CHURCH CALENDAR - First Presbyterian Church

May 31 – June 7, 2015
CHURCH CALENDAR
SUNDAY, MAY 31
9:00 a.m. Chancel Choir – 3rd Floor Choir Room
10:00 a.m. Worship and Children’s Church
11:15 a.m. Coffee Hour – Dining Room
6:30 p.m. New Members Reunion – Ankrum Residence
TUESDAY, JUNE 2
5:00 p.m. Girl Scouts – Fletcher Room
6:30 p.m. Stewardship Committee - Refectory
6:30 p.m. Education Committee – Assembly Room
7:30 p.m. Alcoholics Anonymous – Fletcher Room
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3
7:45 a.m. Men’s Breakfast Bible Study – Eat’n Park
12:00 p.m. Alcoholics Anonymous – Fletcher Room
1:30 p.m. Staff meeting – Assembly Room
5:00 p.m. Dance Troupe – Fletcher Room
6:00 p.m. Mission Committee – Assembly Room
6:30 p.m. CONC – PW Lounge
SATURDAY, JUNE 6
8:45 a.m. Worship Committee – Assembly Room
SUNDAY, JUNE 7 COMMUNION
9:00 a.m. Chancel Choir – 3rd Floor Choir Room
10:00 a.m. Worship and Children’s Church
11:15 a.m. Coffee Hour – Dining Room
THE E-GIVING SWITCH IS ON! The switch to regular, scheduled e-Giving is
gaining momentum at FPC. You’ve probably noticed the growing number of
green “I Give Electronically” cards in the offering plates each Sunday. Two
suggestions that will assure that your e-Donations have the most impact on the
church: 1) Credit card companies charge the church a 2-3/4% fee for each
transaction. Consider direct transfer from your checking account. 2) Consolidate
your weekly giving into one “Monthly” contribution to keep FPC’s transaction
costs down and to simplify your records.
We would like to thank Ed & Joanne Highberger for their
yearly contribution of the geraniums around the church
property. For the past 29 years, Ed and Joanne have
contributed these flowers and planted them with the help of
John & Carol Henry, Arlene Kendra and Keith Huey. They
plant 200 flowers every year and this year planted 250. We
would also like to thank Arlene Kendra and Lois Ann
Watson for taking care of the Chapel Garden. Thank you all
so much for all you do at First Presbyterian Church.
FIRST VIEW:
The News @ FPC
SAVE THE DATE! VBS is coming soon! Monday,
June 8th to Friday, June 12th from 9a.m. to 12 p.m.
Registration forms for children 4 years old (potty
trained) to 5th grade can be found on our family
ministries website, on the 3rd floor bulletin board,
or via email from Niki. Those who wish to
volunteer that week, please talk to Niki! Thanks! 
Graduation Sunday
Congratulations!
Join us on Sunday, June 14 at 10 a.m.
to recognize & celebrate the
achievements of our graduates.
Please complete below & return to church
office by Tuesday, June 9 !!!
Name of Graduate_______________________________________
School or Institution_____________________________________
Name of Graduate_______________________________________
School or Institution _____________________________________
SUNDAY SCHOOL RECRUITMENT FOR THE FALL! Yes…believe it or not, we’re
already thinking about the fall. Our first year with the rotation method was a
great success! In this format, a Bible story is taught for 4 weeks using a variety of
methods (art, drama, cooking, music, games, etc.) Our kids love it, teachers enjoy
the flexibility, and most importantly, our children are growing in their faith!
Want to help out next year? Talk to Niki by calling the office, emailing her, or
grabbing her during coffee hour!
PRESCHOOL HAPPENINGS Check us out at www.fpcgpreschool.weebly.com.
The website contains lots of information about our preschool. Because of our
outstanding reputation in the community, our program tends to fill up quickly.
Registration for Fall 2015 opened January 5, 2015. You may call the church
office at 724-832-0150 if you have any questions regarding our program, if you
would like to observe a class, or if you would like to register your child. A
teacher will return your call as soon as possible. We encourage you to share this
information with friends and family who may also be looking for a quality
educational program for Fall 2015.
IMPORTANT UPDATE FOR ALL VOLUNTEERS! In the last few months, some
changes have been made to our state's child protection laws and the requirements
for volunteering with children and/or teens. A letter was sent out at the end of
April that detailed those changes and what you need to do if you'd like to
continue volunteering with our children’s and youth ministries. You can find the
letter (with instructions) on the homepage of our website:
www.fpcgfamilyministry.weebly.com.
Please note:
1. Any clearances that you have had done through our church (Praesidium
forms) are null and void after June 30th, 2015.
2. This is a STATEWIDE change, not just a change in our county, school
district, or presbytery.
3. These clearances can be used for any organization, not just our church. In
other words, you will need them to volunteer in schools, scouting groups, clubs,
and perhaps even at your place of work.
THE MEN’S BREAKFAST & BIBLE STUDY meets at Eat’n Park on Rt. 30 E. each
Wednesday morning at 7:45 a.m. for a time of fellowship, study and, of course,
breakfast. We are now studying the Book of Genesis under the leadership of
Rev. Ankrum.
