This Week:

June 9- 1:00 PM Christian Education Committee, Presbytery Office
June 15- 7:00 PM Committee on Ministry, Jim Mohr’s home

News From The Presbytery Office

Prayers

Ken Bailey’s wife, Ethel is in UPMC Farrell with a high fever and infection.

Car Pool?

Going to the Synod Conference?  Teresa Kendall is looking to car pool from Shenango Presbytery to State College for the Synod of the Trinity Summer Conference on June 20-22, 2010.  Please contact her at 724-758-5977 or teresakendall@mac.com.

Communion Set Lost

A Presbyterian communion set was left at Jameson Hospital.  If this belongs to your church, please contact Grace Basham at 724-651-0462 (cell).

Perspectives Course Update

There are only 4 places left in this summer’s Perspectives Intensive to be held at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary August 15-21, 2010. So. if you are planning to sign up DO IT NOW. This is going to be a great class designed especially for pastors, missionaries, business and church leaders. Learn about God’s Plan for us from a biblical, historical, cultural and strategic perspective. Each day new experts will share the lessons. There will be interesting reading assignments for before and after the week-long class. Check out the list of speakers at http://www.perspectives.org/site/c.rvI2IiNVJqE/b.5581185/k.A13B/My_Class_Home.htm.  Several pastors from Shenango Presbytery are already signed up. Contact Rev. Jen Haddox at World Mission Initiative jhaddox@pts.edu or Pam Pope Courtney from Trinity Presbyterian Church in Mercer (724-748-3217) if you have questions.

News From The Churches

Question

Kathy Brown from Slippery Rock Presbyterian Church would like information from other churches on how they got their AED (automated external defibrillator) for their church.  She is wondering if help is available to small churches to make the purchase more affordable.  You can email her at boomerbr@zoominternet.net.

Ordination Anniversary

First Presbyterian in Sharon recognized Glenn Hink’s 20^th ordination anniversary on Sunday.  Approximately the first half of Glenn’s ministry was spent at Bell Memorial.

This Week:

June 5- 9:00 AM PMC Twinning Event, Cranberry Community Church
June 9- 1:00 PM Christian Education Committee, Presbytery Office

News From The Presbytery Office

Prayers

Will Kearns (Highland) mother passed away on Monday.  The service will be held on Thursday.  Please keep the family in your prayers.

Autumn Mission Adventure to Massanetta Springs

If you would be interested in joining the adventure to the Massanetta Springs Conference Center in Harrisonburg, VA from September 26-October 1, call or email Tom Kaufman at 724-651-4323 or missionadventure@zoominternet.net.  Cost is $350.00 per person double-occupancy and includes transportation and meals & lodging.

Car Pool?

Going to the Synod Conference?  Teresa Kendall is looking to car pool from Shenango Presbytery to State College for the Synod of the Trinity Summer Conference on June 20-22, 2010.  Please contact her at 724-758-5977 or teresakendall@mac.com.

Update on david bailey

david is home and doing well.  Continue to pray for his recovery as he gains strength to return to the work he loves.

News From The Churches

Educator Available

Mark Tippin (Bethel) has a friend with 6 years of experience as a Director of Christian Education, which includes youth, who is looking for a full-time position.  If your church would be interested in contacting this person, please contact Mark at 724-667-8031.

This Week:

June 1- 9:30 AM Council Meeting, Shenango Presbyterian Church
3:30 PM Higher Education Committee, Presbytery Office

News From The Presbytery Office

Prayers

Jim Latta’s (Calvin) mother-in-law passed away last week.  Please keep the family in your prayers.

Autumn Mission Adventure to Massanetta Springs

If you would be interested in joining the adventure to the Massanetta Springs Conference Center in Harrisonburg, VA from September 26-October 1, call or email Tom Kaufman at 724-651-4323 or missionadventure@zoominternet.net.  Cost is $350.00 per person double-occupancy and includes transportation and meals & lodging.

