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Earlier this year, we encouraged the church “to remember what God has done, to help us imagine what God can do.” As the year comes to a close, we’re reflecting on God’s life-transformative work and wonder this year.

  • Church-wide Alpha had 300+ adults and high school students in small groups, 70+ in “Alpha for Kids” curriculum created by Kids Ministry staff
  • Summer camps saw 1,104 kids, youth and volunteers growing deeper in community, service and faith
  • Wisdom & Wellness ministry created for fellowship, practical support, learning opportunities, and spiritual growth for those maturing in next stages of life
  • All-church effort packaged 45,792 meals with Rise Against Hunger
  • Intergenerational Holy Spirit Weekend gathered 212 people (age range of 14–86) to discover more about the Holy Spirit

 

… and more (see below). Because of your faithfulness in prayer, participation in community, and generosity of financial gifts, people have found a home at University Carillon and hope in Jesus Christ—thank you.

121%

GOAL: $250,000

MTD: $301,542.20

While 2022 ends, it is not the start of a new year that excites us, rather the continuation of God’s transformative work through this church. We are excited to let wonder unfold. The church is on the cusp of something good because we’re relying on something great—the Holy Spirit to work and guide us in our next steps.

To faithfully partner with God in the next year … we need to receive a minimum of $250,000 in the month of December to balance out this year’s budget and be ready for next year’s goals.

WHAT WE’VE SEEN IN 2022

Family Night

January

Kids Ministry created several Family Night events throughout the year, kicking the year off with a movie night. Family Nights happened once a month in the first three months of 2022 … gathering 55 families (a total of 146 kids).

Canyon Church-Wide Study

January

In an effort to equip the congregation with spiritual disciplines, church leadership and pastoral staff created the church-wide Canyon series—which encompassed an 11-week sermon series, small groups and personal devotion guides.

Upward Basketball

February

Our Upward Sports league saw significant growth this year—both on the field and courts, but also in crossover from sports to church offerings (Wednesday Nights, church services and outreach events). Upward Soccer had 325 kids on teams; Upward Basketball saw an increase of over 50% growth from last season, hosting 285 kids this season.

Parenting Class

February

In response to ministry overlaps (UC Early Learning Center, Upward Sports and Kids Ministry Wednesday Nights), Pastor Craig and Kids Ministry Director Jesse Bachman created a “Parenting Together” class that encouraged keeping Jesus at the center of community, family and parenting.

Confirmation & New Members

March

This spring, University Carillon’s church family grew in size. Pastor Craig facilitated a new member class that shared the heart and culture of UC. EPIC Youth Ministry led a confirmation journey for 7th-12th grade students, exploring faith and what it looks like to become part of the larger church.

C127 Foster Family Ministry

March

University Carillon received an update about the partnership with C127 Foster Family Ministry—to love and support foster & adoptive families. UC was able to serve 122 kids and 45 families … with the help of 81 volunteers. UC’s total economic impact exceeded $142,000.

Rise Against Hunger

April

UC has partnered with Rise Against Hunger for many years—with the continued mission to help end world hunger. This year’s after-service packing party goal was 40,000 meals … when the last box of prepped food was sealed, the meal count stood at 45,792.

Young Adults

April

The Young Adults group of the church continued to meet for community events, but partnered with the church-wide efforts of the Canyon (spiritual disciplines) series and Alpha.

Graduates

May

The church celebrated 55 graduates for the class of 2022—from UC Early Learning Center, High School, College, grad school and Bible college. The EPIC Youth Ministry Class of 2022 consisted of 24 students who grew up through ministries at UC.

Tuesday Women’s Group

May

Five groups including 50-70 women have met on Tuesday morning for the last 20+ years. Per Sarah Ramey, “I’ve loved studying the Word of God, growing in faith and closer to Jesus as I share life with these amazing women and friends!”

VBS

June

The staple kickoff summer camp brought in 265 kids at our Vacation Bible School! This year’s theme: make waves! Kids explored foundational truths in fun ways. Many kids signed up for other summer camps, so our Kids Ministry staff and volunteers stayed connected with them over summer.

