations were exceeded! Funds raised through the Market for Mission are approaching $16,000. Our church family really knows how to pull together to make an event such as this so successful! 

Our mission was to raise funds for Bayonnais, Haiti and these funds will be vital there. But the Market also benefited us and our community. Those of us who gathered weekly to collect and organize donations love our “jobs,” and greatly enjoyed the many hours of fellowship. Hopefully, everyone who donated items felt a sense of accomplishment and benefit as you cleared your homes of things once loved but no longer needed. We had more items to sell than any of our previous sales thanks to you. As much as we would have loved for every single item to have sold during our 6 hour window, that wasn't really possible. Be assured, the remaining items still provided great benefit. Our Deacons took a box of outerwear for the next Love Feast on the Streets and Habitat for Humanity graciously loaded their truck with the remaining furniture pieces and goods for the Restore. The remaining items were divided amongst CVAN, Goodwill, Salvation Army, Value Village and Lydia’s Loft depending on what each organization accepted and what would sell best for them. 

 As we bring this Market, our 4th to a close, we are grateful to have had the opportunity to make this happen for the school children in Bayonnais.