The new school year is beginning soon, and we are excited to celebrate Promotion Sunday on August 2nd! Children and youth are invited to the celebration on August 2nd, from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. in the Dorothy L. Rainey Fellowship Hall.

Children and youth will be together playing games, having a snack, enjoying fellowship with one another, and receiving a goodie bag. We can’t wait to see everyone there!

As we welcome our rising 6th graders to our Youth Ministry and kick off the new school year together, we will have a fun night of fellowship at Bowlero Lilburn (3835 Lawrenceville Hwy, Lawrenceville) on Sunday, August 2nd.

We will meet and depart from the church at 4:45 p.m. and the pick-up time from the church will be at 7:45 p.m. The cost is $20 per person (includes bowling, shoe rental, a $10 arcade card, food, and drinks).

Please sign up using the following link: https://forms.gle/o2RoEU5AamAciYzx9.

Senior Adults are invited to join us once a month this summer 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, August 12th, 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. 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!

The need for blood doesn’t take a summer break! Every 2 seconds, someone in the U.S. needs blood. The American Red Cross is declaring an emergency blood shortage as the blood supply fell nearly 25% in June. The shortage is especially serious for types O positive and B negative blood and platelets. Donors are urgently needed to give now to help ensure patients receive lifesaving medical care without delay.

An American Red Cross Blood Drive will be held at Duluth First UMC on Wednesday, August 12th, from 3 to 7 p.m. in the Dorothy L. Rainey Fellowship Hall.

To schedule an appointment:

• Visit www.redcrossblood.org and enter the sponsor code dufumc;
• Call 1-800-RED-CROSS (1-800-733-2767);
• Contact Tracy Brinker by e-mail at tbrinker@duluthumc.org, or call 770-476-3776, ext. 112.
• Last, but not least, be a “walk-in” on Blood Drive Day.

Don’t wait - schedule your appointment today. Don’t be afraid to save someone’s life!

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 2nd 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.

All are invited to join us on Wednesday, August 12th, for a special back-to-school “Burgers & Bingo” Wednesday Night Dinner event. The menu includes hamburgers, French fries, cole slaw, baked beans, and dessert. For the kids – the same. Bingo will begin at 5:45 p.m. and will be played during the dinner time with prizes for our winners!

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 – husband, wife, 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.

The Library Book Club will meet on Monday, August 17th, at 10:00 a.m. in room F145, located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center, to discuss The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom.

The Kitchen House is a historical fiction novel set on a Virginia plantation before the Civil War, following orphaned Irish girl Lavinia who becomes an indentured servant and is raised by the plantation's enslaved people, particularly Belle, the master's illegitimate daughter. The story explores themes of race, class, family, and loyalty as Lavinia straddles the worlds of the kitchen and the big house, leading to tragic events that expose the harsh realities of slavery and the bonds between the characters.

Our Simply Something classes are simply moving on to new things this year. In August we will begin to study the book of Ruth. Ruth is one of only two books in the Bible named after a woman, a woman named in the lineage of Jesus Christ. This short but important book has some interesting themes of honor, love, and commitment. If you want to know more, then Simply Something is just the place to be. Join Rev. Dr. C. Kay Fuino for Simply Something on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday mornings at 10:00 a.m., beginning on August 18th, in room F147, located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center.

Please bring your Bible and handouts will be provided. Come with your coffee, tea or water, and your open mind to learn from each other. For more information, please contact Rev. Dr. C. Kay Fuino, Associate Pastor, by e-mail at ckfuino@duluthumc.org or call 770-476-3776, ext. 117.

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 2nd 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 August 19th is herb roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans, buttered corn, rolls, and dessert.  For the kids – chicken tenders 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 – husband, wife, 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.

Join us on Wednesday evenings, beginning August 19th, for 12 weeks of studying the Old Testament with Disciple Fast Track, an overview of the books of the Bible in a shortened study. Have you wanted to learn more about the substance of the Bible but could not commit to a long-term study with lots of reading during the week? Does thirty-four weeks of study seem like an eternity? Your body just cannot sit through a 2 ½ hour class no matter how good it is? Then Disciple Fast Track is just what you are looking for to learn about what it means to be a disciple by learning the biblical narratives of our faith.

This new format for Disciple Bible Study is perfect for busy people. It uses much of the content of the original Disciple Bible Study, a small group study that has made a difference in thousands of lives since 1987. The class time and study time have been adjusted to fit our busy lives today.  We are scheduling the sessions to fit a time when your youth are also involved in their activities and childcare is available for younger children.

The cost is $20 per person for the study book. You will also need a study Bible.  The class will meet from 6 to 7 p.m. (classroom to be determined). A minimum number of people must be registered in order for the class to occur. Please sign up by Monday, August 10th, by e-mailing Rev. Dr. AnnaKate Rawles, Associate Pastor, at arawles@duluthumc.org.

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 2nd 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.

August 26th is Taco Night!  The menu is tacos (choice of chicken or beef), flour tortillas, choice of refried or black beans, yellow rice, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, salsa, chips, guacamole, and dessert.  For the kids – the same.

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 – husband, wife, 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.

GriefShare Support Group, led by the church’s Stephen Ministers, will walk alongside you through the loss of a loved one. GriefShare is a safe, welcoming place where people understand the difficult emotions of grief. Through this 13-week session, you’ll discover what to expect in the days ahead and what’s “normal” in grief. Since there are no neat, orderly stages of grief, you’ll learn helpful ways of coping with grief, in all its unpredictability—and gain solid support each step of the way.

Our next session of GriefShare Support Group classes will start on Wednesday, August 26th and continue through December 2nd, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in room F153, located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center. Gain access to valuable resources to help you through your grief. GriefShare also offers Bereavement Candlelight Services the Monday (November 23rd) before Thanksgiving, and a “Surviving the Holidays” class on Wednesday, November 18th.

For more information, please visit the GriefShare website at griefshare.org, or contact Tracy Brinker, Bereavement Coordinator, by e-mail at tbrinker@duluthumc.org, or call 770-476-3776.

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 2nd 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 September 2nd is oven-roasted chicken, mashed potatoes with gravy, Southern green beans, fried okra, biscuits, and dessert. For the kids – the same.

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 – husband, wife, 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.

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.