Church News: March 20th, 2026

Watch Our Most Recent Worship Service

Watch Our Most Recent Worship Service

You can click the button below to watch a video of a recent worship service:

Watch the most recent worship service

Watch ALL of Our Worship Services

Please Share!

Our online worship services are a great way to introduce people to Koloa Union Church…and provide inspiration and hope to friends and family!

Feel free to forward this email or send the YouTube link to anyone whom you think would enjoy watching our online worship service.

Share our worship service with even more people! You can also put the link of any video of our worship services directly onto your Facebook page and thereby introducing every one of your Facebook friends to our worship services and our church!

Office Closure Date

The church office will be closed on Thursday, March 26 in observance of Prince Kuhio Day and on Monday, April 6 in observance of Easter Monday

Church Breakfast

Tuesday, March 24

Breakfast in Koloa Village! Break+Feast Upstairs 5460 Koloa Road You may place your order ahead of time. Identify yourself as part of the Koloa Union Church group Join us on the 4th Tuesday of the month for delicious food and a fun time getting to know others from Koloa Union Church!

Cybersecurity

Rev. Dr. David Vásquez-Levy

Wednesday, March 25 10 a.m. – noon

Stay healthy and safe with your digital device! Learn how to track health, prevent fails and prepare for emergencies. Just bring your device and your questions and join us! IT’S FREE! Connect with others in your community.

  1. Track steps, sleep, medications, set up emergency contacts.
  2. Use your device to improve safety, including emergency alerts.
  3. Prepare digitally for emergencies like tsunamis or hurricanes.
  4. and much more……

Lenten Series & Soup Supper

Rev. Dr. David Vásquez-Levy

Lenten Series & Soup Supper

This year during Lent we will be “exploring our family stories” through scripture, history and faith. We will start with a soup dinner at 6 p.m. followed by a discussion created by leaders of the Hawaii Conference through story circles, video reflections, engaging discussions and Lenten practices.

Come and join us on Wednesday, March 25 for our last Soup Supper. Please sign up on the bulletin board.

Palm Sunday

Psalm Sunday Koloa Church

Palm Sunday March 29, 10:30 a.m. Celebrate the Triumphal Entry of Jesus entering Jerusalem! Our Sunday School and youth will start the service off with the procession of the palms during the prelude and provide Sunday service. Children and youth: please arrive by 10 a.m. Those arriving late, please wait outside the main doors of the sanctuary until the procession of the palms is finished.

Maundy Thursday

Psalm Sunday Koloa Church

Maundy Thursday  April 2, 7 p.m.

On Maundy Thursday we commemorate Jesus’ last supper with his disciples and reflect on his command to be loving servants to one another. This will be a time of Scripture reading, reflection, prayer, music, and the Lord’s Supper.

Maundy Thursday is the day before Good Friday and three days before Easter when Jesus shared a meal with his disciples. “Maundy” comes from the Old French word “mande” and the Latin “mandatum,” which means “mandate,” “command” or “commandment.” At the meal, Jesus washed his disciples’ feet as a demonstration of loving service and then said to them, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.”

Maundy Thursday

Psalm Sunday Koloa Church

Maundy Thursday  April 2, 7 p.m.

On Maundy Thursday we commemorate Jesus’ last supper with his disciples and reflect on his command to be loving servants to one another. This will be a time of Scripture reading, reflection, prayer, music, and the Lord’s Supper.

Maundy Thursday is the day before Good Friday and three days before Easter when Jesus shared a meal with his disciples. “Maundy” comes from the Old French word “mande” and the Latin “mandatum,” which means “mandate,” “command” or “commandment.” At the meal, Jesus washed his disciples’ feet as a demonstration of loving service and then said to them, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.”

Easter Sunday

Psalm Sunday Koloa Church

WORSHIP SERVICE Celebrating the Resurrection of Christ! 10:30 a.m.

Be sure to arrive early for a good seat. Please remember that this is one of our Sunday morning services with high attendance.

Those who are able & willing are invited to park on the lawn just east of the parsonage or on Poipu and Waikomo Roads.

