now-Sept 30–Serving Kids Collection
The Serving Kids program provides new and near-new clothing, including jeans, coats, shoes and more, to Jeffco school children who are in need. Over the 2025/26 school year, 1789 clothing requests, including 38,212 items of clothing, were filled for students from at least 120 schools. This number does not include students from families who were referred through other local services like ‘Head Start’. The highest demand was in August, September, and October, with an average of 5,475 clothing items distributed each month during that period.
School personnel are usually the first to recognize the need. Clothing is delivered to the employee, who then gives it to the student. The program is supported with donations of children’s clothing and cash from around the community. Cash donations are used to purchased new socks and underwear for each student, as well as new high demand items such as jeans and sneakers. Serving Kids collects gently used and laundered clothing appropriate for school, sizes 3T to adult XXXL. We will be collecting clothing and funds through the month of September. Bring clothing items and place them in the bin the foyer. For funds, you can write a check and put Serving Kids in the memo line, give cash (indicate it is for Serving Kids) or give online. We will collect through the end of September.

Sundays, 11:15am–Celebration! Choir Rehearsal
Do you like to sing? We would love to have you join our choir/ensemble! We just started up for the season on Sept 6. We rehearse on Sundays following worship. We would love to have you in the Celebration! Choir. Contact Sue Wedaa with any questions.

Now thru Sept–Grocery Bag Purchase Supports Common Earth Community Garden
Throughout August & September, when you purchase a reusable Fight Hunger bag for $2.50 at the King Soopers located at 64th & Ward (this location only), $1 will be donated to the Common Earth Community Garden (community garden at the church). Designed in alignment with King Soopers’ Zero Hunger | Zero Waste initiative, aimed at helping to end hunger and eliminate waste in local communities, the Fight Hunger bag makes it easy for shoppers to impact local hunger relief efforts. Look for the Fight Hunger bags (red with Support Your LOCAL Community on it) on display racks in the store!

now-end of October–Neighbors In Need Mission Offering
Our congregation is participating in the United Church of Christ’s annual Neighbors in Need special mission offering.
This year’s national theme is “Walk in Love,” a call to transform our faith into tangible actions of justice and compassion across the United States. By participating, we embody love in action. One-third of our gifts directly support the Council for American Indian Ministry (CAIM), honoring historic and contemporary commitments to Indigenous communities. The remaining two-thirds fund the UCC’s domestic justice initiatives, providing essential grants to local churches and organizations working to dismantle systemic poverty, advocate for civil rights, and protect our communities.
Please give generously as we seek to truly “Walk in Love” with our neighbors. You can give cash (indicate for NIN), check (put NIN in the memo), or give online. We will collect through September and October.

Growing our Endowment, A Gift for the Future
We are on our way with gifts and matching total of just over $11,300! You can be part of planting seeds for the future of First United Church of Arvada through the growth of the Endowment Fund! An anonymous $10,000 match has been committed to encourage donations to the Endowment Fund. Contributions to the Challenge Fund will be matched until the full $20,000 goal is reached. To participate, please indicate “Challenge Fund” with your gift. Watch the tree graphic at church grow with color in the coming weeks as gifts are made—a visible reminder that together, we are nurturing something that will continue to give life for generations.

Labyrinth-Open for Walking
The Labyrinth is open to the community for meditative walks. It’s a project our congregation completed in 2024.