 | Greetings to you, and peace! Thanks for check in on this week's news from the Community Church of Durham. We're a generous community of faith, shaped by generations of service and friendship; and we're always reaching toward the future with love and hope. Take a look at the news this week, and join us for worship or another activity sometime soon. If you have a question, or you'd like help in making a connection, don't hesitate to be in touch. We're all in this together! Yours on the Way, Dave Grishaw-Jones
DavidGJ@CCDurham.org | THE THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER: Exploring faith and practice, opening our hearts to the movement of the Spirit, we worship each Sunday morning at 10 am. Join us online this week...as we continue our celebration of Easter, New Life and the Power of Hope. This week we explore the resurrection through the strange and challenging story of Lazarus, whom Jesus calls forth from the tomb. We're joined by the Rev. Loren McGrail, UCC Pastor and former Global Ministries Partner with the YWCA in Palestine. Zoom Link: We've got a 2021 link, and you'll find that ZOOM GATHERING HERE. Facebook Live: Join us by going to the church's Facebook page and watching on FACEBOOK LIVE. Watch Later: You can also watch the service later--at your own leisure--by finding the video on the main page of our church website. WALKING THE TALK: You're invited to join the online conversation, following worship, as we gather in a different Zoom meeting for discussion around the morning's themes. We also share prayers, joys and concerns--and welcome you to join the circle. Grab a cup of coffee or tea, and think of it as our online 'coffee hour.' THE WALKING THE TALK LINK IS HERE. SUNDAY SCHOOL LINK: Kristin Forselius hosts a Sunday School hour, from 9 to 10 am, for families, children and others who are curious and committed to our youngest members. THAT LINK IS HERE. The Meeting ID is 889 8923 5388 and the Passcode is 746300. | CAR RALLIES: April 18 and 25 Debbie Leavitt is sharing the leadership of the Sunday Rolling Rallies at the Strafford County Jail with Glen Ring. Join her, CCD friends, and many others from around NH on Sundays at 1:00. We're calling on ICE to release refugees detained there and at risk for COVID-19. We gather in the court parking lot at 1 pm. Form convoy at Strafford County Courthouse, 259 County Farm Rd., Dover. BRING SIGNS: Hold your sign or attach it to your car. We encourage holding up heart-shaped signs. If you make your own sign, our message is "ICE have a heart! Release them!" | ECO-CHALLENGE: Sponsored by the High School Youth In recognition of Earth Day, our High School Youth Group has developed an event in April to inspire some new habits that could help create a healthy earth. For each of the weeks in April, we invite you to challenge yourself in ways that help to conserve energy, lessen waste, and have a lighter impact on the world. Show your participation by posting selfies on our church FB page: #CCDMembersandFriends The high school crew are creating a point system and to prove points all you need to do is take a selfie of yourself doing the challenge. Week of April 11th : Vegetarian for a week (double points for vegan)
Week of April 18th: No single use plastics (coffee cups, shopping bags, straws, silverware)
Week of April 25th: No shopping (same with online)
Week of May 2nd: Trash pick up- measured by number of bags you pick up Point system
1 point per day
10 points for the whole week Bonus Points (1 Point for Each Activity)
Meditation (at least 5 minutes)
Repurpose something old into something new
Statement art (out of trash)
Spring cleaning
Selfie hugging a different tree each day Everyone’s a winner, except the high school three with the least amount of points. They will be giving a presentation about the project to the church in May. Thanks for participating with us! Elise Wollheim and the HS Youth Group | OFFERING OF LETTERS: Bread for the World Dear Friends of our CCD Faith Community: It is time for our semi-annual Bread for the World (BFW) Offering of letters. We urge you to use the following letter in writing to our elected officials in Washington or to use the letter as a model for your own personal letter. This is our continuous fight to defeat hunger on a massive, legislative scale. You will find the names and addresses of our senators and congressman below the letter. Please send your letter to each of these three members of Congress. Thank you! -Justice and Witness Ministry. Dear Senator _______________________ / Dear Congressman ______________________, On behalf of Bread for the World (BFW), we of the Community Church of Durham would like to thank you for your critical support of BFW and its coalition partners in their success in urging Congress to pass the Global Nutrition Resolution in December 2020. This resulted in an increase of SNAP (food stamps) by 15 percent through June 2021, a critical step forward in the fight to eliminate hunger for countless numbers of families with children. Now we, as people of faith, urge you to make permanent this 15 percent increase in SNAP benefits to ensure that the great number of families with children in our country have the nutrition they are greatly in need of. One of four families with children struggle with food insecurity on a daily basis all across our land in this, the wealthiest nation on earth! In addition, we encourage you to make permanent the Pandemic Electronic Benefits Program (P-EBT) so that children receive essential nutrition when school is not in session during the summer. Lastly, please support the $11.5 billion global pandemic response which includes food and nutrition, vaccines and humanitarian aid for millions of our brothers and sisters in other lands. Thank you so much! (Name and address) -Senator Jeanne Shaheen
