FLOOD CLEAN-UP ASSISTANCE SOUGHT FOR MINOT, N.D.: Clean-up assistance is now requested in the Minot, N.D., area in response to this summer's flood of the Souris River. See details, too, on Facebook and conversation on Twitter. Volunteer work teams may schedule to serve in the area with All Hands, an ecumenical long term recovery organization, between now and Oct. 1, according to an announcement distributed by Presbyterian Disaster Assistance.  Groups can register interest online or by emailing MinotRCC@gmail.com or calling (701) 347-1588.  Additional details can be found in Light of the Northern Plains, the newsletter of the Presbytery of the Northern Plains.Writing in the newsletter, Nancy Emerson, co-chair of the presbytery's Flood Task Force, noted, "The greatest obstacle to volunteering is the lack of temporary housing and portable showers. All Hands Volunteers does have ability to house 40-60 volunteers. Groups staying with them do not have to pay anything for accommodations or meals. However, groups need to register now to ensure availability. ... All Hands Volunteers has committed to the clean-up effort until the onset of winter. In their eyes that means the end of September."

VICTIMS OF MINNEAPOLIS TORNADO STILL NEED ASSISTANCE: The Presbytery of the Twin Cities Area is still accepting donations to assist in the recovery from the May tornado that struck north Minneapolis. A Minnesota Public Radio story of Aug. 9 stated, "The May tornado that destroyed hundreds of houses in north Minneapolis uprooted school children who resided there. Some families are still living in hotels and shelters or doubling up with relatives in other cities until they can move back in or find permanent housing." The complete MPR story can be found at "Living in Hotels and Shelters."  Another MPR story, from mid-July, noted, "New census data out today illuminates with detail the housing picture in the north Minneapolis tornado zone, showing the challenges facing that area of the city as it struggles to recover from the May 22 tornado. ... More White residents in the tornado zone owned their homes than Black residents. More Black residents in the tornado zone rented their homes. And more than half of household heads in the zone were Black residents in both owner-occupied and rental homes -- compared to just 16 percent citywide." This complete MPR story can be found at "Census Data." Contributions to assist in tornado recovery can be made by check payable to the Presbytery of the Twin Cities Area with "Kwanzaa Tornado Help" in the memo line. Checks can be sent to the presbytery at 122 W. Franklin Ave., Suite 508, Minneapolis, MN 55404 (Attention: Kwanzaa Tornado Help).

FELTMAN WRITES ABOUT PAYING ATTENTION: The Rev. Dave Feltman, general presbyter for the Presbytery of North Central Iowa, writing in a recent edition of the presbytery's newsletter, noted, "Pay Attention. We pulled up to a relative's house and I realized we should have made it a mission trip rather than a family reunion. The shingles on the roof were all curled. ... I cannot imagine what it is to endure this heat without air conditioning. Has your church opened its doors for your neighbors to find relief? Are we paying attention?" The complete column can be found at "Pay Attention." (The column is located on Page 3; the file may take a minute or so to load.)

GROWTH REQUIRES CHANGE IN THE WAY CHURCH FUNCTIONS: The Rev. John Hougen, pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Independence, Iowa, provided the introduction to a column by Tom Ehrich, who writes often on church wellness, in this week's issue of "Reading Between the Times," a newsletter of the Presbytery of East Iowa. Hougen wrote, "Hard conversations. We've all had them. You know what I mean. The conversation that says, in essence, if something doesn't change, then there are going to be some serious consequences. There are times in the lives of our churches when we need those conversations." Hougen's introduction and a link to Ehrich's column can be found at "Between the Times."

KIM WRITES ABOUT THE 'POST-BOOMER GENERATION:' Jin Kim, pastor of Church of All Nations in Columbia Heights, Minn., recently wrote a column about the post-Boomer generation for the Minnesota Christian Examiner. He noted, "As a lifelong evangelical and pastor in the mainline church for almost 20 years, I have become especially attuned to the dwindling of young people in the local church. The typical American congregation simply makes little sense to the post-Boomer generation. Those between the ages of 20 and 40 see the church today as complicit in and co-opted by the ways of the world, not the way of Jesus of Nazareth." He added, "Church of All Nations, the church that I have the great privilege of serving, was founded with a demographic of 25-35 year olds in 2004, mostly from the Korean American background. That we now have every generation represented in sizable numbers, and from more than 25 nations and cultures, is something that we truly believe only God could have orchestrated." The complete column can be found at "Post Boomers."

