A Note from the Pastor

Transcription

1 Volume 7, Issue 10 November 2016 INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Calendar 2 Yard Sale 3 CROP Walk 3 Montlure 3 Mission Fair 3 Homeless Outreach Rainbows Prayers 4 5 Rainbows Pics 5 Adopt A Family, Hygiene Kit History 6 October Pics 8 Thies Memorial Scholarship 9 Birthdays 10 Prayer Requests 10 A Note from the Pastor I got an from Judy today, reminding me that I owed her a newsletter article. She was gracious to extend my deadline one day, so I figured that I better get busy and meet her new extended deadline. After all, I was the one who told her I wanted to be included in every newsletter. So, being in a rush, I began sorting through my online cloud files to find a previous newsletter article I had written for some previous church over the past 30 years. Nada! Zilch! Nothing! There wasn't a single newsletter article from all the writing I had done every month over the past 30 years. (And by the way, now that I think about it, that comes to some 360 articles.) Then I went to the garage and looked for some hard copy of newsletters. In all the files lining the walls of my garage, again, not a single newsletter could be found. I am dumbfounded. All of those pearls of wisdom I have shared with all my congregations, not a single newsletter survived. After that, I decided to begin sending my newsletters to be preserved for generations to come by the Presbyterian Historical Society. Perhaps I should go back to the simple method of saving important documents: Put it in the family Bible. As you can tell, I'm not very good at saving files. I have tried to keep sermons, lectures, important notes in an easy place I can get to, like Google cloud, but I'm afraid I am more of a dancer than I am a hoarder. I don't hoard information or things; I prefer to spend my time dancing with friends and sharing the beauty of our faith with one another. And I guess I think churches are like that, too. Churches come in two types, just like people: Hoarders and Dancers. The Hoarder church gathers everything they can about the history, the members, the events, the business and the meetings. This type of church can go back into its history, some as long ago as 200 years ago, and tell you who the Sunday School children were and what they had for their picnic and the Sunday before Easter. They have files and files of historical documents including all of their rolls, minutes and other important things that happened. Quite often this type of church has at least one fireproof safe, and more than likely they have been incorporated for a very long time. These churches hoard history and information. The Dancer church will often have a few similarities with the Hoarders. They will have minutes, rolls and maybe a little bit of history, but this type of information isn't that important to these churches. They are much more interested in relationships, reaching out and watching the changes that happen week after week instead of trying to nail down everything that might happen. The Dancer church is more interested in the relationships they experience every single Sunday. They re not nearly so worried with the history of the bulletin, the sermons or (continued on page 4)

2 Page 2 November 2016 Sunday November 20 7:00 p.m. Calendar Highlights Sunday, October 30 10:00 a.m. - Worship 10:40 a.m. - Sunday School 11:15 a.m. - Fellowship 11:30 a.m. - SJPM Committee mtg Tuesday, November 1 6:45 p.m. - Deacons meeting Sunday, November 6 ALL SAINTS SUNDAY 8:30 a.m. - Choir Rehearsal 10:00 a.m. - Worship, with Holy Communion Guadalupe Food Bank items collected 10:40 a.m. - Sunday School 11:15 a.m. - Fellowship, last names A-D Tuesday, November 8 ELECTION DAY - Don t forget to vote! 7:00 p.m. - Session meeting Saturday, November 12 8:00 a.m. - Church Yard Sale Sunday, November 13 10:00 a.m. - Worship 10:40 a.m. - Sunday School 11:15 a.m. - Fellowship, last names E-L asked to bring a snack to share 2:00 p.m. - East Valley CROP Walk Monday, November 14 7:00 p.m. - PW meeting Tuesday, November 15 7:00 p.m. - Worship Committee mtg 7:00 p.m. - Montlure meeting at Mission del Sol Saturday, November 19 8:30 a.m. - Hygiene Kit Sorting Party Morning - Mission Fair Connect and Share at Faith PC in Sun City Sunday, November 20 CHRIST THE KING SUNDAY 10:00 a.m. - Worship Adopt a Family food donations begin 10:40 a.m. - Sunday School 11:15 a.m. - Fellowship, last names M-O asked to bring a snack to share 7:00 p.m. - Thanksgiving Worship with Desert Heritage at COL Sunday, November 27 FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT 10:00 a.m. - Worship 10:40 a.m. - Sunday School 11:15 a.m. - Fellowship, last names P-Z asked to bring a snack to share 11:30 a.m. - Evangelism Committee mtg Thursday, December 1 Midnight - Newsletter Deadline A S t e w a r d s h i p S n i p p e t Stewardship is acknowledging and caring for what has been entrusted to us. Our world cannot be fully alive, and we cannot be fully ourselves, until we attain thanksgiving and generosity. God wants you to give, but not because you read in some holy rule book that you owe ten percent. And not because you feel pressured by other church people to do so. Or not because you re trying to buy yourself out of something you feel bad about. Instead, giving is integral to the process of spiritual growth. By becoming aware of all that God has already given you, you experience thankfulness. Deep thanksgiving translates into a desire to be generous, wanting to help God with what God is trying to get done in the world. It is possible to give without loving, but it is impossible to love without giving. The offering acceptable to God is our gratitude shown in our sharing with others. Because we love God. Because God loved us first. Old First Reformed United Church of Christ Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

3 Volume 7, Issue 10 Page 3 Yard Sale November 12 Celebration of Life's annual Yard Sale is scheduled for Saturday, November 12 th, beginning at 8:00 a.m. The church will be open the night before (November 11 th from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.) to receive your donations. There is a sign-up sheet at the church if you are able to volunteer some time to help set up or tear down. Please look for any gently-used items you could donate to the sale. Check your closets, shed, and/or garage/carport for treasures you could part with. All funds raised will go to the church s Christmas Adopt-a-Family program. For more info contact Salena by phone ( ) or (salenagephart@gmail.com). East Valley CROP Walk November 13 The East Valley CROP Hunger Walk will be Sunday, November 13 th, at Eldorado Park in Scottsdale. CROP Hunger Walks help support the overall ministry of Church World Service (CWS), especially grassroots development efforts around the world. In addition, each local CROP Hunger Walk can choose to return up to 25% of the funds it raises to hungerfighting programs in its own community. CROP Hunger Walks help to provide food and water, as well as resources that empower people to meet their own needs. From seeds and tools to wells and water systems, the key is people working together to identify their own development priorities, their strengths and their needs - something CWS has learned through 70 years of working in partnership around the world. Celebration of Life has participated in this walk for more than 20 years. Join us in this long-standing tradition by walking or sponsoring a walker. Your help makes all the difference! Presbytery Seeks Your Input on Montlure November 15 The Presbytery is seeking input and ideas in order to better know what you would like the Grand Canyon Church Camp experience to be. An informationgathering discussion will be held on Tuesday, November 15 th, at 7:00 p.m. at Mission del Sol, 1565 E. Warner in Tempe, that will help them move forward on plans for the camp s future. If Montlure has been important in your life or your children s lives, make plans to attend and tell your other camping friends! Dessert will be served. RSVP with the presbytery by clicking here. Mission Fair: Connect and Share Event November 19 Are there projects you would like to work on that aren t available here? Do we need more volunteers for projects that we already work on? The Connect and Share Mission Fair is a great opportunity to find projects for volunteering and volunteers for your own projects. The fair will be going on in conjunction with the Presbytery Meeting at Faith PC, N. Del Webb Blvd. in Sun City, so come to Connect and Share anytime Saturday morning, November 19 th. The event is for everyone, not just commissioners to Presbytery. A special space apart from the meeting will be set up for the fair. It s a great chance to see what s going on around the Presbytery. You can also make suggestions for projects you would like to see started.

