Activities

WonderCafe

We host WonderCafe because at The United Church of Canada, we love open-minded discussion on issues that matter to you. And because we believe that it’s important to have a place at which you can explore your spirituality and life’s big questions on your own terms.

WonderCafe is a community of people just like you, discussing what’s on their minds and sometimes helping each other figure stuff out.

WonderCafe is held before church at 10:00am in the parlour. It offers café style drinks and many topics to discus (although new topics are always welcomed). We do have an area for those who would just like a good cup of coffee or tea.

Come on inside. Bring your travel mug if you would like. We’ve saved a chair for you.

Family Fun Fests - Low on Structure, High on Fun

A variety of activities will be scheduled a few times throughout the year. Pick any or all. Bring your family, food and enthusiasm. Some possibilities to look forward to include tobogganing, wiener roast, skating, swimming, picnic. Click here for updates, or watch the bulletin for details.

Attending to the Spirit through Art

A series of art invitations will be offered throughout the year. Anyone, no matter his/ her age or ability an engage in art-making and find it enlightening and caring to some aspect of their life. Watch for details here or in the bulletin.

Contact: Brenda

Games Nights

On the first Friday of each month, people young, old and in-between are welcome to an evening of table games and socializing. Join us anytime you can. Check here for news.

Contact: Neall

Gaetz Walking Group

Do you enjoy walking? Consider yourself invited to the Gaetz Walking Group. So far, we have collectively walked quite a distance! We meet on Mondays, at 9:15 a.m.(rain, shine or snow) at various locations in the City. Usually we walk no more than 1 hour. We visit and walk and enjoy the trail systems in Red Deer. Please join us! Click here for news.

Contact: Karen

Living with Cancer

This support group for individuals and families coping with cancer is now meeting every other Thursday in the mornings, from 10-noon. Refreshments and goodies provided. Spring meeting dates include March 15, & 29, April 12 & 26, May 10 & 24, and June 7 & 21.

Contact: Fran

Morning Study Group

This spring, in the Morning Study Group, we will watch and discuss this series of programs from Spirit Connection. In this series, portions of “A Song of Faith: A New Statement of Faith of the United Church” are lifted for discussion, and guests from different faith groups are invited to share – from their perspective, along with United Church people – their faithful insights and observations. This study will be held each Wednesday morning from 10-noon, beginning late in April for 5 -6 weeks. Come and join in the lively discussions and fellowship.

September Book Sale

This event is held every September, collecting books that come in for the rummage sales and those that are specifically donated for the book sale locally. Once again it provides the opportunity for people within the community to enjoy reading at a very reasonable price. We have seen teachers take boxes of books to give to children in their class who cannot afford to purchase books and might not otherwise develop their reading skills to the fullest. Boxes of books have been donated for shipment to third world countries by local volunteers and these books help to build up school libraries.
Unsold books are given to the Friends of the Library for their book sale later in the fall.

Semi-Annual Rummage Sale

A rummage sale is held each Spring and Fall and has provided a different aspect of outreach over the last 7 years.

At the local level it provides an opportunity for individuals, who are not always able to shop retail, to buy clothing and household items for very reasonable prices. This can mean warm clothing for children and other members of the family, perhaps some better dishes for meals or a little decorative item to brighten up the home. While the parent’s browse through the multitude of items the children can be entertained seeking out small toys to put in a bag which can be purchased for 25 cents.

At the end of the sale individuals go through the unsold items and donations have gone to: Coats for kids, Women's Outreach, Habitat for Humanity Resale Store, People's Place and various other local organizations.

The outreach also goes beyond Red Deer. Over the years quantities of clothing have been purchased and sent to the Phillipines by members of that community. Some of the better women's clothing is set aside and makes its way to Calgary Women's Employment Apparel thanks to a local volunteer. Saint Paul's Anglican Church in Edmonton has received bags of clothing to be handed out to street people. Bags of stuffed animals have been taken to needy children in Central America.

The Earth is also helped through this process as items left from a similar sale in Banff are picked up and brought to Red Deer for our sale and the unsold items move on to Edmonton when the Cerebral Palsy Association comes and picks it up for their fund raising. Thus large quantities of items are recycled and kept out of land fills.