to benefit the Youth Work Tours and Allegro Bell Choir 

Sunday, February 26, 2012
from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Tickets are $10 in advance, $12 at the door.  Children 4-12 are $5, and children under 3 are free.
(Gluten free pasta will be available.)

There is a Silent Auction and entertainment throughout the evening.

Tickets will be on sale in the Gathering Place after each service, or you may contact Kearny Kilens.

This fun event benefits our youth work tours and the Allegro Bell Choir concert tour. 

Spring Work Tour March 23-31, 2012 – Henderson Settlement, Frakes, KY: Signup Online

Summer Work Tour July 13-21, 2012 – Sunset Gap Community Center, Crosby, TN: Signup Online

“When I first found out about work tour I really did not want to go. I would miss home way too much and I did not think it would be fun going over spring break. I had a lot of people pressuring me to go, so I thought I would take the chance and bring my best friend along with me. When it was the day to leave I was very nervous. I thought the only people I would talk to the whole trip would be my two friends who came along with, but little did I know from that moment on my life would change forever.”
- Past Work Tour Participant

What is Work Tour?
Twice a year 20 or more of our Youth and their adult leaders climb on a bus and head off to do service in communities that need a hand.  There is a lot of construction, painting, and fixing that goes on.  But more importantly there are a lot of friends being made, love being shared, compassion being learned, and faith being built.  Many of our youth describe their work tours as “life changing experiences.”

Sign-up To Go
Work tours always sell out.  If you are thinking of going, don’t delay!  Interested? Contact Jeremy Hylen.

Sponsor A Youth (SAY)
We are always looking for sponsors to help support those that are going on these trips. If you would like to help please contact Jeremy Hylen.

Follow our Work Tour Students Progress Online
The high school youth of Union Church take a week off during the summer and have a blast working, impacting people’s lives and in the process, changing how they look at people, God, and themselves. You can follow the past few trip’s progress via the Work Tour blog at http://uchucc.us/wt

Fullersburg Woods offers a wide variety of activities. It contains a nature education center which offers many opportunities for schools as well as other groups.  Their mission is to educate the public about the natural areas and how people relate to them. Fullersburg provides people with many special programs to educate the public on various subjects such as maple syrup, bugs, Halloween walks and Earth Day celebrations.

Union Church youth would be involved but not limited to:

• Attending nature programs
• Becoming involved in special events
• Removal of invasive species
• Preparing for special events

Meet at Fullersburg Woods at 9am for these events

Oct 21-23, 2011: for the Halloween Walks*

Nov 12, 2011: Buckthorn Cutting

Dec 17, 2011: Buckthorn Cutting

Jan 21, 2012: Buckthorn Cutting

Feb 11, 2012: Buckthorn Cutting

March 10, 2012: Buckthorn Cutting

March 17, 2012: Maple Sap collection

April 14, 2012: Buckthorn Cutting

May 12, 2012: Invasive Plants Pulling

June 9, 2012: Invasive Plants Pulling

*This has different times etc. Contact Laurie about this special event

For any questions please contact Laurie Hylen at lmeyers131@hotmail.com

The Night Ministry offers services at the moment of need, a mobile health bus, a shelter and support services for homeless youth.  Union Church Youth help in the Night Ministry’s work by providing a meal to those in need on the street.

This is how this very popular event works:

• Meet at church and cook lots of hot dogs or make lots of  sandwiches and heat up soup
• Drive downtown with your adult chaperones and set up a table next to the Night Ministry bus
• Serve a meal to the homeless and others in need
• Listen and talk to those you are serving
• Provide immediate assistance to those in need and have fun with your fellow Union Church Youth

Meet at the church for this event.

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Saturday, June 16, 2012

 For any questions please contact Jane Grimm at Jgrimm723@comcast.net

This ministry sprung from a Servant’s Heart. It has become a once a month opportunity to serve here at Union Church.  Headed by Brad Piche, and Joel Pundman this is an opportunity for  4 or 5 youth to chop, mince, dice, sauté, stir, season, and otherwise create a delicious soup meal to be served to those in need at the local PADS shelter in Clarendon Hills, and a Women’s Shelter in La Grange.  It is a limited time commitment, and a great service project that kids can do once, or on a regular basis. Have a fun soup group? Come be a part of this great project!

