What's Happening: FCCWP June 2026 Newsletter
- Shanylah Whittaker
- 2 hours ago
- 11 min read
This class is hybrid so you may attend in person (in the Conference Room) or via Zoom.
225 S. Interlachen Avenue
Winter Park, FL 32789
Office: 407-647-2416
Mobile: 321-333-0092
FCCWP TREE OF LIFE
New Leaves Sprout on the FCCWP Tree of Life
Seven new leaves have been added to the FCCWP Tree of Life - the church’s display celebrating those who have joined the Legacy Society by making a bequest to the church. The Tree is on the wall in the alcove of Fellowship Hall (look up when you are getting coffee on Sundays).
The new leaves represent the following people:
1. Roger Sell
2. W.C.and Nancy Wiese
3. Libby Ward
4. John and Laurie Houck
5. Martin and Amy Wareing
6. Jim and Jeanette Schreiber
7. Naan Ling Lung
YOU can join the FCCWP Legacy Society simply by making arrangements for a bequest and notifying the church office - no details required! Pick up the FCCWP Legacy pamphlet in the church office to learn more about the Society and how to make a bequest or a life gift to FCCWP. Your gift will endure long beyond our generation!
Connections a group for women who have lost a spouse, living alone, caregivers or just feel like you need to connect.
Join us the 4th WEDNESDAY of each month
June 24, @ FCCWP 10am - 12pm
(during VBS see all the fun)
Our FCCWP Family Continues to Grow
A Message from the Board of Membership
Welcome to summer
The Board of Membership has been enjoying a productive season of in-person meetings and working together to serve our church community. We are grateful for a dedicated team that shares a passion for helping people connect and feel at home at First Congregational.
Recently, we welcomed two new members who chose to join quietly, without a public announcement. We have also been delighted to welcome back two former members. These moments remind us of the many ways God continues to strengthen and grow our church family.
We are looking forward to our next Lunch Bunch gathering at The Imperial on June 14 following worship. We hope you'll mark your calendars and join us for good food and fellowship.
We were encouraged by the wonderful turnout at our Neighborhood Groups Kickoff Luncheon and hope everyone will continue to stay connected with their neighborhood groups and church friends throughout the summer months.
While summer often brings a slower pace, it is also a time when many people visit churches and begin looking for a faith community. When you are in town, we encourage you to stay engaged, attend worship, and help extend a warm welcome to newcomers—both at church and at informal summer gatherings. A friendly face and a simple conversation can make a lasting difference.
We wish you a joyful, safe, and blessed summer, and we look forward to seeing you throughout the season.
The Board of Membership
Have you ever thought about teaching
Sunday school?
*schedule is flexible
*curriculum and guidance provided
*children and youth are so much fun
*Sunday school provides a safe, loving space for youth and children to ask questions and begin their own journey.
June 7th - ALL Children WILL STAY IN CHURCH FOR
COMMUNION SUNDAY - Fun bags for all.
June 21 - Mrs. Kerry is preaching and children & youth will stay in church. Fun bags for all
June 28 - VBS Sunday school - children/youth will watch a video of our fun week and enjoy smores!
NEIGHBORHOOD GROUPS
I hope you were able to join us after church on May 17th! The neighborhood groups put on a delicious and plentiful progressive lunch! Each group provided a different part of the menu. It was a splendid morning of connection….a very important part of our church life!
We wanted you to see what it’s like to hang out with your neighborhood group if you haven’t joined the festivities yet. Of course there are plenty of other groups to hang with, but if none of the other groups are a fit, or in addition to those groups, spending time with your neighborhood group is a terrific way to connect with your fellow church members and friends.
So, if you enjoyed kickoff to summer with your neighborhood group, or if you weren’t able to join us, consider signing up for your neighborhood group’s next event.
Keep your eyes open for an email or text from your neighborhood group leaders. The subject line will say FCCWP! Since it’s the beginning of summer, some groups may be taking a break. Meanwhile, if you need anything, be sure to call your group leader or me, Jane White, 407-637-1958. Have a wonderful summer!
The Stewardship Committee
A Summer Message from the Stewardship Team
Welcome to summer—a season that often brings a slower pace, opportunities for travel, and time spent with family and friends.
As we enjoy these summer months, we invite you to remember your financial commitment to FCCWP and stay current with your pledge whenever possible. Thanks to your faithful generosity, our church has experienced a tremendous first half of the year, supporting worship, ministries, outreach, and the many ways we serve our community. We are grateful for your continued support as we work together to keep that momentum strong.
The Stewardship Team will be meeting this summer as we look ahead and plan for the future. We welcome new voices and ideas and would love to have additional members join us. If you are interested in learning more about stewardship or serving on the team, please contact the church office.
