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FAITH ENRICHMENT OPPORTUNITIES:
A Healing Service will be held at St. Paul on November 15, 4:30 p.m. as a preparation for the Christmas Season. The service goes beyond prayers for physical healing and addresses the healing that we are all in need of--healing of our hearts, minds and spirits.
THANKSGIVING WORSHIP SERVICE - The 3rd Annual Joint Thanksgiving Worship Service will be celebrated by the congregations of Hope Lutheran and St. Paul Lutheran at St. Paul on Tuesday, November 25 at 7:00 p.m.. Following the service, pie, coffee and fellowship will be a part of the evening celebration.
Confirmation Secret Prayer Partners -- A group of adults in our congregation have been secret prayer partners for our 7th and 8th grade confirmation students. Each student has a particular adult that has been praying for them on a regular basis and communicating anonymously with the student through cards and notes. These adults are responding to the congregation's baptismal promise to pray for these young people.
Monday Evening Bible Study -- This group meets Monday evening from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Tuesday Morning Prayer Hour -- This group of St. Paul members meets every Tuesday morning at 10:00 a.m. to pray for the concerns of this congregation. We pray for those who have had requests put in the prayer box, ourselves, our church and whatever our needs might be. These concerns are then lifted up to God in prayer. You may request prayer from this group or you may join them as a pray-er at any time. There is no training session for prayer--it comes from the heart and God will give you the words because He knows our needs. If you do not wish to speak your prayers, you may join in whatever way you are comfortable.
Women's Ministry Bible Study -- meets on the second Wednesday of the month from 11:00 a.m. in the Library. Women of all ages are invited to join. Bible studies are based on the monthly Bible study in Lutheran Women Today.
Sunday Morning Faith Discussion -- Grab a cup of coffee or tea and a snack and join Pastor Kormann for weekly discussions study following the services on Sunday mornings at 10:30 a.m. in the library using the ELCA Faith Lens series. All are welcome.
Abundant Life Arabic Lutheran Church (located in Prince of Peace Lutheran Church building on Ford Road in Dearborn) serves traditional Middle Eastern dinners on the last Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m. for $8.00 per person. The food is great and the monies raised support the women's programs at Abundant Life. Reservations are not necessary; however, if you know in advance you will be there you can call the St. Paul church office for the contact phone number.
---Notices--
LOCAL Ways to Serve and Share
Anyone wishing to offer special prelude music for our Christmas Eve worship services should speak with Carolyn Haury soon. Before each service we like to offer vocal and instrumental music, including solos, duets and small ensembles. "All praise for music, deep gift profound, through hands and voices in holy sound; the psalms of David and Mary's praise, in wordless splendor and lyric phrace, with all creation one song we raise: Soli Deo gloria!" (To God alone the glory!) ELW 878, verse 3.
The cast is assembled for Amahl and the Night Visitors performances on February 13 and 14. We need some volunteers to help with set design and building, lighting, sound reinforcement, costumes and publicity. If you have experience with any of these behind-the-scenes jobs please contact Carolyn Haury through the office.
Thanksgiving Week we will once again join the First United Methodist Church of Dearborn in helping to feed the homeless. St. Paul has agreed to prepare, serve and clean up breakfast and a monetary donation has been given to the Methodist Church to help offset the cost of this project. Look for the sign-up on the Snow Street bulletin board to volunteer!
SURRENDER HOUSE - As you may remember, Surrender House (residence for women and men recovering from addiction) residents each purchase and prepare their own meals. This, unfortunately, leaves them little time for eating together and many times because their meals are high in carbohydrates and low in nutritional value, their diets are lacking. We are hoping to provide each resident (three of them in total) with a Thanksgiving baset. Additional information as to how you can donate will be published in the bulletin.
FAIR TRADE - This year, consider purchasing gifts for the holidays or birthdays that benefit artisans and craftspeople from low income areas across the globe. Merchandise from the ELCA Fair Trade catalog will be available for purchase on November 29-30 after services. Make sure you stop by the table outside the church office.
The next Blood Drive at St. Paul will be on Sunday December 7. Please consider giving the donation of life. Blood supply shortages are always critical in southeast Michigan and particularly as we approach the holidays.
Did you know that the SERVANT BOARD, located in the lobby of the Educational Building, has sign-up sheets where you can volunteer to donate flowers, bulletins or communion elements in honor or in memory of loved ones....or perhaps you'd like to volunteer to be a lector/reader, lay assistant, communion assistant, acolyte, youth servant or monthly altar care leader. Look at the list and see what strikes your fancy!
