Stay Connected!
Genesis and Immigration
The Peace and Justice Commission is offering a unique Spiritual Formation opportunity on four Sundays from 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. On May 18th & 25th & June 1st & 8th Ted Hiebert will teach “Genesis and Immigration.” The class will be taught through the Willow Avenue Mennonite Church (WAMC) in Fresno. Via Zoom, participants will join participants at WAMC and explore how the writers of Genesis understood immigrants, foreigners, and migrants.
The $40 fee for the four sessions can be waived for persons who want to take the class and for whom the fee is challenging. Please see the accompanying flyer about the class. Ted Hiebert is a former classmate of Phil Hofer.
For more information click on the link below. If you would like to join, please contact Phil Hofer or go to willowmennonite.org/education
Newcomers Lunch
Are you new-ish to the La Verne Church of the Brethren? The Spiritual Life Commission invites you to this Newcomers Lunch on Sunday, May 25th at 11:45 a.m. in the Social Hall. RSVP to the church office at office@lavernecob.org by May 21st to help the commission plan for food accordingly.
***RSVP Needed***
Location: Social Hall
Who: New Friends
Day/Time: Sunday, May 25th 2025 | 11:45 a.m.
Youth Civil Rights Day Trip
Join Katy Herder as she leads the youth on a day trip to Downtown Los Angeles to explore different cultures and learn about immigrant rights. More details to be provided. If you are interested please contact Jami at children@lavernecob.org
Led by: Katy Herder
Location: Provided upon sing-up
Ages: Middle – High School
Day/Time: Saturday, May 31st 2025 | 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Sound Training with Tay
Current sound volunteers, and those interested in volunteering with the sound board, please join Tay Gendreau, our sound technician, for a training that will take place in the sanctuary.
Age: All
Location: Sanctuary
Date / Time: Sunday, June 1st / 10:45-11:30am
All Church Picnic
The Spiritual Life Commission will host this annual event after worship on Sunday, June 8th. Join us for a time of community, connection, and celebration on the courtyard as the church wraps up Spiritual Formation until the fall. The entrée and drinks will be provided, and you are asked to bring a side.
Sign-ups for the sides and for kitchen volunteers will be available as a bulletin insert beginning on May 4th.
Age: All
Location: Courtyard
Date / Time: Sunday, June 8th / 10:45-11:30am
Youth Day Trip
Join Katy Herder as she leads the youth on a day trip to the Museum of Chicano Art in Riverside to learn about the Chicano movement and civil rights More information will be provided. Please reach out to Jami at children@lavernecob.org if you are interested.
Led by: Katy Herder
Location: Provided upon sing-up
Ages: Middle – High School
Day/Time: Saturday June 14th 2025 | 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Congregational Care Team
Congregational Care Team members continue their visits and caring contacts. Team members are Carolyn Cockrell, Reba Herder, Nancy Sassaman, and Karen Weed. The care team is part of this congregation’s long-standing commitment to nonclergy visitation.
In addition to the congregational care team, every other Sunday mornings, “Faith Partners” are available to listen and pray with persons before, after and during the morning worship service. Current Faith Partners are: Reba Herder, Linda Himes, Lisa Stamatis, Mary Kay Ogden, Debra Jahnke, Beth Snowden-Ifft, Carolyn Cockrell.
Bells
Come join us! Never played bells? Can’t read music (yet)? Never too late to learn! Come be a ringer!!! Bell room Thursdays 6:15-7:15pm.
Bell practices are as follows:
Thu, May 01, 6:15 p.m.
Thu, May 08, 6:15 p.m.
Thu, May 15, 6:15 p.m.
Thu, May 22, 6:15 p.m.
Thu, May 29, 6:15 p.m.
Bells will be playing on May 18th: Meditation on Beach Spring
Arr. Karen Buckwalter
Led By: Heidi Brightbill
Choir
Come and join us! Be a part of our singing family!
Choir practices are as follows:
Thu, May 01, 7:15 p.m.
Thu, May 08, 7:15 p.m.
Thu, May 15, 7:15 p.m.
Thu, May 22, 7:15 p.m.
Thu, May 29, 7:15 p.m.
Led By: Shawn Kirchner & Niké St. Clair
Commission Updates
Peace & Justice- Friends of Sabeel North America Ceasefire Vigil
The Peace and Justice Commission invites the congregation to stand vigil for a FOSNA (Friends of Sabeel North America) ceasefire the first and third Wednesday of the month at 3:45 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. The vigil is 30 minutes. It is held on Foothill Boulevard and Indian Hill Boulevard. Meet in the parking lot of the mall closest to the four corners (Dollar Tree parking lot). Signs are provided. For questions, contact Philip Hofer at hoferp4@gmail.com
Location: Foothill Boulevard and Indian Hill Boulevard
Ages: All
Day/Time: Wednesday, May 7th & 21st 2025 | 3:45 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.
Spiritual Life-Nametags
You are invited to help build our community by wearing a nametag during and after church. Find the supplies you need to make a re-usable nametag at the Welcome Table in the lobby. You can take it home with you, or leave it at the Welcome Table to pick up next time. If you forget to bring it, make a temporary sticker tag at the Welcome Table. What else can you find at the Welcome Table? A list of upcoming events. A place to hand in forms. A place to sign up to volunteer. Come check it out!
Save-the-Date
Brethren Mennonite Council for LGBT: Fabulous, Fierce & Sacred (FFS)
A weekend gathering led by and for lgbtqia+ Anabaptists to celebrate Queer & Trans joy and belonging! FFS will be held in Philadelphia, May 2-4, 2025. FFS is a retreat open to all people of all ages (age 17 & under need to register with a designated adult). Also, since we are working to center queer/trans peoples there may be a cap on the number of allies invited to attend. Space is limited; so sign up soon and hope to see you in May!
Apartheid Free Pledge speaker – Allison Tanner
On May 4, Rev. Dr. Allison Tanner will join us for worship and spiritual formation. Allison will speak in the worship service and join us at a conversation on the anti-apartheid pledge.
Rev. Dr. Tanner is a pastor, organizer and educator who serves as Pastor of Public Witness at Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church in Oakland. She also works for American Friends Service Committee as the National Organizer of the Apartheid-Free Communities initiative.
Alison will speak in the morning service on the importance of the work of justice, peace and reconciliation, looking at it from her perspective as a pastor and community member. She will then host a spiritual formation class that will focus on the apartheid free pledge.
The pledge calls on congregations to:
- Affirm their commitment to freedom, justice, and equality for all Palestinian people and all people.
- Oppose all forms of racism, bigotry, discrimination, and oppression.
- Declare ourselves an apartheid-free community.
- Pledge to join others in working to end support to Israel’s apartheid system, settler colonialism, and military occupation.
Church Council Meeting
Save the date for our all Church Council meeting on Sunday, May 18th, 2025.
Peace Camp
The La Verne Church of the Brethren sponsors a non-religious day camp, which takes place each July, designed for students entering Kindergarten – students entering 6th grade. Peace topics include non-violence, inner peace, global peace, advocacy, justice, and more. Students participate in hands-on activities such as planting in our community garden, cooking in our commercial kitchen, exploring open-ended art in our courtyard, working on tangible service projects for the community, and more. Peace Camp is a much-loved tradition, and students in the community often come back to volunteer because of the lasting impact Peace Camp has had on their lives.
Save the date for this year’s Peace Camp, which will be the last week of July 28 – August 1.