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Weekly E-news
August 1, 2011
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Dear youth and parents, Sarah and I just returned last night from San Francisco where we attended our first Strong Bonds event (the name for the Army's excellent marriage enrichment retreat program). Over four days the instructors led us and 60 other couples through presentations and activities designed to help us develop good communication skills, a better understanding of our partners, and other techniques designed to help couples "divorce-proof" their marriages. We both enjoyed the program, along with the free time that's built in to allow participants to explore the area together. We're glad to be back with our daughter, though not excited about leaving daily highs of 65 degrees! I will be leaving again on Thursday morning to attend an annual training event in Salt Lake City for chaplains and chaplain assistants serving units that are part of the 807th Medical Command. I'll look forward to seeing you on Sunday morning after I return.
Read on for LOTS of major events and news, including two youth outings this week, registration for the upcoming Back-to-School Retreat, and more!
Grace and Peace, Russ
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Outing to Burger's Lake for Chi Rho & new 6th graders tomorrow
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Our middle school youth (including upcoming 6th graders) will be escaping the heat tomorrow (Tuesday) afternoon on the sandy beaches and water slides of Burger's Lake! The group will meet at the church at 1 p.m. to carpool over to the lake, and will return around 5:30 p.m. In addition to swimming, we'll be making ice cream sundaes and playing some fun group games together. Bring $10 for admission and everything you need to swim and we'll look forward to seeing you there!
PARENTS: If you're available to drive to or from the lake (or would like to join us for the afternoon), e-mail Russ at [email protected].
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Register now for this year's UCC Youth Back-to-School Retreat!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ All youth entering grades 6-12 are invited to the annual Back-to-School Retreat, scheduled for August 12-14. Over the weekend our youth and adult sponsors and teachers will travel to Briarwood Retreat Center near Flower Mound for group building, prayer, fellowship, worship, small groups, and fun.
The group will meet at UCC at 7 p.m. on Friday night and return to the church in time for Sunday school. Cost is $95 per participant and scholarships are available upon request. This is a great way to get to know other youth and adult leaders as we begin a new year, so be sure not to miss it! Click here to download a registration packet that includes additional details, forms, a schedule, and a packing list for the weekend.
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Called UCC Assembly and congregational meetings this week
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The UCC Assembly (comprised of elders, deacons, stewards, ministry chairs, and others in leadership) will meet this Wednesday, August 3 at 6:30 p.m. in Fellowship Hall to hear a report from the Senior Minister Search Committee. This is an open meeting of the Assembly, and anyone from the congregation is welcome to attend. Childcare will be provided and no reservations are necessary.
There will also be a congregational meeting this Sunday, August 7 in the sanctuary immediately after the 11:00 service to hear from the Senior Minister Search Committee. Childcare will be extended to last through the congregational meeting. |
Think reminders are helpful? Sign up for UCC Youth text alerts!
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Our youth ministry is excited to offer text alerts as a way to stay connected! Typical text alerts will include reminders for meetings and events, as well as time-sensitive announcements if an event is moved or canceled due to weather. After you sign up for alerts, you will automatically be added to the appropriate group (Chi Rho or CYF) as well as any events for which you register (camps, mission trips, retreats). That way you only receive texts that are relevant to YOU! Messages will go to parents AND youth to ensure everyone is on the same page, and we're committed to sending no more than two alerts per week to avoid straining your service plan.
Sound good? Here's how to sign up: 1. Send the following text message to 1-423-299-3299:
Join #UCCFTW YourFirstName YourLastName
(Example: join #UCCFTW Russ Boyd) 2. You will receive a confirmation text. Reply YES to the confirmation. 3. You're done! We'll add you to the relevant groups and events. |
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Youth events on the horizon..~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ August 2 - Chi Rho outing to Burgers Lake w/ incoming 6th graders - meet at 1 p.m. August 3 - UCC Assembly meets to hear from Senior Minister Search Cmte - 6:30 p.m. August 5 - CYF trip to Granbury for movie at Brazos Drive-In - meet at 7:30 p.m. August 7 - Congregational meeting to hear from Senior Minister Search Cmte - 12 p.m. August 7 - Mission Trip Shareholders Luncheon - following cong. meeting August 12-14 - Back-to-School Retreat for incoming 6th-12th graders meet at 7 p.m. August 21 - Promotion Sunday and Youth Ministry Orientation
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More ways to keep up...
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Staff Links~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Russ Boyd, Associate Minister for Youth - E-mail Russ Herbert Murray, Assistant Minister for Chi Rho (grades 6-8) - E-mail Herb Jessica Vacketta, Assistant Minister for CYF (grades 9-12) - E-mail Jessica Sharyn Peterson, Ministry Assistant for Congregational Life - E-mail Sharyn Aly Gideon - Summer Youth Ministry Intern - E-mail Aly Judith Guy - Summer Youth Ministry Intern - E-mail Judith
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