Hi EPC Friends and Members, 

Here's my "3-2-1" for this week...

3 EPC Happenings

Three Things I'm Excited About

1. EPC Pride Festival -- The 5th Annual Pride Festival at EPC! A chance for us to shine our light in the community and show that we welcome, love, and embrace everyone! If you're interested in hands-on volunteering and help, please come to the planning meeting on May 15th after worship (11:30) led by Stephanie Wargin from the Elmhurst Pride Collective, and Jim Davidovich, chair of the Pride Fest for EPC. (Both Elmhurst Presbyterian Church and the Elmhurst Pride Collective are EPC!)  

2. Building relationships with our community -- Thank you so much to everyone who helped move mattresses on Sunday! They were delivered to Grace and Peace Church in Chicago where they will be given to a new transitional shelter the church is building. What a gift it is to provide tangible help to other congregations in need. On that note, it was great to partner with New Deliverance Church in Chicago during our All-Church Visioning Event a couple of weeks ago. Rev. Gool and the New Deliverance congregation are an inspiration. Diapers are always needed for the New Deliverance Church. If you have diapers to donate, please bring them to church and we'll store them up until we have a large enough load to bring to New Deliverance. 

3. Celebrating 20+ Years of Ministry to DuPage PADS -- Join us on May 22nd as we celebrate more than 20 years of ministry to DuPage PADS in our worship service. We'll hear from the CEO of PADS about the new direction of the Interim Housing for our community, celebrate the work and witness over the years in which we were blessed to serve in this way, and pray for what comes next for our congregation and community. 

2 Interesting Links

1. I was so inspired by this podcast episode featuring our own Barry Beneke. You'll hear a little more about this in my sermon on Sunday, but listen to the EPISODE first! 

2. On the Shortness of Life by Seneca is a brief philosophical reflection on time and how we spend it. You can find the text online or get it on KINDLE. I recommend it! 

1 Thought (from the piece above!)
“It takes the whole of life to learn how to live, and -what will perhaps make you wonder more - it takes the whole of life to learn how to die.”
― Lucius Annaeus Seneca, On the Shortness of Life

There you have it! Our 3-2-1 for the week. See you Sunday! 

It's not the same without you there,

Check out some photos from our Visioning Event on April 24. We were so fortunate to welcome and spend time with our friends from New Deliverance Church as we discerned, planned, and visioned for the future of EPC! 

THANK YOU to everyone who helped out on Sunday to pack the mattresses. They were delivered to Grace & Peace Church in Chicago where they will be used at a new transitional shelter the church is building. 

In Memory of Helen Cline
April 20, 1924 - April 21, 2022
There will be a memorial service on Zoom this Saturday, May 7 at 10:00 AM. 
Please use the link below. 
All are invited to light candles of remembrance during this time. 
"If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord." Romans 14:8 

Click Here for the Memorial Service Zoom Link

Join Pastor Traci Wednesday from 12-1 for a drop-in bible study on Zoom. This week we'll be discussing Mark 5:21-43. We will be asking questions like, "What does the text say?," "What does the text mean?," and "How does it call us to live?." All are welcome to join in using the zoom link below!

Click Here for the Bible Study Zoom Link

SAVE THE DATE! Elmhurst Family PRIDE Fest is just around the corner -- Saturday, June 25 from 12-3. 

If you're interested in hands-on volunteering and help, please come to the planning meeting on May 15th after worship (11:30) led by Stephanie Wargin from the Elmhurst Pride Collective, and Jim Davidovich, chair of the Pride Fest for EPC. All are welcome! 

Join us on Sunday, May 22nd during worship as we celebrate more than 20 years of ministry to DuPage PADS. We have been blessed to be a part of the work and witness of this amazing ministry, and we'll even have a chance to hear from the CEO of PADS about what's next for Interim Housing in our community.

Join us for our current sermon series, All Creatures of Our God and King! This sermon series will be focusing on God's beautiful creation and the creatures we find within it. Spring is a great time to reflect on new life, new growth, and the environment. We'll think and dream about how EPC can be a place where we protect and nurture the environment. Join us this Sunday as we hear about Birds & Bees!

Be sure you check out the Earth Care display in the Nelson-White Room to learn more about what we can do to help our earth and all of creation! It's a great way to get some resources to something practical in conjunction with our sermon series on creation! 

THANK YOU, to all of our friends at EPC, who bought flowers on Easter Sunday! Once again, you adjusted to a new “routine” and your support is greatly appreciated.
 
Thank you:  Robin Benecke,  Joy Patras,  Deb Cunningham, Pam Fuesz,  Cheryl Turek,  Renee Gough,  Tom Mason, Clare Collins, Carissa Toerpe, Susan Leslie, Jim Davidovich, Marj Schuham, Mary Ellen Hayes, The Berners, The Kopeckys, The Steiskals, and The Reckleys.

AND to our Worship Committee for creating our beautiful Easter display with the lilies, tulips, hyacinths and daffodils.  

The Worship Team is looking for folks to serve as Liturgists or Ushers on Sunday Mornings. Ushers are responsible for welcoming worshippers, handing out bulletins, lighting and extinguishing candles, and setting out offering plates and returning them to work room. Liturgists participate in worship by leading the congregation in the call to worship, the passing of the peace, and the prayer of dedication. There is a sign up sheet in the lobby or contact the church office.

There is a lot going on in the life of the church in the next few months. Please make sure you mark your calendars for all of our upcoming events: 

May 15 -- PRIDE planning meeting after worship
May 22 -- DuPage PADS Ministry Worship Celebration 
June 5 -- Pentecost Sunday
June 25 -- PRIDE! 

There will be Sunday School downstairs this Sunday! All kids are welcome to join us for a time of learning and fellowship. Tuning in online? A Zoom Link will be sent out Sunday Morning.

10:30 Sunday Worship Livestream - Click Here!

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