Join us for a time of food and fellowship around the table with family and friends at our Wednesday Night Dinners from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in Hinton Hall, located on the 2^nd floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center. Chef Kenny Lewis, our Food Ministry Manager, along with our very talented and dedicated Dinner Belles and Beaus volunteers, prepare excellent meals at very reasonable prices.

The menu for November 11th is Salisbury steak with gravy, buttered egg noodles, buttered peas, glazed carrots, rolls, and dessert. For the kids – hamburgers and French fries.

Dinners are served from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in Hinton Hall, with to-go boxes available from 6 to 6:30 p.m.

The prices for Wednesday Night Dinners are: $10.00 for adults (including seniors and from 11 years up); $7.00 for children 10 years and younger; $30.00 for family meals (nuclear family members only and their children under 18 years); $7.00 for salad bar only, which includes the salad bar, a choice of baked potato or sweet potato, dessert and a drink. Credit/debit card payments, as well as cash and checks, are accepted.

Please Note: Menus are subject to change.

The Wednesday Night Food Drive at Duluth First UMC for the Hands of Christ Duluth Co-Op is our weekly mission project, combined with the many Wednesday evening activities offered at the church. Donated food items can be left on the Food Drive table located outside of the main entrance to Hinton Hall, located on the 2nd floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center.

Items needed during the month of November are:

• November 11th: canned fruit;
• November 18th: peanut butter and jelly.
  

Join us for a delicious dinner and fellowship in Hinton Hall, pick up a to-go dinner for your family, join us for any of our Wednesday evening activities, and drop off food items to help other families in need. We thank you for your support!

Crafters, potters, artists, and bakers of all kinds – your talents will be needed in November! Our annual missions fundraiser, Bundle Up for Buffalo, will be on Saturday, November 14th, and Sunday, November 15th. All proceeds from the Bundle Up for Buffalo fundraiser help our sister church, Seneca Street United Methodist Church in Buffalo, NY, keep the heat on their facility during the winter months which fall from October 2026 through April 2027. Last year, we raised enough money to designate this church to be a warming center, where people could come into the building and get a bite to eat if their own heat had been turned off or was not working. This was major – YOU helped do this!

Volunteers are needed on Friday, November 13th, at 2:30 p.m. to help set up the tables and sale items in the Dorothy L. Rainey Fellowship Hall. If you can help with the set up, or have items you would like to donate to the sale, please contact Beth Intondi by e-mail at Beth.intondi@outlook.com. You have been so faithful in prayer for this “pocket of poverty” in the North for many years. Please consider what you can make, and something that others would enjoy purchasing. Thank you for your support!

Students in the 6th through 12th grades are invited to join us on Sunday nights for Sunday Night Gatherings from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”), located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center. Sunday Night Gatherings include great dinners, fun games, amazing worship, inspirational and relevant messages and life-changing small groups.

The Sunday Night Gathering schedule for November is:

• Sunday, November 15^th: Friendsgiving at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”);
• Sunday, November 22^nd: Sunday Night Gathering at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”);
• Sunday, November 29^th: Sunday Night Gathering at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”)'

Please click on YOUTH MINISTRY for more information.

Questions? Please contact Rev. Min Lee, Director of Youth Ministries, by e-mail at mlee@duluthumc.org.

The Duluth First UMC Library Book Club will meet on Monday, November 16th, discuss The Five Wishes of Mr. Murray McBride, a novel by Joe Siple. The Library Book Club will meet at 10 a.m. in room F145, located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center.

The international bestselling novel is about Murray McBride, a lonely 100-year-old man who’s outlived just about everyone he's ever loved. With all his family and friends gone except an estranged grandson, retired Major League ballplayer Murray is looking for a reason to live. But when he meets a boy awaiting a heart transplant, Murray may learn something about finding meaning in life again.

He finds it in Jason Cashman, a spirited 10-year-old boy with a terminal heart defect and a list of five things he wants to do before he dies. Murray is determined to help Jason fulfill his dreams. Together, they race against the limited time each has left, ticking off Jason’s wishes one by one. Along the way, Murray remembers what it’s like to be young, and Jason fights for the opportunity to grow old. But when tragedy strikes, their worlds are turned upside-down, and an unexpected gift is the only thing that can make Jason's final wish come true.

