Mark Your Calendar!

Feb. 1 Parent Ministry Monday

Feb. 5-7 Women’s Retreat

Feb. 7 Food Drive

Feb. 6 Tent City 4 moves to Mary Queen of Peace

Feb. 10 Ash Wednesday Service

Feb. 14 Special Offering for El Dios Viviente

Feb. 21 Abuse Awareness Training

www.faithunited.org

Www.facebook.com/FaithChurchWA

February 2016

You Are Welcome Here

Drop off your preschool student, and then head upstairs to the Faith Church Talbert building for coffee, tea, and snacks. Connect with other moms, dads, and caregivers through casual conversation and planned discussion.

Come with your whole family and enjoy a meal and time of worship together before joining age and stage appropriate classes.

Dear friends,

Did you know there are ecumenical conversations going on about fixing the date of Easter? And by “fixing,” I don’t mean it’s broken – instead, these are conversations about choosing a particular date on the calendar and sticking with it year after year. Right now, according to the rules of the calendar, Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon on or after the

spring equinox. Originally, this was to make it coincide with the first Sunday after Passover, but since our calendar relies on the sun and the Jewish calendar relies on the moon, these don’t always match up. This system of dating means that Easter can fall anywhere between March 22 and April 25, depending on the year.

This is an “early Easter” year, with Easter on March 27. This means several things: 1) the sunrise service will likely be a bit chilly; 2) you have less time than you thought to stuff Easter eggs (or, if you’re like me, to take down your Christmas decorations); 3) you might want to think twice about giving up chocolate for Lent if you plan to get chocolate for Valentine’s Day; and 4) Ash Wednesday is COMING SOON (February 10!!).

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, and happens 40 days (plus Sundays) before Easter. On Ash Wednesday, we remember our mortality, but not in a scary way: instead, we’re reminded that we are but creatures, and God is the creator. We are invited into a season of reflection, as creatures, on our lives: our holiness and our sinfulness. And we’re invited to begin a season of discipleship that might carry on throughout the whole year. You’ll have two opportunities to observe Ash Wednesday through Faith Church: I’ll provide “Ashes to Go” with Pastor Debbie from Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church from 6:00 to 7:30 a.m. at the Highlands Park-and-Ride (down where you get on the bus). Come by for a quick prayer before your day begins. Or join us at the church at 5:30 for a simple supper, and at 6:30 for an all-ages Ash Wednesday worship service in the sanctuary.

Lent is just that: a season to focus on our discipleship, on being children of God and living God’s love into the world. That might mean giving something up, to show our dependence on God (rather than sweets or caffeine) and make space for God to move in our lives; or it might mean taking something on (like a new spiritual practice) as a way for God to work through us.

This Lent in worship, we’ll spend six weeks thinking about what it means that Jesus tells us 21 times in the Gospels not to be afraid, to take courage, or to take heart. What does this mean for us in a world full of fear? What would it be like for us to live unafraid of the possible calamities and real-life obstacles we face? Who would we be if we didn’t have so much fear hiding in our hearts?

Perhaps the thing God is calling us to “give up” this Lent is unhealthy fear.

With you on the journey,

Pastor Elizabeth

Message from Pastor Elizabeth

Your presence is requested at:

Please take 15 minutes and go to: https://faithonline.ccbchurch.com. If you haven’t signed in before you will be sent information on how to login. Once you receive the login password, please update all the information about you and your family. Faith Church will NOT sell or use this information for solicitation purposes.

This information gives us your birthdays so we can send you a card. It provides us with your gifts and talents so we can connect you with other Faith Church members to help you on your Christian journey. You can also tell us specifically how you want to be contacted and what groups you would like information delivered to your email address.

This information gives YOU easy access to Faith Church members and friend’s phone numbers and addresses for quick contact information right on your smart phone. This will make it so easy for you to set up those play-dates for your young ones, homework study groups for your older ones or just to call a friend to go for a cup of coffee!

