Ecclesiastical Council for Joy Barnitz Saturday, April 13, 9:45-11:30am Niles Discovery Church, 36600 Niles Blvd, Fremont Ministers and delegates from the Bay Association are invited to this important gathering to determine whether or not our Member in Discernment, Joy Barnitz, is approved for Ordination pending call. Refreshments and coffee will follow the proceedings. We offer congratulations and blessings to Joy in achieving this major step in her journey! We strongly encourage in-person participation in this event. If that is not possible, you may participate remotely via Zoom: https://bit.ly/JoyBarnitzEC Please register in advance here, whether you plan to attend in person or remotely. It's important to read Joy's Ordination Paper in advance of the event, in order to prepare any questions you may have for her. You may access it here.
Service of Ordination Ashley Wai'olu Moore Sunday, April 28, 3:00pm Eden United Church of Christ, 21455 Birch St, Hayward All are invited to celebrate Ashley's Ordination, as she has been called as Designated Term Associate Minister of Eden UCC. Read more about the festivities and RSVP here, so that they'll be sure to have enough food for the reception that follows the service. An online option for the service is also available via the above link. We offer congratulations and blessings to Pastor Ashley and to Eden UCC on this blessed occasion!
Service of Installation for our Conference Minister Rev Davena Jones Saturday, May 4, 11:00am - 3:00pm City of Refuge UCC, 8400 Enterprise Way, Oakland May the Fourth be with you! Join us for a wonderful celebration of this historic installation. Please let us know you are coming with this simple signup so we will be sure to have sufficient seating and food for all.
Save the Date! Rev. Renie Kirk's Retirement Party Sunday, May 19, 2:00pm Community Congregational Church UCC 1305 W 2nd St, Benicia RSVP: [email protected] or 707-745-0674 Celebrating Pastor Renie's 17 years of service with love, dedication and hard work!
Food Truck Fundraiser Benefiting the Black Wealth Builders Fund Thursday, April 11, 4:30-6:30pm Arlington Community Church UCC, 52 Arlington Ave, Kensington Speakers at 6:00pm Enjoy a delicious dinner, support local Black owned businesses, and contribute to down payment support for first time Black homebuyers!
Farmer's Market and Worship Service The Good Table UCC, 5166 Sobrante Ave, El Sobrante Sunday, April 21, 12-4pm (worship at 10:30am) The first Planting Justice El Sobrante Farmer’s Market at The Good Table is happening! We’ll be closing the street down in front of our site and having a lovely collection of food vendors and live music each Sunday afternoon. We will also hold our first ever worship service and Sunday Gathering inside our building at 10:30am. While the building is still under construction, we do have chairs and will think of it a bit like a picnic worship and keep things simple. All are welcome!
Summer Camp at Tamarack Summer will be here before we know it, and our camping season will be in full swing! It's time to gear up so that our youth have the opportunity to experience camp. Early Bird registration is open and camp dates are: · Senior High (grades 10-12) July 14-20 · Junior High (grades 7-9) July 21-27 · Junior Camp (grades 4-6) July 28-August 3 Camp Tam is a magical place where our youth and staff find time to play, learn, and start figuring out their spiritual journeys. Please consider volunteering as staff to help this happen! Contact Jeannie Hobson [email protected] or 559-904-4542 or the NCNC office.
NCNC UCC Annual Gathering 2024 Making All Things New! June 6, 10:00am - June 8, 12:00 noon First Congregational Church of Fresno UCC Registration is now open. Last year was our first time meeting at a local church in over 50 years and it was fantastic. FCC Palo Alto was a wonderful host church. This year we'll be at FCC Fresno and have lots of ideas about how to improve the experience. If you have suggestions, please share them by email to [email protected]
Second Saturday Documentary Series Niles Discovery Church via Zoom Second Saturday of each month, January through November, 1:30pm Cosponsored with the San Jose Peace & Justice Center, we show a documentary at 1:30pm on the second Saturday of each month - a film that will open your eyes to what's right under your nose. A discussion led by someone knowledgeable about the documentary’s topic follows each screening. Register in advance here. To find out what's screening next, sign up for emails about the series here.
