CHRISTIAN EDUCATION NEWS

Congratulations, graduates!   On June 6^th, we celebrated our graduates.  Kayla Moore, Heather Moore, Michelle Sutton and Daniel Osgood graduated from high school.  Heather Kuntz graduated from the Medical College of Wisconsin.  They were each presented with gifts of a Bible and a bookmark. Congratulations to all of them!

All-Church Dinner/Campout… Join us on Saturday, August 7^th, for dinner/campfire/campout on the church property.  This year, all of the boards will have a part in this event. 

The fun starts at 4:00p.m. with outdoor games and activities. Dinner will follow at 5:30p.m. and then we will assemble health kit packages with the Missions Board.  Join us around the campfire for relaxing, singing, S’Mores, and some special visitors.  Campers can pitch their tents on the east side of the church. 

Come for part or the entire event, and join us for the annual outdoor worship service at 10:00a.m. on Sunday morning.

Watch for additional information in upcoming church bulletins.  A sign-up sheet will be posted on the Narthex bulletin board.

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION AND

YOUTH LIFE BOARD CONSULTANT

The CE Board in cooperation with Youth Life is pleased to announce that the Rev. Fiona Nicolaisen will be joining the staff on an interim basis to assist in the development and delivery of a full program for the Middle School and Senior High Youth. 

We recognize we need a program that fills social, spiritual, and mission outreach for our kids.  The kids need to be part of the decision on what they want to do and then the families need to commit the time to make it all happen.  We need to provide the support to make it happen as well. 

The program will start with a planning session with parents, kids, and advisors to determine exactly what, when, and how it will happen, when and how.  Fiona will guide that work. 

For many of you, Fiona is a familiar face.  Fiona was Associate Minister here for 5 years from 1986 to 1991.  Since leaving BCC Fiona has served other churches in SE Wisconsin. 

Summer B.L.A.St.

During the months of June, July, and August, we will have B.L.A.St. for 3 year olds - through 4th graders.  EXCEPTION:  No Blast on July 4th and September 5th (Labor Day).  There is no Grapple in the summer.   Thank you to those who have already volunteered and taught.  Summer leaders are still needed for a few dates so please check and sign up on the bulletin board in the Narthex.  Instruction packets are hanging on the opposite side of the hall on the closet door.  Thanks!

2010-2011 BLAST/GRAPPLE

Do you love kids?  Would you love to share and learn along with them the great messages the Bible and Jesus teach us?  Please consider leading our youth in their Christian Education.  BLAST and Grapple will begin on Rally Sunday, September 12^th.  This year we will continue to run our regular B.L.A.St. (Bible Learning Adventure Stations) program for children ages 3 through grade four.  We will offer the Grapple program to children grades five through eight.  Both programs are well outlined and easily led by anyone who enjoys spending time with our church youth.  The B.L.A.St. curriculum teaches classic Bible stories and allows children four Sundays to truly learn the story and participate in activities from cooking, science, video, art, or games that will bring to life the story of the month.  The Grapple curriculum tackles the tough questions preteens and middle schoolers are asking.  It captivates their attention by digging into real life issues and engages their participation through attention grabbing lessons, thought provoking videos, fun games and relative Bible lessons.

What is the time commitment for each leader?

Each Sunday we will need two volunteers to lead B.L.A.St.  for the entire month, and 1-2 volunteers to lead Grapple for two Sundays out of the month.   Both programs are well laid out so the planning for your day will be very minimal (reading through the lesson and setting up your class with the needed supplies).  

As a B.L.A.S.T Leader your month will break out as follows:

First Sunday: 

Team-teach in the Congo room where the children will learn the story for the month and participate in a group activity. 

Second Sunday:

Team-teach in the Congo Room (the story portion of B.L.A.St.) and then break into groups by age and do an activity in one of the B.L.A.St. stations of your choice. 

Third Sunday:

Same as the second week but the groups will swap stations. 

Fourth Sunday:

Lead B.L.A.St. group and the Grapple group and play a video pertaining to the story from that month.   

As a GRAPPLE Leader your month will break out as follows:

First Sunday: 

No teaching - all children grades four and above will stay in church for communion.

