Choir rehearsals are resuming
Treble choir will resume Wednesday, February 9, 2022, 6:30 p.m.
Chancel choir will resume Wednesday, February 9, 2022, 7:00 p.m.
The choir will lead music in worship starting February 13, 2022, 10:00 a.m.
Handbell choir will resume rehearsals Sunday, February 13, 2022, 11:15 a.m.
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Taize Service
Thursday, February 17, 2021, 7 p.m.
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Confirmation meets virtually and will continue to do so at 11:30AM every 1st and 3rd Sunday mornings. SOMETHING NEW: In February we will alternate confirmation meetings with a larger youth group gathering on the 2nd and 4th Sundays. If you have a youth (defined as 6th grade – 12th grade) who would like to participate and needs more information, let Pastor Mary know!
Our storytelling event for the Growing Forward in Faith initiative has been moved to May 1 (3pm-5pm) due to the spike in COVID cases. We will have some form of the Shrove Tuesday (March 1) pancake supper, online and perhaps in person. Be ready to bring your pancake skills to the table as we also engage in activities to prepare for the season of Lent.
In addition to Sunday morning adult education hour, David’s midweek study, and an online book study, adult education has launched two new classes. The first class meets Wednesday evenings at 8:30 p.m. with Pastor Mary. This group is starting with a film series entitled “A New Family: Throwing Open the Doors of the Sanctuary,” featuring Rachel Held Evans to explore issues of faith and welcome. On Thursday evenings at 7:00 p.m. (and again on Sunday mornings at 9 a.m.), Deacon Jennifer is leading a study on the Hebrew Bible. Both classes are open to youth and adults and do not require attendance at every session. You can find introductory trailers and links to the Zoom classroom on our website, Sylvaniaucc.org.
Children’s worship will resume Sunday, February 6, 2022. Meanwhile, follow Sylvania UCC Families Facebook page for updated and late-breaking information. Pastor Vern is especially hoping for snow some weekend soon so that he can host a pop-up sledding event on the church hill with children and families.
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The Science and Theology Group
continues on Sunday evenings, 7 p.m. on Zoom
We are reading and discussing the book, Hurricane Lizards and Plastic Squid: The Fraught and Fascinating Biology of Climate Change, by Thor Hanson, through February 20th or 27th. Feel free to join in any Sunday, even if you have not participated in previous sessions. Please email or call Nancy Wellman for more details and how to obtain a copy of the book (meadbakes@french.toast.net or 419-280-6498).
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Sunday Morning Adult Education
9:00 AM
In the chapel and on Zoom
All are welcome. Please join us!
Throughout February, we will continue our 6-week “Introduction to the Hebrew Scriptures” from the Bible Project. Deacon Jennifer Vasquez will facilitate discussions as we watch a video each week. The topics include:
1: What on Earth is the Hebrew Bible? (January 23, 2022)
2: How Jesus and the Apostles Read Their Bibles (January 30, 2022)
3: The Ancient Shape of the Scriptures (February 6, 2022)
4: “Seams” Between Texts in the Dead Sea Scrolls (February 13, 2022)
5: The “Seams” of the Torah and Prophets (February 20, 2022)
6: The Prophet to Come (February 27, 2022)
Please note: These classes will also be offered on Thursday evenings at 7PM.
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Wednesday Morning Study Group with David Andersen
February 2nd and 16th, 2022
A new season of the Wednesday Morning Study Group resumes in February, meeting on the 2nd and 16th at 9:30 a.m. The topic of conversation and study for both sessions in February will be “Life After Death - Still Believable?”
Starting in March, it is likely we will begin a brand news series entitled Freeing Jesus, using as a reference Diana Butler Bass’ new book of the same title. We will focus on Jesus, a particularly relevant topic for the season of Lent.
We invite you to join us in-person or online. If you have questions about the group or the topic, or suggestions for future subjects, please feel free to contact David W. Andersen.