4 Page 4 November 2016 Homeless Outreach Hygiene Kits With the support of our partner, the Mental Health Guild, we continue to supply about 160 hygiene kits every other month to the Community Bridges, Inc. PATH group for homeless persons who suffer from serious mental illness. The reports that we get from PATH case managers are that the kits are one of their best inducements for establishing rapport with their clients. With them, they can get their clients the services they need. Here is a list of the items we include: Shirt ( Large & larger size, T-shirts or Polo shirts preferred) 1 roll Bath Tissue Hand Towel 1 pair Socks Toothbrush & Toothpaste Comb Disposable Razor Hair bands Q-tips Emery Board Cotton balls or cotton pads Lip balm Band aids Shampoo (travel size) Lotion (travel size) Soap (full size or equivalent) Wash cloth For Women: Tampons, regular & super Conditioner (travel size) Shower cap When available, for everyone: Shower gel (travel size) Dental Floss &Mouthwash (travel size) Facial tissue (small packets) Deodorant Other items Community Bridges can use: Reading glasses Winter clothing Underwear If you have any gently used items, find any bargains while shopping, travel and don t use the shampoo, or have a dentist who will donate toothbrushes or toothpaste, we can use them. We can also use help collecting items and assembling the kits. We usually meet on the third Saturday of every month to either sort, count items, or assemble the kits. Members and friends also pre-assemble small item packets which make the final assembly go much smoother. If you would be willing to help with any of this or even help buy shirts on Goodwill Thrifty Thursdays, please talk to Beverly or Marlin. A Note from the Pastor (continued from page 1) the newsletter as they are in shouting Amen! when someone offers a prayer request. Now, if the truth were known, I have served both kinds of churches. One church that I pastored had been around for 200 years. They hoarded history and information, but even more important, since most members had grandparents that had been baptized or buried there, the history they hoarded was incredibly personal and added to the roots and traditions of the church. While I believe the Spirit calls us to dance before it calls us to keep files and history, I also think that the history we make today in our church will be the roots and traditions of the children who come here 50 years from now. So yes, hoarding that kind of history can be important. So for now, I have to confess, I didn't find an old newsletter to share with you at the last minute. The Gospel we dance to every Sunday is also the Gospel we record in our minutes, newsletters, bulletins and smiles and hugs and fellowship and worship we share, too. Blessings, David

5 Volume 7, Issue 10 Page 5 Rainbows Festival Prayer Requests At this year s Rainbow Festival, Celebration of Life included a box at our table for individuals to request prayers. The response was overwhelming. Misty said prayers for these individuals during the week following the festival; the list was then forwarded to the prayer chain. The power of prayer is great, and although you may not know their names, we offer prayers for the individuals who requested them: For recovery from triple bypass surgery. For all the children who will go hungry tonight. For my partner, who just found out she may be schizophrenic. For employment, love, and my family. For my friend, who is recovering from major surgery. Rainbows Festival Pictures That I may find peace from my past and move forward toward my new future of sober living. For my family & friends, that we may be led to the correct way. For anger to be released. For financial needs. For Peace and Light for our paths. For me, as I start a new job. That love will be in our hearts. For my sister, who is worried. That this world may become a better place. For my boyfriend, who is stuck with his homophobic parents and is worried that God doesn t accept him for being gay and trans. For my friend s heart transplant. For my sister, that she may find her way. God, in Your Love, hear our prayers.

