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Ministry Opportunities
The
Beginning of Advent - December 1st
Sure, Sunday,
December 1st is just a few days after
Thanksgiving…but that day is also the beginning of a brand
new year! What?!
Yep, Sunday, December 1st is the first day of the Advent
season, the beginning of the church calendar year. Another
fun Woodridge UMC tradition is to really lean into the
beginning of Advent with the Hanging of the Greens,
an Advent
Lunch, and a newer tradition is Outdoor Church
Decorating. Participate in the Hanging
of the Greens during the worship service, eat lunch together
and lend a hand decorating the outside of the church after
the meal. Please come help even if it is to just untangle a
strand of lights! (There
will be nothing up high and plenty to do at ground level)!
In
Preparation for Hanging of the Greens
Please come assist the Millers on Saturday, November
30th at 9:00 am prepare for the Hanging of
the Greens Service. The bins containing the sanctuary
decorations need to be gotten down, the decorations need to
be laid out in preparation for the service, the trees need to
be assembled, etc.
Christmas
Program
On December
15th, we will have a Christmas Program during
worship service. Everyone is welcome to participate
with Christmas themed music (singing or playing), dance,
poetry, visual and fabric arts, etc. The visual and
fabric arts (paintings, sculpture, crafts, quilts, needle
work, etc.) will be displayed to their best advantage either
in the narthex or at the altar. Please contact
Pastor Dave by December 1st if you would like
to take part.
Christmas
Cookies Reception
We are asking for Christmas cookies on Sunday, December
15th for a small reception after
the Christmas Program. You may bring them by noon on Friday,
December 13th or simply bring them before the
service.
Adopt
a Family!!
This year we are again working with the West Suburban
Community Pantry and other area churches to support area
families this Christmas season. Woodridge UMC has
committed to providing 5 families with gifts and grocery gift
cards - details on how you can help are below!
Gifts
- Select an ornament with a gift request from
the hat and mitten tree located in the Narthex after service
and let us know which one you picked (a signup sheet will be
provided). We are purchasing gifts for children as well
as senior citizens so there's a wide range of gifts to choose
from. Please return your gift wrapped and with the
ornament attached to the outside of the gift.
Grocery
Gift Cards - Sign up to purchase grocery gift
cards that we will give to each family. These can be
from any store (Jewel, Meijer etc.). If you would like
to purchase the gift cards as part of our church gift card
fundraiser please speak to Karen Smith when you sign
up.
All gifts and gift cards are due back to church by Tuesday
December 10th.
Just
in Time for the Holidays - Gift Card Sales are Back!!
That’s right, the Gift Card sales are back! Starting this
Sunday, you can purchase gift cards for a variety of
different stores and restaurants - - including Amazon, Barnes
& Noble, Best Buy, Chipotle, Chili’s, Jewel-Osco, Meijer,
Starbucks, Target, Walmart and many others - - and a portion
of the sales will go toward the WUMC general fund.
These gift cards make terrific presents to give to others
during the holidays, or you can purchase them and use them
for yourself. Order forms will be available in the
Narthex and there will be two sets of orders:
Place
orders on December 1st or
8th with pickup on December 15th.
Please contact Troy and Karen Smith at 630-322-8830 if you
have any questions.
Soup
"Train"!
Mike Marvel had another dental procedure and will be on a
soup diet for the next couple of months. We
are looking for people to make soup, freeze some in a quart
container(s) and bring it to church. Please label the
container with the type of soup. Pastor Dave will deliver the
soup to Mike.
60th
Anniversary Sign
Our current sign is 30 years old and no longer working.
In celebration of 60+ years together, we are working towards
replacing the broken sign with a new electronic messaging
sign. Designs and quotes have been requested from sign
companies. It
will be about $42,000. Thanks to generous donations, we
are most of the way there. We do still need an
additional $5000-$8000. Please join us in
celebrating our church and donate today! If you wish
your donation to be in memory or honor of a loved one, we
will publish the list when the sign is installed.
First
Friday Lunch
Join us for lunch at noon NEXT Friday, December 6th.
Just bring your lunch and be ready for good conversation and
of course laughter. Everyone is welcome!
WUMC
Music Ensembles: 2024
Our Music Ministry offers you three ways to get involved: the
Handbell Choir, the Worship Band, and the Adult Choir. This
could be the year you take that “leap of faith” and join a
group! All ensembles are LOW commitment. We ask that you
please attend the rehearsals leading up to the service date.
It is that simple! For a full schedule see here
or the handout in the narthex. In order to plan music,
please RSVP to Carrie by the dates listed.
Next
Up: Worship Band please RSVP by Nov. 24th.
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Rehearsal
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Dec. 8
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11:20 AM-12:30 PM
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Music Room
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NO Rehearsal
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Dec. 15
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Blackhawks game
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Rehearsal
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Dec. 22
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11:20 AM-12:30 PM
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Music Room
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NO Rehearsal
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Dec. 29
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Blackhawks game
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Service
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Jan. 5
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10 AM (Epiphany)
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Rehearse in the sanctuary at 8:45 AM
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Youth
Group 2024
December
15th: Holiday Card Making and Holiday
Party - make cards after church for local nursing home
residents then head to our Holiday Party. More
information coming soon!
Life
Line Screening
Woodridge UMC will once again be hosting a
Life Line Screening event on Wednesday, December 4th.