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Connection and Engagement
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Outreach Board News
Outreach Board has received several thank-you's for recent congregational giving from:
Sylvania Area Family Services
Lutheran Social Services of NW OH
US Together
United Church of Christ - disaster response
Grace Community Center
Toledo Campus Ministry
Chicago United Eden Seminary
Thank YOU for supporting Sylvania UCC's Outreach efforts!

Upcoming Opportunities to serve:
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Serve on the Board of Directors of Grace Community Center
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Volunteer for an upcoming "Faith Build" with Habitat for Humanity
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Help provide a meal for St. Paul's Community Center in the spring/summer
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Thank You for Your January Contributions
of Household Goods and Financial Aid
for Afghans Resettling in the Toledo Area!
(Several van loads of your donations have already been delivered to families!)
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CIVIL RIGHTS TRAIL
Sylvania United Church of Christ Tour
October 6 – 14, 2022
We want to alert you to a special pilgrimage that is being planned by a committee of the Sylvania United Church of Christ Social Justice Group. This pilgrimage was born of a desire to become more familiar with the history of the civil rights movement.
The following is a tentative schedule - but still in process of being planned. Trip will include*:
Atlanta: The National Center for Civil and Human Rights. The Martin Luther King National Historic Park, including the King Center, the tombs, Ebenezer Baptist Church.
Selma: A walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge
Montgomery: The Legacy Museum. (4 main sections - slavery, lynching, segregation, mass incarceration). Rosa Parks Museum, Dexter Ave. Baptist Church.
Birmingham: Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, the 16th St. Baptist Church (where four young girls were killed).
Anniston: Where freedom bus bombing occurred.
*We also hope to include visits to sister UCC churches along the way and hear close-up their perspective on the civil rights movement.
This could be a transforming event for all those who participate. We hope you will consider taking this pilgrimage with us. What we would like to ask right now:
1. Not a commitment to participate, but to let us know if you have interest in attending. This will help guide us and determine if we should continue planning.
2. Let us know if you might be willing to help in the planning process and event. This could be any number of different ways from research to making sure we are all present for each event.
Please speak to any committee member about your possible interest in the trip or helping with the planning.
Civil Rights Trail Tour Committee: Sue Crescitelli, Barbara Eikost, Al Compaan, David Andersen.
Let us hear from you.
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Green Team News:
The team has been looking at ideas for programming in April for Earth Month using a kit from Interfaith Power and Light. We also have ordered seeds to make a pizza garden!
Interested in joining in the fun and want to help with these ideas? Contact Jennifer Vasquez, Al Compaan, or any member of the Green Team.
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Upcoming Events:
Tuesday, March 1, 6-7:30 PM (Tentative) - Pancake Dinner and Lent Festival (An All-Community Event)
Saturday, April 2, 8:30 AM-12:30 PM - Church Planning Event, Hosted by the Diaconate
Saturday, April 16, 7:00PM - Easter Vigil Experiential Worship (An All-Community Event)
Sunday, May 1, 3-5 PM - Storytelling Day (An All-Community Event)
Summer 2022:
Multifaith Intergenerational Program: Tuesdays in June
Vacation Bible School: July 25-28
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Prayer Concerns and Joys to Share
If you have a joy or a concern that you wish to be shared during Sunday morning worship or passed along to the prayer chain, please email or call the office: church@sylvaniaucc.org; 419-882-0049.
