Update and Resources

September 26, 2025

“...between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.’”

~ Luke 16:26

Sunday Worship at 10:00 AM

Join us for worship for this Sunday in our sanctuary. You can always worship online via our live stream or anytime on our Kent UCC Video page. Click here to print the bulletin for an order of worship for those worshiping online.

Presentation on New Governance Model after Worship

After worship, please join us for an important presentation on our proposed new governance structure. Information about the new model is HERE. As you review the materials, please direct any questions to John Schinker, Vice Moderator, or Kathy Robinson, Moderator or any member of the Governance Exploration Team (GET): Kelley Gifford, Megan Snyder, and Sue Otterson. Pastors Amy and Emily are also available to answer questions. The special congregational meeting will follow on October 5 following worship. Thank you!

Neighbors in Need

Our next Five for Five offering, Neighbors in Need, will be collected Sunday, October 5. The Neighbors in Need offering supports ministries of justice and compassion, with one-third of the offering given to the Council for American Indian Ministries and the remaining two-thirds supporting UCC justice ministries. In 2025 the Neighbors in Need Offering supported 26 grant recipients across the UCC who were engaged in projects of direct service and advocacy. You can give either on Sunday, or through our online Engage system here. Thank you for your generosity.

THIS SUNDAY

CROP Hunger Walk

Our Outreach and Social Justice Ministries, our hikers, and our youth invite you to participate in the annual Crop Walk for world hunger. This is a major event for Church World Service and occurs across the country. With the federal cuts having a harmful impact on so many areas in the world, the need is greater than ever. Kent’s Crop Walk will be held at Trail Lake Park THIS Sunday, September 28th from 2-4. The walk is a little less than a mile and you can come at any time between 2-4. You can walk, donate, or both. You can use the link here to sign up for the Kent UCC Crop Walk team and/or you can donate through the link. You can also write a check to Kent UCC and put Crop Walk in the memo line. Thank you so much for your generosity.

Hot Pots Dinner

Come and Dine together "FONDUE" style on Saturday October 4th in Van Meter Hall at 5:30 PM. Church members Lee and Diane Drewette will be leading us in cooking meat (chicken and beef) and veggies in broth in fondue pots that they will set up! Meat, Veggies, and drinks are all provided. The rest of the meal is potluck style- so we ask that you bring a side dish or dessert to share. Come for dinner, fellowship and fun and then stay for a special music program. The music ministry is sponsoring the Trio Levain in the Sanctuary at 7:30 PM. What could be better than Dinner and a Show!? Please let Eileen West or Gayle Wall know if you have any questions. Deadline to sign up is this Sunday.

Trio Levain performance on

October 4^th starts our 2025-2026 Concert Series!

Join us on Saturday, October 4 at 7:30 PM in the Sanctuary to hear the chamber music group, Trio Levain (Lara Troyer, soprano, Amy Glick, violin, and Amy Sauriol, piano.)

Trio Levain was formed in 2020 during a very unusual summer. However, the heart and soul of the trio began forming much earlier. All three members have performed, competed, recorded, and studied nationally and internationally. They have practiced and polished their respective skills and each gained a broad knowledge of musical styles, old and new. But more than that, they have individually weathered the highs and lows of being a woman, wife, mom, daughter. Their concerts bring a unique sensitivity and awareness to the audience and their musical selections convey a shared human experience.

The name is a nod to sourdough bread, which can be found in all three kitchens. Levain is full of life! Like the trio, it is also representative of other values like patience, generosity, perseverance, and so much more.

The October 4 program will include works by Bach, Schubert, Strauss, Rachmaninoff, local composer Margaret Brouwer, and more.

World Communion Sunday

October 5, 2025

To celebrate World Communion Sunday next week, you are invited to bring a loaf of bread to worship. Perhaps you bring bread representing your ethnic heritage, or bread you especially love from another culture. Whether homemade or store-bought, please ensure your bread is wrapped and sealed. Please include a message or a scripture verse with the loaf. Everyone who brings bread will place the loaf on the Communion Table before we partake of the Lord’s Supper.

