Like an archaeological dig where there can be surprises underneath the ground surface, we found such a surprise from the creek which we knew ran across our plot.  The original building design took that into account, but the creek turned out to be more extensive than previously determined.  It became a matter for our construction engineers to rethink, redesign and work with the City as necessary.  We are appreciative of Bob Stafford and Matt Schultz for their creative efforts to resolve this.                            

Beyond that, our project is going smoothly.  The inside walls in the Sanctuary are installed, long side windows suggesting the likeness of the old stain glass windows are there, and the stainless steel cross which will be mounted in the front of the church is spectacular!  New chairs for the Sanctuary arrived and are temporarily stored in Mahany Hall. The Parsonage/Multi-Use building is also moving along quite rapidly.  We are therefore optimistic that we may move in early 2018!

Did you know that Community United Church of Christ in San Carlos will be celebrating its 90^th Anniversary in 2018?  What a wonderful gift to be moving into a new space to celebrate our long history in San Carlos and launch into our future. We are already taking the first step to plan to Build Our New Church!

During the week of 7/23, an invitation was sent to the entire Congregation, Associate Members and Affiliates to join us as we undertake Phase I of our preparation.  In Phase I we will undertake four months of independent book reading and once- a-month group discussion to Discern and Update Who We Are as a Spiritual Corporate Body and How We Can Continue to Serve God and the Community.

We will use the book “The Postmodern Parish, New Ministry for a New Era” by Rev. Jim Kitchens as a tool to help us focus on some fundamental elements of being a church. 

Sixteen people have signed up to participate in the book reading and discussions.  The discussions will take place the third Sunday of each month 10:30 –11:30 a.m. in either the Little Critters (TCP) classroom or in Faith In Action’s office.  Regular Sunday worship will follow, and that to be followed by our regular Council Meeting to address daily operational matters.

In the Phase I discussions, we will not only cover the topics from the book but also research and census data which are important.

The calendar for reading and discussion is as follows:

Sept. 17 – Ch. 1, “A New Context for Ministry;” Ch. 2, “The Emerging Church;”

Oct. 15 – Ch. 3, “Worship in the Emerging Church;” Ch. 4 “Christian Formation: Starting from Scratch;”

Nov. 19 – Ch. 5 “Drawn into the Mission of God;”Ch. 6 “Leadership in the Emerging Church;”

Dec. 17 – Ch. 7 and catch-up,  “Beginning to Learn How to See;”

          The December date may need to be altered due to Christmas activities.

The focus of this series is on the FUTURE, where we want to be.

In Phase II, we will have an opportunity to reminisce, share and celebrate our wonderful past as we plan for our Coming Out Party – moving into our new space and welcoming old friends, members, new friends and strangers.

If you have not signed up for Phase I and would like to, please let Siv Nickerson – Moderator, siv@uccsc.org ; Rolf Hansen – Pastor, uccsc@uccsc.org;  or Mark Davis -Diaconate UCCSC, mjd415@gmail.com know.   We will address Phase II AFTER we have completed Phase I.

In light of the fact that construction is still in progress, Scot Marsters asked the City of San Carlos and received from them approval for a six-months extension before we have to purchase the emergency supplies as specified in the  special grant we received in 2016. Scot is a member of our ARC Shelter Steering Committee, a Board member of. San Carlos Lions Club and a former San Carlos City Planning Commissioner.  We will take up this matter of purchasing the emergency supplies in November.

John Parkin from San Mateo Sheriff Dept. is on special assignment to look into what facilities in San Carlos are or could be emergency shelters/or evacuation centers.  He saw in the Redwood City government directory that UCCSC is already listed as such.  He took a walk-around our site 8/22/17 and we provided him with a copy of our agreement with American Red Cross and documentation showing the City grant we received for this purpose.

This is the fifth year that Church World Service will sponsor a CROP Hunger Walk here on the Peninsula.  Church World Service is an international relief, development and refugee resettlement agency.  There are 36 member denominations in Church World Service, and both UCC and Disciples are members.  CROP stands for Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty.  CROP Hunger Walks are community fund-raising events and are held every year in 1000 communities across our nation.  In the last 20 years, CROP Hunger Walks have raised more than $294 million to provide food, medical care, disaster relief, and self-development for needy people around the world, and around the corner.  25% of what we raise will stay right here in our own community.