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact IT-Team Lead, Clay Stika at, clayton@faithunited.org or Pam Zajac in the church office at: pam@faithunited.org. We will be happy to assist you over the phone or in person!

Thank you to the eleven Faith Church volunteers who successfully completed Abuse Awareness Training on January 24! This type of training is an important part of Faith Church’s efforts to ensuring that children and youth can thrive and grow their faith in as safe an environment as possible.

There is another training scheduled for Sunday, February 21, 2016, at 11:45 am, directly following the second worship service. The video section of the training takes about 45 minutes, and the quiz (taken as a group) takes about 15 minutes.

Children and youth are not the only vulnerable groups! The Pacific Northwest Conference UMC has a subcommittee that has been working on developing guidelines for churches to use in ensuring that vulnerable adults (elders and those with physical/developmental challenges) can worship and be part of congregations that are as savvy about abuse of vulnerable adults as they are about abuse of children and youth. Stay tuned for more about next steps in this area.

Questions? Contact Patti Hong, Safe Church Policy Coordinator

IT Team

Trustees Team Safe Church Update

WHAT IS SPR? SPR or the STAFF-PARISH RELATIONS TEAM is a committee whose purpose is to provide support to the pastor and staff to effectively manage the ministry of the congregation for witness and service. While SPR has been called the “Human Resource Department” for the church, the role is much more than hiring and firing staff. Our focus is on building strong relationships between the staff and congregation and between the congregation and the district superintendent. SPR is also responsible for suggesting to Coordinating Team when a change in staff structure is needed, for example, increasing hours to an existing position, adding staff, or changing, re-defining, or eliminating a position. Each member of the SPR committee is a liaison to one of the staff of the church so that they can work together to create the environment in which the staff person can be successful (with appropriate resources and support, for example) and encourage the staff. SPR provides ongoing and continued support of the staff, recognizing their contribution to our Ministry; encouraging and supporting plans for continuous improvement. While Pastor Elizabeth has taken on the role of meeting with staff members individually around supervision and job evaluations; SPR works to develop job descriptions and recommends salaries that meet the needs of our church and the staff members. Any person in the congregation who would like to provide feedback on how the church staff (including the pastor) is doing, or how they could improve their performance, is welcome to talk with any member of SPR. SPR meets monthly in confidential meetings to discuss concerns of the staff and the church. Current members of SPR (through June 2016) are:

• Bill Bennett, leader • Pastor Elizabeth, leader • Sara Andres • Ginny Bearson • Laurie Engelbeck • Nancy Hughes • Shamus McBride • Sandy Nielsen • Joan Young

Staff Parish Relations Team

The Lenten season is upon us this month and the music ministry already is planning and preparing for it. A men’s ensemble anthem is planned for Feb 14 – please let us know if you would like to participate.

We will soon be starting choir rehearsals for Easter. Again, please come to rehearsals on Tuesday evenings if you would like to sing in celebration on Easter Day. I was recently asked how old one needs to be to join the Sanctuary choir. It is open to 6th graders on up.

Specific needs currently in music ministry include guitar players for FaithWalk (praise band) and sopranos for the Sanctuary choir. Also there will be a reorganization of a youth band (6th-12th grade) this month and a new elementary age music program starting in the fall. Please let us know if you have an interest in leading the elementary age program.

Contact Pam Sloane (thesloanes@comcast.net) or Emily Cowgill (emily@faithunited.org) any time to discuss where and how you can serve in music ministry. There is something for everyone in Faith’s Music Ministry!

Music Team

As you can well imagine our most immediate need is move-in day which is Saturday, Feb. 6th!

If you would like to help out with the move-in there are a couple of options for you. 1) We need some people to go to the present site of TC4 (at Highpoint right off of I-90) to

help load trucks. You should arrive by 8:00 a.m. 2) We need people to help unload trucks and help build the camp at MQP you should arrive

any time after 10:00 a.m. the work will continue throughout the day so feel free to arrive when you are able.