6 Page 6 November 2016 Adopt A Family and Hygiene Kits: A Brief History by Judy In 2002 the Mental Health Guild (MHG) asked me to chair a project called Operation Santa Claus. They told me all I had to do was ask MHG members to give Christmas gifts appropriate for mentally ill adults living in group homes, as they had done for 37 years. I knew nothing about the program but it sounded interesting and not very time-consuming, so I agreed. I soon discovered that MHG was only one of several business, social and church groups soliciting financial donations and Christmas gifts for the same group home residents every Christmas. The most common gifts were robes, slippers and toiletries, simply marked Man or Woman. Former SMI Group Home Residents Become Homeless By 2002, most of the 90+ group homes in Maricopa County had been closed by court order. Numerous studies of current living conditions for Severely Mentally Ill (SMI) adults resulted in rules and regulations for homes renting rooms to mentally ill adults. Overcrowded, poorly supervised group homes with essentially untrained and often abusive adults in charge were shuttered. Former residents were encouraged to pursue more independent living conditions, such as apartments. But the result was that most of the former group home residents were left homeless. After closures of the houses they had been living in, increasing numbers of mentally ill adults began living on the streets, in their cars (if they had one), or in temporary shelters, parks, river bottoms and desert campsites. They lacked even the basic, daily necessities we take for granted, such as soap and toilet paper. MHG and PATH Join Forces What I thought would be an easy assignment was complicated and frustrating. I found that no one seemed to know where or how to find former group home residents. After numerous unsatisfactory calls, someone gave me the number supposedly of a man who should be able to answer my questions. Answering my call instead was Esther Trevino, Homeless Outreach Team Leader for PATH (Program for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness). Esther informed me that homeless adults had little or no use for gifts MHG traditionally gave to group home residents. Together we compiled a list of items most needed and asked for by PATH clients, mentally ill adults living mainly on the streets. PATH Begins Distributing Hygiene Kits MHG members and friends collected enough of the designated items to assemble 50 personal hygiene kits, distributed to homeless mentally ill adults through PATH s Homeless Outreach Team in December of Esther thought that she wouldn t hear from me again, as had happened with every other group that donated to the homeless mentally ill only at Christmas time. But in 2003 I convinced the Mental Health Guild to approve changing Operation Santa Claus from a December-only project to collecting hygiene items continuously. We began assembling 50 hygiene kits in my garage every other month for homeless mentally ill adults the PATH Team found throughout Maricopa County. In 2005, Operation Santa Claus was renamed Homeless Outreach. Hurricane Katrina hit in August, By September, from the Arizona Daily Sun, The first of what are expected to be hundreds of Gulf Coast evacuees began taking shelter in Arizona, filing slowly into a Phoenix arena Sunday, hauling their few possessions in backpacks and plastic bags. Relief workers greeted a group of about 130 with hugs and handshakes at Veterans Memorial Coliseum, which was set up to hold about 1,000 people. (continued on next page)

7 Volume 7, Issue 10 Page 7 Adopt A Family and Hygiene Kits (continued from page 6) Governor Janet Napolitano said she wasn t sure how long people would stay at the shelter but that the state was trying to coordinate transitional housing. She thought These folks are going to be around for a while. CoL Embraces Homeless Outreach PATH asked me if it would be possible for us to double the number of hygiene kits we were giving them to accommodate the increased need. MHG agreed to fund 100 hygiene kits every other month but could not furnish personnel to assemble the kits. For the past two years, only two to three Guild members had been preparing the kits. Doubling output in my garage was not feasible. We needed a site where 100 hygiene kits could be assembled efficiently and have help packing them. In February, 2005 I presented my case to the Social Justice, Peacemaking and Mission Committee at Celebration of Life, having attended CoL only a few months. The committee, chaired by Gayle Park, enthusiastically agreed to let us use the church site to assemble the hygiene kits. CoL members and friends embraced this new mission and began collecting hygiene items and assembling from 150 to 250 hygiene kits every other month for homeless mentally ill adults. From 2005 to 2014, the PATH Homeless Outreach Team through Southwest Behavioral Health distributed thousands of kits to help establish a rapport with potential clients and get them the help they needed. In December 2005, CoL members and friends also collected non-perishable food items to prepare food boxes for 13 PATH families who were homeless because the parent(s) suffered from a serious mental illness. I was able to get toys for PATH s children through the Marine s Toys for Tots program, supplemented with donations from CoL, MHG and charitable donations from Phoenix area churches and businesses. CoL Receives National PHEWA Award for SMI Missions CoL was encouraged to apply for a national award for being so involved with outreach to those with mental illness, the homeless and others shunned or ignored by most of society. In June, 2006 at the General Assembly in Birmingham, Alabama, Celebration of Life received the Florence Iverson Kraft Award from the national Presbyterian Health, Education and Welfare Association (PHEWA) for Outstanding Accomplishment in Inclusive Ministries with Individuals and Families Affected by Serious Mental Illness. Adopt a Family Becomes CoL s Christmas Mission Some CoL donors asked for information on the children so they could give them gifts they really wanted. Esther and I devised the Adopt a Family Christmas Mission for Celebration of Life to give personal gifts and food boxes to all members of families. Members and friends of CoL signed up to adopt one or more people, or an entire family, showering them with requested gifts. From 2006 through 2014 PATH Homeless Outreach Team invited the adopted families to a festive Holiday Party at the Human Services Campus Center in Phoenix. Each family received Christmas gifts and food boxes from Celebration of Life members and friends. Toward the end of 2014 the PATH contract was awarded to Community Bridges. In 2015 CoL began assembling the hygiene kits for PATH clients through Community Bridges. From 2012 to 2014 a few Guadalupe families had been selected by Esther s Homeless Outreach Team for CoL s Adopt a Family Christmas Mission. Those families were the most deserving and the most appreciative. The parents expressed their appreciation for (continued on page 9)