The San Francisco and Peninsula CROP Hunger Walk will be held on Sunday Oct. 8, 1-4 p.m. Nealon Park in Menlo Park. If you are interested, please contact annwillard1@comcast.net.

Our two-story building, commonly known as Mahany Hall, was erected in 1957 to provide additional classrooms and a large fellowship hall for meetings and other activities of the Church groups as well as many civic organizations of San Carlos. Since then and to this day, the fellowship hall (aka Mahany Hall) and kitchen support the needs of many civic groups including San Mateo County Dept. of Elections, San Mateo County Mental Health, Cub Scouts Pack 65, Boy Scouts Troop 321, San Carlos Lions Club, San Carlos Eaton Hills 4H, Junior Matrons, AA/Alanon 12-Step groups, Home and Hope Interfaith & Community Support for Homeless Families.

In April 2011 Cub Scouts Pack 65 and Boy Scouts Troop 321 jointly held a Paper Shredding and Baked Goods Sales fundraiser for the benefit of UCCSC. They heard that our coffers could use some replenishment. At that time UCCSC was also in conversation with American Red Cross about the possible use of Mahany Hall as a place for some of their activities. They were kind enough to support us by stationing a staffed American Red Cross table at that fundraiser. Unfortunately, conditions were not right at the time to pursue their possible use of Mahany Hall.

Now with the church Redevelopment Project and the inclusion of some upgrades to Mahany Hall, our spacious hall could be very suitable for American Red Cross in time of a local disaster. At the August 21, 2016 regular monthly meeting, Council approved the creation of a Disaster Shelter using Mahany Hall and kitchen during hours not needed for ourselves. Council also approved pursuing a partnership agreement with American Red Cross. Such an agreement was signed by UCCSC Trustees and ARC Disaster Program Manager August 23, 2016 following an ARC Shelter Survey. It is a non-binding agreement in that we have entered into it in good faith. When a disaster occurs, ARC will contact us to determine if they may open a center here. We can refuse for any reason. Once the center is opened, we may not discriminate as to who may enter. ARC will be the Operator and Manager of the shelter when it is activated. We provide the specified space and they provide everything else. ARC will coordinate with the City to provide security and safety. We can provide additional equipment use, supplies, food and staffing as may be feasible.

While ARC can provide everything that will be needed based on the disaster situation, there may be a delay of several days before their supplies arrive. Therefore, it would be appropriate for UCCSC to have some basic shelter items on-site. We have just submitted a grant application to the City of San Carlos for some seed money to purchase these items. We will know the outcome of this application in late September. The use of our Mahany Hall as a disaster shelter would be an asset to the City of San Carlos.

Once this endeavor is more finalized, we would like to engage others in the larger community to join with us as volunteers for outreach, maintaining and servicing the center. Please be on the lookout for future announcements.

We often hear of disasters that strike here in our own country and around the world. We hear of families struggling to meet everyday needs. We hear of people who spend their whole day walking just to get clean water. We hear of millions of people living on the edge of subsistence, struggling to escape the crushing grip of poverty and powerlessness. People are hungry, thirsty, and they need more than a handout. They need a way out. Do you sometimes wonder how you might be more personally involved with helping people find the help they need?

Here is a great way to help. This year is the fourth year that Church World Service will sponsor a CROP Hunger Walk here on the Peninsula. First a review: What is Church World Service? In a nutshell, it is an international relief, development, and refugee resettlement agency. There are 36 member denominations in Church World Service, and both UCC and Disciples are members. CROP stands for Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty. CROP Hunger Walks are community fund-raising events and are held every year in 1000 communities across our nation. In the last 20 years, CROP Hunger Walks have raised more than $294 million to provide food, medical care, disaster relief, and self-help development for needy people around the world, and around the corner. 25% of what we raise will stay right here in our own community.

