Happy New Year 2009!

Dear Faithful Friends,

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas celebrating the best gift that was ever given! And it is such a blessing to me to know that you share this gift every week with us here at Faith.

Thank you for your loving service to Jesus this past year. May God bless and strenghthen you in 2009 to touch more lives for eternity with His love. And may He be your Prince of Peace again this new year.

Much love,

Jackie E.

Jingle Jam!

 

 

 

 

Friday Night's Christmas Program was a wonderful evening. The best part for me was watching our little toddlers and preschoolers perform their sweet little songs about baby Jesus. There were around 400 + in attendance and it was a really fun event. After our preschoolers went back and sat with their parents, the elementary singers and dancers performed as well as the adult actors that did skits, etc. They all did a great job. After the program was done, everyone was invited to the Fellowship Hall to visit, eat yummy peppermint flavored cookies (by Chef Vern from the UAA Culinary School), decorate them with colored icing (which most of the children opted to do of course), and sip hot cocoa, hot cider or refreshing water. We ordered 900 cookies and all but maybe 150 - 200 were consumed. The others we are saving for next Friday's event - Parent's Night Out. It was a night full of joy! Thanks to all who helped make it so!

Blessings, Jackie

P.S. Thanks Barb K. for the pictures! And I'm so glad you were able to be there!

Jingle Jam is Here!

All preschool volunteers are invited to our Children's Christmas celebration Friday night, December 5th, 7:00 p.m. Our very own preschoolers will be the opening act (and the best part of the show in my totally biased opinion)! You won't want to miss their special songs and the kindergarten bell choir. Then sit back and enjoy the Jingle Jammers, followed by fellowship, hot cocoa and cookies to round out this festive evening.

Joyfully, Jackie

P.S. A big thank you to the volunteers that have helped our kids practice. Also, a big thank you to Bob & Cindy A. and Susan F. for leading the singers and to Rachel W. for leading the bell choir!

Happy Thanksgiving! I am thankful for YOU!

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. -Phil. 1:3-6

Love,

Jackie

Dinner anyone?

Hi Friends! I spoke to Barb this morning and the doctor has ordered another 2 weeks of bed rest. Barb is handling it admirably (and so is her family), but a month is a long time to be all but immobile. So, if you would like to bless them with a meal during this time (we are arranging 3 meals a week right now), please email me at my church or home email address. I have the master calendar and can set you up with a day that works best for you. And please keep praying that all continues to be well with Mom and baby. (She is now at 26.5 weeks.) Thanks so much!

Many blessings,

Jackie

Please pray for Barb

Barb has been on bed rest for 11 out of 14 days now. She goes in to see her doctor again this Friday. Please pray that she will be able to be off of bed rest at that time. She and the baby are doing well and she is very thankful for your prayers and for the meals we have been coordinating. And today is her birthday - Happy Birthday Barb!! Thanks all. Hugs, Jackie

UPDATE

Hi Friends!

Here's an update on a few items:

*The new children's volunteer application is still under construction. I will contact you when they are ready.

*I am in the process of copying and printing more volunteer manuals and will get those to you in the next week or two.

*We are still recruiting childcare for the Positive Parenting Class coming up in January. This is a 10 week commitment on Wednesday evenings. Dinner is included. This is an awesome outreach opportunity. One of the ladies facilitating another parenting class right now at a different church just led someone to the Lord. Yay God!

Have a great day!

Blessings,

Jackie

REMINDER

Hi Faithful Friends,

I hope you are having a blessed day!

This reminder is for those that are signed up for the First Aid Class this Saturday.

Here's the scoop:
Date: Saturday, November 15th
Time: 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
What to bring: Sack lunch and water bottle
What to know: Eat breakfast before you come. We will start right away. Also, the cost is covered by Faith Christian. (Yay!)

See you there!

Jackie

Familiar Faces at the Fall Carnival!

 

Hi Friends, Do you recognize these preschoolers and volunteers? They were spotted having a great time at the FCC Fall Carnival on Friday night. You can click on the picture to get a bigger view.

Blessings & fun,

Jackie

Happy Birthday November Babies!

Happy Birthday to our volunteers and staff celebrating another year of abundant life this month. You are a wonderful blessing in my life and in the lives of the preschoolers and families you touch here at FCC. Thank you and may you be richly blessed this year! Much love, Jackie

Happy Birthday:
Destiney H. - 6PM Worship (on sabatical)
Patricia J. - 11AM Nursery Youth Volunteer
Barb K. - Preschool Staff Associate
Kelly B. - 11AM Nursery Dream Team

This Says It All!