Second Sunday:

Teach or team-teach Grapple curriculum 

Third Sunday:

Teach or team-teach Grapple curriculum 

Fourth Sunday:

No teaching - all children in Grapple will join the B.L.A.S.T. group for a video pertaining to the story of the month.

We would like to set up an email contact folder of those willing and able to help with BLAST and/or GRAPPLE this year. 

On May 23^rd we will celebrate and thank our Christian Education teachers for Blast, and Grapple, and our youth leaders for G.O.D. and Etc. 

If you have a graduate in the family, please let the church office know.  We want to congratulate our high school and college graduates during worship on Sunday June 6^th.  Please provide the school they are graduating from, future plans, and one of their fondest memories of their years in school.

A list of area churches providing a week of Vacation Bible School opportunities will be available later this month.  Brookfield UCC will be holding a camp-out again this year.  This will be held on Saturday, August 7^th and the annual outdoor worship service will be held on Sunday, August 8^th.  A mission project will be part of the camp-out activities.

G.O.D. GROUP     

CROP WALK

On a sunny, brisk Sunday afternoon in October, three BCC G.O.D. group youth, Andrey Stonebraker, Allison & Katie Cayo, accompanied by Jackie Oakes and Bonnie Cayo, took part in the 24^th  annual Milwaukee CROP walk at the McKinley Marina on the lakefront.  We dined on sandwiches, chips, and goodies before bundling up to head downtown.

We were joined by over 800 other people, old and young, from 90 different congregations, raising $5,367 online and collecting $7,426 in sponsor donations.  In addition, 14,790 lbs of food was donated to the Hunger Task Force!!  After our beautiful stroll by the pond & down Prospect Avenue, we drove back to church where we enjoyed hot cocoa, sugar cookies and popcorn before heading home.

For our congregation, we raised $50.00 online and $510.00 in cash and check donations as of October 18^th, for a total of $560.00!  In addition, more than 10 bags of nonperishable food items were donated by our church!  Thanks to everyone for your spiritual and financial support of our CROP walkers this year.

We are accepting donations in person until Sunday, October 25^TH.  Checks should be made payable to CWS/CROP.  You may donate online until the end of  December by visiting http://www.churchworldservice.org.  Click on CROP Hunger Walk, then on Find a Walk.  From there, click on Wisconsin and then click on Milwaukee CROP Hunger Walk.  You will see the Brookfield Congregational G.O.D. Youth Group scrolling on the right side of your screen under “Team Honor Roll”.  Just click on it and you’ll go to our G.O.D. group’s personal page where you can make a safe, online donation!  Thanks!

YOUTH LIFE BOARD

The Youth Life Board exists to help our youth celebrate God, invite our neighbors, serve the community, and support one another as we grow in faith and love. To this end, our board is made up of four adults, Bonnie Cayo, Chuck Graf, Richard Oakes, and Dave Richter, and two youth members, one representing the G.O.D. group, Jackie Sutton, and the other representing the ETC. group, Michelle Sutton.

The focus of our board is to provide mission opportunities for the youth, a fun and safe place to socialize while developing spiritually, and ongoing activities such as the Rummage Sale and the Lent & Advent workshops.

While we have had a large ETC., or high school age, group over the past several years, this year is a growing year as our group shrunk with the graduation of many seniors in 2009. By contrast, our G.O.D. (Gathering of Dudes and Dudettes), or middle school age, group has grown substantially, as we have welcomed the upcoming sixth graders to our group with the annual Lock-In and Lent Event over the Palm Sunday weekend.  Ideally, we’d like to have both a strong high school and middle school group of students who are actively engaged in the life of the church.

CALLING ALL G.O.D GROUP YOUTH!

Join us at church on Saturday, December 5^th from 10:00-11:30a.m.  We will be helping out with the Annual Advent Workshop.  If you are available that morning, sign up on the sheet in the Narthex in November or contact Bonnie Cayo.  It’s always fun to help with Advent!

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION NEWS

 

B.L.A.S.T. and Grapple Christian Education

 

Do you love kids?  Would you love to learn and share with them the great messages the Bible and Jesus teach us?  Please consider leading our youth in their Christian education.  This year we will continue to run our regular B.L.A.S.T. program for children ages  3 through grade three.  We will offer the new Grapple program to children grades four through eight. 