(Please do NOT park in the parsonage driveway)

EASTER EGG HUNT After Church

Middle schoolers and high schoolers will hide the eggs during Sunday school.

POTLUCK LUNCH After the Easter Egg Hunt in Moore Hall Please see the signup sheet on the bulletin board if you are able to help with food and/or in the kitchen. All ages are invited as we gather for our Easter lunch!

Psalm Sunday Koloa Church
One Great Hour of Sharing OGHS

“Our Love Offering to the World” Easter Sunday

One Great Hour of Sharing is one of four special mission offerings of the United Church of Christ. This Lenten Offering supports the disaster, refugee, and development ministries of the United Church of Christ.

This offering helps fund health and education initiatives, strengthen agricultural development, and provide emergency relief when disaster strikes. OGHS sustains vital refugee ministries and supports both international and domestic disaster response, ensuring that help arrives quickly and compassionately.

This year’s theme “Our Love Offering to the World” is very relevant: OGHS supports Ukrainian refugees who have fled for safety, and victims of weather-related disasters in the U.S. and throughout the world.

The OGHS offering will be collected on Easter Sunday.

Offering envelopes will be provided.

Please indicate “OGHS” in the note section of your check or in the “Comments” box on our website donation page.

Thank you for considering a generous donation!

Prayers and Squares

Kauai Quilting Class Prayer Meeting Koloa

Prayers and Squares – Tuesday, April 7th, 2026 10:00 A.M. – 1:00 P.M.

Prayers & Squares continues to meet in Moore Hall from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the first Tuesday of every month, where we spend most of our time promoting prayer by creating hand-tied quilts. Volunteers with all ranges of quilting experience may join for prayer, fellowship, stitching, and learning about quilting. The motto: “It’s not about the quilt; it’s all about the prayers.” If you or someone in your ohana are in need of a tangible representation of prayer, please contact Debbie Gunning to request a quilt.

In the last half of 2025, through the generosity of time and skills, Dan Giovanni and Michael Horning built a Prayers & Squares closet in Moore Hall. In January, the sewing team moved their sewing machines, fabric, quilts and supplies into the new closet. We also thank those who gave financial help for this project. Prayer quilts are more than blankets. They are the visible, tangible, physical evidence of faith: faith in God, faith in love, faith in prayer. Once a request for a quilt is received, the quilt is blessed with a prayer as a knot is tied by Kahu Alan; additional prayers knots are tied by the congregation. The finished quilt is then presented to the person needing our prayers.

DONATE TODAY

Lectionary Readings

LECTIONARY READINGS

Wednesday, April 8th 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. At the Smith Memorial Parsonage Lectio Divina is a time to silently reflect together on a repeated reading from the Bible and then share with one another about the experience (if so desired). Lectio Divina typically meets on the second Wednesday of the month. Please let Kahu or Karen Johnson know if you plan to attend.

Lectionary Readings

LECTIONARY READINGS<br />
Weekly Readings from the Bible

Each week, Christians throughout the world read biblical passages from the Revised Common Lectionary, including the Old Testament, Psalms, New Testament, and Gospels. After three years, a good portion of the Bible is included and the cycle begins again. RCL passages are often read in church worship services, and Kahu Akana usually includes at least one reading each Sunday.

Readings for March 22: Ezekiel 37:1-14; Psalm 130; Romans 8:6-11; John 11:1-45

Readings for March 29: Psalm 118: 1-29; Matthew 21:1-11; Isaiah 50:4-10; Psalm 31:9-16; Philippians 2:5-11; Matthew 26:14-27:66; Matthew 27:11-54

Maundy Thursday: Exodus 12:1-14; Psalm 116:1-19; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; John 13:1-35

Good Friday: Isaiah 52:13-53:12; Psalm 22; Hebrew 10:16-25; Hebrew 4:14-16, 5:7-9; John 18:1-19:42

Holy Saturday: Job 14:1-14; Lamentations 3:1-24; Psalm 31:1-16; 1 Peter 4:1-8; Matthew 27:57-66; John 19:38-42

Easter: Acts 10:34-43; Jeremiah 31:1-6; Psalm 118:1-24; Colossians 3:1-4; John 20:1-18; Matthew 28:1-10

Help us with the newsletter!

