F ROM OUR MODERATOR... SPRING 2010

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1 NEWSPAPER FOR WOMEN IN THE PRESBYTERY OF CHICAGO Weavers F ROM OUR MODERATOR SPRING 2010 Power - How God uses us for His ministry. Each of us is a minister. Some of us sing, some teach, some give Bible studies, some serve meals, aid the sick, help children of all ages, nurture, comfort, and heal. This list can go on forever. Presbyterian Women - who are we? Forgiven and freed by God in Jesus Christ, and empowered by the Holy Spirit, we commit ourselves To nurture our faith through prayer and Bible Study To support the mission of the church worldwide To work for justice and peace, and To build an inclusive, caring community of women that strengthens the Presbyterian Church (USA) and witnesses to the promise of God s kingdom. I want to focus your attention on the mission of the church worldwide. Support for mission is a thread running through all the work PW does in the Presbytery of Chicago. I want to honor PW of Chicago who contribute their gifts to the church and community. What One PW Is Doing More than 20 years ago, PW of Knox started a silent auction and luncheon for the ladies of the church with the goal of raising money to give to missions. The lunch was made by a committee of women, the items were all donated by the attendees, and many of them were handmade. The name of the event was Sew Many Talents. There were a few white elephants and a few bigger items that were used for a brief live auction. PW Chicago Calendar March 5, 2010 World Day of Prayer Let everything that has breath praise God! April 24, 2010 Spring Gathering Where do our Mission Dollars Go? First Presbyterian Church Deerfield May 1, 2010 PWPoC CT Meeting Presbytery Office 9:15 a.m. September 11, 2010 PWPoC CT Meeting Presbytery Office 9:15 a.m. October 23, 2010 Fall Gathering TBA Over the years, the items became fancier, local businesses were asked for donations, different circles put together theme baskets, white elephants were discouraged and the live auction included humorous auctioneers to encourage the bidding process. During Knox s recent rebuilding of the church, the event was held off-site due to lack of space. For two years Naperville Country Club hosted the event with a Friday night dinner. Husbands were invited, and more items were bid on in the live auction, including a week at a home in Florida or Maine or Kentucky, a sailboat ride on Lake Michigan with the pastor, or a ride in a small plane over their home and the Naperville area! Last November, the event was held at the Arrowhead Golf Club in Wheaton, and they made $20,000 to give missions in the area and in the world. This month representatives from each circle, with the Mission Chair, will determine where the money will go, based on the requests received. This report was submitted by Betty Hemmeter. Betty is the former moderator of Presbyterian Women Knox Presbyterian Church, secretary of the Coordinating Team of the Presbyterian Women of Chicago, and a member of Church Women United. If you are interested in having your PW s mission in the Weavers Newsletter, bring a display board to the Spring Gathering or contact Ruby at rdbrown_1999@yahoo.com.remember our theme for the Spring Gathering is Where Do Our Mission Dollars Go? Ruby Brown Moderator, Presbyterian Women in the Presbytery of Chicago

2 Fall Gathering, October 24, 2009 Ravenswood Presbyterian Church Ravenswood welcomed eighty-six Presbyterian Women for a day of learning, fellowship, and worship. Many thanks to Rev. Magdalena Garcia, Jean Racke, and the Ravenswood PWs for extending their hospitality. Highlights of the day included... A talk and slides from the 2008 global Exchange visitor, Judy Lovejoy. She thanked us for knitting scarves that were taken on the trip as gifts for the women of the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Caarpahia, Ukraine. The theme of the trip was Joined and Knit together in Love from Ephesians 4: One purpose of the trip was to make women aware of the plight of the Roma (gypsy) people. Breakout sessions highlighted the efforts of women. Members of Ravenswood explained their community garden program. Sarah Tesch from Opportunity International explained microfinancing for women, and Chicago PWs reported on their trip to the Churchwide Gathering. A moving worship service included dancing from InterPlay, a group that facilitates creative workshops featuring movement, stories, and song. ( Rev. Garcia preached about Three C s that Can Change the World : courage, commitment, and compassion. Thanks you, Ravenswood. Chicago Presbyterian Women were truly Joined and Knit Together in Love! Important Treasurer Information Please send your contributions payable to PW PoC (with a memo on how they are to be distributed), to the Treasurer of PW in the PoC: Merrilly Nicolazzi 1105 Wadsworth Place Vernon Hills, IL Phone Number: 847/ She will then send your contributions as you have directed. In order for the contributions to be listed in the current year, they must be received by Dec. 15 th! Please be sure to allow six weeks when ordering Honorary Life Memberships ($95.00 each for the Silver Pin) from our PoC Treasurer. This will give sufficient time to receive the pin and certificate for the presentation date. A gold pin is also available for $250. Communications Information We are working to update our data base. If you have had a change of leadership in your women s group, please me the new address. My is arxsam@ameritech.net You could also send me a note by U.S. Mail. Send all correspondence to: Nina Koelpin 622 W. Wesley Wheaton IL Phone

