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| Called Meeting of the Presbytery |
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Wednesday, March 10 - 2:00pm, Mars Hill PC
In accordance with G-11.0201, the Moderator of the Presbytery of East Tennessee, Mr. Jack Danner, has called a meeting for March 10, 2010 at 2:00PM at Mars Hill Presbyterian Church in Athens. This Called Meeting is to hear the report of the General Presbyter Search Committee and to act on their recommendations.
Registration will begin at 1:30pm. A packet for this meeting will be available on the Presbytery's website prior to the meeting.
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| Hunger Action! |
 Cents-Ability in March
The Morgan-Scott Project's Good Earth Garden Program will receive a $500 grant from the Presbytery's Cents-Ability offering, which is made possible by participating congregations. Last spring, the generosity from individual members and church sessions within our Presbytery helped the Good Earth Garden Program provide 384 families with potato seeds, onion sets, tomato and pepper plants, vegetable seeds, and fertilizer. This spring, Ella Smith, Director of Morgan-Scott, anticipates that even more low-income families will be interested in growing their own food. Many families can and freeze food to get through the winter. Please prayerfully consider making these gardens possible again, especially in light of Armstrong's closure of most of the Oneida plant, which will affect more than 250 families beginning in April.
Donations made be sent to:
Morgan-Scott Project
P.O. Box 8
Deer Lodge, TN 37726
Memo section "Good Earth Garden Program"
Deborah Phillips
Hunger Action Enabler
"Do justice, love kindness, walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8 |
| John Knox Center News |
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Meeting God at Camp
By Bri Payne, Executive Director of John Knox Center
I always enjoy Facebook status updates in February. Couples posting how they met: under an umbrella in the rain, standing in line for tickets to a game, or in high school chemistry class. Has anyone ever asked you where you met God? Sounds like a funny question. The answer, of course is not generally at a coffee shop or on a plane. Most Presbyterians including pastors, elders, and church members, point to a singular spiritual grown experience that shaped their faith. One specific moment or event where they heard God's call or felt God's presence in a life changing way. Where was that singular growth experience for folks that are on your church softball team, sitting with you in a Session meeting, and standing behind the pulpit on Sunday morning? For members of the PCUSA, it most likely happened at a camp or conference center. (Presbyterian Panel Survey, August 2002 that can be found at: http://www.pcusa.org/research/panel/index.htm, and to read an article from Presbyterians Today on this subject, click HERE)
To read the full article, click HERE.
Ladies Get-Away Day
 Date: Saturday, March 20
Cost: $25
Registration begins at 8:30am
Closing program at 4:00pm
Keynote Speaker: Jan Krouskup is a recent seminary graduate. She will lead us in sessions focusing on God's promises for us and our spiritual renewal.
Workshop sessions include hiking, ropes course, sustainable gardening, candle making, crafting, and canoeing. For a flyer, click HERE. To register online, click HERE.
John Knox Center - Christ Centered Teambuilding Meeting and Retreat Space
Looking for a place for a Session, staff, confirmation, or committee retreat? John Knox Center offers warm hospitality, optional programmed activities, and delicious meals with retreat space in a beautiful lake front setting for the day or overnight. Presbytery of East Tennessee groups and churches receive DISCOUNTED rates! Prime weekends and weekdays still available. Please contact us at (865) 376-2236. For a flyer, click HERE.
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| High School Youth News |
Presbyterian Youth Triennium
July 20-24 at Purdue University
 This is an excellent opportunity for a group of high school students from our presbytery to travel together and experience a shared worship/ faith journey with 1,000s of youth from around the country.
Check out the Youth Triennium website at www.presbyterianyouthtriennium.org
Montreat Youth Conferences
 The Montreat Youth Conferences are designed for high school students, entering freshmen through graduated seniors. A Youth Conference is a unique gathering of young people from all over the country for a week of study, worship, and recreation. Activities include morning energizers, music, keynote, small group meetings where the conference theme is explored, afternoon recreation activities, and evening worship.
The Montreat Youth Conferences consist of six one-week sessions in June, July and August. Our own Laura Becker (pastor at Northminster) will serve as Recreation Leader for Weeks I & II!
NEW this year - Individual Youth Conference registrations will be accepted for weeks I and VI! Montreat will provide the adult advisors, and participants will do all the same things together that a back-home group would do -- sharing meals, daily devotions, and Wednesday free afternoon activities.
