Weekly Update_Nov 28, 2024
Welcome to First! We’re glad you are here!
Rev. Hoeun Lee will be in the office Monday, Tuesday & Thursday from 9 am to 3 pm.
Phone: 519-745-8487 (ext. 208)
Cell: 519-722-5990
Email: rev.hoeun.firstunited@gmail.com
For Sunday, December 8, 2024 – Advent 2
Lectionary Readings:
Malachi 3:1-4, Luke 1:68-79 (VU p.900),
Philippians 1:3-11, Luke 3:1-6
Regional Council Prayer Cycle
Cambridge: Trillium
The deadline for submission to the weekly updates is Tuesday by 4:00 p.m.
CONTRIBUTIONS:
To get your offering to the office you can use PAR, e transfer to firstunitedchurch@rogers.com, website donation www.firstunitedchurch.ca or send a cheque. Cheques can be dropped off at the church mailbox which is located at the Entrance on the William Street side of the building.
Also, you may send your cheque to
First United Church
16 William St. West
Waterloo ON
N2L 1J3
Reminder, credit card companies have a fee of around 3-5%. If you wish First to get the full amount, then please add that percentage to your contribution.
CONTRIBUTIONS ENVELOPES FOR 2025
Please contact the office at 519-745-8487 Ext 201 or email at office@firstunitedchurch.ca if you would like pre-printed contribution envelopes for 2025.
FREE KIDS' CONCERTS AT FIRST
2025 TICKETS AVAILABLE NOVEMBER 25!
First United families and friends will be able to order advance tickets on Eventbrite beginning Monday, November 25. Just email kidsconcertsatfirst@gmail.com to receive registration links. Seats sold out quickly for the fall concerts so make sure to get your tickets before registration opens to the public on December 1!
Many thanks to our donors:
- The Brian and Belva Piercy Endowment Fund, United Church of Canada Foundation
- Music Performance Trust Fund, Central Ontario Musicians’ Association
A CHRISTMAS PARTY
You are invited to A Christmas Party. Pot Luck Dinner or Donation. Come and Enjoy Fun, Food, Fellowship (Caroling, Games, Entertainment) Please call or email: Jean Hoffmann 519-746-7184 jeanhoffmann921@gmail.com So we can set a place for you and your family and friends.
The tradition of White Gift Sunday started in 1904. Gifts were brought to the church wrapped in white so that no one else would know what you could bring and thus all could share in the joy of giving regardless of income. These gifts were distributed to families in need.
For the last few years, First United has gathered gifts for the guests who come to our Fridays at First meal. For some of these people, this is the only gift they will get. Others look forward to getting a bag of items that they can share with friends and family.
Lists of suggested items and green bags will be available at the church starting Sunday November 17. These will be received during the service on December 8 and could be dropped off at any time before that if you are not able to attend in person.
NEW MEMBERS CLASS
On Sunday December 22 (4th Sunday in Advent) we will be welcoming new members to First United. If you are interested in becoming a member or transferring your membership, please speak to Hoeun or email him (rev.hoeun.firstunited@gmail.com) or call the church office (519-745-8487). The class will be Thursday, December 5 OR Saturday, December 7 depending on availability
HOLIDAY MEAL
First United’s Holiday Meal will be served on Boxing Day, Thurs. Dec. 26th . St. John’s Kitchen will be closed that day to allow the people who regularly serve there a well-deserved day off. We help out this one day a year so that no one has to go hungry over the holiday season. It has become a great tradition for many of us at First
to take part in this joy filled service to the community.
We welcome your help to provide dessert or juice, to prep food ahead of the event or to help during the event. Financial donations are also welcome. If you would like to help, stop by the table set-up
in Hilliard Hall Dec. 1 st or 8th . You can also text or call Kristin Snell at 519-594-2169 or email her at kdeesnell@gmail.com.
Thank you to all of you who take time in this busy season to help serve our neighbors and friends each year.
GREETINGS TO OUR CONSTITUENT UNITED CHURCHES IN KITCHENER/WATERLOO,
With your willingness to be our partners in refugee sponsorships, we have settled 9 new families in the KW community, extended members of families who came to Canada in 2018 after fleeing the war in Syria. A 10th family, co-sponsored by First United Church, have arrived. It's been wonderful to see families reunited after so much hardship, to see their children thriving in school, their parents mastering English through ESL programs, and to celebrate their becoming Canadian citizens and friends. Thank you for making all this possible through our Sponsorship Agreement Holder, the national United Church of Canada. Here are two more ways to be of support.
Omar Ibrahim, a Grade 9 student at Foresthill Collegiate, wants to help you get your yard ready for Fall. On Saturdays and Sundays, he will rake your leaves and sweep sidewalks for $30 and mow lawns for $20. Call him at 226-972-8775 or reach him at eccomar@gmail.com
- Yasin Alaballa is an experienced interior/exterior house painter of 20 years, who has begun his own business since arriving. "Pearl Renovation" (519-574-7420) is his company. Those of us who have hired him are more than pleased with the quality of his work. Check out his website: //pearlrenovation.ca/ or email him at info@pearlrenovation.ca.
