 | 10am Service
Join us this week as we celebrate the seventh Sunday in Easter
Preaching this week: Paul Shupe
"God works in new ways to assure abundance; we can turn from old ways and embrace new ways with smaller carbon footprints"
Did you miss last week's sermon? Catch it on-line here: guest preacher Sarah Drummond: "Yearning to be Somewhere You're Not."
The TV Crew at Hancock also wishes you to know that DVD's of all morning services and handbell concerts are available: Just fill out the orange form just outside the television studio on the lower level. The cost is $10.00 which can be paid upon ordering or upon pickup at the church. All proceeds go to support the television ministry. You can also download the form and fill it out on our website HERE.
6:15pm Join us in the evening for great music at the Well.
| |
Programs for Children |
May 12th, the children will continue their exploration of Acts of Kindness & Gratitude.
May 19th is Confirmation Sunday, children are welcome to stay in worship, Children's
Chapel and activities also offered.
May 26th, Memorial Day Weekend, classroom activities offered for PreK through 5th Grade.
| |
|
Choristers is back in session!
New Kids Welcome!
Our children's choir, the Choristers has resumed rehearsals: Sundays at 11:15 in Room 212. The Choristers is a fun an fast paced place for kids in grades 2-5 to sing and learn about music. New singers are always welcome! The Choristers will rehearse each week (except Memorial Day weekend) and sing in church on Sunday, June 2nd. Mark Morgan directs. Any questions, contact mark at mark@hancockchurch.org
|
|
Green Sheet for May!
May 12 @ 7 - 8:30: Mothers Day Quiz Game
An HYG favorite...HYGers and Mothers are invited to come to the Upper Room for the
"Mothers Day Quiz Game". This is always a night filled with joy and laughter.
May 19 @ 7 - 8:30: Games on the Green
Wink, wiggle, and more...come play some HYG classic games on the green!
May 26: NO MEETING (Memorial Day)
|
|
Spring Congregational Meeting Next Sunday, May 19th
Please plan on staying in church after worship next Sunday morning for our spring congregational meeting. You should have received the warrant in the mail in the last couple of days. This should not be a long meeting, but it is important - we need to elect officers and committee members for the coming year, and cannot function without a quorum of at least 75 members present. Please come!
Read the official Warrant for Spring Meeting and description of propose changes to the by-laws HERE.
|
Wednesday May 8:
11:30 Memorial Garden Committee--Conference Room 1:15p Consort--Kathie Stuart 6p Teaching Parish Committee Event--off-site 7p Poetry Group--Pearson 7p Carillon Rehearsal--Bell Room Thursday May 9: 6p Boy Scouts--throughout Building 7:30p Chancel Choir Rehearsal--Choir Room Friday May 10: 9:30 Morning Glories--Bell Room 11 Friday Friends Book Group--Potter Library Saturday May 11: 8 AA Women's Step Study--Chapel 9 Indoor/Outdoor Prudential Workday 10 AA meeting--Dining Room 3p Brass Group--Choir Room 8p NELO Cabaret Show--Clark Hall Sunday May 12: Mother's Day 8:30 Chancel Choir Rehearsal--Sanctuary 8:30 Pastor's Class--Pearson 9 Bagels and Bible Discussion Group--Wilson 9 Junior Handbells--Kathie Stuart 9 Marting to Glory--Bell Room 10 Morning Worship--Sanctuary 10:20 JYO-- Upper Room 10:20 Church School--Children's Chapel and Classrooms 11 Fellowship Hour--Dining Room 11:15 Choristers Rehearsal--Room 212 6:15p Worship @ the Well 7p Hancock Youth Group--Upper Room 7:15p Carrying the Light with Alex--Pearson Monday May 13: 9:30 Projects with Purpose--Conference Room 1:30p Library Committee--Potter Library 1:30p Skyloom--Kathie Stuart 7p Boy Scout Troop Committee--Room 208 7:30p Prudential Meeting--Conference Room Tuesday May 14
10 Staff Meeting--Conference Room
11 Staff Worship Planning--Conference Room
1:15p Children's CE--Seminarian Office
7p Contemplative Practices with Becca--Chapel
7:30p Christian Service Committee--Wilson
7:30p Endowment Committee--Conference Room
|
Please click the link below to visit our calendar on-line.
|
|
Hancock Weekly and other Communications Deadlines
The deadline for submitting news for this e-mail newsletter each week is Tuesday at 3pm. Submissions should be sent to: office@hancockchurch.org
Kindly send text and images as separate attachments. Thank you!
