POCATELLO — A large basket full of fall produce from the Portneuf Valley Farmer’s Market filled the alter on a recent Sunday at the First Congregational United Church of Christ as the new pastor, Marijke Fakasiieiki, spoke of the warm welcome she has felt from the congregation and community.

The extravagant welcome she felt dovetails well with Fakasiieiki’s background and work experience in mission and ministry. In her childhood home, dinner table discussions of theology were not unusual. Her father and grandfather served as pastors in the United Methodist Church and the United Church of Christ, with a bend toward the international scene. Her mother was a freelance religious journalist whose work derived inspiration from the social gospel movement of Walter Rauschenbusch. Fakasiieiki describes that ministry as preaching with a Bible in one hand and a newspaper in the other. As a child, she learned that you cannot serve God unless you know what’s happening in the world. She sees this world view as a way of practicing faith daily.

Fakasiieiki completed her Bachelor of Arts degree in international studies and German from the University of Oregon in 1994. She continued to the Graduate Religious Studies Program at Gonzaga University for two years. She also completed a Certificate of Theological Studies from the Bossey Ecumenical Institute in Celigny, Switzerland, in 1996 and served as the international alumni coordinator for the Bossey Institute. Then she transferred to Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California, to complete a Master of Divinity in Ethics, Education, Ecumenism and Interfaith Dialogue in 1998. Her work and pursuit of learning and service opportunities has taken her to Hawaii, Haiti, Tonga, Switzerland, Canada, Zimbabwe and Australia, Vatican City and Malaysia. She is also the editor and administrator for The Fig Tree Northern California/Nevada, an online resource to connect people in the region, putting their faith into action.

Fakasiieiki has been called to the First Congregational United Church of Christ for a term of two years. She sees her role in this small but vital church community as an invigorator to move the church forward into the future. She understands that this church has played an important role through its community service and has shown a strong presence in Old Town Pocatello. She also sees worship as the primary place where people gather to support each other in their individual spiritual journeys and to connect with the larger local and international community.

Worship service begins at 11 a.m. every Sunday with Holy Communion on the first Sunday of the month. The First Congregational United will host the 22nd semiannual South Indian dinner on Saturday, Oct. 1 at 6 p.m. at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, 309 N. Garfield Ave.The cost of dinner is $7 and buys a delicious and authentic multi-course meal and helps support an orphanage in India. For more information about the church, visit www.uccpocatello.org.