Eternal God and Source of Living Water,
let your gentle current direct us to the places
where you are actively nurturing seeds of hope and love
in our community and around the world.
Guide us so we continue to labor with you in places
where your refreshing streams bring forth new life.
In Christ's name we pray.

Amen.

 

Volunteer Opportunities at Mobile Health Fairs
July 6-9
 
Dates and times that volunteers are needed:
 

Tuesday, July 6 - Trinity Episcopal Church, Bay City, 9-3 and 5-7:30
Wednesday, July 7 - Borland Elementary, Imlay City, 9-3 and 5-8
Thursday, July 8 - Stone Elementary, Saginaw, 8:30 -2 and 5-7:30
 
Please contact Valerie Fargo at 989-839-9462 or vfargo@presbylh.org.

What's Going To Happen At General Assembly?

There are many items that will be addressed at the 219th General Assembly July 3-10 in Minneapolis, MN that you may want to follow.  There is an easy way to do that.  Go to the 219th General Assembly website and click on the Log-in to PC-BIZ logo on the left.  It is free to sign up for updates and you can customize which items you would like to track.

We also encourage you to include the Commissioners and Delegates in your prayers.  They have a huge responsibility and would appreciate your prayers.  Those representing Lake Huron Presbytery are:

Clergy Commissioners:
The Rev. Glenn Grant (Grand Blanc-Kirkridge)
The Rev. Dr. David Pierce (Midland-Memorial)

Elder Commissioners:
Elder Delphine Holland (Flint-Trinity United)
Elder CJ Merriman (Lapeer-First)

Youth Advisory Delegate (YAD):
Mr. Wesley Smith (Fenton-First)

25th Anniversary Celebration for the Rev. Tom Cundiff

The Rev. Tom Cundiff, ordained in 1977, came to Warren Avenue Presbyterian Church in Saginaw in 1985, and has served this congregation for 25 years.  In celebrating this quarter century of ministry, a special worship and brunch has been planned for Sunday, June 27th.  The Rev. Louise Brokaw, General Presbyter for the Presbytery of Lake Huron, will be preaching.  Following worship we will gather for brunch at the Germania Club.  Donations will be received to defer the cost of the meal.  (Suggested donation is $15).Visitors and friends of Rev. Cundiff are invited.  Please call the Church Office at 989-752-6474 to make your reservation.

Worship is at 10:00am at Warren Avenue Presbyterian Church; 612 Millard St; Saginaw 48607 (click here for directions)

Brunch is at 11:30am at the Germania Town and Country Club; 1 Germania Platz; Saginaw 48602 (click here for directions) 

Marianne Lycka of Saginaw Township
is secretary at First Presbyterian Church,
121 S. Harrison St., Saginaw.

What is your typical day like?
Compiling information, typing church bulletins and newsletters, proofreading, deadlines, keeping track of the church calendar, responding to the needs of our committees and members and staff, phones and keeping up member records.

What led to this occupation?
The Saginaw News classified ads. I worked at CVS Headquarters in Woonsocket, R.I., for 22 years and had a lovely career and friends but missed my family back in Saginaw, so 10 years ago (two years after my divorce) I packed my things and moved back. I had job hunted for several months and then one day looked at the want ads and there was my job in a 1 x 3.  It turned out to be a wonderful fit mentally, spiritually and socially.

What do you enjoy most about this job?
The freedom to create, the interaction with people and working in a beautiful facility that is so rich with history.

What was your first job (even as a kid)?
Clerk at the CVS store at Fashion Square Mall when I was 17.

What is the one thing you cannot live without?
If you are talking about a thing as in an object it would be my class ring. If you are talking about something you can't touch but can touch you, it would be love.

Your proudest moment?
The birth of my son in 1983.

How many towns have you lived in?
The city of Saginaw; Rochester, N.Y.; Harrisville, R.I.; Manville, R.I.; Woonsocket, R.I., and Saginaw Township.

Given a free day, what would you choose to do?
Work around the house, read, walk and tend to my garden flowers.

Who would you most like to meet?
Oprah.

What is your dream vacation?
Just got back from it - Prague, Czech Republic (wasn't sure if we were going to make it due to the after effects of the volcano eruption). We walked everywhere. There was beautiful architecture and scenery and old world charm. The only thing that would beat that would be to visit Slovakia and Moravia to see the towns where my ancestors came from.

(Click here to read the original online article.)

For several years now, motorcyclists from all over the area converge on Tawas Area Presbyterian Church on a Saturday in May for the annual 'Blessing of the Bikes', an Outreach Ministry of the church, under the coordination of Jeannie Hebner. In 2008 we hosted over 44 bikes and 58 bikers, our largest group ever. Each year the number varies just like the weather.  That year it took about an hour for Pastor Rick Vogeley to pray with each individual biker (and their bike). They each received an official 'Christian Motorcycle Association' decal for their bike and other CMA literature.   And, although Pastor Rick does not have a motorcycle, he is not to be outdone by the bikers' leathers.  He dons his own 'leathers' version for the day:  a clerical collar, official TAPC sweater, boots and jeans.

