Your bimonthly(ish) source of information for all things RISE!
March 2023
Holy Week 2023
We’ve got a full and exciting line-up! Make plans now to join us!
Palm Sunday Brunch Church
Sunday, April 2 @ exactly 10ish am
Ice House Suite 203
Following our (new) normal First-Sunday routine: Instead of meeting in Pale Fire and live-streaming the service, we will be gathering upstairs in our "homebase" on the second floor of the Ice House - Suite 203. If you'd like and are able, we'd love you to bring some of your favorite brunchy food to share, but please do NOT feel obligated - it is much more important that you come and join us, so don't let that keep you from attending. There will be plenty for all either way!
“The Last Supper” Dinner CHurch
Thursday, April 6 @ 7 pm
Home of Laura Douglas
Join us in a dinner church experience on Maundy Thursday in observation of the Last Supper. We will be eating traditional middle eastern dishes and you are invited to bring something to share if you'd like!
Please let us know that you are planning to come and if you will be bringing food to share by completing this form no later than Tuesday, April 4th. (To help everyone stay healthy - with this and with all RISE events - please stay home if you are not feeling well!)
GOOD FRIDAY WORSHIP
Friday, April 7 @ 7 pm
JMU Edith J. Carrier Arboretum
A simple, short (~30 minutes), but powerful service commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus. Bring a chair only if uncomfortable standing for this time.
Parking is available in the Frances Plecker Educational lot, the R-5 lot and along University Boulevard. www.jmu.edu/arboretum/index.shtml
EASTER SUNDAY PICNIC & WORSHIP
Sunday, April 9 - 9ish - Noonish (worship @ 10ish)
JMU Edith J. Carrier Arboretum
Celebrate Easter Morning together with RISE in an outdoor worship service and picnic at the Arboretum! Bring lawn chairs, blankets, etc as you desire, and come for as little or as long as you wish.
And bring your friends and family along! Worship will begin at exactly 10ish with time before and after to celebrate community and enjoy a beautiful breakfast spread in the grass. And of course, there will be games and activities for the kid in all of us!
There is accessible parking through the gates, and ample street parking for those who can walk a little farther. (Frances Plecker Educational lot, the R-5 lot and along University Boulevard.) www.jmu.edu/arboretum/index.shtml
Volunteers are needed to help provide and set-up food - Click HERE to sign up!
“The Sweetest Event in Harrisonburg" returns for its TENTH year in action! If you like chocolate and supporting local nonprofits, then this is the event for you! It doesn’t get much easier to support a cause you care about than by feasting on chocolate treats and enjoying a leisurely stroll around downtown Harrisonburg. Participants follow a map, which guides them through downtown as they stop at participating stores, restaurants, businesses, and offices along the walk's route and sample a wide variety of handcrafted chocolates prepared by the area's best chefs, bakers, and the Collins Center's confectionary-minded supporters. All proceeds support the work of the Collins Center to promote healing to all affected by sexual harm in our community. Get tickets and learn more HERE.
Volunteers ARE needed during the event, and there are two shifts to choose from: 3:30-5:45 pm and 5:45-8:00 pm. Most of the time on these shifts would entail helping distribute chocolates at participating host sites nearby, with some help setting up/cleaning up at the event's beginning and end. If you are interested in the possibility of volunteering, please fill out the short form HERE to let the event organizers know. Contact our Campus Minister, Abby B-C, for more info!
Introducing Community Connections, a fun new way to learn about what’s going on in the lives of RISE Community Members, brought to you by the Care Bears (the new RISE “Inreach” Team). We invited RISE folks to submit any updates they were willing to share with the community so that we could share them in our newsletter, along with pictures of recent events/fun experiences, things that brought joy, struggles being experienced, etc. The result is this first edition of Community Connections!
We know that everyone is busy and so the goal here is to help our community get to know each other better virtually through a life-giving, fun method of connection. You might think of it like a fun (perhaps often silly) periodic “year book.”
To those who contributed to this first edition - Thank you! And to those who did not - be sure to watch for an invitation to submit your pictures and life-happenings for inclusion in future editions in the coming months!
Coming Soon…
ABC Celebration - April 23
As the school year draws to a close, we’ll celebrate the ministry of our beloved Campus Minister, Abby Butler-Cefalo, as she prepares for the next chapter of her journey in seminary.
Graduate Recognition - April 30
We’ll celebrate our graduates of all ages - please let us know if you or a loved one will be completing a program of study this spring!
Leadership Update & New Season at RISE
Those of you who are on the RISE E-mail list previously received a letter highlighting some of the transitions that are happening at RISE. (If you have not yet seen that letter you can view it HERE.) Leadership Team would like to know what questions and feedback you have after reading it. To submit your questions, thoughts, and comments, please complete this FEEDBACK FORM. Leadership will be reviewing the submissions received, responding as necessary, and compiling a FAQ document as appropriate.
One update that we can provide at this time is that Leadership Team has organized three current working groups: Worship, Outreach, and In-reach (affectionately known as the “Care Bears”). These sub-groups are working hard at both planning for current events/needs and dreaming and visioning for the future. Stay tuned for more information and developments in the months to come!
Worship With RISE
We meet most Sundays at Pale Fire Brewery (and live streaming via Facebook) for our Sunday morning worship gatherings -- always at “exactly 10ish” am. But in this New Year we are trying out a slightly new rhythm - on the first Sunday of each month, we will be meeting for “Brunch Church” upstairs in Suite 203 of the Ice House. All other Sundays we will be meeting at Pale Fire as usual.
Our current worship series is "Reclaimed, Lenten Edition: maybe some things are worth keeping."
RISE Culture
Do you ever get asked what makes our community special and unique? Ever find yourself searching for words to adequately describe this wonderful, beautiful mess we call RISE? Available in both print and electronic form, the RISE Culture Book is here to help!! Whether in print or in digital form, this lovely short book is a convenient way to share our spirit and our love with those who want to learn more about us. Click the image to check it out!
At RISE, we care about what’s going on in your life! When life is good, we want to celebrate together. And when it isn’t - well, we want to be there for you then too. So keep us posted on what it is going on in your life. And when you have need for care or prayer, be sure to let us know how we can lift you up. Requests for care and/or prayer can always be sent via e-mail to cares@riseharrisonburg.org, texted to 833-803-0868, or submitted online via our RISE Cares form.
To receive updates on (non-confidential) care needs, prayer requests, and community concerns and celebrations, text “RISEcares” to 833-803-0868 or e-mail cares@riseharrisonburg.com.
+Groups (“Plus Groups”) are our small groups here at RISE - a micro-community designed with the early church in mind. 4-10 group members form each +Group, which meets in a manner and at the time and place of the group’s choosing. These groups share life together by meeting regularly for spiritual development, social interaction and practical, mutual support.
If you are interested in joining a +Group, all you have to do is indicate your interest in a short email to cares@riseharrisonburg.com, and you’ll receive a link to a Google form to collect a little more information from you as to your interest and availability. Want to learn more? Check our +Group FAQs, and if all else fails, just ask :-)
RISE NEEDS YOUR FINANCIAL SUPPORT
Your generosity makes everything we do possible!!
Stay Connected
If you are fairly new to RISE and would like to begin to connect more deeply, you can begin by completing this short form to let us know about you, your interest, and your gifts: