The Spirit: June & July 2025!

Welcome to the June/July 2025 edition of The Spirit!

There's been a lot going on at First Church in the last several weeks! We hope this edition of The Spirit provides a community-focused recap of recent events and helps you get ready for an incredible summer!

Thank you for the photos! There are a lot of photos in this edition! Thank you to everyone who sends them to the church office - we appreciate it!

July 4th Hot Dog Picnic (Please RSVP by July 1st)

Mark your calendars to join First Church for a 4th of July Hot Dog picnic, starting at 6:00PM in Adams Fellowship Hall!

Bring your favorite dish to share and fireworks to set off in the north parking lot after dark!

Please RSVP by Tuesday July 1st so we know how to best prepare for this amazing holiday together!

Tap Here to RSVP
For July 4th On Your Phone!

Clipboard Option: An additional sign-up clipboard is available at the Narthex Welcome Desk!

Pastor's Report: Our Journey of Growth and Vision

Pastor Jason's latest article asks 'How do we turn challenges into opportunities for growth? ' His report outlines First Church's journey and the specific and concrete steps we are taking, from new ministry initiatives to stronger financial stewardship, to revitalize our church's mission.

Tap or Click Here To Read
'Our Journey of Growth and Vision'
By Pastor Jason

Welcoming New Members: Thurston & Karen Conger!

We are so excited to have welcomed Karen & Thurston Conger to membership at First United Methodist Church. If you haven't met Thurston or Karen yet, please tell them hello if you see them on Sunday!

Thurston is a retired engineer, and Karen is a research consultant that (among other things) helps PhD students complete their dissertations!

Upcoming on July 26th: Methodist Women's Retreat!

The up-coming Methodist Women’s Retreat is held in the heart of six women who share a common goal: To create a women’s retreat that honors God and encourages and strengthens women in their spiritual walk.

Since January Sharon Wainwright, Marti Ingalls, Jackie Att, Nancy Phillips, Sheryl Gallion and Patti Chesson have met monthly and as the date nears the planning and subsequent actions have dramatically increased.

Of course, others have joined in to share their unique talents such as Wes Barton, Char Gaines, Kathleen Schaffer and, of course, Pastor Jason. And the team has drawn from the enthusiasm and support of our membership. Add to this the incredible blessing of having our own DM, Mary Maaga, as our featured speaker.

All this love and hard work is to ensure the precious women who attend on July 26, 2025, have a wonderful time and leave feeling closer to Jesus and have new or renewed connections of love and support for each other.

Great things happen when folks come together and share and support a worthy goal. In fact, Jesus indicated that there is something extraordinary when we gather in His name and Paul writes in 1 Cor 12:27 that we are the body of Christ and each has a special part of it.

Hopefully, you have already registered and are planning to be a part of this exciting day of fellowship and fun. Look around and see other women you know and invite them! We are called to share the Good News, and this is a wonderful opportunity for others to experience the warm smiles, open hearts and inspiring messages that can come from women of faith.

Submitted By Patti Chesson

Tap to View Full
Women's Retreat Brochure

Registration is still available at the Welcome Desk in the Narthex. If you have a physical brochure with a tear-away registration, you may mail in your registration too.

However, we also have a mobile / web payment option for anyone interested in registering online. That link is available via QR codes on paper promotions or via the link below:

Tap or Click Here To Register
Women's Retreat Tickets

New: Automatic Handicap Doors on Narthex and Adams Fellowship Hall!

Many thanks to the Beulah Grant for their generous support, allowing First Church the funds to install two new automatic handicap access doors on the Narthex and Adams Fellowship Hall.

Additional thanks to Marti Ingalls, Ray Bowles, and the Board of Trustees for putting this major project together!

About the Beulah Grant: The founding ethos of Beulah Home emphasized the importance of identifying and fostering support systems that improve the well-being of older adults. Income generated from this fund is allocated towards initiatives that address the needs and uphold the dignity of senior adults within the California-Nevada Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. [Source: https://canvuwf.org/beulah]

Tap Here To See A Short Video
Of Marti Ingalls Showing
How The Doors Work!

'Thank You!' for Your Baby Bottles for the Bakersfield Pregnancy Center!

This is a big thank you to everyone who participated in raising 'change' for the Bakersfield Pregnancy Center! The impact you make on the BPC and their mission is enormous!

Special thanks to the Missions Team for leading this critical effort to help Kern County.

Chapel A/C Installation Is Underway!

The Chapel's air conditioning unit is being replaced after a dreadful scrapping at the end of March. We're grateful for all the work that's gone into exploring the best route to restore our historic chapel.

Thank You to Greg Lantay for Campus Improvement Projects!