Join us for a time of food and fellowship around the table with family and friends at our Wednesday Night Dinners from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in Hinton Hall, located on the 2^nd floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center. Chef Kenny Lewis, our Food Ministry Manager, along with our very talented and dedicated Dinner Belles and Beaus volunteers, prepare excellent meals at very reasonable prices.

The menu for November 18th is roast pork loin, macaroni and cheese, steamed broccoli, southern green beans, rolls, and dessert. For the kids – hot dogs and French fries.

Dinners are served from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in Hinton Hall, with to-go boxes available from 6 to 6:30 p.m.

The prices for Wednesday Night Dinners are: $10.00 for adults (including seniors and from 11 years up); $7.00 for children 10 years and younger; $30.00 for family meals (nuclear family members only and their children under 18 years); $7.00 for salad bar only, which includes the salad bar, a choice of baked potato or sweet potato, dessert and a drink. Credit/debit card payments, as well as cash and checks, are accepted.

Please Note: Menus are subject to change.

Holiday celebrations take on a different meaning when you are grieving. Are you in need of finding a way to survive the holidays? Do you wonder how to celebrate when your loved one is gone?

Join the Grief Share Support Group on Wednesday, November 18th, for a special “Surviving the Holidays” class from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in rooms F154/155, located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center. This class may be beneficial in helping you plan a holiday schedule that is best for you during the holiday season.

For additional information, please contact Brenda Bridges at 770-313-6002, Sue French at 404-434-8001, or call the church office at 770-476-3776.

The Worship Committee invited you to join us on November 22nd, following the 11 a.m. worship services, as we decorate the church for the Advent and Christmas seasons. We will prepare and install the indoor and outdoor wreaths, hang garland, assemble the Advent wreath and the Gathering Room Nativity scene, and put up the trees and other decorations in Hinton Hall.

Worship Committee members will be available to assist you. Please contact Verena Anders by e-mail at vanders@duluthumc.org to sign up or with any questions, or you can just stay following the worship services on November 22nd. We look forward to you joining us as we prepare for the Advent and Christmas season.

Help us “deck” the church lawn with the beautifully-painted stars on Sunday, November 22nd, following the 11:00 worship services. Each year we put our stars on the lawn for the season of Advent to celebrate the coming of the Christ child. Having our beautiful, handmade, individually painted stars on the lawn helps us share that joy with our Duluth neighbors!

If you’ve ever wanted to have your very own star out on the lawn, please contact Rev. Dr. AnnaKate Rawles by e-mail at arawles@duluthumc.org. We have stars available to paint and return to be displayed.

Make plans to join us for Hope for the Holidays - A Candle Lighting Service of Remembrance, on Monday, November 23rd, with services at noon and 7 p.m. in the Sanctuary. Join us for a program of reflection followed by candle lighting in memory of your loved one(s). The 7:00 p.m. service will be streamed live on the Duluth First UMC Worship page on YouTube.com. Childcare in Childcare Corner will be available for both services.

We are asking people to send in names of loved ones that they would like to be read aloud during candle lighting. Please send the name(s) by e-mail to Tracy Brinker at tbrinker@duluthumc.org by Friday, November 20th. Please put “Service of Remembrance Names” in the subject line of your e-mail.

We understand the holiday season may be a challenge for individuals and families who have lost someone special. Duluth First UMC has established a meaningful time for people to come together… to reflect, to remember and to honor those lives that have meant so much.

Completed shoeboxes for this year’s Operation Christmas Child, our annual participation in Samaritans Purse’s mission for God’s children around the world, are due back to the church by today, November 15th. Completed shoeboxes may be left in the Narthex, the Gathering Room, outside of Hinton Hall, and outside room F145 located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center.

The on-line DFUMC Goal Page for building online shoeboxes will continue to be active through Saturday, December 19th. The cost of the Build Online Shoebox is $30 per shoebox which includes the $10 donation. This is a quick and easy way to participate in this mission. You can select the items for the shoebox yourself, or you can let Samaritan’s Purse build the shoebox for you. There is no shopping going store to store, no lines, and no driving.

