Easter Plant Order Form 2023
Easter is Sunday April 9 th this year and we will be ordering plants from Felthousen’s Florist and Greenhouse. If you have any questions or would like to place your order by phone or email, please contact Amanda Smith-Lucier at 518-229-4591 or email arsmithlucier@hotmail.com. Checks made out to Alplaus UMC and mailed to 1Brookside Place, Alplaus, NY 12008, in time to be received by March 26th.
In memory or honor of: ____________________________________________________
Given by: _______________________________________________________________
Lilly - $14 ___________ Mum - $12 ___________ Tulip - $12 ___________
Azalea - $28 _________ Hydrangea - $28 ___________
Total Cost: ___________
Will you take your plant home? __________ Or Donate to Church? __________
Ash Wednesday
Alplaus UMC will be joining Scotia UMC and Faith UMC for an Ash Wednesday service on Wednesday, February 22nd at 7pm in the Faith UMC sanctuary. Faith UMC is located at the corner of Brandywine and Eastern Parkway roads. We hope you will be able to attend. Our Good Friday Service will be at 7pm on Friday, April 7th and our Easter morning services will be held at 8am and 10:15am on Sunday, April 9th, with breakfast around 8:30am at Alplaus UMC. An Easter Plant order form will be available as soon as we get the prices from the florist. We hope it will be in our March newsletter.
A Belated Welcome
On December 18th we welcomed five new members to our church family and we are sorry that we are just getting around to announcing it now. We are very happy to welcome to our church family: Mike Iwanowicz (Pastor Kristi’s husband), Frank Stekeur, Beth Costello, Marcia Reyes, and Bud Halsey. Following their joining the church during our worship service that day, we had a celebration with cake and refreshments in our fellowship hall. Each of these people have stepped forward to fill a position within the church for which we are thankful. Please say hello and welcome them next time you see them in church.
Long-Time Members Celebration
Our church leaders were in the process of planning an event to celebrate our long-time church members when Covid hit, and we had to postpone it. At this time, we are planning to have a celebration on April 30th after our worship service for those in our church family who have been the pillars of our existence for many years. If you would like to assist our Membership Care & Outreach Team with this event, please contact Lisa Beretz by email at: LLBeretz@gmail.com or call/text 518-330-9277 to offer your help. Please save this date and plan to attend to honor those who have been the foundation of our church for so long and have made this church as great as it is today.
A Grand Sendoff For Marcial
Marcial Reyes only recently joined our church on December 18th 2022, but family needs have required him to move to Florida, where he can be near his son and granddaughter. He graciously served as Worship Leader while Pastor Kristi was away for his final time with us on February 19th, and we celebrated his time here during coffee hour with cake and refreshments. Even though Marcial was only here for a brief time, we were truly blessed by his friendship, service as worship assistant, his officiating for pastor Kristi’s wedding, and leading our worship service during her absences. Marcial will be contacting us with his new address in Florida when he gets settled, and we will be publishing it in the Muse for those who wish to stay in contact with him.
United Women in Faith
The UWF meeting is March 16th at 12:30. We will start with dessert. The program will be "A Call to Prayer and Self Denial." Jesus Christ was very clear about the importance of children and youth. When the disciples tried to dismiss young children as distractions to Jesus’ mission, Jesus offered them a strong word of correction, insisting that not only would he warmly welcome these children, but that, indeed, the children were of the Kingdom of God itself (Mark 10:13–16; Matthew 19:13–15; Luke 18:15–17). Please join us as I share about this reading.
Peace and Blessings to all, Amanda Smith-Lucier Sr.
Update on Mission Opportunities
Street Soldiers - We have seven folks signed up to make mac and cheese at home, and we will be packaging it up (hot) in individual serving containers for delivery to Street Soldiers in Schenectady on Sunday, February 26th. On Sunday, March 19th, after Fellowship time, we’ll be making sandwiches for delivery that afternoon. There will be a signup sheet downstairs for supplies and sandwich makers. Thanks to all who help out with this important mission!
SICM - When you are shopping, don’t forget to pick up something extra for the SICM Food Pantry if you are able! Baskets for donations are in the church entry foyer.
Book Study Starting
UPDATE: Our next read will be "Joshua in a Troubled World" by Joseph Girzone. We will meet in person on Tuesdays starting September 13th at 11am. Pastor Kristi will be preparing discussion questions and will text or e-mail these questions to you on 9/11, and then hopefully offer the following weeks’ set in-person. We have invited 4 other congregations to join us. I believe we already have 3 new to us who are planning to attend! If you would like to receive the questions, text or e-mail Pastor Kristi your preferred format.