Thank you to our Partners!
Jim Welch and Elizabeth Eberhart-Moffat, on behalf of
Kitchener Waterloo Outreach Group (KWOG)
COMMUNITY EVENTS
MT SPACE EVENTS AT FIRST ON DEC 3rd
Our AGM at 6pm
MT Space invites you to join us for our Annual General Meeting. It’s a celebration, a reflection, and a recommitment to the work this organization set out to achieve 20 years ago.
Jingle TELL! at around 730pm
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/jingle-tell-open-mic-potluck-tickets-1087274620659?aff=oddtdtcreator
After our AGM, join us for our community open mic and potluck dinner. This year we have had so many great artists in the community stop by and share their works and talents. Not to mention the great cooks.
And our Online Auction wraps up same day at 10pm.
https://www.32auctions.com/mtspace-bursary
The Majdi Bou-Matar Bursary is an annual bursary that is dedicated to offering financial support as well as mentorship from MT Space to a newcomer, immigrant, Indigenous and/or emerging artist each year. We invite you to participate in our online auction and contribute to establishing this endowment fund to sustain the bursary for years to come.
KITCHENER-WATERLOO YOUTH ORCHESTRA DEC 6
"KW Youth Orchestra is excited to put on the first concert this season as a transformed and independent non-for-profit community organization to celebrate the achievement of the 115 young musicians. The transformation would not be possible without the exceptional generosity of providing free rehearsal and concert space by First United Church during the formative months of October 2023 through June of this year. Please consider joining us this Friday, December 6 at 6 pm in the beautiful Sanctuary of First United Church to hear the 4 progressively organized orchestras, with instrumentalists whose ages range from 6 to 26 years old. KWYO is proud to continue the orchestral education opportunity previously offered by KW Symphony in our region and spanning almost 6 decades. We hope to see you this Friday!"
Sunday, Dec 1 |
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|
10:30 am |
Worship – Advent 1 |
Sanctuary |
|
4:00 pm |
MTSpace(Ukranian Dance) |
Labyrinth Room |
|
2:00 pm |
Piano Tuning |
Sanctuary |
|
5:00 pm |
KW Chamber Music Society(Concert 7pm) |
Sanctuary/Narthex/Kitchen |
|
Sunday, Dec 8 |
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|
10:30 am |
Worship – Advent 2 |
Sanctuary |
|
4:00 pm |
Choir Christmas Program |
Sanctuary/Hilliard Hall |
Monday, Dec 2 |
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|
9:00 am |
Baileys Foods |
Hilliard Hall/Kitchen |
|
10:00 am |
MTSpace (BID) |
Chapel |
|
5:00 pm |
KW Youth Orchestra |
Sanctuary |
|
7:00 pm |
Scouts |
Hilliard Hall |
Tuesday, Dec 3 |
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|
10:00 am |
MTSpace (BID) |
Chapel |
|
1:30 pm |
Property |
Parlour |
|
4:00 pm |
MTSpace (AGM) |
Hilliard Hall |
|
5:00 pm |
KW Youth Orchestra |
Sanctuary/Labyrinth Room |
Wednesday, Dec 4 |
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|
9:30 am |
English at First |
Parlour |
|
10:00 am |
MTSpace (BID) |
Chapel |
|
6:00 pm |
MTSpace(Maria Project) |
Labyrinth Room |
|
6:30 pm |
Embers/Sparks |
Hilliard Hall/Chapel |
Thursday, Dec 5 |
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|
10:00 am |
MTSpace (BID) |
Chapel |
|
10:00 am |
Bell Choir |
Sanctuary |
|
1:30 pm |
UCW |
Parour |
|
4:00 pm |
Family Choir |
Chapel |
|
5:00 pm |
Soccer Shots |
Hilliard Hall |
|
6:00 pm |
MTSpace(Maria Project) |
Labyrinth Room |
|
7:00 pm |
Gallery Choir |
Chapel |
|
Friday, Dec 6 |
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|
10:00 am |
MTSpace (BID) |
Chapel |
|
2:00 pm |
KWYO Concert(Concert at 6pm) |
S/HH/P/CH/LR |
|
1:00 pm |
Fridays at First |
Hilliard Hall/Kitchen |
Saturday, Dec 7 |
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|
9:00 am |
Knitting Group |
Parlour |
|
10:00 am |
Christmas Party |
Hilliard Hall/Kitchen |
|
12:00 pm |
New Member Class |
Parlour |
|
1:00 pm |
Dudgeon & Dragons |
Labyrinth Room |
WEEKLY UPDATE
of happenings, events and concerns of our
First United Church Family
December 1, 2024
Minister Rev. Hoeun Lee
Music Director Kathleen King Martin
Church Administrator Sheena Curwood
AV Technician Harold Arnett
Custodian Jay Brooker
Assistant Custodian Craig Lennox
16 William Street West
Waterloo, Ontario N2L 1J3
Office: 519-745-8487 x201
Office Hours: Mon-Thu 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
email: office@firstunitedchurch.ca
website: firstunitedchurch.ca
Chair of the Board
email: firstunitedboardchair@gmail.com