Coffee, Craft & Childcare Program and Registration Form - August/September 2016

Coffee, Craft & Childcare Program and Registration Form - May 2016

UCAF 2016 Program

To learn more about the group, please click here.

Lent Event... keeping poverty on the back foot!

40 days of worship, prayer and informed action - connecting communities for life

With Lent nearly upon us, many in the Uniting Church have determined to set themselves a spiritual discipline through Lent Event – to live simply, reflect more deeply on our faith and act to support people working hard to free themselves from poverty. In this video UnitingWorld’s overseas church partners share their hopes and dreams of a better future – with your help, these are the communities that Lent Event supports. Get your Guide to Living Lent and join the Lent Event movement today and be sure to download the latest Lent Event app to receive daily prayers on your mobile device. All resources for congregations available free at www.lentevent.com

Fiona Johnson 

(Community Engagement and Events Co-ordinator) at UnitingWorld

South Camberwell Uniting Church Reunion Story by Robyn Hodder

In April I attended a Reunion at the South Camberwell Uniting Church, which is now the Chinese Uniting Church.  It was for those who had participated in church activities in the sixties and seventies.  I had been involved from age 4 until I married in 1962.  The Chinese allowed us to use the present day hall which was built in the fifties.  It was very pleasing to see that the plaque of the praying hands was still in place.  We had placed it there in memory of one of our friends who had died in a car accident in England in 1964.

There were about one hundred people there with some coming from Adelaide, Tasmania,

Queensland New South Wales, Country Victoria and Melbourne.  We had a large youth group with many romances and marriages.

During the afternoon a list of fifteen names of people who had died, was read out and we joined in a minutes silence in memory of these friends.

There was much talking and catching up took place during a delicious afternoon tea. I met up with some friends who I had not seen for over fifty years, with friends like this you talk as though you had seen them recently.

There were a couple of computers running non-stop with photos taken during those years.

We all looked quite fit for our ages with very few with walking sticks and frames. Must have been the healthy diets, not many cars (walked to most places) and no junk food.

It is a small world. Our minister Rev Christine Thomson was at South Camberwell Uniting Church from 1989 and knew my Mother who was still able to attend Church.  The Chinese took over the Church in 1995.

I also met Ellie Black in Melbourne. We were both District Chief Rays for different areas in Melbourne.  Rays were girls aged between 9 and 15.

Rev Goldsmith was the minister here when I came to the North East and I had been at many services that he had taken at South Camberwell.

It seemed fitting to have our reunion at this time as the Church is 150 years old this year.

- Robyn Hodder

Eldorado Harvest Festival - 15th February 2015

A couple of photos taken at this year's Harvest Festival Service at the Eldorado Uniting Church.

UCAF Report - Trip to Corowa

Our UCAF members visited the Corowa church group recently. On our arrival at Corowa  we were taken into their lovely church which contained an inspiring stained glass window entitled “The Living Tree”.

A short devotion on living things was led by Rev. David Sloane, husband of Val Sloane whom we all know. Then the co-ordinator of the Community Garden, Joan Palmer, spoke to us on the way in which this program got started. The church community gave the group the disused tennis court for the project, but it took some 2 years to get it to where it is today. With donations from the public, local businesses and Council, it became operational. It is still in the process of extending the surroundings.

In the middle of the garden is a sculpture made from recycled metal from the local Council depot. The sculpture contains a bee hive made of wood with a hole drilled for bees, and our group were very taken with the overall idea of the whole project.

The garden has been named the “Corowa Community Living Tree Garden” after the stained glass window in the church. After we inspected the garden afternoon tea was served and members were invited to take any of the produce that had been grown, for just a gold coin donation.

A very inspiring afternoon was had by all – many thanks to all our Corowa friends.

UCAF 2015 Program

Darwin War Museum Quilt - Reginald Stanley Armstrong - by Barb Surrey

Reginald Stanley Armstrong was born in 1919 to a farming family in Strathbogie.  He grew up with a love of everything mechanical.  As a young man he joined the Royal Australian Airforce early in the Second World War.

Following training in Victoria, he was moved to Darwin where he worked on our Air Force fighting planes.  The threat of Japan attacking Australia was realised when their war planes flew in to bomb Darwin.  Dad was fortunate to be able to continue his work safely and was eventually moved to a very large airforce base at Tocumwal on the Murray River near Cobram.

Moves were made some ten to fifteen years ago to obtain the rank, name and serial numbers of all our servicemen who served in Darwin and their patches have been stitched into a large quilt hanging on a wall in the Darwin War Museum.

Dad and his brothers served our country well in World War 2 following on from their father, my Pop, who served in Gallipoli and the south of France in World War 1.