Click Here for the Communication Deadlines resource sheet.
|
| |
Lexington Food Pantry --May is canned vegetables
If you donate food in May , please consider canned vegetables. Donation baskets are in the narthex, as well as outside the office and dining room. For more information, contact Caroline Nijenberg 781 862-4465 or carolinen@rcn.com If you wish to volunteer, to help distribute food at the pantry, please contact her to see if volunteers are needed.
The USPS drive is May 11th. Leave any canned donations by your mail box for your carrier to pick up and bring to the Food Panty. A lot of able bodied hands are also needed on deck that afternoon between 1-6pm to sort, pack and stack
People usually come in 2 hour shifts.
Always need 16-18oz peanut butter, 15 oz whole kernel corn, 16 oz baked beans,18 oz canisters of quick oats. Choose what you want.
|
|
Nominating Looking for New Committee Members
Over the next several weeks you may receive a call from the Nominating Committee asking you to consider joining one of our many committees at Hancock. But don't wait to hear from us! If there is a committee that you're interested in serving on, please let us know. Here is a list of the committees that we have at Hancock:
Deacons - focused on the spiritual life and practice in the church. Responsibilities include organizing communion and organizing greeters and ushers.
Music and the Arts - coordinates with the staff and Deacons to oversee musical and artistic programs to enhance our worship, fellowship and outreach to the community.
Parish Life - strengthens community at Hancock Church, by hosting coffee hour and other church events such as Palm Sunday Breakfast, Progressive Dinners and Summer Barbeques.
Membership and Welcoming - reaches out to newcomers to Hancock by hosting information sessions and newcomer dinners and produces new member brochures.
Christian Service - supports and identifies volunteer opportunities for a variety of charities, including Manger Sunday, casseroles for Rosie's Place, and Food Pantry donations.
Finance - creates the church budget working with the Treasurer, Assistant Treasurer and Business Manager and participates in generating the narrative budget.
Stewardship coordinates the annual financial support drive for the missions of Hancock Church, and also celebrates the time and talents that we are called to give to God.
Prudential - oversees the maintenance, safety and upkeep of all church properties, including organizing work projects, overseeing community rentals and organizing multiple work days.
Nominating Committee - matches member's interests with the needs of the church. We are the committee that fills the committees!
Assistant Collectors aids the Collector by accounting for the weekly offerings after the service.
Children's Christian Education - oversees children's education on Sunday mornings using a theme-based curriculum, and organizes activities to foster community for children and families.
Adult Christian Education - coordinates adult education opportunities, such as Bible Study, Pastor's Class, First Thursdays, Lenten series, Beyond the Well and Women's retreats.
Congregational Care - coordinates the volunteers who visit members in their times of need and works to make sure that those who need visits or other assistance get them. They also coordinate floral deliveries, arrange the Senior Picnic and update Hancock Community Prayer.
Endowment - oversees the investment and distribution of endowed funds which have been created for the church.
Greeters and Ushers - teams greet people coming to church on Sunday, pass out bulletins and collect the offering. Commitments are usually once a month.
If you'd like to be part of one of these teams please give us a call and we'll help find the best group for you. Contact Joan Rutila (rutila@rcn.com, 781-862-6627) or chat with any of the members of Nominating Committee (Linda Williams, Harriett Chmela, Chris Groves and Joan Rutila.)
|
|
|
|
|
Dana Home Foundation Grants Hancock $20,000 for Television Ministry
We are thrilled to announce that the Dana Home Foundation has made a grant of $20,000 to Hancock Church to help fund the television ministry portion of our Growing for Good capital campaign. The Foundation makes grants to non-profit organizations providing direct services to seniors living in Lexington, and we are pleased and honored to receive a grant. Special thanks to our grant-writing team of Joan Rutila, Sue Rockwell, Lori Tambone, Carol Bukys and Nichole Locher.
One condition of the grant is that other donors match the gift on a 1:1 basis. Anyone who is able and willing to make a gift specifically for our television ministry can double their impact with a pledge now.
|
|
Hancock's Hurricane Sandy Relief Effort recognized as Outstanding by the Fuller Center!
From the Fuller Center Website:
"Because of its age and proximity to Atlantic City's beach, it may be the property that needed the most work, and that's why veteran house leaders Charlie Thell and Tim DuBois of Minnesota are on the job.
They knew they would need a well-organized crew of volunteers to get the job done. They got it in the form of 11 members from Hancock United Church of Christ of Lexington, Mass.