3 Fall Gathering Ravenswood welcomed PWs! Ravenswood PWs register visitors. Eda Nunez welcomes us to Ravenswood. We received beautiful bookmarks of their stained glass window. Mom and daughter Alcenia Hodo and Linda Hodo Coiley Dancers from interplay with Rev.Magdalena Garcia (Pastor of Ravenswood), Judy Lovejoy (Global Visitor) and Ruby Brown (Moderator of PWPoC) We enjoyed a delicious hot luncheon prepared by our hostesses, the Ravenswood PWs. Louise Howe wins a book Soul Feast.

4 Mission Focus for Spring Gathering Deerfield PWs have chosen A Safe Place as the mission focus for the Spring Gathering. The mission of A Safe Place is to eliminate domestic violence in the community through multifaceted programs. They provide temporary emergency shelter.. affordable housing... supportive services to abused women and their children...intervention services.. educational awareness programs. They believe that everyone has the right to a violencefree, safe and healthy life. Donations to A Safe Place will be collected at the Gathering. $50 from your group will provide a night of shelter for a family of four; $75 will provide a day of shelter and counseling for a battered woman; and $100 provides one hour of art therapy for the children s program. Paper products and new sleepwear or robes in any sizes for woman and children would also be appreciated. Read more about this at Horizon s Bible Study Journeys Through Revelation Apocalyptic Hope for Today by Barbara Rossing In the Horizons Bible study, Journeys through Revelation: Apocalyptic Hope for Today, Barbara Rossing guides us on a journey to meet the crucified Lamb, Jesus. In a journey reminiscent of the ancient Israelites exodus from slavery, we are led from an unjust empire and its system of domination, through mythic battles and plagues, until, ultimately, we find ourselves in a renewed creation where God comes to live with us on earth. This brilliantly hope filled vision speaks to us in the midst of the urgent crises of our day. In a time when all of creation stands at a turning point, a kairos moment, Revelation can help guide the choices we make each day as we seek to live into the renewal that God has for the whole world. Networkers Mother s Day Project Has A New Name Thanks to Presbyterians faithful and generous participation, the annual NetWorkers Mother s Day Project is being expanded to support a variety of health projects in Africa, in addition to malaria prevention. Now called Healthy Women Healthy Families the new Mother s Day Project will help PC(USA) church partners support programs that protect and restore the health of women and children in their communities. These will include prenatal care, fistula surgery, cervical cancer screening and health education for women, and nutritional rehabilitation, immunizations, health screening and primary care for children. Malaria prevention and treatment will be supported through the Healthy Women Healthy Families Mother s Day Project. See the new cards at the Spring Gathering!

