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DECEMBER 2020 |VOLUME 46| ISSUE NO.3

EVANGEL

OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER OF FIRST EVANGELICAL FREE CHURCH

A Reach Student Ministry Christmas WRITTEN BY ALEX IELASE

December is one of my favorite months to be a youth pastor. This is the time of year when Reach Student Ministries gets to celebrate Christmas by reaching out. We do a variety of activities designed to get students out of their normal Wednesday routines and sharing the love of Christ with others. Below is a little breakdown of what our month will look like. For the first week of December, we buy gifts for local families. It’s so much fun to buy and wrap gifts, and teaches students that “it’s more blessed to give than to receive.” We will divide up into our small groups and descend upon area stores, pool up our money (including student donations), have a little fun in the aisles playing with toys, then head back to FEFC to wrap them all up.

Christmas Program In place of the Live Nativity event, we will present a Christmas program on Sunday, Dec. 13 at 3 p.m. An afternoon of celebrating the Christmas season through music.

Christmas Eve Services This year we will have two Christmas Eve services: 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. Our 7 p.m. service will be livestreamed for anyone unable to make it in person.

Mark Your Calendars

A Reach Student Ministry Christmas, Cont.

Student Ministry Christmas

The following week, we will deliver home-cooked

Shopping | Dec. 2 at 6:30 p.m.

meals to some folks who have a hard time getting

Student Ministry Leader Meeting | Dec. 6 at 1 p.m. Women's Book Club | Dec. 8 at 6:30 p.m. via Zoom

outside or who have recently lost a loved one. Christmas is about Emmanuel— we want people to know that because of Jesus, God is with them. We will cater to their comfort level. For some, it will be a no contact food delivery with a card inside. For others, we

Student Ministry Meal/Cookie

will go into their home and sing Christmas carols, pray

Delivery | Dec. 9 at 6:30 p.m.

and celebrate together.

Christmas Program | Dec. 13 at 3 p.m. Moms Connect | Dec. 15 at 6:30 p.m. in Game Room Student Ministry Caroling | Dec. 16 at 6:30 p.m. White Cross | Dec. 17 at 9 a.m. in Lower Fellowship Hall

During the 3rd week of December, we will be hitting the streets! The group will divide up and walk though different neighborhoods around FEFC. The mission? Christmas carols and conversations with whomever the Lord brings across our path! Through all of these activities, we want students to learn how to reach out to others. We want them to

Student Ministry Leader Party |

step out of their comfort zones. We want God to give

Dec. 18 at 6:30 p.m. in Fire Place

them a heart for others—to really be burdened for

Room

folks who are vulnerable or lonely. We pray that they

Student Ministry Dad's

would have spiritual eyes to see, hearts that are open,

Breakfast n' Bible | Dec. 19

and lives that are surrendered to the King. Lastly, we

at 9 a.m. in Fire Place Room

want to make an eternal impact (by God’s grace) in

No Connect| Dec. 23

people’s lives.

Would you pray with us that the Lord would do these things? God bless you and have a merry Christmas!

A Spirit of Giving WRITTEN BY AMANDA TRONCONE

When you enter through the doors of First

The board gathers the items collected, packs

Evangelical Free Church, you will find people

the boxes, and writes notes to recipients

whose hearts overflow with generosity in every

before delivering the boxes as a surprise.As

pew. Our church is grateful for your continued

Sarah Howard, deaconess, said,” It’s more than

giving during this year of uncertainty. It has not

food. It's a reminder that we, as the church,

gone unnoticed. As we have approached the

care about people and meeting the needs of

holiday season, we again turned to you for

people in our community.”

donations and gifts for our annual Operation Christmas Child campaign as well as our

During Harvest Home, we collect traditional

Harvest Home food collection.

Thanksgiving foods as well as pantry staples and proteins including canned fruits and

Throughout October, we collected Operation

veggies, dessert mixes, pastas, peanut butter,

Christmas Child shoeboxes for Samaritan’s

canned chicken and tuna, and drink mixes.

Purse International Relief. We asked everyone

Plus, First Free provides a gift card to Giant

to take a shoebox and fill it with items for kids

Eagle to each household to purchase a turkey

from ages 2 -14. Each box can be filled with

or other perishable food items.

toys, crafts and activities, personal care items, clothing and accessories and, of course, a

We were able to give two large boxes of food to

“wow” item! During National Collection Week,

15 families this year thanks to you and your

Pastor Joel transported the over 200 boxes we

generosity.

collected to a drop off location! We know that 2020 has been a difficult year for many families physically, spiritually, and financially, so we want to offer a huge THANK YOU to you and your families for supporting others during this holiday season.

Each year, the Deacon Board organizes our Harvest Home collection for recipients within our First Free Family.

Job Opportunity

International Partner Spotlight

First Free is looking to hire a full-time, Communications Specialist. If you have a background in communications, marketing, and/or graphic arts, please contact Business Manager Joe Squires at 412-678-4761, ext. 106 or email him at

Our Partner Karen Zando grew up in Elizabeth Township, she is part of the EF Athletic Hall of

jsquires@myfefc.org.

Fame, and serves full-time with

Christmas Offering Information Our annual Christmas Offering will be taken Sunday, December 20. This offering is a way for us to honor and say “thank you” to the entire church staff for their service to us at FEFC throughout the year. Please use the Christmas envelopes in your boxed sets and Christmas envelopes in the pews. If you use a regular offering envelope please be sure to mark it “Christmas Offering”

Cru (formerly Campus Crusade for Christ). She began her work in Ohio with athletes, then transitioned to Cru’s headquarters in Florida. She has been a chaplain at 2 Summer Olympic games. Her key ministry role is advancing

so it is accounted for correctly. You can also contribute to the

international ministry training

Christmas Offering online at myfefc.org/giving.

for Cru workers, especially in countries that limit access for

Family News

Christian workers. Covid has not slowed down Karen’s effective

Anniversaries

use of technology to train and build into Cru staff around the

CONGRATULATIONS TO... Robert & Deborah Dyer for 51 years of marriage on Dec. 5. Andrew & Nancy Mauro for 35 years of marriage on Dec. 11.

world, though it has grounded her from travel.

Michael & Judy Davis for 51 years of marriage on Dec. 21. Samuel & Pamela March for 50 years of marriage on Dec. 21. Jack & Marilyn Ashoff for 51 years of marriage on Dec. 27. Roy & Alice Saxon for 51 years of marriage on Dec. 27.

Tim & Karen Troutman for 35 years of marriage on Dec. 28.

Office Hours:

Stephen & Audrey Nagy for 50 years of marriage on Dec. 31.

M-F 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Address:

Memorial Gifts THANK YOU TO ALL WHO CONTRIBUTED MEMORIAL GIFTS FOR THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE. For Mildred Boyd:

For Josh Farnam:

John & Linda Gougler

For Kirk Campbell:

For Ed Pavuk:

John & Linda Gougler

Bill & Dolly Halas Vilma Pavuk

4001 University Drive McKeesport, PA 15132 Phone Number: 412-678-6655 Website: www.myfefc.org Facebook & Instagram: @myfefc