For more information and registration materials, click HERE. |
| Presbyterian Women of the Presbytery |
The PWP Annual Spring Gathering will be held Friday, April 23rd, at Second Presbyterian Church in Knoxville. Registration will begin at 9:15 a.m. and the meeting begins at 10:00 a.m. Betsy Berry from Gainesville, FL, will be our guest speaker with her topic being personal stories and observations from the Global Exchange to Eastern Europe. The theme is "Life of Faith Challenged by Secular Society."
This is an exciting year! Only every three years does PW Synod have a Gathering Retreat and Market Place. In Huntsville, Alabama, June 3 - 5, will be one of the best Synod Gatherings in several trienniums. The Market Place is going to be made up of crafts from all the churches in the Presbytery. Each is being asked to bring 10 to be sold in the Market. There will be speakers and leaders from all over the country. For registration information, contact me at mmkrick@aol.com.
Next fall we hope to offer more programs for the women of the Presbytery such as Spiritual retreats, Leadership Enhancement days and Mission Opportunity support. There are new and different ideas about all of these areas which would enrich our ministries and lives. Life in Christ is exciting and interesting.
 It's going to be a great year ! ! !
Mot Krick
PWP Moderator PET
mmkrick@aol.com
865-380-0553
To read the Winter 2010 Newsletter of the PWP, click HERE. |
| 2010-2011 Presbyterian Planning Calendars |
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Order by April 23 for Bulk Discount
Individuals and churches may order the 2010-11 Presbyterian Planning Calendars through the Presbytery office. By combining many smaller orders, we can offer a reduced bulk rate of $6.60 per calendar as opposed to the regular calendar price of $10.50 plus shipping from Presbyterian Distribution Service. Please click HERE for the order form and mail it to the Presbytery office with payment. Order forms must be in the Presbytery office by Friday, April 23 to be included in the bulk order.
The 2010-11 Planning Calendar highlights the work of artist Kelly Rider, a Presbyterian and former YAV. Art and Scripture verses reflect the General Assembly's commitment to "Grow the Church Deep and Wide." This 19-month calendar, which begins with June 2010, contains many planning aids for pastors and other church leaders, such as Sunday lectionaries, Presbyterian programmatic emphases, and a liturgical colors guide.
The calendars will be delivered to the Presbytery office sometime in May and MUST BE PICKED UP THERE. If you have any questions, please contact Dana Hendrix in the Presbytery office, 865-688-5581 / 800-542-4246 (TN only) / dana@presbyteryeasttn.org |
| 2010 Eco-Stewards Program |
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West Virginia, May 16-23, 2010
 The Eco-Stewards Program, started as a partnership between the Presbyterian Church Camp and Conference Association and Presbyterians for Earth Care, has announced plans for its 2010 program for young adults (~ages 20-30).
For 2010 the Eco-Stewards Program is offering a one week experience called "Tending the Garden: A Faith Response to Protecting and Restoring Mountains, Communities and Relationships" in West Virginia from May 16-23, along with a limited number of paid summer internships.
For more information about this program, click HERE. |
| From the Stated Clerk |
The Session Minutes Reading has been scheduled for June 26, 2010 from 9:00am to 2:00pm at First Presbyterian Church in Sweetwater. Each Clerk of Session will please bring with them their congregation's Minutes of Session Book for the year 2009. Bring previous years' minutes requiring presbytery approval. With guidance provided, the Clerks of Session will swap meeting minutes and read through the minutes of each other's churches. Lunch will be provided. Please let us know if you'll be attending so we can prepare lunch for you. Just send an email to james@presbyteryeasttn.org or call (865) 268-9628. Click HERE for a flyer.
The Presbytery is providing seminars on Sexual Misconduct Prevention and Risk Management for all clergy and educators, Tues., Sept. 21 (Sequoyah Hills, Knoxville) and Wed., Sept. 22 (Northminster, Chattanooga). Clergy attendance is required. These seminars will be led by presbytery representatives and by risk manager experts from GuideOne Insurance, our presbytery's insurance carrier. For a flyer, click HERE. To register, click on this link: http://tinyurl.com/presbyteryeasttn-misconduct
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| Board of Pensions Benefits Plan Overview |
March 18, 2010, 12:00 - 1:30 PM
Second Presbyterian Church in Knoxville
Learn how to maximize on your benefits from the Board of Pensions.