Donations to the Church
To all those who wish to continue with your pledges/contributions/gifts to the Church, you can mail them in. We still have bills to pay, even with Church being closed temporarily. Please make checks payable to Alplaus UMC and mail them to:
Carolyn Koch/Financial Secretary, 709 Pleasantview Ave., Glenville, NY 12302.
This will prevent your check from sitting in the Church mail box until someone comes by to check it and then deliver them to Carolyn.
SICM Collection
Each month our church brings donated non-perishable food items to the Schenectady Inter City Mission Food Pantry. There is a collection basket in
the entryway under the coat rack. The next time you are grocery shopping, please consider buying something that is on sale to bring into the collection.
Maybe even make it a habit of buying one thing each week that is on sale and bring it in to donate.
Firehouse Gazebo Eagle Scout Project
I am Ben Dussault, a 17-year-old Niskayuna rising senior who lives on First Street. I am a member of Boy Scout Troop 3036 that is chartered by the Alplaus United Methodist Church. This summer I am doing my Eagle Scout Project so that I can continue my advancement to the rank of Eagle Scout. I have always wanted to do my Eagle Scout project in Alplaus and have finally decided on what I could do that would be beneficial to the Alplaus community. As some of you may be aware, the firehouse has been considering what to do with the gazebo for quite some time. I decided that this would be the perfect opportunity to get my Eagle Project done as well as benefit Alplaus. After talking it out with the Fire Commissioners, they approved my project to improve the firehouse gazebo. This project will be adding a natural stone walkway and boxwood hedge, as well as bringing in dirt to fix the ground around the gazebo. The only thing remaining to begin this project is to raise funds for the materials. This would include dirt, stone dust, pavers, shrubs, edging, and other miscellaneous items. The total material costs of the project will come to $1979.00. If you are able to contribute that would greatly help in making this project for Alplaus a success. Any and all extra funds raised will be given back to the firehouse to be used in any manner they deem fit. Please make checks out to me, and mail to Ben Dussault, 3 First St., Alplaus NY 12008. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Benjamin Dussault, (benddussault@gmail.com)
Troop 3036
Prayer Chain
The Prayer chain has been revised! There will still be two lists. One list will remain as a phone call list. The second list will be for anyone who would like to receive the prayer request by text message. To activate the prayer chain, please call Mary Herrick (518-399-2113) or call/text Carolyn Koch (518-248-8138). Please contact Pastor Kristi (518-469-7764 or revklvp@yahoo.com) if you have the need for private prayer. If you are not already part of the prayer chain and would like to be included, please let me know. Thanks, Carolyn
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
On Hold:
Next Step Team
In October 2019, a team was established at Alplaus UMC after Amanda shared details about the 2019 General Conference during the Laity Service. This group has been meeting with other local congregations learning to prayerfully research, review, discuss and discover feelings surrounding the results from the General Conference decision where a partial version of the Traditional Plan was approved, by a vote of 438 to 384 (53.3 to 46.7 percent). Based on the General Conference results and the upcoming 2020 Conference vote, the Administration Council at Alplaus agreed to form a team to open a dialogue about the inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ+) individuals within the life and ministries of our church. Through this dialogue, we seek to find an understanding of how we plan to welcome people now and in the future within our congregation. The team will be meeting in January to plan a congregation meeting where we can have an open discussion about this topic and answer questions that you may have regarding the upcoming proposals for 2020.
Yours in Christ,
Carolyn, Dick, Karen & Claudia
Confirmation Class - open to youth grade 6 and above - will start 9/8 at 9m. This class will be in place of regular Sunday School. Aiming for Confirmation on 5/31 (Pentecost). From umc.org: “Confirmation includes three aspects,” This Is Your Baptismal Liturgy summarizes. “a) God confirms the divine promise to those who were too young to grasp what God was doing in their baptism, b) they respond by professing their own acceptance of the grace they have received and their own faith in Christ, c) the Church, as represented by this congregation, confirms the commitments they make.” Confirmation is not a destination. It is more of a way station, a place where we renew our commitment to the journey we have been traveling under the care of others. “It is the first time that persons publicly declare their intention to live out the vows of the baptismal covenant,” Burton-Edwards teaches. “It is not intended to be the last time. It’s just that confirmation is the label we put on the first time.” It is also a time for a congregation to celebrate their young people’s commitment to “live as a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ,” and to renew their commitment to do the same.
Sunday School News
The format of our class has changed this year since the girls are now older. We have started to incorporate some of the format used during the regular church service. For example, we are lighting a candle at the beginning of class to emulate what we do during church and have discussed the symbolism of light in the Christian faith. We are also sharing our joys and concerns with one another, and sometimes they also share them during the church service. The girls continue to be our acolytes during the church service which we are very grateful for. During the first month of class we read about various miracles Jesus performed and compared them among the 4 Gospel books. We started to explore the miracles in the Old Testament.
