THE GRAPEVINE F I R S T P R E S B Y T E R I A N O F S A N D P O I N T, I D A H O A P R I L

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THE GRAPEVINE F IRST PRESB YT E RIAN OF SANDPOINT, IDAHO AP RIL 2014 The dark days of December have given way to brighter skies as winter loosens its grip.

1 THE GRAPEVINE F IRST PRESB YT E RIAN OF SANDPOINT, IDAHO AP RIL 2014 The dark days of December have given way to brighter skies as winter loosens its grip. The first quarter of the year is gone and 2014 marches on at a quick pace. One of the recent highlights of our life together this year is the St. Patrick's Day Supper and Fund Raiser. A big, Thank You! goes to Wesley Dustman and everyone else who helped make this event happen in such a fun and entertaining way. Even Frankie was able to join us, although she says it was not to bid on the cheesecake. Marilyn Catt shared a customized, or personalized version of the Irish blessing as she expressed her thankfulness for the love she and her family have experienced from the church during her illness. Joyce and Dale Buzz Boeck celebrated their 66th anniversary, having been married at First Presbyterian Church on St. Patrick's Day that many years ago. She is still singing, although apparently still looking for a man who carries a tune. It's nice she and Buzz have been patient with each other, and their love was evident as he raised his hand and shouted out during the song. We are blessed to have these members. Not just as part of our membership in terms of counting numbers, but our membership in terms of community, of learning from, and sharing life. Those kinds of connections take years to form, many struggles to get through, countless celebrations shared. Relational connections based on love is at the heart of Christian community. It is a reflection of the love God gives us and through Christ invites us to learn and grow as disciples. This connection is not intended for selfish gain, but to benefit others and bless the world through transformation, love and justice. One other thing I noticed about the dinner is that we were intentional as a church to reduce our impact. Although we decided to use paper plates out of convenience, we sorted our trash and I took the paper plates and napkins home. This fiber makes great compost. We saved one giant bag from the landfill. All the trash generated in Bonner County gets trucked to eastern Oregon. Out of sight, out of mind is all too common. Not every group sorts their trash, but it is a small sign that we are thinking beyond ourselves to care for God's creation, to help future generations, and be good stewards of what we've been given. Perhaps this can expand? To continue helping us claim our identity in Christ as a church family, to reach out to the larger community of Sandpoint, and beyond into the world, the church session is sending me as the Pastor and two Ruling Elders to a presbytery sponsored, Future Church Project event. April 4 th and 5 th at Whitworth University, the Moving Back Into the Neighborhood workshop will teach us to explore intentional ways of sharing the love of God with those around, of learning and experimenting with new ways of relating with our local context. There will be an invitation to continue this Missional Church project in a formal way over the next several months, and session will consider this. But for now, this event in early April will help us build on what we are already doing: celebrating God's love in community and sharing our joy with the world. A great message, especially on the verge of Easter! Peace, Pastor Andy

2 2 WORSHIP AND MUSIC With Jane Clark volunteering to serve as Clerk of Session, I became a free agent on Session. At the same time, Worship and Music team leader Judy Labrie desires to focus her attention upon some new, exciting Christian education opportunities. We played a game of musical chairs in which everyone finds a chair Jane as Clerk of Session, Judy as Christian Education team leader and me as Worship and Music team leader. Whew! As we continue our Lenten journey and approach Holy Week, please take note of the many opportunities that our church offers to the community to worship with us. These will include Wednesday evening Lenten meditations, Maundy Thursday communion service, Good Friday meditation and our annual prayer vigil. new area of discussion for me and I m really looking forward to knowing and experiencing more. We hope to have speakers in to share on various topics. You will be hearing more about these classes and discussions. NEW this Lent! Pastor Andy is leading a new Lenten Lectionary Reading Group on Wednesdays at noon at the church. Another golden opportunity to experience Lent on another level. I am personally enjoying the Wednesday evening Lenten Services (from 5:30 6:00). I love the quiet, contemplative nature with invitation to silence, scripture readings, Taize chants and short devotions. We are blessed to have such varied opportunities for growth and worship! Blessings of peace, Judy Labrie, Elder Bill Love CHRISTIAN EDUCATION We have been enjoying a Lenten study in the Sunday morning adult class (from 9:00 10:00) using the book, Wondrous Encounters Scripture for Lent, by Fr. Richard Rohr. The book includes two scripture readings from the Lectionary plus his commentary and a thoughtprovoking Starter Prayer for each day of Lent. Additionally we watch a part of the accompanying DVD called A Teaching on Wondrous Encounters. It s the kind of class that anyone can hop in on since the material each week stands alone. No need to miss out if you cannot attend every class. I hope you will join us! DEACON S UPDATES Deacons are proud to announce that approximately $ was raised during our International themed luncheon/auction in January. The proceeds from the luncheon/auction will be put toward our ongoing effort to retire our Sanctuary Building Loan. Many thanks to all who attended and contributed by offering and preparing the meals as well as all the fabulous items that were offered for the auction. After Easter our study topic will be Christian Environmental Stewardship. This is a whole

