The Pentecost Offering
May 11, 2008
At Pentecost, we recognize the coming of the Holy Spirit as the bringer of new life. The Pentecost Offering is one of the four annual church-wide offerings of the Presbyterian Church USA. Through the Pentecost Offering we help bring God’s transforming love to “at risk” children. We help guide and nurture the faith of Presbyterian young people. We call forth a new generation of church leadership through the PC (USA) Young Adult volunteer program. Forty percent of the offering stays in our own congregation to support ministries for children in our area. The remainder of the offering will be sent to the General Assembly to support programs that minister to youth and young adults and advocate for children-a-risk. Since 1998, Presbyterians of all ages have raise over $7 million for these ministries that benefit younger members of God’s family.

This year’s theme is “When you send forth your Spirit” from Psalm 104:30. This verse reminds us that we are sent by God just as Christ was. We are called to act on the basis of our faith. Through gifts to the Pentecost Offering, we act to make tangible positive changes in our church, our community and our world.

News from the
Child Enrichment Center
By Sheena Johanns, Director

We’ve had a wonderful spring session this year! We are looking forward to our summer session, which begins May 23rd. We have a FULL roster for Summer and Fall 2008! Our K-5th graders will be going on field trips every week this summer and doing some service projects as well. We are very excited to get them involved in serving others and serving God.

May is going to be a busy month for WECEC! We will be having a Mother’s Day Luncheon on May 8th at 11:30 am. The children will be participating in a short presentation for their Moms! Pre-Kindergarten graduation ceremony will be May 21st from 11-12:15 for the pre-school children who will be going to Kindergarten in the fall. WECEC will be closed March 26th for Memorial Day.

All of the staff at WECEC has been very busy getting ready for our annual assessment which will be May 5th. This is a VERY important day for our center, as it determines our rating and how well we are doing! We would also like to welcome our 2 new teachers: Julie Michel and Megan Rogers. Julie is teaching the 2 yr old class in the afternoons and Megan is a teaching assistant and floater for the afternoons.

We are in desperate need of some substitutes for our center. A sub is usually needed a few times a month, and our sub list is very short. Anyone interested in substituting can call Sheena at 690-2422 for more information.

What is BRIDGE?
Bridge is the refugee resettlement agency for East Tennessee. Over the last 20 years, Bridge has resettled more than 1,500 families from Bosnia, Burundi, the Republic of Congo, Kosovo, Iran, Iraq, Poland, Romania, Sudan, Ukraine, Viet Nam and many other countries. Bridge shepherds the family through the first six months of their new lives and provides services to insure that the new arrivals’ living conditions are safe and sanitary; that the families are in good health and that they have access to medical care; that all children over the age of five are enrolled in school; that adults have fair and full employment; and that the family has sufficient information to make the cultural adjustment.

In order to assure the Office of Refugee Resettlement (within the State Department) that Bridge can give newly arriving families everything they need for a reasonable expectation of success, the agency must have the assistance of churches, synagogues and mosques. Churches in our area have historically been most generous in their commitment of time and resources on behalf of these new families. In their generosity they are living out the biblical call to all people of faith to extend friendship and hospitality to the strangers in our midst.

What is a Refugee?
“…any person who, owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his [or her] nationality and is unable to return (home)….” Article 1/A(2) of the 1952 Geneva Convention

Many refugee families are forced to flee their countries with only the clothes on their backs. They enter a second country seeking safe haven, but they often live in substandard conditions that are unsafe, unsanitary and unintended as a permanent choice. And yet, until a third country indicates a willingness to take that family, they must stay where they are.

The United States is one of the few countries with the resources, the capacity and the willingness to help dispossessed people for all over the world regain hope in their lives. The numbers of refugees worldwide is so staggering (over 22 million) that free countries around the globe cannot absorb them all. However, the United States is committed to saving refugee families one at a time, up to a maximum number that is set by Congress every year (currently 70,000).

For more information on this ministry, Google Bridge Refugee Settlement Services of Knoxville or go to www.discoveret.org/refugees  

Mission Organization

Our mission work day for the Bridge Distribution Center was a great success. Many thanks to West Emory members who volunteered to our work day. A special thanks to Covenant Presbyterian Youth Group. It is amazing what two churches can accomplish when they partner with work and great faith.
            As part of our work day the Center received a comprehensive cleaning and organization of housing needs for the Refugees. We can now be much more efficient with placing our donations on new shelving constructed. Now clothing, dishes and home wares will be more visible and accessible.
            Next month we may need to fine tune the Center’s new layout. Look for an update in the near future. Again, I thank all members who were present for the support of the Bridge Refugee Distribution Center.

WOMEN OF WEST EMORY

Our Women’s Group is pleased to announce that over 100 shoes were donated to our Annual Easter Shoe Drive again this year. The shoes were distributed to children for Easter through The Center of Hope. Thank you to everyone who helped in this meaningful outreach project.

The Prayer Shawl Ministry Group will meet Wednesday, May 16 at 7 pm at Pastor Miki’s. Come for refreshments and conversation even if you don’t knit or crochet.

The theme of this years PW Annual Spring Gathering is “We Are the Hands of Christ” and will be held at Sequoyah Hills Presbyterian Church at 10 am. The speaker and worship leader will be Mary Webber, moderator of the Coordinating Team for Presbyterian Women (PW), Synod of Living Water. Registrations are due Tuesday, April 15. Ask Sharon Carroll or Pastor Miki for details.

New Security is coming…
We all want and need to feel secure—in our homes, in our schools, in our workplaces, in our nation, even in our church. West Emory Church is blessed with a wonderful ministry for children through our Child Enrichment Center (CEC). Under the care of well-trained and loving teachers and staff, children eighteen months through elementary-age receive outstanding nurture and guidance through our daycare and after-school programs.

The one thing that has been missing is a security system that prohibits outsiders from accessing the part of our building that houses the CEC. This is changing. By the end of May we will have installed a locking system that will keep the inner double hall doors locked during the day. Parents and staff will be able to gain entrance to the classrooms via a keypad system. The office area will still be accessible for visitors, members and delivery persons. For those members that may need access to the classroom/fellowship hall area during the week day, access codes will be issued. A doorbell will also be installed at the entrance of the hall doors to screen visitors who do not have the code but may need to get into that part of the building for some reason. On Sundays the hall doors will be open for all to enter and leave just as always.

The Session, CEC board members and, and parents are delighted in this new measure to assure the safety and well-being of our children. We hope that any inconvenience that may be experienced by our members will be minimal.

We want your old
binoculars!
The staff of John Knox Center and River Ridge is in the process of rewriting the “For the Birds” curriculum and welcome donations of binoculars. If you have a set lying around your house, bring them to the church and we will send them on to our presbytery’s camp and conference center.

Schedule of Liturgists

May 4 – Youth members
May 11 – Sharon Carroll
May 18 – David Little
May 25 – Mark Burton

June 1 – Greg Robertson
June 8 – Suzette Ford
June 15 – Steve Abbott
June 22 – Becky Reno
June 29 – Bill Hall

PRAYER SHAWL MINISTRY