Easter is Sunday April 9 th this year and we will be ordering plants from Felthousen’s Florist and Greenhouse. If you have any questions or would like to place your order by phone or email, please contact Amanda Smith-Lucier at 518-229-4591 or email arsmithlucier@hotmail.com. Checks made out to Alplaus UMC and mailed to 1Brookside Place, Alplaus, NY 12008, in time to be received by March 26th.
In memory or honor of: ____________________________________________________
Given by: _______________________________________________________________
Lilly - $14 ___________ Mum - $12 ___________ Tulip - $12 ___________
Azalea - $28 _________ Hydrangea - $28 ___________
Total Cost: ___________
Will you take your plant home? __________ Or Donate to Church? __________
Ash Wednesday
Alplaus UMC will be joining Scotia UMC and Faith UMC for an Ash Wednesday service on Wednesday, February 22nd at 7pm in the Faith UMC sanctuary. Faith UMC is located at the corner of Brandywine and Eastern Parkway roads. We hope you will be able to attend. Our Good Friday Service will be at 7pm on Friday, April 7th and our Easter morning services will be held at 8am and 10:15am on Sunday, April 9th, with breakfast around 8:30am at Alplaus UMC. An Easter Plant order form will be available as soon as we get the prices from the florist. We hope it will be in our March newsletter.
A Belated Welcome
On December 18th we welcomed five new members to our church family and we are sorry that we are just getting around to announcing it now. We are very happy to welcome to our church family: Mike Iwanowicz (Pastor Kristi’s husband), Frank Stekeur, Beth Costello, Marcia Reyes, and Bud Halsey. Following their joining the church during our worship service that day, we had a celebration with cake and refreshments in our fellowship hall. Each of these people have stepped forward to fill a position within the church for which we are thankful. Please say hello and welcome them next time you see them in church.
Long-Time Members Celebration
Our church leaders were in the process of planning an event to celebrate our long-time church members when Covid hit, and we had to postpone it. At this time, we are planning to have a celebration on April 30th after our worship service for those in our church family who have been the pillars of our existence for many years. If you would like to assist our Membership Care & Outreach Team with this event, please contact Lisa Beretz by email at: LLBeretz@gmail.com or call/text 518-330-9277 to offer your help. Please save this date and plan to attend to honor those who have been the foundation of our church for so long and have made this church as great as it is today.
A Grand Sendoff For Marcial
Marcial Reyes only recently joined our church on December 18th 2022, but family needs have required him to move to Florida, where he can be near his son and granddaughter. He graciously served as Worship Leader while Pastor Kristi was away for his final time with us on February 19th, and we celebrated his time here during coffee hour with cake and refreshments. Even though Marcial was only here for a brief time, we were truly blessed by his friendship, service as worship assistant, his officiating for pastor Kristi’s wedding, and leading our worship service during her absences. Marcial will be contacting us with his new address in Florida when he gets settled, and we will be publishing it in the Muse for those who wish to stay in contact with him.
United Women in Faith
The UWF meeting is March 16th at 12:30. We will start with dessert. The program will be "A Call to Prayer and Self Denial." Jesus Christ was very clear about the importance of children and youth. When the disciples tried to dismiss young children as distractions to Jesus’ mission, Jesus offered them a strong word of correction, insisting that not only would he warmly welcome these children, but that, indeed, the children were of the Kingdom of God itself (Mark 10:13–16; Matthew 19:13–15; Luke 18:15–17). Please join us as I share about this reading.
Peace and Blessings to all, Amanda Smith-Lucier Sr.
Update on Mission Opportunities
Street Soldiers - We have seven folks signed up to make mac and cheese at home, and we will be packaging it up (hot) in individual serving containers for delivery to Street Soldiers in Schenectady on Sunday, February 26th. On Sunday, March 19th, after Fellowship time, we’ll be making sandwiches for delivery that afternoon. There will be a signup sheet downstairs for supplies and sandwich makers. Thanks to all who help out with this important mission!
SICM - When you are shopping, don’t forget to pick up something extra for the SICM Food Pantry if you are able! Baskets for donations are in the church entry foyer.
Book Study Starting
UPDATE: Our next read will be "Joshua in a Troubled World" by Joseph Girzone. We will meet in person on Tuesdays starting September 13th at 11am. Pastor Kristi will be preparing discussion questions and will text or e-mail these questions to you on 9/11, and then hopefully offer the following weeks’ set in-person. We have invited 4 other congregations to join us. I believe we already have 3 new to us who are planning to attend! If you would like to receive the questions, text or e-mail Pastor Kristi your preferred format.
