I think we should not forget the ultimate re-gifting of the season. All of our actions, hopes, words, prayers, thoughts, and gifts should be grounded in and reflect the love of God given in the presence of a mere babe. Tiny, vulnerable, needy, crying (yes, I think Jesus cried despite what the carol “Away in a Manger” says), and dependent upon human love this child will grow up to embody the greatest Love we can ever share on this earth.

Praise God! Alleluia!

‘Tis the season to re-gift! The busiest time of the Year is upon us! Winter has settled in for its duration, and our daylight hours are shortened until the solstice. So many tasks lie before us prior to the New Year: decorating home and hearth and shopping, baking delicious treats, shopping and wrapping, shoveling and shopping, college bowl games and shopping, travelling and shopping, feasting and shopping, new granddaugh-ter’s first Christmas and shopping. Oh, and did I say, shopping. And re-gifting! We respond to the Greatest Gift of God by re-gifting. From a small babe, whose birth we celebrate this month, we re-gift the love of God in many ways. Frosted cook-ies that light the faces of children (of all ages); gifts carefully selected and wrapped, gifts made by our own hands and given in love; colors and lights adorning homes and trees to sparkle in our eyes and minds; familiar carols and songs bathe our ears, minds and souls; greetings spoken from deep within – Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Feliz Navidad; the whole world seems to resound with the re-gifting of the Christ Child. The Advent Season is the season to prepare for that gift and our re-gifting. Sometimes Advent can seem schizophrenic: a season with a split personality. In Italy for a thousand years it was celebrated as a two-to-four week season of joyous preparation for the feast of the Nativity. In Germany and France it was a forty-day season for fasting, doing penance and confessing one’s sins, an attitude greatly influenced by the massive fear of the End of the Word at the time of the first millennium. The dour-minded German and French approach seems to have won out. While the idea of preparation for the celebration of the birth of our Savior should be foremost in our minds,

Dec. 2015 United Presbyterian Congregational Church

214 Vaughn Avenue, Ashland WI 54806 (715) 682-3093

Bill

Peace,

CHRISTMAS WORSHIP SCHEDULE:

Christmas Eve Worship Service – December 24th at 8:30 pm

(With Communion) Office CLOSED: December 25th

10:30 am worship on Sunday, December 27th

NO Sunday School on December 27th or January 3rd

No Confirmation Classes: Dec. 20th and 27th No Adult Bible Study on

December 27th or January 3rd

Page 2 Good News! DECEMBER NEWS

Come and Participate in our Advent/Christmas Events

OFFICE EMAIL CONTACT Information…..

During the summer months both Pastor Bill’s email and Office Administrator Kate Bernardo’s email addresses CHANGED. Please use the following contacts.

REV. WILLIAM HANDY: upccpastor1@gmail.com KATE BERNARDO: Kate.uppc@gmail.com

PRAYER CHAIN If you have a health

concern, or wish to place someone on the prayer chain

please call Julie Radke at 715-373-0265 or you can

email her at radke.jul@gmail.com. You can also leave

information with the church office and they will make

sure Julie gets the information. Thank you!

Thanks to everyone who supported the Presbyterian Women's Thank Offering during the month of November. Your support helpedto provide education, shelter, and health ministry world-wide.

Our big fund raiser, the annual Holiday Bazaar, is coming up on Saturday, December 5. We have tried to contact all women of the church about this. There will be crafts, baked goods, Granny's Attic, candy, and something new this year, cookies by the pound. You can pick out the ones you want, and have a nice variety for your holiday entertaining. Items can be brought in on Friday, Dec. 4. We invite everyone to come on Saturday and enjoy the shopping and also fellowship and refreshments in the Tea Room. Baskets and More: As the Bazaar draws closer, it is time to get those basket projects wrapped up. Baskets to fill are available in the Craft Room downstairs; help yourself. Cellophane, wrapping service, and drop off times will be made available Sunday, Nov. 29 through Friday, Dec. 4. Please call Bea Hayen (765-4856) or RoAnn Ledin (292-3893) to make arrangements. Cookies, cookies, cookies! No, Cookie Monster isn’t

coming, but new at the Bazaar this year will be “cookies

by the pound”. We have invited the ladies of the church

to donate their favorite Christmas cookies, and you know

what good bakers they are. You will be able to select

from the resulting delectable collection of sweets and take

them home in a beautiful red box. Be sure to stop by Sat-

urday, Dec. 5, between 9:30am and 1pm.

