WORSHIP SERVICES

For most of the year our Sunday morning worship service is held at 11:00 a.m.. A Sunday School is provided at the same time. Annually, during the months of July and August, the services are held at 9:30 a.m. and are shared with the Anglican Church of the Resurrection (COR). On four scheduled occasions, a combined RUC/COR service is held at 10:00 a.m..

• Baptism: Held during a worship service as needed. Parents are visited by the Minister prior to the baptism.
• Communion: Normally we have Communion four times a year during the morning service (first Sunday of Advent, fifth Sunday of Lent, early June, and the first Sunday of October which is World-wide Communion Sunday). We also have Communion on Christmas Eve.
• Weddings: Couples meet with the organist and a Minister during the period of preparation. Couples are encouraged to attend Presbytery pre-marriage seminars. Our Marriage Policy and our Weddings Brochure are posted on the ‘Governance’ page, and a hard copy of the Weddings Brochure can be requested from the church office.
• Funerals: May be conducted in the church or a Funeral Home by one of our Ministers. Details of funeral services can be obtained from our Funerals brochure posted on the 'Governance' page and available from the church office.

Please contact the church office if you are aware of Pastoral Care needs for yourself or someone you know. Pastoral Care is provided primarily by our Minister, with the help of our Pastoral Care Team, an important part of our vital Church Ministry at Riverside. The Team can also arrange for a volunteer to drive someone to a medical appointment, and also provide food on a temporary basis when there is a need such as illness or bereavement. Any one interested in helping with Pastoral Care activities is invited to contact the church office. More information is available in the Pastoral Care brochure posted on the ‘Governance’ page.

• Bible Study: We have occasional Bible Study sessions. Call the church for more information.
• Adult Profession Of Faith: Adults and older teens wishing to become members of the church meet for a number of weeks to explore and discuss the United Church's statement of faith and share their own faith and questions.

The Senior Choir practices at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday evenings from September to June. There is currently no Junior Choir.

Our Church has a Youth Program for youth in grades 7-12, and a separate Sunday School program for three year-olds to grade 10 children (held during the 11:00 a.m. service). For additional details of either program, contact the church office at (613) 733-7735, or our Children & Youth Co-ordinator, Miriam Illman-White (e-mail: riversideuc.youth@gmail.com).

This group of crafty folk meet on Thursdays at 1:00 p.m.. The group prepares crafts for our Christmas Bazaar, and has a lot of fun in the process.

CHURCH OUTREACH & SOCIAL ACTION PROGRAM

The following activities comprise our Outreach & Social Action Program at Riverside United Church that receive support on a continual basis.

1.   AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT

Amnesty International conducts campaigns to defend people whose human rights have been denied by their governments. Amnesty will defend only people who have never used nor advocated the use of violence in the expression of their ideas. They are Prisoners of Conscience because they have been imprisoned solely for holding and expressing certain opinions. We, at Riverside, participate in these campaigns by contacting their governments by mail, fax or e-mail to protest against the arrest and detention of these people. There are three kinds of campaigns:


• Write-a-thon: Our major campaign, usually held annually in the late fall.


• The annual Greeting Card Campaign: This allows people to send personal greetings directly to prisoners or their families or to human rights groups so that they are aware that they have not been forgotten in their struggles for human rights. This campaign usually begins in late November. Information is made available at the church.


• Urgent Cases Network: Cases are referred more regularly (usually every three weeks) and people are asked to respond quickly by mail, fax or e-mail. We can always use volunteers to participate in this campaign.

Good News Stories from Amnesty. As ‘good news’ stories are received which relate to the efforts of our program, they will be posted on the ‘Announcements’ page. If you are interested in participating in any of these campaigns, please contact Norm or Pat McLeod at 613-521-4823, or pn.mcleod@sympatico.ca.

2.   BRIDGEHEAD

Bridgehead is a company that connects men and women from co-operatives, self-help groups, farming unions and small scale enterprises in developing countries with Canadians. Bridgehead is one of the Fair Trade companies, which means that we pay our suppliers more than the multinationals do. If the world price of coffee goes down, we still pay the price we promised. At Riverside United Church we sell about eight kinds of coffee, two kinds of tea, cocoa, hot chocolate, and Bridgehead Brittle (not on anybody’s strict diet list). Bridgehead products are sold once a month.

Ruth Loomer, a member of Carleton Memorial United Church, organizes the mostly church groups who sell Bridgehead goods in Ottawa. Bridgehead products cost more, but a Third World farmer somewhere says, “Thank you”.

3.   GRANDMOTHERS TO GRANDMOTHERS



The ‘Grandmothers to Grandmothers’ campaign was launched by the Stephen Lewis foundation in 2006. Today there are well over 100 grandmothers’ groups across Canada with many more in the process of forming. The aim of these groups is to:


• encourage awareness in Canada about Africa's grandmothers and their struggle to secure a hopeful and healthy future for generations of children orphaned or made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS;
• build solidarity amongst African and Canadian grandmothers in the fight against HIV/AIDS; and
• actively support groups of grandmothers in Africa who are dealing with the painful loss of their own children and struggling to care for AIDS orphans. Funds will provide grandmothers with much needed assistance, for example: food, school fees and school uniforms for their grandchildren, income-generating projects, counselling and social support and coffins to allow for a dignified burial of their loved ones.

