Next Sunday, we’ll be remembering those of our congregation who have died in the past year. During the service, there will also be an opportunity to lift up names of others dear to you who have passed. We embrace “All Saints Sunday” expansively, including our loved ones among the “saints” not because they were perfect, but because all are surrounded by God’s perfect love. We hope you’ll join us for worship.
Next Sunday's Neighbors in Need Offering
In addition to our regular offering, next Sunday, we will be collecting the Neighbors in Need (NIN) special missions offering of the United Church of Christ. Through these annual gifts we express our deep commitment to reaching out to our neighbors with justice and compassion. The offering funds program areas of environmental, racial, LGBTQ, economic, immigrant, and women’s justice, One-third of NIN funds support the Council for American Indian Ministry (CAIM). Two-thirds is used by the UCC’s Justice and Witness Ministries to support a variety of justice initiatives, advocacy efforts, and direct service projects through grants. NIN grants are awarded to UCC churches and organizations doing justice work in their communities (Fauntleroy Church was a recent recipient!). Please consider making a gift online or you’ll find special offering envelopes in the pews next Sunday.
Admiral Church - Learning Opportunity
Come learn with Admiral Church, one of West Seattle’s UCC congregations, the history of colonization of this city and its impacts on the land, water, and people of the Inside Passage.
Look at What's Coming Up - Late Fall
Guests From Guatemala
Next Sunday, Oct. 22, the National Director of Hands for Peacemaking, Marco Tulio Maldanado, his wife Mimi, and his son Alan, will be worshiping with us. Please extend the warm welcome of Fauntleroy Church to them, and then stay for the coffee hour in Fellowship Hall to say hello. We're making plans to build stoves in a remote Guatemalan village this spring with Marco’s amazing support team. This is a great opportunity for anyone who may be interested in joining or supporting us to learn more about all the good we can do together beyond our walls!
Wreath Sale Begins
The holidays will be here before we know it, and it’s time to ORDER YOUR CHRISTMAS WREATH(S)!
The 14” wreaths are made of noble fir with incense cedar and juniper accents topped with pine cones. You can also choose from three designs for your bow! These wreaths are great for decorating your own home and/or to give as a gift. They smell wonderful and last a long time! Wreaths will be sold from now until November 3. The cost is $30 each. Shipping boxes are available for $5.00. To order, please contact the church at info@fauntleroyucc.org or call 206-932-5600. Wreaths need to be picked up on Saturday, Nov. 18, (the Saturday before Thanksgiving) between 10 AM and Noon, in the church parking lot. If you can’t pick yours up, please make arrangements for someone else to do that for you.
You have two options to pay for your wreath:
1) You can pay online here. Fill in the total amount at the Events & Projects line and enter “Wreath” in the text box to the right.
2) You can pay by check. Please make checks payable to Fauntleroy Church UCC with “wreath” on the memo line and mail to or drop by the church office. Payment must be made when ordering. Putting up your wreath is a wonderful way to start the holidays! Thank you for supporting this important church fundraiser!
Fauntleroy Fall Festival 10/15
Sunday, October 15, 2023 from 2-5pm
The Fauntleroy Fall Festival is an annual toast to the Fauntleroy neighborhood. The event started over 20 years ago in response to the unfortunate events of September 11th. Our neighborhood had changed; people were afraid. With new families moving in to the neighborhood, we decided to create a humble gathering of a few hundred neighbors for some family fun hopefully could spark a rebuilding of our community. This festival did help to rekindled our community and has blossomed into an annual free event that will welcome over a thousand neighbors in a celebration of goodwill and camaraderie.
Certain things have remained in our 20 year legacy - we have and always will try to be a free community event. Our committee is committed to making the event safe and fun for our neighbors and families. Our legacy activities - salmon hat making, pumpkin decorating and birdhouse building will persist. All the musical bands, food vendors and other events may change but will still be an integral part of the festival. We could not do this event without support from our community partners:
DSquared Hospitality Company, Endolyne Joe's, Fauntleroy Children's Center, Fauntleroy Church, Fauntleroy Community Association, Fauntleroy Schoolhouse, Garden Coaching Solutions, Pilates at Fauntleroy, The Birdhouse, West Seattle Nursery, and Wildwood Market
We also could not run the festival without the hundred or so volunteers who will be needed to make the festival a success. If you would like to volunteer even an hour of your time (and bring a friend!) check out our numerous opportunities at https://tinyurl.com/2023FFFVolunteers
As costs continue to raise to put on this festival, if you happen to make it to the event, please don't hesitate to donate in one of the bright orange boxes to keep this festival free. The committee and all the sponsors look forward to seeing you there rain or shine!