NEEDED: Eyes and Ears and Volunteers! - Maintaining St. Paul Church is a huge job. A list of chores that could be done by volunteers on their own time is being established by the Property Committee. Look for Chore Cards available around the church on which you can record chores that you notice need doing. The Committee can then establish a working list of chores for volunteers, determine what the committee can do and determine what needs to be hired out. So, please be our eyes, ears and volunteers. Your input is appreciated, because a little action from everyone can go a long way.
We are looking for a new Sunday School Superintendent. If interested in this rewarding position, please contact Lynda Smith through the church office at 313-561-0168. Please contact either Lynda Smith or Don Immen through the church office for additional information.
Are you looking to give some time to church but don't necessarily want to be part of a committee? How about being part of the staff? We could use some help in the office on a regular basis (folding and stuffing bulletins, preparing mailings, etc.). If you can help, please contact Cheryl in the office at 313-561-0168.
Child's Hope -- The Community Ministry Committee has received information to involve St. Paul in a new project called Child's Hope. It is an organization based on the campus of the University of Michigan-Dearborn and helps protect children from the pain and suffering of abuse and neglect. It works on the development of the whole child, strengthening families and fostering a safe and nurturing environment for all children. Starting in April and every month thereafter, a listing will be posted of items needed and there will be a "Baby Shower" collection on the third Sunday of each month.
St. Paul supports the Helping Hands Food Pantry at Cherry Hill Presbyterian Church, Dearborn. Non-perishable food items are collected on the first Saturday and Sunday of each month. Did you know that nationally at least 13.5 million households in the U.S. are "food insecure"; 4.4 million experience hunger at some point in each year. Food insecure households include an estimated 38 million people, of which almost 14 million are children. Please be generous with your offerings, particularly as you plan your own holiday feasts and family gatherings. There are many in our midst who are unemployed, under employed or facing an uncertain future with the upheaval in the auto industry. The requests for assistance are up and the need in our area is great. Place your contributions in the red box across from the church office. Monetary donations are also accepted at the church office and will be sent to Lutheran World Relief for the World Hunger Program.
St. Paul operates a Crisis Fund to provide help for people in our area who have fallen on difficult times. We are inundated with calls and are in need of an infusion of cash to keep this fund operational. If you can help us with a donation designated for that fund, it would be appreciated. Through our help we are able to give a deeper understanding of what a Church Family is all about.
The Community Ministry Committee continues to collect bottles and cans to support global missions projects. They love to take care of your returns but remind you that they can only accept bottles and cans with MI (Michigan) Refunds. Water bottles, foreign bottles and cans without the stamp end up in the trash!
If you would like to lend a hand to someone who truly needs and appreciates your help, consider becoming a driver for the Meals on Wheels Program. Please contact Marianne at 313-943-2009 for more information. Mileage reimbursement is available through Wayne County.
EMPTIES4CASH -- Robert Hayes, one of St. Paul's youth, continues to coordinate this worthwhile recycling program of used computer ink cartridges. Bring in your used cartridges in a sealed Ziploc-type bag and Robert will do the rest. St. Paul gets $4.00 per cartridge so this is a great way for our youth to make some money and it keeps all of those cartridges out of our landfills where they won't decompose for 100 years! Reduce pollution and raise funds one cartridge at a time!
Help is needed to "care and feed" both of St. Paul's libraries. There is the adult library on the first floor as well as the new children's library on the second floor. If you can spare an hour or two a month please contact Shelley Knott through the church office.
Community Ministry continues St. Paul's relationship with Surrender House, a facility in Dearborn Heights for women recovering from addiction. Several are seeking part-time or full-time employment. If you have any connections that may help them gain employment, please contact Carol Welsh through the church office. They can also use any grocery food coupons to enhance their food budget. If you have coupons that you would be willing to donate, pleawse drop them in the Community Ministry mailbox outside the church office.
Did you know....that Heartline of Michigan always needs donations of folding umbrellas, deodorant and toothpaste as well as household items to help their program participants embark on a new phase in their lives? ....that St. Leo's Soup Kitchen in Detroit always needs large cans of food and used bath towels? ....that the Wayne County Center for Families always needs donations of snacks (cookies, crackers, pretzels, etc.) and laundry and dish detergents (any size package, any brand), flatware (especially spoons) and anything that can be used as a soup bowl (bowls or large mugs). Place these donations in the red barrel outside of the church office and the items will be appropriately distributed.
GLOBAL Ways to Serve and Share
Give "gifts that make a world of difference" -- See notice above about the upcoming Fair Trade Fair coming to St. Paul on November 29-30, 2008 and plan to do some of your holiday shopping!