PHOTO DIRECTORY VOLUNTEERS
NEEDED…..It's Photo Directory time and we
need your help! To make this task more
manageable, we need volunteers for each of
our committees; Publicity, Appointment Signups, Telephone Reminders, Directory Lay-out
and Photo Day Greeters. We are working
with Lifetouch again and they do most of the
work for us, then we set everything into
motion. We need 1 person to chair each
committee and attend an informational
meeting with our Lifetouch consultant on
Monday June 22nd from 6:00pm-7:30pm.
Participation in the meeting is not necessary for volunteering. If you are
interested in being a chair or helping on any of the committees, please contact
Erin Hresko @ 724-547-7373 / [email protected] or Linda Wagner @ 724837-7618 /[email protected].
SECOND SUNDAY SUPPER…. Did you know that men can cook?!! Watching
Vance Booher prepare the meal was liberating; no measuring spoons allowed as
he covered the potatoes with oil and various herbs for roasting. The pan of fresh
vegetables got sprinkled too! The pork loins even had assorted fruit on top. Fifty
guests even raved about the warm rolls! Bundt cake for dessert completed the
culinary experience. All left-overs were taken home for later. Yes, men can
cook with joy and herbal abandon! Thanks to the ten helpers who kept very
busy. See you on June 14th.
CAN YOU SPARE 2 - 3 HOURS OF YOUR TIME to
help the Food Pantry? We are looking for
volunteers to help distribute food for the Food
Pantry on July 11, 2015 at 8:45 a.m. at Our Lady of
Grace Parish, Greensburg. There will be a sign-up
sheet at coffee hour or you can contact Greg
Martinko at 412-916-5062 for more information.
Y-Fi* Connections
*Youth of First Presbyterian
WORRIED YOU’LL BE BORED THIS SUMMER
WITHOUT YOUTH GROUP? DON’T YOU FRET!
Here’s what we’ve got planned for you so far…
June 7th @ 2pm – Meet at church for our first Ice
Cream Crusade! We’ll meet here and head over to
Tastyland. Bring $ for ice cream. Pick up is at church
at 4pm.
June 14th @ 11:30am – Meet at church for our
second Ice Cream Crusade! We’ll head over to Dairy
Queen for lunch & ice cream, then come back to church for a movie. Pick up is at
3pm.
June 30th @ 7pm – Ice Cream Crusade #3! Meet at church and we’ll head over
to the Meadows! (If you’d like to meet us there, that’s cool too!) Pick up from
church at 9pm.
We’re also looking at a Kennywood outing in July
or August…stay tuned!
Vacation Bible School
When: Monday, June 8th to Friday, June 12th
Time: 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Where: First Presbyterian Greensburg
Who: Open to all children 3 years of age (must
be potty trained) up through kids entering 6th
grade in 2015-2016 school year
What: Our theme this year is “Hometown Nazareth.” Kids will get to
have an immersive experience and learn what life was like when Jesus was
a kid. They’ll get to eat food like Jesus ate, make things that were used
when Jesus was alive, and hear stories from Mary, Jesus’ mom! There will
be singing, playing games, and much more!
How can you help? Look at the lists below. If you can help somehow,
email Niki at [email protected].
At the moment, we’re really in need of donations or loans of the following
items:
Donate
Pillow cases (neutral colors
and stripes; any size)
Bedsheets (neutral colors and
stripes; any size)
“Different” craft beads
(designs & shapes)
Loan
Baskets (all sizes)
Baby name books
Canopies (like ones used at
parties) – drop off @ church
by 6/4 please!
We also need some help with snacks. Please email Niki if you can donate
any of these items. (We are estimating 80-90 people for VBS)
5 oz. paper cups
Graham crackers
Strawberries
Cheese sticks
Yogurt sticks
Tortilla chips
M&M candies
Baby carrots
Cheerios - regular flavor
Corn Chex cereal
Pretzels - small
A Pastoral View of the Budget
Bit-by-Bit
At the March meeting of the Session, I presented the budget status as part of the
opening devotions. Typically, the pastor does not present the budget report, but
due to the usual folks who do so being absent, it fell to me. After the meeting, I
was encouraged to share my thoughts with the congregation.
Originally printed in the April edition of First News, the Stewardship Committee
has requested that this be re-printed in “installments” when space permits in the
weekly First View newsletters. So here’s the first installment.
Oftentimes, a church is tempted to view the budget as a line-item, deficit versus
surplus, assessment of institutional health. Though much can be said in favor of
this approach, I believe that there is something more profound, much deeper to
be found here.
A budget is an organized explanation of just where a congregation invests the
gifts of the people of God. What is given by the congregation is utilized by the
leadership to help fulfill the calling that God, in Jesus Christ, has placed upon our
lives. In such a consideration, I, as the pastor, look at the budget in terms of six
items:
(2) Maintenance of Divine Worship: Much is spent on the worship of God and
so it should be. The very heart of the church is a congregation of people called
and gathered to give their praise and thanksgiving to God. Through Word,
Sacrament and Music, the people of God are enabled to respond to God’s love in
Jesus Christ with their praise and thanksgiving. They are nourished and nurtured
for their role in God’s coming kingdom. The worship of God is a vital element
of our life as a church.
Areas to be covered in the coming weeks / months:
(3) Building Costs
(4) Education Costs
(5) Compassionate Care
(6) All of this is Mission
For reservations or information, please contact
the church office at 724-832-0150
Your $100 deposit must be received by June 14
or you relinquish your spot.
Grace and Peace,
-Martin Ankrum