The!!!!!!!!!!! Bridgeport Presbyterian Church. One John Calvin Drive, Bridgeport, WV

Transcription

1 The!!!!!!!!!!! Bridgeport Presbyterian Church One John Calvin Drive, Bridgeport, WV

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3 Exciting News From Your PNC The Session of the Bridgeport Presbyterian Church met for their Stated Meeting on Tuesday evening, February 10, Session members met in the Lounge at 7:00 pm. The meeting was called to order, opened with prayer and moderated by Reverend George Spransy. Nancy Atkinson presented the evening s devotions. Highlights of the meeting included: Session approved the baptism of Amyah Faith Yeager, and Avery Clayton Beakes. Spring workday is scheduled on April 4, Reverend Dale Waters will fill our pulpit on April 5 and 12. Kids Klub went bowling at Compton Lanes on February 22 at 1:30 pm. There was a Youth Lock-In on February 27 from 8:00 PM 8:00 AM. Youth Sunday and Senior Recognition is May 17, Vacation Bible School is scheduled 20 23rd. July The first Lenten dinner and service was Ash Wednesday Joe Timms was appointed commissioner to the Presbytery Winter Meeting at First Presbyterian Church, Morgantown, on Saturday, March 21. Naomi Burkhammer, Clerk. 3 The Pastor Nominating Committee invites the congregation to join it in welcoming Reverend Robin Ray, called by God, to serve the Bridgeport Presbyterian Church as Minister of Word and Sacrament. Robin comes to us from the First Presbyterian Church of Wooster, Ohio, where she currently serves as Associate Pastor. Having graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary and subsequently ordained in 2002, Robin has officially served the Presbyterian Church since becoming a deacon in her home church at age 16. Robin is excited about coming to Bridgeport Presbyterian Church and is anxious to meet the members of our congregation. She takes an interest in the community where she resides and is planning to participate in Bridgeport community activities. Two of her areas of particular interest are member care and Christian education especially with the children and youth. We welcome Robin, her husband, Craig, her adult sons Kyle and James, and dogs Rascal, Sasha, and Dexter to our church family. All are invited to meet Robin and Craig at a reception in their honor, Saturday, March 14, 2009, in our Fellowship Hall. More information on Robin and the exact time for the reception will be provided in a brochure to be mailed soon. The congregation is also encouraged to hear Rev. Ray preach during worship on Sunday, March 15. Following the worship service, a congregational meeting will be held to hear and act on the report from the Pastor Nominating Committee regarding the pastoral call of Rev. Robin Ray. Voting will be by secret ballot.

4 INTRODUCING OUR ELDERS Presbyterian Women 2009 Presbyterian Women have started their new year 2009 with some interesting activities planned for the year. The coordinating team met on January 31 to discuss themes for the year and activities. The Morning Circle, led by Sue Davis, has started their spring season with discussions from various chapters in the Bible. That Circle meets on Mondays at 10 am. The Evening Circle, led by Lois Withrow started their meetings with a get together in February to discuss what types of studies they would like to pursue during the year. The women also joined with other women from Bridgeport in a Women's Ecumenical Luncheon on February 21st at the Pete Dye Country Club. Various church women from Bridgeport are participating in this group and hope to make it a regular occurrence. Discussions were held about the Spring Meeting to be held May 26th and the Festival of Faith to be held in Charleston on April 4th. Membership in Presbyterian Women is open to all women in our church. Contact either Moderator Anna Winans, Morning Circle Chairperson Sue Davis or Evening Circle Chairperson Lois Withrow for more information. Old Friends Return in April The Worship Committee announced that our pulpit will be occupied by the Rev. Dale Waters on April 5 th & 12 th, Rev. James Morley on April 19 th and Rev. Del Parris on April 26 th. 19"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; 20but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6: Betty Jo Jones is head of the Children's Health Pantry here at Bridgeport Presbyterian Church. She has been a member of our church for ten years. She has been an active Elder in our church two different terms. She has just become an inactive Elder, having served on Session for the last three years. Betty Jo has served on Mission, Fellowship and most recently and currently, the Outreach Committee of which she is past chairperson. She indicates that she enjoys Outreach the most. Many people are unaware of the amount of time spent by Betty Jo on the Children's Health Pantry during the month. Children's health pantry actually encompasses personal care items for children ages birth to eighteen, household cleaning kits and lice eradication kits. Betty Jo is the person who has been responsible for compiling the list of products to be purchased and either purchasing them herself or giving the list to one or two others who assist her. Betty also then organizes the packing of the items into the kits (generally on four days each month) and makes arrangements to be there when outside agencies pick them up. For just the personal care items alone, that meant that in 2008, there were over 1000 kits packed up. In addition to the Children's Health Pantry, Betty Jo is our representative to Shepherd's Corner (the Bridgeport Food Pantry). She is also participates on most of the activities undertaken by the Outreach Committee. Betty Jo's best memory of the church is finding the church. She was not a Presbyterian prior to joining our church. Most of you know her dog, Jack, who spends a lot of time with his mistress on walks around Bridgeport weather permitting. When she is not walking Jack, she does enjoy reading. Betty has one sister, Mary Wendt and a brother Charles Clinebell. 4

