IMPORTANT: Please fill out the attendance sheet found in your bulletin EACH WEEK with your name and date, and place it in the offering plate. This will assist us in making sure that all of our members are being cared for as needed during our vacancy.
HELP IS NEEDED next Sunday after worship as we decorate the sanctuary for the Advent/Christmas season. Please plan to stay for a half hour or so to assist in decorating your church. “Many hands make light work.”
TURKEYS & HAMS: We will continue to accept donations of turkeys and hams until December 11. We have already made deliveries of your donations to the Salvation Army, Community Mission, Lighthouse Women & Children, and the Lord’s Day Dinner to help them provide holiday dinners for our neighbors in need. We will make additional deliveries prior to Christmas. Your gifts can be stored in the downstairs kitchen freezer. If you need help carrying, please ask an usher for assistance.
ADVENT GIVING TREE: Trees will be available in the chapel and narthex through the Advent and Christmas seasons. The trees are decorated with tags listing items needed by clients of Heart, Love, & Soul, Lighthouse, and the Niagara Gospel Mission. If you would like to participate in this project, please take a tag from the tree, purchase the items listed, and return it unwrapped to the tree table. All donations will be delivered in January to the appropriate agency.
YOU’RE INVITED to celebrate with us! The Sunday School is excited about Jesus’ upcoming birthday next month, and they are planning a special celebration for Sunday, December 18. They are already working on a song that they will be singing during worship, and they will be participating in the service that day by helping with the readings, ushering, and acolyting. The congregation is invited to stay after worship for cake and snacks in the chapel. What a great way to start off the week leading up to the greatest birth in the history of the world! Mark your calendars so you won’t forget!!
THANK YOU for your generous donations of non-perishable food items for St. Vincent de Paul food pantry. We were able to fill three cars with boxes of food, which were delivered on Friday. They had depleted their pantry supplies with their Thanksgiving distribution to over 100 local families, so they were VERY appreciative of our donations as they restock for the upcoming Christmas holiday. Job well done!
NOVEMBER MISSION ENVELOPES have been designated to support Niagara Hospice. This local agency provides physical, emotional, and spiritual care to patients and families facing terminal illness. They have provided comfort and dignity to several cherished families of our congregation in recent months. They strive to maximize their quality of life for as long as possible in home settings, long-term care, and their Hospice House facilities. If you wish to support their services, please place your mission envelope in the offering plate during November, or donate online in the monthly mission section.
GRACE LADIES Christmas Poinsettia sale is currently going on until Sunday, December 4th. Order forms are at both sanctuary entrances, please turn in your order to the church office no later than the 5th. The cost is $7 a piece.
THE ALTAR GUILD is currently looking for members to join. The guild is run on a monthly commitment and you will be matched with a current guild member and/or trained on the weekly guild duties. Please contact either the church office or Erika Tuscher if you are interested.
OFFICE HOURS: Starting November, the church office will only be open the first Sunday of the month on weekends. The weekday hours remain the same of Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 10am-2pm. There is a gray inbox on the desk to drop off any information or requests for the office.
COMING SOON: Pick up your 2022 Advent devotional at either entrance. You have two choices: “This is My Son”, a more traditional devotion book, and “How do They Celebrate Christmas?”, a look at Christmas in different cultures.
The next American Red Cross blood drive will be held here at Grace on Saturday, December 17th from 8:00am – 1:00pm.