This year, 2010, the skies opened up and it poured rain all day.  A few brave souls "weathered the storm" and were here before 9 A.M. for the Bikers' Breakfast that the Men's Fellowship group prepares for them. 

Every year the bikers take up a collection and make a donation to TAPC in gratitude for this ministry and to help defray the cost of the breakfast.

Early in the fall of 2009 the Christian Education Committee of Tawas Area Presbyterian Church brought before the Session a motion to pursue the feasibility of having a licensed preschool program.  Under the leadership of Elder Shaynee Paauwe this "feasibility" has become a "reality".   Physical space was allocated and brought to code (with thanks to a great group of guys on the Facility Committee), a teacher/director was hired (Ms. Trisha Evans), licensing was obtained from the State of Michigan, an Open House for the Tawas community was held.   And with God's blessing on this outreach ministry, along with the overwhelmingly positive response (from members of the congregation as well as the Tawas community), the Tawas Area Presbyterian Preschool (TAPP) officially opened on May 12, 2010.

Tawas Area Presbyterian Preschool (TAPP) is part of the Tawas Area Presbyterian Church and a mission to the community in which it lives.  The Preschool/Daycare upholds the belief that every child is created and loved by God as declared in the Old and New Testaments and revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 

The mission of the Preschool is to provide an atmosphere that allows the preschool child to experience God's love and a program that nurtures the preschooler's social, emotional, physical, intellectual and spiritual growth.

A Daycare / After School program is already in full swing; A Summer Adventure Program for ages 4-12 begins June 14 through August 20; the formal Preschool program for 3 and 4 year-olds begins September 6 and ends June 14, 2011 and a Latchkey (school-age after school activity program) follows the same school-year calendar as the Preschool program.   Each program has a curriculum planned for that specific age group and is both developmental and Christian-based by design.

For more information, please visit T.A.P.C.'s web site at www.tawaspresby.org.

There is just one more spot available for the July 25-August 5 backpack trip to Isle Royale.  The opening is for a girl who must be a high school freshman through graduating senior.  This event is a twelve day wilderness experience for high school students.  The trip is sponsored by Camp Greenwood and you can get more information by visiting www.campgreenwood.org by calling Dale Swihart at 810-629-7801.

Nine students representing six colleges and universities related to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) have received the 2010 Samuel Robinson Award, including Matthew Bauhof of Alma College.

The Samuel Robinson Award, which is open to PC(USA) students who are completing their junior or senior year of college at a Presbyterian-related college or university, was created from a gift made in 1956 naming the General Assembly, Princeton Theological Seminary, McCormick Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary to promote the memorization of the Westminster Shorter Catechism contained in The Book of Confessions.

"Most of the ministry at Alma College is ecumenical," said the college's chaplain, the Rev. Carol Gregg. "Christians of all denominations worship, study and serve together. While I value this ecumenism, I am grateful for the Samuel Robinson Program because it gives me an opportunity to promote something that is explicitly Presbyterian and a unique way to reach out to members of our denomination."  Alma College's award-winning entry for 2010 was submitted by Matt Bauhoff, "a very promising Presbyterian pre-ministry student who... is a scholar-athlete with enthusiasm for sports, the life of the mind, and spiritual growth," according to S. Brian Stratton, Ph.D., chair of the college's Religious Studies Department.  "He will no doubt do a very effective job in his goal of working with youth," Stratton said.

NEWPORT BEACH, CA - Haiti's poverty and problems run far deeper than the damage done by the recent earthquake, said General Assembly Moderator Bruce Reyes-Chow after his recent visit to the island nation.

"What I knew intellectually, but saw now with my own eyes, was that Haiti's poverty and problems were not just because of the earthquake," he said. "Much has to do with global policies toward Haiti, and the decades of how we have not treated Haiti well."

Reyes-Chow cited as an example how the U.S. has pushed Haiti to change its tariffs on rice. As a result, the country now grows very little rice and relies on imports from outside the country.
Though he already knew that economic reality, seeing the adverse results with his own eyes made its impact stronger, Reyes-Chow said. 

"I had very little expectation, going into the trip," he told Presbyterian News Service. "And I'd guess I know about as much about Haiti as any run of the mill Presbyterian who stays on top of current events."

Beyond the obvious challenge posed by the earthquake's destruction, what was perhaps most troubling to the moderator was seeing the legacy of well-intentioned charity as it has played out to the detriment of Haiti.

"As a denomination, I am really proud of the thoughtfulness and depth of which we are trying to engage in mission and partnership," Reyes-Chow said. But charitable work in Haiti has not always been so focused on partnership, and today much of the aid that reaches Haiti is still not always entered into mutually.

"It was very evident to see how churches, in well-intentioned ways, have fulfilled our own need to feel good about ourselves to help those in need of help," he noted, "yet it was more about us going and doing what we thought we needed [to do] than about creating sustainability."

Reyes-Chow recounted a story told to his group on its visit. A prominent...continue reading.

