WITHIN THE PEWS

Monthly Newsletter of the

CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF GRAFTON, UCC Worship & Sunday School 10 am

JUNE EDITION June Special Events: 8th Rev. Jane’s Installation 15th Father’s Day

You are all invited to attend a Service of Installation

For Rev. Jane on Sunday, June 8, 2014 at 4:00 pm

to be held at the

Congregational Church of Grafton

30 Grafton Common, Grafton

*There will be NO CHURCH

at 10:00 am that day*

Staff & Office Information: How to contact us: Office Phone 508-839-4513 Rev. Jane Willan, Pastor FAX 508-839-9772 Kristen Graham, Admin. Asst., Editor Email: graftonucc@gmail.com Organist: Edward Smreczak Pastor’s email: janewillan@gmail.com Music Director: Donna Blanchard Web Site: www.uccgrafton.com Jane’s cell 508-581-0786 Jane’s blog: http://uccgrafton.wordpress.com

A Word from our Pastor...

I am geographically challenged. My sense of geography is slightly embarrassing. I

envy those people who know the geography of Eastern Europe or Southeast Asia or North-

ern Nova Scotia like it was their own backyard. I especially resent those who can effort-

lessly list who imports what to whom, where the most palm oil is produced, and where the

brush-tailed bettong winters. If you are one of those people who can instantly locate Mo-

rocco (northern Africa, right?) or Luzon (island in the Philippines, I looked it up) then I

don’t want to play trivial pursuit with you or let you know how much I can’t identi-

fy. Someday I will take an online geography class and astound my friends with information

on world climates, terrain, culture and economics. Not only will I learn where everything is

on the globe, I might learn more about whom I am and my own place in the world.

I think Christianity is an experience of geography; to understand and relate to the life

of Jesus, you have to be immersed in his geography. Think how often the gospel writers

write about place. They start us off in a tiny town on a Judean hillside with shepherds and

angels. We soon find ourselves in the desert for 40 days, we linger by the Sea of Galilee,

and the next thing you know, we’re climbing a mountain meeting up with Elijah and Mo-

ses. Most of our time with Jesus is spent outside and walking – all across the countryside

and villages of Palestine as he heals and preaches and teaches. Eventually we end our jour-

ney entering the gates of the world’s holiest of cities, Jerusalem.

As we live in the geography of Jesus following him up lonely mountains and across

stormy lakes, we continue to live in our own “geography”. Sometimes lonely and stormy in

its own way. We must always remember that we too are on a faith journey—up one hill and

down another just like Jesus. A journey in his footsteps and at his side. So even if you are

geographically challenged, never forget that we always travel in the presence of Jesus. We

may travel a more modern route perhaps, but it leads to the same place.

Up a hill

to a cross

at a tomb that is empty

in world forever changed.

Good travels everyone,

Reverend Jane

Mission Outreach Allocations

May 2014

OCWM $1,000

Each month non-perishable foods and pa-

per goods are delivered to the Grafton

Food Bank and the Pernet Family Health

Center in Worcester. As summer ap-

proaches, donations tend to drop off, how-

ever there are still many families in need.

Please consider the following suggested

food donations:

Cereal Rice

Tomato Sauce Jello

Macaroni & Cheese Tuna Fish

Peanut Butter Jelly

Packaged Potatoes Bread Mixes

Cake Mixes Pasta

Snack Foods Dessert Mixes

Puddings

Canned Fruits & Vegetables

Donations may be placed in the collection

baskets on Sunday mornings or dropped

off at the church during office hours Mon-

day, Wednesday and Thursday between 9

and 2. Thank you for your continued gen-

erous support of this Mission Outreach pro-

ject.

Our Church’s Wider Mission (OCWM)

is the total work of the United Church of

Christ conferences, national agencies and

UCC related institutions. The Mission is

supported by both the fellowship dues from

each church and money contributed to

Basic Support. In our church, the Mission

Outreach Committee designates a signifi-

cant portion of the Wider Mission pledges

to Basic Support. These funds pay for

grants to local churches, Christian educa-

tion materials, scholarship funds, mission-

ary salaries, camping programs and tech-

nical assistance to local churches on a vari-

ety of topics.

Furniture and Household Goods Drive

On Saturday, May 3rd, the Mission Outreach

Committee held a Household Goods Drive in

our church parking lot. This drive was to ben-

efit Donations Clearing House. Thank you to

all who participated. Items collected help

families and individuals leaving area shelters

and transitional housing. The DCH is also

committed to helping people with limited

fixed incomes, fire and flood victims, those

fleeing domestic violence and the elderly.

HATS OFF TO OUR

GRADUATES!

Emily Peacock is graduating from Grafton High

School on June 5th and will be attending Penn

State in the fall.

Renee Shattuck is graduating from Grafton High

School on June 5th and will be attending the Uni-

versity of New Hampshire in the fall.

Charlotte Poler is graduating from High School

in Greenwech, CT and Colin Poler is graduating

from High School in London, England. Both are

grandchildren of Hank & Gail Poler.

Lauren Bianco is graduating with a Masters in

Education from Lesley University.

Emily Anderson is graduating from Colby Col-

lege.

Audrey Ross (daughter of Holly Wietgrefe & Da-

vid Hardwick) is graduating from Virginia Tech

with a B.S. in Business Administration and major

in Hospitality and Tourism Management.