News From The Churches

Educator Available

Mark Tippin (Bethel) has a friend with 6 years of experience as a Director of Christian Education, which includes youth, who is looking for a full-time position.  If your church would be interested in contacting this person, please contact Mark at 724-667-8031.

Other News

Thank You!

Root International would like to thank everyone that participated in the refresheverything Pepsi contest.  Unfortunately RI didn’t win, but they will try again later this year.  They plan on getting the word out to more churches and the general public.  Please keep them in your prayers.  If you have any questions or need to contact Root International, email them at rrootinternational@yahoo.com.

This Week:

May 18- 2:00 PM GA Commissioner Training, Presbytery Office

7:00 PM Committee on Ministry, Neshannock, NW

May 19- 11:30 AM Christian Educators Appreciation Luncheon, Tuscany Square Restaurant

May 20- 12:00 PM Mission, Communication, & Stewardship, New Wilmington

1:00 PM Sudan Team, New Wilmington

3:30 PM Nominating Committee, Presbytery Office

May 21- 1:00 PM Committee on Ministry, Presbytery Office

May 25- 9:00 AM Steering Committee, Presbytery Office

News From The Presbytery Office

Update on david bailey

Dear Family & Friends,

Just wanted to let you know that David has made really great progress while in the (detested) Rehabilitation Hospital — walking up and down a full flight of stairs today carrying a cup of coffee — and finally finding a bit of inner peace after a week of turmoil.  We were told to expect a long and difficult recovery — that his physical symptoms would be worse following surgery — and they were, but he has really been recovering as well as we could have hoped.  He still has some weakness in his left gross motor — particularly his foot — but will continue with outpatient Physical Therapy for a while.

THANKS for your prayers, your cards, your emails, your hopes . . . love, leslie et al

Debbie Blane’s Newsletter and a Picture from a Sudanese Wedding

Click here, http://www.shenango.org/Sudan/index.htm, to see the latest update from Debbie Blane who is teaching at Nile Theological College in Khartoum, Sudan.  She also reports on a Sudanese wedding (with a picture of the bride and groom) that she attended.

Does Your Church Have Financial Concerns?

Many churches in Shenango Presbytery have had good results using the Consecration Sunday Stewardship Program.  Harlansburg, Coolspring, Bessemer, Unity, Shenango and others did so last year. Now is the time to begin to prepare for the fall stewardship program…September is too late!! Contact Dave Dawson for information.

Need a Guest Preacher for July 25?

Michael Parker, Director of International Evangelism for Presbyterian World Mission, will be attending the New Wilmington Mission Conference.  He is available to preach on July 25.  Mike taught at Nile Theological College in Khartoum in addition to other overseas service.  Please contact him directly atMichael.parker@pcusa.org.

Free Food for Seniors

The Community Food Warehouse of Mercer County offers the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) which provides eligible Mercer County seniors with a FREE box of nutritious food each month.  Even if you receive food stamps or food from a local pantry, you may also quality for this program.  The program is for seniors age 60 and older with a monthly income below the following: Household of 1 $1,174; household of 2 $1,579.  Registration will be held at the Community Food Warehouse (109 South Sharpsville Avenue, Sharon, PA) on May 17-21 10:00 – NOON.  Please bring ID and proof of income.  Call 724-456-7612 for more information.

News From Our Churches

Wampum Church Friendship with Wilfred Mutale

Four years ago Rev. Bill McGary introduced his student from Geneva, Wilfred Mutale from Zambia, to his congregation at the Wampum Church.  The friendship which grew between Wilfred and the congregation was celebrated last Sunday as Wilfred recently graduated from Geneva.  Everyone agreed that this relationship has made a huge impact on everyone.

News From The Presbytery Office

Nancy McGaughey Visiting This Week

Nancy will be here for a visit THIS WEEK from the Sudan:

• 5:30 pm Wednesday at Brown’s Restaurant in Portersville
• 9:30 am Thursday at Tower Church in Grove City
• 7:00 pm Thursday at Northminster Church in New Castle

Download the information about Nancy’s visit as a bulletin insert here.