The KUC Newsletter is how we stay in touch! We send out our Newsletter on a monthly basis in order to keep everyone updated on what is going on at Koloa Union Church.

Be sure to see the pictures and images! If you don’t see any photographs and images by now (like a picture of our church directly above), you are missing out! You can usually fix this issue by clicking “View images” (usually at the very top of the email) in order to see the great photos and images throughout the Newsletter!

Be sure to see ALL of the news! You may not be seeing all of the KUC Newsletter! Some email servers “clip” the message in order to save storage space, so be sure to click on “View entire message” if it appears (usually at the bottom of the email). Otherwise, you’ll be missing out on someof the news!

Add to the KUC Newsletter! Scroll to the bottom of this email to learn how to add any announcements to the Newsletter or add an email to receive future editions! The next edition of the Newsletter will be April 9. Deadline for articles is April 6 Early submissions are greatly appreciated!

A Message From Kahu: March 20th, 2026

A Message From Our Kahu

Alan Akana Gallery to Close

 

For the past nine years I have been operating that gallery from the Smith Memorial Parsonage living and dining rooms. The primary reason is because I love sharing my art! Watercoloring the indigenous flowers of Hawaii has been one of the greatest joys of my life, and the gallery has given me an opportunity to share that joy. Another important reason is because I wanted to give people in the church and community the opportunity to support the parsonage. There are still some projects that we want to accomplish, but we have made some major improvements over the years, including the installation of a new roof (which I am especially grateful for during these rainy days!), repairing structural damage, upgrading electrical needs, painting the exterior, landscaping, and much more. Of course, the income from the gallery did not cover all of these expenses, but I am glad that I was able to help.

When the Church Council gave me permission to open the gallery in 2017, we agreed that I would provide the art and the space, and volunteers from the church would assist with hosting events and preparing items for sale. I want to take this opportunity to say MAHALO NUI LOA to each and every one of you who volunteered in so many ways. We could not have had the success we have experienced without you! I also want to offer a very special THANK YOU to Penny Jessup, who has been our volunteer manager for nearly 8 years. She has organized and hosted events, kept all of the sales records, managed the finances, paid the taxes and bills, and made sure that all of the art was ready for sale on time, and so much more. I also want to thank our past managers: Palani Akana, Sherry Hines, and Owen Strong.

I consider the gallery to have been a tremendous success. We have not only raised thousands of dollars for the parsonage while sharing my art, but the gallery has connected people with the church and with one another. However, I would like to spend more time actually watercoloring (rather than running a business) and also having the parsonage as just a home again (rather than a place of business that is open to the public).

I plan to continue making my greeting cards available at the church and have begun discussions with galleries and gift shops that are interested in selling my art. I’ll keep everyone posted as things unfold.

In the meantime, please mark your calendars for our final Open House Reception on Sunday, April 26. We will open the gallery to church members at 1 p.m. and then to the general public at 2 p.m. Please contact Penny Jessup if you are able to bring some food, provide entertainment, or help host.

I will also be available at times during the month of April to welcome guests who would like to visit the gallery. Almost everything in the gallery will be available for sale at least 50% off until we close.

 

Aloha Nui Loa!

Kahu

 

Church News: February 4th, 2026

Watch Our Most Recent Worship Service

Watch Our Most Recent Worship Service

You can click the button below to watch a video of a recent worship service:

Watch the most recent worship service

Watch ALL of Our Worship Services

Please Share!

Our online worship services are a great way to introduce people to Koloa Union Church…and provide inspiration and hope to friends and family!

Feel free to forward this email or send the YouTube link to anyone whom you think would enjoy watching our online worship service.

Share our worship service with even more people! You can also put the link of any video of our worship services directly onto your Facebook page and thereby introducing every one of your Facebook friends to our worship services and our church!

Movie Night for Adults

Adult Movie Night Koloa Union Church

Adults and teenagers are welcome! See the sign up sheet on the bulletin board.