CROP Hunger Walk 10/1
Our congregation will be walking in the West Seattle CROP Hunger Walk on Sunday, October 1. The CROP Hunger Walk is a nationwide movement sponsored by Church World Service (CWS) to raise funds to end hunger and poverty in the U.S. and around the world. But, there is so much more to it than that.
CWS is a faith-based organization transforming communities around the globe through just and sustainable responses to hunger, poverty, displacement and disaster. CWS works to empower people to have thriving livelihoods in their own communities, and with their own families. There is a global food crisis. Millions are on the brink of famine. When people join the CROP Hunger Walk movement, donate and raise funds, they provide life-saving support like emergency food along with the seeds, tools and programs that will help families feed themselves in the future.
Last year, 34 people and 3 dogs from our congregation walked together to raise awareness and $8,717 to end hunger. 25% of the funds we raise each year come back to local agencies that are fighting to end hunger in our community! Those agencies are West Seattle Food Bank, White Center Food Bank, North Helpline, and Food Lifeline.
Join us in walking and/or sponsoring our team by vising our team page on the CROP Hunger Walk website:
https://events.crophungerwalk.org/2023/team/fauntleroy-church-ucc
ADDITONAL WALK INFO
When: Sunday, October 1.
Where: We will gather at Fauntleroy Church and then walk through Lincoln Park.
Timing: We will start checking in at noon and will take a group photo and have a blessing close to 12:15. After the blessing, some will start walking from the church and others will drive to Lincoln Park and start walking there.
Distance: It is just a little over 3 miles to walk from the church, down the length of the waterfront in Lincoln Park, and back to the church. You can choose to walk as little or as much as you’d like.
Lunch: We will have 50-60 minutes between worship and the walk. Bring a brown bag lunch for yourself or pick up lunch from Wildwood Market or Endolyne Joe’s and enjoy eating with fellow walkers at the church.
Wear RED: We encourage everyone to wear a red shirt or jacket so that we stand out as a group.
Fauntleroy Fall Festival Fundraiser at The Birdhouse 9/12
Come enjoy a latte, breakfast sandwich or sweet treat at The Birdhouse at 3507 SW Henderson St from 6am to 3pm and help raise funds to help keep the Fauntleroy Fall festival free to the community. 30% of the proceeds from the day will go to offset some of the festival costs so bring your family and friends!
Taste & See Event 10/8
Are you considering joining Fauntleroy Church as a member or would just like to learn more about the congregation while making some connections with other members, visitors and friends of the church? Come “taste and see” what we’re all about! The next “Taste & See” event will take place in-person, following worship on Oct. 8. We will share the history of the UCC denomination and of Fauntleroy Church, learn about how we govern ourselves and how to get involved, and have lunch together while getting to know each other. Lunch will be provided by the church. Please contact Sarah Ackers by 10/1 if you would like to participate. Childcare can be provided upon early request.
Fall Recycle Roundup
Our fall Recycle Roundup will be Saturday, Sept. 23, 9 am - 3 pm, so it's time to start setting aside items for free, responsible recycling. See the list below of what 1 Green Planet can take and what it cannot. Since initiating these twice-yearly events in 2010, we have kept nearly 337 tons of recyclables out of landfills!
2nd Time Sale 9/16 - 9/17
Our wildly popular 2nd Time Sale will be Saturday, Sept. 16 (9 am - 4 pm) and Sunday, Sept. 17 (11:30 am - 3 pm) in and around Fellowship Hall. This event is much anticipated by the whole community, from those who really need bargains to those on the hunt for just the right collectibles or books. See the poster below for the full scope of what will be on offer.
If you have clean and complete items in working order to donate, see the list of what we cannot take at fauntleroyucc.org/2nd-time-sale/ or call the church office. We'll be accepting small items at the back door of Fellowship Hall weekdays 10 am - 4 pm Wednesday, Sept. 6, through Monday, Sept. 11. Check with the church office about weekend hours.
Musical joy = The DAM Ukulele Band
If you like to sing and make music, please consider spending a Thursday evening with the DAM Ukulele Band. (DAM is the acronym for “Duey Auringer Memorial” – we named our Ukulele Band after an affable and much-loved church member, Duey, who learned a few chords before he joined the heavenly ukulele band.)
This group of musicians has expanded over the past year or two into a dedicated band of friends, singing and playing our way through an hour of music from 6:15 pm to 7:15 pm every Thursday evening before our choir rehearsal begins at 7:30.
You don’t have to know HOW to play the ukulele, but you will need a ukulele to play. We provide music – we have assembled three volumes of our favorite songs – and you can follow along, playing the chords you know, and adding new ones as you continue to practice. If you don’t know any chords, we will teach you the C chord to start, and you can follow along on the song charts and play the C chord every time it comes around.