Additionally, log on to www.agreatergift.org for even more gift possibilities or patronize Ten Thousand Villages fair trade boutique at 303 South Main Street, Ann Arbor Michigan (phone: 734-332-1270) or log onto their website at www.tenthousandvillages.com
Ten Thousand Village stores are affiliated with the Mennonite Central Committee and are a part of their quiet worldwide outreach and relief services. They seek out artisan groups in underdeveloped countries (currently 30), provide fair prices for the handicrafts produced, and help them develop new and better products with local materials that are environmentally safe and even recycled materials. The artisans receive a percentage of the price up front and the rest on delivery and there are no middle men. 75% of the artisans are women. The money they earn usually goes to feed and clothe their children so they can attend school. Several of the artisan co-ops themselves provide funds to create or support local schools.
ONE: The Campaign to Make Poverty History -- Become a ONE Lutheran! The ELCA and Bread for the World support the ONE Campaign. You can join by 1. Signing the declaration; 2. Telling a friend; 3. Wearing a wristband. For more information check out the website for this ELCA initiative at www.elca.org/advocacy
Instead of Mourning a Genocide, What if YOU could STOP One? -- Darfur, a region in western Sudan (Africa) the size of Texas, is home to what the United Nations has called the world's worst humanitarian crisis. Since February 2003, an estimated 400,000 men, women and children have died while another 2.5 million innocent civilians have been forced to flee their homes. Many, particularly the women and children, has escaped death only to fall victim to repeated rape and beatings at the hands of the government-backed Janjaweed militias. Today, survivors face starvation and disease in overcrowded refugee camps and shattered villages. Take Action Now! Until we end the violence in Darfur, we must all live with the knowledge that we are allowing another genocide on our watch. Whatever you choose to do, you will be making a difference in ending the violence in Darfur and reducing the suffering of your neighbors, even though they may live thousands of miles away. The Million Voices for Darfur campaign (www.savedarfur.org) helps individuals contact President Bush and demand that he do more to protect the civilians of Darfur. For information on how the ELCA is taking action in this situation, check out www.elca.org/disaster. If we all play a small part, together we will make a very BIG difference.
Social Opportunities at St. Paul
Advent by Candlelight will be held on Monday, December 1, 2008. There are signup sheets for hosting a table on a board outsidie the church office. Please direct any questions to Jennifer Knott-Giering or Shelley Knott by contacting the church office.
The St. Paul Quilters, a pleasant group of women, meet at 9 a.m. each Thursday for about 6 hours of fun, food and stitchery. They are responsible for the wonderful stitched quilts given to each child when they are baptized at St. Paul. If your passion is quilting or sewing and you are available on Thursday mornings at 9:00 a.m., this group is for you! They meet weekly most every Thursday throughout the year. This is a group for fellowship and mutual support while producing a precious piece of art. The ladies would love to see a few more helping hands and welcome any new members to their group. If you would like to be a part of this lively group, please bring your thimble any Thursday and join them.
Do you have pictures lying around just waiting for you to put them in albums? We are meeting in the Fellowship Hall on Wednesdays from 4:00 - 9:00 p.m. (formerly Thursdays, same time) for anyone that would like some space to spread out and work on getting pictures organized and into albums. This will be a great opportunity to get together with friends or make new ones in an encouraging, relaxing atmosphere. You might be inspired by seeing what others are doing. You may come as often and stay as long as your schedule permits. For more information or for supplies, contact Rose Kormann through the church office.
The Nifty Knitters meet on the second Monday of each month at 9 a.m. in the library. Bring a sack lunch. All are welcome!
Cua2rts Programs -- Check out some of these fun activities offered through Concordia University in Ann Arbor. Call 734-995-4612 for more information or check the web at www.cuaa.edu/cuarts.
Did you know that T.O.P.S has had a chapter at St. Paul Church for 50 years? They are looking for a few new members who are interesting in losing a few (or many!) pounds. They meet on Monday nights at 7:00 p.m. on the second floor. For additional information on T.O.P.S. (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) please contact Kathy LeFranc through the church office.
High School and Youth Activities
Let Us Do The Cooking! - St. Paul youth are sponsoring the 2nd annual Breakfast for Dinner on Saturday, November 15 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. A free will offering will be taken with proceeds going to the Youth Travel Fund for the 2009 National Gathering in New Orleans. Sign up sheets are posted on the youth bulletin board.
All 9th through 12th graders are invited to participate in St. Paul Youth activities. We meet on Sundays during the school year at 9:45 a.m. in the youth room and other events as scheduled.
DOLLARS FOR DARFUR -- Dollars for Darfur is an innovative nation-wide fundraising competition between high school to raise money to help stop the genocide in Darfur. Please go to www.SaveDarfur.org for more information on this great program!
