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A bi-weekly newsletter to keep you up-to-date and informed.
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2013 - Michigan Conference Annual Meeting
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 SAVE THE DATES!October 4th & 5th, 2013
7707 Outer Drive
Detroit MI 48235
NEW!
Keynote Speakers:
Make your hotel reservations TODAY! Special rates under room block: "Michigan Conference United Church of Christ" Single/$85 (plus tax) Double/$90 (plus tax) $10 Valet parking - overnight Other highlights: Continuing Education, Worship, Workshops, Youth Programs and workshops, Special Meals, Cookies, Bookstore, Displays, Hearings, resolutions, and much more! Leave feeling inspired, energized and equipped with tools to strengthen relationships and renew the spirit of your church and communities!
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| Annual Meeting Keynote - Michael Piazza: Three (3) books available prior to Annual Meeting |
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Three (3) titles from Keynote Speaker, Michael Piazza, from the Center for Progressive Renewal will be available for purchase prior to our Annual Meeting in October.
Titles include:
- Liberating Hope
- Prophetic Renewal
- Gay By God
These will be offered at a discounted rate and the price will include shipping. More information will be made available soon!
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Workshops Available at Annual Meeting
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Workshops are available both Friday, October 4th from 4:15 - 5:15 p.m. and Saturday, October 5th from 2:00 - 2:45 p.m.
Provided below is a list of available workshops at this year's Annual Meeting. Click on "Workshops" below to view and/or print the list. Sign up for these workshops will take place in the registration area; once you have checked in with Lisa & Bob you can make your way to the Workshop Sign-up station.
Workshops |
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It's that time again - time for the Michigan Conference plea for COOKIES!
Each church represented at the Michigan Conference United Church of Christ Annual Meeting is invited to provide 4 dozen cookies for snacking; Cookies will be placed all around Fellowship Chapel for folks to snack on throughout the course of our Annual Meeting.
You are welcome to use your imagination - if you have a new recipe that you are wanting to try - go right ahead, we don't mind being guinea pigs! We welcome cookies, brownies, cookie bars, dessert bars; the more the merrier!
We do ask that if your cookies contain nuts or fruit of any kind, please be sure to label your container accordingly. Thank you!
If you are interested in being part of the cookie project, please contact Lisa Soulliere (lisa@michucc.org). Please bring all cookies to the registration desk and check in when you arrive. We thank you for your help!! |
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Called To Serve?
Find opportunities online
In February 2013, a searchable online listing of all UCC Ministry Opportunities replaced the previous United Church Employment Opportunities weekly bulletin. UCEO was a listing updated weekly. UCC Ministry Opportunities is a live, dynamic database built for exploring God's call.
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UCC seeks entries for young adult video contest
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Contact:
Emily Schappacher
UCC Communications Specialist
Phone: 216-736-2177
schappachere@ucc.org
CLEVELAND - How does your faith transform, connect or touch the world? The United Church of Christ is challenging young adults to answer this question visually for the chance to be a prophetic voice for the denomination. The "My Faith, My World, My Voice" video contest challenges young adults to be visionaries for the future by creating a video representation of what faith means to them and how it impacts their world.
"This video contest is one way we're looking to lift up the voices of our young adults and to let them share - in their own words - how they define, interact with, and share their Christian faith in today's world," said Ann Poston, director of communications for the UCC.
The contest is open to individuals ages 18-35 and the deadline for submissions is Oct. 31, 2013. All entries must be original content and cannot be longer than 60 seconds. Videos can contain stills/photos, graphics, music, text, animation and/or video, and must be family-friendly and appropriate for viewing on ucc.org.
The contest seeks creative, high-quality videos that send a dynamic message. Videos must answer the question, "How does your faith transform, connect or touch the world?" in an honest, inspiring way. Submissions should be high-quality and skillfully edited, clearly recorded, and easy to hear. For more details and contest requirements, and to view a sample video, visit the video contest website.
The "My Faith, My World, My Voice" contest committee will select the videos of up to five finalists to be posted on YouTube, and the UCC community will have seven days to vote for their favorite video from Dec. 1 to Dec. 7, 2013. The creator of the video that earns the most votes will win $5,000 and national recognition on ucc.org.
