Zion Lutheran Church's Youth and Children's Ministry

Our next regular Fusion Youth Group meeting for 7th through 12th grade students will take place at Zion Lutheran Church this Sunday, December 8th, from 5PM to 7PM at Zion Lutheran Church. If you are considering joining us for the fun, consider bringing a friend along, as well! 

To prepare for our current fundraiser, we will be primarily decorating cookies during this meeting so please plan to wear clothes that could get messy. If any parents are available to stay to help, that would be greatly appreciated. 

Also, due to the specific plans for this group on this date, this meeting will be a little shorter, and as to not overtax cleanup efforts, no meal is being planned, at this time.     

COFFEE: The Zion Fusion Youth Group will continue to manage the coffee fellowship time as an ongoing fundraiser following both services on Sunday mornings. 

CONFIRMATION: Confirmation classes for public school 7th and 8th grade students will be once again taking place on Wednesday afternoons, from 4:00PM to 5:30PM, beginning on Wednesday, September 4th, 2024. These classes will continue at that time on most Wednesday evening into the spring, unless otherwise announced. As in previous years, the 7th grade students will be learning from our new Vicar in the 7th/8th grade Zion Lutheran School classroom, and the 8th grade students will be learning from Pastor Bruce in the 5th/6th grade classroom. For more information, please contact the church office.

COOKIE AND CANDY FUNDRAISER: Need cookie and candies for Christmas? Let us help! Due to a very successful baking season, thus far, we are happy to announce that the deadline for pre-orders for cookie and candy platters and plates has been extended to December 9th! As before, you can place a pre-order by calling Sarah Endorf (402-277-0654) by Monday, December 9th, at the absolute latest, and we will have these items available for pickup on either December 14th, 10AM-12PM in the Zion kitchen, or December 15th, following both church services and the Children’s Christmas service in the narthex. Remember, only a limited number of pre-made platters will be available for those who do not pre-order. Cash and checks, made out to the Zion Youth Group, are accepted, and all funds will go toward paying for youth activities. For more information about how this can be completed, and our varieties, please check the flyer on our church website or call Sarah Endorf. 

Options include: Dozen Decorated Sugar Cookies ($12, pre-order $10), Dozen Undecorated Sugar Cookies (pre-order only $8), Large Platters of Cookies and Assorted Candy ($40, pre-orders $35), and Small Platters of Cookies and Assorted Candy ($30, pre-order $25)

CANDY MAKING: If any parents would like to help with candy making at the Endorf residence on Saturday, December 7th, beginning at 10:00AM to help prepare for the youth fundraiser, please let Mr. Jareske (dcejareske@zionlutheranpierce.com) and/or Sarah Endorf (402-277-0654) know in the very near future. This job requires a little more skill, so we are looking for the help of approximately 4-5 adults for this task on this date. Thank you!  

CHRISTMAS CARDS: The youth students representing the Fusion Youth Group will be, once again, selling Christmas cards in the church narthex following both church services on the remaining Sunday mornings in Advent to help fundraise for our various events and trips. Please consider checking out our selection as we all prepared for the Christmas season. Cards can be purchased during the week by speaking with Mr. J.  

YOUTH FUNDRAISER HELP: The youth group will be working to assemble cookie and candy plates and platters on Friday, December 13th, after school on that date. If any youth and parents are available to assist, please let Mr. J know, and your help would be greatly appreciated. We will meet in the Zion kitchen. 

YOUTH ADVENT MEAL: The youth will be offering their Advent meal on Wednesday, December 18th, from 6:00PM to 7:00PM in the Zion kitchen/gym. This year, in addition to serving the meal for congregation members who gather in the gym for our typical freewill donation, the youth group will also be offering to-go containers containing our meal for the set price of $5 per to-go container of food. As such, spaghetti, garlic bread, a lettuce salad, and bars will be our planned meal for this year. Given that, we will be asking for youth families to please consider assisting with this meal by either donating a component part for this meal, such as noodles or bars, or assist with the cooking, serving, and supervision during the meal. To organize this process, a sign-up sheet document link is available by email or on our church website, so that, as families begin signing up to help, we can work to cover each category needing assistance. Again, if 7th-12th grade youth students and families are planning to assist with serving, we ask that you arrive to the church kitchen on December 18th by 5:30PM, and if you plan to donate, please leave donated items in the church kitchen by the evening of December 17th, at the latest. Thank you for your help and support!

YOUTH EVENT: An event for 7th through 12th grade youth is scheduled to take place on Sunday, December 15th, from 5PM to 8PM at Zion Lutheran Church. This will be our annual Christmas party meeting, and to help with this, the plan is to have everyone planning to attend contribute to a potluck to provide for the meal for this evening. Please speak with Mr. J, or check our church website, for a way to sign-up to bring a food item to help with this meeting. We will also have a White Elephant gift exchange, and although this is completely optional, if you would like to participate, gifts should be church appropriate, kind, and no more than $20, if purchased. Homemade gifts are welcome, but please be aware of allergies when baking/buying. 

• CANDY MAKING: Saturday, December 7th, beginning at 10:00AM

• FUSION YOUTH MEETING: Sunday, December 8th, from 5:00PM to 7:00PM at Zion Lutheran Church

• COOKIE AND CANDY PLATE ASSEMBLY: Friday, December 13th, beginning at 3:30PM at Zion Lutheran Church

• COOKIE AND CANDY PICK-UP DATES: Saturday, December 14th, from 10AM-12PM in the church kitchen and Sunday, December 15th, following church services at Zion Lutheran Church 

• YOUTH EVENT: Sunday, December 15th, from 5:00PM to 8:00PM at Zion Lutheran Church

• YOUTH ADVENT MEAL: Wednesday, December 18th, from 5:30PM to 7:00PM at Zion Lutheran Church

• In regards to youth events and activities, occasionally plans have to shift and change due to conflicts and other factors. With that being said, if you are not currently receiving updates and reminders from the youth group, please speak to Mr. Jareske as soon as possible, so you can be added to the list of parents/guardians currently receiving this type of information. 

• If any high school students, especially juniors and seniors, would be interested in taking a group college visit to Concordia University Nebraska (CUNE) in Seward during this next year, please speak to Mr. Jareske in the near future to receive information about visit costs and waivers. CUNE is one of the universities in the LCMS university system, and they have a variety of programs of study, including several opportunities for those considering church work. 

•  If youth students would be willing to assist during church services on Sunday mornings, please call to let the church office know. We are looking for both ushers and technology booth assistance. Training will be provided for anyone willing to serve in either capacity. As we prepare to begin recording our services with our new camera equipment in the near future, a few additional volunteers to assist with either running the soundboard, running the camera, or managing the slideshow would be very much appreciated.  

• If any 7th grade and older youth, or parents, would like to help with Faith Weavers for this year, please feel free to let me know at your earliest convenience. 

• If there is someone who you believe should be getting update emails, and they are not currently receiving new updates from either Vicar and/or myself, please let me know, so I can add them to the email list.