Help Welcome Our New Children's Pastor

As you may have heard, Miranda has stepped down as our Children's Pastor. While we will miss her, we're very excited for Kayla Palmer to join the Riverview staff team. Kayla has been working faithfully with the Youth, Ignite, program for a few years now and is an experienced nanny. We're confident she will make a fantastic addition to the Children's Ministry Program here at Riverview. Kayla is ready to be here for the long haul and is prepared to invest in and help teach our children about God. 

For the month of January, Associate Pastor, Karissa Neal will be stepping in to train Kayla on curriculum development, classroom management, volunteer staffing, and everything children's ministry. Riverkids will be returning to their fun monthly series' with series wrap up party's being on the last Sunday of every month. They're looking forward to some upcoming changes and additions to the children's program and are ready to get started!

Please keep in mind if you did sign up to volunteer for children's ministry this month, we are very thankful for you and will be in contact mid-late January. Right now, we're focusing all our energies on getting Kayla up to speed with children's ministry and making the classrooms as fun and engaging as possible. We'll get a better idea of what's needed from volunteers in the classrooms in the next few weeks.

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Riverview School of Leadership

January is finally here which means... APPLICATIONS ARE OPEN!

Feel free to explore the school's website (link below) to see what is coming to Riverview Community Church in the fall of 2017. The program will be a huge addition to the church while also birthing some vibrant, organic ministry in our community. If you know a young person that might want to dedicate 9 months to seeking and serving God, please pass along the info for the program. We anticipate a full class in the fall and are excited to see what it will bring to our wonderful church family.

More Details Here:  http://www.riverviewschoolofleadership.org/


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Projector Screen Coming Soon!

The new projector screen is coming soon! The entire upper triangle in the front of the sanctuary will be covered by white stretch fabric to make a giant 26 ft. wide by 23 ft. tall triangular screen. The cross will be displayed in front of the new screen making it appear to "float" in the same place it is currently in. You may have also noticed that our projector was upgraded last week, giving a clearer, brighter image that is much easier to see. Thank you all for your continued patience as we revamp our sound system and lighting for the stage. We are nearing the end of this project and we couldn’t be more pleased with the outcome. This project has been a huge blessing to performers and church goers alike.

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It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Thank you to all who came out and helped us decorate the church for the Christmas season. We hope you will join us on Sunday morning at one of our two services, 9:15 & 11:15am to see the finished product.

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Church Beams

Church Beams

Following the Prime Time potluck this week, a group of our men got to work on replacing the first exterior beam on the church. It took some brute force and analytical minds to overcome some of the obstacles that presented themselves but they were determined to win. The project is ongoing as all beams on the exterior of the building have begun to rot and need replacing. If you are interested in participating in the next beam work party feel free to contact us Facebook or talk to Bob Matson. The finished product will be well worth it as this is a project that we have looked forward to having behind us since we first acquired our wonderful 

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Ladies Christmas Dinner Coming Soon!

Our ladies Christmas Dinner is our highest attended women's event every year. Ladies enjoy a delicious meal served by our volunteer gentleman waiters, share in a yummy dessert, have excellent entertainment, and get to shop in our ladies store. Ladies can buy tickets for $12 from Karen Hauser. Tickets do sell out, so be sure to jump on purchasing your ticket! Our ladies dinner is Saturday, December 10th at 4:30pm.
Also, a tradition for our ladies dinner is our ladies store. We have it open for one night only and there's always lots of great items. We run 100% off donations. Ladies donate items between now and Dec. 9th. On December 10th at the ladies Christmas dinner, ladies shop the store.
 All of the proceeds from dinner and the ladies store go towards providing scholarships for this years women's retreat!