Greg Lantay has been working alongside Pastor Jason and The Board of Trustees to generously spearhead several facilities projects!

We deeply appreciate these projects and positive changes!

Growing in Faith: New Location in the Narthex and Photos!

Growing in Faith's been so popular that they're outgrowing Rooms 6 & 7! Sometime soon, Growing in Faith will move to the Narthex permanently. We will let you know via text the day that change happens!

Growing in Faith has a new activity every week - so there are a lot of amazing photos! Enjoy!

Christ Is My Rock!

Mother's Day at Growing in Faith!

'Growing in Faith' Naming Contest Winner Lunch at Rosemary's!

Releasing Pigeons on Ascension Sunday!

Pentecost Sunday - The Birthday of the Church!

Father's Day: A Work of God!

Growing in Faith Song & Music!

To All Ages: You're invited to join Growing in Faith!

Thanks again for all the incredible photos we receive! This is just the tip of the iceberg!

Choir Schedule: The Choir Returns September 7th!

The First Church Choir is on their annual summer break, but we've got the following dates in motion for when they plan to return!

We can't wait to have the choir back after a well-deserved break!

Upcoming Houchin Blood Bank Dates: September & November

Duane Spickler is back at it and planning the next Houchin Blood Bank donation dates for September and November!

We'll have final dates confirmed in the coming days, but we wanted to be sure to put this mission on your radar now!

We invite you to roll up your sleeves and help save lives at our First United Methodist Church Blood Drive in the coming weeks!

June & July Birthdays & Anniversaries:

Apology: I'm very sorry to everyone who's birthday or anniversary was prior our release this June! The publication schedule has been unpredictable these last months, and I'm looking into ways to remove the risk of birthday and anniversary notices being tied to editorial timelines! - Wes Barton

June & July Birthdays:

June 1 - Jake Sams
June 2 - Linda Mendez
June 6 - Benjamin Hicks
June 6 - Douglas Carothers
June 7 - Anita Holderman
June 7 - Robert Peckham
June 7 - Walt Dickman
June 9 - Char Gaines
June 10 - Ben Canlas
June 10 - Beren Canlas
June 10 - Michael Gifford
June 12 - Joanna Simons-Amuah
June 12 - Sylvia Corson
June 15 - Douglas McElhaney
June 16 - Raymond Betz
June 17 - Stephanie Tash
June 17 - William Lopez
June 19 - Mathew Brady
June 20 - Chisom Ede
June 20 - Sarah Alano
June 21 - Neil Bhatti
June 22 - Affsha Bhatti
June 22 - Cheryl Blume
June 24 - Addie Winstead
June 27 - Diane Carothers
June 29 - Elliott Wilson

July 1 - Sky Plotner
July 2 - Dick Sloan
July 6 - Dylan Wilson
July 6 - Lanita Cowden
July 9 - Joyce M Spetz
July 16 - Karen Conger
July 16 - Simbarashe Chanaiwa
July 17 - Jason Thornton
July 18 - Cassandra Bacus
July 19 - Brooke Watson
July 19 - Gary Patterson
July 19 - Perla L. Alano
July 20 - Beth Miller
July 20 - Kudzai Chanaiwa
July 21 - Chris Cruz
July 21 - Walter Grainger
July 25 - Jeanie (Gloria) Zimmerman
July 26 - Archie Lopez
July 26 - Janice French
July 26 - Kendall Edwin Heasley
July 26 - Sharon Wainwright
July 27 - Maria Ramos
July 27 - Melinda Mejia
July 28 - Andrew Findley
July 31 - Edna Jane (EJ) Rutledge
July 31 - Shirley Harris

June & July Anniversaries:

June 3 - Edgar & Earlyne Metcalf
June 5 - Robert & Helen Peckham
June 13 - Allan & Ann Phillips
June 18 - Archie & Suzanne Lopez
June 18 - Linda & William Mendez
June 19 - Dan & Kathleen Schaffer
June 29 - Dan & Rhesa Tate

July 17 - Ray & Brooke Watson
July 26 - Ian & Julie Galyan
July 28 - Eric & Kathy Metcalf

New: Weekly Worship Volunteer Schedules in Bulletins

The schedule is returning to the weekly bulletins ... except this time, it'll show next week too!

Starting June 29th, we will show both the current and upcoming week's set of worship volunteers for each role in each service. This will come with our new tri-fold bulletin design, allowing for much more space for weekly written updates and news.

Note: All volunteers scheduled for June 29th will receive a message during this coming week - and from then on we will have volunteer updates every week in each service's bulletins.

Thank you for reading!

Thank you for reading this June & July edition of The Spirit!

We're looking forward to further improving the experience (and timelines!) of our releases. We expect things will become even better in the near future!