THE MESSENGER. Holy Trinity Presbyterian Church HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Dear Saints, Living for Christ through Worship, Discipleship, Service and Fellowship

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1 19251 North Tamiami Trail, No. Ft. Myers, FL Phone: THE MESSENGER Holy Trinity Presbyterian Church May 2017, Volume 2017, Issue 5 Website: admin@htpc-nfm.com Living for Christ through Worship, Discipleship, Service and Fellowship Dear Saints, HAPPY BIRTHDAY! May 1 Beverly Smith May 5 John Rissel May 6 Donna Headley May 9 Gordon Hoeksema May 10 Audrey Bihary May 14 Fran Cokins May 19 Bill Ferrell May 20 Angelo Dragonette May 22 Martin Rudo May 25 Aileen Reese May 27 Joan Hall May 29 Roger Smith May 31 Dick Owens What an inspiring Lent and Holy Week we experienced this year! We continued to reflect on how we were living our lives with our Bible Study of Living a Life of Worship, which helped us to learn how thankfulness and worship always open the door for entering into God s presence and blessings. We then shared the inspirational and moving From Pastor Val cantata, The Song Everlasting, presented by the choir and orchestra under Paul Brewer s direction. From the marking of Palm Sunday, we continued with the moving Maundy Thursday Tenebrae service as we considered what the service of shadows tells us about the growing shadows of sin and this world s darkness gathering around the cross. On Good Friday, the sanctuary was open from noon to three o clock for reflection and prayer. Then we celebrated in a big way on Easter Sunday. For He is risen! He is risen indeed! And did we celebrate! Our long awaited electronic sign was completed and it lit up North Fort Myers with a message to our whole community. We started with Hello North Fort Myers, then Thank You Jerry for all your hard work. Then we got to tell our neighbors about the Tenebrae service, Good Friday hours and worship on Easter Sunday! Lots of time and effort have gone into the electronic sign project. We will be able to keep everyone informed as to what is happening at Holy Trinity and that they are invited. More financial support has come through in the past few months and an invitation to participate in the Let Your Light Shine fund continues. There is still time if you would like to participate in the electronic sign project. Envelopes are in the Narthex. In May, church family, we are trying something new. Café Between is moving to being in-between the worship services, in-between the hallway of the Christian Education wing and in-between Christian friends. Our new experiment is to have our fellowship time, coffee, treats and orange juice at the counter located in the hallway in-between Room 1 and Room 4. Come join us, choir members, Adult Bible Fellowship students, children and Youth Sunday School members and worshippers. Let s meet 25 steps down the hall, beating the heat and the stroll to Fellowship Hall. During the summer, we may save a little on air conditioning by having all the activities located in the main building. We may have to make some adjustments as we go along, but won t it be fun to know our In-between Café is close by. Folks can get coffee and a treat and move into an Adult Bible Fellowship class or say hello to many of our church family before the 10:30 worship service. Blessings, Pastor Val

2 Page 2 May 2017 LECTIONARY READINGS FOR MAY May 7 Acts 2: Peter 2:19-35 John 10:1-10 May 14 Acts 7: Peter 2:2-10 John 14:1-14 May 21 Acts 17: Peter 3:13-22 John 14:15-21 May 28 Acts 1: Peter 4:12-14 John 17:1-11 Prayer Chain Warriors 2017 We have very good warriors on our prayer chain at Holy Trinity. If you have a prayer request, please contact any of the following and the name of the person you want us to pray for will be put on the prayer chain. Audrey Bihary Aileen Reese Marlene Chilcote Roger Smith Kelly Dickey Ann Sosa Joyce Schmidt Wilma Jenkins Billie Sonderman Nancy Walker Ruth Rickard Joy O'Dell Audrey Bihary Heavenly Father, in our present need, help us to believe that You are aware of our anxiety and will do what is best for us. Give us the strength to trust You and put the present and the future in your hands. God is still on the throne and available and willing to listen to our prayers for help. Ask for help and then be still and know that He is God and will act in His time. Audrey Bihary Ushers and Greeters for May If you cannot serve on the Sunday you are to usher, please call the Usher Captain 1 st Service: Alice Clarcq nd Service: Susan Barger, May 7: Communion Sunday 8:30 A.M. Service 10:30 A.M. Service Joan Ostrander Andrea Helms Nancy Rad Carol Dant Ann Bowling* Pat Colucci* Charlie Schnuth Judy Steele Choir: Al Beyer May 14 Rosemarie Prud homme Lorraine Milligan* Dean Tracy Janice Voss* Pat Soper Paul Conkle Verna Nickel Bill Milligan May 21 Karen Daley Joy O Dell* Jessie Scattareggia Vernon O Dell* Ellen Halleran Bud Berger Rosemarie Prud homme Margaret Lloyd May 28 Mary Walker Ann Adams* Dean Tracy Sue Buckhout* Rosemarie Prud homme Louise Roessler Alice Clarcq Fred Roessler