3 MEMBERSHIP The Membership Committee continues to remind everyone to keep membership development as a priority. Please ask friends, neighbors, and new acquaintances to join our faith family.

The Deacons next event is the Palm Sunday Breakfast on April 13th, from 8:30-10:00 a.m. We encourage you all to bring a friend and join the celebration.

3 3 MEMBERSHIP The Membership Committee continues to remind everyone to keep membership development as a priority. Please ask friends, neighbors, and new acquaintances to join our faith family. Pastor Andy has developed an excellent letter that you can use to help with any recruitment offer you make. The letter is available at the church office or could be ed to you. The Deacons next event is the Palm Sunday Breakfast on April 13th, from 8:30-10:00 a.m. We encourage you all to bring a friend and join the celebration. The menu will feature an assortment of egg casseroles/quiches, fruit salad, homemade muffins and beverages. Gluten free selections provided as well. We have in the past had an average of about 65 attendees; we'd like to break our record, so pass this along and TALK IT UP! In 2013, pounds of food was donated by First Presbyterian Church; that averages about pounds a month. From the Souper Sunday drive, 98 pounds of food was donated. Keep up the good work and let's make April exceed February's donation. Lost in the 50 s is coming soon and the Membership Committee is hard at work planning this year s big fundraiser. We need volunteers to make this project work. This year, we will try to schedule work assignments so no one person has to commit for a long period of time. Please plan to sign up and help. A signup sheet will be posted on the bulletin board at mid-month or you can inform either Chuck Humes or Chuck Bauer of your availability. Remember, God doesn t care about our capability, only our availability. Thank you for supporting our church and local missions. Your Deacons are very proud of our combined efforts and all the possibilities that await us in the coming year. Yours Deacons

4 MISSIONS Presbyterian Women met March 11th and heard a program on the Food Bank by Alice Wallace. It is amazing the amount of food our local food bank distributes.

4 4 MISSIONS Presbyterian Women met March 11th and heard a program on the Food Bank by Alice Wallace. It is amazing the amount of food our local food bank distributes. The Birthday Offering was received and dedicated. The money is used for mission work and its historical roots go back to 1831 with the Nez Perce Indians requesting mission workers. Discussion was held on a fund raiser for the building fund project to be determined. The next meeting is April 8th. Sack lunch at 11:45 a.m., 12:00 p.m. meeting. No program this month. PLANNED GIVING Preparing an estate plan is good Christian stewardship saying thanks to God, expressing your love and concern for family, and showing charity towards others. Making a Difference Without Spending Money Making a Difference without Spending Money is the Church's 2014 Missions campaign. Throughout the year, we'll introduce you to a variety of items you may be throwing away, but have great value. Our first two items were introduced last month, Box Tops for Education and Labels for Education, which are found on product packaging. Please keep the following list in your kitchen, so you can look for these labels before discarding product cans and boxes. The labels help fund Kids Alive. Box Tops for Education Remove box tops from the product and trim. Deposit in the tray over the Food Bank basket at the front door, or in the box in front of the Office. Here are the brands that have Box Tops, which are bright pink. Some brand products may not have Box Tops. Pillsbury Land O'Lakes Motts Applesauce Progresso Soup Old El Paso Kleenex Nature Valley Hefty Reeses Ziplock Bisquick Green Giant General Mills cereal Betty Crocker Gold Medal Flour Scott paper products Labels for Education These are also found on product packaging. Remove and trim. Deposit as described above. Here are the brands that have these labels. They aren't particularly colorful, so you'll need to look for them. Some brand products may not have the labels. BIC Campbell's Dannon Emerald Glad Pace Pepperidge Farm Post Pop Secret Prego SpaghettiO's Swanson Wolfgang Puck V8

