Newsletter for October 6, 2022

Newsletter for October 6, 2022 Contents: Church Family News

3

Church office closed for Thanksgiving Monday

3

We Have a New Minister! - New

4

News from the Leadership Team - New

5

Thursday morning Social

6

Remembering Luke Jansen - New

7

Supply Ministry Report - New

8

Northern Spirit Regional Newsletter - New

9

Living Into Right Relations - New

9

Women's Group Schedule - New

9

Seniors Group Meeting

10

Men's Group Breakfast - Change in date - New

11

Boston Pizza Fund Raiser

11

Interest Groups to Date

--S

12

Chair Yoga

12

Minute for Mission - New

12

Gifts with Vision - New

14 2

Church Family News It is with sadness that the family of Gladys Cannan share the news of her passing. She passed away in her home surrounded by her family on September 22 at the age of 99 years. A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, Octoth ber 8 at 2 pm at Sherwood Park United Church. Rev. Stuart Jackson will be officiating.

Office closed Monday for Thanksgiving Day We have a new minister! We are pleased to announce that at the Special Congregational Meeting on October 2nd, the congregation voted to extend the call to Rev. Marlene Salmonson effective October 15, 2022. Here is her bio as found in the Northern Spirit Regional Council News: Marlene Salmonson grew up in her home church, Oxford Street United, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where she sang in the choir and attended CGIT. Her spiritual path diverged when she entered her twenties and became involved in the Pentecostal Church. It was during this time that she completed a Bachelor of Theology (Hons.) at Vanguard College in Edmonton. Due to differences, she left the Pentecostal Church and began attending Garneau United Church, where she met her spouse, 3

Evelyn Porter. After that, Marlene completed a Master of Theological Studies degree at St. Stephen’s College. Her thesis, “Making a Spiritual Connection with Jewelry,” was supervised by David Goa, who Marlene met while volunteering at the “Anno Domini: Jesus Through the Centuries” exhibit at the Alberta Provincial Museum. From there, she entered the Master of Divinity program at St. Andrew’s College and graduated in May of 2022. One of the most thought-provoking events during that degree was a course that she took through zoom on Indigenous Youth at the Sandy-Saulteaux Spiritual Centre. Between degrees, she was chosen to be the Bard of the Avenue, writing poetry about her Edmonton community of Alberta Avenue. She has spent time walking Alberta Avenue during Kaleido; and talking about her poetry, which is also on her blog. Marlene has the distinction of being a MDiv. grad, who began and ended her Supervised Ministry Education during the pandemic. She was blessed to spend the entire period at Two Hills United Church, Two Hills, Alberta, which she found to be a resilient and engaging faith community. Marlene had fun experimenting with a Round Table Bible Study and creating stories with her finger puppet, Becca, the tree-hugging-anklebiting turtle. They say that it takes a village to raise a child, and it certainly takes a village to raise a theology student. Marlene would like 4

to thank the congregation at Garneau United, especially Moira Warke, who headed up her Discernment Team; her home congregation of Spirit of Hope, where she was privileged to work for two years as Congregational Care Team Lead. Also, many thanks go to Louise Rogers, who has been Marlene’s accompanier throughout her many interviews. And, to Bill Doyle and Britt Aerhart, for their support and encouragement. Marlene’s passion is theology, especially the intersection of theology with everyday living. Sometimes a puzzle, sometimes a revelation, and at all times a reflection of the mystery of the God who loves her and who has led her to this place.

