The Buzz newsletter | Updated Weekly
Meet & Treat this Friday!
Details are coming together for Meet & Treat this Friday evening! We're looking forward to
a great evening with friends and family from Butler and our surrounding community. Extend an invite to your neighbors!
The event time is 5-7PM!
Every year we have hundreds of people come into our campus; let’s be praying for all who will come out this year. While this event is not about celebrating Halloween, we are about being a safe environment and a fun place for our Butler Church family & community! Let’s remember to share the good news, letting people know that Jesus is the Light of the world!
Volunteers: Remember we're gathering at 4pm to finish set up and pray together. Please come to the Family Center and get a nametag. Parking for volunteers will be in the small parking lot, and we'll encourage our guests to use the main lot.
Update from Pastor Ron
Reality.
Depending on where you live, work, or go to school, you may have found yourself distressed by news of the ongoing US government shutdown and its effects. Many of the conversations surrounding this unfolding crisis may be politically motivated or academically oriented. But, here in southeast Fresno, the experience of many residents is that the government shutdown is making everyday life significantly more unstable and tenuous. Food insecurity is an ongoing threat that has only increased over the past several weeks. This will change again, for the worse, on Saturday (Nov 1) when funding for SNAP* benefits (food stamps) runs out. While we cannot replace the work of so many critical government agencies and service platforms, we can be informed, pray for political resolution, and advocate for greater justice for our neighbors – persistent “prayer with legs” like we find in Luke 18! *See links for additional info on SNAP.
Opportunity.
Butler Church is in a distinctive position to make a difference in our community! In addition to our monthly food distributions (first Friday) and regular requests that come to the church office each week, we are making a new appeal for how Butler members and friends can be part of a solution for our neighbors.
Here are two tangible ways to contribute: (1) Stock the Butler Church Pantry: beginning this Sunday, we are opening a place in the church foyer to drop off dry goods (items like canned vegetables, canned soups, and dry pasta are especially welcome); and (2) Volunteer as a Butler Church Pantry Organizer: we welcome volunteers to help organize and monitor our pantry, as well as being present during Sunday gatherings or special events to represent this critical form of outreach. Please join us as a pastoral team, church staff, and Council leadership in prayer and action as we cultivate sensitivity to the Spirit’s leading at a time when there is deep need all around us!
In Memory
Longtime Butler member, Johanna Braun, passed away last week Thursday at Palm Village in Reedley. The obituary is available here. A memorial service will take place on Wednesday, Nov 5.
Ministry Highlight: MCC
This past Sunday, we welcomed Dina Gonzalez-Piña, Executive Director West Coast Mennonite Central Committee to share in our Common Ground worship service. Her message was "When Heaven Touches Earth: A Prayer for Peace and Justice." Thank you, Dina, for being with us!
Time Change Sunday
This coming Sunday, November 2 is time change Sunday. Take the opportunity to turn in at the ‘regular’ time and get some extra sleep! Or skip changing your clocks, and arrive to church extra early! :)
Mark Your Calendar!
Our Missions Sunday is coming up on Sunday, November 23! The morning will begin with café fellowship time at 9:30am followed by a combined service in the Worship Center. We will be giving thanks to God for all he has provided us with this past year, as well as hear about our missionaries.
As we join together in support of our missionaries & mission partners both financially and in prayer, our giving goal this year is $20,000. Please mark your calendar for this great Sunday, and be in prayer for what amount God is leading you to give. More at butlerchurch.org/missions.
More news items....
Assistance Fund Donations
Through the Butler Church Benevolent Assistance Fund, we have been able to help with several time sensitive needs recently. Given the upcoming cuts in SNAP funding even more requests may be coming in soon. Please consider making an additional donation to the church benevolent fund, by designating for this in the offering or through giving online. We also work with partner agencies like MB Foundation and Everence to expand our capacity through matching grants.
If caring for needs of folks in our community in very practical ways is something close to your heart, please also talk with your pastor or contact the church office. We would like to build a social action response team that can respond to needs as they are made known. If you have a personal need, please also talk with a pastor.
An All New Meet & Treat
An invitation and encouragement from our Children's Ministry Director, Maria Galvan:
As the month of October draws to an end, I’m excited that Meet and Treat will be happening! We are doing things a little bit different this year. The plan is to serve hot dogs, and a cake walk, but also have games and utilize our classrooms for trick or treating!
We hope to keep it simple so that we can make connections with our community; and that includes our Butler friends and family as well. In order for all this to happen we need about 20-25 volunteers.
In the past we’ve depended on Fresno Pacific University students for a big portion of this event, but we'd love to have more Butler people come out and serve.
Every year we have hundreds of people come into our campus; let’s be praying for all who will come out this year. While this event is not about celebrating Halloween, we are about being a safe environment and a fun place for our Butler Church family & community! Let’s remember to share the good news, letting people know that Jesus is the Light of the world! Every year when we have Meat & Treat we always get positive feedback. It brings me such joy to see so many returning families and new ones as well.
Three things we are in need of: Prayer, Volunteers, and lots of Candy! Let’s remember to love God, love our community, and serve both. I’m excited to see what the Lord has planned for us. Pray with me that those we serve see Christ in us and that our light shines bright. Blessings!
Text Updates from Butler Church
If you find an occasional text reminder helpful,
be sure to “Opt In”
so our “Breeze-butler” text messages get through! To share your preferences for text or email updates, you can complete the Butler Subscriptions form. Thanks!
Note: If you have signed up, but are no longer receiving text updates - try texting START to 87447. Remember that "msg & data rates may apply." Details are in the Butler subscriptions form.
Spanish Translation Available!
Our Butler website is also available in Spanish! Click the upper left corner to switch between English and Spanish. (If you notice any translation errors, please let us know!)
¡Nuestro sitio web Butler ahora también está disponible en español! Haga clic en el ícono de arriba para cambiar entre inglés y español. (Si nota algún error de traducción, ¡avísenos!)
¡Nuestro sitio web Butler ahora también está disponible en español! Haga clic en el ícono de arriba para cambiar entre inglés y español. (Si nota algún error de traducción, ¡avísenos!)
Updated on: 10/22/2025
Looking for earlier Butler news stories? You can visit our news archive here.