 

Both programs are well outlined and easily led by anyone who enjoys spending time with our church youth.  The B.L.A.S.T. curriculum teaches classic Bible stories and allows children four Sundays to truly learn the story and participate in activities from cooking, science, art, or games that will bring to life the story of the month. 

 

The Grapple curriculum tackles the tough questions preteens and middle schoolers are asking.  It captivates their attention by digging into real life issues and engages their participation through attention grabbing lessons, thought provoking videos, fun games and relative Bible lessons.

 

What is the time commitment for each leader?

 

Each month we will need two volunteers to lead B.L.A.S.T.  for the entire month, and two volunteers to lead Grapple for two Sundays out of the month.   Both programs are well laid out so the planning before your month will be very minimal, simply reading the curriculum and setting up your class with the needed supplies.  

 

 As a B.L.A.S.T. Leader your month will break out as follows:

 

First Sunday: 

Team teach in the Congo room where the children will learn the story for the month, sing songs and participate in a group activity. 

Second Sunday:

Team teach in the Congo Room (the story portion of B.L.A.S.T.) and then you will break into groups by age and do an activity in one of the B.L.A.S.T. stations of your choice. 

Third Sunday:

Same as the second week but the groups will swap stations. 

Fourth Sunday:

Lead B.L.A.S.T. group and the Grapple group and play a video pertaining to the story from that month.   

 

As a GRAPPLE Leader your month will break out as follows:

 

First Sunday: 

No teaching -- all children grades four and above will stay in church

Second Sunday:

Team teach Grapple curriculum 

Third Sunday:

Team teach Grapple curriculum 

Fourth Sunday:

No teaching -- all children in Grapple will join the B.L.A.S.T. group for a video pertaining to the story of the month.

 

All of the curriculum will be provided to volunteer leaders.  Both programs are well outlined and easily led by anyone who enjoys spending time with our church youth. 

 

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION BOARD

The Christian Education Board is responsible for providing education opportunities to all ages of the church membership, from the cradle to the grave.  The Dead Sea Scrolls activities are an example of the CE board’s recent planning.

We assist the children’s ministry coordinators in getting teachers for Blast and Grapple and purchase the curriculums.  The following activities and events are held throughout the year: the nursery is staffed, BLAST and Grapple, Vacation Bible School, Lent and Advent workshops, Bible presentation, communion education, confirmation Sunday, teacher recognition and graduate recognition.

Currently serving on the CE Board are Molly Steffen, Dana Prochnow, Diane Keith, Kate Bloomberg and chair person, Margaret Sutton.

ETC.

SENIOR HIGH YOUTH

2009 SUMMER                 MISSION TRIP

On July 19^th, members from the ETC. Youth Group gathered at BCC at six in the morning to begin their week long mission trip to Biloxi, Mississippi. Participants included Laura Edwards, Kristi Hammond, Christian Kreznar, Will Lyon, Elizabeth Lyon, Peter Lyon, David Roche, and Michelle Sutton. The adults were Chuck Graf and Stephanie Sutton. The group drove for 18 hours in a fifteen passenger van, arriving at the Back Bay Mission headquarters early the next morning.

While in Mississippi, the youth helped those in need with Hurricane Katrina relief. Mornings and afternoons were spent painting, ripping off siding, and putting up drywall. In the evenings the group bonded over card games, spent time on the beach and headed out to sight see. Wednesday night, the group went to an African-American Baptist Church service where they got to experience another kind of worship. On Thursday afternoon they took part of the afternoon to drive to New Orleans and walk around Bourbon Street. Saturday the group got back in the car and headed to Memphis, Tennessee where they ate dinner at BB Kings and spent the night before heading back to Brookfield on Sunday, July 26^th.

A PowerPoint presentation and luncheon were held on Sunday, August 23^rd for those members of BCC that were interested in seeing what the Youth Group had accomplished in Biloxi.