 

Thank you to all our volunteers who attended a preschool meeting this weekend! I came away feeling even more blessed by all the wonderful volunteers we have here at FCC. And believe me, I am blessed by every one of you whether you made it to a meeting or not. I think at last count we have over 70 volunteers and be assured that each one of you plays a vital role in loving and leading our precious children to Jesus. Thank you one and all for your faithful service. I love you to pieces! Joyfully, Jackie

Happy Birthday October Babies!

Happy October Birthday Wishes to each one of the following fabulous preschool volunteers! I am so blessed to have you serving Jesus faithfully here at FCC. I hope you all have a wonderful year.

Joyfully,

Jackie

Happy Birthday:
Noelle T. - Moose at 11AM
Laura E. - Nursery VIP at 11AM
Monica H. - Greeter at 11AM
Deanna H. - Greeter at 11AM
Janice G. - Otters at 11AM
Barb M. - Whales at 9AM
Leah O. - Otters at 9AM
Dianna C. - Bears/Puffins at 6PM
Diane G. - Otters at 6PM
Ron C. - Dream Team at 11AM

Team Meeting Choices This Weekend - Oct. 25, 26

Hi Faithful Friends,

I hope you are having a blessed day!

This coming weekend you are invited to come to church early to the Preschool Department for a Preschool Team Meeting. You will be updated regarding our policies and procedures, as well as receive some timely training.

There are three meeting times available for you to choose from:

Saturday at 5:00 p.m.
Sunday at 8:00 a.m.
Sunday at 10:00 a.m.

We will meet in a room near the check-in counter. A sign on the counter will have details with the room location.

I hope many of you are able to join me.

Joyfully in Jesus,

Jackie

P.S. Tasty finger foods will be provided!

Team Meeting - Postponed

Hi Faithful Friends,

A big thank you to all who RSVP’d regarding the meeting this Saturday! Unfortunately it was not a good day to meet for many of you. With that in mind, I am rethinking our Autumn training. So the meeting Saturday is cancelled, but here is what we will do. I will pick a weekend coming up and set up a time before every service (you pick the one that works best for you) to meet for a shorter time frame to update and/or advise you regarding policies and procedures and let you know about preschool items of importance. Then our bigger training/encouraging/team building will be in January. So look for that email coming soon. And I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this change may cause those of you that were able to come. And please know that you are very valuable to me, I just thought it would be the wiser thing to go to Plan B so more of the team can participate.

If anyone would like some one-on-one training or to meet with me for any reason, please be sure to let me know and it would be my pleasure.

Thanks again for being such a wonderful blessing!

Joyfully in Jesus,

Jax

Preschool Note:

Dear Friends,

What a blessing it has been to see you serving in the Preschool (again or for the first time) this month! I hope you are enjoying being back with God’s little ones at FCC. I know it always cheers my heart to be around silly, sincere, rambunctious, worshipful, giggling, inquisitive preschoolers! What an awesome age and what an awesome task we have. Isn’t God good to entrust US with these children’s hearts? That is no small thing, is it?

Preschool News:

*Tomorrow I (with Armin & Emily P.) will be attending the Children’s Ministry Conference at ABT. I promise to pass on all the good stuff I learn.

*Communication Logs (in the classroom) – Please use these logs to communicate your needs. Look ahead one week in the curriculum, decide what you are going to do and request the needed items on these logs. The items you need may not be in the supply room, so we are depending on you to let us know ahead of time. You can also write down any upcoming absences you are anticipating and any concerns you may have. An email will work too. Telling me verbally is good, but I will still need it in writing on the log or in an email. Thanks so much!

*Looking ahead: Coming up in October, I will be scheduling a time when we can get together as a team to connect, and go over our goals, policies and procedures as a department. It won’t take long and I promise I’ll provide a yummy treat. I will let you know the date and time by this Monday.

Please let me know if you have any questions and thanks again for your devoted service to Jesus!

Joyfully,

Jackie E.

Birthday Babies!