HILLCREST NEWSLETTER ADDRESSES 'TRANSFORMATIONAL DREAMS:' A note in the latest edition of Hillcrest Calling, the newsletter of the Hillcrest Family Services of Dubuque, Iowa, stated, "Our transformational dreams for the future have finally come true." The transformation comes through a state-of-the-art classroom and gymnasium building, and a chapel that will be built on Hillcrest's campus. Chaplain Maria Wiblin wrote, "The [chapel] will also allow us to offer different opportunities - meditation during one of our weekly groups, for example - as opposed to attempting meditation in the midst of the noise and bustle of our residential houses. We will have a space dedicated for spiritual work." Additional information can be found at "Hillcrest."

METHUSELAH PROVES TO BE CRANKIEST MAN AT SYNOD SCHOOL: Hands down, Mr. Methuselah was the crankiest man at the Synod of Lakes and Prairies' Synod School held the last week of July at Buena Vista University. The wise-cracking, flannel-wearing latex puppet was given voice by maybe the least-cranky person among the more than 620 who attended, the Rev. Bob Wollenberg, pastor of United Presbyterian Church in Washington, Iowa, and Synod School's associate dean. With the help of a straight man - in this case, a woman, Synod School Dean Tammy Rider - Wollenberg allowed Mr. Methuselah to voice all number of complaints in three public appearances. The complete Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "Methuselah."

SYNOD SCHOOLERS LEARN ABOUT ROCK 'N' ROLL FAITH CONNECTION: When Rick MacArthur turned 8 years old, he asked his family to throw a birthday party not for him, but for his hero, rock 'n' roll pioneer Buddy Holly. "We put our money in the jukebox and listened to 'Oh Boy' and 'That'll be the Day,'" he recalled. Holly died in a plane crash the day before MacArthur turned 9. The boy was heartsick. "I think I cried myself to sleep that afternoon," said the pastor of Arlington Hills Presbyterian Church in St. Paul, Minn. The complete Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "Rock and Faith."

SYNOD SCHOOL TEACHER DEMONSTRATES NEW MEDIA ROLE IN EVANGELISM: A short video, a little bit of show and tell, and a lot of discussion - it's the way Kim Coulter led her class on social media here at Buena Vista University during the 58th Synod of Lakes and Prairies' Synod School. With an opening video that proclaimed, "If Facebook were a country, it'd be the world's third largest," Coulter made the argument that social media can play a role in the church. The complete Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "Social Media." 

SYNOD SCHOOLERS LEARN THAT SCIENCE IS BOTH THEORETICAL, CONCRETE: Want to lose a little weight? Move to the equator. Chris Fischer, an associate professor of physics and astronomy at Kansas University, has calculated you'll drop one-tenth of 1 percent of your body mass living there - and you'll put on an equal amount of weight if you make your home at either of Earth's poles. The planet pushes against you slightly less at the equator, and slightly more at the poles. That's just one of the scientific nuggets Fischer had for students at the Synod of Lakes and Prairies' Synod School, held during the last week of July Buena Vista University. The complete Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "Science."

DRAMA TAKES MANY FORMS, MULTIPLE ROLES IN CONGREGATIONS: Some classes just teach themselves. Or so it seems. Dean Seal, who taught "Church and Stage" at the Synod of Lakes and Prairies' Synod School this year, described his class as "open-minded and interested in making something happen." For one class period during the week-long event at Buena Vista University here, participants in the class did just that - made something happen. The complete Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "Church and Stage."

PRESBYTERIAN FAMILY SHARES STORIES OF KENYA DURING SYNOD SCHOOL: When Lorraine Stanfield turned 50 last spring, she didn't want a party. She wanted her family to go with her to Kenya to serve people - and maybe take in a safari near the end of the two-week visit, which the family did. The Stanfields, of Milton, Mass., offered a workshop describing highlights of their trip during Synod of Lakes and Prairies' Synod School, held during the last week of July at Buena Vista University. The complete Presbyterian News Service story is at "Kenya."

