Current Events
Check out what has been happening at Arcade UCC!
4th Annual School Supply Giveaway
For the fourth year in a row, Arcade UCC provided a free school supply giveaway for Pioneer Middle and High School students. While the elementary schools within the district provide the needed supplies for their students, families of middle and high school students are given the opportunity on a first-come, first-serve basis to gather their school supplies at Arcade UCC.
The Arcade Salvation Army generously supplied the backpacks for this giveaway again this year and members of the church spent a few hours filling those backpacks with the school supplies provided by the church and generous donations. A special thank you to Judy Haberer for coordinating this donation from the local Salvation Army and delivering the backpacks to us each year! In all, 165 backpacks were filled and handed out to families in the Pioneer community!
All backpacks were given out well before the end of the time allotted for the giveaway!
This outreach program has had great success over the past four years and is met with sincere appreciation from area families. We thank all of our volunteers who helped to make this happen! Our community is so grateful!!
Vacation Bible School
June 2025
This year's VBS theme was community. The kids spent the first day celebrating Hometown Superheroes! They had an amazing visit from the Arcade Police Department and the Arcade Volunteer Fire Department. Day two included a trip to the Arcade Free Library for stories, crafts and lots of great books! The final day was a fun culmination of bounce houses and water games! What a way to kick-off the summer!
Josh Bower
Pastor
Greetings! My name is Josh Bower and I have served as the Pastor of Arcade United Church of Christ since 2020. In that short period of time – much of which was impacted by a global pandemic – it has been incredible to see the amazing work that God has been doing in our midst and within our greater Pioneer community. It is a joy to be able to grow and serve with the great people of Arcade UCC. My wife Nicole and I live in a home we built from the ground up in my hometown of Ellicottville, which is a good middle ground between Arcade and Little Valley, where Nicole works as a Registered Nurse for Hospice. We have two dogs named George and Ginny.
I am currently completing my Master of Divinity degree through Chicago Theological Seminary and completed my undergraduate work at the University of Pittsburgh – Bradford. In my free time I enjoy cooking, barbequing meat, hiking, skiing, and gardening. Feel free to email me if you have any questions about our faith community!
585-492-4530