Happy Birthday and Happy Belated Birthday to all our special Preschool Servants on the list below. You are a wonderful display of God's love and your service to His little ones is making an eternal difference. I hope you all have an amazing year!
Much love, Jackie

June:
Susan F. - Worship
Jennifer C. - Bears/Puffins at 9:00

July:
Lisa E. - Bears at 6:00
Connie J. - Whales at 6:00
Keaton E. - Preschool VIP
Rodney B. - Nursery at 11:00
Cindy A. - Worship
Rosalyn L. - Nursery at 11:00

August:
Hope H. - F-1 Sundays
Sharon S. - Bears/Puffins at 9:00
Marvin B. - Nursery at 11:00
Armin P. - Preschool Associate

September:
Michelle R. - Dream Team
Sonya B. - Sub - VIP
Hope R. - Puffins at 11:00
Liz S. - Puffins at 11:00
Peggy R. - Bears at 11:00

Introducing...

I am pleased to introduce our newest Preschool Associate - Armin P. Armin and his wife Emily have been teaching the Whales (Kindergarten) class at the 11:00 a.m. service. They are a great team and I know he will be a nice addition to our staff!

Armin -
*has a heart for kids
*has significant experience working with kids, volunteers and leaders
*is a person of action with great ideas
*is a pleasant person to work with

Welcome to our team, Armin!

Joyfully,

Jackie

Armin with Dr. Wess Stafford

Armin & Emily at the airshow

September is here!

Hi Friends!

Here it is September again. Where did the summer go?? Our summer preschool volunteers were great and God provided like He always does. Thank you, Father (and volunteers)!

Now, coming up this next weekend, we will start our Fall Semester here in the preschool department at FCC. Welcome back to all of our wonderful volunteers! It will be great to see you all again and to have you right where you belong - loving our little ones to Jesus. :O) Can you tell I missed you?

I will be adding more to the blog this week. We have our new Preschool Associate to introduce, Armin P.; some summer birthdays to acknowledge; and of course some updates and info on current and coming events.

So stay tuned...

Blessings & love, Jackie

Happy Birthday Ms. Cheryl!

Thank you for teaching our Puffins at 9:00!

Love,

Jax

Happy Mother's Day!

May God richly bless all our special mothers out there today! You have the most important job in the world. Keep up the great WORK!

Love,

Jackie
Blessed mother of Katie & Keaton

May volunteer (extra) opportunities...ARE FILLED!

Update: All gaps have been filled. Thank you SO MUCH! Love, Jax

Hi Friends,

Some weekly volunteers are needing to end their service before the end of May. This means that we have a few gaps before our summer recruits start. If you are able to serve for one (1) extra volunteer assignment, please let me know and mention which dates below work best for you. If not, I totally understand. Thanks a bunch!

Joyfully,

Jackie

Volunteer gaps:

5/11/08 – 11AM – Bears Class (3s)
5/18/08 – 11 AM – Bear Class (3s)
5/25/08 – 9AM – Bears (3s) & Puffins (4s)
5/25/08 – 11AM – Bears (3s) & Puffins (4s)
5/31/08 – 6PM - Nursery

Rotation Schedule for coming weekend

Hi Friends,

Here is the (updated) rotation schedule as follows:

6PM Worship Leader - Sabrina
6PM Nursery Dream Team - Judy & Diane
11AM Dream Team - Jinger
Thanks!

Blessings,

Jackie

Volunteer Appreciation

Hi Friends,

What a proud moment it was for me to see most of our children's ministry volunteers up on stage this past weekend. I just couldn't get over the feeling of joy and thankfulness I have for all of you. Your participation in the lives of our children at FCC brings glory to God. Thank you again for serving Him by loving and leading His little ones.

Joyfully!

Jackie

P.S. If you would like for me to email you the volunteer video, let me know and I'll give it a try! Also, I will try and catch up with those of you who didn't have a chance to go up on stage and therefore did not receive a special pin. I'm saving one for you!

(More) May Birthday Babies!

Happy Birthday to our May babies!

Rachel - DOB 5/3. Thanks for serving on the Dream Team at 11:00!

***We need your picture, young lady!***

Mona - DOB 5/5. Thank you for serving our babies!


Linda - DOB 5/11. Thank you for serving so faithfully as a Nursery/Preschool Director for well over 10 years!!! We love you!


Robert - DOB 5/22. Thank you for teaching our Whales at 6:00 p.m.!


Also, as you know, this blog started toward the end of April. I want to catch up now with our April babies that were missed. So, A very Happy (belated) Birthday to...

Karen A. - DOB 4/16. Thank you for serving on the Nursery Dream Team!
Debbie - DOB 4/7. Thank you for serving on the 11AM Dream Team!
Jinger - DOB 4/17. Thank you for serving on the 11AM Dream Team!
Karen H. - DOB 4/11. Thank you for serving on the 11AM Dream Team!
Mike - DOB 4/19. Thank you for serving in the Moose class!
Holly - DOB 4/11. Thank you for subbing in the preschool!
Rosalee - DOB 4/18. Thank you for serving every week in the nursery!

