All are Welcome
- Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost
- Blessing of the Animals
- August 24, 2025
- 10:00AM – Worship in the Courtyard (outside)
- View the livestream
Sermon Questions
- How have animals blessed us in our own lives?
- How might we share the joy and comfort we receive from animals with others, particularly those in need?
- Where do you see “the least of our human family (and fellow furry friends), and how can our care for animals inspire us to extend compassion to all?
Order of Worship
| Prelude As the Deer TFWS #2025 Kathy Onishi |
| Welcome of Grace and Greeting Rev. Karen Yokota Love |
| Land Acknowledgement Kobe Yamamoto |
| *Opening Hymn All Things Bright and Beautiful UMH #147 Kathy Onishi, Eugene Onishi |
| Opening Prayer Kobe Yamamoto |
| First Scripture Reading Psalm 59:9-10 (CEB) Tsutomu Nagoya, Kobe Yamamoto |
| Children’s Sermon Rev. Job Pangilinan |
| Second Scripture Reading Genesis 1:20-25 (CEB) Tsutomu Nagoya |
| Sermon The Joy of Animals Rev. Karen Yokota Love |
| Blessing of the Animals Rev. Karen Yokota Love and Pastor Job Pangilinan |
| Hymn of Reflection Loving Spirit TFWS #2123 Kathy and Eugene Onishi |
| Introduction to the Offering Kobe Yamamoto |
| Offertory Song El Shaddai UMH #123 Kathy Onishi |
| *Doxology Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow UMH #94 Kathy and Eugene Onishi |
| *Prayer of Dedication Kobe Yamamoto |
| Announcements Rev. Karen Love Yokota and Friends |
| *Closing Hymn Whom Shall I Send UMH #582 Kathy and Eugene Onishi |
| *Benediction Rev. Karen Yokota Love |
| Postlude Let All Things Now Living TFWS #2008 Kathy Onishi |
Daily Lectionary Readings
BMUMC Announcements
Last year, Blaine Memorial UMC gathered family and friends from the community to welcome fall with our Annual Bazaar! Support our congregation through this wonderful event with food, light entertainment, and fellowship.
Blaine Memorial UMC’s Annual Bazaar, beneficiary announced
- When: Saturday, October 4, 2025
- Where: Blaine Memorial UMC
This year’s Benefit Bazaar Beneficiary is Tsuru for Solidarity. Tsuru for Solidarity’s mission is to:
- Educate, advocate, and protest to close all U.S. concentration camps
- Build solidarity with other communities of color that have experienced forced removal, detention, deportation, separation of families, and other forms of racial and state violence
- Coordinate intergenerational, cross-community healing circles addressing the trauma of our shared histories
More details to come! Please save this date and contact the Church Office for questions regarding Bazaar!
Wednesday Morning Coffee and Prayer
- When: 9:00AM
- Where: Zoom
Meeting ID: 985 4817 5708
Dial by your location
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
Meeting ID: 985 4817 5708
The hour together consists of brief check-ins, devotionals, and prayers. We will continue reading from the July/August 2025 Edition of The Upper Room Daily Devotional Guide. This is a great way to start your morning, clear and center your mind, all while connecting with God and your prayer community. Feel free to bring a cup of coffee, tea, and a bite to eat.
Photo: Japanese American Town Hall
On Tuesday, August 19, Tsuru for Solidarity, Seattle JACL, Densho, Minidoka Pilgrimage Planning Committee, and Blaine Memorial UMC hosted a community-led town hall meeting at the MLK FAME Community Center in Seattle to share the lasting impacts of WWII incarceration, and demanded that our government act now, in ways they never did in 1941, to protect vulnerable communities.
Thank you to the Blaine Memorial UMC church members Shigeru Nishida, Keiko Yanagihara, and Sharon Maeda who shared their heartfelt and powerful stories as Japanese American survivors and/or descendants of the WWII incarceration camps. They shared about their own personal stories, trauma, and generational impact that it had on their own lives and families. They spoke directly to elected officials and held them accountable. They demanded that they take more action to oppose mass incarceration and deportation of our immigrant friends, neighbors, and partners being targeted.
Thank you to all of our members who showed up at the Town Hall to support and to be heard!
Photo provided by Kim Akimoto.
Community Announcements
A National Day of Action / Protect Every Park was held at the waterfront in Seattle, Wash. on Saturday, August 23. Prominent members of the community stood up against attacks on our National Parks System and the erasure of Japanese American incarceration and social justice sites. This event features guest speakers, taiko drum performances by Seattle Matsuri Taiko and more.
Photos: A National Day of Action/Protect Every Park
How can we protect our National Parks and preserve the history and heritage of Japanese Americans? It’s time to make your voices heard! Yesterday, members of Blaine Memorial UMC attended A National Day of Action, Protect Every Park event. Guest speakers included Lawrence Matsuda, Ph.D (activist, writer, and educator), the Honorable Clarence Moriwaki (Bainbridge Island City Council member), Huy Pham (Executive Director, Asian American and Asian & Pacific Islander Americans in Historic Preservation), and Erin Shigaki (artist and advocate, representing Tsuru for Solidarity). Also the Honorable Sharon Tomiko Santos, State Representative of the 37th Legislative District, spoke at the event.
This event was supported by the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), Tsuru for Solidarity, Densho, APIAHiP, Minidoka Pilgrimage, Wing Luke Museum, and NPCA.
Photos by the Rev. Karen Yokota Love.
Migrant and Refugee Donation Ministry at Riverton Park UMC!
- When: Tuesday-Friday between 10:00AM-4:00PM
- Where: Church Office
Riverton Park UMC needs:
- Diapers (sizes 3 through 7)
- Diaper wipes
- Kitchen pots and pans
- Paper plates
- Toothpaste
- Long grain rice
- Cooking Oil
Blaine Memorial UMC Collection Hours: Collection items can be dropped off to the Blaine Memorial Social Hall from Tuesday-Friday between 10:00AM-4:00PM. Please call the Church Office at (206) 723-1536 prior to dropping off your items.
View the August 2025 Calendar