3) We also need help with lunch – both preparing, serving and clean-up. We will gather in our parish social hall at 10:30 am to begin preparation.

4) Here are some items related to the move that the residents would love to have donated prior to move day: extra-large thick garbage bags (33 gal), duct tape, zip ties, permanent markers.

5) If you have a cordless drill driver/bits. ratchets & sockets, or hammer – please bring them along on move day. Also – you might want to bring your work gloves along. Lunch will be served to all volunteers and TC residents. Please park in the front parking lot – and walk around to the back of the church building. There will be a volunteer check-in table and you will be directed where to go from there. Are you able to prepare and serve a meal for our Tent City Residents? Think about making it a family service evening or gather your friends to make a difference. See the calendar online to select a day http://www.brownbearsw.com/cal/tcmeals. (The calendar will be changing sites at some point and when I know I will let you know) Once you select a day please email Cheri – at tc4meals@gmail.com with your request and she will help you get scheduled. Supply Needs: While the Tent City 4 residents never ask for things, they do have needs — and your donations can help. Below you will find a list of current needs:

ü Paper plates, plastic utensils, bowls, paper towels, napkins, gallon-sized Ziploc bags/quart sized sandwich bags

ü Juice, Bottled Water, Soy Milk, Coffee (both ground and instant), Tea, Powder Creamer, Sugar ü Instant Rice, Dry Cereal and Instant Oatmeal, butter, peanut butter and an assortment of

canned goods including Cup of Noodles, Tuna, Chili, Soups and Top Ramen, general canned soups, Ravioli, vegetables, crackers, etc.

ü Tube socks that can be filled with raw rice. These are heated in the microwave as a source of warmth for residents during the Fall and Winter months

ü Warm Bedding, including blankets and comforters are needed (twin through king size) ü Batteries from size AAA to D for flashlights ü Antibiotic Cream, Athletes Foot Relief, Sanitizer, Lotion, Shampoo, Q-tips, Toothpaste, Chap stick,

Multivitamins, Cough Syrup (no alcohol ingredients), Cough Drops, Antacid, Fixodent, Deodorant, and Feminine Products.

Updated supply needs and upcoming ways to be involved will be forwarded as they arrive.

Please contact: Kathi Rowley@stewardship.org for more information on how to get involved.

Missions Team – Tent City 4 @ Mary Queen of Peace

Issaquah Hot Meal Program sign-up moves to FaithOnline! Effective February 1, 2016, interested individuals and groups may learn about and sign-up to participate in the Issaquah Hot Meal Program on FaithOnline. Faith Church has participated in this “no questions asked” program since its inception in 1989. Several program changes have recently occurred and more are coming mid-year 2016. Here are the most important changes:

• Sign-up has moved to FaithOnline. As an alternative, please call Jan/Bill Bennett – 425-557-5423.

• Faith Church is now providing dinner only once a month…the 3rd Monday. • Effective June 1, 2016, all meal preparation including washing, cutting, and

cooking must be done at the meal location in Issaquah, OR in a facility which could pass as a commercial kitchen. The kitchen in the FUMC sanctuary building qualifies. Some items are excluded from this requirement such as breads, cakes, and cookies.

• Prepared foods purchased at a restaurant or grocery store and transported to the meal location are acceptable.

• Prior to June 1, 2016, meal providers are encouraged, but not required, to provide simplified meals in order to ease the transition to the June 1 preparation/location requirements. An example might be salad, soup, sandwich, beverage, dessert.

Volunteers are needed now for February through December, 2016. Please consider involving your family, small group, or neighbors in this Faith Church local outreach mission.

Missions Team – Issaquah Hot Meals Program

In the Beginning Preschool & Faith’s Mother’s Day Out

We co-hosted last month, with MOMS CLUB of Sammamish a community preschool fair. We had 23 vendors participate and over 100 families stop by to investigate what each preschool or child care center had to offer their family. It was a huge success and a great way for our neighbors to get to know Faith Church. We are on the calendar for January 2017 already and can’t wait!