3 Page 3 May 2017 The Café Between Hebrews 10:19-25 The Christian Life is meant to be lived in the Company of Others, Spurring One Another to Good Deeds, Love, Meeting Together. A new experiment is underway for the summer months. Beginning in May, Cafe Between will move. Not to worry, Café Between s second franchise: Hallway of Beverages and Bites will open! Come between services, enjoy refreshments, say hello to friends, all in the coolness of the Church. We are trying this to cut down on air conditioning costs since we average less than five people in the summertime during fellowship hour in Fellowship Hall. In the past two years, we have completely shut down. We are hoping this will be a nice alternative to closing shop for the summer. The Fellowship Team will be the hosts for May, but we will be looking for hosts from the congregation in June, July, and August. Jane Robinson and Ann Bowling GPS is on the Move Several new members hit the road running, sharing their gifts at HTPC. Rick Anderson has become our "go to guy" in Fellowship Hall - washing dishes, taking out the trash, lifting objects, and any other "honey-do" projects needed. Father and daughter, Larry and Kelly Trotter have been giving of their time and talents too. Larry is singing in the choir and Kelly is baking goodies (so yummy). Don't let these "new people" put us ole timers to shame. We all have God-given gifts!!! There is a necessary change on this three month Prayer Team cycle following the Contemporary Service for the second Sunday of the month. Joan Ostrander was assigned mistakenly, but she wears another hat. She is not available. Please call one of us and volunteer for this very worthy and appreciated assignment. Aileen Reese, Susan Barger, and Jane Robinson - GPS Team (GPS = God s Placement Service) The Finance Committee We are pleased to announce that as of the end of the first quarter, Holy Trinity is financially solid and within our budget. Your response to the request for donations to the "Shine Your Light Fund" has been outstanding with well over $9000 raised so far. Our deepest thanks!! The Finance Committee has been operating with a minimal membership for some time and would love to have YOUR help. We would like to add two or three new members and if YOU have any interest (no experience necessary), please contact Ed Hall, Pat Colucci or Pastor Val. Blessings to you all. Ed Hall, Chair Support the people and causes you love through your will!

4 Page 4 May 2017 MUSIC NOTES A May Message from the Music Department We are making plans for our summer choir for the Sundays in June and July. To all the singers in the congregation: why not join the summer choir? Practices will be on Thursdays at 6:30pm for just an hour. Our first practice will be on Thursday, June 1 st in classroom 1. To join the summer choir, just come to classroom 1 on any Thursday at 6:30, in June. By the way, reading music is not a required skill. We would love for you to join our summer choir and/or regular choir. May God Bless! Paul Brewer, Music Director Congregational Care I m new to Congregational Care. We, along with the Deacons, are your shepherds and you are our sheep. If you are not being contacted regularly by a shepherd and would like to be, please give me a call or contact me by . This year, we are planning some small group dinners so that you might be able to get to know your Care Angels and Deacons better. The first dinner will happen in May, so keep an eye out for your invitation. Again, if someone you know needs some special care, please feel free to contact me. Luanne Putnam luanne1019@gmail.com Shelly Daves Meet the Secretary Shelly is our new Administrative Assistant. She began Jan. 30th and works from 9am to 2pm, Monday through Thursday. She grew up in Maine and Michigan, but now lives in N. Ft. Myers with her two daughters, Samantha and Joy. She is very computer savvy and has been trained in the operation of our new sign. When she isn't at HTPC, she sings and plays guitar at assisted living facilities, spends time with her girls, and stays as often as she can on a boat. Mission Committee After our successful tour of Habitat for Humanity, we sent a check from our church to support their excellent work for those in need of housing. Now our thoughts are turning to planning tours of other organizations our church supports. There will be a tour of Lifeline Family Center in Cape Coral. They care for young unwed mothers and their newborns for up to two years in order for them to learn how to handle a child and their lives. Another tour will be planned for Echo, which has their headquarters in our area. They enrich the lives of multitudes by agricultural research and inventions from readily available products. We hope you will join us for one of these excursions. Larry Raber, Chairman