Thank you for all the ways you support the life and ministry of our church.
We wish you a joyful and refreshing summer season!
The Stewardship Team
Staff Summer Connections & Welcome to Raul!
This summer, we are excited to officially welcome Raul to the FCCWP staff as our new Sexton! Raul has already jumped in with a warm smile and helping hands, and we hope you’ll take a moment to introduce yourself and say hello during Coffee Hour on Sunday mornings. We are so glad to have him as part of our church family!
As we head into the summer season, we also wanted to share a quick reminder of our church office staff and how we can best help you:
For calendar reservations, bulletin announcements, facility scheduling, or general church office questions, please contact Megan Taylor at mtaylor@fccwp.org.
For all things financial, including giving statements, pledges, and payments, Jacki Churchill can assist you at jchurchill@fccwp.org.
Questions about children, youth, family events, Sunday School, or Faith Formation programming can be directed to Kerry Weisner at sunshineday365@aol.com.
Pastoral care, worship, spiritual support, and church leadership questions can be directed to Rev. Shawn Garvey at revgarvey@me.com.
We are grateful for this wonderful church family and look forward to all that summer will bring at First Congregational Church of Winter Park!
Lil' Dab
FCCWP supports Ward Chapel and its food pantry which helps to feed our neighborhood families. Your donations to our Lil' Dab Box are sorely needed, especially while school is back in session. Please consider bringing in non-perishable food items and placing them in the box in Fellowship Hall. Don't forget that BOGOs at your favorite grocery store are perfect opportunities to stretch your donation dollars! Thank you!
Please no perishables.
Please check and make sure all food items are in date! (no expired food items, please)
THE CARING COOKS
The Caring Cooks: Serving with Love in Times of Loss
The Caring Cooks is a compassionate ministry dedicated to supporting families during one of life’s most difficult times—the loss of a loved one. This faithful team lovingly prepares, serves, and cleans up after receptions following church member funerals, offering hospitality and comfort at no cost to the family.
To help continue this important ministry, we invite you to support The Caring Cooks by donating toward supplies such as food, tablecloths, plates, cutlery, and more. Your gift ensures that we can keep showing up with love, warmth, and a good meal when it’s needed most.
Want to join the team?
We’re always looking for more helping hands! If you’d like to be part of this meaningful ministry, please contact Barb Brostrom at bjbrostrom@cfl.rr.com.
Thank you for helping us care through cooking.
We hope everyone enjoys a wonderful summer filled with rest, fun, and time with family and friends!
We’re planning a Summer Social later this month, so be sure to watch your email for more details coming soon.
In the meantime, if you'd like to organize a movie outing, lunch gathering, or another get-together, please let us know. We’d love to help spread the word and encourage opportunities to connect.
Happy Summer to all!
Keep in touch—we look forward to seeing you soon.
Lisa and Kathryn
Spirit Keepers: Fences Built, Stories Told & Triple T Incoming
As the Spirit Keepers roll into JUNE and officially enter the “hydrate or die-drate” season here in Florida, just know this: we’ve earned a little rest.
This spring, the boys absolutely showed up and showed out.
On May 9th, alongside our friends at Come Alive, we tackled THREE major David Rotenberger Signature Projects at Camp Boggy Creek. Translation: enough work to make every Advil bottle nervous.
And then there was Matty “Ice” Taylor — yes, Megan Taylor’s hubby — who answered the call of Camp Boggy Creek like a man on a mission. The entire Taylor crew joined us, and Matty went full construction superhero by setting FOUR massive 16-foot 6x6 posts at the new archery center for the target cable system.
Honestly… it was less “volunteer project” and more “HGTV meets Yellowstone.”
By the end of the day, we had broken into three teams and:
Built and installed over 80 feet of fencing
Planted 50 plants
Sweated out approximately 11 gallons collectively
WELL DONE, fellas. Seriously proud of this crew.
Now… all that hard work makes a man hungry. Which is exactly why TRIPLE T exists.
Every THIRD TUESDAY of EVERY MONTH at 6:30 PM, somewhere in Central Florida, you’ll find a Spirit Keeper breaking bread, telling stories, solving world problems poorly, and probably exaggerating at least one fishing story.
In May, we took over the back room at The Imperial like a group of retired SEC linebackers. For June? Just know on the THIRD TUESDAY there will be some Spirit Keeper boys gathered around a table near you doing what we do best: food, fellowship, laughs, and community.
Spirit Keepers is simple.
We’re just dudes who either:
Grab dinner together
OR
Show up together to do something good
That’s it.
Sometimes it’s church family.
Sometimes it’s Come Alive.
