Window. The Weekday School Helping Others During the Holidays. The

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1 Black Mountain Presbyterian Church A CONGREGATION OF THE PC(USA) 117 Montreat Road, PO Box 39 Black Mountain, NC Fax: Non-Profit Org. U.S. POSTAGE P A I D BLACK MOUNTAIN, NC Permit No. 36 The Window The news of Black Mountain Presbyterian Church -19, 2015 The Weekday School Helping Others During the Holidays Poinsettias and Miniature Evergreen Trees If you would you like to purchase a plant for our chancel during the Christmas season, provide the information below. Please make your $10 check payable to BMPC, adding poinsettia on the memo line. Please return this form or sign up in the narthex by Wednesday, December 16. Thank you. You may take your plant after worship on December 27. your name in honor of or in memory of (circle one) (their name) The BMPC Weekday School is participating in two projects for SVCM this holiday season. In November the giraffe class (4-year-olds) took a field trip to SVCM and delivered about 476 cans of food to the food pantry. Renee Brame shared with them what the ministry is all about and took the children on a tour. We found that even when we don t have a lot of food ourselves there is always enough to share with someone in need. During the month of December we will be collecting new socks, underwear, hats, gloves, and pajamas for SVCM s Christmas Boxes for children. This will help our children to know that you can give more than just food to help others in the valley. What a blessing to be a part of these children s lives and watch them realize the ways they can help others, with your continued love and support. Calling all Star Followers At the beginning of the 2015 New Year, BMPC members were given an Epiphany Star during worship with one meaningful word on it. Many people have shared with members of our staff how important that word became for them throughout the year. If you have a star story you would like to share with our faith community, please me at mk@bmpcnc.org or call me at (1111). I plan to weave your stories into my sermon for Epiphany 2016.

2 Calendar Many other groups meet here, but only BMPC events are reflected on this calendar. Sunday, Second Sunday in Advent 8:30 a.m. FirstLight 9:40 a.m. Church School 9:40 a.m. The Gathering, Youth & Parents 11:00 a.m. Worship Service 5:00 p.m. MS Youth Christmas Camp Rockmont 5:00 p.m. HS Youth Christmas Ballard s 5:00 p.m. Handbells Tuesday, December 8 1:00 p.m. Program Staff Retreat 7:00 p.m. Prophets Wednesday, December 9 7:00 p.m. Chancel Choir Thursday, December 10 1:30 p.m. Red Cross Blood Drive 6:00 p.m. Men's Ministry Friday, December 11 12:00 p.m. The Window deadline LIBRARY NEWS Advent is here and the theme of our devotional is "Rediscovering Advent." The author hopes this season will be very different and especially meaningful to all who read her poems. To encourage the rediscovery of Advent, our library has many books on display that should help in this busy time and give further understanding. Check one out to explore. Sunday, Third Sunday in Advent 8:30 a.m. FirstLight 9:40 a.m. Church School 11:00 a.m. Worship Service 5:00 p.m. Handbells 5:30 p.m. All Church Soup & Caroling Monday, December 14 6:00 p.m. Session/Deacon Dinner Tuesday, December 15 11:30 p.m. Weekday School Christmas 7:00 p.m. Prophets Wednesday, December 16 10:00 a.m. The Window folding ministry 7:00 p.m. Chancel Choir Thursday, December 17 7:00 p.m. Benefit Performance for SVCM Sunday, 5:30 p.m. Soup and Carolers needed An intergenerational fun evening! Gather in Fellowship Hall to divide into teams to go Christmas Caroling! After caroling, it s back to church for soup. If you would like to contribute a crockpot of your favorite soup, call the church office this week! Attention parents of 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders! There will be a rehearsal for the children's Christmas Eve service on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 3:15-4:15 p.m. If you wish for your child to participate, please call Ginny at church or her at gsoll@bmpcnc.org Service Opportunity with A Hope Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be homeless? If you have ever travelled informally with a backpack for an extended period of time you might ask yourself: Where would I do my laundry? Where would I leave my stuff while I wander around this city? Where is a safe place to hang out for awhile?. A group from BMPC took a tour of A Hope in downtown Asheville recently and were impressed by the variety of activities that go on there it is like Grand Central Station for homeless people who depend on the services A Hope provides for some structure in their lives. People go there to shower, pick up their medications, pick up their mail, drink coffee and socialize, stay out of the cold for a half day or so, store their stuff so they don t have to carry it around with them all day, get ID cards for various purposes, and meet with social workers who can try to move them into permanent housing. The center is open seven days a week (7am-noon on weekdays and 8am-noon on weekends) with staff always present to answer questions and provide security. If you have been looking for a service opportunity once every one to two months that is meaningful, this might be the opportunity for you. Volunteers help out with mundane tasks at the center so that the staff can spend more time with homeless clients getting them housed and taking care of their more complex needs. We are hoping to get a team (12 people) so that each team member would be volunteering once every other month. It might be possible to have one group volunteering on a week day and the other group on the weekend. Some of the tasks volunteers perform: checking for mail for clients answering telephone and taking messages responding to client requests for items such as towels and toiletries for showers leading container runs downstairs twice an hour so that clients can access their belongings in a safe storage area helping clients access medications in locked filing cabinets keeping things organized making coffee Volunteers are NOT expected to give or lend money, intervene in fights, provide transportation or otherwise engage in areas where the staff would be the appropriate people to do so. Volunteers receive training prior to starting their commitment. We expect to have a team leader for each group of volunteers who would receive extra training for that role. If you feel that you are being called to volunteer for this particular ministry please get in touch with either John or Betsy Murphy ( or ) or call our home at ( ). We remember at this time of year that Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus were also homeless for awhile and depended on the kindness of strangers to find shelter. End of Year Giving at BMPC As this year comes to a close it is so important that we remember how essential our financial contributions are for the church s life and ministry. Please sacrificially and prayerfully consider what your year-end giving will be to ensure that BMPC fulfills all of our commitments Contributions Donations must be received in the Church Office by Noon on Thurs., Dec. 31. The IRS requires donations be received (or postmarked) by Dec. 31, 2015, to receive credit on your 2015 Contribution Statement. Stock Transfer If you would like to give stock, our broker is Scott Roy at Edward Jones Please remember, we must receive the stock by Dec. 31, Check out our website: 3

3 4 Adult Church School Classes Becomer's Library John 12:1-50 From Bethany to Jerusalem, Jim Cogswell John 13:1-38 The Last Supper? Florence Shelor Biblical Perspectives CR1 2nd Advent, David Kaylor 3rd Advent, John Rogers Bible Class CR2 Isaiah 40:1-11 Ezra 1:1-4; 3:1-4, Faith Builders Parlor David LaMotte in Fellowship Hall Discussion of World Changing 101 David LaMotte Series Class upstairs in Room 14 David LaMotte in Fellowship Hall Advent sharing Princess the Christmas Dog STORYTELLER Storyteller, Donna Marie Todd and Singer/Songwriter, Andy Gwynn and special guest Sandra Gudger with the Appalachian Twas the Night Fore Christmas Special Benefit Performance for the Swannanoa Valley Christian Ministry Fuel Fund Thursday, December 17, 7:00 p.m. BMPC, Fellowship Hall Suggested Donation $10 no reserved seating a joyous holiday story filled with love, laughter, and song December youth events Middle School 6 The Gathering, 9:40-10:40am, Advent program for youth & parents with David LaMotte 6 Christmas Camp Rockmont, 5-7pm 13 All Church Soup & Caroling, 5:30-7pm, attend w/family 20 All Church Caroling with Nativity, 5-7pm, attend w/family High School 4 Breakfast Club, Gunn's 6 The Gathering, 9:40-10:40am, Advent program for youth & parents with David LaMotte 6 Christmas the Ballard's, 5-7pm 13 All Church Soup & Caroling, 5:30-7pm, attend w/family 20 All Church Caroling with Nativity, 5-7pm, attend w/family Lisbeth Yolanda Batz Aguilar sends gratitude from Guatemala To my