Meet in the Dining Room at Union Church for this event.

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Saturday, May 12, 2012

For any questions please contact Joel Pundmann at thepundmanns@yahoo.com

Mission Possible is supported by the Mission Ministry and Youth Ministry Team of Union Church.  It offers “hands on” service opportunities to our Youth on a regular basis.

The core projects for Mission Possible are:

• Soup making for a PADs homeless shelter in DuPage County – once a month on a Saturday afternoon
• Making meals and serving them to the homeless in Chicago through the Night Ministry – most months on Friday or Saturday nights
• Volunteering at Fullersburg Woods – once a month on a Saturday morning plus special events

Various special events sponsored by Mission Possible are:

• Sunday, October 16, 2011 - CROP Walk – Join over 2000 communities across the US and over five million walkers to help support grassroots hunger-fighting efforts in the US and all over the world.  Get pledges, walk and help people who struggle with hunger issues all over the world.

• Saturday, November 5, 2011 – Sleep Out Saturday Night – Join over 60 groups and 1500 individuals who will sleep out on the front lawns of churches on to help raise awareness for homeless families in DuPage County.

• Sunday, November 6, 2011 – Golden Appreciation Dinner – Each year the church celebrates and honors its “Golden” members (those who have been a member of the church for more than 70 years) by providing fellowship and food.  You are invited to help serve and spend time with some of our amazing seniors in the Congregation.

• Feed My Starving Children  – We are planning a trip to Feed My Starving Children (FMSC). We will package small pouches—each of which provides six nutritious meals. A single bag of food—which provides meals for six children.

• Caroling – We will Christmas Carol during the Christmas season. Stayed tuned for the times and places.

• A Just Harvest (formerly Good News Community Kitchen) – Fourth Sunday of every month – Help serve dinner to the homeless at the Good News Community Kitchen in Rogers Park.
Contact Fran Evans fevans5613@sbcglobal.net to sign up.

• Vacation Bible School, June 18-22, 2012 – Help teach vacation Bible School one day or all week.  Contact Penny Johnson at pjohnson@uchinsdale.org to sign up.

• Sunday School – Help teach Sunday School. Contact Penny Johnson at pjohnson@uchinsdale.org to sign up.

Got ideas of your own for mission projects? Let us know and we’ll see if we can get them organized.

Except as specifically noted, contact Jeremy Hylen at (630) 590.6656 or jhylen@uchinsdale.org

Spaces are limited for certain activities so be sure to sign up early!

On Sunday Evenings (in the Youth Room) all high school students and their friends are invited to gather from 6-8:00pm. We do all sorts of things from Movie Nights to playing brainless games (and whatever other fun ideas we can think of).

Each Wednesday we meet from 7-8:00 p.m. (in the BA Room) to explore faith issues and begin to talk about our journey in faith. We will check out some Nooma videos, explore interfaith issues, and dig deeper into our own questions. There are no requirements (and you don’t need to know anything) to participate in this group.

Other events just happen sort of spontaneously! To stay in the know be sure to read the youth newsletter sent by email each week, or sign up on Facebook for updates.

Welcome to the Union Church of Hinsdale’s Youth Program for the 2011-2012.  All Union Church high school students and their friends are invited to participate in the many opportunities for fellowship, mission, worship, and Christian formation available at Union Church.

We hope you chose to participate in one or all of the following programs:

• High School Youth Group: Sunday evenings 6-8:00 p.m.
• Wednesday evening exploration 7-8:00 p.m.
• Mission Possible: providing regular service opportunities
• Work Tours: Spring and Summer week long service trips

Please click on the links above for details on all these great opportunities.  

We hope all Union Church Youth can participate in some way, whether it’s once or twice a week, once or twice a month or once or twice a year.  Don’t miss out on all the fun and meaningful times!

Sign up for the Youth Program weekly newsletter, which provides details on all events and also sign up for Facebook invitations in the UCH Youth 2011-2012 group.

