September 2021 - Bethlehem United Church of Christ
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September 2021
The Bethlehem STAR
Well, we sure did kickstart things around here! What an exciting
weekend we had relaunching so many of our programs. Thank you to so many
who made it such a special day. A special thank you goes to the staff and our
Church Council.
We had 30 folks at our Saturday night service, 19 children and 15 youth
in Sunday School (as well as four adult classes that met—but two didn’t take
attendance—whoops!), and 154 in Sunday worship. More than 100 stayed for
the Food Truck Party and music from Pastor Deborah’s band, Sassafras! Shout
out to World Cup Pizza and Jeanne’s Gelato!
It was a great weekend!
But a kickstart is meant to get us moving, so I hope we will be able to
continue to ride that momentum! Come join us each week, and if you can’t be
here, you know how to find our worship services on YouTube (Bethlehem UCC
Evansville) or our website (bethlehemucc.org).
Interested in Sunday School, but not sure where to plug in? Give me a
send me an email, and I’ll help you find the right spot!
emily@bethlehemucc.org)
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The Bethlehem STAR
Thanks for the great response to Kickstart Weekend! The restart of
Saturday Worship, Sunday School, and the food truck party was a huge
success. Thanks to all who participated to make the weekend a successful
welcome back!
At the August meeting, the council voted to support local organizations that are
doing good work in the community during difficult times. A portion of the
annual Voigt Trust allotment has been designated for contribution. Like last
year, we are asking the congregation to suggest organizations to support as an
extension of Bethlehem’s mission. Please let Pastor Emily know if you have
an organization you want to support at emily@bethlehemucc.org.
You might like to celebrate a special occasion, honor a special person, or
maybe you just enjoy seeing live flowers on the altar! Dates are first-come,
first-serve, so reserve early! Below is a list of dates currently available for the
rest of 2021. To reserve a weekend, email Judy Koch at
(judy@bethlehemucc.org).
September November
5 7, 14 & 28
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The Bethlehem STAR
Photos from Kickstart Weekend
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The Bethlehem STAR 5
The Bethlehem STAR
Photos from Kickstart Weekend
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The Bethlehem STAR
On Saturday, September 25th,
Bethlehem will host its 14th
Annual Fish Fry from 4:00—7:00
pm. Due to the uncertainty of
what the Covid protocol will be
in late September, this year’s
event will be CARRY-OUT
ONLY from the Burgoo
Building. As always, all
proceeds of the Fish Fry will go
towards Bethlehem’s mission to
provide food for those in need in
our community.
Your $10 ticket includes: 3
pieces of fish, baked beans,
potato salad, drink, and a chocolate fudge brownie with caramel sauce.
While we won’t get to experience the opportunity for camaraderie with our
friends and neighbors in our Fellowship Hall this year, please consider
purchasing a couple of extra tickets to share with someone special. Tickets will
be on sale in the Welcoming Area before and after church and during office
hours (M-Th. 9- 2 pm) beginning in September.
If you have any questions about the Fish Fry, please contact Glenn Heseman
or the church office 812-867-2497 or church@bethlehemucc.org.
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The Bethlehem STAR
Confirmation has gotten off to a great start! We have an awesome group of
kids, and I hope you’ll enjoy getting to know them over the next several
weeks as we do our “Meet the Confirmand” series in worship beginning
September 12! You can get a sneak peak here:
Annie attends Good Shepherd and
actively participates in softball. Her
favorites are:
Food—Dumplings
Candy—Mike and Ike
TV Show—Outer Banks
Music—Country
Annie Blackburn with
mentor Debbie Kuebler
Charlotte attends Evansville Day
School and enjoys participating in
tennis, cheer, and golf. Her favorites
are:
Food—Chicken
Candy—Sour Patch Kids
TV Show—Once Upon a Time
Music—good 4 u
Charlotte Hungate with Book—Fever
mentor Gerri Klass
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The Bethlehem STAR
Carlie attends North Junior High
School and enjoys her time
participating in dance, yearbook club,
horseback riding, Confirmation, and
crocheting.
Food—Shrimp
Candy—Lemonheads
TV Show—CSI: Las Vegas
Music—Country
Carlie Inman with
mentor Jerry Brandenberger Book—Since You’ve Been Gone
Ethan attends Evansville Day School
and divides his free time between
baskeball, soccer, track, chess, and
robotics.
Food—Pasta with meat sauce
Candy—Chocolate
Music— Artist Jason Mraz
Book—Percy Jackson series
Ethan Moore with
mentor Dan Carwile
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The Bethlehem STAR
Caroline attends Evansville Day School
and actively participates in dance.