Becca Nelson sang while her daughter Samantha performed a liturgical dance during a church service in November.

Holiday Bazaar and Tea Room Saturday, Dec. 5th—9:30 a.m. -1 p.m.

Page 3 Good News! DECEMBER NEWS

FILL THE BOX! The large wicker box in the Narthex of the church is empty! Let’s fill it! On the second Sunday of each month this month it is December 13th! Please bring your non-perishable

food items to worship. The children will help collect the items during the Children’s Chat and bring the items to the front of the sanctuary to help fill the box. The items will be taken to The Brick for the food pantry.

CABLE CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH is hosting the 2nd Chapter Christmas

Sale to support our The Brick (ministries), and especially our satellite, the Cable Area Food Shelf. This event will be held on Saturday, December 5, 2015, 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. at their facility on County Road M in Cable. Faith In Action would like to thank the youth and youth leaders of the congregation for raking a BIG yard for a senior. Faith In Action appreciates the youth group doing valuable community service to support seniors in living independently. Thanks!-Megan Perrine, FIA Program Coordinator

THANK YOU….. Thank you to ….Kim Bro for his extensive work and prepa-ration to help the Pony Express Stewardship Drive achieve good results this year! Thank you to…. Trail Bosses of the Pony Express steward-ship drive. Thank you…… Jocelyn Lang-holz and Chuck Whiting for their commitment to our Con-firmation youth this year. Thank you…. to everyone who helped make our Thanksgiving meal on November 8th so deli-cious and successful!

The 96th Annual Community Christmas Concert will be held on Sun-

day, Dec. 6th at 4 p.m. at the Presbyterian/Congregational Church. Musicians from area churches, community choirs and schools celebrate through music the advent season. This concert is free and open to the public.

Chequamegon Choir’s 43rd

Annual Christmas Concert “The Questions of Christmas” will be held on two dates: Friday December 11th at 7:30 pm at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Ashland and Sunday December 13th at 4:00 pm at St. Louis Catholic Church in Washburn Tickets are $7.00 (Students & Seniors @ $5.00 and Chil-dren 10 and under FREE)

20 Minutes of Gregorian Chant will heard in our sanctuary on Sunday, December 13th. The acapella Gregorian Chant Choir is offering a 20 mi-nute meditation (Compline) in our sanctuary. Sung in Latin and in English, Gregorian Chant is some of the oldest music we have on record, and represents one of the longest continuous liturgical traditions in the world. For more information or if you think you might want to join the choir, please call John Manno at 715-209-0080. ========================================

Matt Cogger featured speaker... Matthew Cogger will be speaking at the Washburn Li-brary on December 2nd at 7:00 pm after returning from his trip to Kyrgzstan for the USAID (U.S. Agency for International Development). Refreshments provided.

Thank you…. to members of the PNC committee for the

time and commitment being put in to find our permanent

pastor.

Thank you….. to Bill Handy for being our Interim

pastor this year, keeping us centered, and gathered, and

working toward the future together.