News from the Leadership Team The Leadership Team had our second meeting on Tuesday, September 27th and we left feeling that it had been a positive and productive one. First of all, we looked at the Time and Talents Survey that was last distributed before Covid. Needless to say, it needs to be updated and Anne McMeekin, with feedback from the Team, agreed to revise it. The revised Time and Talent Survey will arrive in your email (or snail mail) in late October. Please fill it out. Your feedback about how you would like to contribute to the life and work of our church will help us as Interest Groups and Monthly Service Groups are set up. Secondly, the Team discussed Interest Groups at length and agreed that we are experiencing a huge learning curve as we try to clarify what an “Interest Group” actually is. For example, one decision made 5

was that although the Choir and United Harmony (hand bells) are integral and important parts of our church, they are not “Interest Groups” as such. This is primarily because the directors Heather Rodgers and Susan Galloway are both accountable to the M and P Committee. Also, since Heather and Susan have been hired to lead these groups, the groups are not optional. On the other hand, an Interest Group is by definition optional and is led by a volunteer accountable through a liaison to the Leadership Team. We continued to look at the Interest Group proposals that we have received and want to thank those who have prepared them. We will be contacting them, if we haven’t done so already, in the near future. The bottom line: The Leadership Team is asking for your patience and understanding as we grow into this new system of governance and decide what is the best for our church.

Thursday Morning Social Thursdays at 9:30 am in Fellowship Hall You are all welcome to come for a new interest group that includes everyone. Come occasionally or every week. Thursday Morning is about fellowship. I hope to see you on Thursday! The coffee will be on.

6

7

Supply Ministry Report • October 9, Thanksgiving: Rev. Bruce will join us again for this Sunday • October 16: Anne McMeekin: Many Gifts • October 23: Bruce West –our Sherwood Park United lay representative to Northern Spirit Regional and chosen by them to be their lay representative at the General Council of the United Church This team is currently having discussions with our planned pulpit supply for October 30 and will give you further information as we have it. We have been fortunate to have Rev. Stuart Jackson for Pastoral Care for the first two weeks of October and thank him for supporting us during this time. We extended our appreciation to Wendy Galloway for offering to help us out for the months November through to January and it was not a surprise to her when we informed her that we had called someone full time as she knew that was a possibility. She extended her congratulations to Sherwood Park United Church for a successful search and call and wished us all the best. Margaret Langston, Pat Bourque, Karen Spiess, Debbie Styles 8

Northern Spirit Regional Newsletter for October 6 Please click here for the most recent copy of the Northern Spirit Regional Newsletter.

Living into Right Relations Click here to find out the latest news.

Women’s Group Schedule The October Women’s Group will be a Games Night on October 17th in Fellowship Hall at 6:00 pm. Come out for some fun and fellowship! Bring your favorite game(s). It’s okay if you don’t have a game to bring, I’m sure there will be enough. Bring a snack to nibble on while we’re playing games. Coffee and tea will be available. Hope to see you there! Women's Group overwhelmingly voted to keep this fun, interesting and important night alive. Women's Group is a safe place where the women of this church, along with their friends, sister's and adult daughters can come for fun and fellowship. We meet every third Monday of the month, at about 6:00, in Fellowship Hall. The only exception is in February, where we 9

will meet on the 4th Monday, as the 3rd Monday is Family Day. At the September potluck, ladies signed up to hostess the next few months. October- Games night, hosted by Joyce Kropiniski and Kathy Tomes November- Craft night, hosted by Del Blacklock December- Movie night, hosted by Barb Goulden and Deb Styles January is Soaking Prayer hosted by Margaret Langston February is Chair Yoga hosted by Deb Styles March - "Taking Your Green Up A Notch", hosted by Mary Card April - TBA- hosted by Gina Blank May - Trip to a greenhouse to fill a pot for your yard June - wind up potluck at Mary Reid's

Seniors Group – Tuesday, October 11 @ 1 pm Bob Layton, retired news director for CHED, has written a new book about the crazy, bizarre, funny, and sad things that happened while he worked as a ventriloquist, auctioneer and speaker. He will be the guest speaker at the Seniors gathering on Tuesday, October 11th at 1:00 pm. He will have books for sale and the congregation is invited to come and hear him speak. 10

Men’s Group Breakfast – Oops! See date change. The next Men’s Group Breakfast will be held at The Head Quarters Restaurant at 9:00 am on Saturday, October 15th. The restaurant is at 101 Granada Blvd.

