Ministries & Small Groups
Our ministries comprise small to medium groups that meet on a regular basis to develop their faith, learn about the Bible, pray together, serve, support seniors and look out for one another.
Measures that comply with the government mandates surrounding Covid-19 pandemic are in place as warranted. Check our CALENDAR for current offerings.
Music
At HVUC, a wide variety of soloists and musicians provide various musical styles to enhance worship. Come and share in our joy of music!
Pastoral Care
While the Pastoral Care Team Care primarily focuses on the spiritual, bodily and mental well-being of this community, other groups in the church, such as the United Church Women, Daytimers, 55+ in Central Etobicoke programming, God on the Go, Daily Bread, LIFT (Youth Group), and more, provide pastoral care amongst their numbers. Overall, HVUC actively practices caring.
Supportive counselling and emergency pastoral care are provided by our ministers. Lay pastoral care work is also carried out by a team of dedicated volunteers who pay regular visits to people at home and those confined to seniors' residences or hospital.
See also our Pastoral Care page.
Seniors - Daytimers - 55+
Humber Valley United normally conducts Worship Services at three area seniors' residences at regular intervals throughout the year, both with ordained and lay leadership.
On the last Monday of every month a group of Humber Valley volunteers prepares a lunch for between 75 and 100 seniors from our church and its neighbourhood. A program is provided with topics of particular interest to the over-60 crowd. This is a non-profit venture, with free-will donations gratefully accepted to cover costs.
Humber Valley also offers dozens of amazing free programs for those in the 55+ age-range, and want to stay connected, learning & moving. Programs are available remotely on Zoom and in-person, at the church building and in the community.
For more, see 55+ Programs at HVUC page.
Spiritual Development and Small Group Study
Daily Bread: Our Zoom meetings Mondays and Fridays at 8:30am start your days off with prayer and friends, comfort, unity, inspiration, connection. All are welcome. Contact Joanne to participate.
God on the Go: A discussion group for busy people, God on the Go looks at exploring spirituality in an organic, non-churchy way. Show up when you can... bring your kids or not. Contact the church office for details of our next meeting.
JAM (Jesus and Me - Sunday School)
Sunday School 10:30 Sunday morning
Join us Sunday mornings as we learn about God, Jesus and the Bible with fun games, crafts and activities. If the weather is fine we may choose to play outside. So, dress appropriately and prepare to explore Gods world in the beauty of nature. See you there!
Children, ages 5-12, start in the Sanctuary with the church service. Following JAM Session during the service, children participate in Sunday School with leaders, Claire and Michelle, either outside or downstairs. For those who do not wish to leave the service, colouring and activity books are offered as well as toys for toddlers and babies.
We begin JAM with a devotional and discussion. Then children have the option of playing games or creating arts and crafts. Games and sports might be played in the gym or we often go outside.
Bridgette Jarvis, an experienced child care worker, runs the nursery program, which is open to ages 0-4 years from 10:00am to the end of the worship service. Our nursery is located on the lower level.
If you can't be here in person, please join us Sunday mornings on YouTube for JAM Session during the weekly service and join our private Facebook group: Jesus and Me - HVUC Sunday School.
Youth
Youth have always been a big part of our culture at Humber Valley. Engaging in activities and events outside of church hours form lasting friendships and bonds of fellowship.
LIFT (Living in Faith Together) meets up at least once a week at 7:30pm Mondays in the "Bunker" (room 6 downstairs) where we focus on community works, team development and fun! We do this through character studies, Bible enrichment, games, youth movie nights and Christian celebrations. We socialize, enjoy snacks and plan outreach involvement in the community.
Grades 7-12, recent high-school grads, or younger middle-school ages are welcome!
Confirmation classes are offered for grade 9 and above. This program covers a number of topics such as the Sacraments, grace, the mission and ministry of the church, and what it means to follow Jesus. Contact Licia for more information.
Stephen Ministry
Stephen Ministers are congregation members trained by Stephen Leaders to offer high-quality, one-to-one Christian care to people going through tough times. A Stephen Minister usually provides care to one person at a time, meeting with that person once a week for about an hour. Twice a month, Stephen Ministers gather with their Stephen Leaders for supervision and continuing education. See the Stephen Ministries page for details.
Outreach - Near and Afar
All we have to do is look in the backyard of our own city to see the immense need for compassion and support. Many of our congregants devote hours of volunteer time to help those in need.
Some of the international charities we support are Sleeping Children Around the World (a fully-funded, nonprofit charity founded by Murray and Margaret Dryden of Humber Valley), Water for Life in Africa and the Canadian Leprosy Fund.
At home, we support local charities like Youth Without Shelter, Out of the Cold, Ernestine's, Fred Victor Mission, Inspire and Water First, just to name a few. Our Outreach Ministry gives hope to a very large number of people who suffer both here and around the world.
Your donations of time or money to any and all of these worthy causes make the OUTREACH ministry of Humber Valley United Church one of our most dynamic demonstrations of Christian discipleship. See also our Outreach page.
Prayer
Week of Guided Prayer
Once a year (usually in March) we embark on a special 1-week prayer retreat, which is flanked by a beautiful opening ceremony on Saturday and a joyful closing ceremony on the following Sunday. The week involves 30-minutes of prayer each day at home, and 30-minutes per day of discussion with a prayer companion. Some people call this their most spiritually fulfilling time of the year.
Prayer Chain
Humber Valley United Church believes in the power of prayer. We have an active prayer chain ensuring that the prayer needs of our membership, our community, our country and our global family are met.
Please be advised that the permission of any individual is sought before any name is shared.
If you have someone you'd like to be included in our prayer chain, please email the office.
