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Follow… Why, Who, Where? Such are the questions we will be asking in worship as the Advent Season begins this Sunday, November 27th, and concludes Sunday, December 18th. Join us as we gather round the Advent Wreath, in hope, peace, joy, and love to wait and watch for the ways God will be present in our lives.
In addition to our worship experience, there will be a multitude of special
offerings , details of which are in this Messenger and the ones that follow.
Look forward to the Wish Tree, the Pageant, the Children’s Gift Fair, the
Rummage Gift Gallery, the Carols Presentation, the Prayer Vigil, and our
Progressive Dinner. All are designed to keep you going in the right direction,
following the word and witness that lead us all to a joyous and peaceful
Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Wish Tree is here... Two Opportunities: Give & Deliver Give| Each year, Winnetka Congregational Church partners with, A Just Harvest to provide Christmas gifts for 300 young people in poverty. This initiative is organized by Servants (WCC’S High School Youth Ministry).The Wish Tree’s up. Each young person has his/her own ornament with what they’d like to have for Christmas. We’re asking that you spend around $25 for each child. Be sure to sign out your ornament when you get it off of the tree. All ornaments/gifts should be returned to WCC on or before Sunday, December 4. Your generosity will help bring a smile to a young child’s face on Christmas morn. Deliver| Come with us on Sunday, December 11 from 12:00 to 4:00pm to deliver the gifts along with some Christmas cheer. We will bring cookies and candy to pass out (donations needed). This year we are also going to be bringing a few crafts from our children’s gift fair along with us for the children there to make. We are looking for lots of volunteers and this is a great holiday family opportunity--always a favorite of WCC members. Questions or RSVP to Jenny Gleichauf at jenny@wcc-joinus.org.Welcome to Saturday Supper Fellowship The next Saturday Supper will be in Tolman Fellowship Hall
on December 10, 2011, with gathering time at 6:00PM. The menu will include the
traditional Saturday Supper holiday entrée BEEF TENDERLOIN, at the cost of $20
per person. This supper provides a wonderful place to visit with each other and
enjoy being with friends for a fabulous meal together. Feel free to bring a
guest. Make your reservation now with Nina Johnson at 847-256-3602.  |
WCC Expense Facts
How is the money we raise as a congregation used? This chart illustrates
the allocation of funds in the 2011 budget of $ 1.2MM. Councilors have tried to
maintain this level of expenditure and allocation for several years.
Personnel =
Pastors, Music, Education, Office and Maintenance Staff
Outreach,
continuing our tradition of support
Just under 10% of our total expenses are earmarked for
Outreach which includes Mission Giving and Mission Doing. Our Mission Giving
Committee has a long history of providing support to those most in need. Indeed, it is a tradition in our church to provide 10% of our annual budget for
outreach activities. In many cases, specific program initiatives in some
smaller agencies are dependent on our continuing support. Mission Doing needs
budget support, but most expenses are covered by fundraising specific to the
mission (e.g. Servants mission trip to the Dominican Republic). Throughout our
137-year history, WCC has been a force in the service to our community.
Completing the
Circle Holidays creeping up fast? Get a heads up and hop on over to our Christmas
rummage sale on Sunday, December 4 from 11am-2pm at the Harkness Hall
basement (under the old children's chapel.) The sale will also feature
special items from many departments at Rummage, including gifts, holiday
items, books, men’s clothing, toys, and jewelry. Everyone is welcome, and
volunteers are always needed. Remember, proceeds help fund over forty worthy
charities which are carefully selected by our Benevolence Committee each year.
The best-loved, but least understood, of the
gospels, John presents a uniquely human portrait of courage and passion
encompassing Jesus' entire three-year ministry, the final years of his
life. Intimate and reflective, THE GOSPEL OF JOHN offers an
unparalleled opportunity to experience the incomparable life and times
of Jesus Christ.
