The Board of Outreach is planning to start a church-wide conversation about living with disabilities. Some of us are living with a disability, whether we are living in a wheelchair or living with depression. Many more of us are trying to support family and friends who have a “disability.” All of us are effected by missed opportunities of interacting with people who are not comfortable in our community due to a disability.

To start our conversation on living with disabilities, Outreach is looking for input from everyone. In January we will distribute a short questionnaire asking about your personal experiences living with disabilities. At the end of February, we will host an after worship meeting to discuss the issues and ideas that came up in the questionnaire.

We welcome any input or comments that will help start our conversation.

Our All Church Work Day up at 130 North Road was a big success. We had over thirty people volunteering...from painting to cooking.

The weather was rainy but there was plenty of work to do inside and I hope the powers that be were pleased with all we got done.

The lunch was delicious too, and we had lots left over, but Jim, the local supervisor, took what was left to a halfway home in Lowell that are always appreciative of any food contributions.

We'll hope that we can have another build day in the spring.

The construction trailer at the Bedford site was broken into last week, and over $3500.00 of our power tools were taken (mitre saw, 2 Cordless Saws...All with Batteries...1/2 Hammer Drill, Cordless Drills, 18 Volt Chargers, 2 Jig Saws, Orbital Sander, Palm Sander, Corded Drill, Skill Saw, Dewalt Batteries, Tape Measurers, Hammers). This is the second time we have had a break in at the site. Eastern Bank donated money to replace the tools. Others also responded. Many thanks to all.
Holly Webster

After worship, finish your holiday shopping for the person(s) who has everything by making a donation in their honor to Habitat for Humanity, Heifer International, NAMI, Worcester Fellowship/Never Alone, House of Hope, Doctors Without Borders, Bedford Food Pantry or the Ngamo Primary School in Zimbabwe. In return, the Outreach Board will give you a nice gift card and a certificate explaining your donation and that charity. One purchase can be two gifts, one for your friend and one for a worthy organization. One size fits all. No returns will be needed. .

Currently, the House of Hope in Lowell has 23 families in residence which involve 19 children. Only two are of school age, the oldest being seven. Six women are pregnant and one is expecting twins. Again, they expressed their thanks for the baby shower items! They were just great! They now need clothing (new or gently used) for toddlers and infants. Anything up to size 5/6 would be wonderful.

For food, their shelves are pretty depleted of everything. Pasta is a favorite for the little ones: canned spaghetti with or without meatballs, ravioli, mac ‘n cheese, jelly, applesauce, soups, cereal, large bottles of juice, etc. Thank you!

Christmas planning has begun. Last year they helped 103 families with toys, household goods, and a present for the moms. It is also possible to “adopt” a family or just one child. House of Hope helps families recently relocated, too. If you are interested in contributing toys in general or sponsoring a child or family, please contact: Edna Gustafson (Operations Coordinator), 978-458-2870. Her e-mail address is:ednahoh@hopelowell.org. For more information about House of Hope, visit: www.hopelowell.org. And thank you, again and again!

Questions? Win Webster is a willing “point person.”

This summer Eric, Wendy, Courtney, Eliza, and Ben Stacey flew to Guatemala for a family mission trip. At Pastor Jamie’s encouragement, they shared their adventure with the congregation on November 15th with a slide show and talk. The congregation eagerly listened to every word and learned so much from them. The Stacey family learned about this mission need from Long Way Home, Inc. They helped build a green construction project (the Tecnico Maya School) using recycled tires and liter-packed bottles (filled with dirt). Go to Global Giving on the web to find out more about this project, ways you can help, and see photographs too. Remember the church records services…this is one DVD you may want to borrow to hear about their experiences.

The THIRD ANNUAL FUN BRIDGE GAME for Habitat will be held at our church on Friday, February 5th, with a snow date of Friday, February 19th.  So please think about your bridge playing friends and get them all to mark it on their calendars and plan to come. Lets keep up this new and fun tradition!!!

The “mitten tree” will be up from January 3rd to 24th to collect knitted hats and warm mittens for the Dakota Indians. More information will be in the next newsletter..

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YOU ARE INVITED…to share with the congregation your volunteer experience and its connection with/impact on your own spiritual journey. How does your volunteer venture affect how you see God, how you look at the world, how you think of other people? Do elements in it cause you to feel thankful, challenged, joyful? Our Outreach Board hopes to highlight an individual/team once a month in worship and/or in the newsletter. The board believes that it’s important for all in our congregation to hear people’s own stories of where they put their values and faith into practical action. If you are interested in offering a very brief “Volunteer Moment” in worship or in the newsletter, please speak to a member of our Outreach Board: Alison Weaver, Barbara Coombs, Ruth Gural, Rob Millar, Cindy Webb, Holly Webster, or Win Webster.

Our knitting ministry knits prayer shawls to give to those who need comfort. And our knitters have been busy! If you have been in church recently to see the shawls on the altar waiting to be blessed, you would have seen a rainbow of colors. Many of our shawls were taken to Louisiana with our Mission Teams this year.

A BIG THANK YOU to all who are helping with this ministry!! Every shawl counts. So it doesn’t matter if you knit fast or slow, every one you do is appreciated. If you have never knit a shawl and would like to be a part of our ministry, instructions and assistance are available by contacting Nancy Guetersloh.
Questions:
Where do I get the yarn? The supply of yarn is in the office wing closet across the hall from Loryne Koebele’s office. It is in one of the three blue storage containers in the bottom of the closet; instructions are there too.

What do I do with my shawl after I have finished knitting it? Please leave it in the church office (not in the closet in the office wing). Our pastor then places it on the altar in the Sanctuary, where she blesses it during the Sunday service.

Are there special prayer shawls for children? Yes, they are smaller and have a pocket in them. We put a tiny stuffed animal in the pocket.
Where are completed prayer shawls kept? They are stored in two of the three blue bins in the office wing closet.

What do I do if I want to give a prayer shawl to someone? First, go to the closet and look at the list of recipients taped to the lid of one of the bins. Check carefully to be sure nobody else has already given a shawl to the same person. If in doubt, check with a staff member. Second, write the name of the person you are giving the shawl to and also include the date. Third, choose a shawl, and be sure in include the brochure and card that go with each shawl. Remember the brochure is different for children.

How much does it cost to make a shawl? The price varies. If the yarn is not on sale it costs $15 to make one shawl; if it is on sale, the cost is $11 (used to cost $10).

Should I donate yarn? Special yarn is used and Nancy Guetersloh purchases it for us. We prefer a monetary donation to cover the cost of the yarn we buy.

How do I make a monetary donation to the prayer shawl ministry to help pay for the yarn? If you would like to make a donation to the prayer shawl minnistry to help pay for the yarn, please write your check to First Church of Christ, Congregational, with a notation in the lower left corner, "Prayer Shawl Ministry."

Hello friends! Have you been wondering what is happening outside city hall in Worcester? Worcester Fellowship had a great summer with close to 100 people attending every week. We had a social at Lake Park and a bowling trip. This fall we went to Trinity Northboro to play Pictionary and had a delicious lunch, and we have an Advent event at First Church Marlborough.

As the weather gets cooler (we've had snow at worship already!) we have 25-40 for worship. Every time it rains or snows we think of you all in Bedford as we hand out umbrellas. Although we mostly "lend" the umbrellas the numbers are beginning to dwindle.

There is much discussion in Worcester about the closing of the PIP shelter, many people are getting housing, but there is anxiety about how the program will work out. We continue to offer a stable, hopeful presence at worship and on the streets.

Many thanks to all of you for your donations, your support, and your prayers! Liz Magill