Author: FCCR Office

Maybe you’re an early bird shopper. If so, the collection box is in place just inside the exterior office entry on Sanborn Street. You may bring your items to worship on Sunday, or drop them off Monday-Thursday between 10 am and 1 pm. The school bags have arrived so we are good to go!

If shopping is not your thing, or getting out to stores is a challenge, we will also need financial donations. We will need to send $2 for each kit we ship (this will cover CWS shipping costs to end recipients). The bags we purchased cost approximately $60. And because there are no drop off points in the greater New England area in the fall, we will be shipping the completed kits at a cost of somewhere between $75 and $100. That’s a total of about $200. Any amount you can donate will be a great help. Please note “CWS Kits” in the memo on your check. (Financial donations should be sent or dropped off in the office, not the box.)

We are already receiving a number of donations. At present, notebooks are our most needed item. We’ll keep you updated! By way of reminder, this is the full list of kit supplies:

• One pair of blunt scissors (rounded tip, only)
• Three 70-count bound notebooks or notebooks totaling 200-210 pages (no loose-leaf or filler paper)
• One 12” ruler
• One hand-held pencil sharpener
• One large eraser (no pencil cap erasers)
• Six new, unsharpened pencils with erasers
• One box of 24 crayons (only 24)

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We will once again be collecting school items for CWS School Kits. These kits give children in impoverished schools, refugee camps, or other difficult settings some of the basic tools for learning.

While our “official” collection will be done in the month of August, it’s never too early to think about shopping. Watch sales at places like Staples, any of the dollar stores, Ocean State, or Walmart to name a few. And our disclaimer note…we have no affiliation with any of these merchants! Our goal this year is to again make 30 kits. However, we are ordering extra bags so if we have materials to make more, we will be able to. Thanks as always for your help.

This is the list of needed items (please note in particular, the italicized notes) 

• One pair of blunt scissors (rounded tip, only)
• Three 70-count bound notebooks or notebooks totaling 200-210 pages (no loose-leaf or filler paper)
• One 12” ruler
• One hand-held pencil sharpener
• One large eraser (no pencil cap erasers)
• Six new, unsharpened pencils with erasers
• One box of 24 crayons (only 24)

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At the end of Easter worship please join us for an Easter egg hunt on the side lawn. …

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The Mission Collection for April will be Hygiene Kits for Church World Service

Ten million refugees have now been forced to leave their homes in Ukraine. Some with only the clothes on their backs. We can help in a small but important way with the collection of Hygiene Kits. These kits could mean the difference between sickness and health for these struggling families.

The Kits contain the following seven items:

1 Hand towel (15×28 to 16×32)
1 washcloth Wide Tooth Comb (with at least 6″ of teeth)
Fingernail or toenail clipper
Bath size bar of soap (in package)
1 toothbrush in the original package
10 standard size bandaids

All items should be packed in a gallon zip lock bag and left in the collection box outside the church office.…

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For many years First Congregational Church of Reading has been the home to several arts groups, including Creative Arts, the Reading Art Association, and the Reading Community Concert Band. Our building has the potential  to house many more. We consider it part of  our mission to support the arts, as well as  community non-profits and self-help groups.  

To that end, FCCR is surveying members of the community regarding their space needs for work, meetings, and events. The results of this survey will guide us in making improvements to the building to accommodate your needs.

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Rain Date: September 26th

Visit the Olde Redding Express website here to learn more and to place an order or bid!

The Olde Redding Express began last year as a smaller Covid-safe version of our Olde Redding Faire (a First Congregational Church of Reading tradition for over 60 years!).

This year there will be so much to enjoy online, in person, and for pick-up or delivery! Order mums, food, or sweet treats, place a bid in the online auction, try your hand at a jigsaw puzzle, and have a few laughs with community!

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It’s That Time of Year!

Have you been finding colorful 2022 calendars in your mail? Maybe you make a donation to the sending organization, or maybe you don’t. But please, if the calendar has colorful pictures for each month, save it! We’ll collect them and then pass them on to the Food Pantry near the end of the current year for distribution to clients. If the calendar is full of ads and you don’t want it, please recycle. We’re on only looking for cheery image calendars.

Leave all calendars in the box on the cabinet outside the Music Room (next to the Pantry basket).

Thanks for your help!

Contact the Church Office with any questions: office@churchofreading.org.

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Inspired by our Lent Bible Study time together, we’ll be reading through stories of Women of the Bible. You don’t need to commit for the whole summer: drop in any time! Come when you’re able to attend, or perhaps if there’s a favorite woman you’d like to learn more about.

July 13th – 3PM at the church – Eve July 27th – 7PM on Zoom – Mothers of the Old Testament August 10th – 3PM at the church – Bad Girls of the Bible Augsut 24th – 7PM on Zoom – Heroines You Might Not Know September 7th – 3PM at the church – Women of the New Testament

Register below to recieve email reminders and zoom links.

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The church’s mission ministry is excited to anticipate creating school kits for Church World Service again this summer. 

Last year we assembled an astonishing 47 kits! This year we want to do 30. Why are we aiming lower? Two reasons. We have thirty bags left over from last year. Check! In addition, this year there is no pick up point anywhere in the northeast until next spring. You may recall last year we were able to deliver the kits to Maine for pickup in September. The team working on this project wants to create the kits and get them out in the world for children to use. That means we will need to ship the completed kits. Transport costs for 30 will range between $75 and $100. In addition, CWS requests $2 for each kit to off-set their transport expenses getting the kits to their final destinations. So…not only will we be collecting items for the kits, we hope to collect donations on the order of $150 for expenses. We are confident we will find a way.

In the event you encounter any really great bargains anytime soon, these are the needed items for each kit:

• One pair of blunt scissors (rounded tip, only)
• Three 70-count bound notebooks or notebooks totaling 200-210 pages (no loose-leaf or filler paper)
• One 12” ruler
• One hand-held pencil sharpener
• One large eraser (no pencil cap erasers)
• Six new, unsharpened pencils with erasers
• One box of 24 crayons (only 24)

The church school children will be assembling kits on Sunday, August 15^th. That means that all purchases for kits should be delivered not later than Thursday, August 12^th. 

We will again have a box just inside the office entry door to receive your donations. They can be dropped off between 10 am and 1 pm, Monday thru Thursday, starting July 12th. Financial donations can be dropped off in the office (not the box), or mailed, with a memo of CWS kits. Thank you!

Contact the Church Office with any questions: office@churchofreading.org.…

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