Youth Bake Sale

Rev. Dr. David Vásquez-Levy

Donations of your baked goods AND purchasing baked goods help support our youth activities throughout the year–bowling, Koke`e retreats, `Aha Pae`aina youth events, to name a few. Enjoy delicious baked donations made by our youth and their ohana.

Mask Making Merriment

Rev. Dr. David Vásquez-Levy

***NOTE: Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper is on FEBRUARY 17

Lectionary Readings

LECTIONARY READINGS

Wednesday, February 11 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. At the Smith Memorial Parsonage Lectio Divina is a time to silently reflect together on a repeated reading from the Bible and then share with one another about the experience (if so desired). Lectio Divina typically meets on the second Wednesday of the month. Please let Kahu or Karen Johnson know if you plan to attend.

Let’s Go Camping!!

Summer Book Group Koloa Union Church "Jesus and John Wayne"

by Kristin Kobes Du Mez

Henry Opukaha`ia Offering

LECTIONARY READINGS

Wednesday, February 15th

Each year on the Sunday closest to the anniversary of Henry Opukahaia’s death (February 17), churches in the Hawaii Conference of the United Church of Christ are encouraged to honor the legacy of the young Hawaiian credited with inspiring the Sandwich Islands Mission which brought Christianity to Hawaii. The Henry Opukahaia Scholarship Fund supports the training of clergy for Christian mission by providing financial aid for seminary students who have in-care standing with their association and continuing education funds for active ministers.

Gifts will be received during the worship service on February 15. You may also donate by sending checks to P.O. Box 536, Koloa, HI, 96756 or visiting the donation page on our website. (Please write “Henry O” on the note section of your check or in the comment section on the donation page.)

Please consider a generous donation.

Valentines Day Luncheon

Pancake Supper And Mask Contest

February 17, 2026 6:00 P.M. Moore Hall

Kahu and our Deacons are planning our next membership gathering for those wishing to learn more about our church. Attendees will learn about our history, our congregation, benefits and responsibilities of membership, and more! There will be opportunities to ask questions about our church. There is no expectation for participants to join the church. However, those who participate will be able to join as church members in the near future.

Ash Wednesday Service

Ash wednesday service koloa union church

February 18, 2026 7:00 P.M.

Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent. Each year we gather at the church for a time of hearing the Scriptures, prayer and meditation, followed by the placing of ashes on our foreheads. The ashes serve as a reminder of our mortality and our need for Christ and God’s loving presence in the midst of life and death.

 

February Youth Gatherings

Rev. Dr. David Vásquez-Levy

Church Breakfast

Tuesday, February 24

Living Foods 2829 Ala Kalanikaumaka St. (near the west end of the Shops at Kukui`ula) Join us on the 4th Tuesday of the month for delicious food and a fun time getting to know others from Koloa Union Church! Location each month to be determined. RSVP on the sign-up sheet or by contacting the church office

Lenten Series & Soup Supper

Summer Book Group Koloa Union Church "Jesus and John Wayne"

by Kristin Kobes Du Mez

This year during Lent we will be “exploring our family stories” through scripture, history and faith. We will start with a soup dinner at 6 p.m. followed by a discussion created by leaders of the Hawaii Conference through story circles, video reflections, engaging discussions and Lenten practices. Come and join us on Wednesday during Lent. Sign up on the bulletin board.

Aloha Hour

March Aloha Hour Sunday, March 1st

Following the Worship Service We usually enjoy Aloha Hour right after the worship service on the first Sunday of each month. If there is more interest (and volunteers!), we can have Aloha Hour more often. Please check in with Penny Osuga, our Aloha Hour chairperson, if you have any questions or would like to volunteer.

See the sign up sheet on the bulletin board for food contributions. Kitchen help is also needed for a successful gathering. Everyone is welcome, whether or not you are able to bring food!

Prayers and Squares

Kauai Quilting Class Prayer Meeting Koloa

Prayers and Squares – Tuesday, March 3rd, 2026 10:00 A.M. – 1:00 P.M.

