Church Guidelines for Reopening

"If one member suffers, everyone suffers with it. If a[f] member is honored, all rejoice with it."

1 Cor 12:26

"Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ"

Galatians 6:2

A couple weeks ago, I rented a trenching machine to run water out to the new barn. If you've never seen one before, it's basically a giant chainsaw that cuts through the ground instead of wood, with an auger on the side to keep the dirt from falling back in the trench. According to the manufacturer of the trencher, it could cut a two foot deep trench the length I needed in just 40 minutes in "ideal soil conditions," whatever that means. Since my trench had to be four feet deep, and my heavy clay soil is probably not ideal, I figured I'd estimate high and say it would take us three hours. With my dad and brother-in-law helping out, we'd start at 9 AM, each spend about an hour running the machine, and call it quits at lunch time.

Pretty soon, we discovered the auger wasn't pushing the dirt out of the way, so one of us had to rake it back as it came out of the ground.

A short while later, we realized more dirt was obstructing the path of the machine, so another person had to shovel that out of the way.

At the three hour mark, having gone only 50 feet, we decided the rental place hadn't tightened the chain, which was impeding our progress.

Ten hours in, with the end nearly in sight, it started to rain. hard.

A little after eight o'clock, we finally finished our "half day job." The trench got done at almost exactly the same time as the rain stopped.

The job got done, and I suppose someone could wax eloquent about perseverance, triumph in the face of adversity, and all that sort of thing. But what really sticks out to me from that day is the despairing laughter we shared about twenty minutes into the storm, when the rain was no longer refreshing and the reality of shoveling wet clay in soaked clothes had set in. 

We were all miserable. It was not a good day. Yet we laughed. I'm sure if I'd been alone out there, laughing would've been the furthest thing from my mind. Something about sharing in the difficulty with other people made it possible.

You could use Paul's phrasing of "carry one another's burdens." You could recite the old adage that "misery loves company." However you choose to phrase it, though, that day reminded me that struggling is more bearable when you don't have to do it alone.

Blessings,

Pastor Shea

  Our mission for this month has been the Hammond Food Pantry. Our Food Pantry was established years ago by Howard and Alma Persons, at first using their own money to purchase food. Food storage was a problem until the present Food Pantry building was built. The building now has 6 freezers and two large refrigerators. Before Covid hit, we had the clients come into the Fire Hall and go down the line to receive their food. Now we ask everyone to stay in their cars behind the Fire Hall, and at their turn, sign in and the food is brought out by volunteers.

Hammond Food Pantry is held once a month and our numbers have never been higher. The last few months have been near 100 families from the Hammond area, Brier Hill, Morristown and out from there in every direction. I order food on line from the Food Bank of Central NY in Syracuse..This month I spent around $3000.00 for the food, which is then delivered by tractor trailer to our site. Several from our church have been helping as volunteers, including Pastor Shea who helps the day before Food Pantry setting up food on the tables. Our church provides $100.00 per month for the Food Pantry. We also have a few other monthly donors. But you can see from our numbers and our monthly payments, we are in constant need of backing. At our recent Ice Cream Social put on by the Deacons,, we raised over $175.00 in funding and had a nice box of food donations. Thanks to all who participated and helped support this important work.

We are always in need of volunteers to help fill the bags before the food is distributed. We begin about 8:30 a.m. and continue until the last customer has come through. Anyone interested in helping may come to the Fire Hall, this month on Aug. 25th. We certainly would appreciate any help you can give. Joan Hadlock (315) 324-5517

A couple days ago, I just celebrated my six year anniversary with working at the church. Six years ago, I walked into my office, looked around at all the chaos, and proceeded to settle in just nicely. I started to organize everything so I could find it easily, I got my kids comfortable with toys, snacks, and other comforts from home, and I got my church family comfortable with knowing that anything they threw at me (and some of you guys have thrown some crazy chaos my way) I was always there to help. We've all had some good times, we've all had some bad times, but we all stuck together through everything. These past couple of years has been so crazy for me, but I've really learned that it doesn't matter how crazy it is, if I need someone, I know I can count on my church family to be there. I've laughed so hard in my office some days where my tummy hurts, and I've cried on so many shoulders in my office. I've listened to a lot of drama in my office, and I've listened to a lot of music in my office. I've celebrated holidays and promotions, in my office, and I've worried about the world in my office. My office is my home away from home, and I am so blessed to be able to come into work every day and feel comfortable and happy with my life.

