I share with joy the ordination of Will Nelson on Sunday, December 22nd at Church of the Savior in Cedar Park. Will has been called to be the pastor of Union Congregational Church, UCC in Three Lakes, Wisconsin. We send Will off with our blessings and prayers for a fruitful ministry among the people of Union Congregational and Three Lakes.
At our Fall Meeting, we voted to give travel scholarships to all UCC youth and adult chaperones from this Association who go to the National Youth Event by voting to distribute $8750 in money for this purpose from our Association budget. We anticipate that those scholarships will be about $125 per person based on past numbers.
The National Youth Event (NYE), held every four years, is the largest gathering in the UCC, often bringing together 4000 people. We now partner with the Christian Church/Disciples of Christ in this event. I have been several times, and I know that it is a moving faith experience that those who go will never forget. The speakers are always outstanding, the worship is uplifting, the opportunities to meet UCC and DOC youth from all over the country are unparalleled, the choice of workshops is varied and plentiful, and the opportunities for service add to the experience This year’s NYE will be at Purdue University in Lafayette, Indiana, July 22-25. It is for youth who have completed 6th through 12th grades. The registration fee (which includes dorm lodging, meals during NYE, and event registration) is $375. A registration link is coming soon, but normally the registration deadline is in the late spring. The link for NYE is here: http://www.uccpages.org/nye2020/, and you can find videos of highlights from the past two NYEs
Here: https://www.ucc.org/youth/nye/media-gallery and https://www.ucc.org/believe_calls_nye_youth_to_action I hope many of our youth will be able to join in this great, faith-building event.
We rejoice with Weimar UCC in the calling of their new pastor, Rev. Juvenal Cervantes. Rev. Cervantes will be moving to Weimar from Greeley, Colorado next June in order to allow family to finish the school year. He will be preaching at Weimar twice in the coming months. Our brothers in Christ, Gerry Metzger and Karl Tewold, have been providing pulpit supply to support Weimar in this time of waiting. We look forward to welcoming Juvenal Cervantes to this Association.
Blessings in Christ,
Liz Nash, Association Minister
