First Congregational Church
United Church of Christ
Wider Outreach

Our Church's Wider Mission



OCWM Brochure - Great for church members and church leaders. 

OCWM Infographic – Great tool to share at Annual Meetings and Churches. 


Special Mission Offerings

United Church of Christ Special Mission Offerings sponsor vital ministries that bring hope to people in the U.S. and around the world.  Our church has identified four areas where critical human needs exist:

• in places lacking health and educational resources and/or where disaster has struck;
• within systems of injustice which oppress daily life and opportunity;
• in the lives of church leaders without sufficient resources to live with dignity;
• in the nurture of youth and congregations just beginning their lives of faith.  

We believe these Special Mission Offerings collectively serve to lift people closer to the abundance and wholeness to which Jesus Christ has called us to work together to bring about.
 


Channels resources for international programs in health, education and agricultural development, emergency relief, refugee ministries, and both international and domestic disaster response, administered by Wider Church Ministries, Global Sharing of Resources.

This offering is received on the Fourth Sunday of Lent.


Re-imagines and builds the future of the UCC. Shared at the conference and national levels, STC largely supports youth ministries and full-time leaders for new churches in parts of the country where the UCC does not have a strong presence. Its also provides support for existing church's new initiatives.

This offering is received on Pentecost Sunday.


Supports ministries of justice and compassion throughout the United States, including the Council for American Indian Ministries (CAIM), justice and advocacy, and direct service projects supported by Justice and Local Church Ministries.

This offering is received on First Sunday of October as part of World Communion Sunday.


The Christmas Fund for the Veterans of the Cross and the Emergency Fund is a Special Mission Offering that congregations have been supporting for over 100 years.  The offering is administered through the United Church Board for Ministerial Assistance, the charitable arm of the Pension Boards.  Funds provide direct financial support to those who serve the church and are facing financial difficulties.  Active and retired clergy, lay employees, and their surviving spouses may be eligible for the Supplementation of Small Annuities, Supplementation of Health Premiums, Emergency Grants, and/or Christmas “Thank You” Gift Checks.

This offering is received on the Sunday before Christmas.