I always picture God going into an office every morning to starts His day. When He turns on the lights, is it the sun rising for us? When He opens His computer, is He reading the prayers we have been sending Him and filing them under categories of what's important and what can wait? Does He have a box of tissues on His desk for those really hard days, or a bag of chips hiding in His desk drawer for those days that He just wants to sit back, watch, and chuckle as my friend and I go out to see Elvis and then drive home singing "suspicious minds" and all the other great Elvis classics. Either way, they say if you love what you do, you never work a day in your life. I hope God is as lucky as I am to be able to say that these past six years might have been a little bit of work, but mostly lots of love. I look forward to many more years of love in my office.

Our church family is invited to celebrate Kennon's graduation on August 20th at 2pm.  It will be at our home at 884 County Rd 3, Redwood (Rossie), NY 13679.  You can RSVP to Jen at JenGardner1@gmail.com or 315-528-7303.  Hope to see you there!

The next Hammond Food Pantry will be Thursday. Aug. 25th, from 9:30 top 11:00 at the Hammond Fire Hall. Everyone is asked to line up behind the Fire Hall and in turn, sign in and the food will be brought out by the volunteers. Food Sense program is the same day at noon or after. Food Sense has no income requirements. A monthly listing of the food is available and orders must be submitted and paid for ahead of time. Anyone interested in either program may contact Joan Hadlock at (315)324-5517.

Session decided to include Renewal House  in our mission support as a church because of the important role it plays in the North Country. Renewal House in Canton is for victims of family violence and is the only domestic violence agency in  Saint Lawrence County. They run a 24 hour crisis line and provide temporary shelter for domestic violence victims. It operates a 9 bed safe dwelling in Canton and up to a 15 site safe-home network. A few of the many services offered are crisis counseling/ intervention, children/ youth programs, transportation, information and referrals.
On August 21, Jackie Washburn will talk about the work of Renewal House, its needs,   her role at this important service and how we can be of most help. There will be envelopes available for anyone who wishes to donate to Renewal House.

  Another Ice Cream Social will be held after service on Aug. 7th. Hope everyone will plan to be there.

  On Thursday August 18th at 7pm in the Hammond Presbyterian Church, Steve Goobic is excited to be sharing his experiences, through stories and pictures, of his two month adventure hiking the wilderness through deserts and mountain forests from Phoenix to Albuquerque. The ruggedness and remoteness of this amazingly varied landscape leant itself to a wonderful adventure through some amazing territory. This was definitely a journey not for the faint of heart.

 Hammond Presbyterian Church will be having their Famous Friday Fish Fry on August 5th. Pre-Order Pick-Ups will be from 4pm-6pm. To Pre-Order your meal, please call or text (315) 514-9233 (anytime) with your name, phone number and how many dinners you would like, and someone will contact you with a time slot, so you can have a nice hot meal ready. This dinner is TAKE OUT ONLY!!

Menu Includes:
Fish (with homemade tartar sauce), Salt Potatoes, Cole Slaw, and Dessert

Adult meals: $15
Kids meals: $7.50

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Tara at the phone number above.

 “Back by popular demand” Liz Scarlett will offer chair yoga classes for 4 Tuesdays in August: August 9,16,23 and 30 at 10 am in the pavilion next to the Hammond Presbyterian Church. The charge is by donation which will be a contribution to the church. We will read poetry, do gentle chair yoga, guided imagery, breath work, mindfulness and movement to music. Spread the word. Let interested people know. 

During the last year we have been sending monthly pleas in the newsletter for donations toward our planned memorial monument recognizing the original founding members of our church.

We have collected over $6000 in donations!! Thank you to all who have contributed. 

We now have a final target cost for the installation of our monument of $7900. This will include: the carved stone you have seen in the picture, the engraving, the delivery and setting, and the cement foundation installation. We are hoping that installation will take place this fall.

If you have not yet donated to the monument fund, now is the time. If you are a descendant of one or more of the founders, here is your chance to honor them.

Help us reach our goal!

Checks may be made out and mailed to Hammond Presbyterian Church with monument fund noted in the memo.

P O Box 193 Hammond, NY 13646.

 Hammond Presbyterian Church will be having ANOTHER Famous Friday Fish Fry on August 26th. Pre-Order Pick-Ups will be from 4pm-6pm. To Pre-Order your meal, please call or text (315) 514-9233 (anytime) with your name, phone number and how many dinners you would like, and someone will contact you with a time slot, so you can have a nice hot meal ready. This dinner is TAKE OUT ONLY!!

Menu Includes:
Fish (with homemade tartar sauce), Corn on the Cob, Cole Slaw, and Dessert

Adult meals: $15
Kids meals: $7.50

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Tara at the phone number above.