Missions Board Action Plan

 

The Missions Board Has recently over viewed and reorganized its ministry to better enable it to make general assessments about its effectiveness and to better discern its potential for expansion.

Its ministry will now fall under four rubrics: Targeted Ministries, which focuses upon specific local needs; Systemic Injustice Ministries, which focuses upon the promotion of justice structurally, e.g. through legislation and institutional reform; Global Ministries, which focuses upon need throughout the world; and Denominational Support, which focuses upon missions ministry sponsored by the UCC.  Currently, the Missions Board ministry under each rubric can be summarized as follows:

Targeted Ministry

• Providing dinner to Lazarus House on the fifth Saturdays of the month
• Providing St. John's UCC with Aldi gift certificates for their food pantry.
• Sponsoring a School Supplies Drive for St. John's UCC school children each August.
• Sponsoring a Hat, Scarf and Mitten Drive for St. John's UCC school children each October.
• Scheduling a work day at St. John's UCC each summer to make minor building repairs, clean, etc.
• Providing budget disbursements to St. John's UCC.
• Sponsoring a food drive for the Northern Illinois Food Bank each July.
• Sponsoring five to seven families at Christmas each year, supplying gifts for parents and children, as well as supplying Aldi gift certificates for Christmas dinner.
• Sponsoring ten to twenty children from the Salvation Army Angel Tree at Christmas each year.
• Providing budget disbursements to Lazarus House.
• Providing budget disbursements to the Northern Illinois Food Bank.

Systemic Injustice Ministry

• Participating, in conjunction with the Community Renewal Society (CRS), in letter writing and phone call campaigns as they arise.
• Attending and hosting educational events through CRS.
• Inviting CRS representatives to lead worship.
• Participating in the annual Offering of Letters sponsored by Bread for the World each May.
• Providing budget disbursements to Bread for the World.

Global Ministries

• Sponsoring the ministry of Mr. Njorogi in Kenya each year through budget disbursement and general support.
• Investigating opportunities to participate more fully in refugee ministries through Exodus or the UCC, including exploration as to the possibility of adding temporary refugee housing on the FCCG property as a long term goal.
• Providing budget disbursement for refugee resettlement kits.
• Inviting missionaries to preach and teach.
• See also items listed under Denominational Support.

Denominational Support

• Participating in CROP Walk each October.
• Participating in the special collection for Veterans of the Cross each November.
• Participating in the special collection for One Great Hour of Sharing each March.
• Participating in National Day of Prayer each May by opening the church for prayer throughout the day and a prayer service in the evening.
• Recognizing World Communion Sunday each February, Immigration Rights Sunday each March, and Refugee Sunday each June in worship services.
• Providing budget disbursement to Basic Support of the Illinois Conference.
• Providing support to the Illinois Conference's Nigerian mission.