Prayers & Squares continues to meet in Moore Hall from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the first Tuesday of every month, where we spend most of our time promoting prayer by creating hand-tied quilts. Volunteers with all ranges of quilting experience may join for prayer, fellowship, stitching, and learning about quilting. The motto: “It’s not about the quilt; it’s all about the prayers.” If you or someone in your ohana are in need of a tangible representation of prayer, please contact Debbie Gunning to request a quilt.

In the last half of 2025, through the generosity of time and skills, Dan Giovanni and Michael Horning built a Prayers & Squares closet in Moore Hall. In January, the sewing team moved their sewing machines, fabric, quilts and supplies into the new closet. We also thank those who gave financial help for this project. Prayer quilts are more than blankets. They are the visible, tangible, physical evidence of faith: faith in God, faith in love, faith in prayer. Once a request for a quilt is received, the quilt is blessed with a prayer as a knot is tied by Kahu Alan; additional prayers knots are tied by the congregation. The finished quilt is then presented to the person needing our prayers.

DONATE TODAY

Membership Gathering

Kauai Quilting Class Prayer Meeting Koloa

Membership Gathering March 15, Noon

Kahu and our Deacons are planning our next membership gathering for those wishing to learn more about our church. Attendees will learn about our history, our congregation, benefits and responsibilities of membership, and more! There will be opportunities to ask questions about our church. There is no expectation for participants to join the church. However, those who participate will be able to join as church members in the near future.

Please see the signup sheet on the bulletin board.  

A Note from the Stewardship Committee

Thank you to everyone for your generosity throughout 2025!

A special thanks to those who completed commitment cards for 2026. The Church Council is currently working on our budget (based on the total from the commitment cards) which will be presented for approval at our Annual Meeting on February 1st!

The 2026 offering envelopes have arrived and are available at the greeting table. If you do not see a box with your name and would like one, please see Penny.

You can leave a legacy! Indicating an amount or percentage to the church in your estate can guarantee a legacy for many generations in the future!

Lectionary Readings

LECTIONARY READINGS
Weekly Readings from the Bible

Each week, Christians throughout the world read biblical passages from the Revised Common Lectionary, including the Old Testament, Psalms, New Testament, and Gospels. After three years, a good portion of the Bible is included and the cycle begins again. RCL passages are often read in church worship services, and Kahu Akana usually includes at least one reading each Sunday.

Readings for February 8: Isaiah 58:9-12; Psalm 112:1-10; 1 Corinthians 2:1-16; Matthew 5:13-20

Readings for February 15: Exodus 24:12-18; Psalm 2; Psalm 99; 2 Peter 1:16-21; Matthew 17:1-9

Readings for Ash Wednesday: Joel 2:1-17; Isaiah 58:1-12; Psalm 51:1-17; 2 Corinthians 5:20-6:10; Matthew 6:1-21

Readings for February 22: Genesis 2:15-17, 3:1-7; Psalm 32; Romans 5:12-19; Matthew 4:1-11

Readings for March 1: Genesis 12:1-5; Psalm 121: Romans 4:1-17; John 3:1-17; Matthew 17:1-9

Help us with the newsletter!

The KUC Newsletter is how we stay in touch! We send out our Newsletter on a monthly basis in order to keep everyone updated on what is going on at Koloa Union Church.

Be sure to see the pictures and images! If you don’t see any photographs and images by now (like a picture of our church directly above), you are missing out! You can usually fix this issue by clicking “View images” (usually at the very top of the email) in order to see the great photos and images throughout the Newsletter!

Be sure to see ALL of the news! You may not be seeing all of the KUC Newsletter! Some email servers “clip” the message in order to save storage space, so be sure to click on “View entire message” if it appears (usually at the bottom of the email). Otherwise, you’ll be missing out on someof the news!

Add to the KUC Newsletter! Scroll to the bottom of this email to learn how to add any announcements to the Newsletter or add an email to receive future editions! The next edition of the Newsletter will be April 9. Deadline for articles is April 6 Early submissions are greatly appreciated!

