First Christian Church in Las Cruces collected 703 pairs of socks for Mesilla Valley Community of Hope/Abode, Inc., the most since sock drive organizer Sandy Weber started 10 years ago.
Who will win the 2022 Silver Ladle in Sun City? United Church of Sun City and Church of the Palms UCC have challenged each other once again to raise the most soup for Souper Bowl of Caring. The real winner will be Valley View Community Food Bank. Rev. Brady Abel from United Church of Sun City preached about "Stone Soup” yesterday during worship as a reminder for folks to bring soup cans, packages, and bowls for the Souper Bowl of Caring. They will be collecting soup until February 6th with a goal of 6,000 items to "Tackle Hunger!"
At Desert Garden UCC, the mission team purchased, protected and delivered hundreds of children's books, in English and Spanish, many purchased through a bi-lingual local bookstore in the area... All in support of a little library program starting at Westside Head Start.
Church of the Palms is proud to partner with I-HELP, a homelessness ministry of Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest. Palms member Max Klinkenborg spoke in a video about his experience. Watch it here: https://thepalms.org/what-is-i-help/
A 4-session seminar will meet via Zoom at Church of the Red Rocks starting January 20th. As part of their interim process, UCC 101 will explore the history and uniqueness of the United Church of Christ, which Pastor Len describes as “our non- denominational denomination.” Len promises folks will be quite surprised by what they discover about this most unique branch of the Christian family tree.
Sacred Grounds, the Jazz Coffeehouse held on Thursday evenings at Scottsdale Congregational UCC, will require proof of COVID-19 full vaccination, or a negative COVID-19 test result within the 72 hours prior to each concert. You must provide one or the other at the door.
First Christian Church in Last Cruces’ Pastor Bethany and wife Kelsee have tested positive for COVID. Thankfully, they are both fully vaccinated and have had their boosters, so their symptoms are like a bad cold. The church is returning to virtual for the time being. Feel better soon!
The National Council of Churches has produced a fact sheet: A Christian Approach to Vaccine Hesitancy to aid church and faith leaders in having courageous conversations about being vaccinated. The fact sheet also provides a scriptural basis for a compassionate response to vaccine hesitancy and provides responses to Biblical misinformation around vaccination. The fact sheet can be found HERE.
The Mission-Service-Justice Team at The Good Shepherd in Sahuarita is arranging a fun service project with Sahuarita Parks & Rec. Folks will take a monthly walkabout at Anamax Park near The Good Shepherd and pick up any trash and debris they see around the park paths. Parks are a precious resource! Join friends for fresh air and (we hope!) sunshine, and help beautify our shared environment.
On Tuesday, January 11, 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. via Zoom, join people of faith as we unite to protect our cherished right to vote in Arizona. Join “All Voting is Local” along with co-hosts Arizona Faith Network, AZ Jews for Justice, CorAZón, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Arizona, the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Phoenix, and the Southwest Conference of the United Church of Christ for a presentation and conversation on the current state of voting rights in Arizona.
Learn what happened in Arizona throughout the 2021 Legislative Session and what to expect in the new year. Although we are hopeful that Congress may still act on important federal legislation like the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, we are preparing for a serious fight here in Arizona in 2022. In the coming months we know that Democracy Will Be on the Ballot in 2022.
Thanks to the generosity of the Casas Adobes community, they have once again demonstrated that together, they can make a huge difference in the wider community. As of the end of 2021, a total of $80,597.04 was raised for Reunion House, the only shelter in Southern Arizona for youth, ages 12 through 17, thus doubling the original donation of $40,000. Click here to read details of the interior and see an outside picture. Since over half of the youth that Reunion House serves identify as LGBTQ, the gifts support both the church’s commitment to children and youth, as well as their belief that God’s love is inclusive of all regardless of gender identity and sexual orientation. In addition to the multiplied gifts, the original $40,000 donation was sent to Our Family Services for Reunion House on Giving Tuesday, so it was matched dollar-for-dollar with an additional $40,000 gift! The original gift multiplied three times over! Generosity begets generosity!
Church Of the Palm's Criminal Justice Ministry had an active year. They started a Pen Pal Program where church women were matched with women in Perryville Prison. They collected Starter Kits with basic necessities for women being released from Perryville, had Zoom presentations on Mass Incarceration, stories from previously incarcerated people, and the problems generated by Private Prisons on the human community and government budgets. They ended the year with an amazing, interactive Re-Entry Simulation where attendees expressed how surprised they were by the process a newly-released person must go through very quickly in order to stay out of prison. The personal stories of Arouet Foundation clients brought a human face to statistics and facts.