friends at BMPC, I send you warm gratitude for granting me a scholarship Thanks to you, I was able to fulfill a life goal to prepare myself to teach in an inter-cultural setting I have been accepted at the Univ of San Carlos, one of the best schools in Guatemala. My family had always planned to send me to the University, but a year ago my father was killed in an accident. As you can imagine, this has left our whole family deprived. My mother is an elderly homemaker with no outside job. My older brother is supporting the family, but his small salary is barely enough. There was no money left for me to complete my training I am happy about my academic accomplishment but I realize I could never have attained it without your generous scholarship. I promise, with deep commitment, to continue to work hard at the university. Eternally grateful, Lisbeth Yolanda Batz Aguilar Youth at Haywood Street For Veterans Day, a group of BMPC youth attended Haywood Street Congregation for lunch and worship with the St James Episcopalian youth. Haywood Street Congregation is a Methodist congregation that is made up primarily of the homeless of Asheville. A dozen of our youth and adults joined the homeless in Asheville for their community lunch, served family style, at 11:15 and for their eclectic, lively worship service with communion. It was a powerful day of worship and fellowship alongside the homeless. To learn more about Haywood Street, go to: Check out our website: 5

4 Living God s Grace in the World Thank you so much for your generous gift to the Black Mountain Counseling Center. We appreciate the connection we have to BMPC. It takes the support of key churches like BMPC to sustain our ministry. We are especially grateful for continuing to be included in your budget! As we enter into the holiday season folks struggle with emotional pain and hurt and the Counseling Center becomes even busier. Thank you for your continued support, encouragement, and prayers. We look forward to continuing to work together in service to our community. Blessings, Ellen Begley We enjoyed our largest summer season ever, with 438 youth and adults spending a week of mission with us and 662 more engaging in day projects. We also had our largest impact ever on the Asheville community, including partnerships with 27 agencies and an estimated $127,000 saved by these organizations because of our service! We need your help to keep all of this moving forward! Your support enables us to continue this great ministry. We are so grateful for the ongoing support of our friends at BMPC! Bill Buchanan, Executive Director 6 Building affordable, Green Built NC homes for local families is capital intensive. Your support continues to do life-changing work in Buncombe County. We continue to receive moving testimonies of what a family can accomplish when they are given a hand up, not a hand out. You are the folks providing that hand up each and every day through your partnership with Asheville Area Habitat. This transformational work is only possible with your support. Thank you in advance for your continued giving. I remain so grateful for your work with Habitat. Lew Kraus Thank you for contributing to the Ministry of Hope in As you know, the inmates and staff of Swannanoa Correctional Center for Women (SCCW) would have no chaplains without our community-based non-profit organization, whose sole purpose is to support, provide, and advocate for a chaplaincy ministry at SCCW. Because we have heard repeatedly from inmates and from pirson officials the chaplains offer a best hope of helping change individual lives and reducing recidivism among the SCCW population. We ask for your prayers for the continuation of this ministry. Church giving has made a huge difference in the work we are called to do; we could not be successful without the continued backing of local churches. Sincerely, Margaret Whitt, Chair, Chaplaincy Committee It is with great appreciation that we extend our gratitude for Black Mountain Presbyterian Church Nickel A Meal grant. This funding, made possible, through the Presbytery of WNC, will help tremendously to stock our food pantry shelves. We sincerely thank you for your gifts of time and talents to help make this gift possible. God s blessings and our sincere appreciation. Renae and the SVCM team We at Union Prebyterian Seminary believe that God is often calling people to full-time service to the church. The call to come requires others who hear the call to send. The generous gift you sent