5 Page 5 May 2017 PRESBYTERIAN WOMEN ACTIVITIES Our Spring Fling held on March 24 was a great success. A big thank you to Wilma Jenkins for getting a very interesting presenter, Christa Hicks, who spoke on human trafficking. We had great food and the strawberry shortcake was a nice dessert. Thanks also to Audrey Bihary and Nancy Rad for their help on this luncheon. Next up is the annual Mother's Day/Father's Day Dinner on Friday, May 12 at 6 pm in Fellowship Hall. The invitations have gone out and ticket distribution started April 23. It is important if you are planning to attend that you sign up and get a ticket, for which there is no cost. Space is limited in the Fellowship Hall, so sign up early. Check your invitation to see what category of dish to pass you are to bring. NOTE: This year dessert is not a category, it is being provided by Presbyterian Women. And, of course, the entertainment will be fabulous. UPCOMING EVENTS: NO DORCAS CIRCLE After our luncheon/installation on May 15th, PW will be on hiatus until August. Mother's Day/Father's Day Dinner Friday May 12 PW Council Monday May 15 Luncheon/Installation at Magnolia Landing Monday May 15 NO LYDIA CIRCLE Christian Education Janet Rivero The Lenten Study, "Living A Life Of Worship" has been completed. The Adult Bible Class, which will be meeting at 9:30 on Sunday mornings through the month of May, will be studying "The Twelve Disciples". This will be held in Classroom #4. Carol Dant will be leading a 4 - week study titled "Parables" from the Deepening Life Together series. This class will also meet at 9:30, but in Classroom #2, starting May 7. Please consider joining one of these two classes. Janet Rivero Jesus used parables both to reveal and to conceal truth. What made these stories such powerful teaching tools? Why would he want to hide their meaning from anyone? How are these well-known stories supposed to impact our lives today? Find out Sundays in May at 9:30am! Worship Committee Our worship services are at 8:30 and 10:30 AM through May. The summer schedule will begin in June, with worship services at 9:30 (contemporary) and 11 AM (traditional). The choir will be singing through July. We are looking forward to Pentecost on Sunday, June 4 th, which is the birth of the Church Universal. It is also the 20 th anniversary of our church on this site. We wish our snowbirds safe travels and hope everyone has a blessed summer. Submitted by Ruth and Terry Rickard

6 Page 6 May 2017 EVANGELISM 60 First Time Visitor Packets have been given out so far this year. They were not given out on Palm Sunday or Easter. On April 23rd the Evangelism Committee hosted an Ice Cream Social and showed the movie "Fireproof." The ice cream was served at 3:00pm and the movie at 4:00pm. 70 people came for ice cream and even more for the movie. Thanks to Scotty Robertson for manning the sound booth and Paul Brewer for showing the movie. We have a license for showing this movie. If anyone would like to borrow it to see for themselves or to share with others, please contact the office. 9,500 Inserts for community newsletters were placed in 12 of the surrounding communities, focusing on the Cantata and Easter Services. These were placed in the March issues of Heron's Glen and Sabal Springs Newsletters and in the April issues of the remaining 10 communities. Accolades to the Communication Committee for the completion of the new electronic sign. It took 2 years to accomplish this task. Without the tremendous efforts of Jerry Strohmenger, this would not have been completed. Everyone who passes this colorful sign will know when something special is going on in our Church. It is a welcome invitation to all who pass by to enter our doors and learn about Jesus Christ. We will be placing an ad for our church in the 2017/2018 season of the "Golf Scoring Guidelines" at Heron's Glen Golf Club. This Booklet is used by every golfer who plays at their Club. Benefits include 85% of Business and Home Owners within 5-7 miles; 59,000 rounds of golf combined annually last year; corporate events and the Chamber event this year. We are going to initiate a committee under Evangelism to research the needs of the age group to find out what our church could provide that would be helpful to them. Anyone who would like to participate on this subcommittee or who would like to voice a suggestion, please contact the chairman of the Evangelism Committee. Evangelism is also looking into providing a social time for those who would like to participate in group outings. A survey will be taken to see if this would be of interest to members of Holy Trinity. Beverly Smith, Chairman The Song Everlasting Thank you Paul, Margo, Choir, and Orchestra for all your hard work on the Easter Cantata!