At the end of worship, those who brought bread will be invited to choose another loaf to share with someone else after the service. In this way, we are taking Communion out into the world as an offering of Christ’s peace, healing, and love. World Communion Sunday is a global celebration that focuses on our unity—honoring the beautiful diversity of each member of the one body of Christ.

Let’s extend the Lord’s Table to all in need of sustenance and new life. May the whole world know that all are welcome at Christ’s Table!

Aging: Everyone is Doing It”

Workshop on Abundant Aging

with Rev. Beth Long-Higgins

Sunday, October 12 after worship

 We all are aging. Society around us informs as how we are to think, talk and feel about our aging, all of which impacts how we actually age. The challenge is that the messages from the wider culture don’t provide us with a very positive or supportive image of later life. Come and hear what the research tells us about those cultural images. Learn about some simple ways to change those messages and consider how we can reframe how we think about aging through a lens of faith in order to embrace the gift of later life. 

Rev. Beth Long-Higgins will preach and present her workshop on Sunday, October 12. She joined the staff at United Church Homes in 2013 following six years as a member of the UCH board of directors. She was named the founding director of the Parker Center in 2017 and currently is VP of Engagement. Prior to her call with United Church Homes, she served as co-pastor with her spouse, Dave, for 25 years serving two United Church of Christ congregations in Ohio and Kentucky.

Beth also serves on the board of directors of the UCC Council for Health and Human Service Ministries and is a member of the American Society on Aging where she sits on the Ageism and Culture Advisory Council and co-chairs the Religion, Spirituality and Aging Collaborative. She is a trained facilitator through the National Center to Reframe Aging and is a member of the board of SourcePoint, a non-profit agency serving older adults in Delaware County. Beth is a musician, a quilter and enjoys travel with family.

Kent Social Services

Volunteers Needed!

Over the summer, members of our congregation volunteered to help Kent Social Services. And the need for our help was quite obvious! During the summer, they lost their cook, and they have not yet replaced her. Marquice has been doing much of the work herself, counting on volunteers to fill in the gaps. So your Outreach ministry is hoping to extend our volunteering for the next several months. There is always something we can do there to help. We will continue with the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month working from 10-1 so that we can help to serve lunch. Sign up here to indicate when you can help. Thank you so much for your willingness to work in our community, share God’s love, and help those in need. Kent UCC shares its abundance.

Roundabout Information

Please click here for a current update on the roundabout being built near our church starting in August.

Fall Cleanup

Our next all-church clean up date is, Nov 8, 9am-noon. Rain date will be November 15. Please bring your rakes, electric blowers, etc. to help! This is always a fun, fellowship event. Thank you!

Social Justice Update

Climate Hope “Sun Day” Advocacy – Follow-Up

Thanks to the many people who wrote messages to our Congressional representatives last Sunday. We wrote about why we support solar energy and care of God’s creation. We also encouraged funding the Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Members of the Green Team and Social Justice Ministry took cards to the local offices of Representatives Dave Joyce and Emilia Sykes. It’s not too late—if you still complete a card, leave it at the church office, and we’ll send them onward from there.

Palestinian Culture Fest

Members of the Social Justice Ministry will be on hand for the Palestinian Culture Fest this coming Sunday from 3-5 pm. The “Friends of Palestine” group that protests every Friday has organized this event. If you missed the screening of When Olive Trees Weep several months ago or want to see it again, this is your chance. It will be shown at 5 pm.

The event takes place at Standing Rock Cultural Arts.  

Portage NAACP Freedom Fund Luncheon

Join the Portage County NAACP Branch on Saturday, October 18 for the annual Freedom Fund Luncheon. This event is a major fund raiser for student scholarships. It will be held at the NEOMED New Center at 11:45 am. Honesty for Ohio’s Executive Director Dr. Christina Collins will be the keynoter. Contact Frank Hairston for tickets ($50). 

