September Compassion Offering:

Guatemala Medical Resources Partnership (GMRP)

Oliveros is a tiny village about 3 hours south of Guatemala City. It and other small villages are in a very poor district. It’s a sugar cane growing area. Jobs are scarce and pay is poor.

The nearest doctor is 25 miles away. The difference between the resources we have here in the US and that part of Guatemala is shockingly stark.

The GMRP clinic, a project of the Thiensville-Mequon Rotary Clubs, takes place every January in a school while students are on Winter break. The school is 5 or 6 rooms in a cement block building with a tin roof and windows without glass.

The need is incredible. In 4 ½ days the clinic will see 600-700 people, some seeing a medical provider, a dentist and/or an optometrist. The clinic opens at 8:00 am but at 5:00 am there may already be 40 people waiting outside.          

About 40 people—doctors, nurses, dentists, optometrists, translators, pharmacists and general helpers—make the clinic work.

The clinic has been operating for 22 years. Some of the equipment was donated, already used, 22 years ago. This year we have to replace some of this equipment because it is almost unusable after many repairs. That’s why September’s compassion offering is so important. Please be generous, the people of Oliveros will benefit so much.

For more information about the Guatemala Medical Resources Partnership (GMRP), please view this brief video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrAvXTMqeg8 and/or visit www.gmrp.org

All are Welcome into Stillness each Thursday at 8:30am

With fall comes new schedules and routines. Often the best way to navigate life is through stillness and taking time to feel God’s presence. You are invited to join us in making stillness in community a priority on Thursday mornings at ORUCC at 8:30am. Through a brief reading, quiet meditation time, and sharing we walk together on a deeper path to God’s presence. Questions? Becky 239-0221, Susi 712-9539

WORSHIP and WORK,

This Sunday, September 28th

Immediately following the worship service there will be opportunities for everyone to help with inside and outside projects. 

Wear your grubbies to church. There are a few important chores for W&W this week. If you want to stay indoors, you can wash windows from the inside. (The outsides have already been washed.) If you want to be outside, bring a wheelbarrow, gloves, a rake, spading fork, a shovel, etc. We will move some perennial flowers and hostas to places they can be better appreciated. We will have some bulbs to plant in the entrance garden and some mulch to put around the newly planted flowers as well as the empty spots where they formerly bloomed. There are some potentially ankle-spraining holes in the yard from tree roots that have rotted away that need to be filled in. It will be different from most fall W&W Sundays, and it should make next spring’s work easier. 

Worship and Work Sunday is a good time to get to know others and make friends while working to make our space more beautiful. And, yes, plan to enjoy a free lunch in Friendship Hall with your friends and family.

Friday Breakfast Group – October 3rd, 9:00 a.m.  

The next Friday Breakfast is set for October 3 at 9:00 am at Denny’s, 433 S. Gammon Road! All are welcome. The group meets on the first Friday of the month and includes both men and women. Join us for this informal chance to connect and converse on many topics. Contact Louise Jeanne, Link for more information.

Prayer Shawl Ministry returns October 6th

The Prayer Shawl Ministry will begin knitting and crocheting together again on the first Monday of every month at the church. Our first meeting will be October 6th at 1:30 pm at the church. Bring your prayer shawl in progress or any craft project, and join in the conversation as we work. If you have questions about this ministry, please call Sandra Dyar at (608) 271-2409.

Lunch and Learn Returns October 8th with a Special Interactive Activity

This fall marks the return of monthly Lunch and Learn on the second Wednesday of the month. Our first session will be on October 8th with lunch beginning at 11:30 AM and the program to follow. Our goal is to end the program by 1 PM. This year we will be alternating interactive group activities with talks from various Madison area experts on a variety of subjects. 

This month’s activity will be Halloween themed with craft and interactive activities to engage in fun conversations together. Please join us—all are welcome.

We will see you on Wednesday, October 8th at 11:30 AM in Friendship Hall. The meal donation is $10. This year we will not be requiring an RSVP. Come on the day and enjoy a tasty lunch followed by an engaging program.

Direct your questions to Bob Millholland at [email protected]

Hope to see you there!

Restorative Justice Circle

Circles – sometimes called peace circles or talking circles – are an intentional, structured form of dialogue that draw on the wisdom and practice of indigenous communities around the world. Circles offer a different way of being together and quality of conversation, and can be used for deepening relationships, and sharing stories and perspectives around a wide variety of topics and situations. Engaging in the practice of Circle is inherently transformative because we experience the world from more perspectives than our own, and drawing on diverse knowledge and experience in this way often generates options and solutions for challenges that are outside the box of conventional thinking and go beyond what one person or a small group could generate on their own.

You are invited to get a taste, by participating in a Circle after service on October 12th. There will also be an opportunity to go deeper, with a more intensive Circle retreat / training experience on November 7th and 8th. More information will be shared about that on October 12th, or you may reach out to Barbie Jackson ([email protected]) or John Lemke ([email protected]).

