Mondays 11am to noon
in the Sanctuary
You’re invited to these free drop-in sessions led by Dianne Hicks. These sessions will be in the Vipassana tradition starting with Meta (loving kindness) followed by a silent meditation and a reading with discussion. The only requirement is to be able to close your eyes and breathe.
Sign-up HERE or on the bulletin board in the stairwell — or simply drop in when you can.
Contact Dianne Hicks or the Church Office with questions.
This week, we replaced the original boiler (from the 1960s when this building was built). Here are a few pictures of the new one, which will be much more energy-efficient than the old one (saving significantly on our utility bills and reducing emissions by 40%).
Special thanks to Brian McConnell and Brian Welwood, who were both instrumental in obtaining quotes and supervising the installation. We're looking to a bright, shiny and warm future.
In responding to a fire, preparation is everything.
Soon, we will conduct a “surprise” Fire Drill during a Sunday Service. The purpose of this drill will be to practice exiting the building in case a real emergency ever happened that required us to evacuate.
During the drill, you will be given clear instructions as to what you need to do, and where you should exit. Ushers will be available to help anyone needing assistance, and we will also have the use of two wheelchairs.
During June, 100% of our offering plate (unless otherwise marked) will be donated to the North Shore Women’s Centre’s Fearless Girls Empowerment Camps. These week-long camps are for high-school-aged young women, and for pre-teen girls going into grades 6 and 7. A number of activities occur at the camp, designed to empower young women and help them deal with many of the challenges facing them in today’s world.
We will also continue with the collection of food and toiletry items in the foyer bins.
There have been a few changes over the 3 years since we planted at NSUC. Some plants have been removed, some did not survive our warm fall followed by a quick freeze in fall 2023. Many of our native plants came from Coast Salish Nursery.
Here is a list of our current plantings:
Allium • tall white globes
Pacific Nine Bark (Physocarpus Capitatus) •a bush which should grow to 6 ‘
Yarrow • white and lilac
Asters (Native only) • Symphyotrichum subspicatum • bloom in fall• lilac colour
Bee Balm • bright red flowers
Camas Quamash (CS Nursery)
Chives •Allium schoenoprasum
Daisies
Lobilia Straship • red flowers
Lupin (Lupinus perennis) wild type • lilac purple colours
Nodding Onions • Allium Cernuum (CS Nursery)
Pacific Bleeding Heart (Dicentra Formosa)
Purple candy Tuft (Scabious Colubaria)
Red Columbine (Aquilegia formosa) wild BC type • attracts butterflies / hummingbirds
Alyssum • fragrant...Rocky Racoon loves these...we have replanted!
Arbrieta • Rock Cress Native • purple flower
Kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) • CSNursery • flowers and berries attract
Sedum
Thyme
Wild Ginger • (CS Nursery)
Wild Strawberries • Woodland (Fragaria Vesca)
Beach (Fragaria Chiloensis)
Our Annual General Meeting (AGM) is scheduled for Sunday, May 26th at 12:15pm. Sandwiches will be available for purchase ($5) after the Sunday Service and before the AGM.
AGM Notice Packets were emailed or mailed to Members on May 14th (with an update distributed on May 15th). Contact Janni in the Church Office if you have signed the Membership Book but do not receive the Notice Packet.
Although anyone may attend our AGM, only Members who meet our Bylaw requirements may vote.
All voting will be done in person or by Proxy. Zoom will be for watching only (not voting).
Contact Janni in the Church Office if you have questions about your voting status.
Contact Janni in the Church Office, or the appropriate Board Member.
Everyone is welcome! Join fellow congregants and your new Board (that will be voted in at the May 26th AGM) for conversation, socializing and plain old connection. We look forward to seeing you there!
Over the years, we've raised thousands of dollars in "free" money for the church through our Grocery Receipt Program.
Here’s how the program works: We've made arrangements with two local grocery stores (West Vancouver IGA and City Market at Park Royal). For every $5,000 in grocery receipts from their stores, they give us a $25 (or $50) gift card -- which we sell at face value to someone in the church who shops there, and the money from the sale is donated to the church. In other words: for every $5,000 in receipts, the church gets $25 (or $50) of "free" money.
Marie Bensley was originally in charge of our Grocery Receipt program -- and then she handed it over to Nora Coates for many years. When Nora retired from this role, she handed it over to our church custodian (Tom), who did it for a short time before Linda Pratt agreed to take it on in 2024. Linda sorts donated receipts for the two stores, add them up (so they are in bundles of roughly $5,000), send the packets to the store manager, and "sell" the donated gift cards.
If you shop at either of these two stores, please save your receipts! Bring them to the church and place them in the folder on the bulletin board in the stairwell. This is a great way to earn “free” money for the church!
Similarly, if you shop at either of these stores — please let Linda know if you’d occasionally be willing to purchase gift cards (at face value) for those stores, to help her convert the gift cards into cash for the church.
Each month, 100% of our offering plate (unless otherwise marked) is donated to a non-profit organization whose mission is in line with our values. We call this “Outreach”.
During the month of May, we collected $1,081.95 for the Wild Bird Trust of BC.
Many of us have enjoyed leisurely walks through Maplewood Flats, bird watching and learning about the many wild birds that call this beautiful part of the North Shore their home. Maplewood Flats is managed by the Wild Bird Trust of BC. The Trust’s mission is to provide wild birds with sanctuary through ecological protection and restoration, as well as to support communities with education, culture, and reconciliation programs.
Thanks to all who contributed to this collection.
Our Art Team invites you to enjoy this upcoming art show/sale this Saturday:
