United Church of Christ-Congregational has many groups for fellowship, learning, and developing faith.
Special interest groups provide entry points and connections. The groups are informal. They evolve
as members and friends define them. Newcomers are always welcome. Contact the office for details, (515) 232-9323 or office@amesucc.org.
Those who attend suggest books, and they are wide-ranging topics. Through discussion, we come away with a deeper understanding of the characters and often questions we can’t resolve. Some of the books: Night, The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals, The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town, Jesus Is My Uncle: Christology from a Hispanic Perspective, and Hannah Coulter.
Meets Wednesdays at 2 p.m. in the church parlor
We welcome readers and even those who just want to hear the discussio
February 15 – Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson, discussion led by Alan Trenkle
Major Ernest Pettigrew (retired) leads a quiet life valuing the proper things that Englishmen have lived by for generations: honor, duty, decorum, and a properly brewed cup of tea. But then his brother's death sparks an unexpected friendship with Mrs. Jasmina Ali, the Pakistani shopkeeper from the village. Drawn together by their shared love of literature and the loss of their respective spouses, the Major and Mrs. Ali soon find their friendship blossoming into something more. But village society insists on embracing him as the quintessential local and her as the permanent foreigner. Can their relationship survive the risks one takes when pursuing happiness in the face of culture and tradition?
March 21 -- After the Leaves Fall by Nicole Baart, discussion led by Alan Trenkle
Julia Bakker’s mother abandoned her, her beloved father died, and her childhood love has gone to college and found another. As a teen, she lives with her saintly grandmother, who urges her to go to church camp, but Julia finds only quick answers and thrilling conversions there. Disillusioned, Julia decides it is up to her, not anyone else-even some impossible, far-flung God-to reinvent herself. After chronicling her early years, the story follows Julia as she enrolls in college to study engineering and become someone who is too smart to attach, too independent to want to, and so secure as to be untouchable. Soon, Julia is repeating her mother's mistakes.
Nicole Baart lives in a small town in Iowa and is the mother of three young sons. She co-founded a non-profit organization, One Body One Hope, that works alongside a church and orphanage in Monrovia, Liberia.
April 18 -- Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson
Award-winning Norwegian novelist Petterson renders the meditations of Trond Sander, a man nearing 70, dwelling in self-imposed exile at the eastern edge of Norway in a primitive cabin. Trond's peaceful existence is interrupted by a meeting with his only neighbor, who seems familiar. The meeting pries loose a memory from a summer day in 1948 when Trond's friend Jon suggests they go out and steal horses. That distant summer is transformative for Trond as he reflects on the fragility of life while discovering secrets about his father's wartime activities. Trond becomes immersed in his memory while in the present, Trond and Lars prepare for the winter, allowing Petterson to dabble in parallels both bold and subtle.
May 16 -- Strength in What Remains by Tracy Kidder (2012 selection for All Iowa Reads program, Ames Public Library Book Club Collection, can be checked out for 6 weeks)
Deo arrives in America from Burundi in search of a new life. Having survived a civil war and genocide, plagued by horrific dreams, he lands at JFK airport with $200, no English, and no contacts. He ekes out a precarious existence delivering groceries, living in Central Park, and learning English by reading dictionaries in bookstores. Then Deo begins to meet the strangers who will change his life, pointing him eventually in the direction of Columbia University, medical school, and a life devoted to healing. Kidder breaks new ground in telling this unforgettable story as he travels with Deo back over a turbulent life in search of meaning and forgiveness.
June 20 -- The Irresistible Henry House by Lisa Grunwald
Henry arrives in the world as a "practice baby," passed between a dozen young women at the Practice House of Wilton College's Home Economics program in an era that discouraged mothers from holding babies "too much." Henry inspires in women the desire for his exclusive attention--but none want them more than Martha Gaines, the program director, who has spent her career overseeing the proper raising of "house" orphans who were eventually adopted out. Martha raises Henry as her own. Burdened by her need and bewildered by his own inability to reciprocate affection, Henry retreats into a silence that buys him banishment to a school for troubled teens. His skills open doors for him at Disney Studios. The multidimensional generations of women in his life make a fascinating microcosm of the cultural revolution that redefined the expectations of all American women in the latter half of the 20th century.
Other books considered by the group on September 27, may be books for future months:
1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C. Mann
Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance by Atul Gawande
Between the Assassinations by Aravind Adiga
Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
Half a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
My Reading Life by Pat Conroy
Serious Men by Manu Joseph
The Girls from Ames: A Story of Women and a Forty-Year Friendship by Jeffrey Zaslow
The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
Tibet: My Story by Jetsun Pema
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand
Green Team
The United Church of Christ calls people to live in community with God’s creation, to be good stewards caring for the environment. The Green Team encourages people to reduce, reuse and recycle at church and at home. Activities include bringing in speakers, group recycling and using less energy.
Men’s Fellowship
Men gather two noon hours per month for brown bag lunch in Fellowship Hall. Invited speakers or members of the congregation lead discussions on various topics. Enjoy the stories, fellowship and fun!
Peace Bell Ringers
A group interested in social justice and peace meets Wednesdays at 12:10 p.m. in the bell tower to ring the bell, discuss issues, and pray for justice and peace. It’s a part of being a Just Peace Church.
Youth Group
7th-12th grade youth meet on Wednesdays 6-7:30 p.m. in the youth room to share a meal and time together. The group focuses on fellowship, faith, and outreach. The activities change each week, but one thing stays the same, youth are always glad they came!
Fun, Food and Fellowship
Activities include outings to Iowa Cubs ballgames, a progressive dinner called Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, preparation for the annual rummage sale, and the Chili Cook-Off and Pie Fest.