Food—Steak
Candy—Chocolate
TV Show—Baking Squad
Music—anything
Book—Braced
Caroline Palmer with
mentor Debbie Havens
Nathaniel attends Evansville Day
School and divides activity time
between travel basketball and
school soccer.
Food—Lamb ribs
TV Show—Death Note
Music—AJR
Book—Man in the High Castle
Nathaniel Perry with
mentor Bob Carithers
10The Bethlehem STAR
Sydney attends Evansville Day School
and actively participates in soccer.
Food—Chicken Divan
Candy—Dark Chocolate
TV Show—Outer Banks
Music—Country
Sydney Traylor with
mentor Linda Gilbert
11The Bethlehem STAR
Final Notice: Please read if you
haven’t yet in previous Star newsletters!
Updating the Postal Mailing List
For years, the Star newsletter has been received monthly in
paper form by hundreds of devoted readers. At Bethlehem,
we strive to be good stewards of both our financial and
environmental resources, and with your help, we can achieve this in one small
way.
The church office is eager to continue offering the publication to those who
read and enjoy the paper copy. However, this summer we are tidying up The
Star postal mailing list. If you currently receive a copy in the mail and would
like that to continue, please notify the office by sending an email to
church@bethlehemucc.org or calling 812-867-2497.
If you currently receive The Star via email, no action is required; however,
please be sure that we have your correct email address for all electronic
communications. Thank you in advance for helping us with this task.
The YAC class
gathered recently to
prepare and serve
dinner to our community
friends in need at United
Caring Services.
12The Bethlehem STAR
Jason Emmerson
Jason Emmerson has served as the Executive Director of
United Caring Services since October 2015. He is a graduate
of Reitz High School, of Indiana University Kelley School of
Business with a B.S. in Marketing, Eden Theological
Seminary with a Masters in Divinity, and the University of Missouri-St. Louis
with a Master in Public Policy Administration and a Nonprofit Management and
Leadership Certificate. In 2018, he completed the Nollau Leadership Institute of
the Council for Health and Human Services Ministry (CHHSM) of the United
Church of Christ (UCC). In 2019, he completed a Nonprofit Executive
Leadership Certificate with IU O’Neill School of Public and Environmental
Affairs and recently earned a Certificate in Fundraising Leadership from the
Fundraising School at IU Lilly School of Philanthropy. He is very active in the
community working with the Commission on Homelessness, Evansville Mental
Health Commission, and the Evansville Promise Zone. He serves as a board
member with the Council of Health and Human Services Ministry (CHHSM) of
the UCC, ECHO Community Healthcare, and NAMI (National Alliance on
Mental Illness) Evansville. For fun and hobbies, Jason enjoys continuing his
education and learning, in case you did not already notice that. He enjoys
spending time with his nieces and nephews, reading (or more accurately being
read to via audiobook), watching movies, building PCs, gardening, cooking,
napping, and thinking about running or working out and sometimes doing that.
13The Bethlehem STAR
Will & Alex Hoffman
While Will has been a member of the church all of his
life, after we moved back to town we wanted to start
attending together. I became a member in May right
before our son was born.
Will and I met in college and have been together for almost
seven years now. We got married in 2018 and moved back to
the area in 2019. We currently live in Princeton with our two
dogs and son. Our son Jacob was born on July 1st and has
already been attending church and Sunday School! We are all
looking forward to getting involved this year within the church!
Alex & Chastity Reising
I am Chastity Reising, born and raised in Chicago. I am
an Occupational Therapist of ten-plus years now, but
returning to school to pursue a new career path. I enjoy
spending time outdoors with my family. Some long-time
hobbies of mine include yoga, running, reading, writing
poetry, snowboarding, cooking and hiking. I have
decided to join Bethlehem as my spouse and I had
recently moved to Evansville from Zionsville and
decided we wanted to continue our faith at a UCC.
Bethlehem seemed to be a good fit for our family as
our kids can partake in the programs, grow their faith,
and we were intrigued by Emily's sermons!
14The Bethlehem STAR
Alex Reising, born and raised in Evansville, moved to Lafeyette, IN to pursue a
career in materials science engineering, but was brought back to his hometown
when a career opportunity opened at Berry Plastics. Alex also enjoys spending
quality time with the family, hiking, and being outdoors.
Autumn Reising is 3-and-a-half going on 10! She is full of energy and loves to
tell stories. She can be shy at first, but when she opens up, she loves to read
you her favorite stories. She loves playing with construction vehicles, fire trucks,
and everything cars and dinosaurs with her little brother. She will also make it
known that she is the big sister.