SYNOD SCHOOLERS URGED TO JOIN 'EACH ONE REACH ONE' ANTI-POVERTY INITIATIVE: Ann Sukraw-Lutz wants the nation's 37 million people living below the poverty line to be lifted into the middle class and seated at their rightful place, the banquet table Christ has set. She's inviting participants at Synod of Lakes and Prairies Synod School to join the "each one reach one" effort. Sukraw-Lutz, a member of the First Presbyterian Church at Grand Island, Neb., offered up her own experience working for churches and Nebraska Legal Services as well as principles from the book, "Bridges Out of Poverty," during a workshop July 26. The complete Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "Bridges."

SYNOD COMMUNICATORS CONFERENCE SET SEPT. 15-16: The Synod of Lakes and Prairies will be host to its third Communicators Conference Thursday and Friday, Sept. 15-16, in Eagan, Minn. The conference theme is "Doing it All: From Storytelling to Disasters." Conference speakers include Jerry Van Marter, coordinator of Presbyterian News Service, and Eva Stimson, editor of Presbyterians Today magazine. Running noon-to-noon at Eagan's Holiday Inn, 1950 Rahncliff Court, the cost of the conference, including workshops, one-night's lodging, meals and snacks is $50 for the first 25 registrants. Registration is simple. Those who want to attend need only to send an email to Duane Sweep, the synod's associate for communications. The email needs to state an intent to attend, any special lodging requirements (all rooms will be single occupancy) or meal requirements, and an emergency contact. A $50 check must then be sent to Sweep at Synod of Lakes and Prairies, 2115 Cliff Drive, Eagan, MN 55122. All registrants will receive confirmation emails and receipts.

IRMS RE:IMAGE CONFERENCE FEATURES PRESBYTERIAN PASTORS: The Sept. 17 RE:image Conference presented by Iowa Religious Media Services in Des Moines will include presentations by two Presbyterian pastors from Iowa: the Rev. Austin Hill, associate pastor of youth and young adults at First Presbyterian Church, Fort Dodge, and the Rev. Suzanne Gorhau, pastor of First Presbyterian Church, Centerville. Hill's session is titled, "Texting, Twitter and Time with God: Cultivating a Devotional Life in a Digital Age," and Gorhau's presentation is titled, "Enhancing Worship with Technology." RE:Image details can be found at the IRMS website. IRMS, an ecumenical media library supported in part by the Synod of Lakes and Prairies and five other covenanting denominations, has more than 15,000 resources.

PRINCETON REVIEW LISTS 21 PRESBYTERIAN SCHOOLS AMONG BEST: Writing in the Aug. 5 newsletter of the Association of Presbyterian Colleges and Universities, Gary Luhr, the association's executive director, noted, "I don't need to visit the local bookstore to know when the new college guides are out. I just need to read my e-mail and the news releases from colleges that scored well in the latest rankings." The Princeton Review included 21 Presbyterian schools among its "Best 376 Colleges" - up from 368 in 2009. Presbyterian schools in the Synod of Lakes and Prairies included on the list are Coe College, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Macalester College, St. Paul, Minn. Others in the synod identified as among the best in their respective regions were Hastings (Neb.) College and Jamestown (N.D.) College.

CHRONICLE OF HIGHER ED RECOGNIZES BVU AS A 'GREAT COLLEGE TO WORK FOR:' The Chronicle of Higher Education recognized Buena Vista University of Storm Lake, Iowa, on its list of "Great Colleges to Work For." The list highlights schools in 12 categories. BVU was recognized in one or more of the categories.

FORMER MACALESTER PRESIDENT DIES IN JULY: John B. Davis, Jr., who served as Macalester's 13th president from 1975-1984 and led the college out of debt and into financial stability, died July 5.  He was 89. "John B. Davis is among a small handful of individuals who have made the greatest difference in the life of Macalester College," said Macalester President Brian Rosenberg. "He will be sorely missed but never forgotten." The complete obituary can be found at "Macalester President."

NORTHERN PLAINS FLOODING NOT RESTRICTED TO MINOT AREA: During this spring and summer natural disasters have been plentiful across the Synod of Lakes and Prairies. In the Presbytery of Northern Plains, the news of the flood of Minot, N.D., made national news for a few days at the end of June and the recovery will be long. But there's another disaster that has been building for nearly 20 years in north central North Dakota. It's the story of the expanding Devils Lake and Northern Plains Electric Cooperative has created a YouTube video, "Roads to Nowhere."