the journal - St. John`s United Church

THE JOURNAL
SEPTEMBER 2014
WORSHIP TIME 10:30 A.M. STARTS SEPTEMBER 7 AND SUNDAY SCHOOL STARTS AT 9:15 A.M.
RALLY DAY PICNIC SEPTEMBER 7 AFTER WORSHIP
Join us for fun, fellowship, and the start to a new
Sunday School season. Directly following worship
we will have the annual picnic. Chicken, hot dogs,
sloppy joe’s, and lemonade will be provided.
Please bring a dish or dessert to share.
There will be a special YOUTH TABLE at the church
picnic. All young people grades 6-12 are invited to sit at the
table and talk to Pastor Heidi about our activities this fall.
An exciting program is being organized for the fall. Under
the direction of interim pastor Heidi Vardeman with the
help of many volunteers, there will be meetings of the 6th12th grade young people at various times: sometimes on
Sunday mornings, sometimes on Sunday evening, and once
a month there will be a field trip to a place of worship of a
faith different from our own. The first field trip being
planed is to the Bahai Temple in Willmette, IL. Leaving
from the church at 10:30 a.m., right when the SJUC
worship service begins, the group will attend a brief
devotional service at 12:30 p.m. and then an introductory
program at 1:00 p.m.
If you are a young person interested in the youth program
or if you are an adult interested in volunteering (and going
with us on our trips!), please contact Pastor Heidi at
2014 Pledge Giving
Budget $86,919
Actual $81,712
Under
$5,207
$16,000
$15,000
HOPE CIRCLE BIBLE
STUDY SEPTEMBER 9
All women of all ages are
invited to join the Hope
Circle this year. Our first
meeting will be Tuesday,
September 9, at the home
of Heidi Vardeman, 1606
Nichols Court, Long
Beach (there will be car-pooling--and there's lots of
parking). Come early if you would like to go to the
beach, or just take a walk on the beach, before the
meeting begins at 7 p.m. Our bible lesson will be
from the book Reconciling Paul. The books are
available for $8/each if you plan to become part of
the group for the year. If you just want to check out
the group, photocopies of the lesson are available in
the Yoder room. Why not try it out.
(P.S. A quote from Pastor Heidi: "this is a really
fun group!")
COMMUNITY DINNER SEPTEMBER 14
This month’s dinner will be held on Sunday,
September 14 from 4:00-6:00 p.m. The menu is
bar-b-que chicken legs, seasoned potato wedges,
tossed salad, dinner roll, and brownies. Help is
needed! Please volunteer.
$14,000
$12,420
$13,000
$12,000
$12,588$12,760
$11,000
$12,336
$12,101
$10,000
$10,446
$9,061
$9,000
Budget
$8,000
Actual
$7,000
$6,000
$5,000
Jan
Feb
Mar
April
May
June
July
Please be sure to pay your pledge. Contributions often go
down in the summer, but our expenses do not.
Westchester Meals needs your help once again.
We are looking for volunteers to assist in the
kitchen on Monday mornings.
If you are interested or know of someone who
might like to volunteer, please contact Alice
Stepanovich at 926-2498.
Page 2
THE JOURNAL
CHOIR SEASON HAS BEGUN!
Our new “music year” for adults and senior high youth began on Wednesday,
August 27, with our first Chancel Choir (vocal) rehearsal at 7:00 p.m.
The Chime Choir (instrumental) will begin rehearsals on September 17
at 6:00 p.m.
If you have been thinking about joining a musical ensemble at St. John’s,
it’s never too late! Please contact Cindy Shelhart at church, by calling
(219) 508-3558, or via email at harp@cynthiashelhart.com.
CLERK’S CORNER
Here are some happenings from August’s Council meeting…
 Willoughby Donnellan was welcomed as our newest member.
 Our income is short of the budgeted amount at this point in the year.
 The Pastoral Nominating Committee reported our job posting should be up on the
national Presbyterian site soon, and our UCC posting is almost completed.
 The youth mission trip group from Community United Church of Christ of Elkhart
Lake, Wisconsin slept at our church on the night of August 2.
 One Room Sunday School by Abingdon Press (United Methodist) and Sparkhouse by
Augsburg Fortress (ELCA, Lutheran) will be this year’s curriculum for Sunday School.
IT’S NEVER TOO LATE TO PAY YOUR PER CAPITA…
Per Capita is the money we give to our Presbytery and United Church of Christ denominations to help fund the
greater church. The money does come back to us in various ways, because the Presbytery does provide support
and resources to us during the year. How much is it? It is $38.78 per member, split evenly between the two
denominations.
For the last two years the council has invited each member to pay their own per capita. It’s never too late to pay
yours, if you choose to do so. You may use a pew envelope and mark it “Per Capita” and just drop it in the
offering plate. Thanks for considering doing this for our church, and the greater church as well.
St. John’s United Church Mission Statement
United in love, we are an accepting, diverse, and compassionate family of faith.
St. John’s United Church Guiding Vision
“I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit...” John 15:5
Page 3
FROM THE INTERIM PASTOR
Lots of good things happening around St. John’s:

