Northern Illinois Conference News     

Bishop Dan Schwerin                                                                   On the final day of the North Central Jurisdictional Conference (NCJ), the Committee on Episcopacy assigned  Bishop Dan Schwerin to the Northern Illinois Conference, effective January 1, 2023. Before his election, he served as     the Assistant to the Bishop in the Wisconsin Conference.            Bishop Schwerin starts each day reading the Psalms and is        a haiku poet?                    

                                                                     Kids Above All Holiday Gift Drive

                                                                 Each year, Kids Above All holds a                                                            Holiday Gift Drive, and works with generous individuals, as well as community, corporate and faith partners, to provide toys, books and clothes to more than 1,400 young people who have experienced trauma.

This year's drive will be the first held at Kids Above All's A Better Life Distribution Center! This new site is located at 1801 E. Oakton Street in Des Plaines, Illinois,  and going forward will serve as the hub for Kids Above All donations and volunteer activities. If you would like to volunteer, email Catherine Inserra at cinserra@kidsaboveall.org.

Step up for kids this holiday season! Four ways to help:

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Sponsor a Child - Purchase a gift for a child in one of the                                programs and help make their holiday wish come true.

Donate a Toy - The drive needs new, unwrapped toys, games,                              or books for you of various ages. Online wish lists from Amazon                              and Target are available to help guide the gift selection process                               for children and teenagers.

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Volunteer in the Toy Room - Join Kids Above All in the Toy Room and wrap, sort, and organize gifts for distribution to our young people and families. The 2022 Toy Room will be available at Kids Above All--A Better Life Distribution Center, located at 1801 E. Oakton Street, Des Plaines, Illinois, 60018. Health and safety measures, including masks, may be required.

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Stand Up for Kids This Holiday Season - Make a financial contribution to help the kids build better lives.

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Visit kidsaboveall.org/holiday-gift-drive for more wish-list and gift drive information.

NIC Book Club                                                                  The Discipleship Task Force's NIC Book Club was created to encourage conference-wide book discussions  to nurture our spirit in growing as disciples of Jesus Christ. Suggested readings will be offered. Participants are welcome to read and reflect individually or join a group discussion. Group discussions will be held in-person and via Zoom when appropriate. For additional information and to sign-up to participate, go to the Northern Illinois Conference website at:                             https://www.umcnic.org/Discipleship/NICBookClub

To donate to UMCOR's U.S. Disaster Response & Recovery Fund, go to the NIC website at https://advance.umcor.org.

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