enables Rosy Robson and Andrew Bowman to answer that call. Please accept our deepest gratitude for the ability to be in this kind of paratnership with you in the work of theological education, which is, as you know, so critical for the work of our church. Our mission is to equip and send a new generation of pastors, educators, and scholars to proclaim the gospel faithfully with full conviction. Our professors are firmly grounded in the scriptures and worship, while possessing the creativity and church experience to equip our students for challenges in today s church. We cannot thank you enough for recognizing the need to form leaders for the church. May God continue to bless your ministry and our partnership! Grace and Peace, Richard Wong, Vice President, Advancement We are grateful for your support of this faith initiative, which provides a companionship ministry to folks with one or more disabling conditions as well as being formerly homeless. We are particularly grateful to Black Mountain Presbyterian Church for their sponsorship of our application. BMPC is an important partner in our work, having assisted us for years with our women s housing program and our AHOPE Day Center and has now organized a Hope to Home team. We are in the business of ending homelessness in Western NC and serving as a model for communities throughout our nation. We are grateful that you continue with us as part of the solution. With gratitude, Jim Lowder, Director of Advancement We are so grateful for Black Mountain Presbyterian s recent gift to Montreat Conference Center! Your support helps thousands of young people from across the country encounter God together as they experience the Montreat Youth Conference, formative in so many peoples lives. You can keep up with Montreat news and events online at org/events/upcoming. We are grateful to BMPC as our partner in ministry. Thanks be to God! Lynn Tuggle Gilliland Vice President for Development Check out our website: 7

5 8 Mission Trip to Guatemala Summer, 2016 Our congregation has been in partnership with our Guatemalan brothers and sisters at Eben Ezer Church in San Antonio, Guatemala for 22 years. We will be visiting our sister church in June, Many Presbyterian churches in the Presbytery of Western NC are partnered with Presbyterian churches in the Guatemalan Presbyteries of Sur Occidente and Suchitepequez in Southwestern Guatemala. Back in 1994, Rev. John McCall, our pastor at that time, visited our sister church and during that following summer, we hosted the Eben Ezer pastor here at Black Mountain Presbyterian Church. We have sent BMPC members to Guatemala throughout the 1990s and early 2000s. During that same time period, we hosted church members from Eben Ezer Church. A new venture began in 2004, when we started communicating with our scholarship students through letters. In 2013, an intergenerational group of four high school youth and four adults from BMPC spent a week in Guatemala visiting our sister church Eben Ezer, and in 2010 and 2014, we had various BMPC members (youth and adults) visit our sister church through the Presbytery of Western NC annual Guatemala trip. In order to continue to strengthen this partnership, we are planning another intergenerational BMPC trip to Guatemala next summer. We plan to take another intergenerational group of BMPC members to Guatemala, from June 22 through June 29, There are applications on the BMPC website and also in the church office. Who can apply? Any BMPC member currently 16 years and older When are applications due? By January 13, 2016, to Berry Why applications? Part of our trip involves home stays with individuals in the Eben Ezer church. Hosting more than a dozen people is not feasible for them. Also, due to the nature of travel our transportation will not hold more than a dozen folks. Who reviews the applications? Members of the Guatemala trip planning team: Berry, Dave Kadau, Mistie Cogbill, Mary Carrol Dodd. When will we hear who will be on the BMPC team? By February 3 How much will it cost? We estimate the total cost of the trip to be between $1,000 and $1,200, but the Mission Committee is willing to pay up to $500 per person. So the cost per participant will be between $500 and $700. If I don t feel called to go to Guatemala but want to support the trip, how can I help? Begin to pray for the trip and the BMPC team. Plan to attend church-wide events in the spring and fall to learn more about our partnership with Eben Ezer Church. Pray for our Guatemala Team