Giving Helps Homeless

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Belinda Woods
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1 1 Vol. 53, Issue 2 April May 2015 April May 2015 Vol. 53, Issue 2 Summerville Presbyterian Church Giving Helps Homeless Summerville donated $300 from Non-budget Mission funds to the Justice Committee of Downtown United Presbyterian Church. Earlier this winter, DUPC sheltered a group of homeless men and women who had been living out in the elements awaiting permanent shelter availability. DUPC agreed not only to offer overnight shelter for two weeks but also to cover the cost of security at $300 a night to ensure the safety of the short-term overnighters. AEM of SPC enthusiastically supported donating funds for one night s security cost. continued p. 6 Community Garden Gets Underway The Community Garden planning has begun following the Adult Forum March 8. The purpose of the Community Garden is: 1.an outreach ministry to the Irondequoit community, especially to those who are hungry and food insecure. 2. Building relationships within our SPC community and the wider Irondequoit community, 3. The Community Garden should be a place of learning where children and adults might learn about from where food comes, the science of growing vegetables, how to eat healthy foods, how to prepare meals, and that churches can be a place where the whole community can gather and work together. 4. How can we include flower gardening in continued top page 4 Who We Are We are a compassionate Christian community fostering a personal relationship with God for people of all ages and expressing God s love through worship, education, mission, music and fellowship. Community Garden The fresher the food the healthier the food. Fresh picked is the best.

2 2 From the Pastor s Pen Christ is Risen! Future Begins! Christ breathes into the lives of the disciples healing, wholeness, well being and the tranquility of God s presence Alleluia! Christ is Risen! For the next fifty days of Easter, Jesus meets with his disciples to continue teaching them all they will need to know to become ambassadors representing Jesus Christ to the world beginning in Jerusalem then extending to the ends of the earth. Jesus resurrection is not the end of the story, rather it is the beginning of the next chapter of the story of Jesus followers moving from only being Jesus students to those who will be learners and proclaimers of God s good news for all humanity. They will become the people who will invite a grand diversity of people from Judeans to Ethiopians to Romans, Greeks, and many other people groups to join them as one whole people sojourning along the way of God s kingdom. Garage Sale Springs into Action Spring is coming (really) and that means the Spring Garage Sale will be here soon. How they will do this is the central focus of the seven Sundays of Easter. What do the disciples who had deserted Jesus at the cross and who are amazed and perplexed on the morning of resurrection learn during those forty days with Jesus before his Ascension? Why is it important for us to overhear their lessons? What might we learn from their experience that will illuminate our continuing Late last year a task force was formed review the garage sales' viability for our church. After several meetings the task force determined that changes needed to be made to make the sale more manageable for the members of SPC who work on the sale. The task force recommended, and session approved, that the number of sale days be reduced from three to two and instead of two weeks, we will set up in one week. The Garage Sale Task Force, with input from garage sale volunteers, is working on the logistics with an emphasis on recruiting and familiarizing volunteers with the sale and streamlining some processes such as pricing. Garage Sale Task Force members are: Doug Angold, Charlie Buck, Holly Streb, Gretchen Spencer, Earl Repp and Todd Hayes. The dates for the Spring Sale are Friday April 24th and Saturday April 25th. The schedule for the week will be as follows: Saturday (4/18) - 9a - noon, donation pick ups; 11a - 4p, take-in and disperse sale items to room locations. Sunday (4/19) - Following worship "dress down Sunday" take in and disperse items, prep for pricing. Mon./Tues./Weds.- 9a - 2p, take in, disperse and price sale items. 5p - 8p, take in, disperse and price sale items. Friday (5/24) - Sale 10a - 6p. Saturday (5/25) - Sale 10a - 4p; 4p, start clean up. Sunday (5/26) - "dress down Sunday" finish clean up. continued p. 6 Donations can be arranged before sale week by calling or ing Todd Hayes at , tldhayes@aol.com or Gretchen Spencer at

3 CYEd Update Women s Retreat Save the date: January 8-10, 2016 Our

the opportunity to share your faith and caring spirit.

The secret Pew Pal is uncovered at the Pew Pal Brunch on Sunday,

m Pizza Challenge Saturday, May 9 th from 3-5 p.m. Come and try the

Kids Night Out Our church and the Summerville Nursery School have

out. This will include dinner and lots of fun acitivities.

