Impromptu Christmas Drama!

This Sunday, join us Uptown for Central's annual children's Christmas play! All children are invited to join in this fun event! If you have a kid who wants to be involved, rehearsal starts at 5:00pm. For everyone else who wants to join in the merriment and hilarity, the show will begin at 7:00pm!

A Day Apart

Save the date for a day apart, spent with God. Join Paul and others from your Central family for a day of rest and reflection on Saturday, February 13, 2016 at Burr Oak Lodge. The day will be open to 10 students and 10 community members. If you'd like more information, send an e-mail!

Next Series: Bookmarks

We've all heard the Christmas story of Jesus being born in a manger. We might even be familiar with the life of Jesus: his birth, ministry, teachings, and death on the cross. But what we sometimes forget is that God's story began long before Jesus ever arrived on Christmas morning. In our next sermon series, we will explore the Old Testament for the stories which help us to understand God's Story. The overarching story can be split into five bookmarks -- so we will study each one in hopes the story of Jesus will come alive in ways we have never considered!

"I had long wanted to be involved with a food ministry--either a soup kitchen or pantry, but the church I belonged to for twenty years simply did not have the resources to support one. When we moved to Athens and started to attend Central, I volunteered almost immediately.

"What I discovered at Friends & Neighbors is a very dedicated group of local people who, three days a week, open the doors for clients to come in and choose from whatever the pantry has to offer that day. Many of the clients are elderly women on fixed incomes or men on disability.

"I have continued to serve at Friends & Neighbors, in part, due to the sense of doing something for others that is a true need. I know for certain that the gift is going directly to the people who need help. I also enjoy the fellowship of coming together with the other volunteers and getting to know others outside of the immediate Athens area.

"One day at lunch, I discovered that the woman I was eating with was an Italian World War II war bride widow who was imprisoned in Austria by the Germans for her family's role in assisting an American airman to evade capture. How cool is that! I wonder what other stories are waiting to be told."

Michael Adams is retired from the National Park Service. He has been attending Central regularly since 2011, when his wife Julie began teaching at Hocking College. They took a short walk up the street from their house. The pair quickly fell in love with Central, and have been serving here ever since!

Michael serves with the Youth Group, can be found near the Welcome Center as a Greeter or Connection Coordinator on Sunday mornings, and he has been regularly serving with Friends & Neighbors Food Pantry on the monthly trips.