Update on david bailey

david was discharged from Duke Hospital yesterday and sent directly to UVa HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital near his home.  He will stay for a couple of weeks, give or take, for intensive Physical Therapy to gain strength as his brain heals.

A Reminder – Educators’ Appreciation Luncheon is next Wednesday!

11:30 AM at Tuscany Square Restaurant on Wilmington Road (north of New Castle).  Educators and members of the Presbytery’s Christian Education Committee will eat lunch together, share stories of what they’ve been doing, learn about available resources, and get lots of free stuff.  Call the Presbytery Office by Monday, May 17^th to register or email Margaret at ched@shenango.org.

Ministerial Appreciation Reception & Health Education Fair

Chaplain and recently ordained member of Shenango Presbytery, the Rev. Grace Basham, invites you to the courtyard reception at Jameson Hospital – North Campus (New Castle) from 1-3 PM this Thursday.  If you are in Lawrence County and have not met Grace, please use this opportunity to do so.

Does Your Church Have Financial Concerns?

Many churches in Shenango Presbytery have had good results using the Consecration Sunday Stewardship Program.  Harlansburg, Coolspring, Bessemer, Unity, Shenango and others did so last year. Now is the time to begin to prepare for the fall stewardship program…September is too late!! Contact Dave Dawson for information.

Need a Guest Preacher for July 25?

Michael Parker, Director of International Evangelism for Presbyterian World Mission, will be attending the New Wilmington Mission Conference.  He is available to preach on July 25.  Mike taught at Nile Theological College in Khartoum in addition to other overseas service.  Please contact him directly at Michael.parker@pcusa.org.

Free Food for Seniors

The Community Food Warehouse of Mercer County offers the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) which provides eligible Mercer County seniors with a FREE box of nutritious food each month.  Even if you receive food stamps or food from a local pantry, you may also quality for this program.  The program is for seniors age 60 and older with a monthly income below the following: Household of 1 $1,174; household of 2 $1,579.  Registration will be held at the Community Food Warehouse (109 South Sharpsville Avenue, Sharon, PA) on May 17-21 10:00 – NOON.  Please bring ID and proof of income.  Call 724-456-7612 for more information.

An email from Leslie Bailey, david’s wife.

Dear Family & Friends . . .

We are home from our down and back, 485 mi, trip to Duke.  We met with both Allan Friedman, David’s surgeon, and David Reardon, his neuro-oncologist.

David is scheduled for his fifth craniotomy (7th brain procedure) this Friday morning, May 7.  He may be discharged as early as Sunday — will have to stay in Durham, near the hospital, for several days — but we may be home around Wednesday of next week.

The surgery will be to remove a cyst that is enlarging and causing all sorts of neurological issues — and he will also remove as much of the tumor’s nodule in the frontal lobe (there are a few other nodules that he will be unable to excise — all part of the same web of tumor).  Post-surgical side effects could be worse than he’s experiencing right now — but, ideally, would improve as he recovers.  His recovery could be extended, which is Allan’s major concern with the surgery.

Dr. Reardon has a 3-tiered plan mapped out to address the remaining tumor after David is strong enough to begin treatment again.  There are several newer oral chemos that David has never had and have had somewhat promising results with other patients.   As soon as he can get started, the better, obviously.

We’re working out scheduling for travel and the kids —

Thanks to all of you for your loving support and powerful prayers.

Love, Leslie et al

This Week:

May 3-4- Pastor Retreat, Villa Maria Conference Center

News From The Presbytery Office

Story about Ingrid Reneau and Nancy McGaughey

Please click http://www.pcusa.org/today/cover.htm here for a special story about Ingrid and Nancy, missionaries in south Sudan who are supported by our churches.

Nancy will be here for a visit NEXT WEEK:

• 5:30 pm Wednesday at Brown’s Restaurant in Portersville
• 9:30 am Thursday at Tower Church in Grove City
• 7:00 pm Thursday at Northminster Church in New Castle

Download the information about Nancy’s visit as a bulletin insert here.