"I can't imagine having a better crew," veteran house leader Tim DuBois, right, said of his volunteers in Atlantic City.
"I can't imagine having a better crew. I'm just absolutely pleased as punch. We needed a certain skill level to pick this job up and run with it, and these guys fit in. They had a skill level that we could direct them and they could do the job without micro-supervision. In addition to their skill level, their attitude and determination fits right in."
While many of the work crews at Legacy Build house projects are an assembly of volunteers from different parts of the country with varying skill sets, "Team Hancock" came pre-assembled. DuBois is a Legacy Build veteran, and he said that was key to getting off to a quick start on a property that needed so much work...
Keep reading the article here: Fuller Center
|
|
Hancock Environmental Action Team
This week, at Coffee Hour, HEAT will have a representative available to help you apply for Viridian Energy as your Electric Energy Supplier.
All you need to do is bring your electric bill and see Amy Swanson at the Viridian Energy Table at Coffee hour.
Viridian Energy offers electric energy. NStar will continue to deliver this energy and bill you for it. The Viridian Energy options is generally cheaper than the NStar options. You can buy electricity as a mix of 20% renewable energy or as 100% renewable energy.
You can fix the rate for six months or buy it on a variable rate program.
Hancock Church buys the 100% renewable energy option.
For signing up through Hancock Church, each month Viridian Energy will donate $2 to Hancock Church.
It is a win/win program for Hancock Church and the environment.
|
|
Indoor/Outdoor Work Day this Saturday, May 11th from 9am-1pm.
Join members from the Prudential Committee for a spring work day. Thanks to the many volunteers who helped out last Saturday, we made a dent in our longer than normal spring to do list. Much remains to be done as we prepare the building for the start of Capital Campaign construction work. No special skills required! Come for as long as you can. Many hands make light work. Refreshments provided. Contact Prudential Committee member Susan McClements with any questions, skmcclements@gmail.com 781-676-1979. Can't make it? We will have one more workday this season on Saturday, June 8th from 9am-1pm, so mark your calendars.
|
|
May 19th New Members Join the Church
The church will be celebrating new membership for several families on Sunday May 19th. If this is the right time for you to join the church, please contact the church office at 781-862-4220 by Friday May 10th . To learn more about membership or about participating in the joining service, contact Rev. Paul Shupe in the church office, or Membership Committee co-chair Julia Potter at membership@HancockChurch.org.
|
|
Sandwich Generation
We will be having our monthly Sandwich Generation meeting on Sunday, May 19th at 7:00 PM in the Pearson Room. Come for an informal dinner and conversation about the challenges and joys of caring for loved ones as they age. Find others in our congregation with wisdom to share, and a community of support. Newcomers are always welcome. A light dinner with be provided. While there is no fee to attend, there is a suggested contribution of $5. To RSVP, please send a quick note to Alex@hancockchurch.org. If you forget to RSVP, come anyway! For a bit more information, check out the Congregational Care board outside of the Administrator's office..
|
|
Alex Shea Will Joins us as Congregational Care Coordinator
"While I am sad that my year as seminarian has ended, I am thrilled to begin work (officially) as Congregational Care Coordinator beginning on May 6, 2013. I look forward to working with each and every one of you as we care for our congregation. Should you have any questions, concerns, or program ideas, please feel free to speak with me or send me an email. Please keep an eye out for the updates on the congregational care board, located outside of the Administrator's office. I will keep it updated with flyers and other important information" --Alex
|
|
Building Committee Update
Construction drawings are completed and contractors' bids are due by May 22. Bids will be reviewed by the end of the month. An attorney has been engaged to draft our Owner/Contractor agreement. Once a contractor has been selected, we hope construction will start by early July. We are on our way!
|
|
Contemplative Practice within our Christian Tradition with Becca Lockwood
Tuesday evenings at 7:00 p.m.
For those interested in attending Contemplative Practices, we are moving to a quieter location. We will meet in the Chapel for the last two meetings, May 7th and May 14th. Come and join us for Lectio Divina and Praying in Color!
Join others as we focus on contemplative practices within our Christian tradition. We will explore the meanings and experience of three specific practices: centering prayer/meditation, lectio divina, and finding our inner spiritual artist. This group will seek to discover which contemplative practice we as individuals gravitate towards. In doing this we can foster the beginnings of what may grow into a deep spiritual practice that will better inform us into being the Christians we hope to be. We will be drawing from various religious leaders and resources - readings will be available weekly. Come and explore contemplative practices and how they enrich our spirituality and our community. Should you have questions or want more information, please contact Seminarian Becca Lockwood.
|
|
Carrying the Light: Sharing the Good News with Alex Shea Will
Sunday evenings at 7:15 p.m.