Helen Locklear, our Regional Representative from the Board of Pensions, will conduct a Benefits Plan Overview on March 18. All active members in the Board of Pensions in the Knoxville area will be invited and are encouraged to attend. Lunch will be served and there will be time for questions. Watch for an invitation to come by mail. |
| News & Events Around the Presbytery |
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Blount County Global Women events highlight human trafficking
Blount County Global Women is hosting events to explore the tragedy of human trafficking. The featured speaker for these events will be the Rev. Dr. Lauran Bethell, an international consultant whose work focuses on the exploitation and abuse of women and children.
Saturday, March 6
3:00 - 4:30pm - High Tea
Fairview United Methodist Church
2509 Old Niles Ferry Rd.
Tickets are limited - $5 per person
For more informstion and/or tickets, call 982-6070
Sunday, March 7
10:30am - Worship at Monte Vista Baptist Church
1735 Old Niles Ferry Rd.
6:30 pm - Youth and Young Adult Event
Maryville College Center for Campus Ministry
502 E. Lamar Alexander Parkway
Senior High, College Students and Young Adults
Become informed about the exploitation of young people.
For a flyer about these events, click HERE.
Erin's Sonshine Company Presents The Tree House
 What happens when a bunch of kids looking for a place to get away from fighting parents, report cards, and school yard bullies turn a half finished tree house into a secret sanctuary? Erin Presbyterian is pleased to announce the WORLD premier of The Tree House, a children's musical theater production written by Cynthia W. House, produced by the Erin Stage Company of Erin Presbyterian Church, and performed by the Sonshine Children's Company.
Performances are March 19th and 20th at 7:30 and March 21 at 11:00 am and 7pm at Erin, 200 Lockett Rd at Bearden Hill. Tickets for all evening performances are $7.00 for adults and $5.00 for children and senior citizens and are available for sale at www.erinpresbyterian.org, from cast members, or at the door.
The Sunday morning performance is free and open to the public. Don't miss this wonderful, fun and uplifting musical. For a flyer about these performances, click HERE.
Clayton Center Opening at Maryville College
 The Clayton Center for the Arts at Maryville College is on schedule to hold its grand opening the last weekend in March 2010. The Center boasts an exciting mix of genres from a wide variety of forms of art in the first few weeks that the doors will be open.
"After more than a decade of dreaming, planning and discussing, the Clayton Center will come to life in early 2010, and we're excited that very soon, the public will be able to enjoy it," said John Cherry, director of marketing for the Center. "We're striving for the Center to be East Tennessee's home for the arts - not just music, but all of the arts, and our upcoming events demonstrate that."
The Grand Opening events of March 25-29 are intended to be representative of the variety and quality of entertainment and arts that will be offered at the Center in the months and years to come. Events of the Grand Opening include: the Maryville College Choir Concert, March 25; Jo Dee Messina Concert, March 26; Adams Foundation Piano Concert, March 28; and the joint recital of alumni vocalists Delores Bowen Ziegler and John Wesley Wright and the Banff Film Festival, both set for March 29.
Tickets Unlimited will be handling sales for Clayton Center events, and the Clayton Center's box office will be a full-service location for reserving tickets for other events made available through Tickets Unlimited.
Challenge Accepted provides support, advocacy and education for the disabled and the community
 Challenge Accepted is an organization started a year ago by Gary Harmon and Tim Crais, both members of Westminster Presbyterian Church. It was organized for people of diverse disabilities and its mission is to provide support, advocacy, and education for the disabled and for our Knoxville community. The group meets on the second Thursday of each month at the Cherokee Health Systems building at 6:00pm to listen to a speaker and discuss cares and concerns. The members range in disabilities from cerebral palsy and spina bifida to short term memory loss. Everyone is welcome to attend the meetings and help build a community where greater understanding is achieved between those with and without disabilities. For more information contact Tim Crais at 865-357-0365 or at timcrais@yahoo.com or go online to www.challengeaccepted.org. |
| Spread the News! |
We invite you to share your news with us. All articles and news items must be submitted by the 20th of the month prior to publication. Send your information to Dana Hendrix, dana@presbyteryeasttn.org. |
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