The Encounter. April Pastor Jim Koopman Part Time Intentional Interim Minister

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1 The Encounter April 2013 Inside this issue: Finance Update 2 Discipleship News Youth News 3-4 Women s Retreat 5 Congregational Life 5 Facility Ministry Update 6 Missions Ministry 6-7 Session Action Summary 8 This-n-That 8 Worship Volunteers Birthday List April Calendar insert Ankeny Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) 317 S.E. Trilein Drive Ankeny, Iowa Phone: FAX: office@ankenypresbyterian.org Web Site: 9 On April 7, I will be introducing a new sermon series entitled Extreme Makeover. I am excited about this series because much of our focus will be on the Gifts of the Spirit one of my favorite subjects in the entire Bible. I am also greatly excited because our youth will be playing a very important teaching role in this series where on Sunday, April 28 they will lead us in worship and will help us answer the how to? question about spiritual gifts. The series title - Extreme Makeover speaks to the fact that the Holy Spirit begins working in each of us as we become believers and followers of Christ to make and mold us so we can best live into God s unique calling for our lives and ministry. This includes discovering how God has wired us, our core values, and our passions. Spiritual Gifts are spoken of in four major New Testament passages: Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4, and 1 Peter 4. In 1 Corinthians 12:1, the Apostle Paul starts off his teaching by saying we should not be ignorant of our gifts. But how do we know what are our gifts, how might we use them in the body of Christ, and how can our gifts be misunderstood? To answer these questions, we will drill down and explore our gifts in depth. We will be using two tools. The first tool is an on-line Assessment. It is offered by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), a sister denomination with the PCUSA, UCC, and RCA. We all share this tool. You can access it at I encourage each of you to log on and take this free assessment. The second tool is named Networking, primarily authored by Bruce Bugbee, a fellow colleague of mine in California. Of all of the tools that are out there, this particular tool is in my opinion the most comprehensive way of discerning the gifts God has given us. I ve used this tool since This 95 page book Discover Your Spiritual Gifts the Network Way is being offered to you for $5.00. Because God created us with our own set of gifts, it is best if each individual has their own copy. I ve ordered a limited amount. Here are some ways to reserve your copy of this book: the office at office@ankenypresbyterian.org, stop by the church office and buy one, reserve/purchase one at the Welcome table on Easter Sunday, or call the church office at The sooner you let us know of your intent to have your own personal copy then we can decide if more books need to be ordered. So let us know as soon as you can. (Checks should be made out to APC) One last note, our youth will be participating in this discovery process throughout the month of April as they prepare for leading our worship on April 28. My dream is for our entire body to actively discern and learn together how God s Spirit is at work in our lives and body. Please pray for them and pray for all of us as we look for God s makeover in our lives and ministry together at APC. Pastor Jim Koopman Part Time Intentional Interim Minister

2 PAGE 2 THE ENCOUNTER APRIL 2013 Financial Update Listed below is a summary of APC 2013 income and expenses as of February 28, Thank you for your support of APC s ministries. Should you have questions about the statement below, contact Evan Stadlman. INCOME YTD Feb Budget Category Total Total Interest - Money Market $10.32 $50.00 Interest - Checking Account $0.00 $ Carryover - Previous Year $42, $42,000 Per Capita Income $ $ Loose Offering $ $2, Prior Year Nonpledged $0.00 Current Year Nonpledged $3, $18,0000 Nonpledged Other $0.00 Total Non-pledged - Other $46, $63, Pledged Current Year Pledged $40, $252, Prior Year - Youth Dir. Pledged $26, $26, Pledged - Other $0.00 $0.00 Total Pledged $67, $277, Other Revenue (i.e EOY fund transfers, fees, contributions, fundraising, etc.) Total Mission Ministry $ $5, Total Special Offerings $0.00 $0.00 Total Worship Ministry $0.00 $ Total Discipleship $2, $13, Total Congregational Life $0.00 $4, Total Deacons/Congregational Care $0.00 $0.00 Total Facility Resources $1, $3, Total Human Resources $0.00 $0.00 Total General Office $0.00 $0.00 Total $4, $26, TOTAL INCOME $118, $367, EXPENSES Total Mission $2, $32, Total Special Offerings $0.00 $0.00 Total Per Capita $ $8, Total Worship Ministry $ $3, Total Discipleship Ministry $ $15, Total Congregational Life Ministry $ $3, Total Deacons/Congregational Care $46.00 $ Total Stewardship Ministry $0.00 $ Total Session $0.00 $ Total Facility Resources $5, $38, Total General Office $1, $9, Total Human Resources/Personnel $27, $211, Total Loan Payments & Interest $8, $50, TOTAL EXPENSES $48, $375, NET INCOME $69, ($15,432.00)