5 RHINO REPORT Jeanne & Ken Pote Twenty-one volunteers from various churches around the Presbytery of West Virginia (including one person from Alabama) joined us February 9 15 by participating in the Rebuilding Hope in New Orleans (RHINO) mission project. This undertaking is just one of many mission projects sponsored by the St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church. Conceived by SCAPC s pastor Donald Frampton, RHINO is a 10 year commitment to help restore and rebuild New Orleans after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in August In the initial years, RHINO volunteers concentrated on debris removal. Beginning last year, RHINO partnered with Habitat for Humanity and agreed to provide financial support as well as volunteers for 14 new homes on Ferry Place, not far from the Mississippi River in an area that did not flood in the wake of Katrina. One of the highlights of our week was a guided tour of New Orleans with detailed explanations as to why and where the levees failed. As former residents of New Orleans, we thought we had a decent understanding of this disaster from watching news reports. However, as we found out, there is much more to the story than has been reported by the media. While New Orleans missed the brunt of the hurricane, the levee system was compromised by a large storm surge that back flowed into the complex system of drainage and industrial canals and by run away barges that broke a vital concrete levee wall (we didn t know this). Compounding this, the US Corps of Engineers failed to prohibit many years of development along the base of the levee system. Some homeowners even dug underground swimming pools at the base of the levees which greatly contributed to their washing out from the base. The flooding encompassed 80% of the city and affected all economic classes. To this day there are a large number of vacant and gutted homes in middle and upper class neighborhoods. But the poor suffered the most. The Lower 9 th Ward, which made most of the headlines, is in a particularly low and vulnerable part of the city. Today it looks like the aftermath of a war zone. There are vast stretches of vacant lots with only an occasional rebuilt home. The former residents of this area lost everything along with many lives. Most can not prove ownership of the cleared lots because all deed and insurance papers were destroyed. The federal, state and city governments all failed New Orleans in their lack of hurricane evacuation preparedness, levee maintenance, disaster assistance and a failure to follow up on rebuilding promises. While we were there, the local paper reported that over $3.5 billion in relief funds is being held up because of continued FEMA red tape. Katrina happened 3 ½ years ago but the first hospital emergency room in New Orleans reopened just 3 weeks ago! Our experience with RHINO was nothing short of fantastic. The fellowship, hard work, enthusiasm and congeniality of this group of volunteers was uplifting. When we arrived at the work site the first floor had been studded on two houses. Our group succeeded in installing the floor joists and decking for the second floors and finished most second floor walls. We installed sheathing and Tyvek (insulation) on the first floors, moved trusses for the roof and cleaned out two storage containers. We had the opportunity to meet the owner of one of the houses and watched the wall raising and dedication ceremony. What affected us the most was the overwhelming gratitude of the citizens of New Orleans that we had not forgotten them and volunteers like us continue to return to help in the rebuilding. A stranger driving by the work site stopped and thanked us, the pizza delivery man thanked us. The continued behind-the scene support throughout the community was inspiring. The SCAPC provides RHINO with financial support, assistance in volunteer housing, meals at the church prepared by members including one night each week at a member s home (yes, all 23 of us!), a paid RHINO coordinator, and weekly tour guides for each new group of volunteers. The RHINO project runs weekly with new volunteers from September through June and will continue for at least another 7 years. Other ongoing commitments of this congregation include a large preschool program for the community, GED classes and support of various missionaries including trips to Cuba. The SCAPC has grown since Katrina, in large part due to their outreach and dedication to the numerous mission projects. In addition, an Episcopal church provides daily lunch deliveries to the various Habitat sites. The mobile Loaves and Fishes van was a welcome sight. This was a well organized, highly effective and inspiring mission project. Faith based and private programs such as RHINO are making more headway than government assistance in restoring the devastated lives in New Orleans. We all were sad to leave the unfinished homes, the continued needs of the citizens and city of New Orleans and the fellowship and enthusiasm of our fellow volunteers. This is an extremely worthwhile project sponsored by our Presbytery and needs to be generously supported on an on-going basis, not only financially but with your physical presence. We guarantee you will come away as elated and as emotionally enriched as we were. We re sure Craig, Rod, Sarah, Mike and Matt have already shared their experiences. We have many more memories and fulfilling stories to share with you once we return from Colorado - just ask us. Jeannie and Ken Pote 5