Elijah Reising is nearly 2! He is also full of energy and enjoys climbing on
everything, playing with his big sister, and everything that has to do with cars.
He also has a very enduring stare!
Marjorie Tyler
I started coming to Bethlehem UCC because my daughter, two granddaughters,
and three great-granddaughters were coming here to Sunday School and
church. However, this church was not entirely unknown to me since the first
pastor, Rev. Samuel Caldemeyer, was the first cousin to my grandfather,
Joseph Samuel Caldemeyer.
While in the history hallway looking at the pictures of the former ministers and
Confirmation classes, I discovered that my Dad’s brother, Arthur Flittner, was
confirmed here in 1914. In later years, my cousin, Walter Krueger, bought
several acres of land adjoining Bethlehem so the church could expand. cont.
15The Bethlehem STAR
Bethlehem became affiliated with Zoar church in 1913. Zoar was my
grandfather’s home church and where he and his family worshiped. My mother
was confirmed there in 1913. In later years, we all attended St. Paul on the
west side of Evansville until St. Mark was built outside of town. Given our past
history, this church is not entirely new to me and my descendants.
Dear Friends,
Thank you for your prayers and concerns, calls, cards,
flowers, and Pastor Deborah calling during my recent heart
ablation.
Blessings to all,
Jo Ann Bagby
Thank you to all who made Emma Loane’s ordination such a special day!
Congratulations, Emma! Look for pictures in the October Star.
Haley and Matt Carwile are the proud parents of
Logan Andrew Carwile, born Monday, August 16 in
Lansing, Kansas at 5 lb. 13 oz. Logan was
welcomed by big brother Griffin and grandparents
Dan and Cindy Carwile.
16The Bethlehem STAR
Sharon Burks-Maier, Administrative Coordinator
Sharon is a native and life-long resident of
Evansville. She has a Master of Science degree in
Management from Brescia University. She is married to Gary and
they enjoy travel, music, reading, and their fur babies.
Margaret Eberhart, Children’s Director
Margaret Eberhart resides in Evansville with her husband
Greg and her two children, Ella (9), and Pearce (6). The
Eberharts have been members of Bethlehem UCC since
2012. Margaret is a graduate of Transylvania University in
Lexington, KY where she studied History and
Communications. In 2015, after 12 years working as a
project manager for a logistics software company, Margaret
started her own custom embroidery business, Cotton Cottage, LLC. She also
enjoys teaching English to Chinese students via an online teaching platform.
Margaret has taught nearly 1800 classes to over 350 students! Margaret is an
active member at Tri-State Athletic Club where she enjoys dancing and
playing tennis. Margaret and her family had so much fun refreshing the
Sunday School rooms this summer. The work inspired Margaret to take
advantage of the opportunity to lead the children and youth at Bethlehem. She
is passionate about helping our youngest members grow in their faith and
can’t wait to see the plans God has for our youth!
17The Bethlehem STAR
Wayne Jones, Interim Choir Director
Wayne Jones will be easy to recognize; he is the one asking
you what part you sing. Mr. Jones hails from deep southern
Illinois. The FAA has taken him from South Texas to Indiana
and points in-between. As the son and grandson of choir
directors, he has over 45 years of choral conducting
experience. Wayne’s two sons are both North HS grads. His wife is on the
music faculty at U of E, and directs a church choir in Henderson. Wayne has
played tuba for almost every musical group in the area, from the Evansville
Philharmonic to the Rhine Valley Brass. This includes more than a decade of
special services at Bethlehem UCC (longer than Sheri can recall). He has
performed in choirs ranging from the Evansville Bach Society to the
Philharmonic Chorus. When he is not hiding behind a tuba or singing, he can
be found conducting the Tri-State’s award-winning Civil War Band the “Red
Bank ReUnion Band.”
Wayne especially wants you to know that NOW is the time to join Chancel
Choir for the Christmas and Advent season. We have a few empty chairs in
the choir loft and in the rehearsal room. Hurry while there is still time!
Note: Hand Bells meet at 6:30pm followed by choir practice at 7:30pm on
Thursdays.
Address/Email Updates
Please contact church office.
18The Bethlehem STAR
*We apologize for the delay in notifying the
congregation of Stanley’s passing, as the office
recently received the unfortunate news.