Our Walk, the San Francisco and Peninsula CROP Hunger Walk, will be held on Sunday, October 2, at 2:00 pm, in Menlo Park. The idea is that we signup to be walkers in our CROP Hunger Walk, and we solicit donations from our friends, relatives, acquaintances. And if you can’t walk, you can be a Spirit Walker and just solicit donations. We walk together with others from our communities and churches in a spirit of cooperation to raise money and awareness, as we work to End Hunger One Step at a Time.

Sign up online to be a Walker, Donor, or both for the CROP Hunger Walk. Here’s how. Click here. Click on Register. Click on Yes, I want to join a team. You will see Chalice/CUCC, San Carlos. Click on Donate Now or Join. Follow directions for setting up an account. Or sign up with Ann Willard and secure a donation envelope, not online.

Everyone is invited! Chalice Annual Fundraiser, the Taco Party, Saturday, September 10, 5:30 p.m. at the home of Ann and Bruce Willard. The money raised will go to support the new construction project with new signage for our new sanctuary and facility. No need to bring anything to the party except your checkbook! Come enjoy sangria and tacos! Please RSVP to Ann by September 6. Get her address, phone number, and email from the church directory in the back section under Chalice Christian Church. Directions to Ann’s home available upon request.

It looks like we will have everything finalized with the City of San Carlos and PGE Permits in the next few weeks. I don’t want to bore you with all of the details and unreasonable requests the city has put on us but we are moving forward.

The water to Mahany Hall will be shut off on Saturday, July 9 in preparation to separate the buildings. We have figured out a way so the power will not be interrupted during this process. Starting the Week of July 11, 2016, the new construction phase will commence. There will be some final prep work starting that week because we need the permits to perform those. We are also planning to start grading that week. The new construction side of our property and the demo of the existing church will be underway simultaneously so you will see a lot work going on.

If we want to get together, maybe after church, and do some type of prayer/ceremony we would need to do that in the next few weeks. I think June 26 would be perfect.

Thanks,
Matt Schulze

A short note from UCCSC Redevelopment Project Co-Manager to UCCSC Congregation

Greetings!

The designated trees, a number of which were dying, have been removed.  The mandated abatement of the West Wing has been done.  New power poles have been set up.  What pedestrians have been seeing of late is a tree-less Arroyo Street along our property with green mesh fencing and apparent stand-still.  I want to assure you that hard work to move things along is continuing, although not high profile nor visible unless you happen to be in the area when technicians, other Co-Manager Bob Stafford or I are around.

The church property dates back to 1928 and multiple construction-reconstruction projects have taken place since then.  Unexpected old utility lines have been uncovered which then needed to go through the process with the City and utility agencies.

Currently there are 6 multi-family, 8 commercial, and 13 multi-use projects on-line in San Carlos.  All 6 of the multi-family, 2 of the commercial and all 13 multi-use projects are on the west side of El Camino where we are.  This load requires that the City adjust their staffing needs.  Growth has growing pains and there is a domino effect on the progress of all projects, including ours.

To continue to meet the child-care needs of the community, The Children’s Place remains open for business.  Certain work cannot be done during the week days which leave only Saturdays to perform the next essential step, shutting down the utility lines to separate them.    We do expect to accomplish that in mid-June.

We thank you for your patience and understanding. Meanwhile, do think of the new Church To-Be.  If you have any specific questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at 415-235-3343.

Project Co-Manager
Matt Schulze

Our journey towards our future home is under way!

Meanwhile, our worship service is held in Mahany Hall on Sundays at noon.

The project is being constructed by 1336 Arroyo Way, LLC. under the direction of Bob Stafford (Stafford Realty) and Matt Schulze (UCC Project Manager), with oversight by Siv Nickerson (Moderator). There is regular reporting to Trustees and Council. Construction is expected to take about 16-18 months.

If you have any questions about construction aspects, please contact Matt Schulze at 415-235-3343. If you have any questions about the past, present and future of our church, please contact Siv Nickerson, Moderator or Pastor Rolf Hansen. We hope you will be as excited about our vision as we are and join us in our journey forward.