PDA and other ministry programs of Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) continue to monitor the situation in the oil spill situation in the Gulf of Mexico.  PDA's protocol when disasters occur in a region of our church, is to contact the middle governing bodies in the geographic area of the disaster and respond to the needs which they identify.

Weekly joint conference calls are being held with all presbyteries that border the Gulf of Mexico and staff in offices PC(USA) program staff.  Offices represented on the call include Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, Presbyterian Hunger Program, Presbyterian Self-Development of People, Presbyterian Washington Office, Environmental Ministries and Theology and Worship.  The presbyteries and programs are still working to identify and catalog needs to which it may be appropriate to respond. Plans have been made to include our ecumenical partner, Church World Service on the next conference call to help determine a broader faith-based response.

One area of need that has been identified is emotional and spiritual care-giving for affected families. A team from Alaska who lived through and learned from the oil spill in that region has been working with one of the affected presbyteries to share their learnings and provide empathetic support.

Please consider the following points as you pray for families affected by this disaster and wonder how you can respond.

HOONAH, Alaska - The two-way radio squawks repeatedly during the four-and-a-half hour run aboard the Princeton Hall from Juneau to Hoonah, a small village along the Inside Passage. The messages are admiring comments from passing boaters about the 49-ton, 65-foot cruiser built nearly 70 years ago to serve Presbyterian mission in Southeast Alaska.

For nearly 100 years, a series of mission boats - dubbed "The Presbyterian Navy" - plied the waters of "Southeast" visiting the Alaska Native village churches scattered among the islands here. The last of them, the Anna Jackman, ceased service in 1982 and was sold to private owners by Alaska Presbytery.

Presbyterian mission boats, funded by Alaska Presbyterians and the Presbyterian Church's Board of Home Missions (later National Missions), began traveling around the region in the early 1900s, when the island villages were only accessible by boat.

"Missionaries from the 'lower 48' and Alaska Native evangelists who became Christian because of their efforts used the boats to spread the gospel in towns, fishing villages and logging camps throughout Southeast Alaska," says the Rev. David Dobler, pastor to the presbytery for Alaska Presbytery and moderator of the 1993 PC(USA) General Assembly. "Their names evoke the mission heritage of Southeast Alaska: the Ruby, the Lindsley, the Marietta, the Good Tidings, the Vermay, the Princeton, the Princeton Hall and the steel-hulled Anna Jackman, among others."

One of the first - the Toronado - was won in a poker game  by the Rev. Eugene Bromley, pastor of Haines Presbyterian Church from 1925-1935 and later a pastor here and in Juneau. By 1917 there were at least five Presbyterian mission boats itinerating among the islands and their churches and mission outposts, hence the moniker "Presbyterian Navy."

"I don't know why, but the Presbyterians were the only denomination that organized their evangelistic work in Alaska by a system of boats," says Kathy Ruddy, an elder at Chapel by the Lake Presbyterian Church in Auke Bay, near Junea. "That's one of the reasons the Presbyterian Church is so prominent in many Native communities."

The wooden-hulled Princeton Hall - now owned by Ruddy and her husband, Bill - is the stuff of Presbyterian legend in these parts.
It's immediate predecessor, the Princeton, was...continue reading.

Even though church members scatter during the summer and congregations tend to reduce programs, summertime is still a critical time for Membership Development.

Young families move during the summer, in order to be situated before schools open. Young graduates pour into destination cities to start careers. Church shopping often takes place during the summer.

Here's a check-list of what you can do to respond:

Update and Enhance your web site

Most prospects will visit your web site before they visit your buildings. The impressions they form there will determine whether they come at all.

Your site needs to be "customer-centered," not "provider-centered," which means anticipating the information and meaning that visitors are seeking. It needs to be lively, focused on people, not facilities, and up to date. It needs to convey a desire to welcome, not pride in what you offer. 

Compare your web site with those of growing churches in your area. Yours needs to be just as good. 

Prepare a process for greeting Sunday visitors

You don't want to pounce on them. You want to greet them warmly and establish an atmosphere of welcome. Your key goal is to obtain their name and e-mail address, so that you can follow up with personal e-mail and your e-mailed newsletter. Various methods can work, such as a pew register, handing out small cards as they arrive and/or leave, reinforced by the pastor's greeting.

Respond to visitors

Best response is always a personal response, made promptly. The sooner you call on visitors, the more likely they are to affiliate.

Have a process for second, third and fourth responses, such as adding them to e-letter list, inviting them to appropriate events (like a swim party for young families), scheduling lunch.

Do more than Sunday

Make sure you aren't putting your entire emphasis on Sunday morning. We are learning that the majority of potential members won't be drawn to Sunday worship. Invite them to a neighborhood picnic or baseball outing. You want to facilitate people meeting people, not just introducing them to Sunday worship. 

Have fun on Sunday

The word has gone around, like it or not, that Sunday worship is boring, bland and uninspiring. Okay, address that expectation right up front, by being lively, vivid and inspiring. Speak directly to people's yearnings - and to their apprehension about getting preached at and judged.

You can find an entire section on Membership Development in the Church Wellness section of our web site. Click here for more.