Seven EFC-ER churches (Mount Pleasant Friends Church, Salem First Friends, Pursuit Friends, Portsmouth First Friends, Winona Friends Church, Worcester Iglesia Evangelica Amigos, and Orange Friends Church) gathered for worship through Facebook Live on Easter Sunday. Pastor Matt Close, lead pastor of Mount Pleasant Friends Church organized the event. Click here to watch the video.

We recently received this prayer request from Abe and Diane Bible who are serving in Ukraine: "Pray that God would use this pandemic as a mighty force to draw people to Him. We do not have the medical resources here that the West does. Many people will die through this, whether it is ever identified correctly as COVID-19 or not. May God use the fear of death to draw people to our Living Hope."

ABG Retirement Plan Services is excited to announce that it is now EPIC Retirement Plan Services . As they move forward, you will see the name and brand change on the website, communications, and other materials.

Credentialing: Pastors and Ministry Leaders, the deadline to submit applications for Ministry Certificates, Ministry Licenses, and Pastor's Licenses is this Friday, April 17. Information about applications is available  here.

Recorded pastors who complete and submit all 10  Equipping Units by April 17 will receive a $10 gift card. The deadline to submit Equipping Units is July 31.

The COVID-19 Congregational Relief Fund provides grants to help church communities that may not have the means to recover from the unprecedented COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.

The fund will accept grant requests of up to $5,000 each. Recipient churches may use the grants to meet their congregational financial needs (such as rent, mortgage, utilities, staff salaries, etc.) or to assist families and individuals in their midst. Priority will be given to racially and ethnically diverse churches serving in historically under-resourced communities, i.e. communities and households that are underbanked, underinsured, and/or uninsured. 

Find out more here (English) and here (Spanish), or visit the Everence website . The application is available here (English and Spanish).

Our sympathy and prayers for Abe and Diane Bible with the passing of Diane's mother, Janet Oswalt, on April 3. A private graveside service was held on April 8, at the Damascus Cemetery with Pastor Rick Brendlinger of Damascus Friends Church. The obituary is available here .

Visit the events calendar on our website at www.efcer.org/events .

* April 21 - Church Health Team Meeting (WebEx)

* April 27-28 - Leadership Development Team Meetings (WebEx)

* April 30 - Multiplication Team Meetings (WebEx)

* May 1 - Finance and Administration Team Meeting (WebEx)

* May 13-14 - Oversight Board Meetings

* May 25 - Evangelical Friends Headquarters CLOSED

* July 17-20 - Yearly Meeting 2020 at First Friends Church in Canton, OH.