Detailed instructions for building online shoeboxes are available in the Narthex, the Gathering Room, outside of Hinton Hall, and outside room F145 located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center. Duluth First UMC also has a special web site for you to use to complete your shoebox online, and our goal is 80 online shoeboxes by December 19th. The web page is active - just click on OPERATION CHRISTMAS CHILD ONLINE.

For more information or if you have any questions, please contact Charlie Doerlich, by e-mail at chaz3d@gmail.com, or call 678-662-2115.

The Hugs for Soldiers Ministry is collecting care package donations for service members serving overseas – mostly in the Middle East where many of our troops are facing long deployments. Over 200 Georgia Army National Guard soldiers have asked for support during their deployment. They are working long hours, exhausting days, missing precious moments with their loved ones. Help us spread some holiday joy to troops who can’t be home during the holidays.

Items that can be donated for the Christmas care packages include:
Christmas cards: deployed troops would love to receive a handcrafted or signed card from you with holiday wishes. PLEASE…NO GLITTER on cards or any other product that could come loose during the two-week shipment overseas.

Snack Items:

• Individual packets of hot chocolate, apple cider;
• Cereal/granola/energy bars, trail mix, nuts, fruit snacks;
• Holiday candy;
• Slim Jims or Beef Jerky;
• Cookies (small individual packs).

Other Items:

• Puzzle books (crosswords, Sudoku, Word Find);
• A new pair of socks;
• Small holiday-themed items (Dollar Tree is a good source).
  

The deadline for donations is Friday, November 20th. Donation boxes will be located inside the back entrance to the Sheldon Family Life Center and on the stage in The Dorothy L. Rainey Fellowship Hall. If you would like help pack the care packages, join us on Saturday, December 5th, at 10:00 a.m. at the Scout Hut, located at the back corner of the church’s property.

Monetary donations are always appreciated to help purchase items not received and for postage.  Checks are made payable to Duluth First UMC with Hugs for Soldiers written in the memo section, or go to the ONLINE GIVING page on the church’s website – duluthumc.org – click on MISCELLANEOUS GIFT and specify “Support Our Troops/Hugs for Soldiers.”

For further information, please contact: Angie Doerlich by e-mail at hugsforsoldiers@gmail.com or call 404-316-8183. Thank you for your support!

Mark your calendars, save the date, and invite your family and friends to Sweets with Santa on Saturday, December 5th, from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. in the Dorothy L. Rainey Fellowship Hall. Come enjoy breakfast pastries, Christmas crafts, and a chance to meet Santa! Bring your friends, family, neighbors, and children of all ages!

The cost is $5 each for adults and children ages 3 and up, and children ages 2 and under are free. To sign up, please contact Rev. Dr. AnnaKate Rawles by e-mail at arwales@duluthumc.org.

You are invited to join the Duluth First UMC Library Book Club on Monday, December 7th, from 10:00 a.m. until noon in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”), located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center, for Speed Dating with Books! Be a part of the Library Book Club and help select the books for next year’s reading list. Bring a friend, participate in Speed Dating, and then enjoy a refreshment or two as you discuss which books you would like a second date with.

Please Contact Amy Burk, Volunteer Librarian, by e-mail at amycburk@yahoo.com if you have any questions.

Senior adults are invited to join for a time of coffee, conversations, and fellowship. Bring a game, something you want to discuss, or just show up to enjoy time together!

We will meet on Wednesday, December 16th, at 9:30 a.m. in the cul-da-sac area outside of the offices on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center. Coffee is provided by Break Coffee Roasters. If you have any questions, please contact Rev. AnnaKate Rawles, Associate Pastor, by e-mail at arawles@duluthumc.org. We look forward to seeing you there!

We are actively recruiting new members to the Flowers Ministry, a fun ministry which creates beautiful floral arrangements used to adorn the worship spaces in the Sanctuary and Hinton Hall for Sunday morning worship services. A training workshop will be held in April where you will have the opportunity learn how to make beautiful arrangements that will be placed in the Sanctuary and Hinton Hall to add beauty to our worship spaces.

If you are interested in being part of our Flowers Ministry, please contact Verena Lucía Anders, Minister of Music & Worship Arts, by e-mail at vanders@duluthumc.org or speak with James Dykes.