Rev Jim Rabb passed away on Sept 17th. Jim was the pastor of Encanto Community Church for 16 years and then served as an interim pastor for three other congregations. He retired to Green Valley in 2009. His memorial service will be held at Encanto on Oct 26th at 1pm.
First Congregational of Prescott will hold a class on Compassionate Conversations on Oct 19th from 1-3. Attendees will learn to hold conversations, hear others, and speak their minds in a kind, clear and concise way without becoming defensive or going on the attack.
Encanto Community Church will staff a complimentary Pet Blessing booth at this year's Strut Your Mutt festival. Strut Your Mutt is an annual national fundraiser coordinated by Best Friends Animal Sanctuary that raises money for both local and national animal shelters by bringing together four- and two-legged participants for a 5K charity dog walk. The event will take place from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Saturday, October 19, 2019, at Cesar Chavez Park in Laveen (7858 South 35th Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona).
The Annual Chili Cook-off will be on Friday, Oct 11th from 4-6 pm at Church of the Red Rocks. Proceeds will be used to support the church's mission trip to Guatemala next spring.
As a part of a collaborative effort, First Christian in Las Cruces is helping collect items to provide to a network of shelters in Ciudad Juárez, where families are currently staying. The list of needed items includes the following (Note: ALL items MUST be NEW and in its ORIGINAL packaging to cross international boundaries): diapers, underwear, hygiene products, food, and backpacks.
On Oct 10th, members of Black Mountain UCC hoping to get involved will tour UMOM's Main Campus (Family Emergency Shelter) and UMOM’s Diane & Bruce Halle Foundation Women’s Center, the first shelter in Maricopa County designed expressly for single women experiencing homelessness. On the tour they will learn about UMOM's program and services, see different aspects of UMOM's two unique emergency shelter programs, and learn about UMOM's impact in the community.
"Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return." (Genesis 3:19). Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End is the subject of a book study at from surgeon and best-selling author Atul Gawande. Attendees will meet on Wednesdays at 11 AM or 6 PM beginning Oct 9th at Desert Heritage UCC in Mesa. Gawande explores how the goal is not a good death but a good life, all the way to the very end.
If you would like to learn more about Tempe and Arizona history, then these free lunch talks are for you. The October 9th topic is "My Mother's Navajo Stories." All sessions are free and are held in the Community Room at the Tempe History Museum (Rural & Southern), from 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. on the scheduled date. Desert Palm will be taking a group this week.
Scottsdale UCC's "Jesus Beyond Project" is a mission outreach that enables us to take Jesus beyond the walls of our church. Each month Missions gives $100 to someone whose name is pulled from the box where people have entered their names in hopes of participating. Last month, Emily Marderness was selected. For her Jesus Beyond Project, Emily learned about Casa Alitas Welcome Center in Tucson. She bought $100 in postcards from Casa Alitas and they were passed out during church on Sunday. Each postcard featured a piece of artwork made by a child staying at the monastery shelter. The artists who made the pieces on the postcards are from Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador, but the families at Casa Alitas come from many Central American and South American countries. The exhibit "Hope and Healing: The Art of Asylum at the Monastery" is moving around Tucson and will be at Good Shepherd United Church of Christ in January.
Rebecca McElfresh will be starting soon at The Good Shepherd in Sahuarita as the Minister of Pastoral Care and Spiritual Growth. Rebecca is finishing her Ordination requirements and will meet with the SWC Committee on Ministry soon. Her work at the Good Shepherd will include visitation, assisting with worship, and offering spiritual growth opportunities.