 

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Guest Speaker at Riverview

Guest Speaker at Riverview

This past Sunday, we had a special guest come and speak at Riverview Community Church. We were blessed by Pastor Bo Melin as we got insights into his ministry in Haiti. It was also very exciting to learn a little about the past of our senior pastors, Rob and Becky Neuschwander. Bo Melin was their senior pastor as Rob and Becky broke onto the scene of youth ministry over 30 years ago. It was a morning full of three wonderful shepherds attempting to out-bless the others. It was a special moment for all and we look forward to when we have the opportunity to invite Pastor Bo back in the future. It was an inspiring morning that resulted in the congregation coming forward for prayer with an emphasis on getting a second wind in our walk with the Lord. Our church seems to continue to develop relations with Haiti in multiple ways as we have sent a missions team there, currently sponsor over 20 children in Jacmel, and have a special connection with Pastor Bo’s ministry there. It will be quite interesting to see how God continues to knit this church together with our brothers and sisters in Haiti. 

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Production Ministry

We are excited about all of our new sound, lighting, and projection equipment. Day by day more of our new gear is arriving and getting implemented. With all of this "newness" hitting the stage we could use some help. We are looking for a few people who would be interested in getting trained to run the sound board, the light board, and the PowerPoint to fill in on Sundays and/or Friday nights at Thirst. We have a small, wonderful team that is very skilled in this area but we are looking to expand this team. If this an area that you would like to grow in and have the time to dedicate to learning a new skill, contact Robbie Neal. He would be happy to talk to you about what the role could look like and how you can fit in to this wonderful area of production ministry.

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Operation Christmas Child

 Operation Christmas Child

It is collection week for OCC. Bring your prepared box to church this Sunday to provide a gift for a child that might not otherwise get a Christmas present year. On top of that you will be helping spread Jesus to kids in communities across the world. Here are the steps to getting your gift ready to go!

Step 1 to packing your shoebox is, you've probably guessed this one, get a shoebox. You can grab an actual shoebox or can buy a plastic Rubbermaid that's shoebox sized (usually available at the Dollar Tree or Walmart) . You can wrap your shoebox if you choose but make sure you wrap the lid and the box separately, meaning you can still open the shoebox after its wrapped.

Step 2 is to decide which gender and age group you would like to pack a box for. Download this Box Label, cut out either the boy or girl label, check the box next to the age you're packing your box for, and tape it to the top of your shoebox.

Step 3 is the fun part, filling the box. There are the toys that every child will love to play with and immediately be excited about. You can also pack things to meet practical needs, such as: rope, silverware, toothbrushes, combs, clothes, warm socks, mittens, and hats, school supplies, etc. Some bigger items can always be condensed as well if you pack them carefully. For example you could include a sports ball if it's deflated and has a pump enclosed. For more ideas on what to pack in your box Click Here.

Step 4 is covering your shipping cost. You can give your $7 online and track where your box goes by Clicking Here. You could instead put a $7 check written to "Samaritan's Purse" with "OCC" on the memo line in an envelope in your shoe box on top of your goodies.

Step 5 is to pray over your box, pray for the country that your box is going to, pray for the family the box will impact, and pray for the child that receives your box.
The last step is to bring your box to church on Sunday, November 23rd so we can get it to a drop-off facility.










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Ignite Youth Still Going Strong

This past fall, Zack Gonzales and Matt Kmetz took on the position of Youth Pastor's leading the teens grades 6-12 in music, games, fun, and the teaching of Jesus in a loving, relevant way.
With approximately 40 teens packing into the church each week, we're excited to say Ignite is still thriving and the teens in this community are getting reached for Jesus! This past week, Zack spoke on Matthew 9:27-31. He taught about how Jesus is our ultimate healer challenging the teens at the end of the night with the question, "Do you believe that Jesus can heal you" following the previous weeks question, "If Jesus reached out his hand and would touch/heal one thing in your life, what would you want it to be?"

Ignite Youth is on break for Thanksgiving week but will return on November 30th. If you know a 6th-12th grader that needs to get plugged in to a group of people in the same stage of life as them in a place where it's safe to be themselves, invite them to check out one of our clubs! Ignite takes place on Wednesday Nights at Riverview, 6325 Old Pacific Hwy S, Kalama, from 7:32-8:45pm-balcony opens for pre-club hang out at 6:30pm.

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Our First Holiday Event Was A Blast!