Standing meetings for out of facility groups: 1) Wednesdays Noon: AA group meets in lounge / 2) Wednesdays in Dining room from Noon to 2 pm: Ceramics Class for disabled adults /3) Sundays at 7:00 pm – NA group meets in lounge 12/1 9 am - Staff Meeting 10:30 am – District Cable Clergy Mtg here 12/2 1 pm – Women’s Canasta in Dining Room 5-6:30 pm – Middle Schoolers meet 7:00 pm – Choir 12/3 7 am – Men’s Bible Study 10-Noon – Mom’s Playgroup meet in Educational Wing play room Northland College Concert rehearsal 12/5 9:30 to 1 pm – Women’s Association Christmas Bazaar & Tea Room 12/6 9:15 Sunday School / 9:15 Adult Bible Study 10:30 Worship with Communion – 2nd Sunday in Advent 4 pm – Community Christmas Concert here 7 pm – SNL 7:30 pm – Gregorian Chant in Sanctuary 12/7 9:30 am – TEAM Meeting 7:00 pm – Northland College Rehearsal in Sanctuary 12/8 4 pm – Northland College Rehearsal in Sanctuary 7 pm – Chamber Music Society Meeting in Youth Room 12/9 7 am – Northland College Rehearsal in Sanctuary 5-6:30 pm – Middle Schoolers Meet 7:00 pm – Choir 12/10 1:30 pm – Game Day at Court Manor 6 pm – Northland College Christmas Concert in Sanctuary 12/11 Sunday School Set up for Christmas Pageant 12/12 Sunday School children rehearsal for Christmas Pageant 12/13 9:15 Sunday School / 9:15 Adult Bible Study 10:30 am – Children’s Christmas Pageant – 3rd Sunday in Advent 7:00 pm – SNL 7:30 pm – Gregorian Chant in Sanctuary 12/14 12:00 pm – Mary Martha Circle meet in Dining Room 6:00 pm – AFS Group Meet in Youth Room 7:00 pm – Deborah Circle Meet at Marian Penn’s 12/15 No Activities Scheduled 12/16 1 pm – Women’s Canasta in Dining Room 5:00 pm – Wednesday Night Dinner 5:30 pm – Session Meeting 5-6:30 pm – Middle Schoolers Meet 7:00 pm – Choir 12/17 7:00 am – Men’s Bible Study in Lower Lounge 10-noon – Mom’s Playgroup in Educational wing playroom 12/18 Noon to 4 pm: New Horizon’s Christmas Luncheon in Dining Room 4:30 pm – Set up at St. Andrews to serve Community Dinner 12/20 9:15 am Sunday School / 9:15 Adult Bible Study 10:30 am – Worship – 4th Sunday of Advent 7 pm – SNL 7:30 pm – Gregorian Chant in Sanctuary 12/22 Newsletter Deadline 12/21 9 am -8 pm – Bell Ringing for Salvation Army at Wal-Mart 12/24 8:30 pm – Christmas Eve worship service with Communion 12/25 CHRISTMAS DAY – Office Closed 12/27 No Sunday School / No Adult Bible Study 10:30 am – Worship

Member Profile: Paul VanPernis I was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, but at a very young age we moved to Rockford, Illinois, where I grew up. I have four brothers and three sisters; I’m the third oldest in the family. My father was a pathologist in Rockford, and later

in his life he worked for the Joint Commission on Accredita-tion of Hospitals. My mother was a stay-at-home mom until my youngest brother was in school, and then she went back to work as a librarian, which is what she trained for in college. Both of my parents were in high school and college during the Depression. We all learned the value of hard work and that we should always try to do our best at whatever we are doing. My paternal grandfather was a Dutch Reformed Church minister, so regular church attendance has always been part of my life. My mother was a very loving and kind person. I attended Hope College in Holland, Michigan, where I ma-jored in biology. Upon graduation from college, I went to the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis for two years in a graduate program in Human Physiology. From there I went to medical school at Rush Medical College in Chicago, Illinois. I finished medical school in three years and then did a three-year family practice residency in Saginaw, Michigan. When we finished residency, Eileen and I moved to Ashland where we opened our medical practice and we’ve been here ever since. Eileen and I have been married for 44 years and have three children. Andrew, our oldest, and his wife Heidi live near Los Angeles, California. Heidi does tutoring work and Andrew is a lead software engineer at Dream Works Movie Studio. Anna is our middle child, and she and her husband Rob and our 4 ½ year old granddaughter Cora live in Longmont, Colorado. Anna is a full-time mom, but she teaches Sunday school and works in the Stephen Ministry program at her church. She has a master’s degree in history, and her husband Rob is one of the principals in a computer software company. Jacob is our youngest, and he is a Presbyterian minister at the First Presby-terian Church of Howard Lake, Minnesota. He attended Princeton Theological seminary and was the Youth Pastor here at our church before he went to the seminary. He’s married to Kate, who was also the youth pastor here at our church. I have great admiration for my siblings and all of my children, including their spouses. I’ve always had great admiration for my parents and grandparents. But I’d have to say that my wife Eileen is the person I most admire. She is the kindest, most loving person I’ve ever met. She has always encouraged and supported me and she makes me a better person. I always tell people that marrying here was the smartest thing I’ve ever done. Religion has always been a central part of my life. I continue to try to understand my faith and how it relates not only to my day to day life, but how it relates to all of mankind. I see my faith as a long search to understand my relationship with God and God’s relationship with all of the rest of the world. The main lessons I’ve learned in live are: work hard, be kind to others, be generous, always keep learning, enjoy life and the world around you, go outside, continually give thanks, keep praying, remember the only thing that really matters in life is the relationships that you have with the people you love, have faith, have fun, and learn to forgive. In my spare time, I enjoy woodworking, downhill skiing, gar-

dening, and collecting antique woodworking planes. I also

enjoy spending time at our cabin and being with my children

and granddaughter.