U.S. Senate
Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510 -Senator Maggie Hassan
U.S. Senate
Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510 -Congressman Chris Pappas
U.S. House of Representatives
323 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515 | MOTHER'S DAY GIFT BAGS Our Mother's Day tradition at Community Church is to provide special recognition to women in crisis being served by our community partners. Once again, we will provide gift bags containing personal care items to the mothers currently living at My Friend's Place, a homeless shelter in Dover, and at Haven, an organization that serves women affected by domestic violence. Please go to Sign Up genius https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C4AAEAB22A3F5C25-mothers to sign up to fill a bag, or bags, with the following items: 1 Full-sized bottle of shampoo
1 Full-sized bottle of shower gel
1 Full-sized bottle of body lotion
1 Mesh net shower sponge
Emery boards/fingernail file
Scarf and/or piece of costume jewelry (optional) No need to delivery the items in a fancy bag. For uniformity, we will provide the gift bags. All donations should be returned to the box outside the church office by noon on Thursday, May 6th. If you cannot go to the church during hours that the building is open, bring your donation to the Echo entrance on Sunday, May 2nd between 11:30 and 12:30. If you have questions, or need further information, contact Brenda Sargent at bsargent03@comcast.net. Thank you for your generosity. The Gift Bag Team: Carla Wilson, Charlotte Cousins and Brenda Sargent | PEACEMAKER KIDS SUMMER CAMP All kids in grades K-4th are invited to attend PeaceMaker Kids Summer Camp, running June 21-25. Learn more about this fun CCD program at: https://www.peacemakerkids.org/ | Joanne Sasner Memorial / April 17 All are welcome to join us for an online Memorial Service for our friend, Joanne Sasner, who died a year ago on April 2, 2020. Joanne's service will be hosted by Pastor Dave Grishaw-Jones on Saturday, April 17 at 2 pm. THE LINK FOR THE SERVICE IS HERE. | Our Life Together Church Calendar and Links: We want you to know that the church's calendar is available online (through our Breeze app). And you can find almost all of the links to our Zoom gatherings and meeting there, as you hover over various events. Got questions about this, call us in the office (868-1230). See the link here! | ECHO Thrift Shop Online: Our physical store is closed temporarily due to COVID-19. We are happy to offer store-front pick-up. We will not be shipping any online purchases. Shop HERE! | Our Prayer List As a beloved community, it's our joy and calling to hold our friends in loving prayer. This week, we pray: For Peter Andersen, Darby Leicht and Bob James, as they continue in treatments. For Donna Simpson, as she grieves Bob's death this month; and for Charlie Dingle, as he grieves Beverly's death in Exeter. For the children of our church, that they may know delight and hope every day. For all those living in nursing homes and retirement communities, that they may be safe and well. For our country, as we welcome a peaceful transition of power and the promise of new beginnings. | The Community Church offers an exciting range of small discussion groups, book studies and support groups. Check out our ONLINE PAGE for the latest descriptions, with times and contacts, and an invitation to community and conversation! | Thinking About a Friend? Maybe you've got a friend, a colleague; and you think the Community Church might really fit your friend's passion for spirit, justice and peace. Feel free to forward this email on...don't hesitate to share the good news of vitality and compassion that we experience together every week! You might be doing your friend a wonderfully good turn! Curious About CCD & UCC? To find out more about Community Church, visit our church website. Or, find us on Facebook. Did you know that the Community Church of Durham also has a Facebook Group where ideas, comments and announcements can be posted? Check it out and get connected! To learn more about the United Church of Christ, and our bold witness nationally, visit the UCC's inspiring website. The New Hampshire Conference is another resource for great inspiration and connection in mission. You'll find the Conference online as well! Dave's Blog is "VALLEY RISE UP": And you're welcome to visit anytime, or better yet "follow" the blog to receive his latest posts. Dave regularly posts prayers, poetry, reflections and all of our weekly worship opportunities. | The church office hours will continue to be Tuesday - Thursday from 9:00 - 1:00. Heather will be available by email during our regular Monday - Thursday 9:00 - 3:00 schedule if needed. | If you're not presently on the regular email list, please contact Heather Curran at office@ccdurham.org--so that she can add you as a regular recipient. God's blessings and peace to all, Dave Grishaw-Jones
DavidGJ@CCDurham.org
831-706-6819 | | |
