Prayer List

Please keep the following family and friends in your prayers this week. If you have a prayer request to add to the list, please email your request to prayer@oaklandpresbyterianchurch.org. This email address will only be accessed by Ann Grundstrom to ensure confidentiality, and Ann will follow up with each request received.

The family of Carl Wade Adams
Charles Rudolph Baker
Jack Bollinger
Pat Barbour
Lilian Blackman
Phyllis Collins
James Corbett
Stephanie English
Benjamin Geary
David Jordain
Ann Lee
Elaine Lee
Jane Lee

Charlene LaPlant
John McPhail (hospitalized in Goldsboro, NC)
Ken McGee
Chuck Morton
Laura New
Ada Norris
Kris Wilson
Jessica Williams
Lindsey Wilson
Preston Woods
Bill Yelvington
Staff, students and teachers of schools

As we approach the Advent and Christmas season, there will be lots of dates and announcements so please read the entire email and of course reach out to the office with any questions!!

November 1st-Choir Practice
November 1st- Mission Trip informational meeting
November 2nd- Bible Study
November 3rd- Serve Night
November 6th- Daylight Savings Time (fall back)
November 6th- No Joy Gift Practice
November 8th- Voting taking place at OPC
November 9th- Be Bold
November 11th- Office Closed
November 11th-12th- Middlers Retreat
November 13th- Time of Prayer
November 13th- Worship training Cancelled and will be rescheduled after the first of the year.
November 13th- Joy Gift Practice at 4pm
November 13th- PYC event at Temple City (Revive Night)
November 13th- Session meeting
November 16th- Fellowship Supper
November 20th- Presbyterian Women at 3pm
November 24th-25th- Office Closed
November 27th- Advent Wreath Workshop
November 27th- Hanging of the Greens
December 4th- Rudy Theatre outing

A big "Thank you" to the servants during worship service

Sunday November 6th
Liturgist: Jennifer Wells
Ushers: Troy and Nata Barber; Katie and Josh Dulmaine
Children’s Church: Helen Thomas
Worship Nursery: Janet Foor
Children’s Conversation: Pastor Debbie Osterhoudt

Sunday November 13th
Liturgist: Jennifer Wells
Ushers: Troy and Nata Barber; Katie and Josh Dulmaine
Children’s Church: Kate Swift
Worship Nursery: Autumn Swift
Children’s Conversation: Janet and Bob Foor

Summer Youth Mission Trips Info Meeting
Now is the time to start making plans for our summer youth mission trips! All rising 7th -12th graders, their parents, and adults interested in chaperoning a trip are invited to join us for our first information and planning meeting on Tuesday, November 1st at 7:00pm in the Youth Center Classroom. We will talk about the Middle School and High School trips and begin planning our trip fundraisers. If you are interested in going on one of the mission trips or if you would just like to get more information about the trips, make plans to join us for this information meeting!

Serve night
Please join us on Thursday, November 3rd for Serve Night. Dinner of baked potatoes and fixings will be served at 6:15 followed by a short devotion at 6:45 and ministry team meeting meetings at 7pm. Please let Kate in the office know if you are interested in plugging into a committee and would like more information.

The church office will be closed on Friday, November 11th in observance of Veterans Day.

Time of prayer will be on Sunday morning at 9 am on November 13th in the sanctuary.

Chrismons
When there was a Fellowship Supper in July, the worship team handed out Chrismon packs for families and individuals to take home and make for our Christmas decorating at Oakland.
There will be a basket in the fellowship hall for you to bring them back. Please return these by November 6th. If you have any questions, please contact Chrissy (chrissydunavan@gmail.com). Thank you all for your help!

Presbyterian Women
The Presbyterian Women group (PW) will begin meeting on November 20th at 3pm. They plan to meet every third Sunday in the fellowship hall. There is some information on their bulletin board if you would like more information or also please feel free to contact Linda Pingel.

Advent Wreath Workshop
Over the last several years, the Advent Wreath Workshop hosted by Christian Education has become one of the family favorite events of Christmas! This event can be challenging to plan since we try to host it early enough so that families have their wreath to use for Advent, which usually starts the weekend after Thanksgiving.
This year, CE will host our Advent Wreath Workshop as a Sunday School gathering from 9:30-10:15am on Sunday, November 27th . We hope you will join us as we have some time of fellowship with a light breakfast and provide all the materials you will need to make a fresh advent wreath to enjoy all season long! The Advent resource table will also be set up starting November 27th for you to browse and check out a devotion to use during Advent.
The wreath making supplies will remain set up after Sunday school, so if you are unable to make the workshop during Sunday school to make your wreath, you will be welcome to stay after service or make up a to go box of supplies to make your wreath at home.