Stanley Jacob Wiedner, "Stan the Man," died
on October 16, 2020 in Evansville, IN at the age
of 91. Stan was surrounded by his closest loved ones when he
passed. Stan is survived by his wife, Patricia Wiedner of
Evansville, IN; his sister, Geraldine Ruhland (Richard) of
Redmond, WA; his children, Susan Dunn (David) of Evansville, IN and Carolyn
Mooney (Dan) of Innsbrook, MO; his grandchildren, Kristin Fields (Kyle), Ashley
VonFrolio (Steve), Mackenzie Black (Ryan) all of Evansville, Dylan Mooney
(Lexi) of Shawnee, KS, Jordan Mooney of Webster Groves, MO, Lexie Mooney
of Denver, CO, and Evan Mooney of St. Charles, MO; and his 4 great-
grandchildren. Stan is preceded in death by his loving parents Raymond and
Hulda Wiedner. Stan was born on July 17,1929 in St. Louis, MO. He was raised
in the area and graduated from Normandy High School. Stan was a veteran of
the United States Army where he served 2 years and fought in the Korean War.
On February 5, 1955, he married his love Patricia. He also adored his two
daughters, Susan and Carolyn. Stan worked 27 years selling cards at American
Greetings. He was a member of Bethlehem United Church of Christ. After
retirement, Stan and Pat made many wonderful friends and memories in Mesa,
AZ where they lived for 27 years. Stan always had a strong passion for the
game of baseball. Growing up in St. Louis, he was a loyal fan of both the
Cardinals and the Browns. As a young child Stan was a member of the famed
Knothole Gang where he would watch games through the fence at Sportsman's
Park. His favorite player was the late, great Stan "The Man" Musial. With his
headphones on you could usually find Stan listening to a baseball game or
tapping his foot along to his favorite jazz music. Stan will be deeply missed by
his family, friends, and all who knew him. The family would like to express their
special thanks to the Newburgh Healthcare facility and staff for all of their
compassionate care. Services were private.
19The Bethlehem STAR
You can’t watch a news channel or read a paper this
summer without a report on the fires, floods, or extreme
heat, especially in the far northwest and Alaska. Before
these were the storms of last winter. We all can
remember the ice storm in Texas. These are
examples of climate change.
Along with the air pollutants, we now have to be careful of the haze. This is
smoke from the fires burning in our country. When fires burn the land, it’s not just
the trees or grass, but buildings, homes, factories, and electrical/cable
poles. These contain heavy metals, arsenic, rubber, and even asbestos.
In today’s world of technology, we have some helpful
tools to better understand air quality in our
community and beyond. You can view a real-time
Interactive Air Quality map using this link https://
gispub.epa.gov/airnow/. There is a great deal of
information on this site that’s worth a look,
especially if you have asthma, auto-immune issues,
or work outside. Additionally, you can download the
MyRadar app to
provide you with not only the weather but the
sites of large fires, air quality, and earthquakes.
God, we pray for those ravaged by fire, floods,
and extreme heat, and those who are on the
front lines battling for all those who are caught in
the disasters. Amen.
20The Bethlehem STAR
September 01 Debbie DeLong September 16 Ike Feagley
Pam Small Christine Felt A complete
listing of
Darrell Cato September 17 Diane Suhrheinrich
September
Henry Schmitt September 21 Diane Gaffney
birthdays are
September 02 Jane Koch Greyson Daywalt available at
September 09 Ron Hodoval Ella Eberhart www.bethlehe
Sharon Jones September 28 Amelia Eckert mucc.org/
Hailey Garrett Olivia Eckert estar. Please
Nolan Lowe September 29 Lyn Jones contact the
September 10 Bill Spurling Doris Oglesby church office if
Skeet Williams September 30 Cheryl Beck you would
September 11 Charles Thewes appreciate a
September 13 Anna Dus Let’s fill the mailboxes of paper
our Special Seniors on copy of the
September 15 Ava Faucett
their birthdays. list.
September 01 Christian & Tracey Andersen September 24 Matt & Rhona Lowe
Ike & Deloris Feagley September 26 Dave & Cheryl Marshall
September 03 Josh & Amanda Bultemeier Gary & Julie Trice
Don & Sharee Rollins September 28 Justin & Katie Roski
September 05 Dave & Debi Powell September 28 Bill & Linda Brown
September 06 Karl & Kelly Koch Alex & Erica Koch
September 10 Paul & Nancy Faucett September 29 Ed & Linda Luker
September 16 Tom & Candy Wuertz
September 23 Bob & Kathy Hartz
21(812) 867-2497 (Office)
Email — church@bethlehemucc.org
Web Site—www.bethlehemucc.org
Office Hours 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Please contact the church office if you are aware of any address changes.
OUR VISION STATEMENT:
Striving to welcome all who seek God; to grow in faith;
and to love neighbor as self through action.You can also read