3 APRIL 2013 THE ENCOUNTER PAGE 3 On Thursday, April 4th Pastor Russ Tomlinson will celebrate his 90th Birthday. To help him celebrate we would like to surprise him with a mailbox full of Birthday Cards. We are hoping Russ receives over 90 cards from his APC family. Please send your card to: Russ Tomlinson 1145 W 1st St Apt 109 Ankeny, IA (Russ and Ruth are receiving an Encounter without this information in it so are unaware of our party for him.) Discipleship Why Friends in Faith? Why has the Discipleship Committee spent the last year piloting a mentoring program called "Friends in Faith"? First off, what is it? Friends in Faith is a ministry of Ankeny Presbyterian Church whose goal is to create a nurturing environment in which the children, youth, and adults of APC can grow in faith together. By pairing all APC children and youth with an adult who serves as a mentor, members embrace and live out our mission statement. Through this ministry, mentors are encouraged to reach out to their selected 2-3 children and/or youth members. They can say, "Hi!" to them in church, send them a card, go see them play in a basketball game, etc. Additionally, three events focused on fun and fellowship are offered for all participants during the year. So why start this ministry? Studies have shown that to keep teens who graduate from high school in the church, they need to have at least 5 adult faith connections before they leave. Friends in Faith connects our children and youth to one adult more specifically and to many adults more generally within the program. I have seen the wonders of this ministry already on several occasions and watched our children making connections with people from different generations. So often, our kids and youth get segmented off into their own (wonderful) programming, but this can be at the expense of being a part and feeling a part of the greater community in Christ. By facilitating connections between generations, we aim to strengthen our children and youth's connections to people of faith in efforts to nurture their own faith in the process. What a way to open the doors and remove the culturally ingrained barriers of age that so often separate us! Thanks to our wonderful participants, this first year is off to a great start, but we are committed to keep it growing! Martha martha@ankenypresbyterian.org