Children s Workshop (Grades K 7 th ) Easter People March 1-22

3 3 CYEd Update Women s Retreat Save the date: January 8-10, 2016 Our next Casowasco retreat will include women and girls to the beautiful Galilee House. Pew Pals Adult volunteers are needed to partner up with a youth for the opportunity to share your faith and caring spirit. Our Pew Pal Kick-Off Breakfast is Sunday, March 22 at 9:00 a.m. The secret Pew Pal is uncovered at the Pew Pal Brunch on Sunday, April 26 th at 11:15 a.m Pizza Challenge Saturday, May 9 th from 3-5 p.m. Come and try the delicious pizzas from pizzerias in our neighborhood. Kids Night Out Our church and the Summerville Nursery School have planned another evening for the children ages 2-8 to have a night out. This will include dinner and lots of fun acitivities. It is also an opportunity for our Youth Group members to earn $10 helping and playing with the children. Parents are also treated to an evening to themselves! Children s Workshop (Grades K 7 th ) Easter People March 1-22 Family Worship March 29 Family Worship Easter Sunday, April 5 & May 24 (Memorial Weekend) Living God s Word: Anger Management April 12-May 3 Making Teacher Gifts May 10 Giving Celebration & Church School Day Prep May 17 Church School Day Rehearsal May 31

4 4 A community garden grows not only food, but a community as well Community Garden Gets Underway continued from page 1 the community garden, so we might provide our own flowers for Sunday morning worship and fellowship events. 5. How can we create a Memory Garden in tandem with our Community Garden? For the Community Garden to become a reality this spring, we will need volunteers to participate in a number of ways and several areas have been identified: Place Logistics Discerning where at SPC the garden can be located, availability of water, is a path available or can one be created to make it easy to get to the garden, and is the amount of sun appropriate for growing vegetables? Relationships and Community Partners Forging partnerships with other churches, community organizations, schools and Irondequoit town government Financial How will we finance buying the materials and seeds for the garden? Gardening Logistics What will be the size and number of plots and how will they be allotted? Recruiting Gardeners Recruiting community members to participate particularly from the Summerville Nursery School, elementary schools and neighborhoods. Educational Programming Locating curriculum for use by children and parents to learn about creating a garden, growing vegetables, meal planning and preserving vegetables that are grown. While a some folks have already volunteered to work in these areas, we can always use more volunteers to help. If you are interested in volunteering, call the Church Office. Souper Bowl Collection On Sunday, Feb. 1 st, the youth (Sarah Hayes and Abby Leavitt) took up a collection that was donated to the Irondequoit Food Cupboard (ICC). We collected $ dollars!! This is $ more than last year s Souper Bowl collection! The Patriots won ($127.15) vs. the Seahawks ($111.30), and ICC was the true winner. Thanks to Sarah & Todd Hayes and Zoe & Alana Sullivan for their help counting all the cash and change. Community gardens welcome more than one kind of person just as it grows more than one kind vegetable and flower.

5 Youth Group News Serving Lunch at Cameron Community Ministries: On Saturday, January 31 st, our Youth Group went to Cameron Community Ministries to prepare and serve lunch to about 80 people.

