Church News
The latest news, announcements, and church publications to keep you up to date.
Church Life, October 10, 2021
Church Life, October 3, 2021
Church Life, September 26, 2021
Are you ALL IN?
Now is the chance for ALL of us to step up and get more involved at First Pres. Your involvement helps not only the growth of our diverse programming, but it also helps expand our impact in the whole community. There are so many ways you can get involved no matter your age or your abilities. Read more about our ALL IN campaign, below and sign up on the ALL IN page.
PDF Embedder requires a url attribute All-In-InfographicChurch Life, September 19, 2021
Register Now for CTR’s Career Planning Course
Wednesdays, October 6, 13, 27, November 3, 10
Wednesdays, February 2, 9, 16, 23, March 9
This five-week Career Planning Course from our Career Transition Resources Team covers the most important cornerstones of your job search or career journey, including self-assessment, budgeting, resume building, marketing, networking, interview preparation, and negotiations.
Classes will be held in room 101/103 during family night programming, 7:00 – 8:00 pm
Email CTR@firstpresah.org, by September 30 for Fall or January 31 for Winter.
Whether you’re on the hunt for a new job or seeking change in your career path, you don’t have to face these challenges alone. Sign up now!
Church Life, September 12, 2021
Local Restaurant Walk
We will create groups of 8-10 that will have dinner at a local restaurant. Our goal is to foster deeper connections in the congregation and support local restaurants that were affected by the pandemic. Dinners will begin in October.
Join a Music Ensemble!
Friends, countrymen, musicians! The time has come for the music ministry at First Pres to ramp up our programs. Adult choirs, children’s choir, bell choir, praise band, brass, strings, you name it, we got it!
COMPASS (PRAISE BAND)
Do you like to rock out and praise the Lord? Then this is the group for you! We are always on the lookout for guitarists, bassists, drummers, keyboard players, singers, and brass players to help lead music for the 9:00 am modern worship service. Compass rehearses at 8:00 am before the service on Sunday morning. Contact: Adam Hendrickson
ADULT CHOIRS
Two choir opportunities exist on Thursday night for High School age and older: Men’s Chorus, rehearsing 6:30-7:00 pm every other week and Chancel Choir, rehearsing weekly at 7:00 pm. First rehearsals is September 9. We are requiring that our singers be fully vaccinated for COVID-19. We hope to see a lot of new faces and hear a lot of new voices this year! Contact: Adam Hendrickson
CHILDREN’S CHOIR
Our Children’s Choir has a new and improved rehearsal time! Starting on September 22, the children’s choir will rehearse in the Sanctuary during the latter half of Family Night dinner on Wednesday evenings, from 6:30-7:00pm. Adult volunteers will take the kids from Fellowship Hall to the Sanctuary and then from the Sanctuary to Kids Connect. Contact: Nick Pulikowski
HANDBELL CHOIR
The Handbell Choir rehearses at 5:30 pm in the Bell Choir Room every Thursday evening. We are also pleased to offer a bite-sized four-week opportunity to ring on Wednesday evening at 7:00 pm after our Family Night dinner (also in the Bell Choir Room). Join the choir September 15, 22, 29, and October 6 and ring with them during 10:30 am worship on Sunday, October 10! What a great way to give bells a try. Contact: Nick Pulikowski
BRASS, STRINGS AND BEYOND
If you play a brass, string, or other instrument, there are several opportunities to share your talents with the church. We often utilize small ensembles during worship, as well as offering opportunities to play with larger ensembles during our Concert Series events. We are so blessed to have so many talented instrumentalists at First Pres. Contact: Adam Hendrickson and make yourself known if you haven’t already!
Two services return Sunday, September 12
You will not want to miss our Sunday services as we kick-off the new program year on September 12. The praise band, Compass, has some exciting new arrangements to share at 9:00 am. We also will have music featuring the Chancel Choir, First Pres Brass and bagpipes at 10:30 am to honor our Presbyterian heritage. You might just have to come to both services!
As work continues in the hallway by the Memorial Prayer Garden and in the Chapel, the Sanctuary will be the designated worship space for both the modern and traditional services through the end of 2021. This will require patience and understanding on everyone’s part. We thank you for all the grace you can offer in this exciting and busy time.
Fall 2021 Program Highlights
All Church Trip to Mandela: The Struggle for Freedom at the Illinois Holocaust Museum
Join your First Pres friends for an afternoon visiting Mandela: The Struggle for Freedom at the Illinois Holocaust Museum. We will experience a docent led tour of the exhibit. Keep reading for more information on the day and the Mandela exhibit.
Date and Time: Sunday August 29, 2021 12:45pm – 3pm.
Where: Meet at the Illinois Holocaust Museum 9603 Woods Drive Skokie, IL 60077. Transportation to the museum is on your own. Parking is free at the museum.
