NEWFIELDS COMMUNITY CHURCH

United Church of Christ United Methodist Church Unitarian Universalist Association

December 2016

       

UPCOMING SERVICES BLUE CHRISTMAS – WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 21 AT 7PM THIS IS A SERVICE THAT ACKNOWLEDGES THE DARKNESS SOME PEOPLE FEEL DURING THIS HOLIDAY TIME. CHRISTMAS EVE – SATURDAY DECEMBER 24 AT 5PM JOIN US FOR THIS SPECIAL SERVICE WHERE WE WILL HEAR THE STORY OF JESUS’ HUMBLE BEGINNINGS THROUGH HYMNS AND SCRIPTURE. CHRISTMAS DAY – SUNDAY DECEMBER 25. THERE WILL BE NO SERVICE THIS SUNDAY. NEW YEAR’S DAY – SUNDAY JANUARY 1, 2017. OUR REGULAR 9:30AM SERVICE WILL RESUME AS WE ENTER INTO THE BRAND NEW YEAR. Advent is a time to prepare for the birth of Christ. Let us open our hearts to the newness that Jesus’ birth brought to the world. Now is a time to call out for healing, to seek out the Love that God so freely gives, and to turn towards God’s grace. Let us be ready to receive God’s healing Light when Christ is born. Peace and Grace, Pastor Holly

NEW TIME!

 

The Women’s Fellowship has been meeting for the last several months – we’ve cleaned out a bunch of donated craft supplies, made get well cards, talked, prayed, planned, snacked, and generally enjoyed the opportunity to get together once a month. We meet on the 3rd Saturday of every month, from 1-4 pm. Please bring a snack to share, and join us. For the December’s meeting we will be devoted to a Family Fun Day, in advance of the Christmas Holiday. See the article below about this fun-filled event. The January meeting will be held on January 21st.

Ready Rides is now serving Newfields! Ready Rides volunteer drivers offer rides to adult residents who are 55 years and older or who have a disability that prevents driving for medical appointments. They can be reached at (603)244-8719, or online at https://readyrides.org. If you would like like to volunteer to drive for Ready Rides, please call or email info@readyrides.org.

Newfields Community Church held our annual holiday fair on November 19th. We made almost $700! This year, we sold tables to people who were interested in selling their own products, which brought a great deal of variety to the fair. NCC stocked and staffed both the baked goods table and the kitchen, which served a variety of soups, sandwiches, and Squamscot sodas. Tables included beautiful artwork, jewelry, gifts, wreaths, bows, journals, spice rubs, a men’s group table, herbs, chutneys, jellies, Longaberger baskets, fudge, embroidered linens, owl pillows, and more! See a member of the Women’s Fellowship if you have some ideas to help coordinate this important fundraiser.

Women’s Fellowship

December 17 – Family Fun Day

The December 17th meeting of the Women’s Fellowship will be devoted to a Family Fun Day. Join us for food, fellowship, and a Christmas craft – one for adults, and one for the kids too! We’ll serve a lunch of hot dogs and beans and you are welcome to bring a complementary dish, drink, or dessert to share! Note that instead of our usual meeting time, we will meet starting at 11 am. If you have questions, please see a member of the Women’s Fellowship.

Newfields Food Pantry The Newfields Food Pantry (located at Newfields Community Church) will be open the second and fourth Saturday of every month from 10am to 2pm, except in December, 2016. Because of the upcoming holidays, the Pantry will be open on December 10, 10am-2pm. Please consider donating to this valuable community resource. There are donation boxes located at the Newfields Post Office and Newfields Country Store. If you know of a neighbor in need or are having difficulty leaving a donation in one of the three places listed, please feel free to contact one of the food pantry coordinators: Jim Ryan at 778-8232, Alicia Sherwin at 772-3350, or Nancy Taylor at 778-8151.

Our church is now the community coordinator for the Newfields Police Department's Helpful Hands program, a joint project between the Newfields police department, the Newfields PTO, and Newfields Community Church. We will begin collecting items for Christmas baskets.