We are in the middle of our 2016-2017 registration process and going strong & steady. We are humbled to have the kind of loyalty and dedication to our ministry as we do in our current families, our alumni families and to our delight, Faith families. By the time we started our first public registration tour on January 14, we registered 74 families. Our biggest number to date! Thank you all so very much! Public registration tours are in full swing. Each day, we fill our class rosters a little bit more. We are expecting a slow and steady fill of our roster due in part to so many wonderful preschools in our community. We have openings in our Bunnies (20 mos. old), Monkeys (2 ½ yr. olds), Bears (3 yr. olds), Tigers (3 ½ yrs.) and Pre-K (4-5 ½ yrs.) classes. Our website has the most up to date enrollment information: here for your convenience. If you are interested or know anyone who is looking for a preschool, please share our website with them and sign up for a tour today!

Even though we have tours almost daily, our routine is as normal as ever. We are going on field trips, celebrating Valentine’s Day with parties, teaching about our founding fathers to this great nation and so much more! This month holds so many wonderful possibilities for our students and we are so thankful to be able to engage, nurture, love and teach these young children here at Faith.

In the next couple of months I will have the opportunity to meet over 50 potential families who are looking for a Christian preschool for their child, through tours, emails, the telephone and it always gives me great pleasure to be able to share with them all the fantastic programing and connecting opportunities Faith Church has to offer them. Faith is a place of community: it is a place of worship, where the Word of God is alive and is felt long after Sunday Services are over with…

Happy Valentine’s Day Faith Church!

Blessings and Love, Kathryn, PAT and the ITBP Staff

January is always a great time to look forward to a new year, set goals and hope for blessings in the future but it is also a great time to look back and be thankful for everything that has happened in 2015!

There are some exciting things that happened in 2015 that you should know about, they have had an impact on children and families.

This past summer we welcomed over 125 children and their families onto campus for an amazing week of Vacation Bible School, more than half of thes families do not atttend our church and we were able to share the love of Jesus with these amazing kids. During this week we also collected a record donation amount toward our VBS mission vocus, Imagine No Malaria. Over $1,200.00 was collected and the congregation matched those fund on our Sunday wrap up. When children understand that they can make an impact in the lives of another child they respond in amazing ways. Children sold lemonade, cracked open their piggy banks and collected from friends and neighbors.

In August each year members of Faith Church head to the Lazy F in Ellensburg Washington for some fellowship and time away. This year we took 20 youth students with us for some great team bonding and just crazy fun. It was great to have these students together and it was a needed activity for our youth that found themselves without a youth pastor over the summer. It was a huge success and something that will continue in the future at the Lazy F..

The launch of our new Sunday School curriculum was a hit. Not only did we had out new bibles to every child we kicked off an 8 weeks study on how to use your bible for our 4th and 5th graders. The response for children and parents was heart felt. The bible is one of the best gifts you can give someone, it never wears out or gets old. The result, more chldren are bringing their bibles to church with them! As part of the new curriculm there is a family piece that helps parents reenforce the message their children are learning in Sunday school at home. Parents are the number one influence in their child’s faith journey and we feel blessed tobe walking along families on their families faith journey.

Fall Festival provided our church a great opportunity to host the community for the afternoon. Children enjoyed pony rides, faith based carnival games, treats and bouncy houses. Anytime we can invite our neighbors and friends into our church community is a win.

Children’s Education: Sunday School is offered at our 10:30 am service for children in preschool through 5th grade. Nursery care is provide at both our 9:00 am and 10:30 service and there is a quite room for families located adjacent to our Sanctuary where parents can enjoy the worship service while caring for their infant.

We are using Deep Blue kids curriculum this fall. This is a new exciting curriculum that includes adventures, exciting stories, science experiments, art, animated video storytelling and active games. Learning how to read and use the bible is a center point of our teaching and all our welcome in Sunday school.