A Message From Kahu: February 4th, 2026

A Message From Our Kahu

The 3 Pillars of Lent

The Season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday in just two weeks. It is the period of six weeks in which faithful followers of Jesus prepare for Easter. The story of Jesus’ resurrection is the high point of the Christian year, and yet it is easy to miss the impact of the story if we don’t prepare for it. We prepare in order to repent, and repentance simply means “to change.” It can mean a change in how we see things, a change in perspective, a change in attitude, a change in our actions or the patterns to which we are accustomed.

The three traditional ways of preparing for Easter are: prayer, fasting and generosity.

  • Prayer is simply communicating with God. It involves both speaking and listening. You might consider spending some extra time each day having a conversation with God about something that is important to you. You might pick a word, a topic or an idea that you want to focus on for six weeks. You may also want to write your conversations down in a prayer journal.
  • Fasting has to do with giving something up that you normally do on a regular basis. Some people give up eating certain kinds of food or drink, such as meat, sugar or alcohol. Some give up eating altogether, sometimes for an entire day each week. Others give up actions that are part of their daily patterns, such as watching television or scrolling through social media. Fasting can be especially helpful if you decide to spend the time you are giving something up on something else that might provide great joy or meaning to you or someone else. For example, you may want to spend the time you normally watch television by reading through one of the Gospels, of maybe even all four (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), and thereby concentrating on the life and teachings of Jesus.
  • Generosity is giving something to someone else without expecting anything in return. By offering a bit of our time, our talents, or our treasures to someone, we are reminded of the abundance of God’s generosity. Think about an individual, a family or a group who might really need something you have to offer, and then offer it without the thought of reciprocation. You may be surprised at how much more grateful you feel as you consider that this is how God gives to us every day of our lives!

May you find great joy and meaning as you build the three pillars of Lent into your lives—and may you feel fully prepared to celebrate Easter Sunday by doing so!

Aloha Nui Loa!
Kahu

 

Church News: January 16th, 2026

Watch Our Most Recent Worship Service

Watch Our Most Recent Worship Service

You can click the button below to watch a video of a recent worship service:

Watch the most recent worship service

Watch ALL of Our Worship Services

Please Share!

Our online worship services are a great way to introduce people to Koloa Union Church…and provide inspiration and hope to friends and family!

Feel free to forward this email or send the YouTube link to anyone whom you think would enjoy watching our online worship service.

Share our worship service with even more people! You can also put the link of any video of our worship services directly onto your Facebook page and thereby introducing every one of your Facebook friends to our worship services and our church!

Congregational Renewal Cohort

Rev. Dr. David Vásquez-Levy, President of Pacific School of Religion (PSR), presented the Congregational Renewal Cohort program to members of our church on January 12.

The program is designed to support congregations in assessing and adapting their ministries to thrive in a changing world. PSR partners with religious congregations to strengthen their ministries, deepen relationships with their communities, and contribute meaningfully to the world around them. 

Congregations are asked to identify 3-5 congregants to participate in a 10-month-long, community-based learning journey on PSR Collective, a digital platform facilitated by leading theological experts from the PSR faculty. Participants should expect to commit at least 10-12 hours per month for the duration of the 10 month program. The next cohort will begin in September after an August orientation.

Please contact Kahu Akana if you are interested in the program.

For more information Click Here

Membership Gathering

March 15th 12:00pm

Kahu and our Deacons are planning our next membership gathering for those wishing to learn more about our church. Attendees will learn about our history, our congregation, benefits and responsibilities of membership, and more! There will be opportunities to ask questions about our church. There is no expectation for participants to join the church. However, those who participate will be able to join as church members in the near future.

Please see the signup sheet on the bulletin board. 

January Book Group

Kalaupapa Sunday

January 25th

Come and learn about the inspirational leaders who lived there… and helped others to thrive there!

Youth Gathering

Youth Gathering For Middle School & High School Youth

Sunday, January 25 4:45 – 7:00 p.m. Koloa Union church Youth: Please RSVP to Aunty Tiffany by the previous Wednesday if you plan to attend!

