365 DAYS OF OPPORTUNITY
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For the past 18 months, the Official Board, Executive Committee, and Ministry teams worked through Zoom, phone calls, and email. We never stopped being church and we never stopped working. But now we begin a new church year, full of new opportunities and possibilities. Facilitated by the Epiphany process, we kicked off a visioning and planning process last month. Through the fall, this process will equip our congregation with tools for defining a future story in mission that is true to Union Avenue’s historic commitments and is relevant for 21st-century needs. We quickly saw that we have an abundance of resources that can be used in new ways for ministry. We have a magnificent building, abundant financial resources, a commitment to our city, and a passion for serving God together.
Our work would be immeasurably enriched, however, with an additional resource: your ideas and your service. As we cautiously begin venturing out from 18 months’ isolation, perhaps you will sense how much that you’ve missed opportunities to connect, to serve. Perhaps you can see yourself joining us in shaping a new future of Christian ministry. Perhaps you will feel a call to join in collective mission to proclaim God’s love and be a blessing to others.
What are the opportunities to serve? What do our ministry teams entail?
AGUA, the Arts Group of Union Avenue, is committed to providing the congregation and its surrounding community with opportunities to celebrate and participate in the arts. AGUA celebrates artistic expression as God’s creativity working through our human lives. To that end, AGUA is responsible for many culturally stimulating activities that set Union Avenue apart from other urban churches. AGUA makes it possible for AP art students at Soldan International Studies High School and local St. Louis artists to exhibit artwork in the spacious Gretchen Brigham Gallery. If you’d like to connect with this group, contact Carla Duncan, or the church office.
The Faith Formation Team (a.k.a. Education) helps select, acquire, and implement curricula for small groups and Sunday School classes, working closely with the church year’s liturgical seasons and worship themes. It oversees volunteers and upholds our educational policies for classroom and teacher guidelines. Most of all, it connects our people with tools for their personal growth in spirit and the deepening of our communal faith. If you or someone you know has gifts for this ministry, please contact (Chair of Faith Formation) or the church office.
The Outreach Team helps put our faith to action, not only discerning where and how our hands and feet can be Christ in the world but also recruiting volunteers and raising an awareness for mission in our local community and beyond. Our Service Sundays are just one of the ways we make a real difference in St. Louis. If you or someone you know has gifts for this ministry, please contact Debbie Stenson or Rose Fisher (Co-Chairs of Outreach) or the church office.
The Plant and Property Team helps keep our beloved building in shape so that our facilities truly can facilitate our ministries. Working with our Ron Lindsay and our custodians, this team helps oversee the maintenance and improvement of our physical plant: from lightbulbs to roof leaks, new paint for the fence to new plants for entrances and bringing internet capacity up to speed. If you or someone you know has gifts for this ministry, please contact Neil McNeill (Chair of Plant and Property) or the church office.
The New Media Team plays a critical role, connecting our members with each other and helping spread our message and ministry to our members at home and the world beyond. This team is all about connecting people, broadcasting our worship to those worshiping at home. As many of you will continue worshiping remotely to protect your health and that of your children, we are indebted to the New Media Team for their creativity, skill, and hard work to keep us connected and bring church to our homes virtually. If you or someone you know has gifts for this ministry, please contact O’Dan Smith or William Brickhouse (Chairs) or the church office.
The Stewardship and Finance Team helps the church make important decisions about its resources (both financial and physical) and budget management. In addition to running our annual budget campaign, this team also works to educate our congregation about how we equip our various ministries through generous and faithful giving of one’s personal time, talents, and money. This is done through weekly moments during worship, newsletter articles, and Sunday School lessons. If you or someone you know has gifts for this ministry, please contact Doug Rademaker, Ministry Team Chair of Stewardship or contact the church office.
The Welcome and Hospitality Team helps spread the word about Union Avenue ministries to the broader community and makes everyone who comes in our doors feel welcome. During the past year, it spearheaded our Outdoor Hanging of the Greens and the “Welcome” and “We Lift UP!” pubic art displays on Union Avenue. This team recruits greeters for Sunday morning worship, ever more important now that we have safety protocols to share with visitors and members. If you or someone you know has gifts for this ministry, such as a warm smile to share as Sunday morning greeter or ideas for spreading news via print, social media, or visual displays, please contact Frank Proctor (Chair of Welcome and Hospitality) or the church office.
The Worship Team helps make corporate worship possible. While the ministers plan worship, the Worship Team helps make it happen, helping recruit and coordinate participants such as acolytes, scripture readers, communion celebrants, and other liturgists. The Worship Team helps ensure that the people of God can participate, experience, and be an active part of worship. (If you or someone you know has gifts for worship, please contact Rev. Michael Riggs directly, as currently no one serves as Chair of the Worship Team)
In addition to these, other teams drive critical aspects of our ministry. We are developing small groups to help forge connections among our members and support our spiritual development. As described in the article by Robert Reed, we are rebooting the Shepherds to include fostering fellowship opportunities (anyone hear “party!!”?). There is something everyone can do as part of the life of our church, either at home or on campus or out in the world. Everyone has some gift to give and some hand to lend, no matter how great or small.
At this point of Epiphany, cautious stepping and realizing how much we need connections with one another, we urge you to respond a call for involvement. The truth is that we need YOU. And if you are like me, your truth may be that you need greater church involvement. If something interests you, let us know and ask to be a part of it. If you know someone who could really help in one area or another because of their gifts, please talk with them and encourage them to give of themselves in the name of Jesus and for the life of the world. If you have other ideas for involvement, please share them with me. And please rest assured that all church activities will follow our safety protocols, which means that meetings will continue in the foreseeable future to convene online (you can meet in your comfy clothes, while eating dinner or after you’ve put the kids to bed).
Please join me and other committed friends at UACC, by saying “YES” to this opportunity for connection, service, and fellowship. We need your help to build up UACC for a new day. Thank you for your faithfulness to the love of Christ and our being his hands and feet in the world as Church.
— Enola Proctor, President of the Official Board