The Pageant is coming! Whether or not you have children in the pageant, you are invited to help with
costumes and to be with children during rehearsals and the morning of the
pageant. For more information, you can contact Elaine.
All Church Progressive Holiday Dinner On Sunday December 4 from 6:00 to 9:00pm, you are invited to
join with other members of WCC for a festive progressive dinner. We will
begin and end at the church with appetizers/desserts, and in the middle
we will mix up for dinner at the homes of fellow members. We'll ask all
who attend to bring a dish (A-L bring appetizers/wine, M-Z bring
desserts). Please RSVP to Jenny Gleichauf if you would like to join us.
Birthdays
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Adult Advent with Peter Cosyns!
Wednesday, December 7 | 8:30 am – 5:00 pm Celebrating Advent means being able to wait.
Waiting is an art that our impatient age has forgotten. –God is in
the Manger, by Dietrich Bonheoffer In that spirit, your Care & Calling team invites and
welcomes you to the brightness and warmth of our annual Advent Prayer Vigil in
the Little Chapel (adjacent to the Centennial Room). Join us for this cherished tradition! Woman’s Society Annual
Christmas Luncheon and Carol Sing Please call
Linda Schmidt at 847-732-5732
or e-mail her by Monday, December 5
Children's Christmas Gift Fair This year's Children's Christmas Gift Fair will be held on Sunday,
December 11 following worship. Children have the opportunity to make up to
10 crafts and gifts to give for Christmas. This is easily one of the most
anticipated events at WCC of the whole year. $10/child. Friends are welcome - a
great day to invite another family to church. Volunteers to help are also needed
- if you are interested, please speak with Jenny Gleichauf.
Nov. 24-25: Rev.
William Mueller 847. 441.3400,
ext.23
DON’T GO UNKNOWN!
Save the Date Do you have prayerful joys or concerns you’d
like listed on your WCC Prayer List?
Not interested anymore?
In the previous articles, we described the income sources that support
our church operations and outreach. The bottom line of those articles was that
pledged contributions provided over 75% of the funds, but that we need to
increase that percentage over time to improve our financial health.
The personnel
component is the largest part of the budget at 67% ($0.8MM). Personnel
expenditures support our Pastors, Director of Music/Choirmaster, Director of
Children’s Music/Organist, and Director of Youth Ministries and Church School
Coordinator. It also includes our office team and our sextons. The personnel
component of our annual expenditures pay for the people we count on to care for
WCC, day in and day out. The staff ministers to our spiritual needs, creates
great programs for our education, provides continuity to our worship and
mission, and they keep the place running.
In the past few years, we have moved toward a part-time
model for pastoral, program and staff positions. Of the 13 members of staff,
only 6 are full-time positions.
Buildings &
Grounds, at 10%, is mostly utilities. It also includes maintenance and repair
on the buildings, as well as yard service. Other Support is for offices
expenses such as telephone, copier, computer, etc. It also includes Council
related items such as the annual audit.
Worship,
Education and Nurture, together, account for another 6% of the budget. Funds for
programs and events sponsored by committees working in these groups are
accounted for here. These include funds for special music events, church school
Bibles, etc. Of course, the actual resource devoted to these areas is much
higher when you include the time of the pastors and staff to plan and
participate in these activities.
Caring for us; caring for the larger community – that’s
how your resources committed to WCC are used. The Council is committed to
prudent financial management of the money you contribute. You can count on us.
Please let us count on you. Be prayerful, be generous, be a key part of the
2012 Canvass Campaign. Membership is a two-way street.
Sunday morning November 27
Adult Enrichment invites you to
Join Us in the Centennial Room at 8:45 to view and discuss the
second hour/part of The Gospel of John.
This widely acclaimed 2005 motion picture is a meticulous
recreation of the turbulent era of Jesus and the events that
changed the course of history! Narrated by Golden Globe nominee
Christopher Plummer, it’s the bold and powerful story of Jesus
as told by his disciple John.
