CCC is honored to host this year’s District 12 Good Friday service, welcoming sister congregations, their choirs, clergy, and our regional elder as participants. Come worship and recall the night of Jesus’ crucifixion as we hear meditations upon his “7 Last Words” from the cross, and share fellowship after the service.

1st Word        Luke 23:34 “Father forgive them, for  they know not what they do.”

2^nd Word        Luke 23:43 “Truly, I tell you, today  you’ll be with me in Paradise.”

3^rd Word    John 19:26-27 “Woman, behold your son!  Behold your mother!”

4th Word        Matthew 27:46 “My God, my God, why  have you forsaken me?”

5^th Word           John 19:28 “I thirst.”

6^th Word           Luke 23:46 “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!”

7^th Word           John 19:30 “It is finished.”

Our speakers are the Revs:

•  Nik Donges, First Christian Church of Middletown
• Beckie Linn Gregory, Mt. Healthy CC
•  Karakay Kovaly, Carthage CC
• Anna Hope Curwood, Anderson Hills CC
• Cheryl Coggins, Promise Fulfilled Ministries
• Thomas Barnes, Kemper Road CC
• Michael Harris, Body Of Christ CC. 

United Nations Seminar for Youth

February 22—March 2

The United Nations International Affairs Seminar for Youth is sponsored by the Christian Church in Ohio (Disciples of Christ) and the Ohio Conference of the United Church of Christ.  The “UN Seminar” has been in existence since the early 1960s.  It currently takes place every other year and includes high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors.  The UN Seminar challenges youth to learn about international affairs and U.S. foreign policy through study, discussion, and presentations in the United Nations Center in New York City and in Washington, D.C. It seeks to encourage faith-based critical thinking and reflection through prayer, worship, discussion, and community building.

It was a very busy week!  We traveled to Akron’s New Horizons Christian Church to assemble our group.  After some get-to-know-each-other activities, we were blessed with a presentation by Rev. Amy Gopp, Senior Pastor of the United Church of Christ in Kent, OH.  Amy participated in the UN Seminar trip as a youth and that experience helped bring focus to her direction in life, and with more experiences, brought her to the ministry she shares today.  We participated in an Opening Worship and then the New Horizons CC members (and a few neighboring churches) hosted us overnight in their homes.

On Saturday morning, bright and early, we loaded the chartered bus and headed to New York City.  In NYC we stayed at Hosteling International New York City on Amsterdam on the upper west side near 103 St.  Our host church was the historical Riverside Church, 490 Riverside Drive, https://www.trcnyc.org/.

We enjoyed a game of UN Jeopardy, moderated by the adult chaperones and based on the youths’ focus readings, then took the subway back to the hostel.  On Sunday morning we returned to the Riverside Church for worship and a tour of the church. We took the subway and toured Grand Central Station with time for ice cream or a bakery treat, then took the subway to the east side of Central Park and walked through Central Park. Next, we took the west side subway and returned to the Riverside Church for an evening of Immigration Simulation, then took the subway back to the hostel. On Monday morning we were on the outside venue for the Today Show at Rockefeller Center, and then a three-hour walking tour of the Lower East Side with discussion pertaining to the immigration waves into NYC and the transitional neighborhoods of Lower Manhattan. Then we took the subway to the United Nations Building with a guided tour, visited the Empire State Building at night, then shopped at Rockefeller Center (LEGO store, NBC, FAO Schwarz), and back to the hostel by subway.  Tuesday morning we sorted canned and boxed goods and packed like items in new storage boxes at the Food Distribution Warehouse, Hunts Point Cooperative Market for Food Bank for NYC.  From the foodbank, our bus took us to Battery Park, and from there we walked to Trinity Church, the 9/11 First Responder Memorial, and the 9/11 Memorial.  Back to the hostel we changed clothes and traveled to the Gerald Schoenfield Theatre to see “Come From Away” Broadway Musical.  After the show, we went to Times Square, visited the Disney store, Hershey store, and M&M store, then back on the subway to the hostel.  Wednesday was a travel day on our chartered bus to Washington, D.C.  In DC, we stayed at Hosteling International D.C., 1009 11^th Street NW.