ACME Cash Back Program

It's that time of year again to submit your receipts for the ACME Community Cash Back program. Every year, participate in this special program that gives money to local non-profits. At the end of the program, we tally up the receipts we have collected, and we receive a portion of it back. Please submit your ACME receipts from August 1, 2025 through February 15, 2026. You can drop them in the baskets that are labeled around the church and in the church office. Thank you for participating!

2025-26 Confirmation Class

KUCC is offering Confirmation this year for all students 7th grade and older! Confirmation is one of the most important faith formation experiences in a young person's life. Students will deepen their faith, their knowledge and understanding of our faith tradition, and their relationship with God, themselves, and the world. The conclusion of this one-year journey is a ceremony in which students become full adult members of the Christian church and Kent UCC. There is no requirement to be confirmed at the end of the year; confirmation is a journey and process, not an end in itself.  

Given how busy our young people are, this year's Confirmation class will be more project-based and require less in-person class time. Each student will be assigned a mentor to accompany them on the journey, and there will be several field trips (including visiting other faith communities) to supplement our learning.  

Pastor Emily is excited to guide this year's confirmation class. If there are any questions about confirmation, please reach out to her here. Please use the google form here to indicate if you child is interested.

UYF 

Is your high schooler interested in being a part of UYF (United Youth Force) this year? KUCC's high school youth group is a relationship-oriented group of young people growing together through service, faith, fellowship, and fun! 

Sign Up to Greet

Please sign up to be a Kent UCC Greeter. This is an easy but IMPORTANT job! Just come to church before the service at 9:35am, stand by the lower doors and welcome and greet people as they come in! It is so imperative to have a friendly face to welcome everyone as they come in to church. You are coming to church anyway so just come a little early and spread our Kent UCC extravagant hospitality to all who enter our doors. Click HERE to access the greeter sign up sheet! If you have any questions please contact Gayle Wall. 

Looking Ahead

• Sunday, September 28 – New Governance Model Presentation after worship; CROP Hunger Walk at Trail Lake Park

• Saturday, October 4 – Hot Pot Supper at 5:30pm in VanMeter Hall followed by Trio Levain concert at 7:30pm in the Sanctuary

• Sunday, October 5 – World Communion Sunday; Special Congregational Meeting after worship; Blessing of the Animals Service at 4pm on the church lawn

• Thursday, October 9 – Dwelling in the Word Bible Study at 2pm in the Chapel

• Sunday, October 12 – Access Sunday with guest preacher Rev. Beth Long-Higgins, Executive Director of the Center for Abundant Aging and United Church Homes; presentation after worship in Chapel

• Wednesday, October 15 – Evening Prayer Service, 7pm in the Chapel

• Friday, October 17 – Saturday, October 18 – Sue Reeves Memorial Lecture on Mental Health & Recovery organized by the Mental Health Ministry

• Sunday, October 26 – Reformation Sunday/Receive New Members; Chili Luncheon after worship

• Sunday, November 2 – All Saints Sunday

• Saturday, November 8 – Fall Cleanup, 9am-noon

• Sunday, November 9 - Dedication Sunday with all-church potluck meal to follow

• Thursday, November 13 – Dwelling in the Word Bible Study, 2pm in the Chapel

• Wednesday, November 19 – Evening Prayer Service, 7pm in the Chapel

• Sunday, November 23 – Music Sunday; Hanging of the Greens and Advent Workshop

• Tuesday, November 25 – Ecumenical Thanksgiving Service, 7pm at Trinity Lutheran Church

This Week’s Sacred Text

Luke 16:19-31

“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was being tormented, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. He called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in agony in these flames.’ But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things and Lazarus in like manner evil things, but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.’ He said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house— for I have five brothers—that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.’ Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.’ He said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’ ”