2 Linda Fischer

3 Gerard Randall, Taylor Sullivan

6 Janice Tomlinson Erickson, Barry Jacobs

7 Todd Erickson, Alice Friesen

8 Cheryl Drevlow, Emily Hagstrom

12 Dylan Zifko

13 Nancy Hudack, Amanda Krueger

15 Cassidy Perry

16 Haille Stuart, Latricia Dugger

17 Garth Robertson, Seija Anderson

18 Robert Mahnke, Dennis Liphart, Doug Liphart, Susan Johnson

19 Vernell Mercer, Hank Martinsen Jr., Karen Kay

20 Anne Chumbler

21 Brian Hammond

22 Meggan Gottschall

23 Mike Yankee, Brea Ann Hoglund

26 Mary Woods, Judi Holevatz

28 Nils Wickman, Laura Nabozny, Aaron Swanson

29 Jennifer Martinsen

30 Ryan Adams

31 Eric Adams, Jim Miller

Coffee Fellowship Hosts

6 Dale and Kay Despard

13 Lynn Adams and Sheila Urling

20 Jim and Anna Fridsma

27 Julie McKuen and Alice Evenson

Recording/Radio (played at 10:30 am 1400 AM)

6 Dick Whitten

13 Jim Roguski

20 John Urling

27 Aaron Mainguth

Acolyte Schedule

6 Lucas and Molly McKuen

13 Marshall and Hope Swanson

20 Tony and Trista Richardson

27 Colton and Carter Evenson

Children’s Chat Schedule

6 Bea Hayen

13 Sunday School Christmas Program

20 Bill Handy

27 Sheila Urling

Usher Schedule

6 Dani Penney & Roth Edwards & Jill Engleman

13 Middle or High School Youth

20 Dale & Paula Moyer and JoAnne Weister

27 Dale & Paula Moyer and JoAnne Weister

Lay Readers

6 Mark Sneed

13 Christmas Pageant

20 Jae Hilts

27 Victoria York

Bakers

6 Peggy Hoffman & Jan Erickson

13 Lynn Adams & Sheila Urling

20 Jim & Anna Fridsma & Sherry Hanson

27 Julie McKuen & Alice Evenson

Communion Servers for Dec. 6th

Sally MacGregor, Dale Despard, Bea Hayen, Bill Handy

Counters for Worship Contributions for Month of December

Dale Despard & Jane Kulbacki

Holiday Bell Ringing Schedule for Salvation Army: December 21st: Bell Ringers Note your time Slot and location Is the East side of Wal-Mart in Ashland – Thank you for this very worthwhile community holiday action! 9-10 am: Pete Man 10-1 am Russ Fish 11 am – Noon Paul & Eileen VanPernis Noon to 1 pm Evenson’s 1-2 pm: Julie & Gregg Radke 2-3 pm: Slot being filled by other source 3-4 pm Kat & Pete Whitten 4-5 pm JoAnne Erickson 5-6 pm Peter & Andrew MacGregor 6-7 pm Julie McKuen 7-8 pm Julia Waggoner

Moving or new email address? Please give all information for your address or email change to the church office. Information for the church newsletter. Please forward your information for the December issue of Good News! to The church office by Dec 20th.

United Presbyterian-Congregational Church 214 Vaughn Avenue Ashland WI 54806 (715) 682-3093

Our Vision: “To be a welcoming family of God that

joyfully embraces the servant

life in Christ.”

Contact Information

Ben Cogger

December

2015

Bill Handy Interim Pastor

682-3093 upccpastor1@gmail.com

Kate Bernardo Secretary

682-3093 Kate.uppc@gmail.com

Allison Radke Youth Minister

682-3139 upccyouth@gmail.com

Cindy Johnson Treasurer

682-3093 blueharley@centurytel.net

http://www.presbych.weebly.com