Pastors Retreat – a Great Time

41 pastors attended the Pastors Retreat on Monday and Tuesday of this week.  Rob Weingartner, with 20+ years pastoral experience and presently Executive Director of the Outreach Foundation, was a great blessing in his reflections with us on Philippians.  The up-coming retreats are:

• October 4 – 5 with Paul Detterman of Presbyterians for Renewal
• May 9 – 10 with Ken Bailey

Save the Date

The Christian Education Committee will be hosting a luncheon for Christian Educators on May 19th at 11:30 AM at Tuscany Square Restaurant, New Castle.  Further information will be mailed directly to the educators.

College Scholarship Applications Due

May 10 is the deadline for the Shenango Presbytery College Scholarship Applications.  The application can be downloaded from the Presbytery website.

News from the Churches

Rich Hill’s Mission Giving

Rich Hill Church focused its mission giving in 2009 on Hiefer Project’s Milk Menagerie.  http://www.heifer.org/site/c.edJRKQNiFiG/b.2699393/.  This provides a water buffalo, a heifer and two goats.  The youth and children raise the $1,000 in record time and Rich Hill was the smallest church to take on this challenge.  The animals are now in Nepal.

Memorial Service

Louise Hopkins, a member of the West Middlesex Presbyterian Church who provided hospitality to our Sudanese visitors in the early years of the Partnership, died recently.  A memorial service will be held at the church at 11 AM on May 15.

A Note from The Silk Road Market

World Fair Trade Day is right around the corner!  You know, that one day of the year set aside to celebrate the impact that fair trade can make through out the world.  At The Silk Road Fair Trade Market in New Wilmington, I’ve decided to do something a little different this year.  Since the day is about the people being helped out of poverty, I’m dedicating May 8th to doing just that with the first annual Hunger Cry.  According to the World Food Programme, there are just over 1 billion people living in hunger.  One billion people.  That’s a huge number!  On May 8, come celebrate Haiti and take the opportunity to make life just a little better for some of those 1 billion people.  I’ll have a sampling of Caribbean cuisine to taste at 12:00.  And at 2:00, you can try your hand at a Haitian inspired craft.  This one day, 20% of all sales will be donated to the Presbyterian Hunger Program Seed Initiative in Haiti.  The Seed Initiative goal is to supply 400 tons of seed to local farmers to prevent an anticipated second wave of famine in the region.  The more you shop, the greater the impact!  I hope to see you all there for a little food, a little fun, and an easy way to make an impact in the fight against hunger.

The following is my report to the Presbytery on April 27.
– David Dawson

The packet at the April Presbytery meeting normally includes several statistical reports.

It has been said that stewardship is more than money (time, talent, care of the earth), but it is never less than money.  The same is true of statistics like those included in the packet…a church is more than numbers, but it is never less than numbers.

These numbers in these statistical reports are not pure.  You cannot take them at face value.  There is always a “yes, but…” in their interpretation.  And, there are always stories behind the numbers…and these stories are more important than the numbers.

But, to ignore these numbers is foolhardy.  I encourage you to copy these sheets for the next session meeting and spend some time reflecting on them.  For example, the worship attendance at virtually every church is lower today than it was sometime in the past 10 years.  What does that mean?

If you are concerned about that, be careful not to play the blame game.  Especially be careful to not blame the pastor or the session or the music program, etc.  (Firing the coach doesn’t fix anything unless you change the losing culture of the team.)

We have had in the past year more than the usual number of pastors leaving our churches under pressure.  But, I can say without fear of contradiction that there are issues in those church that will have to be addressed or there will be continued decline.

So, again, I encourage you to copy these sheets for your session, not for the purpose of micro-analysis, or blaming someone, but as a way to step back and look at the big picture.  If your session thinks that business as usual will work, then you might as well plan for the funeral now.

For example, if people are leaving your church, are you asking them why?  Or do you simply make assumptions?  “It must be the pastor’s sermons…it must be because they don’t like the music…it must be because someone insulted them…”  Well, ask them!!  Don’t send a letter…talk with them.  Then discuss it at the session meeting with appropriate confidentiality.

