Church Guidelines for Reopening

September

  Randy Salamacha 9-3

Pieter Visscher 9-9

Dorothy Weber 9-9

Ruth Brooks 9-10

Olive Reynolds 9-16

Maura Richards 9-16

Sabrina Atherton 9-17

Abigail Kroeger 9-25

Mark Schnittger 9-29

DJ Simons 9-29

 Advent in August

No, pastor hasn’t flipped through too many pages in the calendar and no, you didn’t suddenly become Rip Van Winkle and sleep through a whole season. Like you I was caught off guard by Advent. Hardly mid-August, Advent resources appeared in the church mal, it’s never too early to plan for the church year. For several years I’ve always wanted to do an Advent focus on the Jesse Tree and so here at Theresa Pres we will do that as together we will create our own Jesse Trees and have online resources available to journey daily through Advent and hear again or for the first time the stories of Jesus’ genealogy.

At Theresa we have spent five weeks this summer exploring some prominent people of the Old Testament and to hear God’s stories and see God’s actions in the lives of various people. We’ve discovered God acts in loyal outsiders in Israel’s life (Rahab, Tamar, and Ruth) and that loyal insiders (Achan-Joshua 7) struggle. God acts to keep God’s promises in times of war and violence to take the land God has Promised to Israel (Joshua) as well as God’s presence whether known or unknown in circumstances when humans fail or abandon one another including family (Joseph). We’ve discovered crossroads where people have to make difficult, even at the risk of their own death and that of family members, life decisions on behalf of others to save their people (Esther) and we’ve discovered God in times of terror (Jeremiah) and that in exile Judah would live in Babylon’s culture for seventy years and return to Judah; not the same people or live in the same way, indeed life would be different. God’s church is part of these stories as we live in such a time as this (Esther 4:14). The church continues to evolve and meet the needs of the world. No, we are not the same disciples as we deepen our faith and trust in God living in such a time as this.

In all of these stories we have discovered a link to Jesus’ humanity and divinity; God’s action of entering into our humanity in a very divine and saving way. I hope you will join us this Advent season as we explore Jesus’ roots and the places where your story, my story, and the church’s story all intersect in one life: Jesus, our Messiah and Savior. I encourage you to begin a look at Matthew 1:1-17 and take a slow read of all the names (yes, even the ones we stumble over and have trouble pronouncing) and go back into the Old Testament and read about the ancestors of Jesus. The Jesse Tree ties these stories together and the following Old Testament readings will help Jesse Tree pieces click into place (Jesse is part of that root): Esther; Genesis 38; 39:21-40:8 (Joseph); Joshua 7:1-15; 24:1, 14-15; Ruth; Jeremiah 29:1-14. Allow the Spirit to guide you down bunny trails and to question and wonder over all these readings.  

Peace be with you as we journey and grow together, 

Rev. Betsy

  School Kit Depots (where we take our kits for further shipment), have finally opened. Our church put together thirty-eight school kits which I took to a church in Watertown. Many thanks to all who contributed the items included in the kits. Especially at times like we are in now, these school supplies will be most welcomed by children in many places around the world.

  Your PNC has looked at and talked with many interesting ministerial candidates. We continue to search for the person God is calling to come to Hammond to serve our congregation. Please continue to pray for our work and progress. In the meantime, thanks to all who are keeping our church functioning well. We are blessed to be worshiping together again. Joan Hadlock

  Hammond Food Pantry for nest month will be Thursday, Sept.24th from 9:30 to 11:00 am at the Hammond Fire Hall. All income eligible families are encouraged to come to the drive by food distribution behind the Fire Hall. New families may register that day. I am happy to report that the Food Sense program is back in service. This program is for anyone, regardless of income. A unit of food, usually including 3-4 meat products, fresh produce, and some packaged and canned items, costs $20.50. There are also several special items which may be ordered and paid for ahead of time. Food Sense food is delivered about noon on Food Pantry days. For further information about either program contact Joan Hadlock at 315/324-5517.  

