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Thanks to all who helped us celebrate “Christmas in July”! Hundreds of “care kits” – socks for men, women and children filled with personal hygiene items and snacks – were assembled from your donations.

The care kits were blessed during worship on Sunday, September 3, and are being distributed through the Community CARES locations in Shippensburg and Carlisle. 

Community CARES provides emergency shelter, resources, and supportive services to individuals and families at risk of or experiencing homelessness, and First Lutheran is grateful to be able to support its ministries.

May we be inspired all year long by the joy, peace and hope of Christmas!

On Sunday, June 25th, we will hold one communion service at 9:15 a.m., followed by a continental breakfast. This is an opportunity for our two worshiping communities – the ‘early’ folks and the ‘late’ folks – to gather together around Christ’s table…and then the breakfast table!

Scenes from Fellowship Sunday 2022’s breakfast!

Our next Fine Arts at First concert will be a bit jazzy. The Creswell Club Dixieland Quintet, who specializes in traditional Jazz music, will be performing at First Lutheran Church on Sunday, March 26, 2023 at 4 p.m.

The Creswell Club is led by bassist Dan Martin and features Betina Hershey (vocals/guitar), Nick Russo (guitar/banjo), Danny Tobias (trumpet) and Dan Monaghan (drums). They’ve played with Cécile McLorin, Bruce Barth, Jon Batiste, Vince Giordano, the Nighthawks, and so many others.

Come on out for a musical treat. Concert admission is free, and open to the Public. A freewill offering will gladly be accepted.

On Wednesday evenings during Lent, we will gather for study and discussion about being mortal, the promises made to us in baptism, historic and new funeral practices, the emergence of “green” burials, and funeral/memorial worship planning. Pastor Leber will share some of her 2022 sabbatical experiences and learnings along the way. Study/discussion begins at 6:30 in the Martin Luther Room and is followed by a brief worship service, concluding by 7:30 p.m.

Through Easter Sunday, the Social Ministry and World Outreach Committee will be collecting items for Lutheran World Relief personal care kits, with a stretch goal of assembling 258 kits in celebration of First Lutheran’s 258th birthday this year!

Items may be dropped off on Sunday mornings or in the church office during regular office hours. Each kit consists of:

Read More “Lent Service Project”

First Lutheran Church will be offering quarterly blood pressure screenings on the LAST SUNDAY of each of the following months: January, April, July and October.

Blood Pressure Screening will take place in the Martin Luther Room following each service, beginning January 29, 2023. Subsequent dates will be April 30, July 30 and October 29.

Please plan to participate in our annual “Souper Bowl of Caring” food drive, sponsored by the Faith Formation Committee, to benefit Project SHARE on Super Bowl Sunday.  We will have a collection table in both the narthex and atrium before and after both worship services to collect non-perishable food items and monetary donations to benefit Project SHARE.  Last year we raised over $650, which helped to fund SHARE’s summer feeding program, helping 430 children have healthy meals over their summer break.  Let’s tackle hunger together and continue to generously support Project SHARE’s valuable work in our community!

Read More “Souper Bowl of Caring – Sunday, February 12”

The 2023 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemoration service will be held on Sunday, January 15, 2023, at 4 p.m. at The Meeting House, 1155 Walnut Bottom Road, Carlisle. The keynote speaker will be Danielle M. Conway, Dean and Donald J. Farge Professor of Law at Penn State Dickinson School of Law.

Image from Flickr. Public Domain

We will gather for one service of holy communion on Sunday, December 25, and Sunday, January 1.

Merry Christmas!