Donations to the Church
To all those who wish to continue with your pledges/contributions/gifts to the Church, you can mail them in. We still have bills to pay, even with Church being closed temporarily. Please make checks payable to Alplaus UMC and mail them to:
Carolyn Koch/Financial Secretary, 709 Pleasantview Ave., Glenville, NY 12302.
This will prevent your check from sitting in the Church mail box until someone comes by to check it and then deliver them to Carolyn.
SICM Collection
Each month our church brings donated non-perishable food items to the Schenectady Inter City Mission Food Pantry. There is a collection basket in
the entryway under the coat rack. The next time you are grocery shopping, please consider buying something that is on sale to bring into the collection.
Maybe even make it a habit of buying one thing each week that is on sale and bring it in to donate.
Firehouse Gazebo Eagle Scout Project
I am Ben Dussault, a 17-year-old Niskayuna rising senior who lives on First Street. I am a member of Boy Scout Troop 3036 that is chartered by the Alplaus United Methodist Church. This summer I am doing my Eagle Scout Project so that I can continue my advancement to the rank of Eagle Scout. I have always wanted to do my Eagle Scout project in Alplaus and have finally decided on what I could do that would be beneficial to the Alplaus community. As some of you may be aware, the firehouse has been considering what to do with the gazebo for quite some time. I decided that this would be the perfect opportunity to get my Eagle Project done as well as benefit Alplaus. After talking it out with the Fire Commissioners, they approved my project to improve the firehouse gazebo. This project will be adding a natural stone walkway and boxwood hedge, as well as bringing in dirt to fix the ground around the gazebo. The only thing remaining to begin this project is to raise funds for the materials. This would include dirt, stone dust, pavers, shrubs, edging, and other miscellaneous items. The total material costs of the project will come to $1979.00. If you are able to contribute that would greatly help in making this project for Alplaus a success. Any and all extra funds raised will be given back to the firehouse to be used in any manner they deem fit. Please make checks out to me, and mail to Ben Dussault, 3 First St., Alplaus NY 12008. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Benjamin Dussault, (benddussault@gmail.com)
Troop 3036
Prayer Chain
The Prayer chain has been revised! There will still be two lists. One list will remain as a phone call list. The second list will be for anyone who would like to receive the prayer request by text message. To activate the prayer chain, please call Mary Herrick (518-399-2113) or call/text Carolyn Koch (518-248-8138). Please contact Pastor Kristi (518-469-7764 or revklvp@yahoo.com) if you have the need for private prayer. If you are not already part of the prayer chain and would like to be included, please let me know. Thanks, Carolyn
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
On Hold:
Next Step Team
In October 2019, a team was established at Alplaus UMC after Amanda shared details about the 2019 General Conference during the Laity Service. This group has been meeting with other local congregations learning to prayerfully research, review, discuss and discover feelings surrounding the results from the General Conference decision where a partial version of the Traditional Plan was approved, by a vote of 438 to 384 (53.3 to 46.7 percent). Based on the General Conference results and the upcoming 2020 Conference vote, the Administration Council at Alplaus agreed to form a team to open a dialogue about the inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ+) individuals within the life and ministries of our church. Through this dialogue, we seek to find an understanding of how we plan to welcome people now and in the future within our congregation. The team will be meeting in January to plan a congregation meeting where we can have an open discussion about this topic and answer questions that you may have regarding the upcoming proposals for 2020.
Yours in Christ,
Carolyn, Dick, Karen & Claudia
Confirmation Class - open to youth grade 6 and above - will start 9/8 at 9m. This class will be in place of regular Sunday School. Aiming for Confirmation on 5/31 (Pentecost). From umc.org: “Confirmation includes three aspects,” This Is Your Baptismal Liturgy summarizes. “a) God confirms the divine promise to those who were too young to grasp what God was doing in their baptism, b) they respond by professing their own acceptance of the grace they have received and their own faith in Christ, c) the Church, as represented by this congregation, confirms the commitments they make.” Confirmation is not a destination. It is more of a way station, a place where we renew our commitment to the journey we have been traveling under the care of others. “It is the first time that persons publicly declare their intention to live out the vows of the baptismal covenant,” Burton-Edwards teaches. “It is not intended to be the last time. It’s just that confirmation is the label we put on the first time.” It is also a time for a congregation to celebrate their young people’s commitment to “live as a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ,” and to renew their commitment to do the same.
Sunday School News
The format of our class has changed this year since the girls are now older. We have started to incorporate some of the format used during the regular church service. For example, we are lighting a candle at the beginning of class to emulate what we do during church and have discussed the symbolism of light in the Christian faith. We are also sharing our joys and concerns with one another, and sometimes they also share them during the church service. The girls continue to be our acolytes during the church service which we are very grateful for. During the first month of class we read about various miracles Jesus performed and compared them among the 4 Gospel books. We started to explore the miracles in the Old Testament.