  In the early 1990's, Tom Logan, Director of Marion Medical Missions, was taken to a rural village in Malawi where 137 children were seated on the sandy ground, being taught the alphabet by an untrained teacher. The villagers explained that if they had 2 teacher houses and a 2-room school block, the government would provide two trained teachers. Marion Medical Mission gave the village the tin roof and cement, and the village did the construction. The government gave them four teachers instead of the two they requested. Over the years, MMM, in partnership with the village, built 8 teacher houses, a headmaster’s house, 8 school blocks, a library, a boys’ hostel and a girls’ hostel. After many years, 1200 students now attend the Chizimya Full Primary School, grades 1-8. So while the money we donate to MMM goes for shallow wells, that agency contributes so much more to African communities.

  For further events, information and church happenings please check out our Facebook page. If you have any prayer requests or events that you would like us to post, the Hammond Presbyterian Church Session members ask that you send requests to our Church Administrative Assistant Tara and she will happily help you.

  Renovation the church kitchen has been a long term goal. The many dinners that we have put on this summer have made us more aware of the changes that need to come into our present kitchen setting. If anyone is interested in becoming a member of the Kitchen Committee please get a hold of will Joan Hadlock (315)324-5517. We will meet in September. Will those interested please call with good days and times. Let’s get this going!  

  The railroad ties along the handicap ramp have been replaced with stone pavers. A drainage pipe was installed in the friendship garden to reroute the water from the rain gutters under the sidewalk and driveway, through the lawn, and out under the village sidewalk to the street.

The plants all had to be removed from the bedding area. New topsoil was brought in once the drain and pavers were in place. The plants survived amazingly well in the heat, due to faithful waterers, while the plants awaited their fresh bed. They have been replanted and mulched and are adapting to their new home very well. They have really perked up with the recent rainfall.

These improvements were covered by money from the Memorial Fund. ($6,762.50)

  The first phase of our projects was clearing some trees, brush and debris from te outlying grounds behind the manse. ($3,000)

The manse kitchen sink and faucets have been replaced, as well as the dryer hook-up. ($452)

Electrical issues in the pastor’s office and the sanctuary have been resolved. ($450.86)

Still to be completed:

Repair or replacement of the water softener in the manse- still to be determined (?)

Power wash, scrape, repair, and paint the manse and front and back porches ($10,500) if we don’t have to paint the siding.

Putnam’s will be installing larger gutters on the church and increasing the number of gutters to two on each side of the church this fall or spring of 2021 ($2,666)

Paint for the tan shed ($132.11)

Mulch ($108)

Total projected expenses thus far $17,308.96

Grass Seed to reseed the church yard and manse landscaping (?)

We have received $5,000 from an anonymous donor toward our building and grounds renovation projects. Donations from our church congregants and profits from our three dinners have matched the donors initial $5,000. We have $2,140.87, leaving us a balance of $2,859.63 to satisfy the donor’s requirements to qualify for an additional $5,000.

We still need your help to complete the necessary work around the church grounds and pastor’s homestead. When sending donations, please put “Building and Grounds Renovations” on the memo line.

Thank you for your thoughtful consideration in support of these projects.

  With music, I can do anything. If I am falling behind on work, I turn on something that’s quick paced and it’s amazing how quickly I catch up on work. If I’m having a hard day, a couple good pick me up songs and I’m feeling much better. When I want my kids to go to sleep, we have a special song for that. With music, I can remember a certain place in time, a friend or relative. And I’m not picky when it comes to music. My husband has walked into a room where one minute I’m blasting the best of Elvis, to the next minute dancing around to the new Shinedown song, singing on the top of my lungs (I pity my neighbors that hear me on these days. I know I sound like a howling cat in the middle of the night), to dancing the waltz in the kitchen with my husband to classical music. I’ve even been known to shake a leg with the kids in the living room blasting “Baby Shark”. With music, everything around me almost melts away, I think clearer, I’m empowered, and I’m ready to continue to move forward. 

During the year, if you listen hard enough, you can hear God playing music to us. It could be the way the wind blows, or the sound of leafs falling around you. It could be the birds singing or the crickets chirping. Some people view this as white noise, but if you listen closer, you can hear the beauty that God has orchestrated for every creature to hear. And even though every state is so different from one another, the common theme is the same. You hear the soothing sounds of God music around you, that when you hear, if you close your eyes, can bring you back to a certain place, or being with certain people all over again, the way music always does for me.

“Rock and roll music, if you like it, if you feel it, you can’t help but move to it. That’s what happens to me. I can’t help it.” –Elvis Presley