Advent Family Toolkit

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Looking for a meaningful home Advent observance for your family? The Minnesota Conference UCC is offering an Advent Family Toolkit in weekly electronic installments. The kit focuses on the themes of hope, peace, joy and love, with meditations, book recommendations, activities, games, and more from the first Sunday of Advent (Nov. 29) through the Sunday after Christmas (Dec. 27). Former FHC intern Claire Klein created the video series for this project and Margot Olsen provided costumes. Learn more here

Reverse Advent calendar

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The Outreach Committee is sponsoring a “reverse Advent calendar” to prepare our hearts for the celebration of Christ’s birth. We continue to work with the Department of Indian Work and the DIW food shelf to gather the most-needed food and personal items for those in need.

Please bring all items to the church by Thursday, Dec. 17. (Call ahead to make sure someone is in the building.)

Here’s how the calendar works: Each day your family can purchase or set aside an item to donate. Our list suggests a different item for each of the 15 days of the Advent season, but please feel free to use it as a guide and personalize or alter the list to fit your family’s values and budget. Perhaps as you can prepare a special space in your home where you can bring this offering, pause and lift up a prayer of Thanksgiving for all you have received and can freely give to others.

“Loving God, as we feel the pressure to keep pace with an increasingly hurried and greedy world, let us pause today to remember your constant presence and abundance in our lives. You have called us to be a people who rise above the frantic, consuming nature of our surroundings. Let us reflect the peace of your Spirit today. Amen.”

You can also give money to the food shelf through Falcon Heights Church’s donation portal . Select “food shelf” as the fund to receive your gift.

We are in this together

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by Rev. Rick King

(The following is Rev. Rick King’s column from the Nov. 5 TAB newsletter — before the election winners were called.)

Last week’s column ended with a question: “What will you do the day after the election is decided?”

This week, we begin with a different question: How will you be the day after the election is decided?

Managing our insides is the work of hope and courage, just as co-creating the society we want, where all can thrive. They’re two halves of the same whole, and the goal of a mature spiritual life. They’re also what’s going to help us go forward after this election decision, no matter what the outcome is.

Sometimes it helps to remember what binds us, and what getting along, despite our differences, feels like. Tuesday, I saw and felt that as 10 volunteers and I welcomed voters throughout the day and thanked them for voting.

For me, being outside the church was an important reminder of each person’s humanity, and at least for the day, I could imagine people acting out of their best intentions.

I kept thinking to myself, “I don’t know how any of these people voted, even though I could guess—but I don’t want to know, at least not for today!”

Why? Because after such division and acrimony during the campaign, I was ready for a break. Yes, even me, who is so enthusiastic about having an impact on the Minnesota legislature’s agenda for 2021 and worked hard to try to sway voters toward what is possible.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m excited to start that next chapter, even though, at this writing, final vote-counts aren’t in yet. But the most important thing is to be prepared inwardly to adapt, adjust, and move forward with enthusiasm and courage, knowing that all of us, regardless of political party, are in this together.

Yes, when a new government is finally chosen, we will get ready to dive in and work relentlessly for what we believe God is calling us to be and do as a state and as a nation. But for me, Tuesday outside the church, greeting voters, was a glimpse into what we have in common.

I hope I don’t forget that as I pursue the agenda I’d like to see!

Outdoor movie night Oct. 10

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The Intergenerational Team invites you to join us Saturday, Oct. 10, at 7 p.m. in the church parking lot for an outdoor, physically distanced movie night. We will be showing the “Shaun the Sheep” movie, which is fun for all ages. You may arrive early to pick a spot in the parking lot.

Please be mindful of others around you and keep six feet apart. Please bring your own masks, lawn chairs, blankets and snacks. Remember to dress appropriately for evening weather. Please park on the north end of the parking lot or on the street. We look forward to seeing you, being in community, and having a few much-needed laughs!

(Please note that the event will be canceled if rainy weather occurs.)

Protect democracy: make a voting plan

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In conjunction with Isaiah MN–a coalition of faith communities fighting for racial and economic justice in Minnesota–our church is taking part in two Democracy Sundays, one this week and one on Oct. 25. These are an opportunity to take action to protect democracy during this election and to put our values at the center of the conversation about voting.

You’re encouraged to make your plan, vote, and help friends and neighbors to do so as well. Isaiah has an online toolkit with things you can do — from talking to your own circle about their voting plans, to disseminating voting messages via social media, to participating in a virtual phone bank this Sunday evening. Find out more here.

This week’s emphasis is on making a voting plan. Here are resources for:

checking one’s registration status 
registering to vote 
how to find your polling place
other ways to vote 

Important dates to know

  • Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
  • Registration deadlines
    • By mail: Received by Oct. 13
    • In person: By Nov. 3. You can register and vote on Election Day.
  • Absentee ballot deadlines
    • Request: By Nov. 2
    • Return by mail: Postmarked by Nov. 3
    • Return in person: By Nov. 3 at 3 p.m.
  • Early voting
    • Sept. 18 – Nov. 2, but dates and hours may vary based on where you live.

Voting by absentee ballot

Looking to mail in your vote this year rather than standing in line at a polling place? This page has everything you need to request an absentee ballot.

Become an election judge

Anyone of voting age and up can be trained for the job, but younger people are especially needed to replace older people who’ve stepped up in the past but who are now at greater risk for COVID-19. More information and sign-up links