Austin Isaacson graduated from Indiana Univer-

sity with a B.S. in Psychology.

Erin Gallagher is graduating from Blackstone

Valley Tech and will be attending Massachusetts

College of Liberal Arts in the fall.

Tim Burdsall graduated, cum laude, from the

University of Massachusetts Amherst, College of

Natural Sciences, with a Bachelors in Pre-

Veterinary Science. He will be continuing his ed-

ucation at the Ohio State University School of

Veterinary Medicine.

GRAFTON THRIFT SHOP

VOLUNTEERS FOR JUNE, 2014

Shop Hours: Thursdays and Saturdays 10-4

Thursday 10-4

June 5 Elaine Hatch, Ann Cranshaw

12 Mary Tulloch, Diana Macfarlane

19 Bernice Benoit, Elaine Hatch

26 Sandy Cooper, Barbara Bryant

Saturday 10-1

June 7 Diane Lalone, Brenda Armstrong

14 Bernice Benoit, Martha Babb

21 Sandy Cooper, Kathy Vandenengel

28 Mary Tulloch, Janet Rivard

Saturday 1-4

June 7 Mary Tulloch, Grafton House Girls

14 Bill & Jean Burke, Grafton Hs Girls

21 Diane Lalone, Grafton House Girls

28 Elaine Hatch, Grafton House Girls

We are pleased to announce that Bill & Jean

Burke, who have volunteered for many years at the

Thrift Shop, have agreed to join our board. We

are very grateful for their support.

Scripture Readings for

June

June 1: Luke 24:44-53

June 8: Acts 2:1-21

June 15: Matthew 28:16-20

June 22: Matthew 10:24-39

June 29: Matthew 10:37-42

“Where people of faith work together to help homeless families.”

INTERFAITH HOSPITALITY NETWORK

OF GREATER WORCESTER

IHN Home, 91 June St., Worcester

Sunday, August - Sunday, August

Please consider accepting one of the following roles during our host week:

Dessert Preparers

Since the residents prefer to cook their own meals we are only asked to supply desserts.

Anyone interested in preparing a dessert should contact Elaine Hatch at 508-839-3597.

Overnight Hosts (8:30 p.m.—7:00 a.m.)

Two hosts spend the night at the IHN home with the guests. Overnight hosts are available

in the event of an emergency. If you can help with this opportunity, call Gail Poole at 508-

839-9667.

Supplies and Provisions:

Monetary donations may be made to help purchase provisions (paper goods, juice boxes,

snacks, etc.). Checks should be made out to the church with “IHN Week” in the notation

box or cash may be given to Barbara Bryant..

GET INVOLVED WITH THIS PROJECT! Please contact any member of the Mission Out-

reach Committee to see how you may help with this very rewarding experience.

Mission Outreach & IHN Committee Members

Brenda Armstrong Debbie Arey Gail Poole, IHN Coordinator

Elaine Hatch Barbara Gow Barbara Bryant, IHN Coordinator

John Stephens

Wednesdays at Wegman's Summer

Bible Study:

Where Good Coffee Meets Great

Theology!

Yes, you read that right. Starting in June we

will have a Bible study at Wegmans. I have

recently fallen in love with this awesome

store (nothing like it in Iowa, believe me) and

think it is the perfect spot for an early

morning bible study. We’ll meet in the Mar-

ket Café at 7:30 AM every Wednesday morn-

ing starting in June. Grab a coffee and

breakfast treat and join us at a table.

Wegmans Northborough

9102 Shops Way, Northborough MA 01532

June Birthdays

Heather Downs 6/3 Brenden Bartlett 6/6

Julia Simonelli 6/6 Thomas Iram 6/7

George MacCallum 6/7 Valerie Army 6/8

Ann Cranshaw 6/10 Jennifer King 6/10

Spencer Belleville 6/11 Connor Bouman 6/15

Emily Anderson 6/16 Ann Holm 6/16

Dana Rivard 6/17 Karen Pasquale 6/25

Emily Siemen 6/26 Julia Siemen 6/26

Elaine Bresnahan 6/27 Joshua Babb 6/28

Stacy Cahill 6/29 James Woodbury 6/29

Larry Babb 6/30 Heather Vandenengel 6/30

Open and Affirming (abbreviated ONA)

Our first step to the ONA process will be to organize our

ONA Leadership Team. This team will study ONA mate-

rials together, talk about issues that arise for each mem-

ber of the group, and think about ONA as it relates to the

Congregational Church of Grafton.

This is not a decision-making group. It is a group that

will lead us as a congregation in discussion, information

gathering, prayer, the sharing of feelings, and personal

reflection. Please join this leadership team if you are:

wildly in favor of ONA

adamantly against ONA have no real opinion love the seek-and-question process enjoy good conversation with people who are

friends

Everyone has a voice in the process—come and let yours

be heard!

Our first Leadership Team meeting will be June 18 at

7:00 in the Fireplace Room.

Reverend Jane

WITHIN THE PEWS

Monthly Newsletter of the Congregational Church of Grafton

Congregational Church of Grafton 30 Grafton Common P.O. Box 421 PLACE Grafton, MA 01519 POSTAGE HERE

Address Service Requested

CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF GRAFTON 30 Grafton Common, P.O. Box 421, Grafton, MA; Telephone 508-839-4513

WORSHIP SERVICES: SUNDAYS, 10 a.m.