Meal Train Volunteers
As part of the Congregational Care Committee we offer meals to members and their families during times of serious illness or grief. We do this through an online sign up program called Meal Train. Whenever there is a need a member of the Congregational Care Committee will contact the family & offer to
provide meals. An email through the Meal Train will then be sent out to volunteers seeking people to provide the meals on designated days. If you would be willing to help with this ministry of caring & concern or if you have questions about this program please contact Helen Thomas.

There will be a signup sheet in the fellowship hall if you would like to sign up to help.

Helen Thomas
919-631-6206
Hmst1971@gmail.com

Advent Devotional
Last years advent devotional was such a hit, we are doing it again this year! The Oakland Advent Devotion will contain stories, favorite Christmas memories, and meaningful scripture passages contributed by members of Oakland's congregation. Sarah Leonard will be organizing and compiling all of these devotions into a 25 day Advent devotion booklet that the church office will print for distribution to the congregation. If you have a Christmas story/memory or short description of a scripture that means a lot to you during the Christmas Season that you would like to share for this devotional, please email it to Sarah sarah@oaklandpresbyterianchurch.org by November 18th. Thank you for helping us with this project and spreading a little Christmas cheer through your stories. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to Sarah.

Worship Training-RESCHEDULED!
Are you currently a liturgist, someone who helps with sound and technology or a person who delivers the children's message on Sunday morning? We have cancelled the worship training that was scheduled for November 13th and will reschedule for some time in Jan. Please be on the lookout for the new date after the first of the year!!

Operation Christmas Child
It's Operation Christmas Child Shoebox time! Our Oakland Kids have once again offered to pack shoeboxes for anyone who would like to go shopping for the items but doesn't want to do the packing. You can pick up a suggested items list in the Fellowship Hall to take with you as you shop, and then bring your items to the church by Wednesday, Nov. 2. The kids will pack boxes during Serve Night on Nov. 3rd. If you would prefer to make a monetary donation to help purchase extra supplies needed for the boxes and to help with shipping costs, you can do that as well by placing your donation in a pew envelope and marking it for "OCC".
Oakland will collect filled boxes on November 13th and 20th for OCC National Collection running November 15th-22nd.

Fellowship Supper
Plan to join us on Wed, November 16th at 6pm for our last Fellowship Supper of the year! We will have ham, sweet potato casserole, green beans, apple salad, rolls and dessert. Please RSVP by filling out a form and placing it in the offering plate or you can email Kate in the office
(secretary@oaklandpresbyterianchurch.org) and let her know how many will be attending. Hope to see you there!

Poinsettia Sale
Red poinsettias are available to purchase for $12.00 each. Orders will be due on Nov. 20th. Please designate on the order form in the fellowship hall who the poinsettia will commemorate, and whether it should designate “in honor of” or “in memory of” in the special insert being published in the worship bulletin on Dec. 11th. You can also email the church office and let us know how many you would like to purchase and if they are "in memory of" or "in honor of". Thank you!

Christmas at The Rudy Theatre
Sunday December 4 at 2:15 The Congregational Care Team is planning a trip to the Rudy Theatre in Selma on Sunday December 4. The show begins at 2:15. If you have never been to the Rudy Theatre the Christmas show is a musical review of some of your favorite Christmas songs, some humor sure to put you in the Christmas spirit. Tickets are $28.50 per person; must be paid in advance to reserve your seat. Final payment is due by Sunday Nov. 20. There will be a sign up sheet in the fellowship hall beginning Sunday, Oct. 30th. Checks can be made payable to Oakland Presbyterian Church ; note on the memo line Rudy Theatre. You can put your check in the offering plate or take it to the church office. If you would like to travel with someone, arrive at the church by 1:45. We hope you will plan to join us for this special Christmas show.