Life Line Screening is the premier provider of stroke and
cardiovascular disease risk screenings since 1993. Go to WWW.LLSA.SOCIAL/HSCA or call 888-814-0466
to schedule your appointment! A simple screening can be worth
a lifetime. See flyer here.
Music and Mischief: A West Towns Christmas
Join the West Towns Chorus (with our own Carrie Marcotte as
director) as they bring in the Christmas season with our
annual Christmas Show 2024! On Saturday, December
14th at 3:00 pm and 7:00 pm at the Huizenga
Auditorium at Timothy Christian Schools in Elmhurst (188 W
Butterfield Road). This year’s guests include Affinity
Strings, Genuine Brass Quintet and other fun
surprises!! Ticket prices are $27-$32. Call
630.201.5544 for tickets or see the flyer in the narthex for
other ways to purchase tickets.
Toastmasters
Would you like to speak with more confidence in any setting?
Toastmasters can help! The Woodridge Toastmasters club meets
on the 2nd
and 4th Thursday of the month at Woodridge United Methodist
Church. Come visit us and see for yourself!
For more information contact John.
Advent at
Woodridge UMC
Advent Study
In December,
we will have an Advent Bible Study that will replace our
usual Tuesday and Wednesday sessions and will meet on the first three
Wednesdays at 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm
Classes are open to anyone who wishes to participate and are
available in person or via ZOOM.
December 4th, 11th, and 18th (Wednesdays) 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm
Topics:
1. OT Scriptures on Homosexuality
2. NT Scriptures on Homosexuality
3. The Jesus Ethic: What Did Christ Say?
If you are interested in participating, please contact the
church office, 630/968-6050 or office@woodridgeumc.org
or Pastor Dave (PastorDaveYim@woodridgeumc.org).
Hat
and Mitten Tree
Our Hat
and Mitten Tree is n the Narthex throughout
the Christmas season and all items collected will be given to
Woodridge schools to be distributed to children who are in
need. (Please no scarves. That’s been taken care
of by the Scarf Outreach).
Advent Worship
All are invited and welcome to our worship services as we
commemorate God’s ultimate act of love and solidarity:
joining us in our humanity through the babe of Bethlehem. All
these services are both in-person and live-streamed on our Woodridge UMC YouTube Channel.
Sunday, December 1st: 10:00 am
Advent week 1 - Hanging of the Greens
Sunday, December 8th: 10:00 am
Advent week 3
Sunday, December 15th: 10:00 am
Advent week 3 - Christmas Program
Sunday, December 22nd: 10:00 am
Advent week 4
Tuesday, December 24th: 5:00 pm
Christmas Eve carols, children’s time, Choir and candle
lighting.
Tuesday, December 24th: 10:00 pm
Christmas Eve carols, Choir, candle lighting and
Communion.
Advent Lunch
On Sunday, December 1st
we will be having an Advent Lunch after the Hanging of the
Greens service. Lunch will be chili and crackers.
Various kinds of chili will be available including a MILD
version.
Holiday Card Making
On Sunday, December 15th
our youth will lead us in making Holiday
Cards after service church for local nursing home residents.
Northern Illinois
Conference
Find out about
upcoming events in the Northern Illinois Conference of the United
Methodist Church by clicking this link.
Prairie Central
District Advent Concert
We are thrilled that that the 2nd Annual
Prairie Central District Advent Concert is scheduled for December 8, 2024 at 3 pm at First
United Methodist Church of Glen Ellyn (424 Forest Ave. in
Glen Ellyn). In order to ensure there is ample space
for anyone who wishes to attend, we ask that you RSVP
using this link.
December Outreach Offering
Save Abandoned Babies Foundation
The Save Abandoned Babies Foundation is a not-for-profit
volunteer group dedicated to saving babies from being
abandoned in dumpsters and other unsafe places. Our
grassroots effort began in March of 2000 when our volunteers
drafted a safe haven law and lobbied for its passage. The
resulting Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act unanimously
passed both the Illinois House and Senate and was signed into
Illinois law in August of 2001.
The Save Abandoned Babies Foundation is now focused on
spreading awareness of the Safe Haven Law, allowing a parent
to safely relinquish their newborn to a person at a Police
Station (including campus police), Fire Station, Hospital or
Emergency Medical Facility with no questions asked.
Since the enactment of this law 160 newborns have been safely
relinquished.
Ways
to donate to the December Outreach Offering:
- Check or cash in an Outreach
Offering envelope placed in the offering plate in the
- Narthex (the room outside the
sanctuary) or in the gold-plated mail slot at the
church’s east door.
- Online via our website. Select
“Current Month Outreach” in the drop down menu.
- Text the amount you want to give to
630-449-7121 and select “Current Month Outreach” in the
drop down menu.
Ongoing
Opportunities
"Goin' Green" Shoes & Clothes
Recycling Box
Located in the northeast corner of our parking lot,
this receptacle is a convenient place to recycle any shoes
and your clothes that are at or near the end of their
usefulness.
West Suburban Food Pantry
There is a shopping cart that is waiting
for donations. It sits in the narthex, usually near the
sanctuary doors. The food pantry serves many
households and always welcomes donations!!!
Used Eyeglasses
There is a
basket also in the narthex for collecting used prescription eyeglasses.
Kendra Manderfield Moore makes sure that they are
recycled to the Lions Club and Gift of Sight groups.
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