Sometimes it’s guys outside the church looking for connection and purpose.
No pressure. No expectations. Just good people, good laughs, good food, and opportunities to make a difference where we can.
I’m proud to call you brothers and thankful for every single person who jumps in whenever they can.
See you boys soon.
We’d love to see your smiling face at the next one! If you’re not getting our event emails and want in on the fun, just shoot me a message at w.martinwareing@gmail.com or text 407-383-0190.
Life is Sweet at FCCWP!
See you soon. And until then—
Strength and Courage to Carry the Light,
Marty Wareing
Elizabeth Hooker Book Club
Elizabeth Hooker Book Club-June 2026 Update:
We had a great meeting in May when we gathered to discuss “Framed” by John Grisham and Jim McClusky. Thank you to all who attended!
We are not meeting in June and July for our summer break. We will gather again on August 23, to discuss “The Book of Lost Names” by Kristen Harmel with David and Lisa Rotenberger leading.
“Inspired by true stories from WW11, a young Jewish woman who flees Paris with her mother after the arrest of her father finds herself committing to a forgery ring whose primary goal is to create documents that will help hundreds of Jewish children flee the Nazis. The story is told in dual timelines from the present-day perspective of Eva who is a semi-retired librarian living in Florida and the young Eva as she flees Paris and joins an underground forgery operation in a small mountain town near the Switzerland border. The Book of Lost Names becomes an important link between the two timelines.”
All are welcome to attend our meetings, and regular attendance is not required. We meet in the Parlor on the fourth Sunday at 6:30 pm every month (except June/July summer break and December holidays). Please call (407) 832-0348 or e-mail abwareing@gmail.com to be added to our list. I hope to see you there!
Prayer Shawl Ministry At FCCWP
Do you like to help others during a time of need? Then come and join our Prayer Shawl Ministry group. We extend an outreach of compassion to individuals who need our warm prayers and hugs of compassion due to illness, death of a loved one, or other difficult circumstance happening in their lives. We meet on the 3rd Monday of the month, from 6:00-7:30 p.m. in the church Parlor.
Upcoming meeting dates: Monday June 15
Even if you have never knitted or crocheted, we would love to have you participate. It’s a fun and relaxing time together. We have members who can help teach you these crafts. We also have yarn and patterns to help get you started. Just bring your own knitting needles or crochet hooks.
We knit and crochet prayer shawls and create and give baby shawls to infants when they are baptized at our church. In addition to prayer shawls, you may knit or crochet scarves and hats.
Questions: contact donnaborko@gmail.com
Donna Borko, Prayer Shawl Ministry Coordinator
Church Calendar
Hello Church members! I want to ensure that all events are scheduled smoothly and efficiently. To help me manage our facilities and avoid any scheduling conflicts, please remember to contact the church office before planning any events in the church’s
rooms.
Due to the nature of some private events, not all reservations are listed on our public calendar. By reaching out to the office first, you can ensure that your event is properly booked and avoid any potential conflicts with other activities.
To schedule an event or book a space at the church, please contact the church office: Phone: 407-647-2416
Email: mtaylor@fccwp.org
Office Hours: Monday - Friday, 9:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Thank you for your attention to this matter and for helping us keep our scheduling organized and efficient. We appreciate your cooperation!
Warm Regards,
Megan Taylor
Church Office Administrator
The Visitation Committee
Visitation Committee: Reaching Out with Love and Care
At the heart of our church is a deep commitment to caring for one another. The Visitation Committee lovingly connects with members who may be going through difficult times—whether they’re in the hospital, grieving, or unable to attend church.
If you know someone who could use a visit, a call, or a kind word of encouragement, please let Megan (mtaylor@fccwp.com), or Sally Schott, Chair of the Visitation Committee (sarahpschott@yahoo.com), know.
Together, we can make sure every member of our church family feels seen, supported, and surrounded by love.
2 Corinthians 1:3–4
"Praise be to the God… who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God."
Ways to Volunteer: Click Here
What more can you do?
I will do more than belong – I will participate.
I will do more than care – I will help.
I will do more than believe – I will trust.
I will do more than dream – I will work.
I will do more than teach – I will inspire.
I will do more than earn – I will enrich.
I will do more than give – I will serve.
I will do more than live – I will grow.
I will do more than be friendly – I will be a friend.
I will do more than talk – I will listen.
I will do more.
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Acolyte Ministry
Please sign up for Acolyte service. You can Call Jenni Franz at 407-810-2261 or:
All active FCCWP Members are invited to join the Facebook page titled Member Group of the First Congregational (UCC) of Winter Park.
LIVE STREAMING OF CHURCH SERVICES
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