• Now until February 15, Sign up for the Poetry Slam
• Now until February 28, Boy Scout Troop 1530 Online Mulch Sale
• January 18, Prayer Shawl Ministry
• January 19, Start collecting soup cans for the Souper Bowl canned soup drive
• January 25, MLK Day Parade
• January 26, Juvenile Detention Center
• February 1, Bread of Life
• February 2, Fellowship Feast
• February 2, Rise Against Hunger at Vale
• February 9, Souper Bowl soup cans due
• February 2, Fellowship Feast
• February 23, Poetry Slam
• March 8, Boy Scout Troop 1530 Mulch Delivery Weekend

Weekly Events

• Sunday
• Children's Sunday School Classes. The children will meet in the sanctuary until just after Children's Time. They will then leave for Sunday School with their teachers. We are asking for volunteers to relieve the Sunday School teachers so they may periodically attend the full worship service.
• Youth Sunday School Class at 10:30
• Seeker Adult Sunday School Class meets at 9:00 am.
• Pray for Pender
• The Impact Youth Group at 5:00 pm
• Monday
• Fun with Music
• Mary Martha Circle, online
• Tuesday
• Handbell rehearsals
• Pastor Bruce Bible Study.
• Wednesday
• Ruth Circle
• AA Meetings at 6pm
• Thursday
• Pastor Bruce Bible Study
• Lectio Divina Prayer Group
• Choir Rehearsal at 6:30

Check here for other meetings.

All Pender Meetings run by the school year. Recurring meetings (weekly or monthly) taking place after June 30, 2024 will need to be scheduled again for the 2024-2025 school year.

Now that we have 5 additional congregations meeting at Pender, it is more important than ever to get your room reserved and on the church calendar.

It is also important to remove it if you are no longer meeting so that other groups can use the space.

Pender Members and Pender-sponsored groups such as Boy Scouts should go here, click add event. Please list your first-choice of room number. 

You will get an email when your event is approved. Note that you cannot add an event to a room that is already reserved for another meeting.

Ministry opportunity - would you like to serve your church and the Lord?

Please consider signing up to serve communion. We celebrate this sacrament on the first Sunday of each month and on other special Sundays throughout the year. 

Please contact Donna Parker at musicalmother@gmail.com if you would like to be a part of this wonderful ministry.

We need you! Our wonderful and dedicated children's Sunday School teachers deserve the opportunity to attend the worship service with their families. 

There are sign up sheets in the Narthex with two slots available each Sunday between now and the end of the year. 

You do not have to plan any lessons or even teach. 

We are just in need of extra hands and eyes in each of the two classrooms. 

Please prayerfully consider volunteering for just one Sunday and give our teachers a blessing. 

You will be equally blessed!! 

Vale UMC invites members of the community to help us package 80,000 meals for the global anti-hunger organization Rise Against Hunger.

The meal packaging event will be held at Vale UMC (11528 Vale Road, Oakton) on Sunday, February 2nd and will be organized into three sessions: 11:30-1:30pm, 2:00-4:00pm, & 4:30-6:30pm.

To volunteer for a shift, PLEASE SIGN UP HERE

The whole family can participate! Kids ages 8 and up can help; child care for children under 8 can be provided if you give us advance notice (please make a note in the comments section). And for teens, this is a great opportunity to earn community service hours for school.

NOTE: The meals were purchased from the proceeds of Vale’s annual Christmas tree sale—so if you purchased a tree from Vale, thank you!

We are starting a new partnership with Dulles South Soup Kitchen.

Our first event will be collecting cans of soup which will be due on or before Sunday, February 9 - Super Bowl Sunday!

The Rest Stop could use some snacks, M& M’s and flavored waters.

It needs frozen items to munch on but since they are frozen it's hard to have them donated.

Please drop items off in the office so they can be given to our hard-working officers.

Thank you!

