Are you wondering what to purchase for those folks on your holiday shopping list? Consider gifting banned books! The number of books banned since 2021 has increased dramatically. Pen America noted 6,870 bans within the 2024-2025 school year alone. This means that unless students frequent public libraries and/or bookstores, they not only lack access to…
DetailsLast month I wrote about “Congregationalism – What?” This month I’ll answer a question about the search process and why the Florida Conference of the United Church of Christ has to be involved. Can’t we just pick our own minister? . . . The short answer is yes. As part of a congregational organization, we…
DetailsGreetings from the Congregational Ministry Review Board (aka CMRB). I am really excited to share with you a strategic change CMRB and I have been studying and discussing this year. It’s a different model of what CMRB does called a Pastoral Relations Committee. Before we dig in, though, you might be wondering what CMRB does.…
Detailsby Alan Hill This is the third of a three-part series on advanced ways to financially support your United Church of Gainesville. In part one we learned about qualified charitable distributions (QCD’s) from a traditional individual retirement account (IRA) for persons at least 70 ½ years. In part two we described the use of…
DetailsHappy Holidays by Rev. Dr. Donna Schaper May you wind down if your clock is racing. May you wind up if your clock is dragging. May you wind down enough to wind up again if you are a little of both. Let these holidays incarnate you. Let them inoculate you with joy. Let any…
Detailsby Alan Hill, Chair, UCG Board of Business This is the second of a three-part series on advanced ways to financially support your United Church of Gainesville. In part one we learned about qualified charitable distributions (QCD’s) from a traditional individual retirement account (IRA) for persons at least 70½ years old. In this part we…
Detailsby Suzanne Huggard, Council Member-at-Large There are Interim Ministers, and the Florida Conference, and the United Church of Christ, and Congregationalism. Oh My! What?! Are we the United Church of Gainesville Congregationalists? What does that mean? If you read the back of the Sunday bulletin, you may have noticed the sentence that says, “This church…
DetailsDon’t Tell Me I Have Homework by Rev. Dr. Donna Schaper In addition to making your pledge for 2026 through our investment campaign, please read the Convergence report of our fascinating congregation, which is so well told in their report. THANK YOU. Please also come to the Sunday, November 9 meeting with at least one question,…
Detailsby Alan Hill, Chair, UCG Board of Business You can give to the United Church of Gainesville in several ways either to fulfill your annual pledge commitment or to support a specific need or program. You can make a direct contribution of cash. We take checks and credit cards, too. You can donate stocks or…
DetailsNovember Sunday Seminars The Sunday Seminar Committee is pleased to announce the line-up of seminars for November. Seminars are in person and on Zoom on Sundays at 11:30 a.m. Meeting ID: 829 6457 0385 Passcode: 1624 November 2: No seminar – Pride Brunch November 9: Zoom seminar with Cameron Trimble of Convergence November 16:…
DetailsThe Board of Children Youth and Families has been busy raising funds with football parking to help improve our children’s playground and for other needs, providing input into the children’s program positions, updating the safety and protection policy for minors, and recruiting volunteers for our many activities with families, youth, and children. We would love all church members to be aware of our safety and protection policy for minors. You…
Detailsby Alan Hill, Chair, Board of Business On October 5, we will ask the congregation to adopt our challenge budget for 2026. This is our aspirational budget to fund church operations and programs for the coming year. It sets our enlistment or member pledge goal for 2026. There are several objectives in this budget: Fund a search for a settled minister …
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