On
Sunday, December 18th,
the 96th Annual Christmas Pageant will be presented at Winnetka Congregational
Church! We
hope your child/children/youth will plan to be a part of the cast of this
special event in the life of our church. There are roles for ages pre-K through
high school.
November
27:
Alan Ramsay, Brad Baumgarten, Emilee Dziersk
28: Emma Katzman
29: Thomas Neuckranz, Gina Logan, Cynthia Churchwell, Wilson Gottschild, Dan
Maentz, Olivia Brown
30: John Polydoris
December
1:
Amy Gordon
2: David Carbo
3: Jessica Leonard, Stella Powers
4: Ruth Holmgren, John Tilson, Sarah
Lackner, Taylor Grinney
Adult Enrichment invites you to a
special presentation on Sunday morning, December 4, when our own musical
lover, Peter Cosyns gifts us with Annunciation and Advent carols spanning
the 13th through the 20th centuries. The carol’s lyrics
and connections to Biblical themes and passages will also be discussed.…
Join Us in the Centennial Room at 9:00 am
Sign up for 30-minute time slots beginning at 8:00 am through 4:30 pm. A poster
for this purpose is located in Tolman Hall, or you can simply e-mail our
pastoral liaison, William Mueller, or call him at 441-3400,
ext. 23.
In the meantime, for your Advent reflection, consider the 2010 book of daily
meditations in God is in the Manger: Reflections on Advent and Christmas,
based on short excerpts from Bonheoffer's letters and Christmas sermons.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011 Tolman Fellowship Hall
Social Hour: 12:00 noon
Luncheon: 12:30 ($15.00
)
Followed by Carol Singing with Eileen Baumgarten and Lois-Eve Anderson
Sunday, November 27 Advent I
9:00am
Adult Enrichment: CR
9:00am
Chancel Choir Rehearsal: MR
9:30am
Child Care: Nursery
10:00am
WORSHIP: S
10:15am
Church School: EW
11:00am
Fellowship: TFH
4:30pm
Servants: LL1
Monday, November 28
1:00pm
Bible Study: CR
1:45pm
Prayer Group: Conference Library
Tuesday, November 29
8:45am
Zumba w/Candus: AC
7:00pm
First Group Budget Review: CR
Wednesday, November 30
9:15am
WS Board Meeting: CR
4:15pm
JK-2nd Grade Choir: MR
4:45pm
3-8 Grades Choir: MR
5:30pm
Bell Choir: MR
6:30pm
WCC Singers: MR
Thursday, December 1
7:00pm
Chancel Choir Rehearsal: MR
Friday, December 2
8:45am
Zumba w/Candus: AC
6:30pm
First Friday: TFH
Sunday, December 4 Advent II
9:00am
Adult Enrichment: CR
9:00am
Chancel Choir Rehearsal: MR
9:30am
Child Care: Nursery
10:00am
WORSHIP: S
10:15am
Church School: EW
11:00am
Fellowship: TFH
11:00am
Christmas Rummage Sale: Harkness Hall
11:30am
New Member Luncheon
2:45pm
Servants Outing
5:30pm
All Church Progressive Dinner: starting at TFH
On Call Schedule
Nov. 26-27: Rev.
Joseph Shank
Transitions
We pray for those who have gone before us.
If you or a family member plan to be or are hospitalized, contact the
church office at 441-3400, or email any of the pastors.
Annual Women’s Retreat
at Holy Wisdom Monastery in Madison, WI
January 13-15, 2012
Speak with Jenny Gleichauf if
you have questions.
Contact us at bill@wcc-joinus.org
AMP
Amphitheater
AC
Alsdorf Center
CR
Centennial Room
EW
Education Wing
JK
Jr. Kindergarten
L
Library
LC
Little Chapel
LL
Lower Level (Youth Rooms)
MR
Music Room
NN
New Narthex
S
Sanctuary
TFH
Tolman Fellowship Hall