Stand Strong! Include Ivy Chapel’s VBS in your summer plans.

Be sure to mark off July 22-26 for Ivy Chapel’s youth Vacation Bible School. This year, we’re headed to Medieval times  with Kingdom Rock – where kids stand strong for God.

Ivy’s VBS runs from Monday, July 22 to Friday, July 26, 9 a.m. to noon and includes bible stories, music, crafts, games and snacks. Each day, campers will learn how we can all “stand strong” as children of God.

Join us this summer for Ivy Chapel UCC’s Vacation Bible School!

KINGDOM ROCK – Where Kids Stand Strong for God

July 22 – 26

9 a.m. – noon

God’s love helps us… Stand Strong!

Family and friends help us…Stand Strong!

Prayer helps us….Stand Strong!

Trusting God helps us….Stand Strong!

The Bible helps us….Stand Strong!

Ready to sign up? Here’s the registration form. If you have any questions, send us an email or call Linda Lowry, our Youth Program Coordinator, at 314-434-4991.

2012 Update from Instituto El Rey

This year our costs to operate the high school were $146,077.92, and it is because of your faithfulness in giving that we were able to meet these obligations!  Thank you so much!

Mission 4/1 Earth

Many of us were witness to a phenomenal level of generosity displayed by this congregation in response to our 2011 United Church of Christ “Mission: 1” initiative.  All across our denomination, people responded faithfully and we far exceeded lofty “Mission: 1” goals.  Now, a new denomination-wide “mission initiative” is in the works.  We are calling it, “Mission 4/1 Earth: Fifty Great Days.”

This future mission effort already has a time-frame:  April 1 to May 18, 2013. (These are the dates of Eastertide 2013.  Historically, God’s Church has described the Season of Easter with the superlative name “The Great Fifty Days.”)  Beginning the day after Easter Sunday, all of us who are the United Church of Christ will join together in 50 Great Days of Mission 4/1 Earth.  Goals will include hopes of reaching more than 1 million hours of engaged earth care, 100,000 tree plantings across the globe, and 100,000 advocacy letters written and mailed in support of environmental care.

Working on behalf of environmental concerns is not new to our denomination.  Our United Church of Christ has been embracing this cause for over 30 years, so we see this shared ministry of caring for God’s Planet Earth as a continuation of ongoing U.C.C. work for environmental justice.  Mission 4/1 Earth will provide simple yet meaningful ways that each of us can take action wherever God places us  -  living out our faith by caring for God’s creation.

To learn more; please visit  www.ucc.org/news/mission-for-one-earth-website.html

Hurricane relief information

Our thoughts and prayers are with those whose lives have been affected by Hurricane Sandy.

If you would like to donate to relief efforts, please mark your check with “Hurricane Sandy Response” and place it during the basket during worship. Checks should be made payable to United Church of Christ.

If you prefer, you can also mail donations to United Church of Christ; Financial Services; 700 Prospect Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44115. If you prefer you may also click here to donate via a secure form through the United Church of Christ.

Following this and any disaster, Emergency Clean-Up Buckets and Hygiene Kits through Church World Service, are urgently needed. Click the links to learn how you can help.

Celebrating Mustard Seeds and Connections

Rev. Carolyn Held, Spirit-filled Lydia’s House Chaplain, will be at Ivy Chapel UCC this coming Sun., Oct. 28. Rev. Held will be sharing in worship and selling Lydia’s House pins in support of their ministries.

Rev. Held writes: “As I picture all of the people and places connected with Lydia’s House, I imagine a large web of sorts. And I realize this web is invaluable in our work… So many people have been hurt directly because of domestic violence, and even more have been hurt indirectly because someone they know and/or love has experienced domestic violence. This web of connections, which surrounds Lydia’s House and extends into the larger community, has the potential and ability to make a difference in the many lives affected by domestic violence and plays a crucial role in ending domestic violence. For this, we give thanks.”

To learn more about our connection with Lydia’s House, click here.

The apostles said to Jesus, ‘Increase our faith!’

Jesus replied, ‘If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, “Be uprooted and planted in the sea,” and it would obey you.’ (Luke 17.5-6)

Sell your wares at our Vendor Fair, Nov. 30

This year, Ivy Chapel is putting a new spin on fundraising – and we need your help. We’re having a Vendor Fair on Nov. 30, and we’re looking for crafters, bakers, builders & sellers of all kinds to provide a fun holiday shopping experience. It’s a chance to give your new, growing or established business some great exposure.

The Vendor Fair is Friday, November 30 from 6 to 10 p.m. We’re opening the doors for set-up at 3 – so there will be plenty of time to get ready for shoppers. The registration fee is $30 for a 6 ft. table, and $35 for an 8 footer.

Need to know more? Call (314) 434-4991 or email vendorfair@ivychapel.org.

Ready to register? Download the registration form and email it or drop it in the mail to: 620 N. Woods Mill Road, Chesterfield, MO, 63017.

Congratulations to our Graduates!

Congratulations to our graduates! And thank you to all of Ivy Chapel’s youth who helped make Youth Sunday 2012 truly special.

Plus check out these highlights from the service:

Get ready for VBS 2012, Operation Overboard!

Are you ready to “Go Deep with God”? That’s the theme of this year’s VBS. Mark your calendar now for July 23-27! Registration forms and a very special website will be available soon with more information. Ivy Chapel’s VBS is designed for kids in preschool through fifth grade.

Want to volunteer? We have opportunities throughout the week for a variety of roles, including crew leaders (Grade 6 and up) and storytellers, plus people to help out with crafts, recreation, music and snacks!

Ready to sign up? Click here to download the registration form. You can return the form to the office at Ivy Chapel.

Want more information? Want to sign up to volunteer? Drop us an e-mail and we’ll fill you in on all of the details, or talk to Erin Winship or Linda Lowry.

Easter Egg Hunt!

We had a beautiful day for the Annual Ivy Chapel Easter Egg Hunt. Thanks to everyone who helped plan this fun event… and apologies to anyone who finds any still-hidden eggs in the heat of the summer.

The album below also includes photos from our Palm Sunday worship service.

Ivy Members Open their Hearts for Emmaus homes

The  annual Open Your Heart dinner-auction benefits residents of Emmaus, a faith-based organization serving more than 250 men and women with developmental disabilities in the St. Louis metropolitan area.  As in the past, this year’s event, held February 4, netted thousands of dollars to help supplement governmental funding for Emmaus.  For every $1 needed to cover program and operating expenses, there’s a 15 cent shortfall in state support.  The Emmaus Foundation is charged with raising funds to close the gap between government payments and actual costs.  The 2012 OYH gala raised just over $50,000.  Attending from Ivy Chapel UCC were Ronn and Dottie Foster; Rod and Judy Hertenstein; Carl and Marsha Ramey; Annie and Shyam Sampath; Nancy Litzinger; and Nancy Hawkins.

The first Emmaus homes were established in 1893 by members of the German Evangelical Church in Marthasville, Mo., to care for individuals with epilepsy and developmental disabilities.  Currently Emmaus operates nearly 50 homes throughout local communities and on its two campuses in St. Charles and Marthasville.  In 2011, Ivy Chapel UCC ‘adopted’ Ross House, a community home in Creve Coeur where six Emmaus residents live.  Ivy members and Ross residents are developing new relationships through this pilot partnership.

Thank you to Brandi Brown Photography for capturing the event in pictures, and for sharing the photos with us.

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