Tickets: Tickets are $10 for Adults and $5 for children ages 10-18. Reserve your ticket on Sunday mornings beginning July 18 in the narthex or online. The museum is most appropriate for children and adults ages 10 and up. To register, click here. Payment for tickets and lunch may be made by clicking here. Please select “Mandela Exhibit” from the dropdown menu and enter your total amount for tickets and lunch in the Give box.
Optional lunch: For those attending the 10:30am worship service prior to leaving for the museum and optional box lunch is available for $8. Lunches will be available after the 10:30am service on August 29.
Place your lunch order when you reserve tickets.
Questions: Contact Michele Holifield or Katy Allen
Sponsored by Stone Catchers and the First Pres Mission Committee
More about the exhibit:
Mandela: Struggle for Freedom traces the history of the fight against apartheid in South Africa, with Nelson Mandela as one of its central figures. With immersive environments, Mandela promotes human rights with a clear message: all people deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. Nelson Mandela was one of the most
famous human rights defenders of the 20th-century and the face of a movement against racial injustice. His unbreakable will inspired people around the globe to mobilize for human rights and contributed to a worldwide crusade demanding racial equality. A winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 and South Africa’s first democratically elected president in 1994, Mandela devoted his life to fighting apartheid and creating a more just society.
Produce Market
Children’s Ministries and the Mission Committee join forces this summer to distribute free, fresh
produce to those in need in our community. Using yield from the Loaves & Fishes garden and generous
produce donations from First Pres gardeners, we will open a produce “market” on Wednesday evenings
in our parking lot.
If you have produce from your personal garden that you would like to donate, you may drop it off at
First Pres on Sunday mornings between 9am – 11:30am or on Wednesday evenings between 5:30-6:00
pm. If you have questions about the market or donations contact Michele Holifield.
Christopher House Backpack Collection
This June is the first graduating class from the Christopher House K-8 School. Christopher House has been working hard through a very challenging year to be in contact with all its scholars personally, virtually, and in person. We are asking for your monetary support of the Presbyterian Women CHRISTOPHER HOUSE BACKPACK FUND, during the month of June, to ensure each scholar will have the backpack and supplies needed for the new school year! We are grateful for all your generous and loyal support in the past. The suggested donation is $20, but all donations are welcome! You can donate online by clicking the button below (select C House Back Packs from drop-down menu) or by mail (write CH Backpack on memo line). Your support MAKES A BIG DIFFERENCE!
Chimes Newsletter July & August 2021
Kenneth Young Center 5K Run/Walk
Prior to the pandemic, the Session voted to create a partnership with the Kenneth Young Center (KYC). KYC is focused on serving the needs of those who require behavioral health services but are either underinsured or uninsured. KYC is hosting a 5k race at Busse Woods on Saturday, June 26, at 9:00 am to raise money to help support their programs. First Pres is interested in forming a team. If you would like to be part of the team and run or walk in the race, please contact Mary Fino for more details.
Crayon Collection
Do you have unwanted crayons laying around? Sean Beihoffer, a member of Scout Troop 32 and First Pres, is working on his Eagle project. Sean is collecting used crayons and donating them to The Crayon Initiative, a not-for-profit organization whose goal is to keep used crayons out of landfills and reduce environmental waste.
The crayons collected and donated to The Crayon Initiative are melted down and repurposed into new crayons, which are distributed to Children’s Hospitals across the United States, including several in the Chicagoland area.
Sean will be hosting a drive-through collection in the East parking lot on Saturday, June 26, from 11:00am to 1:00pm. Crayons can also be donated at the church during normal business hours or on Sunday mornings through July 15. Collection boxes are located at Door 9 during the week and in the Narthex on Sunday mornings. For questions please contact Sean Beihoffer.
Welcome Back!
Welcome back to in-person worship in the Sanctuary. We still require masks to be worn in the building. We anticipate being able to accommodate all who want to worship and will monitor our attendance each week. Ushers will be available on Sunday mornings to answer any questions you may have. Live streaming will be available at 10:30 am on Sundays.
The Bridge Summer Tour of Patios is BACK!
Throughout the summer, The Bridge (40’s & 50’s plus) will gather on the patio of one of our members for fellowship.
These evenings of fellowship will take place every two weeks starting on Friday, June 11, at 7:00 pm at the home of Kelly Dean.
Plan to bring your own beverage and a small appetizer to share.
In addition, please RSVP to Kelly Dean with how many will be joining us and let us know how many have been vaccinated. While vaccination is not required to attend, it will help some guests determine whether or not they will.
See you on the patio!
Aluminum Can Drive
Scout Troop 32, sponsored by the First Pres Men’s Bible Study, is organizing an aluminum can drive on Saturday, June 5, from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm in the west parking lot. Drop off your crushed cans for recycling. Please do not bring cans to the church office before the collection date. First Presbyterian Church of Arlington Heights is located at 302 N. Dunton Avenue, Arlington Heights, IL 60004.