Poetry Slam Application

and Guidelines

~~

Please email completed form to webmaster@penderumc.org

POETRY SLAM GUIDELINES

Please review and make sure to adhere to the following guidelines before submitting your poem:



1. Submit only one poem.
2. Your poem must be an original piece of work. Plagiarism is a very serious offense.
3. The theme is TRANSFORMATION.
4. Poetry can be written in any style on the subject of TRANSFORMATION.
5. Please use proper language. Poems containing language that is vulgar, offensive, or wholly inappropriate will not be accepted.
6. All poems must be written in English.
7. The writer must be a student, at least 13 years old in the 7th grade.
8. By submitting your poem to this poetry slam, you accept that your poem will appear online and may appear in a print anthology. Regardless of how your poem will appear, you will be credited as the author.
9. We reserve the right to not publish a poem for any reason.
10. Entries will be judged on the following criteria:
11. Originality and creativity.
12. Quality of the poem - is the idea of TRANSFORMATION communicated clearly?
13. Is the poem well organized?
14. Poets can recite poems from memory or read from paper.
15. Poets cannot use props, costumes, or musical instruments.
16. The delivery of the poem is just as important as the content.
17. Performers will be treated with respect.
18. A poet who is physically unable to read their poem onstage due to a permanent or temporary impairment may have a substitute reader perform the poem as long as: (a) the primary author is in the space and positioned where they are clearly visible to the audience and (b) the reader delivers the poem without significant affectation that draws attention away from the author.
19. We recognize that being on stage may be terrifying. A poet who experiences extreme anxiety about being on stage or who otherwise requires physical support to be on stage may have a teammate or coach accompany, provided that the accompanying support person remains physically neutral on stage and does not engage in anyway that could be considered to make them a performer.
20. Entries can be submitted electronically with this poetry slam application completed to Pender United Methodist Church OR mailed to Pender United Methodist Church, 12401 Alder Woods Drive, Fairfax, Virginia 22033, or dropped off at the church office.
21. All entries must be received in Pender United Methodist Church office no later than Saturday, February 15, 2025.

PRIZES

• Three swag bags will be awarded to the first, second, and third place winner.
• Each swag bag will have a variety of items to include a $100, $75, and $50 Amazon gift card respectively included.

Pender's Impact Youth will be participating in this year's Martin Luther King Day Parade.

Contact Jane McKee or Arlet Williams for more information.

The 20th Annual MLK Holiday DC Peace Walk & Parade is days away on January 18, 2025! To ensure a smooth and enjoyable experience, we invite you to join our final Zoom Q&A Session to review key details and answer any questions you may have.

During this session, we will discuss:

• Arrival, Drop-Off, and Line-Up times and locations
• Parade Start and End details
• The Day-Of Agenda
• Tips for ensuring your group has a memorable experience

After the Zoom call, we'll stay and talk.

~~~~~

Participants to arrive at Gateway Pavilion (2730 Martin Luther King Jr Ave SE Washington DC 20032) by 10AM for check-in

Two heated tents will be available with chairs for waiting until line up.

PARADE START

• Participants should arrive BY 10AM for check in
• Line up at 10:30am on Sycamore
• Parade participants will follow behind Peace Walk procession
• Parade start at Sycamore & Cypress to ESA Loading Dock
• Participants will enter ESA to arena floor and perform at reviewing stand

PARADE END

• Participant buses will be parked on 13th Street for pick up.
• Parent and car pick up can happen anywhere streets are not closed.

DROP OFF LOCATIONS

Participant Bus Only Drop Off at:

• MLK Ave & Cypress
• MLK Ave & Pecan
• After drop off, buses will turn onto Pecan St (from MLK) and park on 13th Street, facing Cypress

Parent/Car Drop Off at:

• 8th & Sycamore
• Parents/Others planning to drop off and attend the parade at ESA, must register at https://qr.fm/jzdUgS

DAY OF AGENDA

• 9:30am - Peace Rally @ Shepherd Park
• 10:30am - Peace Walk Step Off at MLK & Malcolm X (see green line on map)
• 10:30am - Parade Line Up on Sycamore at Cypress (see red line on map)
• 10:30am - Wellness Fair Opens inside ESA
• 11am - Parade performances inside ESA (2 minutes each)
• 2pm - MLKHDC Activities End

Hi Sunday School Families & Friends, 

There are some wonderful family/children's activities happening ithis year. Please come and enjoy! All are welcome -- and invite a friend!

As of November 30, 2024:

MTD actual revenue was $44,419; YTD actual revenue was $502,099;

MTD actual expenses was $46,370; YTD actual expenses was $548,407;

MTD net loss was ($14,066); MTD net loss was ($1,951);

YTD net loss was ($46,308).

Bridge of Hope Fund:

2023 $37,159

2024 (as of 11/30/24) $$131,626

------------------

Total as of 11/30/24 $168,785

Western Fairfax Christian Ministries ("WFCM") Current Request for Donations

WFCM has been providing food and services to the community for 37 years! Pender was one of the twelve founding churches that set the path and began the journey.  Becky Bryan is our current liaison with WFCM.  Please contact her with any questions.

In May more than 700 families were provided groceries from the Food Pantries, a 15% increase over May of 2023. Serving more families means we have a greater opportunity to make an impact with our donations. 

There are multiple ways you can support this community ministry.  The ways we hear of most often are donations of goods or money. Another way to participate is through volunteering of time to work in the Food Pantry.  If you are interested in volunteering, contact the WFCM office or Becky Bryan.

Financial donations to be used to stock the Food Pantry can be made to Pender to be forwarded to WFCM.  In a recent newsletter, WFCM explained that, because of the savings that flow out of bulk purchases, a donation of $100 is used to purchase the equivalent of $600 of food. 

For donations of food and toiletry items, you may leave your gifts in the grocery cart located by Pender’s front doors.  OR, you can order from Amazon for direct delivery to WFCM at 4511 Daly Drive, Suite J, Chantilly, VA 20151.

