“We are almost there!”

Dear Fremont Family:

I can hardly believe it. Our Centennial Celebration is this coming Sunday, October 23rd! We have been working toward this extraordinary day for months, and I feel the anticipation and joy of so many things coming together for this auspicious occasion. We will have several of our previous pastors with us in worship, Pastor Q, Pastor Wendy, Rev. Dan, Rev. Patricia. We will have several musical guests offering their gifts for worship, Rev. Laura Jaquith-Bartlett, Denali Porter, the Lents Tongan Fellowship. Our District Superintendent, Rev. Tim Overton-Harris, is preaching. There will be lots of extended family and friends joining us to celebrate. I am so excited!

So, what can you do to help us with this day? Good question. I am glad you asked! Basically, I am asking all of us to consider ourselves “hosts” for this coming Sunday. What does that mean exactly? Well, it means that we are all responsible for the experience of our guests. We are at home at Fremont, and we need to help others feel welcomed and cared for while they are with us. Here are just a few practical suggestions for how we might make room for those who come to be with us on Sunday:

  • Come early! Be available to greet people and point them in the right direction. Ordinarily, we are a late arriving bunch, but we could use the extra help with greeting our guests. Plan to be at church by 9:45am at the latest.
  • Stay aware of what needs to be done and jump in to do it! (Do we need more chairs, coffee, bulletins, etc.) Help out in every way with set-up and clean-up.
  • Offer your seat to someone or squeeze in closer to your neighbor in the pews. We are using to having lots of space, but this Sunday, sit close.
  • Be ready to show someone around (where are the bathrooms? where is the children’s space? how do we get to the Fellowship hall?)
  • At the reception following worship, hang back, and let our guests eat first. If we run out of food, then we can grab lunch at home afterward.
  • Share your joy. Fremont UMC is amazing, and we have so much to be proud of as we celebrate 100 years. We have changed a lot over the years, and guests may not recognize us for who we are today, but we are alive and well, and your joy will help people delight in who we are now.
  • Be yourselves. You are an incredible congregation, and I love you with my whole heart.

As we bring 100 years to completion and turn toward our next 100 years of ministry, may we rejoice over all that God has already done, is doing and will yet do in our midst. Thank you, in advance, for a wonderful celebration, and may we continue to “honor our history and live our hope.”

Grace and peace,

Erin