Mennonite Action Event at ORUCC October 14th

Mennonite Action is coming to Madison on Tuesday, October 14, at 5:45 pm, as part of their national To Build Our Courage tour! This training will offer skills in noncooperation, grassroots organizing, and mutual aid, along with time for worship in prayer, song and sharing a meal together. Join us as we seek courage, inspiration, and deeper commitment to peace and justice. Learn more and sign up here: Registration Link. This event at Orchard Ridge is co-sponsored by our Immigration Justice and Palestine Justice Mission Teams.

Wayfinding Retreat at Holy Wisdom Monastery

October 15, 2025

10am-2pm

4200 County Road M

Middleton, WI 53562

RGH Garden Room including lunch at 12 noon

Dear Wayfinding friends,

I look forward to being with you for our Wayfinding: The Soul Tasks if Aging, Toward a Theology of Elder Years Retreat, on Wednesday October 15th from 10am-2pm in such a beautiful space of Holy Wisdom Monastery, which sits on 170 acres of native prairie and oak savanna. Our time together will include a morning and afternoon session of prayer, meditation, teaching, scripture and small group discussions. We will have a break at noon for delicious lunch in a dining room with gorgeous views. Depending on your ability and interest, you can stay a little longer to sit on one of their benches with a view or walk the paths around their land. The retreat and dining spaces are handicap accessible.

To pay for the cost of lunch and room rental, we are asking people to pay $25 to register by October 8^th for this retreat. To register, please email our office manager George Decker [email protected] or call and let him know you are coming, along with any dietary restrictions you may have. You may bring a check to the office, or pay online. If the cost is a barrier for your participation, we have scholarships available so all can participate and attend- no questions asked.

We will continue our monthly gatherings at ORUCC for Wayfinding on the 3^rd Wednesday of each month from 9:45am-11:15am, with song, prayer, teachings, meditation and small group discussions, intended to build community and hold space for us to speak and listen from the heart about the spiritual tasks of aging. The dates are November 19^th, December 17^th, January 21^st, February 18^th, March 18^th, & April 15^th. On the Thursday following each Wayfinding gatherings we will have a 4pm virtual ZOOM option.

If you have never participated in Wayfinding before, you are welcome to join! There is no technical age cut-off for participation, so all are welcome, as all of us are indeed aging. If you have joined in the past, we would love your presence once again. If you have friends who are interested from outside ORUCC, they are welcome to join. Monthly attendance for the entirety of the program is encouraged, but not mandatory, because we all know life happens, and there is grace.

I hope when we gather on October 15^th for a half-day retreat we will feel the gift of peace and healing on the land as we settle into a new season together of Wayfinding. The Benedictine sisters of Holy Wisdom have a mission of welcoming all people and caring for the Earth as a sacred place. Hired staff ecologist, Dr. Amy Alstad, who has a doctorate in prairie grassland ecology, says, “It is a place of connection, awe and reverence. You feel both big and little when you’re out in that restored prairie. This healed land is now the healer.” May it be so for us too.

Blessings,

Julia

Pen Pal Meet-Up October 19th

Did you participate in this summer’s Pen Pal Program? We hope you had a rich, enjoyable time sending and receiving letters in the mail. It’s never too late to get a message out if you fell behind. Save the date for an in-person Pen Pal Meet-Up! Join us in Friendship Hall after worship on October 19th for lemonade and conversation. RSVP is not necessary, but appreciated. RSVP to Julie Mazer at [email protected]

Stay up to date on ORUCC Children and Youth happenings

Want to stay up to date on the latest with children and youth at ORUCC? Check out our weekly updates here:

https://orucc.org/keeping-current/children-and-youth-news//

Please Sign Up to Volunteer on Sunday Mornings!

AT ORUCC, the Members are the Ministers!

We are seeking volunteers to serve on Sunday mornings for in-person worship. You need not be a member, simply a person who loves ORUCC and is eager to find a place to serve! Young people are welcome to sign up too!

Would you consider serving one or more times as a Coffee Maker, a Host, a Lay Liturgist, or to assist with Holy Communion?

Feel free to sign up as an individual, a couple, or a family!

Click here to sign up as a Coffee Maker

Please note that the previous Welcomer and Usher signups have recently been combined into a new signup named “Host.” Please sign up to be trained into this new position:

Click here to sign up as a Host

Click here to sign up as a Lay Liturgist

Click here to assist with Holy Communion

• Page #1: Choose the date you are available to volunteer and select the box that says “SIGN UP“.  Then, at the bottom of the page select the box “SAVE & CONTINUE“.
• Page #2: Enter your first/last name and your email address. Then select the box at the bottom of the page “SIGN UP NOW“

Questions or problems signing up?

Contact Ken Pennings at [email protected] or 608-556-2371.

Spiritual

Nourishment

for you!

Daily Reflections for August

We are grateful for the ministry of Jeanne Moberly, who is a member of Adult Faith Formation, as she puts together a set of fresh readings every month for our devotional practice at Orchard Ridge UCC. Jeanne is unable at this time to provide a new set of readings for September, so we are continuing to make available her readings for August. If you know someone who needs encouragement and would like the devotional mailed to them, please contact the church office.

Daily Reflections for August 2025

Orchard Ridge United Church of Christ

1501 Gilbert Road

Madison, WI 53711

608-271-7212

Office Hours: M-Th 8:30-12:30