It's that easy. Before you know it, with regular attendance, you will have learned dozens of chords!
This group is SO incredibly enthusiastic, that for the first time this summer, they didn’t miss a single Thursday. During the summer break, we played in one another’s back yards and enjoyed the songs of summer, and every week was fabulous.
If you’re not sure that you want to join us, but you’d like to come and listen and experience the DAM Ukulele Band for yourself, you are most WELCOME to drop by and listen. We will return to the Sanctuary this coming Thursday, August 31, at 6:15 pm.
And a final note, the DAM Ukulele Band is comprised not only of ukulele players, but people bring their banjos, guitars and banjoleles too. Interested? Please come and check us out. Bring a friend! Questions? Ask music director Bronwyn Edwards, at 206-255-4590 (text) or sirensongbron@gmail.com (email).
Building a Tiny Home Together
On August 23, members and friends of our congregation joined together to build a tiny home at The Hope Factory. We built the tiny home “Xian” which is a Taoist Chinese word for someone who is long lived or immortal. This is just one of the many ways we are working in our community to end homelessness.
Blues Sunday 8/27
We hope you will join us for Blues Sunday during our 10am worship service on August 27. Blues Sunday is a worship service wrapped in the music of the blues and gospel repertoire. Blues Sunday became incredibly popular during the pre-pandemic years as we sang the blues to a packed house in August! This year we are featuring music by Patty Griffin, Nina Simone, Shawn Mullin & Mercyland, and Zach Williams, to name a few, as well as a new original song by Jeff VanGilder, and Bronwyn Edwards’ original song “Circle of Love.” Soloists include Lucian and Allie Smith, Sarah Ackers, Jeff VanGilder, Jenny Mandt, Robb Menaul, and Delia Finney. Worship will be supported by a 20-voice choir and lots of guitars. Mark your calendars and let’s all sing the blues and bring the house down.
An Abundance of School Supplies
Thanks to your generosity, our annual school-supply drive was another winner for area low-income students. Scores of students will have the supplies they’ll need to start the new term, including 62 boxes of colored pencils, 202 glue sticks, and 420 pencils. We were able to pass along $200 in cash donations to West Seattle Rotary for bulk purchase of supplies and to earmark $1,200 for special supplies that Highland Park, Roxhill, Sanislo, and West Seattle elementaries would otherwise not be able afford. Finally, we joined West Seattle Rotary in giving this area's Head Start coordinator 92 backpacks to equip students for this coming term and the next.
Fauntleroy Fall Festival Fundraiser at Wildwood Market 8/29
Gather with neighbors and friends on the rooftop deck of Wildwood Market from 4-8pm on Tuesday night, Aug. 29 to help raise funds for this year's Fall Festival. Proceeds from the sales of specialty adult beverages will be directly donated to the 2023 Festival. The address is 9214 45th Avenue SW. The D.A.M. Ukulele Band will be playing from 6:30-7:30pm. This is a 21+ event.
Look at What's Coming Up at Fauntleroy Church
Let's Talk: Another service opportunity
Through networking with service providers, our Homelessness Task Force has become aware of another concrete way we might assist.
With Covid relief funding depleted, the rent freeze eliminated, and basic apartment rental approaching $2,000/month, many households are getting "pay or vacate" notices. Local providers receive an average of 60 requests/month for assistance, making this one of the most economically distressed areas in Seattle.
Responding to financial requests is just part of a complex picture, however. To stabilize long term, many families have needs beyond those a check can meet. St. Vincent DePaul offers professional case management but clients can wait many weeks in the queue to access that service.
Our Lady of Guadalupe parish has developed a practical way to shorten the wait, when warranted, by enlisting volunteers to respond to the human dimension of housing crises. Working in pairs, they visit clients to collect the basic information that case managers will need to connect them with available resources.
Our Homelessness Task Force will host an informational meeting about this potential service opportunity on Sunday, Aug. 27, at 11:30 in the sanctuary. Guests will include Bob Bucci, president of the local Society of St. Vincent de Paul, and at least one care-team volunteer.
Annual School-Supply Drive
Every summer, Fauntleroy Church collaborates with West Seattle Rotary's Pencil Me In for Kids campaign to make sure that area low-income elementary and Head Start students have the supplies they need for learning.
Between July 16 and Aug. 6, we invite members and friends of the congregation to donate markers, glue sticks, and other high-priority supplies or to make a cash donation. Our cash goal is $1,000 for special supplies that five area programs would otherwise not be able to afford.
Supply donations are welcome in the church/YMCA lobby or out in the community at Wildwood Market, Treo Organic Salon, or Hazelwood Preschool. The list of priority supplies is found below. To make a financial donation, please click here. Thanks for investing in our children!