Boston Pizza Fund Raiser Boston Pizza Fundraiser Wye Road Boston Pizza is no longer offering the “5% return on receipts” program that we all used and loved. They are under new ownership and are offering instead to work with us offering product – maybe even gift cards?? – for fundraisers we might hold (silent auctions, door prizes, etc.). Therefore, you will no longer find the Boston Pizza box in the Narthex; future, different opportunities to work with them await us.

Interest Groups to Date The Leadership Team has now approved the following Interest Groups: Property Contact: Dale Swaré [email protected] Plants Contact: Judy Swaré [email protected] Women’s Group Contact: Corinne Wiseman [email protected] Worship Support Contact: Harold Jesse [email protected] Please contact the above people if you are interested in being part of their Interest Group. 11

However, do you have another idea for an Interest Group that would contribute to the life and work of our church? Perhaps it’s something we have done before but you want to do it in a new way. Perhaps it’s something “outside the box”. Perhaps it’s a dream that you’ve had for our church for a while. If you want to bring your idea to life, fill out the Interest Group Proposal Form, available here, and submit it to the Leadership Team. The Team will then let you know when your Interest Group is approved and assign a person on the Leadership Team to be your liaison.

Chair Yoga If you are looking for a way to stretch out that winter stiffness and work some of those muscles you are welcome to come to Chair Yoga. We meet every Wednesday in the Fellowship Hall. Class is held at 10:30 am! Cost is $9.00 per class. Please invite your friends, gentlemen are certainly welcomed. For further information please email: Evelyn Wuetherick [email protected], Lesley Ratcliff [email protected] or Debbie Styles [email protected]

Minute for Mission Without you, we wouldn’t be able to help transform so many lives. Credit: Simon Chambers/ACT Alliance Published On: September 19, 2022 You have likely been there. A million and one 12

things to do: errands, housekeeping, food prep, work, volunteering. Sometimes we can be so busy checking off our todo list that we forget to pause and appreciate all that God has blessed us with in life. Enter Thanksgiving. A time to stop and catalogue what we are grateful for. You top our list. This Thanksgiving, the Mission & Service team of the Philanthropy Unit is pausing to give thanks for you—our donors. Without you, we wouldn’t be able to help transform so many lives. Thanks to your support, we were able to provide 9,996 full vaccinations to those who need them most around the world. What’s more, since the pandemic struck, your generosity has helped raise over $525,000 in emergency gifts to help Mission & Service partners deliver personal protective equipment, distribute food, install sanitation stations, and support education programs to help prevent and control the spread of the disease. As the war in Ukraine continues to devastate lives, your generous gifts of over $1.3 million are helping to provide emergency shelter, clean water, food, and medical attention. 13

The recently unveiled gift of food hampers and dignity kits for refugees in Ukraine featured in the Gifts with Vision catalogue is adding to this total (you'll see these new gifts starting Sept. 26!). These are just some of the tangible changes you help make possible. Behind each one of them is a changed life. In Paul’s letter to the Romans, he begins with a statement of thanksgiving: “I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed throughout the world.” Ultimately, Jesus charged us with helping build a better world. On behalf of those we serve, thank you for rising to the challenge.

Gifts with Vision Give meaningful gifts that make a difference with Gifts with Vision! Each year's gift catalogue gives a glimpse of the breadth of our Mission & Service ministries and programs. Gifts with Vision has gift ideas to suit every interest, budget, and person. It’s a great way to celebrate special occasions and honour loved ones! The gift catalogue is updated online regularly, and is fully 14

refreshed every fall. It is also distributed in print with Broadview magazine, and mailed to each pastoral charge. To order gifts, be inspired, or learn more, visit GiftsWithVision.ca today!

Prayer Requests You are welcome to write prayer requests on the bright yellow cards found in the back of the pews. Place the card in the offering plate, and it will be brought to voice during the pastoral prayer.

Name Tags Please wear your nametag, both in worship and at the coffee hour in Fellowship Hall. Need a name tag? Just fill out the white card in the chair rack in front of you and place in the offering plate. Use the card for other ways to communicate with the church office as well

15