Returning this fall by popular demand, Skyline will continue a once-a-month Saturday morning play day for children of church parents and their invited friends to leave their children for the morning so parents have time to be together, time to run errands, time to go shopping, time to take a nap!!

Parents take turns providing the childcare, assisted by a member of the church CY&F team. This idea came out of our Saturday morning childcare for parents to do Christmas shopping. Expect our next gathering soon after school begins in the fall.

Talk to Beth, Interim CY&F Ministries Coordinator for more information on our next co-cop play day, or to volunteer!

“Extended Families” invites clusters of cross-generational church members to come together for fun and fellowship and to make a special commitment to each other to stay in sustained on-going relationship. These “families”, plan their own activities, meet on a regular basis for potluck dinners, group outings to go to the zoo or the beach or to someone’s home to play board games or to do activities together of their own choosing.

Skyline’s Extended Families are made up on older adults, young adults, teenagers, children and babies…..people who covenant to come to know each other in special, deeper than only Sunday morning ways….having fun together, supporting each other in times of transition and change, celebrating each others victories and successes and walking together in times of loss or crisis.

In June we held our kick off event, and look forward to adding more members into our Extended Families, and growing together through the years.

If you are interested in joining The Extended Family, or hearing more about the program, contact Family member and Interim Children Youth and Family Coordinator, Beth Rogers.

We have 90 members, with 10 to 12 non-professional, yet enthusiastic choir members. Single to three-part pieces are chosen with the theme of worship in mind from our music library, a music copyright service or personal sources. Our choir thrives learning from a music director who has caring pastoral presence and who conveys the spiritual significance of music.

Skyline is a UCC church with an Open & Affirming congregation, and has a modern sanctuary. There is an Ivers-Ponds grand piano. Our modern sanctuary has large windows looking over East Bay Regional Parks and Mt. Diablo, with flexible seating and great acoustics. We have just installed a new state-of-the-art digital speaker system that has exponentially improved our amplified sound. (We also have a beautiful old two-manual pipe organ with personality!)

We primarily use the New Century Hymnal, welcoming its progressive theology and inclusive lyrics. We also use Jim Manley’s Spirit Songbook and have compiled a Skyline Community Church songbook, with 30 songs we sing on a regular basis. We also have a licensing agreement to use songs and hymns from a wide variety of sources including Breaking Bread. We appreciate a wide range of music traditions. Our congregation responds best to music in worship played not as performance, but as an offering to God.

Time Requirements and Compensation

• Sunday Worship Service 10 AM – 11 AM, with choir rehearsal before worship (8:40 AM – 9:45 AM). Extra rehearsals during Advent and Easter seasons to be arranged. Rehearsals with instrumentalists or soloists as needed for special services.
• Choir schedule: Begins after Labor Day Weekend, goes to before Memorial Day Weekend.
• Soloists during the summer.
• Collegial relationship with clergy staff, weekly phone conference with pastor for worship planning.
• Time Compensation: $1000 – $1400 per month for 10 hours/week, plus two weeks’ annual vacation.
• Starting Date: Fall (September) 2010

Email Resumé (and cover letter if desired)

OR send by snail-mail:
Skyline Church UCC
12540 Skyline Blvd
Oakland, CA 94619
re: Music Director position

• The church has three major revenue sources: member contributions, rentals and preschool. By May, the preschool has a solid projection of what the enrollment will be for the new preschool year which begins in fall. The change of fiscal year allows the church council to more accurately create the preschool budget in June as opposed to creating the budget in December when enrollment is only a projection.
• Currently, the finance committee and council are required to create a budget in November and December as the current year is coming to a close. This is a very busy season with Thanksgiving and Christmas. A July to June fiscal year allows budgeting to occur in May and June, a much less busy time of year in the church.
• Currently, the annual budget is approved (at the annual meeting) in late January or February for the fiscal year. This is 4 to 6 weeks after the fiscal year has begun. This causes extra work for the bookkeeper and is not a good practice to approve a budget so late. With a July to June fiscal year, the annual meeting/budget approval could be held in late June, prior to the beginning of the fiscal year.

The plan is to make this change effective July 1. Thus, we are in the process of making a new budget. We don’t anticipate major changes from our current budget. We will present the budget to the congregation on June 20 and have a congregational meeting after church on June 27 to approve the new budget.