Each week families will be given a weekly family devotion designed to reenforce the message your children learn in their Sunday school class. Parents can also downloard the Deep Blue media ap that reinforces the lesson children learned through games and videos. We are in partnership in laying a spiritual foundation for your children.

Children & Family Ministries

Music Ministry: Our children’s choir practices throughout the year between our 9:00 and 10:30 service and sing during our worship service throughout the year.

Spring Choir practice starts February 1st at 10:00 am in the Choir room located in the Sanctuary building.

Mid-Week Encounter: Bringing people together with Food, Faith and Fun. Wednesday night families gather for a meal in the Sanctuary building at 5:30, at 6:30 we break out into classes for childen, youth and adults. Dinner is provided for you at Mid-Week Encounter, monetary donations are welcomed to off-set the cost of the meal.

Acolytes: Acolytes help prepare us for worship by lighting the alter candles. We love to have children serve and you can sign up your student on Faith Onlie.

Communion Servers: Our 4th and 5th grade students help serve communion on the first Sunday of each month.

The communiton table is open for everyone and that includes children. On communion Sunday, the first Sunday of each month children will go directly to Sunday school instead of starting in the Sanctuary. Your children will be delivered to you in the Sanctuary prior to communion being served so that you can participate in communion together as a family.

VBS-July 25-29th, 2016

All Church Retreat-3rd weekend in August at the Lazy F camp located in Ellensburg WA.

We are looking for some volunteers in Children’s ministry.

If you have a love for children and a desire to share your time once or twice a month we are looking for a couple more teachers to help cover some classes.

Lisa Peters, Director Children & Family Ministries, lisa@faithunited.org

2/1 Karen Ishimaru 2/18 Dennis Meinhardt 2/2 Dan Fay 2/19 Cheryl Dietzel 2/3 Chris Dederer Tyler Fitzpatrick Jason Murray 2/20 Marjorie McClurg 2/5 Kendall Johnston Lee McCollough Hannah Halstead Kara Edwards Suzanne Howard 2/21 Nicholas Fay 2/7 Cathy Anderson Lizzie Webb 2/8 Susan Gewin LaVonne McGladrey Janice Murray 2/22 Kira De La Cruz Leslie Mincey 2/23 Jackie Dulken 2/9 Kathleen Mills 2/24 Walter Stanley Cecilia Childress Sue Kaetzel 2/12 Jeff Coffey 2/25 Marcus De La Cruz 2/13 Mark Bennett Zach Gray 2/14 Ella Dugan 2/26 Judy Kelley 2/15 Jackson Burgess Parker Dillon Laurie Halstead Louise Fowler 2/16 Caroline Harron 2/27 Mike McCuen 2/17 Kelly Heeringa Phyllis Pieri 2/18 Kendra Young 2/28 Becky Ittig

2/4 Susan Xiaohong & Wayne Chen 2/7 Tom Greenwood & Shannon Hamrick 2/14 John & Linda Hierholzer Ron & Sue Kaetzel 2/16 Bob & Jean Graff

Pastor Elizabeth Ingram Schindler Elizabeth@faithunited.org

Music Pam Sloane pams@faithunited.org

Pianist Emily Cowgill emily@faithunited.org

Dir. Youth Ministry Leslie Moreno leslie@fiathunited.org

Children’s & Family Ministry Lisa Peters lpeters@faithunited.org

Children’s Assistant Melissa Bortnick melissa@faithunitd.org

Bookkeeper Laura Meinhardt laura@faithunited.org

Preschool Director Kathryn Aitcheson kathryn@faithunited.org

Preschool Treasurer Tara Johnson tara@faithunited.org

Office Administrator Pam Zajac pam@faithunited.org

Faith Staff

Sunday’s At Faith Church

9:00 a.m.

Worship Service Adult and Middles School Sunday School

Child-Care Provided

10:00 a.m. Fellowship in Lobby

10:30 a.m.

Worship Service Children’s Sunday School

Child-Care Provided

OfficeHours:MondaythroughThursday:8a—4p.