Presbyterian Disaster Assistance
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance is a ministry of the Presbyterian Church USA. It enables congregations and mission partners to witness to the healing love of Christ through caring for communities adversely affected by crises and catastrophic events. The core budget and minimum administrative costs are funded by the One Great Hour of Sharing offering. Designated gifts help to fund the program costs associated with specific communities. Presbyterian Disaster Assistance provides training and disaster
preparedness for local presbyteries, focuses on long term recovery of impacted communities, works collaboratively with church partners and faith-based responders, and helps to connect partners with key organizations such as the American Red Cross. I have had the opportunity to experience Presbyterian Disaster Assistance through mission trips after Hurricane Katrina devastated the New Orleans and surrounding areas, and outreach in eastern North Carolina after multiple hurricanes and flooding. They are professional, utilize local trained leadership, and minimize their administrative costs
through the use of volunteers.
Whenever a catastrophic event occurs, one way you can reach out and help is to make a financial contribution to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance through Oakland Presbyterian Church. You would make your checks payable to Oakland and in the memo line indicate that your contribution is designated for PDA. This financial support will be forwarded directly to PDA. Right now your gifts will be designated for communities affected by Hurricane Ian. Please prayerfully consider giving to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance as we reach out in love to our brothers and sisters impacted by Hurricane Ian! If you need
more information, please do not ever hesitate to call me, Debbie Osterhoudt at 478-363- 2010 or revdeb2017@gmail.com.

Canned Food Drive
Mission and Outreach will be holding a food drive from October 2nd through December 12th. These canned goods will be used to help families and organizations in our community especially through the holiday times. There will be a collection table in the fellowship hall.

Sunday School Challenge
The Christian Education Ministry Team has a fun challenge for all of our Sunday School classes this quarter (Oct-Dec). We want to see which class can have the most new attendees join their class for the quarter! Each week, our Sunday School classes will take attendance highlighting the first week a new attendee visits the class. The class with the most new attendees who attend Sunday school at least 6 Sundays this quarter will receive a special class breakfast in January. Our challenge starts next week, so invite someone new to come visit your class!
Sunday school classes
Faithful followers Class (meets in Faithful Followers class): Current study: getting ready to start a study on the Parables of Jesus
Betty Jo Hatcher Class (meets in Parlor) Current Study: Out of Slavery to Nationhood: Exodus, Deuteronomy, Judges, 1 Samuel (Moses, Gideon, David as King)
Upper Room (meets in the choir room) Current Study: getting ready to start a study on the book of James and 1, 2,3 John

Directory updates
If you would like a printed copy of the directory, please email the office (secreatary@oaklandpresbyterianchurch.org) and we will make sure you get one. If you would like a new picture for the directory, please also email the office and we will be sure to set that up for you.

Please note that there is a new app for the directory, the old one does still work but it does appear it will be phased out in the coming months.
Here are some instructions and updates for the new directory app!

We are excited to announce our New Online Member Directory app! Follow these directions to get the new app, and dont forget to tell the other members of your organization to do the same!

Download the Online Member Directory App for Apple or Android
Tap + Add New Directory then enter oaklandpresbyterian for the mobile code and submit.
Tap the church name and log in using your existing username and password.

New features include:

Touch a picture to enlarge
Expanded search feature searches all fields
Notifications always appear in the app
Your family names have been updated. We split your family names into two fields: the last name on one line and first names on another.
The way you add people to your directory has changed. Please click here for instructions or use the HELP button in your directory.

Your directory is still available on the web at https://oaklandpresbyterian.ctrn.co
Our legacy app, CTRN Online Directory, will continue to work for the time being. However, it will be phased out in the coming months.

OPC T-shirts
We have had several requests for OPC shirts and sweatshirts. We have a link to the store now so you can order and pay for them all with using this link. There are a couple colors and styles too.
If you have any questions or are not comfortable doing this online, please email the office (secretary@oaklandpresbyterianchurch.org) and we will be happy to help you.

Do you know of someone in the church in need of some help with yard work? Need help with a project around the house? Do you know of someone that might need help with some cleaning? Oakland has a ministry for that! The helping hands ministry can help with yard work, small projects or clean up around the house. Please email Kate (secretary@oaklandpresbyterianchurch.org) if you know of a need and she will get you in touch with the right person.

Bob and Janet Foor are leading the weekly Bible Study on Wednesday at 11am in the Parlor.

Be Bold is the ministry for 4th-6th graders and their meetings are held on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month. The next meeting is November 9th at 6:30pm.

PYC is youth group for 7-12th graders and holds their meetings every Sunday at 4:30pm in the youth center. This year the youth will be studying the book of Revelations.