Adult Volunteers: Please consider volunteering your home or providing a dish or two for a meal.

Church Breakfast

Tuesday, January 27 8-9:30 a.m.

Breakfast in Koloa Village! Break + Feast 5460 Koloa Road Upstairs on Koloa Road You may place your order ahead of time. Identify yourself as part of the Koloa Union Church group Join us on the 4th Tuesday of the month for delicious food and a fun time getting to know others from Koloa Union Church! Location each month to be determined. RSVP on the sign-up sheet or by contacting the church office

The Annual Meeting

The congregation will meet on Sunday, February 1, immediately after the worship service for the Annual Meeting of the Congregation. We ask all members to attend in order to have a quorum.

Some of the items on our agenda:

  • Vote for Officers of the church, Council Members, Deacons and Committee Chairs
  • Review and approve our budget for 2026
  • Receive reports from Kahu Akana and other church leaders
  • Receive our updated Church Directory
  • Hear about plans for 2026
  • A time for questions and answers

Aloha Hour We will enjoy our monthly Aloha Hour just before the annual meeting in Moore Hall. Join us for delicious food and heartfelt fellowship! See the sign up sheet on the bulletin board for food contributions. Kitchen help is also needed for a successful gathering. Everyone is welcome, whether or not you are able to bring food!

*NOTES:

Committee chairpersons are reminded to submit your annual reports to the office today!

We are offering an electronic “annual report” and “church directory.” Please let office know if you would prefer digital copies.

February Youth Gatherings

Rev. Dr. David Vásquez-Levy

Prayers and Squares

Kauai Quilting Class Prayer Meeting Koloa

Prayers and Squares – Tuesday, February 3rd, 2026 10:00 A.M. – 1:00 P.M.

Prayers & Squares continues to meet in Moore Hall from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the first Tuesday of every month, where we spend most of our time promoting prayer by creating hand-tied quilts. Volunteers with all ranges of quilting experience may join for prayer, fellowship, stitching, and learning about quilting. The motto: “It’s not about the quilt; it’s all about the prayers.” If you or someone in your ohana are in need of a tangible representation of prayer, please contact Debbie Gunning to request a quilt.

In the last half of 2025, through the generosity of time and skills, Dan Giovanni and Michael Horning built a Prayers & Squares closet in Moore Hall. In January, the sewing team moved their sewing machines, fabric, quilts and supplies into the new closet. We also thank those who gave financial help for this project. Prayer quilts are more than blankets. They are the visible, tangible, physical evidence of faith: faith in God, faith in love, faith in prayer. Once a request for a quilt is received, the quilt is blessed with a prayer as a knot is tied by Kahu Alan; additional prayers knots are tied by the congregation. The finished quilt is then presented to the person needing our prayers.

DONATE TODAY

Supporting Immigrants and Refugees

As the federal government continues to send ICE agents into cities and towns, we want our church members to be aware of our rights at church, in our homes and communities.

Although we hope that our church will not be visited by immigration agents, here are a few steps which we have taken:

  • We have signage in the church office and pastor’s office/Sunday school room indicating that they are private spaces (and therefore immigration agents are not allowed in without a judicial search warrant).
  • We ask all congregants to say, “I exercise my right to remain silent,” if immigration agents show up to church and ask ANY questions (such as, “What is your name?” “Are you a citizen?” “Are there any non-citizens/ immigrants/ undocumented people among you?” “How many people are here?”).
  • We invite everyone to begin video-recording immigration agents if they show up during a worship service or other church event. We also ask you to keep your distance from agents and give them plenty of room so that they cannot justifiably claim that you are keeping them from doing their job.

Please click any of the links below to learn more:

UCC Resource

Hawaii Conference Article

Hui Aloha PowerPoint

“I exercise my right to remain silent.”

A Note from the Stewardship Committee

Thank you to everyone for your generosity throughout 2025!

A special thanks to those who completed commitment cards for 2026. The Church Council is currently working on our budget (based on the total from the commitment cards) which will be presented for approval at our Annual Meeting on February 1st!