Other Miscellaneous Notices
Congregational Meeting - The annual fall congregational meeting will be held on Sunday, November 23, at 11:30 a.m. in the sanctuary. Preceding the meeting a brunch will be served by the St. Paul Youth. Agenda items for the meeting include: Nominating Committee report, Presentation of the 2009 Budget, Update on the Sale of the Parsonage, and Presentation of Racial Reconciliation Covenant.
Save lids....save lives - Please save all your P"pink" lids from Yoplait yogurt. They are being collected for the fight against breast cancer. For each lid sent in, Yoplait will send in 10 cents to the breast cancer research foundation. There is a colection box under the Sunday School bulletin board.
La Escuelita de Esperanza formerly known as La Aula Amarilla and familiar to St. Paul members as Elizabeth's mission, continues in the community of Nicaraguan immigrants called Proyecto Cristal in San Jose', Costa Rica. Don't forget to check out the program's web site at laesculitadeesperanza.googlepages.com. A new program director arrived in early September and another volunteer will be arriving in mid-October for a 3-month stay. Monetary donations to continue this program are still very much needed and can be directed through the church office at St. Paul, earmarked for the Costa Rica Program.
I'm sure my problems are not as important....as so many others in the congregation. I don't want to take a Stephen Minister away from someone that REALLY needs one more than I do. I'll just wait. Don't wait until things get out of control. A Stephen Minister is waiting to help you. You are important to us. Please contact the church office @ 313-561-0168 for the help of a Stephen Minister.
Would you like to receive St. Paul's weekly e-newsletter? Stay on top of news, events and updates from St. Paul...email thisweekatst.paul@yahoo.com if you would like to be added to our growing e-newsletter.
Watching the Commemorative Garden Grow! This past year we were able to finish all permanent plantings of shrubs. grasses, etc. We also added new mulch and annuals for spring and summer. The sub structure of the Garden was completed. We had a sprinkler system and an electrical circuit/outlet installed. Future plans: We are currently saving for a water feature (e.g. - fountain), a second granite bench and stone pillars. For now, however, the Garden has become a serene and lovely addition to St. Paul church. If you are interested in supporting the Garden by purchasing memorial plaques or bricks, benefactor bricks or honorary bricks or wish to prepay scattering fees or donate to the Garden, applications are available throughout the year through the church office. All bricks or plaques will be ordered and installed twice a year; once in the spring and again in the fall. Meanwhile, the Garden is for all to enjoy, so please visit, stroll through or sit for a while. If you have questions, please direct them to Norene Sligay at the church office at 313-561-0168.
Orders for Equal Exchange (fairly traded) coffee, tea and cocoa continue to be taken by the Community Ministry Committee. You can see all of the items available at the "consumer store" site at www.equalexchange.com. Any questions can be directed to Carol Welsh through the church office at 313-561-0168.
Did you know that the florist could recycle the containers from pulpit and lectern flowers? Bring your containers to the church and they will be returned to Weber Gifts for reuse.
Please save your aluminum can tabs. The Sunday School is collecting the tabs on beverage and other cans to take to the Ronald McDonald House in Detroit. They recycle the aluminum and use the proceeds to help with the cost of the house. We are trying to see how many pounds we can collect. There is a clear, plastic jar near the Sunday School office on the second floor in which to deposit them. Thanks for your help!
Does your college student or son or daughter serving in the military service have a new address? The Membership & Outreach Committee would like to know what it is. They make contact with St. Paul's out-of-area youth from time to time. Please put address changes in the Membership & Outreach mailbox across from the church office.
Simply Giving -- Forms for the Simply Giving Program are available through the church office. These forms allow you to contribute to St. Paul through automatic withdrawal from your bank account on a regular weekly, biweekly or monthly basis. Besides being convenient for you, it gives St. Paul Church a consistent income each month. Consider joining this worthwhile program.
Watch Mosaic on the Web! - Mosaic Television, as part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, has a variety of video programs that you can view from your computer at www.elca.org/mosaic. Here is a list of what is currently available: - Holy Communion
- Mission Support: Where Your Money Goes
- Understanding the Roman Catholic Church
- ELCA Identity 2006 Synod Assembly Video
- Introducing Jesus of Nazareth
- Introducing the Old Testament
- Prayer
- Churchwide Assembly Video Scrapbook
- Beyond Tsunami: Lutherans Respond
- Introducing the New Testament
- Women in the Early Church
- Town Hall Meeting with Mark Hanson 2005 Synod Assembly
- Faithful Travel with Rick Steves
- Life of Apostle Paul with Rick Steves
- Opening the Door to Luther with Rick Steves
- Understanding Islam
- Glory to God Alone: The Life of J.S. Bach
- Good Grandparenteing
- The ELCA in Chile:A New Resource for Kids
- The Disappearing 20-Somethings
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