Religion briefs

Ham ball supper at Eldon Methodist Church

The Eldon Methodist Church will host a ham ball supper from 3-7 p.m. Saturday, March 18.

The menu will feature ham balls, cheesy potatoes, green beans and choice of pie, cake or brownies. Since the basement is under renovation from the flooding the church received almost two years ago, this will be carry out or car side pickup only for a free-will offering.

In other news, two church members spent a day volunteering at MidWest Missions Distribution Center in Pawnee, Illinois. They packed personal dignity kits for shipment to Turkey and then Poland and Ukraine as needed. Bottles of shampoo were delivered as well as several bicycles and sewing machine.

National Undergraduate Organ Competition

First Presbyterian Church is hosting a National Undergraduate Organ Competition March 24-26 with events for Ottumwa kids and adults. Organists from past competitions have served many churches, including the National Cathedral in Washington, D. C.

A schedule of events is as follows:

7:30 p.m. Friday, March 24: Dr. Lynn Trapp will give an organ recital on the First Presbyterian Church's 55 rank Tellers organ. Trapp was the 1984 winner and is a very talented musician. A reception will follow the concert. There is no admission charge.

10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 25: Young people, fourth grade and up, will have the opportunity to build an organ that will play at St. Mary's Catholic Church. When they have finished (about 12:30 p.m.), they will walk to First Presbyterian Church for a free pizza lunch. Students must pre-register so sponsors will know how much pizza to purchase. Register at organcompetition@ottumwafpc.org.

1 p.m. Saturday, March 25: Trapp will present "Repertoire for Church Organists" at St. Mary's Catholic Church. This is free and open to all church organists and interested persons. No registration required.

1:30 p.m. Sunday, March 26: The National Undergraduate Organ Competition will be begin at First Presbyterian Church. Eliminations have been held, and the three finalists will compete. First prize is $3,500, second is $2,500 and third is $1,500. A $500 audience's choice prize will also be awarded. These performers are college students from Minnesota to New York.

For additional information, contact Steve or Cheryl Miller at 641-684-4753.

Religion page submission guidelines

The deadline for religious news items is noon on Wednesday, prior to Saturday’s publication, space permitting. News items include announcements on guest speakers, pastors and musicians or other special services. Submissions announcing other events will be passed on to the appropriate department.

Announcements regarding Christmas, Easter, Advent and Lenten services will have special guidelines as the seasons approach.

Those items submitted after the noon deadline on Wednesday will receive consideration, but there is no guarantee of publication.

Items will be published in the order they are received, as close to the date of the event as possible. While every effort will be made to run them on certain days, there is no guarantee of publication on a certain day.

Religious news items may be submitted via email to newsclerk@ottumwacourier.com. All submissions must include a name and phone number. For more information, call the news clerk at 641-684-4611 ext. 335.

Questions or information related to the church directory should be directed to the Courier’s classifieds department at 641-684-4611, then select classifieds option or by emailing classified@ottumwacourier.com.