If you are a volunteer with the Helpful Hands program, expect to receive an email regarding items needed for the baskets. If you would like to be a volunteer with this important community program, please contact Newfields Community Church (newfieldscommchurch@gmail.com) with your name, email address, and/or phone number so that you can be a part of the Helping Hands team.

Sunday School Update

This fall and winter semester of Sunday School has shown our students stories of God’s faithfulness, through stories, songs, prayer, and crafts. Early on, we studied images of God’s care for us, promising us a safe place, where we are gathered close, and share in God’s promise of peace. The next unit covered the light of God, showing us that God lights the way, that God is the light of the world, and that we must let our light shine. And, most recently, while studying stories of God’s people, including Job, Ezekiel, and Isaiah, we have learned that we can ask God to help us when we are sad, and that we can ask God to help our friends who are sad, too. “You are the light of the world. A city build on a hill cannot be hid.” (Matthew 5:14)

Bible Study in January: Open to all! Members of the Women’s Fellowship have been discussing the possibility of holding a Bible study once a month, and at the October meeting decided to “start at the very beginning” with the book of Genesis, in January 2017.

The first Genesis study includes six sections and will take us to the beginning of summer. Please let Mary Terwiske know by 12/27/2016 if you’re planning to participate in the Bible study, so enough workbooks can be ordered. Contact her either via email (met901907@aol.com or by phone 603.479.5141) The suggested donation for each workbook is $7 to cover the cost of the workbook, the shipping costs, with a little extra to help defray the cost for those who are unable to donate at this time.

Questions? Contact a member of the Women’s Fellowship.

Important Dates at a Glance:

Sunday, December 4, 4-7: Newfields Town Holiday Fair Saturday, December 10: 10-2: Food Pantry open Saturday, December 17: Family Fun Day: 11am Wednesday, December 21, 7pm: Blue Christmas Service Saturday, December 24, 5pm: Christmas Eve Service No Sunday service on Christmas Day – enjoy time with your people. Sunday January 1, 9:30am, our regular Sunday service will resume.

Thank You!

To all the leaders in the church who work tirelessly to ensure all facets of life in the church are tended to.

To Melissa Tobey for coordinating the Helpful Hands volunteers. To Mary Terwiske for coordinating the Holiday Fair. To all the cookie dough makers (Sandy Cross, Nancy Taylor, Jon

Harrington, Alicia Sherwin, Cathy Nelson-Smith, Mary Terwiske) and the cookie cutters and bakers (Eva Rosa, Jon Harrington, Mary Terwiske and Jim Tomilson), the suppliers of decorating items (Janice Rosa, Barbara Janeway, Alicia Sherwin and Mary Terwiske), all of whom made our cookie decorating table at the Newfields Holiday Celebration a huge success. A big thank you to Alicia and Bailey Sherwin for their help at our very busy table that evening.

To Jim Ryan and Alicia Sherwin for making it possible for the Newfields Food Pantry to be open the a couple of times a month

To Nancy Taylor, Jon Harrington, Eva Rosa, Melissa Tobey, Violet Tobey, Alicia Sherwin and several folks from the Newfields community for helping with putting together and delivering the Thanksgiving Food Baskets.

To Jeremy Moynihan, Barbara Janeway and Don Wilder for putting up the Christmas decorations around the church, both inside and outside.

To Nancy Taylor for making the lovely Advent Wreath.

Unitarian Universalist Association

United Church of Christ

United Methodist Church

A CHURCH WHERE ALL ARE WELCOME  

SUNDAY WORSHIP: 9:30 A.M.

SUNDAY SCHOOL is available for children.

MINISTER: Pastor Holly Tomilson

CHURCH PHONE: (603) 778-8626

CHURCH EMAIL: newfieldscommchurch@gmail.com

CHURCH WEBSITE: https://newfieldscommunitychurch.wordpress.com

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/NewfieldsComunityChurch

 

 

 

 

 

 

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