There are a lot of folks in the churches of this Presbytery who are taking a hard look at what is happening in their church.  They would welcome you as partners in this conversation.

Our missionary God is not absent from Mercer and Lawrence counties, but we better find out what He is really doing and join in.

Numbers don’t tell the whole story, but they can be a wake-up call.

This Week:

April 30- Annual Audit, Conference room will be unavailable for meetings

May 3-4- Pastor Retreat, Villa Maria Conference Center

News From The Presbytery Office

Meet Nancy McGaughey

Nancy, one of our Presbyterian Missionaries of the Nile Valley, will be visiting for a few days in mid-May. Nancy works with Sudanese leaders to develop basic medical services in the south Sudan. You can meet her at:

• Brown’s Restaurant, Portersville for dinner on Wednesday, May 12 at 5:30 PM (call the Presbytery office for reservations)

• Tower Presbyterian Church, Grove City – Thursday, May 13 at 9:30 AM

• Northminster Presbyterian Church, New Castle – Thursday, May 13 at 7:00 PM

You can read Nancy’s newsletters at http://www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/profiles/mcgaugheyn.htm.

Download the information as a bulletin insert here.

Idea for Summer Sunday School

Churches that want to continue their Sunday School program through the summer often want to combine their classes.  Awesome Adventures: God’s People on the Move makes it easy for a congregation to do this.  It has 13 easy-to-use, kid-friendly lesson plans, reproducible resource sheets and “for the home” pages, as well as take-home comic book pages.  Children will explore Old and New Testament stories of God’s people on the move.  (Note that this resource could  also be used for Vacation Bible School.)  You can see a sample copy of Awesome Adventures in the Presbytery Resource Center.  Information about the resource is online at http://www.pcusa.org/webelieve.  It can be purchased for $44.95 fromhttp://www.pcusa.org/marketplace or by calling Presbyterian Distribution Service at 1-800-524-2612.  The resource number is #674400.

Save the Date

The Christian Education Committee will be hosting a luncheon for Christian Educators on May 19th at 11:30 AM at Tuscany Square Restaurant, New Castle.  Further information will be mailed directly to the educators.

College Scholarship Applications Due

May 10 is the deadline for the Shenango Presbytery College Scholarship Applications.  The application can be downloaded from the Presbytery website.

News from the Churches

Join Rob Weingartner for Worship at First, Greenville

Rob Weingartner, this spring’s pastor retreat guest speaker, will be preaching at First Presbyterian Church, Greenville on Sunday, May 2 at 10:45 AM.  He will also be presenting a Q&A seminar during the Sunday School Hour at 9:30 AM.  First, Greenville is located at 323 Main Street, Greenville, PA  16125.

Rich Hill’s Mission Giving

Rich Hill Church focused its mission giving in 2009 on Hiefer Project’s Milk Menagerie. http://www.heifer.org/site/c.edJRKQNiFiG/b.2699393/.  This provides a water buffalo, a heifer and two goats.  The youth and children raise the $1,000 in record time and Rich Hill was the smallest church to take on this challenge.  The animals are now in Nepal.

Memorial Service

Louise Hopkins, a member of the West Middlesex Presbyterian Church who provided hospitality to our Sudanese visitors in the early years of the Partnership, died recently.  A memorial service will be held at the church at 11 AM on May 15.

Directions to the Wurtemburg Presbyterian Church

There has been some confusion as to how to get to the Wurtemburg Presbyterian Church for tonight’s Presbytery meeting.  Directions appear below:

From the northwest, take Rt. 60 (I-376) south (it will become Rt. 422) until you come to the junction with Rt. 65. Go south (past Shenango High School) on Rt. 65 for 9 miles. Take a left at the Wayne Township Firehall on Wurtemburg Road. The church will be 1 mile ahead on the right.

From the northeast:  take I-79 or Rt. 19 south to Portersville and follow Rt. 488 west approximately 8 miles.  Turn right on Wurtemburg Road and church is immediately on the left.