Guatemala Mission Trip: First Report
On June 22, a group of 11 set out for San Juan Laguna, Guatemala on a journey to make a lasting impact. Our journey was focused on building connections, learning about the Mayan people and their rich history and creating tangible change. We set out to construct smokeless stoves and support an educational program for Mayan children. The smokeless stoves project aimed to improve health conditions by reducing indoor air pollution, while our time at Hope and Dreams, the educational program
The story of Sueños y Esperanzas and their impactful work in Guatemala
Union Church began supporting Sueños y Esperanzas 4 years ago by sponsoring 2 students in their after-school program. Since then, we have seen the program blossom into a full-scale support system for both students and their parents. It is a true community center at the heart of the town of San Juan Laguna in the mountains of the beautiful country of Guatemala. With our support, they began the Abejita’s program because many children in the community were malnourished. They wanted
A Deep Dive on “Sacrifice”
One of the great things about Union Church is our Simple Supper group program. These are monthly meetings of about 12 people who share a meal, share about their lives, and share in good discussion about the Christian faith and/or the Bible. All the groups are led by members of the church, but often Rev. Mike prepares the material the groups use for discussion. For May's topic, Mike prepared material on the topic of sacrifice, in the religious/Biblical sense. The
Associate Minister Search Committee Established
We are very happy to announce that the Executive Council, through Moderator Mary Sue Honigschmidt, has established an Associate Minister Search Committee to find the person who will serve as our next Associate Minister for Mission and Youth. The Search Committee is made up of people from our HR team, those most actively engaged in our mission and youth work, as well as parents of the current and future youth of the church. We are grateful to all for agreeing
New Responsibilities for the Rev. Grant Glowiak
This time of staff transition has been a good time to think creatively about our overall staff configuration and responsibilities. In consultation with other staff, HR, and Executive Council, I (Rev. Mike) have given Grant Glowiak a new portfolio of responsibilities for his ministry with us. Grant will now be transitioning his main focus to work with families with young children at home, as well as new members and membership growth. This means that Grant will now be our "point