Converge

June

Over 120 youth and volunteers devoted a week of their summer to being the hands and feet of Jesus to the Orlando community. Each day, students went to two different volunteer sites with their groups, serving at a total of 28 different locations around Orlando.

Middle School Camp

July

EPIC Youth offers two middle school-specific summer camps that provide space for students to know Jesus, and be known by Him—through God’s word, community, squad wars and absolute FUN. This year’s camps brought in 178 middle school students.

Fun Camps

July

Over 370 kids at fun camp! Elementary Fun Camp engaged kids of a variety of interests in our seven rotations: Small Groups, Sports, Games, Art, STEM, the Game Room, and a Random Rotation (full of karaoke, competitions, and culture). PreK/K Fun Camp explored different countries each day—some UC Early Learning Center teachers led some Fun Camp classes!

Summer Volunteers

August

While summer is busy at UC, it’s not rushed. Many discipleship and serve opportunities were asked of our church and community … and 235 of you showed up! In addition to adult volunteers, some high school students find themselves giving up weeks of their summer to help pour into middle school and elementary students.

Bonneville Back to School Bash

August

In our continued partnership with Bonneville Elementary (Orange County), UC was able to provide school supplies to 170 students and outfitted 47 students with clothes and shoes from The Clothes Closet.

Friday Moms

August

Friday Moms is a group of 110 women who meet for breakfast, small groups and worship. When asked to describe the group, one mom put it like this: “Some of the best 2 hours of my week! It truly revitalizes me, fills my emotional and spiritual cup, and is 2 hours of self-care for my soul.”

Doggers

September

The Doggers ministry began years ago as an outreach ministry during UCF Game Day Parking that shared free hotdogs, chips and water to anyone who parked at UC (money going to missions) or anyone walking to the game. In addition to their years of outreach, recently the found themselves serving at outreach events like Campfire Christmas, End of Summer Splash and Jelly Bean Jog.

Middle School Bible Study

September

EPIC Youth Ministry brought back the Middle School Bible study that meets in the morning before school at various breakfast places in Oviedo (Panera, Chick-Fil-A). Students are dropped off to eat breakfast and study scripture. Volunteers then drive students to school!

Prodigal College Ministry

September

The college ministry of UC, Prodigal, continues to meet on Tuesday nights … with a mission to help college students find hope in Jesus, home in a local church and to have a hand in someone’s story. A couple ministries have hosted a dinner for the college students this year, living into our hope and reality of an intergenerational church.

UC Early Learning Center Family Chapel

October

The preschool at UC operated close to full capacity, achieving a goal set earlier this year. In its 28th year, UCELC has continued to bring families into the ministry—one of which is in the form of Family Chapel. Parents and siblings can stay after drop off to participate in chapel with the kids—a message, worship and offering.

Alpha

October

Church-wide Alpha had 300+ adults and high school students in small groups, 70+ in “Alpha for Kids” curriculum created by Kids Ministry staff. The heart of Alpha at UC was to unite around the person of Jesus and the life he invites us into.

Dominican Republic Mission Trip

October

UC partnered with sister church LifeSong in sending a group of people to serve with Sucher Ministries in the Dominican Republic. In an effort to raise money, the church had a shoe-drive … collecting 2,250 pairs of shoes. The team served in many ways, one of which was foot washing (see picture) … in a similar heart to how Jesus washed the disciples feet.

Holy Spirit Weekend

November

Intergenerational Holy Spirit Weekend gathered 212 people (age range of 14–86) to discover more about the Holy Spirit. Dr. Luther Oconer led a couple main sessions on The Holy Spirit, and the life led by the Spirit.

Wisdom & Wellness

November

Wisdom & Wellness ministry created for fellowship, practical support, learning opportunities, and spiritual growth for those maturing in next stages of life. This ministry meets the third Monday of every month.

Alpha Kids

November

To wrap up and celebrate the 70+ LOFT kids’ journey through “Alpha for Kids”, Kids Ministry hosted a Family Night that invited parents into the conversation. After some family games, kids had the opportunity to debrief the semester of “Alpha for Kids” while parents had a talk-back time with Pastor Craig and Kids Ministry Director Jesse Bachman.