We are proud of them all.

Patches in the quilt showing the rank, name and serial number
of all our servicemen who served in Darwin.

PALS Christmas Breakup Party 2014

We marked the end of the PALS year on December 3rd with a gathering of about 35 people including volunteers.

It was a great occasion and was enhanced by the presence of Mandy and Manfred Reich who provided the musical accompaniment to our carol singing.

We enjoyed a wonderful afternoon tea, exchanged gifts with one another and reflected on another happy year together.

It is great to welcome several PALS from the community who are not members of the church.

Presentations were made to the loyal band of PALS volunteers who help ensure the smooth running of our gatherings each month. I value their help enormously.

- Rosemary Steele (PALS facilitator)

*** PALS (People Alone Lending Support) meets in the Church Hall at Rowan Street on the 1st Wednesday of each month at 2pm - click here to find out more information about the group.

Some photos of the PALS enjoying the Christmas breakup afternoon...

Our musicians Mandy and Manfred Reich.

Volunteers preparing for the party

The men think there is safety in numbers!

North East Victoria Presbytery Field Days 2014

A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to attend the NEV Field days, run by the Uniting Church for the Northeast of Victoria Presbytery. 

This year it was held at the Wodonga Uniting Church and involved many people from across Victoria and up into NSW.  Some of the people were invited to present some very interesting Electives and others of us were able to explore some opportunities to delve more deeply into issues which interested us most.  There were many to choose from and I attended one on Conflict and how to deal with it and another one which introduced me to the concept of being involved in a church that hadn’t had a Minister for many years, and how they had managed this idea. 

It was very refreshing to hear the speakers and to discuss different ways of approaching some of the difficulties that we come up against, as members of the church in our communities.  These Field days were also an opportunity to catch up with some of the young people who I had travelled to Sydney with, to attend this year’s NCYC in January. 

- Anne Turnbull

NCYC 2014

NCYC 2014…. What an experience.  The Name for NCYC this year was ‘YURORA,’ which in the Dharug language means Passionate.  We are called by God to be passionate about our faith and to share it with others.  Wow lots to think about, during our week in Sydney.

We drove to Sydney, in a coach, with 30 young people, ranging in age from 16-25 years. What an amazing group of young people they were too.  The first night we were hosted by the Cootamundra Uniting Church, who warmly welcomed us and allowed us to use their hall and facilities. 

The next day we headed the short distance to Sydney, with our bus breaking down on the way, we arrived at Circular Quay at lunchtime and spent the early afternoon sightseeing. The weather was beautiful. At 3pm we boarded a ferry for the trip up the Parramatta River to meet our bus, which took us to our accommodation for the week.  We stayed in the Northmead Uniting church hall, where we set up our sleeping gear and enjoyed an amazing BBQ, provided by the congregation.  We also had portable showers, provided by the NCYC Commmittee, which was a treat!

Each day we travelled the short distance to the site of NCYC, which was in the Tara Anglican School grounds and the Uniting Churches Centre for Ministry, in Parramatta.  Plenty of space and lovely surroundings.  Quite a steep walk to some of the electives, so we were very fit by the end of the week. The Electives were many and varied and everyone had the opportunity to select what they would like to attend. They were held each afternoon.  Each morning we were involved in a Community gathering, then met up for a Worship time.  The worships on offer, were quite different and we could change, if we wanted to try another type of worship. 

We all enjoyed Pirate Church, which was very different from what we are used to in Church, and it was invigorating! We were very well fed by our coach cook, Janette, and met up each mealtime, to connect with our bus group.  It was like catching up with our family and I felt it was a very important time of the day, to make contact with the kids. In the evenings we enjoyed a variety of bands, on the main stage, with different music to offer, amazing poets and opportunities for the kids to present something they wanted to perform.  

NCYC is a very cultural event, so it was wonderful to experience all that these groups, from across Australia and beyond, shared with us. My role at NCYC was as a Chaplain, which involved me being available to assist the young people, if they wanted to talk about anything, and also to help them if they were having any concerns with directions or the day’s plans.

Steven, Leanne and myself, thoroughly enjoyed the NCYC experience and would like to thank all of the Wangaratta congregations for supporting us to have this opportunity. We are very fortunate to be able to enjoy many occasions to share, with other members of the Uniting Church in our Presbytery and with other churches, in our local communities.  I encourage you to take up these opportunities as they arise, as there is always something new we can learn and ponder.

- Anne Turnbull

Christine and Colin's Welcome Home Lunch - August 2014

 

- Check out the website of the First United Methodist Church in Stanley, NC:  www.fumcstan.com