Ladies Cookie & Craft Night was a blast. Women enjoyed listening to Christmas music, hanging out with one another, eating cookies, and making candle crafts. This was the first of our many Christmas events here at RiverView, we hope you will join us for all of our upcoming parties as we lead into the holiday season! To view our calendar and events, you can click here.

Prime Time Explosion

 Prime Time Explosion

The Prime Time group is hopping! More and more seniors are pouring into the church each Thursday morning at 11:15. It is a great time of fellowship, worship, meaningful lessons, and small group breakouts. The Prime Time group has a potluck lunch together following the program every week. There is a retreat coming up February 2^nd through 4th for this group at Christian Renewal Center (CRC). The cost is $120 a person (ages 50 and up). See Karen Hauser for details or to make payment for the camp. If you are 50 years old or older you do not want to miss this event. We are believing in faith that God has great things planned for the older generations at this retreat!

Prime Time Retreat is on the Calendar!

If you're age 50+, make sure you get your $120 turned in & sign up with Karen Hauser for our Prime Time Retreat. We'll be going to the Christian Renewal Center in Silverton Oregon for delicious meals, awesome devotional times, and, as anytime we gather, crazy fun! Reserve the dates, February 2nd-4th in your calendar and we look forward to seeing you there!

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Exciting Changes Are Coming!

This week marks the beginning of an overhaul of the sound and light production at the church. Be looking for big changes as speakers are swapped out, microphones are upgraded, lights are installed and so much more. Music is a huge part of what we do both in our Sunday celebration meetings as well as weekly activities such as Thirst. It is the church's goal to make the sound production and worship atmosphere as inviting as possible for people who might be stepping into a church for the first time ever. This will be a huge upgrade for the church and we hope you are as excited as we are!

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ipray

Our church has the unique opportunity to join in beta testing an up and coming app called ipray. This is an app, currently available to iphones, that allows users to join and create public and private prayer groups. Users will be able to let people know when they're praying for people in their groups, create their own prayer requests, and update answered prayers for all those praying for them. This app also gives users the ability to create their own prayer lists so they can keep track of who and what they're praying for on a daily basis. The best part-this app is TOTALLY FREE!
Check out the details, sign up to become a beta tester, and/or sign up for more details as they're released here.

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THANK YOU!

Thank you to all who donated candy for the downtown trick or treating event. Thanks to all of your generosity, we managed to prepare one thousand flyers with candy to bless and invite children to church. If you would like to be a part of passing out candy and helium balloons to children during Kalama's safe downtown trick or treating event, you're welcome to join us at our RiverView booth, downtown Kalama, from 1:30-5:00.
Our booth will be across from the Chevron next to the previous City Hall.

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Ladies Coffee & Fellowship Mornings

Looking for an opportunity to simply hang out and share life with other women? Ladies Coffee  & Fellowship mornings is a great place to do just that. They take place at 9:00am on the first Saturday of every month at Denise Burck's home, 537 N 3rd Place in Kalama. Plus, there's coffee and yummy drinks. So, we hope you ladies will join us on Saturday November 5th for our next event!

Women's & Men's Bible Study Details

Have you been coming on Sunday morning but are looking for a way to make friends and find like minded people going through your same stage of life to hang out with? Consider joining us for our men's or women's bible studies.

Women's Bible Study is on Tuesday mornings at 10:30am. Ladies are doing a study on God's Beautiful Purpose for women & discovering what God can do through us. Women's study is lead by Becky Neuschwander and takes place at the church, 6325 Old Pacific Hwy S, on Tuesday mornings.

Men's Bible Study is on Wednesday evenings at 6:30pm. Men go through the word and do small group discussion together. The study is lead by Nathan Burck and takes place at his home, 537 N 3rd Place, Kalama on Wednesday evenings.

More Parking...Coming THIS Sunday!

A portion of the hill behind the church has been taken down, a lot has been leveled, and gravel has been brought in and spread! Join us for one of our two services this Sunday at 9:15 or 11:15am without having to worry about finding a parking space!