Healing Circle Last Monday of each month 7:15pm via Zoom The United Church of Hayward Healing Circle is a group of people who gather to direct healing energy, God’s Love, to those who have had their names entered into the Circle. The Healing Circle has met since October 2003 and is open to anyone, the only requirement being that one is open to the possibilities that God makes available to us. Read more here. To receive the Zoom link for the next Healing Circle, or to get more information first, please email Steve Holly at [email protected]
Community Work + Fun Day Last Saturday of each month, February through November, 12-3pm (First Saturdays in December and January) Hosted by The Good Table UCC 5166 Sobrante Ave, El Sobrante 94803 Wear sturdy shoes and clothes you don’t mind getting dirty, bring work gloves and gardening tools if you have them, and come help us tend our beautiful planting beds and continue to clean up our construction site. We're all set for opening day of our Planting Justice Farmer's Market on April 21, and we continue to develop our pay-what-you-can and pay-it-forward community cafe, organic tree and plant nursery and gathering space for the arts, education, music, and spiritual community. Come and visit us sometime!
Transitions Group First Thursday of each month at 10:30am via Zoom United Church of Hayward Transitions Group invites you to join us at this small, confidential, ecumenical circle of laughter, tears, and support, facilitated by our Minister & Teacher, Rev. Jeanne Loveless. In recent gatherings we have been using Jan Richardson's book "A Cure for Sorrow: A Book of Blessings in Times of Grief" as a container for our conversations. You are more than welcome to come and share your story, or to just listen with your camera on or off. To learn more or to receive the Zoom link, please contact [email protected].
Black Wealth Builders Fund Special Offerings We invite all our churches in the Bay Association to hold special offerings for this worthy cause. Launched by Arlington Community Church UCC in 2021, the BWBF is designed to help repair a small portion of the financial damage of racism and white supremacist policies—in particular, the longstanding barriers to Black homeownership that have existed in our East Bay communities. BWBF has already awarded 20 first-time Black homeowners zero-percent-interest loans toward their down payments, generally $10,000-20,000 per applicant. No payments are expected on these loans until the homeowner sells the property or refinances it.Contributions are welcomed from individuals or congregations at any time.
A Resolution was passed at our 2023 NCNC UCC Annual Gathering, inviting churches to become Black Wealth Builder Congregations, by engaging in intentional study on racism and by participating in funds like this or other organizations that specifically assist Black families and individuals in the acquisition of homes. The process for becoming a BWB church is explained in this document. In short, the primary requirements are:
Undertaking church-wide study and education on systemic racism in our country and its ongoing economic and social effects on Black families today.
Providing regular opportunities to deepen understanding of these issues, developing anti-racist practices on both individual and systemic levels.
Taking action to reduce the economic impact of racism by fundraising toward mortgage assistance for first-time Black homebuyers.
Holding a Congregational vote on becoming a BWB Congregation, committing to continuing this work going forward.
Contact us for more information on becoming a BWB Congregation.
Free Coaching for NCNC Authorized Ministers The job of a coach is to ask the right questions to invite the client to see what they cannot see, to move beyond limiting beliefs that are getting in the way, and to find the best answers to whatever they are working through. A coach-approach to ministry is a way to energize individuals and groups to hear and follow the Spirit’s leading in their lives and in their faith communities. We are offering any of our Authorized Ministers the opportunity to receive six free coaching sessions with one of our trained Coaches. You can express interest in receiving free individual coaching by completing this form.
Our Whole Lives (OWL) From Rev. Amy Johnson, Minister for Sexuality Education and Justice in the UCC National Office: In addition to an increasing number of in-person trainings across the country, Our Whole Lives trainings will continue to be offered online in 2023 for UCC and UUA members, at a cost of only $250 plus curriculum. Information about all trainings can be found here. Questions? Feel free to contact Rev. Amy Johnson at [email protected]
Adult Mental Health First Aid Training Rev Dr Toni Dunbar recommends these newly updated Mental Health First Aid® trainings, to strengthen or refresh our skills in supporting folx with mental health challenges. The training helps us to recognize the signs of crisis or trauma, to learn ways of de-escalating the situation, and to redirect people in crisis toward appropriate care. Faith organizations and community programs serving Black and Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) and Nonbinary, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Two-Spirit and Intersexed persons (LGBTQ2SI) may find these trainings especially helpful, as BIPOC and LGBTQ2SI communities are statistically, and visibly, underserved. No community, however, is immune from mental health and substance use challenges, and these trainings are open to all.