4 PAGE 4 THE ENCOUNTER APRIL 2013 Discipleship It s been a busy school year for the youth group! The group has had a nice balance of fellowship, service, learning, and fun! Service: These kids are developing servant hearts! A favorite activity is to visit On With Life to spend time with the persons served. We go once a month and have really gotten to know some of the people and their families. When we are there, we play games or do crafts. In April, we will be taking treats and Farkle Party to play with the people who live there. Other examples of service include helping out with the Easter Egg Hunt, babysitting for the 20 s, 30 s, and 40 s group, and walking in the Hunger Hike. The youth have also worked together to make several bulletin boards for the Mission committee. In May, we will be heading to Dubuque for the Big Day of Serving ; those people make us work hard! Last year, we hauled mulch! In addition, several of the youth volunteer on a regular basis for APC Wednesday and Sunday School singing. Several have also signed up to be lay leaders at church. Finally, we will be working hard in April to prepare for Youth Sunday at the end of the month. On another note, we also have seven youth going to El Salvador with the delegation in June. Learning: Every youth group includes some kind of Bible study or educational program. For example, Martha led the youth in a meditation lesson designed to help people feel closer to God. In January, we played a mission game from the presbytery to learn more about mission around the world. At the end of March, a former youth, Kendra Allen, spoke to the group about her mission work in Hollywood. Fun: No matter what we are doing, the youth know how to have fun! However, sometimes we do activities just for fellowship and good Christian hilarity. In the fall, we went to the corn maze and had a hotdog/marshmallow roast. In December, we dedicated an entire night to a fun Christmas party. Most recently, we went to Cici s Buffet before bowling the night away at Merle Hay Lanes. Fellowship: Of course, all these activities involve fellowship with each other. However, did you know that we also fellowship with youth from other Presbyterian churches? In November, we went to a Presbytery youth retreat in Indianola and had a blast. We ll get to see some of these same youth at a Triennium delegation retreat at the end of April! Fundraising: Finally, we cannot forget fundraising. Most of the funds we are raising this year are for the Triennium trip in July. Nine youth and three adults are planning to travel with the Presbytery delegation to Purdue University. We also use the funds for mission activities such as the Big Day of Service. The kids and their parents really come together to make our fundraiser breakfasts profitable and delicious! In addition, we also sold cards, calendars, and puzzles. Thanks for supporting the youth at APC! Tom and Chris Albers Children's Choir Sings All APC children are invited to sing on Sunday, April 21 at the 9:30 a.m. Worship service. Rehearsals are April 7 and 14 from 10:30-10:50 a.m. We need everyone's voices! Friends in Faith: Saturday, April 13, 6-8 p.m. Friends in Faith Event: All APC Children, Youth, and their mentors will come together for one final event of the year!! You won't want to miss out on the fun and fellowship.

5 APRIL 2013 Women s Retreat THE ENCOUNTER PAGE 5 Love the Lord your God, Love your neighbor as yourself, Make disciples of all nations, and You are freely to open your hand to your brother, your needy and the poor in your land are all calls upon our lives as Christians. In order to love and reach out as Christ would have us do, we must also listen to Christ's invitation to come away by yourselves and rest awhile... Fill Your Cup: A Day for Refreshing is an invitation for the women of APC to come away by yourselves and rest awhile In this one day retreat we will focus on refreshing ourselves in spirit, body and mind. There will be times for laughter, meditation and relaxation among other things. Lunch and snacks will be provided and the cost will be a free-will offering. Come on April 20th from 9:00 a.m. 3:30 p.m. to enjoy a day to Fill Your Cup. Details about the event and a sign-up sheet are in the Fellowship Hall. You can also RSVP to the office. Contact Sue Tomlinson, Bonnie McCaughey or Debi Garner if you have questions and/or would like to help out. Congregational Life It has been over 5 years since APC has had a church photo directory taken. To help new members and Pastor Jim, the Congregational Life committee would like to put together a temporary photo church directory. It is temporary because we will be printing it in the office and not having an outside company do it for us. The plan is to take pictures in April. Watch for more details to come in the bulletins after Easter. If you have had a picture taken of you and/or your family recently, send a digital copy of the picture to office@ankenypresbyterian.org and we ll use that one in the directory. Periodically, the Congregational Life Committee conducts Membership Inquiry Gatherings as a way for people to discover the possibilities of membership in our congregation. The gathering is designed to be an introduction or re-introduction -- for folks with Presbyterian roots -- to the faith and practices (theology, governance, and mission) of the Presbyterian and Reformed tradition. In addition, during this time, you will have an opportunity to discover more about the specific ministries and commitments of this congregation, and how you might become a part of these ministries. Our next gathering will be Sunday, April 21st, from 4:00-6:30 pm in the Fireside room. Please RSVP to Kimber in the office or Audrey Kobus at jnakobus@q.com