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Looking at the Thirst Changes

In recent weeks, some big changes have been happening at Thirst. We reassessed what Thirst was always meant to be and who we were envisioning our audience being and then looked at what we could better do meet our vision and serve those that come through the doors on Friday nights.

OUR VISION:
Our vision for Friday nights has always been to build christian community. To provide a non threatening live music, coffee house venue where people can come visit, share life, and love on one another. In order to meet that vision we have a coffee shack that's open the duration of Thirst, from 6:00-10:00pm. We have live bands that come in, some weeks more for entertainment purposes, some weeks providing more of a worship night. NEW THIS WEEK, we're going to start making a full, warm meal available for the low, cover our costs, suggested donation of $2/plate. Meal will be available at 6:00pm with most bands beginning at 6:30pm so even on worship nights, there is a full 30 minutes of just hang out time built in.

OUR AUDIENCE:
We're all about families at RiverView! One of the biggest hindrances to families on Friday night was our inability to offer childcare. A few teens have stepped up and offered to provide babysitting for children on Friday evenings from 6:30-8:30. They do charge $2 per child, which goes directly to the teens providing the care. Making dinner available was another way to try to better serve families as we know it can be hectic getting home from work, trying to feed your family, and get out the door. So, we cut out the feed your family step-no prep work, cooking, or dishes. We're just inviting families to come and have a fun, relaxing, family meal at Thirst.

OUR SCHEDULE:
Friday Nights:
6:00pm - Warm Dinner Available for $2/plate
                Coffee Shack Opens
6:30pm - Live Band Takes the Stage
               Babysitting made available inside the two church classrooms for $2/child
8:30pm - Babysitting closes

To stay caught up on upcoming artists & meals, you can click here to like our Thirst Facebook page or click here to visit our Thirst page on our website.
              

Downtown Halloween...Get Involved!

Each year, on October 31st, downtown Kalama closes off the main strip at 2:30pm and children dressed up in costumes pack out the city to do safe trick or treating. Businesses set up booths and tents in front of theirs or others businesses to provide goodies to kids. RiverView will be having a booth to pass out candy and helium balloons. This event serves thousands of kids. In order to help make this event happen, we could use help in a couple areas.

CANDY DONATIONS
As mentioned, we have thousands of kids coming to our booth, so we need A LOT of candy donations. Halloween candy can be donated and given to any of the staff members whenever our church building is open through October 30th.

PASSING OUT CANDY
We need volunteers on Halloween, from 1:30-5:30pm to help set up our booth, pass out candy, and blow up balloons. If you are interested in helping, please contact either Tina Cohutt or Miranda Olson.

Paint Night Coming to Riverview!

 

On Thursday, October 20th, at 6:00pm, Lavenna of Creekside Canvas will be leading anyone interested in a paint night. At a paint night, all guests bring is themselves and Lavenna walks everyone, beginner-expert through creating a beautiful canvas of their own. No painting/artistic skills are required, the painting lesson is taught step by step in a fun atmosphere. The cross image above is the one that will be taught. Come with your own colors and scripture or saying in mind for your canvas. 

These events are always a lot of fun and a great chance to learn a new skill, hang out, and laugh with everyone else involved! The cost is $22 and while that can be paid and you can decide to come the night of, it would be helpful for host, Patty Slater, if she knew before hand if you were coming and had pre-payments so she can go out and purchase supplies. 

Men of Prayer

 Our men's retreat this past weekend was a relaxing, rejuvenating weekend for all the men involved! Men zip-lined, hiked, shared meals, study times, rides, and their lives with one another. The main emphasis of this year's sessions was Prayer. Returning home, men had the challenge of keeping God on their minds and hearts; remembering that He is with them at all times.

5th Quarter Explained

On Friday nights after Thirst, we're going to keep the building open as a drug and alcohol free place for teens to go after the Football game. The balcony will be opened up with game tables and Xbox, and our Thirst Coffee Shack will be open with all drinks being 1/2 off! So, if you know a teen in the area that needs a fun place to hang out with friends after the game, send them here, we'll be open!

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