6 God found a way to use a man in ill health, a man who could not read music, to write a classic hymn. In fact, another classic he wrote was Great is Thy Faithfulness. Just remember, next time you feel uncomfortable or lacking skills to do something for the church With God, all things are possible. Respectfully submitted, Lynne A. Davis Music Director Many times members of churches are asked why they don t participate in some of the activities of the church. Many times the answer is in the form of such things as, I really am not comfortable doing something like that, or I really have no skill in that area. While on the surface, both of these statements may seem true, we often forget that God is in control. I am a firm believer in the idea that if God wants us to do something, he ll find a way for us to do just that. In fact, the hymn lyrist I am going to focus on this month wrote many great hymns, but could not even read a note of music. Born in a log cabin in Kentucky in 1866, Thomas O. Chisholm was educated in a one room school house and eventually taught there. He worked hard, and soon a local newspaper offered him a job. It was during this time that he attended a revival at Asbury College, and Thomas became a Christian. He then took a job working for a Christian publication and finally, became a Methodist minister. After serving in this position for only one year, Thomas, due to poor health, had to resign and move to Indiana to live with the rest of his family. He sold insurance and wrote poetry in his spare time as a relaxing technique. He published many of these poems and they came to the attention of songwriter and pastor, C. Harold Lowden. Lowden had written a song for the children in his church, but he felt the words did not enhance his music. So, he contacted Thomas Chisholm and asked him to write a new set of words. Upon receiving the music, Thomas sent it right back saying that he did not have enough experience to write words for hymn, and he could not actually read music. Not to be discouraged, Lowden sent the words back saying, I believe God led me to select you. So, Thomas had his daughter hum the music over and over again to him until he found suitable words to fit the melody. This was the birth of Living for Jesus. CHILDREN'S EASTER CELBRATION PALM SUNDAY 11:00 CRAFTS, STORIES, PRETZEL MAKING & EGG HUNT BRING A BASKET AND A FRIEND SIGN UP ON THE BOARD IN THE HALLWAY. ***WE NEED CANDY DONTATIONS FOR THE EGG HUNT. MAKE SURE IT IS SMALL ENOUGHT TO PUT IN THE EGGS. NO CHOCOLATE DUE TO MELTING IF IT IS A SUNNY DAY. LEAVE CANDY IN THE OFFICE MARKED EASTER CELEBRTION NO LATER THAN TURSDAY, APRIL 2." THANK YOU! 6

7 Sunday, March 29 Fellowship Hall 5:00 PM Honoring U if!sfw/!hfpshf!c!tqsbotz-!ks/! On His 40 Years of Service to the Presbyterian Church And Retirement from the Ministry Service as Interim Pastor to the Bridgeport Presbyterian Church Mark your calendars for a night of Fun, Fellowship and Memories as we Toast (Roast) Rev. George 7

8 Women s Ecumenical Luncheon Seventeen of our own Presbyterian Women met at Pete Dye Golf Club on Saturday February 21 st. Along with 70 other local church women, we enjoyed the first annual Women of God luncheon. Women from Bridgeport Presbyterian Church, All Saints Catholic Church, Fellowship Bible Church and Bridgeport United Methodist Church enjoyed a lovely afternoon getting to know our fellow church women, so that we might work together in our community to bring the love of Jesus Christ to those around us. The lunch was beautifully catered by the staff and Pete Dye provided a very relaxing atmosphere to enjoy conversation and fellowship. The afternoon began with scripture, prayer and a time of devotion. And then the women enjoyed a little fun together as we played a game and drew a wonderful door prize. Each church donated something for the door prize. Our women decided to include our Fair Trade coffee products so that we may spread the word about mission projects that we are currently supporting in our own congregation. The new ecumenical women s coordinating team will meet the beginning of March to discuss organization, mission plans, and further fellowship and worship opportunities. If you were unable, for whatever reason, to attend the luncheon there will be many more opportunities for you to get involved in this brand new endeavor. All who were involved with the planning of the day and future projects, felt the Holy Spirit s encouraging hand every step of the way! Everyone left the luncheon with new friends, and a sense of purpose. The excitement from everyone could not be missed! Along with the churches who participated in the luncheon, Bridgeport Baptist, Simpson Creek Baptist, and Bridgeport Church of Christ plan on participating in further plans. If you know of or can get the names of the moderator s of other coordinating teams in Bridgeport church s, please talk to Anna Winans, who will be serving on the Ecumenical Women s coordinating team. Any church in Bridgeport that shares our common belief in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is welcome and encouraged to participate. So ladies, please talk to your friends from other churches! Be on the look out for future activities of the united church women of Bridgeport and come out and support efforts to further Christ s love and hope in our world and to demonstrate that, even though we may worship differently, we are part of the one body of Christ that works together for God s almighty Glory! One Lord, one Faith, one Call to serve each other; One Heart, one Mind, one Common Ground: We stand all as ONE! Excerpt from a hymn by Lori True, based on Ephesians 4:1-24 HELP!!! Church Information Update It is that time of year when reports have to been completed and sent to Presbytery. One of the things that needs updated in the church office is the birthday list. It would be most helpful if each family would complete the following form and return to the church office: Name and date of birth (including year) of adults in each household: Name Date of Birth Name Date of Birth Current Address Phone # address Children s names and date of birth If you do not wish to give your year of birth, please mark one of the following age categories: 25 & Under Over 65 8