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WISDOM is a Verb
Supporting older adults
deepening their spiritual lives and
creating communities to encourage and support them
You are invited to the fifth Wisdom Conversation
virtual event
Tuesday, February 15 and 22, 2022
2:00-3:30 EST
Registration Fee: $15 which includes both webinars
Join Rev. Beth Long-Higgins, executive director, Ruth Frost Parker Center for Abundant Aging with United Church Homes and conversations with clergy, chaplains and spiritual directors who will share from their experience of ministries with older adults
Rev. Dave Long-Higgins, Heartland Conference Minister, spiritual director
Rev. Rich Plant, retired UCC pastor, spiritual director
Rev. Becky King, Director of Spiritual Care for UCH Trinity Communities of Dayton
Rev. Peggy Thompson, retired UCC chaplain, spiritual director and artist
Rev. Dr. Bobbie McKay, retired psychologist and UCC pastor
Rev. Erin Proie, Chaplain, UCH Chapel Hill Community
Ms. Jan Aerie, gerontologist and church consultant
Click HERE to register and learn more
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Notes from Members and Friends
Friends,
We cannot thank people enough for the prayers, phone calls, cards, gifts of food, etc. We both had quite an experience with Delta COVOD. John's evolved into COVID pneumonia and a stay in ICU, probably because his immune system had been weakened by chemotherapy. The good news was that we were both vaccinated and boosted, or it would have been much worse! Anne has recovered, but John is not yet out of the woods; however, he is on the mend. We are filled with gratitude for the medical profession and our friends at SUCC.
John and Anne Molnar
THANK YOU
Dear Members of Sylvania United Church of Christ,
Thank you! The bundle of cards and the Zoom birthday party are beyond my imagining. Never, truthfully did I suspect anything. It was all a surprise. Not a word was leaked to me. What a way to begin a new decade - filled with joy and gratitude. Thank you for the generosity of your kindness on Sunday, January 9, but also for all the years we have shared together. You are amazing.
In Christ,
David W. Andersen
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Sylvania UCC Posting Secretary Position
Many of you will remember that when Diane Christopherson began serving as our Church Secretary/Administrative Assistant, the position was noted as “interim.” That was intentional because our church had seen a lot of transition over the last several years. We now have a senior pastor who has been with us for a year and a half. We have strengthened and solidified our staff with the additions of Mary Meadows and Jennifer Vasquez. We have learned how to cope at least moderately well with the Coronavirus. We are ready now to take a deeper look at that Church Secretary/Administrative Assistant position as it relates to our “Growing Forward in Faith.”
Below is the ad we have posted in The Blade and on several websites. We would encourage you to spread the word about this position to any and all persons you think might be interested and who might help us as we grow God’s church in this place. We are encouraging Diane to be one of those persons who applies. Please keep this process and the nudging of God’s spirit in your prayers.
Sylvania United Church of Christ, Sylvania, Ohio is seeking an Office Manager who would be responsible for the efficient operation of the church office and administering tasks to support the ministries and mission of Sylvania UCC. This part-time position requires an onsite presence Monday-Friday for 30 hours weekly.
The successful candidate will have related educational or work experience as an administrative assistant or office manager, proficiency in MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Publisher, and office tools. The ability to use database programs, websites, social media, and other technology is essential to support ministry needs. A commitment to excellence, flexibility, comfort working with diverse individuals, and excellent interpersonal skills are essential for a successful candidate.
Click here to view the position description
Please send cover letter and resume by email to: patsylvaniaucc@gmail.com
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National Alliance on Mental Illness, Greater Toledo
In-Person Support Groups Are Back!
Meeting now in the new office at 4334 Secor Rd., Toledo, OH 43623
NAMI Connections
Peer Support Group
Every Monday (excluding holidays), 7 - 8:30 p.m.
Family Support Group
1st, 2nd, & 3rd Monday (excluding holidays), 7 - 8:30 p.m.
Contact Kristen Zientek: kzientek@namitoledo.org; 419-243-1119
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Sylvania UCC has added more social media platforms. Please like and follow us!
Facebook:
Page: Sylvania United Church of Christ
Group: Sylvania UCC Families
Instagram: @sylvaniaucc
Twitter: @sylvaniaucc
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Safety Reminders for Sunday In-Person Worship
Masks still required. See website for details.
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Regular hours: M - F, 9 a.m. - noon; 12:30 - 3 p.m.
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