The Annual Meeting of the Congregation will take place on Sunday, February 1, beginning at 10 am.  We have wrapped a celebration of our 2014 ministry and several business items into an extended worship service.  Anyone is welcome to attend; only members of the congregation may vote on the business items. 

A limited number of printed Annual Reports has been produced.  These are available at the church.   An electronic copy is available for download here:

In the interest of environmental and fiscal stewardship, we invite you to view the annual report on your electronic device if that is an option for you, and print out only the pages which you'd like available for quick reference at the meeting.  

Major business items are:

• Endorsement of an application for a grant to fund the pastor's sabbatical in summer 2016
• Proposals for next steps on major building improvements
• Updates to the endowment fund governing documents
• Adoption of ministry goals and a working budget for 2015
• Nominations/re-nominations to leadership positions

More information on all of these is available within the report.  A bulletin board by the church kitchen also displays background information presented at a variety of conversations hosted by church leadership in December and January.

One of the joys of being a church in the congregational tradition is that we are responsible for governance and the direction of the church.  When we exercise this responsibility in combination with prayerful discernment and an eye for what God is doing among us, we are at our most faithful.  

Please join us on February 1st for an annual meeting that is truly a celebration of where we have come from, and a hope-filled consideration of where we are going together.

Families coming to worship with their little ones can expect a new face in the nursery.  Miss Peggy has left her position as our nursery attendant in order to be able to worship with her family.  We're excited to see her in the sanctuary...which meant we needed to hire a new staff member.   

McFarland UCC welcomes Emily Veselsky as our new nursery attendant.  

Here's an introduction, in her own words:

We are confident that - together with our regular nursery volunteers - Emily will continue to provide a consistent, caring, skilled presence in the nursery so those needing nursery services can worship with ease!

When visiting a member of our church family at home, in the hospital, or in some other care facility, I always hope that it brings a measure of grace to them and a sense that we care about them.  But I underestimated the effect it might have on me personally until I visited Nancy Gouker in the hospital last year.  Her unflagging spirit in the face of numerous stays in several hospitals, set-backs followed by recovery, followed by more set-backs made me realize I was in the company of an incredibly strong and faithful person. It made me think about how minor my own challenges were compared to hers.  She never failed to smile each time we met, and even laughed at her circumstances.  And while I have never considered myself one of those adept at praying in public, it has never been easier to pray for someone than when holding Nancy’s hand and asking for His healing spirit.

On January 4, 2015, our worship focus was on the Slaughter of the Innocents and the Holy Family's flight to Egypt as found in Matthew 2:13-23.   We reflected on the ways in which the vulnerable are still threatened by those in power.  During our Faithful Conversation, we took time to bless fleece blankets that were tied by our youth at their last church overnight.  The blankets will be delivered to Domestic Abuse Intervention Services to give comfort to those fleeing domestic violence.  Our prayers will be with those we may never have the chance to meet. 

photo credit: Carolyn Bell