5 5 Youth Group News Serving Lunch at Cameron Community Ministries: On Saturday, January 31 st, our Youth Group went to Cameron Community Ministries to prepare and serve lunch to about 80 people. Unfortunately, only one youth, Corinne Cummings, was able to attend. Paula Cummings was our parent volunteer, and Susan Connor was our invited guest. Paula and Susan helped in the children s area cleaning out supply cupboards and assisting with general upkeep. Corinne and I helped cook the cream of cauliflower soup and beef stew. David DiNapoli is their new Kitchen Manager, and he is a professional chef. What impressed me most about David is how he is working the system to coordinate efforts with Foodlink and other resources to provide excellent quality meals for the needy. They had other young adults there to help that Saturday, but David said there are Saturdays when they are trying to feed 150 people and they only have the dishwasher, one other helper and himself. He asked if our congregation would be willing to volunteer when another situation like this arises. I told him I d be happy to be the conduit for such a circumstance. Upcoming Events Square Dance Sunday, March 15 th IHS Musical Friday, March 27 th April Youth Night Friday, April 10 th (Mall Scavenger Hunt) Kids Night Out Friday, April 17 th Garage Sale Saturday, April 25 th RAIHN Car City Fundraiser Saturday, May 2 (overnight) Pizza Challenge Saturday, May 9 th from 3-5 p.m. Springdale Farms Saturday, May 16 th 10 a.m. 4 p.m. February Youth Night On Friday, February 27 th, Gio Mota and Zoe Sullivan with her friend Jackie, headed to the Lakeshore Ice Rink only to discover that Zoe and Jackie don t ice skate and Gio never has---so they opted for a trip to the mall. The girls tried on prom dresses and Gio looked very cool donning a fancy hoodie! We went back to church for popcorn, discussion about how God has turned sorrows into joys, and then played a game. Movie Madness On Friday, Jan. 16 at 11 p.m. until Saturday, Jan. 17 at 6 a.m., our Youth Group (Corinne Cummings, Sarah Hayes & friend Jane, Eric Leavitt & friend Becky, Margaret Mayer & friends Ava & Jessica, Gio Mota, Barbie Smith & 3 friends, Lily Storey & friend Cole, Zoe Sullivan & friend Jackie) and the Youth Group from Gates Presbyterian Church (3 adults and 6 youth) spent an evening watching movies projected by our expert, Brian Leavitt. A special thanks to Linda Hayes who bought the candy and chaperoned, and Alana Sullivan who took care of the popcorn supplies and preparations plus chaperoning. Thank you to Ashley Rispoli for chaperoning the event, too. We watched Princess Bride, Million Dollar Arm, and A Christmas Carol. Everyone seemed to have fun, but we lost lots of youth to the Sandman! Next year s event is planned to begin at 6 and run until midnight.

6 6 Mission Funds AIDS Work Did You Know? Continued from page 1 The 25% portion ($293.25) of the 2014 Peacemaking Offering administered by SPC is going to William Cala s Joining Hearts and Hands, an organization working to fight AIDS and poverty in Kenya. Dr. Cala is from Fairport, NY. Adult Forum Schedule April 12: April 19: April 26: May 17: New Irondequoit Library Career Panel: Psychology Pew Pal Brunch Susan Orr: Visit to Israel From the Pastor s Pen journey as the church of Jesus Christ at a time that is increasingly looking like the First Century and not the 21 st Century? How is their experience of Jesus Ascension as preparation for Pentecost useful for us as we prepare to celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit being breathed into the gathered community of disciples as the breath of life and the dancing flames of the Holy Spirit igniting the church to take to the streets with a message so powerful thousands of people hear it and respond to it with everything they have, the entirety of their lives? These are just a sampling of the questions we will be asking as we experience Jesus Christ s Resurrection, God s new creation, forming and shaping humanity once again in God s image and likeness and charging us with the stewardship of this new community of God s people and indeed the stewardship of the new life God brings into being. May the peace of Jesus Christ be with you in the excitement of Easter, in the mystery of God s new creation,. Continued from p. 4 INTERESTED IN CHILDREN AND YOUTH? THEN: In 1875 a local resident started a summer Sunday school in his home along Lake Ontario. NOW: Children s Workshop lessons serve our children on Sunday mornings offering ac"vi"es, stories and programs introducing them to the Bible and other aspects of Chris"an educa- "on. ADVANTAGE: Sunday school leaders volunteer for units within the curricula classes are not held in a church member s home and do not meet during the summer. YOUR NEXT STEP: Say yes when you re invited to serve on Children and Youth Education Committee. INTERESTED IN THE IMPORTANCE OF SUPPORT SERVICES? THEN: In the 1920 s the Ladies Aid and the Men s Club were active at SPC. The Ladies Aid sponsored Ye Old Folk s Concert plus fundraising activities for projects around the church. The Men s Club acted in stage productions: Mock Trial, School Days, In a Dixie Garden, and a Minstrel Show. NOW: Our Deacons are now the Ladies Aid and Men s Club of the 20 s, using their time and talents to provide membership support to our congregation. Deacons serve and support in many other ways: ushering, providing transportation, overseeing the Parish Plan, for example. YOUR NEXT STEP: Say yes when you re invited to serve as a Deacon Contact a Nominating Committee Member to volunteer to serve. Jen Devoe Wendeth Willson Sue Smith Peg Baker

February 23, :55 a.m. Seventh Sunday after Epiphany

February 23, :55 a.m. Seventh Sunday after Epiphany Summerville Presbyterian Church 4845 St. Paul Blvd. Rochester, New York, 14617 585-342-4242 www.summervillechurch.org email: office@summervillechurch.org Theme 2014: A New Hope February 23, 2014 9:55 a.m.