"We believe it's important to lift up the voices and talents of our young adults," Poston said. "We're hopeful that this innovative video contest inspires a large amount of participation throughout the church."
Please share this information with your congregations and young adult groups. Social media images and PDFs for marketing materials are available upon request.
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Fiftieth Anniversary of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King's,
"I Have a Dream" Speech
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August 28, 2013 ~ 3:00 p.m.
All churches are invited to commemorate the event and to "Let Freedom Ring" by ringing steeple bells for five minutes. Encourage other churches in your city/town to designate a bell ringer and join you in this significant event.
For more information: http://www.thekingcenter.org/50th-anniversary
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New Public Defender Laws in Michigan
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At its Annual Meeting in 2011, the Michigan Conference passed a resolution calling for an improved public defender system in Michigan. Governor Rick Snyder recently signed two pieces of bipartisan legislation designed to help ensure that all people in Michigan receive competent legal representation in defense cases.
In 2011, the governor created the Governor's Advisory Commission on Indigent Defense to develop recommendations to improve the public defender system in our state. Those recommendations were incorporated into the recently passed legislation.
Among other things, the new laws create the Indigent Defense Commission within the judicial branch, to oversee a uniform and effective system of public defense in all 83 counties. To learn more about these new laws, please visit the Campaign for Justice website http://www.michigancampaignforjustice.org/ .
-Prophetic Integrity Mission Area Team
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Sunday, August 18: Come and hear Zambia mission
co-workers, the Rev. Kari Nicewander and Joel DeJong
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 ALL are invited to attend!!
We invite everyone to come and hear the Rev. Kari Nicewander and Joel DeJong, mission co-workers in Zambia, on Sunday, August 18, at the Presbyterian Church in Okemos.
Kari will preach at our 10:00 a.m. worship and give a presentation about her work at 4:00 p.m.
Please share the informational flyer to all who might be interested in attending.
Questions: Contact Rev. Alice Fleming Townley
Associate for Parish Life The Presbyterian Church of Okemos Office: (517)349-9536 |
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CENTRAL SEMINARY
Ann Arbor, MI
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Central Seminary in Ann Arbor, MI offers courses for men and women who see themselves as leaders in Christian ministry or wish to advance a personal understanding of their faith. The seminary offers a core curriculum taught in an ecumenical spirit, with attention to quality and substance, leading toward biblical, theological, historical, and ethical knowledge. Central Seminary offers a number of degrees and programs including, M.Div., M.A. in Theological Studies and courses for Lifelong Learners.
For additional information please contact:
Rev. Dr. Julie J. Kilmer Site Director and Associate Professor of Theology & Ethics
Phone: (517)803-9685 |
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Our Whole Lives Training (O.W.L.)
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Our Whole Lives (O.W.L) teacher training for early and late elementary school age curricula is available through the Church of the Good Shepherd, UCC in Ann Arbor.
O.W.L. is an age-appropriate comprehensive sexuality education program that was developed by the National United Church of Christ in partnership with the Unitarian Universalist Association. O.W.L. is intentionally designed to teach young people about healthy, age-appropriate expression of sexuality by providing them with accurate information on human development, sexual health and behavior, relationships, and person skills.
Information on class dates, times, and sign-up is available in the printable flyer below.
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Prayers for Churches and Pastors in Detroit
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Detroit is in the news more than ever due to the recent bankruptcy filing by the city's emergency manager. There are many UCC churches in Detroit that continue to need our prayers and solidarity. Public services may be diminished further, retirees are concerned about the integrity of their city pensions, and people are disenfranchised by the appointment of an emergency manager and the state's involvement in Detroit public schools. Here is a listing of our Detroit churches and those who serve them. Please add all these names to your prayer lists, and remember the line from a communion prayer in our UCC Book of Worship: "We pray for the time when sharing by all will mean scarcity for none." We're all in this together.