Jeremy Hylen
jhylen@uchinsdale.org
Director of Youth Formation
The Union Church of Hinsdale - United Church of Christ

Christian Social Justice Ministry

We work to remedy systemic causes of social, political, and economic oppression. It seeks to educate itself and members of the congregation about issues of social justice and provides opportunities for advocacy in issues of social justice, both domestic and international.

The ministry’s charter includes the following:

• To be responsible for helping the church and its members to live out Jesus’ simple charge to “do justice.”
• To study the Bible and other sources in order to understand, teach, and celebrate in worship the nature of Christian social justice as God’s dream of shalom on earth—well being for everyone.
• To help members of the Church to assess the state of Christian social justice in contemporary life and identify the conditions and barriers to its realization.
• To advise and support individuals and organizations at all levels—local, regional, national, and international, striving to overcome fundamental barriers to justice and striving to promote God’s shalom.

How We Serve

In pursuit of this charter the Christian Social Justice Ministry engages in the following activities:

• Letter writing campaigns around specific issues of social justice.
• Classes and seminars to inform members about specific issues of social justice.
• Moments for Justice from the pulpit to inform members about issues and opportunities for advocacy.
• Direct contributions from our budget to organizations—regional, state, national, and international—that engage in advocacy for justice. Examples of current organizations we sponsor include Amnesty International, American Indian Center in Chicago, Bread for the World, Chicago Religious Leadership for Latin America, Chicago Metropolitan Sanctuary Alliance, Children’s Defense Fund, Justice and Witness Ministries of UCC, Protestants for the Common Good, and Voices for Illinois Children.
• The Open and Affirming Task Force operates as a committee of the Christian Social Justice Ministry.

It is the duty of the Christian Mission Ministry is to inspire, enlist and coordinate Union Church’s concerns for service to the wider community.

Toward this end, the Board’s tasks can be summarized in two categories:

Agency Selection and Support:

The Board, on behalf of the congregation, seeks to support a broad spectrum of agencies that address a variety of needs. Together, we support organizations that traditionally have had a relationship with the United Church of Christ or within Union Church, as well as those whose ties to us are limited. Above all, however, we seek to support agencies that work to fulfill their goals in the true spirit of Jesus. Agencies that:

• Work with, and not merely for, the people whom they seek to help
• Are willing to take risks with new programs
• Channel the maximum of their resources into their work rather than into their administration

Each agency is assigned a liaison from among the Mission Board’s membership. In the fall of each year the Board evaluates the agencies and establishes priorities for the coming year. Funding allocations are then formalized after the Board’s budget is approved in January.

Response to Immediate Need:

Part of these monitoring activities includes taking note of the special needs of people in distress as a result of disasters around the world or of projects that are beyond the scope of our regular budget but that the Board, on behalf of the congregation, would like to support. The Board’s contingency fund is often the funding source of our agencies immediate needs.

Special Offerings are conducted at Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas and are designated for these projects.

The Mission Board selects the recipient of each of these three offerings. Sometimes the recipient is an existing agency that the board supports. In other cases, the recipient is a new organization that a board member or other member of the congregation brings to the board’s attention.

A fourth offering is held each March and is given to the worldwide One Great Hour of Sharing. OGHS supports the work of the mission agencies and relief efforts of the ecumenical Church World Service.

Mission Statement: Our mission in the service of Our Lord Jesus Christ, as empowered by the Holy Spirit, is to minister to the needs of the whole human family, both within our congregation and in our community, nation and world.

The United Church of Christ Statement of Faith, in part: God calls us into the church to accept the cost and joy of discipleship, to be servants in the service of the whole human family and to have courage in the struggle for justice and peace.

Mission Board Agencies:

Chicago Theological SeminaryCommunity Renewal Society
Erie Neighborhood House
Family Shelter Service
Good News Community Church, UCC
A Just Harvest (formerly known as Good News Community Kitchen)
Habitat for Humanity
Hinsdale Community Service
Hope for Homeless Families
Interfaith House
Lifelink Charities
Night Ministry
Pillars Community Services
San Lucas Church, UCC
St. John UCC
Special Projects & other Christian Ministry Programs
Women’s Opportunity Network / Opportunity International
Work Tour High School Mission of Union Church