SCHELDUE FOR THIS WEEK
Sunday, December 19th
Christmas Program
Worship 8am
WELCA Meeting 9am
Sunday School 9:15am
Worship 10am
Love Fellowship COGIC 11am
Wednesday, December 22nd
Bible Study 10am
No Confirmation
Friday, December 24th
Christmas Eve
*To allow for distancing, seating will be available in the sanctuary and to accommodate more people safely, the service will be livestreamed in the fellowship hall.*
Worship – Family Focused 2pm
Worship – Band Led 4pm (Candlelight)
Worship – Choir Led 7pm (Candlelight)
Saturday, December 25thChristmas Day
No Worship
Sunday, December 26th
Worship 9am
No Sunday School
SAVE THE DATE
The Annual Meeting is scheduled for Sunday, January 30th, 2022 at 10:45am in the Fellowship Hall.
WORSHIP AND WITNESS MISSION NEWS
St Peter Live!!
You can now watch our worship service live! Our 8am service will now be livestreamed to our website (https://stpetersheboygan.com) and Facebook page (https://m.facebook.com/stpetersheboygan/) each Sunday morning. Following worship, the service will be uploaded to YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkvPIB8agxVhS72C5822etA). In case of technical difficulty, the service will still be recorded and posted as soon as possible after worship.
8:00am & 10:00am – Worship in the sanctuary. We will wear masks and distance.
9:15am-9:45am – Sunday School in the parking lot if the weather is nice and in the fellowship hall if the weather is not nice. A grown-up must stay with each household of children. See details in ‘Lifelong Learning Mission News’ below for more details.
TASK FORCE UPDATE
The Sheboygan County Division of Public Health and Human Services shared the following statement in a message sent on December 6th. “Sheboygan County Public Health and the CDC recommend that all individuals, regardless of vaccination status, wear masks while indoors or when physical distancing cannot be maintained in areas experiencing high or substantial levels of COVID transmission.” Sheboygan County currently has a high transmission level. For this reason, and to live out the command we have to love our neighbors, we will do our best to distance and wear masks indoors.
SOCIAL OUTREACH MISSION NEWS
Mitten Tree
The Mitten Tree is back and ready for your donations. We have LOTS of hats, but we could more gloves/mittens and scarves. Please bring your new or gently used items to St. Peter and add them to the bin. We will then send them off to area elementary schools. Before we even get started this year, we are dropping off 126 hats, 25 pair of gloves and 3 scarves to 7 different elementary schools. Thank you so much for your generosity – please keep it coming!!
Northside Christian Food Pantry
NSCFP is thankful for their relationship with St. Peter. In 1987, St. Peter joined St. Dominic in the food pantry program. Later, other churches also joined.
The following Mission Statement guides the NSCFP: The Mission of Northside Christian Food Pantry at St. Dominic is to provide food to the needy coming to the food pantry and to strive to respect the dignity of each person served. Following the loving and compassionate character of Jesus Christ is as much a part of our mission as the tangible food supplied to our patrons.
We have been blessed with dedicated volunteers that have enabled us to be open throughout Covid. There have been changes made for social distancing along with special care when handling food. We moved to another location within St. Dominic in fall of 2020. The open area allows patrons to make their own food choices. It is also handicapped accessible. The new location was blessed by Father Norberto on June 17, 2021.
Thank you, St. Peter members, for your financial support prior and especially during Covid. Previously food items have been donated from St. Peter and we anticipate restarting them in the near future. The Pantry is at 2133 North 21st Street and opened every Thursday from 12:30pm-2pm. ~ Pat
Quilting for Lutheran World Relief
Quilting Update: Ten children’s quilts and ten adult quilts have been given to the Afghan refugees at Fort Mc Coy and twenty children’s quilts have been given to Project Linus and through them will go to the local Head Start Program. Thanks to all of you who have helped make this possible- those that sew, cut fabric, lay out quilt tops, tie, donate fabric, donate batting, donate sheets, or help in any way. It takes MANY hands to make a quilt. We are blessed! Thanks be to God! Join us for quilting every Tuesday from 9am – 12pm in the quadroom. Please come, we have a lot of work to do. With all the earthquakes, hurricanes and other natural disasters, LWR is in desperate need of quilts. No experience necessary. We will teach you. See you there. Peace, Wendy B. No Quilting on December 21st or 28th. We will be back on January 4th.