5 Spring Gathering April 25 th Deerfield Presbyterian Church Where do the Chicago area PW s send their mission dollars? One worthy mission is Companions Journeying Together. The Rev. Karen Hutt our keynote speaker, is a chaplain at Comer Children's' Hospital at the University of Chicago. The plan for the day includes a keynote address by Rev. Hutt that will include information about the concept of restorative justice and also about the history of prisons in the United States. Did you know that the first prisons were organized by Quakers? Breakout sessions will include specific information about programs such as Aunt Mary s Storybook. More information about this is included in this Weavers. At our last gathering we learned about what one woman can do. Companions Journeying Together was founded by one woman, Jana Minor. Through correspondence with a prisoner, she realized that the inherent worth and dignity of prisoners behind the wall must be recognized in order to restore those who will be returning to the free world. She founded the group whose mission is to promote personal growth through literacy and communication programs that strengthen family bonds. Programs include parenting classes for incarcerated mothers, Aunt Mary s Storybook, and Family Stories Pilot Program. For 20 years, Companions Journeying Together has lived out the mission of Jesus by valuing all people as members of the kingdom of God. Rev. Karen Hutt Keynote Speaker Known to PW as a dynamic speaker, Rev. Karen Hutt is a Unitarian Universalist minister who is also affiliated with the United Church of Christ. She attended the University of Chicago Divinity School where she received her M.Div. Rev. Hutt has served two churches on the south side of Chicago where a libratory message of hope and community engagement became flesh in working class communities. As Executive Director of Companions Journeying Together, she has developed innovative programs and educational tools for those behind the wall. Karen also works as a Chaplain at Comer Children's' Hospital at the University of Chicago. Bring Books to Spring Gathering for: Aunt Mary s Storybook Project This project involves incarcerated mothers and fathers who read brand new books to their children on a cd or tape. The book and the tape are delivered to the children as a special gift from their parent. New books are always needed. Bring new books and/or those gift cards you have for Borders and Barnes & Noble to the Gathering at Deerfield. Which Books????? The greatest need is for chapter books, especially for girls, and board books for tots. We prefer soft backed books except for the board books for very small children. We serve a large number of African American and Hispanic families and are always in need of books sensitive to these cultures. Board Books for ages Birth to 3 years... Favorite authors Eric Carle, Rosemary Wells, Jane Yolen, Cheryl Willis Hudson, Sandra Boynton; Nancy Tafuri Ages 7 12 Chapter Books Favorite authors... Andrew Clements, Jerry Spinelli, Sharon Creech, Kate DiCamillo, Judy Blume, Beverly Cleary, Roald Dahl, Louis Sachar, Virginia Hamilton, Angela Johnson

6 First Presbyterian Church Of Deerfield 824 Waukegan Road Deerfield IL Deerfield Rd From the South Exit I 94 at Deerfield Road Go East to Waukegan Road Turn Left on Waukegan Take First Left to the Parking Lots on the west and south sides of the church. From the North Exit I 94 at Half Day Road Go South on Waukegan Rd The church is on the right just before Deerfield Road. Parking Lots are on the west and south sides of the church. METRA Station is one block from the church. (North Line) Park

7 Presbytery of Chicago PW Spring Gathering Where do our Mission Dollars Go? Focus: Justice and Peace Saturday, April 24, 2010 First Presbyterian Church of Deerfield 824 Waukegan Road Deerfield IL Please Register by Friday, April 16th!!! Phone Keynote Speaker Rev. Karen Hutt Companions Journeying Together, Inc. Breakout Sessions including Aunt Mary s Storybook Project Schedule 9:00 a.m. Registration/Coffee 9:30 a.m. Meeting/Program 12:15 p.m. Lunch ~ $8.00 Pay at door. 1:15 p.m. Worship Mission Project: A Safe Place Birthday Offering Bring new books for Aunt Mary s Storybook Project

8 Presbyterian Women of Chicago Nina S. Koelpin 622 W. Wesley Wheaton, IL Birthday Offering to be Collected at Gathering The Birthday Offering is a PW offering collected in the spring of each year to celebrate the blessings in the lives of Presbyterian Women, who are encouraged to Give as you are blessed. Bring your group s birthday offering to the Spring Gathering or send your donation to Merrilly Nicolazzi, Treasure of PW in Chicago Presbytery. Her address is on page two. One group receiving a 2010 Birthday Offering Grant is the Kindergarten and Childcare Center and Primary School Development in Kirkuk, Iraq. The Kindergarten and Childcare Center provides high quality education to children, teaching basic skills in a loving environment. The center operated under Christian principles of love, peace, tolerance and nonviolence is a welcome institution in its Middle Eastern context. Requests for enrollment far exceed its current capacity of 150 students, as evidenced by long waiting lists. The grant will help provide funds to add a primary school. A second grant was awarded to Peace Presbyterian Church s RISE (Reach Improve Strengthen Empower) Project in Louisville, Kentucky. RISE provides services specifically to children, youth, adults, and families identified as at-risk or in need of support during a transitional period.