participants individually. Help support the trip financially, by donating specifically to the BMPC Guatemala trip. Further questions? Please pick up an application for more information, and if there are additional questions, contact Berry at berry@bmpcnc.org. Youth and Parents Cookout On Sunday evening, November 15, our Middle School and High School youth groups along with many parents had a cookout at Rachel and Emily Beaver s home. We had about 50 folks gathered for food, fellowship, and fun around the campfire. It was a great way to celebrate autumn, our youth program, and our youth families. The youth played Capture the Flag, and parents hung around the camp fire catching up. What a joy that so many families in our larger community have found a home at BMPC. Check out our website: 9

6 10 In Our Community Christmas Eve Open House The Ken Kelly family will host their annual evening of fun, food and fellowship following the 7:00 p.m. service until the lights go out. All are welcome, especially college students. 49 Last Resort Road (off Old Lakey Gap) People s Pilgrimage for the Paris Climate Talks Sunday,, 2:00 p.m. Meet for a two-mile walk at the Carrier Park Pavilion on Amboy Road in Asheville Sponsored by the Creation Care Alliance of WNC developed with a grant from The National Storytelling Network RESS RELEASE. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE What: Saturday, January 23, 2016 from A Widow s 9:30 a.m.-5 Tale Retreat p.m. Developed with a grant from The Nat Christmount Conference Center 222 Fern Way, Black Mountain Donna Christmount Marie Todd Conference Center, 222 Fern Way, Black Mountain NC 28 or support@awidowstale.com ontact: This all-inclusive Donna Marie retreat Todd gives widowed women a chance to relax, or support@awidowst network, and ccording find new to ways the US to Bureau rebuild of Census their lives It report, will help widowed women move foward with empowering information and mutual encouragement. A widow's journey is just beginning at the funeral. After the first two weeks, the casseroles and sympathy cards stop and the widow finds herself in a lonely place called gone. Donna Marie Tood knows about this place, because widowhood happened to her, too. When: Saturday, January 23, 2016 from 9:30 Where: widowed in our country each year. HAPPY BIRTHDAY! DECEMBER 6 Annie Hall 7 Carolyn Konnert Carrie Coward 8 Savannah Lindsey 9 Nancy Hope 10 Kathie Cregger Judy Wood Kari Word 11 Melissa Royer Barbara Brinson Deborah Morse Charlie Wilson Cayden Bemis 14 Jim Poling 16 Jordan Kelly Sydney Adams 18 Sally Pollard Lisle Garrity 19 Jack Williams Sheila Ellington Scott Watson Every EVERY MEMBER Gift Counts MATTERS As of December 1, we have received pledges for a total of $769,104. If every member that pledged last year pledges again this year, we are hoping to reach $800,000 in pledges. Thank You BMPC family Dear BMPC Church Family, Words are so inadequate to express our sincere gratitude to those of you who have called, sent cards, and brought food to us during the past couple of months while we have dealt with Dave's paralyzing strokes! You are so much a part of God's faithfulness and we are blessed through you. Polly and Dave Miller So many BMPC folks have been a blessing for me and for my dad, Bob Grove, through the long goodbye of Alzheimer s. From the beginning until Dad s passing in October, you made us feel welcomed and loved regardless of Dad s declining abilities. My PW sisters and the Church School leaders adapted as situations changed so I could stay connected to our church family. The staff found chores that were suited to Dad s abilities so he could feel productive and helpful as a volunteer. I knew that if I had a need, you d be right there to help. Thank you for your hugs and kind messages, and especially for hosting the reception after we celebrated Dad s transition to Christ s Church Triumphant. Truly, though, your most cherished gifts were the smiles, the offers of help, and the gentle comfort of being enfolded in your arms throughout our journey. I could not have cared for Dad without God s help, manifested through my church family. Thanks to you all, and may you have a wonderful Christmas! Karen Austin We are at the point in our stewardship journey where our theme, Every Member Matters, Every Gift Counts truly matters! If you haven t pledged this year, please consider what your pledge will be and make a commitment to our community of faith. Thank you for your support of BMPC. Check out our website: 11