Fidget Mats
The fidget mat group would like to extend the invitation to join us every Thursday in the quadroom from 10am to noon. We have been abundantly blessed with all sorts of fabric, doodads and gizmos to put on these sensory mats to be distributed to nursing homes, high schools and child care education centers which are used for distraction, comfort and mental stimulation for those in need. No need for experience, you’ll be surprised at your own creativity and we will give you direction. As our group will tell you, it is therapy and enjoyment for us also. There is much to do so stop in when you can and see what goes on! No Fidgeting on December 23rd or 30th. We will be back on January 6th.
Farmer’s Market
The SCIO Winter Farmers Market has begun! The market will be held the first and third Saturdays from 9am-12pm at First Congregational UCC, 310 Bluff Avenue, Sheboygan. We have new vendors and new products to share. We also continue to offer EBT services and DYB vouchers.
The farmer’s market has been actively working with low-income patrons to increase access to fresh, locally grown produce. Over $15,000 was spent in food share at the 2021 summer market, and the Double Your Bucks program that is sponsored by St. Nicholas Hospital increased their buying power by adding another $8,000. We also were able to distribute 245 Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program booklets to low-income seniors to purchase $25 of fresh produce at the market in 2021. The farmers market aligns beautifully with our mission to “advocate for social justice, dignity and to improve the quality of life for all people.”
Bridgeway
Bridgeway could use the following items: hand soap, wrapping paper (holiday or birthday), dryer sheets, and 3 matching holiday vinyl tablecloths.
Bridgeway remains focused on helping moms and kiddos accomplish their goals. Mental health counseling, debt reduction, and actively searching for affordable housing top the list this month. Our case manager is working with 10 families through outreach with the hopes of bringing those in who meet the criteria for residency when openings occur. Until that time, we continue to provide food and other basic necessities to help ease their burden of homelessness or vulnerable living conditions.
Community Resources
The National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI) has a helpline 800-950-6264 that is available M-F 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. This helpline provides the one-on-one help and information necessary to tackle tough challenges that you, your family or friends are facing. They also have 24/7 crisis support. Call 800-273-8255 or text NAMI to 741-741 to receive free support via text message.
LIFELONG LEARNING MISSION NEWS
Sunday School
Sunday School for children ages 3 years through 5th grade has begun from 9:15-9:45am. At least one caregiver/parent must accompany each household of children. We need adults to stay because we will not be having a sign-in/sign-out procedure and hope to do many activities outdoors if the weather allows. Caregivers/parents are encouraged to participate with their children! Masks are not required outdoors but are still required in the building. No Sunday School on December 26th or January 2nd. We are back on January 9th!
Confirmation
All students entering 6th-9th grade are invited to join confirmation classes on Wednesdays from 6:30-7:30pm. No confirmation on December 22nd or 29th. We are back on January 5th.
Bible Study
Join us for Bible Study, led by Myra, on Wednesday mornings from 10:00am to 11:00am in the Fireside Room. Please reply to this email or call the church office at 920.452.4771 to sign up to attend. No Bible Study on Wednesday, December 29th.
RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT MISSION NEWS
Financial Update
At the end of November, St. Peter has over $50,000 in our checking account; our income on the year exceeds our expenses by almost $1,000; and we are under budget by over $60,000. We have also looked beyond ourselves by donating over $23,000 to organizations such as the food pantry, SCIO, Samaritan’s Hand, Rainbow Kids, and members of our own congregation in need.
PRAYER REQUESTS
Please keep the following people in your prayers: Bruce’s family, Jazzy, Wina, Dave, Linda, Dianna, Rae-Ellen, Reed, Hannah, Carole, Barb, David, St. Peter, Jensen, Jaylin, Bob, Vicki, Joshua, Brian, and Apostles of Christ.