YOUTH LIFE BOARD

The Youth Life Board oversees two groups of young people at our church, the high school students who are a part of the ETC. group and the middle school youth who make up the G.O.D. (Gathering of Dudes and Dudettes).  The following church members make up the Youth Life Board: Bonnie Cayo, board chairperson, Chuck Graf, Richard Oakes, and Dave Richter.

Plans are under way for members of the ETC. group to travel to Biloxi, MS this July in order to take part in a UCC service project benefiting those affected by Hurricane Katrina.  Chuck Graf is a member of the Youth Life Board and heads up both the meetings for this group as well as organizing the mission trips and activities.  More information about the upcoming mission trip and those who will be attending will be presented during a worship service in June.

The G.O.D. group recently held a Lock-In at our church from Friday, April 3^rd  through Saturday, April 4^th.   We had a fun group of 7 kids and three adult chaperones.  Besides eating pizza, playing games and watching movies, we stuffed almost 200 plastic eggs which we hid outside for the younger kids to find on Saturday morning as part of the Lent Event family activity.  Everyone had a great time and we even managed to get some sleep, having to wake the kids up at 8:15 on Saturday morning!

The G.O.D. group and the ETC. youth are looking ahead to helping the Trustees in May when we'll be offering our energy to spruce up the grounds and spread the mulch.  Watch for a sign-up sheet in the Narthex soon.

ETC. Senior High Youth…

The new year has brought about several ETC. activities for high school youth! In January, ETC. had the opportunity to participate in a celebration for Martin Luther King Jr. day sponsored by the New Berlin Public Library and enjoy a movie night featuring the film Simon Birch. 

In February, ETC. hosted a sledding/lock-in event at BCC. This was followed by participating in the "Souper Bowl of Caring," a national effort that mobilizes youth to fight hunger and poverty in their local communities on Super Bowl Sunday. ETC. decided to donate "Souper Bowl of Caring" monies to the Waukesha Food Pantry. Thank you to the congregation for supporting ETC.'s efforts; we raised $233.00!

 In the next few months, ETC. has plans to continue flocking church members homes with pink flamingos to fundraise for the 2009 youth mission trip (watch your lawns!), participate in some local volunteer efforts, and go bowling.

Any high school youth is invited and encouraged to participate in the FUN! ETC. meets the first and third Sunday of each month from 7:00-8:30p.m. Check the bulletin and/or your email for additional information.   

2009 Youth Summer Mission Trip…

On July 19-25, 2009, ETC. will proudly represent BCC by traveling to Biloxi, Mississippi to participate in a week long work camp at Back Bay Mission. Back Bay Mission, a community mission of the United Church of Christ, provides services to impoverished and marginalized individuals. 

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina demolished the Gulf Coast region, including the Back Bay campus. Approximately 130,000 homes were either entirely destroyed or extensively damaged. As a result, work camp groups at Back Bay assist in the disaster relief /recovery efforts to rebuild the region and assist families in need. Full recovery from Hurricane Katrina is expected to take as long as ten years. For more information about Back Bay Mission, check out the web at http://www.backbaymission.com/.  

A note to parents of high school youth: watch the bulletin and email announcements for upcoming information regarding a parent informational meeting for the 2009 summer mission trip.

YOUTH LIFE BOARD:

The Youth Life Board consists of six members – four adults and two youth. The purpose statement for the youth ministry at BCUCC is as follows: The youth ministry at BCUCC exists to celebrate God, invite our neighbors, serve the community, and support one another as we grow in faith and love.

In that spirit, the Youth Life Board plans and oversees fellowship, mission and faith building activities for our youth.

The G.O.D. group is for middle school aged youth. The G.O.D. group meets once a month and participates in fellowship and mission based activities.

The ETC. group is for high school aged youth. ETC. meets twice a month to discuss relevant social and religious issues and to engage in fellowship. The ETC. group also undertakes a mission trip every year. This year, on July 8-14 the ETC. youth and chaperones went on a week long mission trip to Denver, Colorado.

Both youth groups have bulletin boards on the doors in the hallway outside of the church library. These bulletin boards provide photos of past activities and information regarding upcoming meetings and activities.

If you have any questions or ideas for the Youth Life Board, please feel free to speak with any of the Youth Life Board members.