Due to a conflict with the Sandwich Generation dinner, our group will be unable to meet for the fourth session on May 19th. Therefore, our final session will be this coming Sunday, May 12th at 7:00 PM in Pearson. Of course, if there are those who feel moved by the spirit to meet for the fourth session, please feel free to let me know and I will help coordinate a session run by those in attendance!
How often do we talk about our faith? How would you answer that question if asked not to consider time in Hancock or with Hancock friends? Have you ever invited someone to worship with us, or shared with them the Good News of our faith? Do you have an idea of what you would say if you had to? Might it scare you, just a bit, to consider all this?
Whether this scares or excites you, join others to explore what it means to name and share our faith as a progressive, Christian community during the season of Eastertide. We won't meet to draft Bible tracts or role play logic games to battle non-believers, nor will there be tests or correct answers. Rather, we'll spend time together, as a diverse group, exploring what sharing the good news means for each of us. Just maybe, we'll even try to reclaim that difficult "e" word: Evangelism.
Our time together will be guided by the book Unbinding the Gospel by Martha Grace Reese (2 copies will be available in the Hancock Church library). Should you have questions or want more information, please contact Seminarian Alex Shea Will.
|
|
Bagels & Bible
For the past six months, the members of the Bagels and Bibles class have been studying Jesus' parables and the Passion of the Lord using the Scriptures as the primary focus. In almost every session, questions about the origin of the Bible have come up, so this summer we have decided to study the history of the Bible. We will use Richard Elliott Friedman's book "Who Wrote the Bible?" as a guide.
We will spend a total of twelve weeks studying the cultures, literary forms, and authors that influenced the Old and New Testaments. We'll also learn how the ancient scrolls became the book we know today. Stop in for a single lesson or join up for the entire series.
We will extend our classroom discussions on the new blog, BagelsAndBibles.wordpress.com. New topics will be posted on Mondays while we continue to meet for conversation on Sunday mornings at 9am. If you cannot join us in person, please feel free to leave a comment on the blog. We'd love to have you participate in any way!
If you have any questions about Bagels and Bibles, please contact Kerra Fletcher at bagelsandbibles@outlook.com.
|
|
Hancock Poetry Group meets second Wednesdays of each month--Join us!
The Hancock Poetry group meets on the second Wednesday of each month, in the Pearson room. We gather to share the poetry of others, or our own, whatever has inspired us lately. Long time poetry lovers, and those just discovering the joys of poetry are all welcome! |
|
Pastor's Class
The Pastor's Class has concluded another very successful year of bible-related study and discussion. We are looking forward to next September, when Paul Shupe will once again lead us in our exploration of the theological issues of the day, and how they may impact the Hancock community. Our sincere thanks go to Jim Martin who has faithfully provided us with our morning coffee each week. And thanks to all of our lay leaders who pinch hit for Paul this Spring. See you all next Fall!
|
|
Trip to Panama Cancelled
It is with great sadness that we announce our summer trip to Panama has been cancelled. While a handful of members of our community agreed to go, there wasn't enough interest to send at least 8 of us. Nonetheless, our partnership with SHI (Sustainable Harvest International) continues and we look forward to planning a trip that feels more timely for our community.
While nothing is officially planned, we are considering a winter trip to either Panama or Honduras. If this sounds like a ministry opportunity you would like to be a part of, please keep this trip in mind as you plan your coming year.
Alex Will and Charlotte Dougherty
|
Interfaith Garden--Want to Help?
The garden has been cleaned up from the winter, compost has been added and the first of the cool weather crops have been planted. Parsley, lettuce, beets, radishes, spinach and peas were planted to join the crops that wintered over (asparagus, strawberries and garlic). Hancock regularly joins members of 12 other churches and temples working at the garden. The produce will go to the Lexington Food Pantry. All are welcome...bring a friend, neighbor or your kids. There are plenty of times that extra help is needed...not just when Hancock is scheduled. If you are interested in working at the garden, contact Amy Swanson amy.swanson@rcn.com.
Sat 5/25/13 8:30 to 10am
If you or anyone you know are interested in more information or want to sign up to work any of those days, contact Amy Swanson amy.swanson@rcn.com . More information available at http://interfaithgarden.org/
Read the first Garden Report from Opening day on March 30th Here
Read the Garden Report from April 6th Here.
|
|
|
|
|