I hope you each have a very blessed new year filled with the knowledge that nothing (NOTHING) can seperate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord!

Much love,

Jackie

Latest Update - Dream Team schedules this weekend...

THANK YOU for serving! Here's the schedule.

6 PM Nursery Dream Team 5/3:

Rhea S.
Patty V.

6 PM Bears Class Subs (2 & 3 yr olds):

Allison A.
Amanda M. (youth)

11 AM dept wide Dream Team 5/4:

Linda & Ron C. - Subbing in Whales class for regular teachers. (Armin & Emily will be on a Mission Trip in Nome - HAVE A GREAT TRIP!)

Blessings,

Jackie

3 Cheers for Ms. Tammy!

As most of you know, Ms. Tammy is a Preschool Associate (Director) here at FCC. She is one of three wonderful gals that are on staff and work 15 hours a week in our department. What you may not know is that she celebrated her birthday on 4/14. So happy belated birthday, Ms. Tammy! We love you!

 

More Birthdays!

Happy Birthday Rhea - DOB 4/29. Thank you for serving on the Nursery Dream Team at 6PM!

 

Happy Birthday Cortland - DOB 4/26. Thank you for helping out when there's a need!
Isn't it great to see who all is ministering in the preschool department? I hope it blesses you, our wonderful volunteers.

Joyfully,

Jackie

Happy Birthday Dear Ones!

Emily - DOB 5/1 - Happy 30th!! Thanks for teaching our Whales at 11:00!

Bernadette - DOB 5/1. Thanks for teaching our Whales at 9:00!

Bob - DOB 4/25. Thanks for leading our little ones in worship!

Debbie - DOB 4/25. Thanks for teaching our Whales at 6:00!

Dawn (on right)- DOB 4/23. Thanks for teaching our little Bears at 11:00!

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. - Phil. 1:3-6

May God richly bless you this year!

Love, Jackie

Thank you!

Sharing smiles...

Sharing love.

Thank you for allowing us to use your pictures in the power point presentation coming up next weekend. The volunteer above is my very own Katie and she definitely has a heart for God's little ones...just like you. I'm sad that we were not able to gather pictures of every person that helps in the Preschool Department, but know that each one of you is an extremely valuable part of this ministry!

Have a wonderful week!

Much love,

Jackie

Nothing! Not even snow!

Okay. Very funny. I just went out on my deck with my ruler and measured the snow accumulation on the deck rail - 7 inches (at 3:30 pm)... 7 INCHES! No...no...no...that can't be right. IT'S APRIL 25TH FOR CRYING OUT LOUD. And yet...

So, have you read The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe? Remember before Aslan comes to Narnia it's "always winter, but never Christmas." Kinda feels like that here on days like this. And yet...

I'm gonna concentrate on God's promises instead of that heavy, white, wet stuff outside. Here's a good one:

Romans 8:37-39
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

And Psalm 118 - where it says over and over again, "His love endures forever."

That's what I'm gonna hold on to today. Spring IS here. It just forgot. God loves me (and you) and we will NEVER forget that!

Joyfully,

Jackie

Special Services Announcement

Hi Valuable Volunteers!

I hope you are having a blessed day and enjoying this balmy weather!

I wanted to let you know that we are having Special weekend services May 3 & 4. The reason it is special is because we are going to honor you, our wonderful children’s volunteers. There will be a power point presentation of volunteers in action as well as a time of blessing. This will be similar to the blessing we have for teachers (that work in the community) in the Fall. Please plan to attend a service on this weekend! It is so important to do this for you and to let the body of Christ acknowledge and appreciate your valuable service to our children.

Thank you for making this ministry personal and for representing Jesus so very well to our little ones and their families.

I love you all,

Jackie

Happy Spring!

Hi Faithful Friends,

I am loving this amazing weather! I can just feel those trees getting ready to bud, can't you? And then all will be right with the world again. HA!

The Son has that affect on me too. When He is not shining in my life I feel depressed and droopy. A longing comes over me that can only be filled by letting His glory be displayed once again in my life. When I open my heart and mind to Him again by meeting Him daily for worship and renewal the transformation is like the Spring after a long, long Winter.

This week I am praying that I have eyes to see and ears to hear His voice calling me. And that I will meet Him daily and let His radiance sweep away any dark areas from any "Winter" that may still be inside me.

Happy Spring!

Love,

Jackie