Change of Stewardship Year
As mentioned above, member contributions are a major revenue source for the church. Our past stewardship season has been in the fall and members pledge’s are in effect from January to December. With the change of the fiscal year, the church council requests that members continue with their current pledge through June of 2011 (as opposed to December of 2010). Our next stewardship season will be in May of next year. Our stewardship to the church is an essential piece of our relationship with God and our community. We pray that these changes will best serve the work of the Lord.
Please contact Steve Kilgore, Chris Rutter or Suzanne Harris if you have any questions or concerns regarding these changes.

Let us praise those fathers who have striven to balance the demands of work, marriage, and children with an honest awareness of both joy and sacrifice.

Let us praise those fathers who, lacking a good model for a father, have worked to become a good father.

Let us praise those fathers who by their own account were not always there for their children, but who continue to offer those children, now grown, their love and support.

Let us pray for those fathers who have been wounded by the neglect and hostility of their children.

Let us praise those fathers who, despite divorce, have remained in their children’s lives.

Let us praise those fathers whose children are adopted, and whose love and support has offered healing.

Let us praise those fathers who, as stepfathers, freely choose the obligation of fatherhood and earned their stepchildren’s love and respect.

Let us praise those fathers who have lost a child to death, and continue to hold the child in their heart.

Let us praise those men who have no children, but cherish the next generation as if they were their own

Let us praise those men who have “fathered” us in their role as mentors and guides.

Let us praise those men who are about to become fathers; may they openly delight in their children. And let us praise those fathers who have died, but live on in our memory and whose love continues to nurture us.

We’re celebrating graduations and transitions of all kinds, everything from preschool to high school (David Fong and Woudnish Yilma) college (Whitney Wu-Chu) to Master’s degrees, from new roles (Beth Rogers) to new adventures (Rev. Sally).  We will celebrate not only the graduates, but those in transition, and also their parents and loved ones.

Come and join us if you can, and spread the word to other “graduates” and invite them too!

Graduates – bring your parents and friends! We will honor you early in the service and during fellowship hour!

We will include a list of:

Your name
Your parents
Where/what you graduated from, degree info
What you are graduating into

Examples:

Graduate: Whitney Wu-Chu
Parents (if appropriate): Stella
School/degree: UC Berkeley, BA
Future plans?

Please send to Chrysalis at the office. Email here!

Beginning and intermediate computer users are being offered by WonderDog Computer Tutors in April. If you already know how to email and write a simple letter but want to improve your skills, this class is for you. Learn “Tips-n-Tricks” about attachments, Google, photos and more. Sign up for either Monday, April 19 or Friday, April 30. The class will be demonstration only with handouts; there will be no computers in the classroom (Friendship Room). Both classes are for the Skyline community and friends.

Please be sure to sign up ahead, a minimum number is needed to hold the class!

RSVP to Wonder Dog at 510-632-7020 or info@wonderdogcomputertutors.com

See videos of a recent trip to “our” school in Sierra Leone:

Sierra Leone I – Freetown to the Bush

Sierra Leone II – Village Life

Sierra Leone III – Music and Dancing

Come celebrate the Spirit of Easter where we welcome ALL of God’s people. Experience fabulous music and an inspiring message with a spectacular view of the Oakland Hills.

Sunrise Service ~ 6:30 am
• Featuring Oakland/East Bay Gay Men’s Choir

Download Sunrise Service flyer here:   Sunrise10Flyer

Easter Worship Service ~ 10:00 am
• Easter Egg Hunt for the kids following service!

Skyline’s traditional Easter Egg Hunt is happening RAIN or SHINE, following the 10:00 service on Easter Sunday morning. We welcome our neighborhood families and any who care to come to join us!  Stay for refreshments and conversation following the hunt.

Download Easter Flyer here:  EasterFlyer10

Lent & Easter Event Calendar here

For more information please contact our office at:

Skyline Community Church, United Church of Christ
12540 Skyline Boulevard
Oakland, CA 94619
510.531.8212

Email Skyline Office

We commend the artists who participated in this special show, revealing more of themselves to us and the public, and further uplifting and enhancing our sanctuary with their beautiful work. Our artists in this show are quite diverse — ranging from a college student’s usage of recycled materials; an architect; a photographer who is also an ordained minister; to teachers and healthcare providers who are also artists.

Please enjoy this collection of photos (taken by Chris Nelson) of those in attendance at our opening reception, which was held on a beautiful afternoon Saturday, February 6th.

Warm Regards,
Reverend Laurie Manning

Artists currently exhibiting at Skyline:

Dave Byrens
Alexandra Childs
Ginger Grove
Sheila Helms
Barbara Harris
Joan Monroe
Catherine Moore
Chris Nelson
Nila Oakes
Bruce Prescott
Katherine Rutter
Laureen Sheldon
Lee Winslow
Beth Wolinsky