The 2026 offering envelopes have arrived and are available at the greeting table. If you do not see a box with your name and would like one, please see Penny.

You can leave a legacy! Indicating an amount or percentage to the church in your estate can guarantee a legacy for many generations in the future!

Movie Night for Adults

Adult Movie Night Koloa Union Church

Adults and teenagers are welcome! See the sign up sheet on the bulletin board.

Youth Bake Sale

Rev. Dr. David Vásquez-Levy

Donations of your baked goods AND purchasing baked goods help support our youth activities throughout the year–bowling, Koke`e retreats, `Aha Pae`aina youth events, to name a few. Enjoy delicious baked donations made by our youth and their ohana.

Lectionary Readings

LECTIONARY READINGS

Wednesday, February 11 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. At the Smith Memorial Parsonage Lectio Divina is a time to silently reflect together on a repeated reading from the Bible and then share with one another about the experience (if so desired). Lectio Divina typically meets on the second Wednesday of the month. Please let Kahu or Karen Johnson know if you plan to attend.

Let’s Go Camping!!

Summer Book Group Koloa Union Church "Jesus and John Wayne"

by Kristin Kobes Du Mez

Lenten Series & Soup Supper

Summer Book Group Koloa Union Church "Jesus and John Wayne"

by Kristin Kobes Du Mez

This year during Lent we will be “exploring our family stories” through scripture, history and faith. We will start with a soup dinner at 6 p.m. followed by a discussion created by leaders of the Hawaii Conference through story circles, video reflections, engaging discussions and Lenten practices. Come and join us on Wednesday during Lent. Sign up on the bulletin board.

Centennial Book

Now Available for $30

The Centennial Committee, Jeanie Odo (chair), Kahu, Penny Jessup,

Penny Osuga, and JoAnne Machin, researched and gathered information over the last 4 years and have a completed a book with the history of Koloa Union Church. It is 22 pages of photos and texts of our 100 year history, on 8 by 11 inches of high quality semi-gloss pages in hardcover format.

Contact the church office if you wish to purchase a copy.

The Centennial Committee, Jeanie Odo (chair), Kahu, Penny Jessup, Penny Osuga, and JoAnne Machin, researched and gathered information over the last 4 years and have a completed a book with the history of Koloa Union Church. It is 22 pages of photos and texts of our 100 year history, on 8 by 11 inches of high quality semi-gloss pages in hardcover format.

Lectionary Readings

LECTIONARY READINGS
Weekly Readings from the Bible

Each week, Christians throughout the world read biblical passages from the Revised Common Lectionary, including the Old Testament, Psalms, New Testament, and Gospels. After three years, a good portion of the Bible is included and the cycle begins again. RCL passages are often read in church worship services, and Kahu Akana usually includes at least one reading each Sunday.

Readings for January 18: Isaiah 49:1-7; Psalm 40:1-11; 1 Corinthians 1:1-9; John 1:29-42

Readings for January 25: Isaiah 9:1-4; Psalm 27:1-9; 1 Corinthians 1:10-18; Matthew 4:12-23

Readings for February 1: Micah 6:1-8; Psalm 15; 1 Corinthians 1:18-31; Matthew 5:1-12

Help us with the newsletter!

The KUC Newsletter is how we stay in touch! We send out our Newsletter on a monthly basis in order to keep everyone updated on what is going on at Koloa Union Church.

Be sure to see the pictures and images! If you don’t see any photographs and images by now (like a picture of our church directly above), you are missing out! You can usually fix this issue by clicking “View images” (usually at the very top of the email) in order to see the great photos and images throughout the Newsletter!

Be sure to see ALL of the news! You may not be seeing all of the KUC Newsletter! Some email servers “clip” the message in order to save storage space, so be sure to click on “View entire message” if it appears (usually at the bottom of the email). Otherwise, you’ll be missing out on someof the news!

Add to the KUC Newsletter! Scroll to the bottom of this email to learn how to add any announcements to the Newsletter or add an email to receive future editions! The next edition of the Newsletter will be April 9. Deadline for articles is April 6 Early submissions are greatly appreciated!