The Riverside “Grannies” meet on the second Tuesday of each month at 10:00 a.m. at the Riverside Churches, 3191 Riverside Drive, Ottawa ON. We welcome “grannies” from Riverside United Church, Church of the Resurrection and Holy Cross Catholic Church, as well as any other interested persons in the community. Not a Granny? You are still welcome!!! For more information, please contact Wanda Maurais at 613-692-4918, or dwmaurais@sympatico.ca.

4.   OUTREACH WORK TO THE PEOPLE OF JAMAICA

Home Visitation & Nursing Program of Providence Methodist Church in Kingston, Jamaica
(supported at Riverside United through a Partnership with Providence Methodist Church.)

Jamaica, like many countries around the world has many positive and beautiful attributes, but also some serious problems. Jamaica needs help from those of us who are more fortunate. Riverside United Church has established a more formal link with Providence Methodist Church in order to assist the Nursing Program through donations. When making a donation, please make your cheque payable to Riverside United Church, indicating on the cheque that the money is for the Home Visitation & Nursing Program in Kingston, Jamaica. An official receipt for income tax purposes will then be sent to you by Riverside United.

Some services that the Nursing Program provides are:


• Assistance in obtaining prescription medications.
• Assistance in paying for medical bills.
• Assistance in getting glasses, dentures.
• Transportation to meetings, clinics.
• Home visits by nurses who do medical checks, and by doctors when necessary.
• Home visits by volunteer visitors who do social visiting. Loneliness is a common problem as people get older.
• Lending out of equipment – wheelchairs, walkers, canes, etc.
• Education in healthy lifestyle.

Poverty is a serious problem in Jamaica, and the high cost of living makes life very difficult for people, especially for seniors. Assistance in obtaining prescription medications is the most important thing that the Nursing Program does, and is the biggest drain on the resources. Help is given to people in Gordon Town, Kintyre, Dallas, Constitution Hill, and various areas of Kingston, including the inner city near Tower Street. Clinics are held on a fairly regular basis at Constitution Hill.

A fundraising event (Jamaica Night) is held each fall at Riverside United Church. It continues to be successful and is supported partly by the Caribbean community in Ottawa. If there are any comments or questions you may have on our Outreach work with the people of Jamaica, please contact Marie Hackett at 613-726-1406, or mhack@sympatico.ca.

5.   REVERSE OFFERINGS

A “Reverse Offering” is something we do at Riverside United Church four times a year. When you come to church the week preceding the actual Reverse Offering collection, you will receive a slip of paper. There will be an item written on that piece of paper and that is what you will bring to church the following week. This is called a Reverse Offering because you are taking something off the plate on the first Sunday, and bringing the item the following Sunday. On the actual Reverse Offering Sunday (second Sunday), we collect the items at the back of the sanctuary and bring them forward during the regular offering time.

Reverse Offerings are intended to help two agencies in our community:

• Centre 507 – an outreach centre for low income people, sponsored by the United Church through Ottawa Presbytery and the Mission and Service Fund. For those wishing more information about Centre 507, or who wish to contact them, the particulars are:
          web site: www.centre507.org           e-mail: centre507@ncf.ca



• Heron Emergency Food Centre (HEFC), part of the Ottawa Food Bank. Additional information is available at:
          web site: www.hefc.ca           e-mail: info@hefc.ca

We consult these two agencies before each Reverse Offering to be sure what items they need so that not everyone is bringing the same thing. This is a great chance to do some outreach and support local efforts. You are always welcome to bring more than what is on your piece of paper. Please give the gift of generosity!

6.   LEUKEMIA ASSOCIATION OTTAWA

Leukemia Association Ottawa: a group dedicated to reaching out to those with leukemia and their families and friends in order to provide mutual support and a feeling of community. Meetings are held the fourth Tuesday of every month at Riverside United Church from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.. For information, phone Craig at (613) 821-4656, visit: laottawa.com, or e-mail craig_p@rogers.com.

7.   CARLETON UNIVERSITY ‘PAUSE TABLE’

CARLETON UNIVERSITY ‘Pause Table’: Twice a year, in December and April, Riverside United (along with the Church of the Resurrection) takes a turn providing a ‘Pause Table’ at Carleton University for the students during exams. The table is run by volunteers from Riverside Churches for several hours on a selected day where refreshments (coffee, tea, juices, cookies, muffins, etc.) are offered free to students to give them a welcome break at a stressful time in their academic year. The Pause Table is well received and greatly appreciated by students who are usually very time-constrained and often do not take the time to get a little rest and nourishment.

COMMUNITY GROUPS

1.   A Celiac Support Group meets at the church. Please call the church office for more information at 733-7735.

2.   The Riverside Park Nursery School meets in our facility. Their phone number is 738-0305.

3.   Riverside Churches Seniors Group: Seniors Program – Cards & Table Games:

• The Club meets at the Riverside Churches, 3191 Riverside Drive, every Monday & Friday from 1:00 p.m – 4:00 p.m. Cost: $2.00 per visit. Refreshments are served.
• Euchre & bridge are played every Monday & Friday. Other card games are played also. If you have a favorite game, bring it with you and introduce it to the others.
• If you are interested in joining us, or wish more information, contact either church office any morning from Monday to Thursday (United Church (613) 733-7735, or Church of the Resurrection (613) 733-8185.)