With Gratitude and Love. . .

To our amazing 2022 Holiday Bazaar chairpersons, volunteers, and work crew, our talented handcrafters and bakers, and all our generous donors and, of course, our wonderful shoppers—you all made the 2022 Holiday Bazaar a success!

From the moment the doors opened at 9:00 a.m., we welcomed a steady stream of shoppers who enjoyed perusing the tables and room offerings and meandering both upstairs and down to see it all. The weather was wonderfully cooperative, and the comments from shoppers were overwhelmingly positive.

To date, our 98th Bazaar has raised $11,884. This success was achieved by over 50 volunteers working throughout the week to transport, set up, organize, price, and sell the crafts, jewelry, books, theme baskets, plants, toys, puzzles and games, small home furnishings, homemade pies and soups and specialty items, and fine photography. At the conclusion of the Bazaar, our volunteers and work crew diligently reassembled the upstairs rooms for Sunday use, set up the Second Chance Sale in Fellowship Hall, and transported a myriad of book boxes for storing off site. This indeed was a team effort!

Individual table/room sales to date are:

• Books – $1,209
  
• Crafts – $2,419
  
• Food Tables – $2,834.50
  
• Games, Puzzles, Toys – $1,344.25
  
• Garden/Plants – $757
  
• Jewelry/Scarves – $1,319.50
  
• Theme Baskets – $1,277
  
• Small Home Furnishings – $674
  
• Fine Photography – $467.50
  

Thank you all so much for making the 2022 Holiday Bazaar such a special church event!

Ruth Penfield and Judy Jessup, 2022 Holiday Bazaar co-chairs

Did you know?

You can provide for yourself and your family and be generous to your church, all at the same time! A charitable gift annuity (CGA) can:

• Provide you with a steady income stream for the rest of your life,

• Reduce what you will pay in income taxes, and

• Provide a generous gift to our church after you die, which can support the church for years to follow.

Sally Holland can assist you in learning about the details.

—Planned Giving Committee

Join Pastor Andy and Pastor Elizabeth in an Advent Adult Study each Tuesday at noon during the season of Advent. Together, you will read and discuss selections from "Watch for the Light: Readings for Advent and Christmas." The class will meet at noon in the Russell C. Carpenter Room and/or on Zoom.  All are welcome! 

You can buy the book at Vermont Book Shop or here on amazon.com

As the holidays approach, the Green Team wanted to share with you some climate-friendly holiday tips:

1. Always turn off your holiday lights before you go to bed.

Consider putting them on a timer if you have trouble remembering. When you take them down, store them with care so you won’t have to buy new ones next year. And when you do need to replace your lights, choose LEDs, which use up to 70 percent less energy than the old-school incandescent ones. Not only do Christmas lights in the U.S. require a lot of energy—more than the national electricity consumption of many developing countries —but the light pollution they produce at night can harm wildlife.

2. Consider second-hand gifting.

We’re not talking garage sale leftovers here, but things like vintage clothing and jewelry, antiques, and gorgeous old books. If you feel odd about it, ask the recipient ahead of time if they’re open to receiving used items as gifts. Also, be sure to put “used preferred” on your own Christmas list if you’re so inclined. There are a number of wonderful resale shops in Addison County including HOPE, Neat Repeats, Round Robin, Buy Again Alley, Junebug, and Sweet Charity. Check them out!

3. Swear off wrapping paper this season.

Instead of using gift wrap, use material you already have around your home, such as newspaper comics, old road maps, or scraps of leftover fabric. Have kids? Task them with decorating all those paper shopping bags you have hanging around. If you must use commercial gift wrap, opt for a gift bag and include a note asking the recipient to reuse it. Here’s why it’s so important: A large portion of the estimated 25 percent extra trash tossed out between Thanksgiving and New Year’s is composed of gift wrap, since a large percentage of wrapping paper (including anything decorated with foil or glitter) can’t be recycled.

4. Donate to a nonprofit rather than buying more stuff.

For the person who has everything, consider making a donation in their name to a local nonprofit. Many worthy organizations in our area are concerned with the conservation and stewardship of our natural landscapes, and some promote environmental justice and a shift from a carbon-based economy. Through the Board of Mission and Social Concerns, our church has supported several such organizations in the past, including Vermont Interfaith Power and Light and 350Vermont. The Green Team has promoted Green Up Vermont events for the past few years. As an added benefit, a donation will never need to be recycled or landfilled!

Join us on Monday, Dec 5, 3pm ET for a virtual worship service with Team Global HOPE at UCC National Ministries for a Blue Christmas worship service. Blue Christmas services traditionally provide space for those who don’t feel so “merry and bright” during the holiday season.

This service seeks to recognize and stand in solidarity with the experiences of those aggrieved or displaced by disaster or forced migration in 2022, from Kentucky, to Ukraine, and beyond. We remember that we are called to stand in solidarity with the captive and the oppressed, and work together with God’s guidance to create a just world for all. UCC Clergy and choirs engaged in humanitarian ministries across the denomination will be providing reflective liturgy, music, and preaching during this event.

Register here