First Dawn Eastern Edge Regional Council
Weekly Announcements
September 1, 2020

info4rc16@united-church.ca

First Dawn Eastern Edge Regional Council Page Emergency Response Link

Staff Directory

United Church Bookstore & Gifts

Making Hope Visible Podcast – Justice and Mission Network of the Atlantic Regions of The United Church of Canada

First Dawn Eastern Edge Regional Council is on Facebook!

UCC Regions East YouTube Chanel

Weekly Prayer from Rev. Marilyn Rees, Whitbourne Pastoral Charge
Great is thy faithfulness, God our Creator;
There is no shadow of turning with thee.
Thou changes’ not, thy compassions, they fail not.
As thou has been thou forever will be

Almighty God, we know that your faithfulness has been with all of creation, and we just want to thank you for being our refuge, our strength and our constant help throughout these challenging times. Your ministry upon earth, through your Son, showed your faithfulness and caring by healing people of all ages and stations of life from physical, mental, and spiritual ailments. Thank you for journeying with us through all the challenges that COVID-19 has presented, and we pray for your continued guidance to remove any fears, anxiety and feelings of isolation from postponed treatments or separations due to quarantine. Give all a sense of purpose in pursuing health and protecting others from further exposure to the disease. Protect our families and friends and bring peace to all who love them.

Compassionate God, we lift to you our concern for people who are more likely than others to become severely ill from COVID-19; the elderly and people with chronic health conditions. Protect them from harm and be their comfort in this time of uncertainty. Continue to renew our energy and sustain us. Bring your protection upon all who work and serve others to keep them safe. Inspire the research doctors striving to develop better tests to diagnose the virus, to create vaccines to prevent it, and identify protocols to eliminate the disease’s spread. We also seek your daily wisdom for people making decisions that affect the lives and futures of our families, communities, countries, and the wider world, especially as everyone strives to gain a new sense of normal, and schools begin to open for our youth. Guide us daily into the new realities, may truth and empathy be the touchstones of people setting policies for our protection. Help children find creative ways to experience the beauty of all you have created and to continue learning and adjust healthily to their new situation. Loving God, thank you for your faithfulness and guidance. Continue to be with us as we reach out and embrace the stranger, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and share your ministry of love and compassion.

May we all come to realize how truly blessed we all are as your people, as our lives live with the confidence echoed in the words of thy hymn …… All I have needed thy hand has provided, great is they faithfulness, ever to me. All thanks and praise be unto you, most merciful and faithful God …. Amen

First Dawn Eastern Edge Annual Meeting Registration
Registration for the October 16-18, 2020 meeting of First Dawn Eastern Edge Regional Council is now open! As outlined in the July 20, 2020 memo, please note that all ministry personnel and lay members will have to register for the meeting in order to participate.  The deadline for registration is October 2, 2020. You will be required to fill out the registration form found on the website, using the registration link REGISTER HERE.

Annual Meeting Proposals Template
Please see the template and information for Proposals. The deadline for submission for proposals is Tuesday, September 29, 2020 at noon. Proposals that are time sensitive or require the action of the Region will be addressed at the AGM. Others will be forwarded to the Executive or held for the 2021 Annual Meeting. Information can be found on the Regional Council website: FDEE Proposals Template

First Dawn Eastern Edge Regional Council Communications Team

Save the Date
Annual Clergy Retreat: October 21-23, 2020 – Janice MacLean from Prayer Bench Ministry will be our guest presenter for the annual clergy gathering. More details to follow as the date gets closer.

Annual Fall Learning Event: November 5, 12 & 19, 2020 – This year our Fall Learning Event will take the form of on-line lunch and learn sessions with topics on Pastoral Relations. Thursdays, November 5, 12 & 19 from 11:30 am – 1:00 pm. Please look forward to a survey narrowing down on the topics that will be most beneficial for each session.

Children, Youth and Young Adults Network
Catherine Stuart is updating the network for Children, Youth and Young Adults. If leaders from your church/Sunday school/youth group/camp and friends would like to receive email updates about things happening in our regions regarding these groups, please email cstuart@united-church.ca to be added to this list! Thanks

United Church Rural Ministry Network
Are you interested in the United Church Rural Ministry Network all across Canada? You can follow this link to the newsletter of the Rural Ministry United Church Network, itself one of the initiatives of those involved in the life of rural congregations. The second newsletter will be September 9th. There is a 2-hour Zoom Workshop in the planning stages for September 23rd to help rural folks share stories about how it has been to live through COVID-19. You may be surprised by all that’s going on and you may have a story to tell yourself.

First Dawn Eastern Edge Regional Council Webpage Emergency Response Link
Stay updated with Emergency Response Updates on COVID-19 on the First Dawn Eastern Edge Regional Council webpage.

Announcements
If you have news to share relating to First Dawn Eastern Edge Regional Council, please share it with us and we will include it in our weekly announcements.

Send any information to: info4rc16@united-church.ca

Prayer Room Ministry
Church in Mission Unit is offering weekly Prayer Rooms for each Regional Council. Congregations and leaders are invited to join facilitated half-hour online times of prayer (modeled after the Prayer Room at GC43) to pray for every pastoral charge by name. Nothing is required except your presence.

Sign up online and join us every Tuesday on Zoom at 1:00 PM EDT beginning June 2, 2020 running until mid September

September 8, 2020: Northern Spirit
September 15, 2020: Pacific Mountain

Bookstore