8 Page 8 October in Pictures November 2016

9 Volume 7, Issue 10 Page 9 Adopt A Family and Hygiene Kits (continued from page 7) being included. They were grateful for the food boxes and especially for the clothes and toys their children received. Most told us they would not have been able to buy any Christmas gifts, even for their children. CoL s new Adopt a Family Christmas Mission became the most needy families in Guadalupe. Many PATH clients in previous years had asked for expensive toys for their children. In 2015 most Guadalupe parents requested school supplies and other items their children really needed. The most requested family item was a space heater, since most of the families had no heat in their homes. Adopted Families Gather at Guadalupe PC Last year Guadalupe Presbyterian, our sister church, opened their doors to Adopt a Family recipients. All the families came to the church and were treated to Christmas music from Peggy, cookies from CoL members and friends and decorated boxes with food and gifts Apply for the Steve Thies Memorial Scholarship This is a small scholarship to use toward books or tuition. To be considered, you must be a member of Celebration of Life or Guadalupe Presbyterian Churches. You can be taking college classes, classes to learn English or another language, trade school classes, or classes to improve job skills. for each family member. Everyone got to choose a stuffed animal and a blanket. Your Help Is Vital This December CoL will again adopt the most needy families chosen through Guadalupe Social Services. Each year since 2005 most of the congregation has responded to this Christmas Mission, bringing food and gifts for families who do all they can just to keep their families together, leaving nothing for extras like Christmas gifts. Please open your hearts and give generously. These adopted families need to know we care about them, and that all of them do matter. Start bringing non-perishable food items for the family food boxes Sunday, November 20 th. As soon as the families are selected, you can sign up to adopt Guadalupe family members. It takes the whole church to make this Christmas Mission a success. application on a piece of paper, and give it to Elly at church or mail it to: Celebration of Life Presbyterian Church Attention: Elly 2530 S Alma School Road Mesa, Arizona Application Deadline: November 30 th Simply fill out the application below, or write the information from the Applicants will be notified of their status by December 20 th. STEVE THIES MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION NAME: ADDRESS: PHONE: SCHOOL / COLLEGE / UNIVERSITY: MEMBER OF WHICH CHURCH:

10 Celebration of Life Presbyterian Church 2530 S Alma School Rd Mesa, Arizona Celebration of Life Presbyterian Church USA (480) (480) fax Newsletter items due the last Thursday of each month. Celebration of Life has been called by God to be a congregation that welcomes and fully values all persons. Our diversity is a gift of God and essential to our witness to the Gospel. November Birthdays 10 Bridgette 13 Theo Prayer Requests For John For Mike For Kathryn For BJ For Marleigh and James For Margaret 25 Lindsay 29 Salena For Misty For Berta For Randy For Ted For those we met at the Rainbows Festival Visit Us on the Web and on Facebook If we ve missed your birthday, we apologize! Please let Margaret or Melinda know the date so we can celebrate with you next time! For those seeking elected office and those who vote for them For our nation as we enter the final stage of this election season celebration.of.life.pcusa