We spent the evening at National City Christian Church http://www.nationalcitycc.org, where we had a tour of the building and met with Rev. Dr. Sharon Stanley-Rae, Disciples Director of Refugee and Immigration Ministries.  The chartered bus then took us to the Lincoln Memorial, FDR Memorial, and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial.  We had time to walk around and take in the beauty of these memorials at night.

Thursday morning we attended a coffee sponsored by Senator Sherrod Brown in the Visitor’s Center of the Capitol Building.  Senator Brown was a gracious host, shaking hands and asking about our group, and answering a few questions.  Prior to the trip, the youth had set up meetings with their local U.S. Representatives in the Canon, Longworth, and Rayburn House Office Buildings.  The adults spent time shuffling individual groups to the correct office buildings and then went back to collect them after their meetings.  We took a tour of the Capitol Building and ate lunch in the cafeteria.  We split up into interest groups and toured some of the Smithsonian museums and met up at the National Museum of African American History and Culture.  That evening, after dinner, we attended “Finding Neverland” in the National Theater for Performing Arts.  Friday morning our chartered bus took us to the Capital Area Food Bank where we spent three hours reboxing and weighing frozen foods by type after we checked expiration dates.  After our mission work we went back to the hostel to change clothes, and then our bus took us to the National Cathedral for a guided tour.  The bus took us back to a food court where we ate dinner and then we attended “Capitol Steps” which is a political satire set to music in the Ronald Reagan Building.  We walked from the show to National City Christian Church for our closing worship and then back to the hostel.  Saturday morning we packed up and loaded the bus for our trip back to Akron.

As you can see, we were on the move every second of the day!  Thank you for your support of this trip and for the prayers you lifted up for the group’s safety and traveling mercies.

Lyle, Laura, Calvin, & Drew D.:

Thankful for all the praise, love, learning, mission, and ministry!

Hope to become “Open and Affirming” congregation.

Much love in Christ.

Rich & Sally E.:

Wow, you’re 29! Hooray! Our beautiful building (even with all its faults) is a long way from having a trailer with church materials that was set up somewhere each Sunday. Our prayers for many, many years yet to come and for our church family to grow. Many blessings to our congregation.

From Perry & Maureen M.:

Favorite memory—A picture of Cameron Perry F.’s dedication on April 27, 2014.

Fond hope—We as a congregation continue to proclaim the love of and saving the grace of Jesus Christ to people of all ages.

Vic & Diane K.:

May the love that has brought us to this special day continue to fill all our lives with happiness. May God bless!

Troy S.:

Baptizing Abbey on August 24, 2014.

That we continue living into the vision and mission that God is revealing to us and that we have painted on our mural.

Deborah & Maia T.:

Thank you, CCC for blessing our lives! For being there in the good times: (1) Ablaze choir; (2) Maia’s graduation; (3) Celebration of Mama Pearl’s life and Carole K.’s life; (4) Friendships formed; (5) New Year’s Eve Sunday service. And for walking with us in the challenging times: (1) Mama Pearl’s illness and death.

We’ve been blessed and remain committed to trying to be a blessing. Thanks be to God.

Rick & Carol Y.:

One of my favorite memories was during a choir rehearsal. We were working on the Hallelujah Chorus and were confused as to whether to stand up or sit down. Their tenors were called in to practice and all but one sat as they started singing. Then they stood up one-by-one to sing a different note of the chorus. The choir always created special memories. Revelation 19 directed by Byron W. was always a soulful moment.

Unsigned:

I remember the year we had the “Couples’ Club.” We scheduled events and went to them, having dinner out, etc. So much fun!

Unsigned:

My favorited memory is from the painting of the mural. Our congregation is open and allowed my children to take part in painting.

My hope for our future is to continue to be open and gather in everyone no matter what differences there may be.