6 PAGE 6 THE ENCOUNTER APRIL 2013 Facility Resource Update In an effort to keep the APC congregation updated on the status of the building and grounds, the Facility Committee will be doing regular updates on the status of God s church. As we all know the building we are taking care of is getting along in years. Most of the building is in rather good condition, however there are two areas we will need to address in the future. These repairs do not need to be done today, but they will need to be done in the future and both of the areas will be rather expensive. One of the areas that needs to be addressed is an issue with the west wall of the Sanctuary. As you may have noticed there are cracks forming in the stucco. In some places the stucco has actually pulled away from the rest of the wall. These cracks have been repaired but they will continue to occur until the wall has been properly fixed or replaced. The second area we have is an ongoing issue with the roof. As you may have noticed there are many places where water has leaked through the ceiling tiles. We have made many attempts to control the water problem, and currently it seems to be working pretty well. After consulting with some roof experts, we will need to replace the membrane on the roof or have a new roof put over the flat portion of the church. Again this is not something that needs to be done now, but will have to be done sometime in the future. We feel that it will be sooner rather than later. Together the expense of the wall repair and the roof repair/replacement will be expensive. It may require a special building fund drive to raise the money needed. At this time it is still too early for Facilities and Session to make a recommendation, but we do want you to know of these problems in advance. Any member of the Facility Committee will be able to tell you more about the problem with this wall Your Facility committee, Theron Smith, Rick Konopka, Don Hansen, Dave Dirks, Tom Albers, Gary Owens Mission Ministry Challenge Hunger Local philanthropist Douglas M. Woods has committed to provide 50 cents for every dollar donated to the DMARC Food Pantry Network during March and April 2013, up to the first $20,000 in donations. This challenge gift comes during a season when donations to the pantry are historically low. Yet, the need for food assistance by families who struggle to make ends meet continues year-round. How can you help? During March and April, donations to the DMARC Food Pantry Network that are noted as Challenge Hunger gifts will be matched 50 cents for every dollar, up to a total of $20,000 given. As part of the Challenge, your $10 becomes $15, $50 equals $75, and so on. During the Challenge Hunger campaign, a $10 gift will help DMARC provide 20 meals for a hungry child. Donate online or mail your Challenge Hunger donation to DMARC, th Street, Suite 202, Des Moines IA Phone donations are also welcome at Thank you for your support.

7 APRIL 2013 Mission Ministry THE ENCOUNTER PAGE 7 Corozal Classroom Addition is Underway! The hardworking volunteers of Corozal, El Salvador have begun construction of a two-classroom addition to their canton school with funding from APC. A portion of the school building had been severely damaged during the civil war ( ) and again from an earthquake in This section was demolished and removed by Corozal volunteer workers beginning in early February of this year. A recent photo sent from our mission co-worker, Katherine Pater, shows the building of concrete block walls for the school has begun. The following links connect to YouTube videos that show the impressive manual labor of the men in Corozal as they bring down the walls of the old building: The School Project at Corozal, Part 1 The School Project in Corozal, Part 2 The school in Corozal currently has only two classrooms. In the mornings, one classroom is used for the Kindergarten class, and the other for first & second grades. In the afternoons, the classrooms are used for third through sixth grades. Approximately 135 children attend the Corozal school. This addition will double their classroom space and provide needed room for their growing student population. We will keep you updated on the progress! 14-Member Delegation to El Salvador in June 2013 Delegation members have begun preparations for their mission trip to El Salvador from June 9-16, The group is meeting every other Sunday to plan for their trip, and to learn about the history and culture of our partners in Corozal, El Salvador. Mission trip members include: Carla Yeager, Brenda Schumann, Jan Klinker, Shannon and Josh Jones, Marcia, Mark, and Connor McAdoo, Cory Brooks, Katie Stephany, Connor Hilsenbeck, Holly and Sarah Albers, and Addy Metcalfe. This will be the 9 th delegation from APC to travel to El Salvador since the APC-Corozal partnership began in Worship Service Attendance February (total) March (total) Weekly Average 111 Weekly Average 119 February (total) March (total) (does not include 3/31) Weekly Average 122 Weekly Average 119