New Sunday School starting on September 7, complete with the preschool class joining
the other kids downstairs, nursery being offered during the Sunday School hour, and
freshly painted rooms.

Youth program starting in September, too, focused on learning about other faiths including field trips every
month. (In September we will be visiting the Bahai Temple in Evanston—if you would like to join us as a
driver or just a chaperone, please sign up. It is open to all church members.)

Hope Circle is starting up with a get-together at my house. All women—please come!

The choir is up and running—and Cindy is looking for new singers.

The Pastor Nominating Committee is doing a great job. If you google “Opportunities Listings” on your
computer and click on Indiana, you’ll see our pastoral opening posting. . .on the Presbyterian side. The UCC
profile will be going online soon, too.

The building: take a look at the new cabinets in the photocopying room (thanks, Rob and Sue Klett!), fresh
paint, a counter in the hallway to provide a space to welcome newcomers. And the bathrooms in the new
entrance are being worked on!
All of these are made possible through the generous donations that YOU make. You may have noticed that we
are down in contributions—so if you are behind in your pledge, it would be very good if you could catch up now.
It’s going to be a good year. Welcome!
THANK YOU TO OUR COMMUNITY GARDEN HARVESTERS!
We thank everyone who has been a part of the community garden this year, the harvester’s shown below and the
many, many, others who started the garden, tended to it, and helped the plants grow and flourish! Thank you!
Page 4
WORSHIP COMMITTEE
The Worship Committee (Pastor Heidi Vardeman,
Director of Music Cindy Shelhart, Laura Blythe, and
Kathy Lute) is seeking volunteers of all ages for a
variety of service opportunities.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Joy Johnston
September 2
Wendy Marciniak
September 2
those who need help operating the lift. Training will
be available.
Bonnie Flatz
September 4
Kathy McMahan
September 4
Sunday morning greeters/ushers—This could be a
family activity.
Cindy Cohn
September 5
Liturgists—If you have thought about being a
liturgist and are unsure about public speaking, Pastor
Heidi can ease any butterflies.
Alan Sommers
September 5
Joel Teeple
September 7
Karyn Witt
September 7
John Wrigley
September 7
William Anderson
September 8
Elsie Scheetz
September 9
Emerson Stobbe
September 9
Adelaide Young Brust
September 9
Susan DeWitt
September 10
Jan Plummer
September 11
Jeanette Dolk
September 18
Thomas Clements
September 20
Jan Needler
September 20
Kathy Lute
September 24
Al Dines
September 27
Laura Stepanovich
September 27
Kyra Tuter
September 27
Caden Bailey
September 28
Ellen Jackson
September 28
Chuck Tuter
September 28
Karen Grant
September 30
Marko Stepanovich
September 30
New position: Lift greeters—Lift greeters will assist
Acolytes—Younger acolytes can be accompanied by
their parents.
Committee member—The Worship Committee can
always use more members with fresh new ideas.
The Worship Committee welcomes any assistance,
new ideas, or comments.
YOUR CHANCE TO GIVE A BIBLE TO
A YOUNG PERSON
St. John's has a long tradition of presenting bibles to our young people. We
plan to present bibles in September and have ordered a
whole case (12) of beautiful hard cover copies of the
NRSV Student Bible that has notes and additional study
materials in it. The bible retails for $33 each, but with
quantity discount our price was $16 each.
If you would like to help us pay for this important investment in our young people, please place cash or a check for
$16 (or $32 or $48 or more!) in the offering plate with a
note that it is for bibles for our youth!
Next Journal Deadline: Sept. 24