 Vincent Van Gogh In This Week's E-Pistle, You Will Find:
Easter Sunday: Being Easter People Bruno Van Der Kraan on Unsplash Dan says: "In the house where I grew up, we wore our best clothes on Easter Sunday. Penny loafers that shined. A freshly ironed white shirt. A clip-on bowtie. If I was lucky, a new sport coat. Always a fresh haircut. We had to look our best on Sundays. Especially on Easter Sunday. If one looked good on the outside, then by inference one's inside would reflect the same. It seldom happens that way. I'm grateful that at DUCC on nearly every Sunday we say to each other: "No matter who you are or where you are on life's journey, you are welcomed here." No matter what your outside looks like. No matter what your inside reveals. Easter is God's affirmation that we are God's. Inside and outside, fully God's." Many thanks to Gemina, Scott, Greg, and Greggie for the uplifting Easter art installation. Our spirits are literally lifted up as we contemplate new life in this season of hope! Please join us on Sunday at 10am in our Sanctuary, or online, live on our YouTube channel. Message: Revs. Dan Plasman and Jody Betten Music: Peter Black, Jeff Spangler, Lauri Donaldson, Easter Choir You will always find our latest church bulletin and service music at Bit.ly/DUCCBulletin 
Last Week's Service: Palm Sunday Last Sunday, we remembered the week that began with the triumphal entry of Jesus into the city of Jerusalem, and ended with the same people determining that Jesus was a danger to the nation. How quickly sentiments change! It’s old news when public opinion turns ugly, when Capitol buildings get stormed and leaders turn a blind eye to protect their interests. You can catch up with this powerful service at the link below. Jody and Dan's Office Hours This Week
Lenten Suppers Thanks and Kudos! Photo by Olivie Strauss on Unsplash Throughout a very difficult Lent season, we got by with the help of our friends, gathering and feeding one another with soup and the comforts of community. So many people to thank for this important Mitzvah. The soup makers, the attendees, everyone who came with a kind word and a full heart, making our Thursday nights together sacred. Special Kudos to Louise Kenny for her heart for community and keeping us organized! CJT Asks: Share Your Success! Our Creation Justice Team is interested in ways that you might have made changes to care for God’s creation over the past several years of our programming. For example, Have you done something to reduce light pollution by replacing your outside light fixtures or putting a shield around current fixtures? Have you done something to expand the canopy in our area by planting a tree or two? Have you removed a part of your lawn and planted native plants and pollinators? Have you reduced your use of plastic by using glass or another material? Have you started composting? Please let Chris Clark know so that we can celebrate your actions. Please send examples to Chris at [email protected]. Care Team Meeting, April 24, 11am The Carer Team will be meeting up on April 24 at 11am in the Isabel Graham Center. If you're a member of the team or just curious about how they work and what they do, please join in! Christian Nationalism Meetup, April 24, 5:30pm
Carol Brown Memorial April 26
Will You Support Sarah Donovan in Her Annual MS Walk, April 26? Last Sunday our chuch member Sarah Donovan shared about her journey with Multiple Sclerosis and her work to raise money for a cure. She is once again asking for sponsorship for this year's MS Walk in Grand Rapids that takes place on April 26. click on her page above or the link below if you can help Sarah reach her goal this year! 2025 Pride Team, Unite! April 27 Photo by Dan Plasman Pride month is coming up! It’s important that we support the LGBTQ+ community in our church and more broadly. There are decisions about sponsorships and attendance at events to consider as a church. If you are interested in helping make these decisions or have ideas for things we should do, please plan to join a Pride Planning meeting after the Sunday service on April 27 in the Retreat House. All are welcome! Global Spirituality Book Series With Rev. Marty  Our increasingly connected world is moving from being separated by various religious traditions into an interwoven global spirituality which connects us. At Mother's Trust on the first Friday of each month from May to November, 4:00-5:30pm join us for a book series led by our own Rev. Marty Reinstra. Details in the document you can download, below.
Christian Neighbors Fundraiser, May 4 Since it's inception, Douglas UCC and its people have supported the work of Christian Neighbors. And so did our friend Arthur Frederick, who held an annual benefit at his home that raised a significant portion of this food and household goods provider for neighbors in need. Our community suffered the loss of Arthur last year, and we honor him by taking up Arthur's lead and example, with this legacy annual fundraiser. We hope you can join in, enjoy Hors D’ Oeuvres, Beer and Wine in the company of Friends and Supporters of the work of Christian Neighbors, a local 501C3 organization that helps individuals and families in need. Sunday, May 4, 2025 1:00p to 3:00p The Saugatuck Yacht Club 15 Park Street, Saugatuck Requested Donation of $75.00 Checks payable to: Christian Neighbors. Checks mailed to: All Saints’ Church, 252 Grand Street, Saugatuck, MI 49453 or dropped off at the event. For questions, please check with our church members Bert Hallewas and Kirsten Stannis. Next SoulCollage, May 10 Taking the time to look inward, seek answers and directions from your own mind/heart/body can feel a little daunting without a process, without a guide. It can just be too hard, especially right now, to quiet our minds enough to listen. Our friend Ruth Zwald is a longtime teacher of the SoulCollage process for using imagery and guided meditation practices to help us discover our own wise counsel. Her classes draw people from throughout West Michigan. Even other SoulCollage teachers attend her sessions. So we are delighted to host her classes here at Douglas UCC. You can join in on any class to learn how to learn this way of self discovery and healing. To sign up, follow the directions above. Prayer Requests Dave Lawson; Chris Warner (Friend of Pete Wehle); Ken Rans (friend of Pete Wehle); Rich Marth; Christine Kerney; Nancy Plantinga and her family; Family of Jim Solazzo (Anne Hotwagner's uncle); Virginia Stuart; Carrie Andrews, Julie and Jack Ridl and the family of Paul Fredrickson; Dan McGavin and Family of Carol Brown; Rev. Marchiene Rienstra Family; Ann and Jim Hopkins; James Higgins (Friend of Shane Anderson and Michael Tuleja), Joe Scarpone (Friend of Tom Fahlstrom); Fred Hamlin; John Kerr; Ruth Fahlstrom (daughter of Tom Fahlstrom); Mary Westenbroek; Jerry Elpers and family (Beth Howley's Dad); Max Matteson; Eric Cooley (Jo Cooley's brother Birthdays & Anniversaries This WeekBirthdays: April 23- Michael Ritt, 24- Gregg Kurek, Ginny Mikita, 25- Lisa Titus Birthday and Anniversary cards are a great way we can reach out to one another. If you wish to mail a card to one of our church members, addresses can be found in our Church Directory. Battling Power outage! Stay tuned! Financial StewardshipIn-Person Attendance, April 13 (Gas Outage Palm Sunday): 69 Total Views for April 13 worship videos: 114 Collection Plate & Mailed Donations: $188.00 Online Giving: $2,067.09 Total, General Support: $2,255.09 One Great Hour of Sharing: $100 Thank you!! Your generous giving allows us to sustain our church community and our mission of service in the world. Please consider giving online, which is easily done by texting your donation amount to 844-931-2849. Church CalendarOur Church calendar is online! Use it to look for space for your event, click on an event to get all the details, or copy an event to your own calendar software. So convenient! When you have events to schedule anywhere on campus, scan the calendar for a spot, then contact [email protected] to make your reservation. Email is best so she can keep track of requests.
|
Previous
|
||||||||||
RSS Feed
56 Wall Street • Douglas, Michigan 49406
© Douglas Congregational United Church of Christ. All Rights Reserved.