~~~

Western Fairfax Christian Ministries - “WFCM”

Update from Becky Bryan, our liaison with WFCM:

From the January WFCM Newsletter we learn that 850 families were served Thanksgiving food as a result of the food donations.  One of the important donations was from the Scouts who collected 44,145 pounds of groceries and toiletries for WFCM. 

These toiletries and canned goods help stock our shelves and provide more options for families WFCM was grateful that the Scouts collection provided enough toilet paper and bar soap donations to resume providing those items to each family in addition to the usual one toiletry per person in the household each month. 

Thanks to each of you at Pender who support these amazing programs with your donations of funds, non-perishable food and toiletries.  

There are 2 ways to support the WFCM food provisions through Pender:

1.     Financial donations designated WFCM may be made to Pender to be forwarded to WFCM.

2.     Donations of food and toiletries may be left in the blue grocery cart located by Pender’s front doors.

Another way I’ve found to be quite easy is to make purchased through Amazon and have them delivered directly to WFCM at 4511 Daly Drive, Chantilly 20151.

The most needed items in the Free Food Market this month:

Most needed items in the Free Food Market this month:

·    Flour (Maseca preferred)

·    Sugar (1 or 2 lb. bags)

·    Vegetable Oil 

·    Pasta Sauce

·    Pasta

·    Brown Rice 

·    Pancake Mix 

·    Family Sized Snacks (crackers, pretzels, nuts, seeds, dried fruits, etc.) 

·    Canned Chicken 

·    Hot Beverages (ground coffee, tea bags, etc.)

·    Toiletries: bar soap, body wash, toothpaste, toothbrushes, hair shampoo, hair conditioner, feminine hygiene products, toilet paper, and baby wipes (NOTE: we are not currently in need of diapers size 0-5 due to our partnership with Greater DC Diaper Bank. Please only donate larger size pull ups size 4T/5T for toddlers, size 6 diapers, or baby wipes if you want to donate items for babies.) 

Financial donations designated WFCM can be made to Pender to be forwarded to WFCM. 

Donations of food and toiletries may be left in the blue grocery cart located by Pender’s front doors.

Pender is an open and welcoming church. We accept and embrace all persons, period. All people are blessed children of God. Pender is a caring and praying church community; we believe as Christians that we are called to follow and practice the ways of Jesus Christ, who is our ever present and living God.

Our mission is to practice and embrace, providing unconditional love and acceptance of all of God's children as He loves and accepts all of us.

We do not discriminate based on age, mental, physical, or intellectual ability, culture, gender, race, religious belief or unbelief, or sexual orientation.