8 PAGE 8 THE ENCOUNTER APRIL 2013 Session Action Summary The APC Session met on March 11, 2013 and took action on the following: Approved the 2013 Budget To limit all expenditures, aside from Human Resources, to 90% of the budget for committee expenses. Any expense above the 90% limit requires Session approval. To discontinue the Inactive Member Roll as of April 30, 2013 To pay the choir director for 52 weeks per year (formerly had been 48 weeks) Please direct any comments, concerns, or questions to one of your Session members. Accept the gift of a lawn tractor from an APC family Please direct any comments, concerns, or questions to one of your Session members. This-n-That The General Mission of the PCUSA would like to thank the congregation immensely for the gifts and continued support of our PCUSA missionaries throughout our world. The support you provide enables current and new missionaries to spread the Good News of Christ in our lost and broken world so loved by God. Do you feel God nudging you to help out but not sure what to do? Two of our committees are in need of some volunteers. The Facilities Committee is looking for volunteers for lawn mowing and watering the outside flowers this summer. Rotating teams of two are assigned weekly mowing of the lawns. The watering of the flowers is dependent on weather conditions. If you have any questions or are willing to volunteer, please contact Dave Dirks or Gary Owens. The Missions Committee is looking for a volunteer to deliver food to DMARC on the 3rd Monday of each month. The bags are counted and ready to be taken down. You would need to deliver them to the DMARC warehouse at th St. in Des Moines If you have any questions or are willing to volunteer, please contact Kent Berry. New Horizons Adult Day Center 12 th Annual Lasagna Dinner Friday, April 12, 2013, 4:30 7:00 pm Ankeny First United Methodist Church, 206 SW Walnut St Adults Advance $8 / Door $9 Child (under 10) Advance $4 / Door $5 Under 3 Free Tickets can be purchased from Marcia Flaugh or Bonnie McCaughey here at APC. You can also call or stop at New Horizons.

9 APRIL 2013 THE ENCOUNTER PAGE 9 Worship Volunteers April 7 Greeters: Bob & Linda Zinn, Heather Sanders Ushers: Kent & Laurie Berry Worship Leader: Ray Peters Nursery Volunteers during SS: Alice White, Chris Slocombe April 14 Greeters: Tom & Chris Albers, Sarah Albers, Nathan Stephany Ushers: Bonnie McCaughey & Lorna Agard Worship Leader: Holly Albers Nursery Volunteers during SS: Marcia and Mark McAdoo April 21 Greeters: Steve & Marian Gibbons, Cathy DeMoss Ushers: Al & Cathy Overbaugh Worship Leader: Julie Cloud Nursery Volunteers during SS: Cory and Nicki Dawkins Food Pantry March s total donations to the Food Pantry were 35 food items and 321 diapers for a year to date total of 221 food items and 477 diapers. Reminder: Expired food is not accepted by the Food Pantry. Please make sure and check the dates before you bring the items. April 28 Youth Sunday Nursery Volunteers during SS: Alice White, Rebecca Morris MONTHLY SOCIAL LUNCHEON FOR MEN & WOMEN! This group meets the first Wednesday of the month (April 3rd this month) at IHOP at 12:00 noon. Anyone who would like to fellowship is welcome and encouraged to bring a friend. April Birthdays 2 Naomi SchraderBachar 3 Scott Wood 4 Russ Tomlinson Debi Garner 6 Lysa Youngquist 8 Chad Wagener 9 Ryan Seedorf 10 Amy Metcalfe 11 Sarah Albers 12 Joni Walters Alice White 17 Gary Naylor 18 Lorna Agard Nadine Greiman Pam Slippy 20 Emily Vollmuth 23 Marcia Zach Nichole Seedorf Juanita Rogers 25 Bonnie McCaughey