7 Page 7 May 2017 Holy Trinity Events Calendar MAY 2017 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 10:00 AM Fellowship Committee Mtg. in FH 2:00 PM Evangelism Committee Meeting in CR# :30 AM Tour of ECHO No Dorcas Circle 4 9:30 AM Finance Committee Meeting, CR#2 1:30 PM Disciple Bible Study 3:00 PM Worship Committee Meeting 5:30 PM Praise Team Practice 6:30 PM Choir Practice in CR# Communion Sunday 8:00 AM Praise Team Practice 8:30 AM Contemporary SVC 9:30 AM Children's Sunday Sch. in CR3 9:30 AM Adult Sch - Disciples 9:30 AM Adult Sch - Parables in CR#2 10:00 AM Choir Warm Up, CR#1 10:30 AM Traditional SVC 14 8:00 AM Praise Team Practice 8:30 AM Contemporary SVC 9:30 AM Children's Sunday Sch. in CR3 9:30 AM Adult Sch - Disciples 9:30 AM Adult Sch - Parables in CR#2 10:00 AM Choir Warm Up, CR#1 10:30 AM Traditional SVC :00 AM PW Council 11:30 AM PW Installation and luncheon at Magnolia Landing Messenger Articles Due 3:00 PM Session Meeting :00 AM Bldg. & Grounds - CR#4 12:30 PM Christian Ed- CR #2 1:30 PM Disciple Bible Study 5:30 PM Praise Team Practice 6:30 PM Choir Practice in CR#1 18 1:00 PM Communicatio ns Committee Meeting - CR #2 1:30 PM Disciple Bible Study 5:30 PM Praise Team Practice 6:30 PM Choir Practice in CR#1 12 6:00 PM PW's Mothers' & Fathers' Day Dinner in FH :00 AM Praise Team Practice 8:30 AM Contemporary SVC 9:30 AM Children's Sunday Sch. in CR3 9:30 AM Adult Sch - Disciples 9:30 AM Adult Sch - Parables in CR#2 10:00 AM Choir Warm Up, CR#1 10:30 AM Traditional SVC 22 No Lydia Circle 23 1:30 PM Care Angels Mtg. CR#2 2:00 PM Deacons Meeting CR4 2:30 PM Congreg. Care CR4 24 1:30 PM Mission Committee in CR#3 25 1:30 PM Disciple Bible Study 5:30 PM Praise Team Practice 6:30 PM Choir Practice in CR# :00 AM Praise Team Practice 8:30 AM Contemporary SVC 9:30 AM Children's Sunday Sch. in CR3 9:30 AM Adult Sch - Disciples 9:30 AM Adult Sch - Parables in CR#2 10:00 AM Choir Warm Up, CR#1 10:30 AM Traditional SVC

8 Holy Trinity Presbyterian Church North Tamiami Trail North Fort Myers, FL Phone: Website: NONPROFIT ORG US POSTAGE PAID FORT MYERS, FL PERMIT NO. 67 Living for Christ through SCHEDULES Sundays: Contemporary Service 8:30 A.M. Traditional Services 10:30 A.M. Adult Sunday School 9:30 A.M. 10:30 A.M. Disciples (Coordinator: Jane Robinson), CR#4 Adult Sunday School 9:30 A.M. 10:30 A.M. Parables (Coordinator: Carol Dant), CR#2 Children s Sunday School 9:30 A.M. 10:30 A.M., CR#3 Youth Sunday School 9:30 A.M. 10:30 A.M., Finance Room Holy Trinity Presbyterian Church would like to remind everyone of our Church Web Site, You will find most of Pastor Val s Sermons there and also find it interesting to listen to them once again in a quiet and peaceful setting