Campbell Lovett
Bushnell Congregational Church
The Rev. Roy Issac, Senior Pastor
Fellowship Chapel UCC
The Rev. Wendell Anthony, Senior Pastor
The Rev. Maynard Golden, Associate Pastor
The Rev. Mayowa Reynolds, Associate Pastor
Mayflower Congregational UCC
The Rev. J. Michael Curenton, Senior Pastor
Plymouth UCC
The Rev. Nicholas Hood III, Senior Pastor
The Rev. Georgia Hill, Associate Pastor
Shrine of the Black Madonna Pan-African Orthodox Church
The Rev. William "Mbiyu" Moore, Senior Pastor
Bishop Demosthene Nelson
The Rev. Gary Bennett, Associate Pastor
The Rev. Randy Brown, Associate Pastor
The Rev. Anthony Carter, Associate Pastor
St. John's UCC
The Rev. James Womack, Senior Pastor
Trinity-St. Mark's UCC
The Rev. Dr. Steven Archer, Senior Pastor
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GLAUCE & GLAPCE: "We Are The Church Together"
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Combined efforts by the Great Lakes Association of United Church Educators (GLAUCE) along with the Great Lakes Association of Presbyterian Church Educators (GLAPCE) for the Fall Conference:
"We are the Church Together"
October 15-17, 2013
Pokagon State Park, Angola IN
An annual event is planned each year for the Great Lakes region, which includes: Wisconsin, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, and Michigan. This is our first year to partner with GLAPCE, the Great Lakes Association of Presbyterian Church Educators.
 | | Carol Wehrheim |
Together we welcome keynote speaker Carol Wehrheim. Carol is editor, writer and Christian education consultant living in Princeton, NJ. She is the author for Pilgrim Press and Westminster John Knox, of more than 30 books for children and adults about education, families, spirituality, stewardship, sacraments and human rights.
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We need YOU to help us "Tell Our Story"
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As the saying goes, "A picture tells a thousand words..."
Help us to tell our story in photographs and words!
We are looking for photographs and brief captions/descriptions that help us tell the story of the Michigan Conference United Church of Christ - to each other and those beyond our state.
Please read through examples of fun facts, that you may or may not know; things that are happening in our local churches, with the UCC Women of Michigan, and Camp Talahi - to name a few. Tell Us About Your Local Church & Ministries
The Ambassadors for the Compassionate Generosity Mission Area Team of the Michigan Conference are working with the summer interns to put together a brochure and power point to "tell our story." Please send your photographs and descriptions electronically to Lisa at the Conference office (lisa@michucc.org) - Deadline extended
We want to know all about YOU, YOUR CONGREGATION and YOUR MINISTRY for JESUS CHRIST.
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Please hold in your hearts and in your prayers, the family of Barbara Lamb (UCC Women of Michigan, President 1997-2000), aged 81 yr, who passed away Monday, August 5th after being in hospice care. A funeral was held Thursday, August 8th at Second Congregational UCC, Grand Rapids. Please consider memorial contributions to the Second Congregational UCC, Grand Rapids or to the Michigan Conference United Church of Christ, East Lansing. Cards and condolences may be sent to Mr. Ron Lamb, Pilgrim Manor #230, 2000 Leonard, N.E., Grand Rapids, MI 49505-5894 and/or to Mrs. Denise McDonald, 1076 Kenalex Ct., Sparta, MI 49345. OBITUARY
Please hold in your hearts and in your continued prayers, the Rev. Sherry Schacht and her family (Eastern Association; pastor of First Congregational UCC, Romeo). Lift her up with prayers for strength and courage; determination and faith; and for LOVE and comfort. |
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Employment Opportunities:
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Shelby Congregational UCC, Shelby
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Office Machines for Sale:
 Risograph high-speed printer/duplicator: $500.00 (O.B.O.) Model: RISO RN2130 UI In excellent condition.
Color Laser Jet Printer: $150.00 (O.B.O.) Model: HP Laserjet 2605dn In working condition. Slight reduction in color print quality.
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SING Groups
(We will notify you when these groups reconvene)
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5945 Park Lake Road | P.O. Box 1006 | East Lansing, MI 48826-1006
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