— Remembrance: Michele L. Firebaugh, 60, a current member of the Bethany Theological Seminary board of trustees at the time of her death, passed away on Nov. 20 following a brief illness. She was born on June 17, 1964, in Freeport, Ill., the daughter of Doug and Audrey (Bessert) Firebaugh. She earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Manchester University in North Manchester, Ind., and a master’s of business administration from the University of Notre Dame. She held accounting and finance positions for several companies, most recently Thermo Fisher Scientific in Rockford, Ill., before retiring in 2022. She volunteered her time and talents to several organizations, most notably Bethany Theological Seminary; Camp Emmaus, a camp and outdoor ministry center of the Illinois and Wisconsin District; and Freeport Church of the Brethren where she was pianist and organist. At the time of her death, she was serving as vice chair of the board of Bethany Seminary and chair of the board’s Development Committee. She had served on the board of trustees for Bethany since 2017, and was serving her second term in the position, noted a remembrance from the seminary. She was past chair of the board’s Business Affairs Committee, and had represented the board at Commencement in May this year. She had previously served on the Bethany board with President Roop and President Johansen. “Michele was a kind, gracious person, deeply committed to her faith and to the church and others. She will be greatly missed,” said Bethany president Jeff Carter. Illinois and Wisconsin District shared that she also had served as financial secretary for the Camp Emmaus board. “Our thoughts are with the Firebaugh family, the Freeport church, and all those who knew Michele in this time of loss,” said the district remembrance. She is survived by her parents Doug and Audrey Firebaugh of Freeport, sister Dena Guth (Karl) of Saint Charles, Mo., nieces, uncles, aunts, and many cousins. A celebration of life service will be held at 11 a.m. on Dec. 4 at Freeport Church of the Brethren, preceded by visitation starting at 10 a.m. Memorial gifts are received to Bethany Theological Seminary, Manchester University, or Freeport Church of the Brethren. For a full obituary go to www.burketubbs.com/obituaries/Michele-Firebaugh.
— Send a Christmas card to a volunteer! This Christmas season, Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) invites you or your congregation to extend season’s greetings to the current BVS volunteers. “Consider sending a Christmas card with a message of appreciation, inspiration, or holiday cheer,” said the announcement. “Your kind words will remind our volunteers of the impact of their work and the support they have from their community. If you would like the addresses of our current volunteers to send out cards, please email the BVS office at bvs@brethren.org – and thank you for your continued support of BVS, and for helping make this season brighter for those serving others!”
— Messenger magazine has posted a Thanksgiving playlist. “If you would like to have background music while preparing for Thanksgiving or for your gathering,” said an announcement, “Messenger offers six and a half hours of Thanksgiving music including songs about thanks and gratitude in different languages as well as music from Native American singers.” This long playlist for your Thanksgiving celebration was put together by web producer and Messenger editorial team member Jan Fischer Bachman as a thank you to our church members and subscribers. Find links to the Thanksgiving playlist posted on YouTube and Spotify at www.brethren.org/messenger/playlists/thanksgiving-music.
— Service Sunday in the Church of the Brethren is observed annually on the first Sunday in February. Congregations and church leaders are asked to use this Sunday to recognize those who volunteer in church ministries and those who have served for peace, justice, and meeting human needs–or have done so in the past–in their local communities, districts, denomination, and the world. “The Church of the Brethren has a rich history of service that we are called to celebrate and continue to live out,” said an announcement from Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS), which is one of the sponsors in the Service Ministries department of the denomination alongside FaithX, Brethren Disaster Ministries, Children’s Disaster Services, and Material Resources. Each year, there is a different Service Sunday theme focused on a different scripture passage. In 2025, the theme is “Living with Purpose.” Congregations are encouraged to use the worship resources found on the BVS website in their planning. Please visit www.brethren.org/bvs/service-sunday.
— The 100th anniversary of Keyser Church of the Brethren has been noted by the Mineral News and Tribune, and West Virginia News online with publication of a historic photo of the congregation. Go to www.wvnews.com/mineralnews/keyser-church-of-the-brethren-celebrates-100-years/article_d7e41220-a91c-11ef-9fc1-9b17d82babce.html
— The Brethren and Mennonite Heritage Center annual Christmas event in Harrisonburg, Va., will this year feature a dramatized tour titled “This Solid Ground.” Visitors will progress through four different buildings on the center’s campus, each with a scene that brings to life what Christmas Eve in 1871 might have been like for Brethren and Mennonites in the Shenandoah Valley. These special tours will take place on Dec. 14, 15, 21 and 22, from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. Tours will begin every 15 minutes, with a maximum of 10 people per group. Registration is required, go to https://brethrenmennoniteheritage.org/heritage-christmas-1.
— The Global Women’s Project steering committee met recently for a weekend in-person meeting hosted at University Park (Md.) Church of the Brethren. The agenda included planning for the year ahead.
Also, “as the Advent season approaches, GWP invites you to download and print the 2024 Advent Calendar,” said an announcement from steering committee member Madeline Dulabaum. “We hope that you will take a few moments each day throughout Advent to reflect upon and interact with this educational calendar focused on the work of our Partner Project, Growing Grounds, and issues related to the incarceration of women in the US. This year, the image on our calendar is of the shepherds (designed by Jessie Neher). You can use the calendar in personal prayer time, with your family around the dinner table, in a Sunday school class or small group, or as a congregation. Send us your colored-in calendar as Advent progresses or once you’ve finished! We would love to post them to our social media.” Go to https://globalwomensproject.org/advent-calendar.