5 5 MISSIONS (continued) Here are this month's items that can be put to good use. PLEASE ASK YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY TO HELP US COLLECT ALL OF THESE ITEMS. We're making a difference one item at a time. Used Eyeglasses, Sunglasses, and Glass Cases What to do with your old eyeglasses? Give them to EyeCare International, an Ohio-based group of doctors and volunteers. They go to El Salvador once a year to provide ophthalmology, optometry, and optical services for the underserved. Jean Babcock and Chuck Scott have made numerous trips with this group. The annual two-week mission serves 4,000-7,000 patients, which requires a lot of eyeglasses. Please put your eyeglasses, sunglasses, and cases in the tray at the front door and the box in front of the office. Plastic Grocery Bags Even though everyone is encouraged to use reusable shopping bags, we still acquire small plastic produce bags and larger plastic shopping bags. Lois Scott is part of a group that recycles these plastic bags to the Food Bank. This allows the Food Bank to use its money on food, not bags, and it helps the environment. Just put your plastic supermarket grocery and produce bags in the Food Bank boxes at the front door and in front of the Office. Anna Bates, Elder Something Borrowed I will not be automatically sending out quarterly giving statements this year. If you would like to have a quarterly giving statement or want an update on your contributions, please contact me at and I will print one out for you. Susie Haskins Financial Secretary FINANCE Finance Fast Facts: The Building Loan was reduced by $1,500+/- in March leaving a balance of $11,191! Again the general fund showed a loss of about $1,000. See new Finance section of bulletin board in hallway across from office for current financial reports. Don Helander When a Sunday school teacher told her class that Jesus was buried in a borrowed tomb, one girl raised her hand to share an insight. I know why, the girl said. It s because Jesus only used it for three days.

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Sandpoint United Methodist Church, 208-263-4232 First Presbyterian Church, 208-263-2047 April 2 April 6 April 7 April

7 7 Have a Great Summer by Planning on Attending KIDS ALIVE DAY CAMP!!! KIDS ALIVE SUMMER DAY CAMP JULY 21 24, 2014 CITY BEACH TO BE DETERMINED First Lutheran Church, Sandpoint United Methodist Church, First Presbyterian Church, April 2 April 6 April 7 April 12 April 13 April 14 April 16 April 19 April 30 Bill Love Elizabeth Griswold Anne Marie Casey Lani Wahl Barbara Rolph Anne Bagby Joyce Boeck Marilyn Catt Pastor Andy Kennaly

8 8 Calendar Announcements 3/30-4/4 Bonner County Schools Spring Break 4/6 Deacons Meeting, 8:00 a.m. Membership Outreach Meeting 4/8 Presbyterian Women s Meeting, 11:45 a.m. 4/2 & 4/16 Church Breakfast, 8:00 a.m. at Connies Cafe 4/2 & 4/9 Lenten Service, 5:30-6:00 p.m. 4/13 Palm Sunday Deacons Fundraiser Breakfast 4/13 & 27 Handbell practice, 9:00 a.m. 4/17 Maundy Thursday, dinner at 5:30 p.m. followed by Worship at 6:30 p.m. 4/18 Good Friday Observance, 11:30 a.m. 2:00 p.m. 4/19 Easter Vigil 4/20 Easter Sunday Sunday Monday Wednesday Thursday Regular Monthly Events Adult Sunday School 9:00 a.m. Worship is 10:30 a.m. Fellowship, following service 6:00 p.m. Al-Anon 5:30 p.m., Companions in Christ, 1st & 3rd Wednesdays Church Breakfast, 8:00 a.m. at Connie s Café on 1st & 3rd Wednesdays 12:00 p.m., Al-Anon

9 9 First Presbyterian Church Ministers: Members and Friends Pastor Andy Kennaly 417 North Fourth Avenue, Sandpoint, Idaho Pastor cell phone:

THE GRAPEVINE. F IRST PRESB YT E RIAN OF SANDPOINT, IDAHO Septe mber 2014

THE GRAPEVINE. F IRST PRESB YT E RIAN OF SANDPOINT, IDAHO Septe mber 2014 THE GRAPEVINE F IRST PRESB YT E RIAN OF SANDPOINT, IDAHO Septe mber 2014 FROM THE PASTOR This was an amazing summer filled with a variety of worship and adventures. It was great to gather at City Beach