Children’s Music and Faith Formation started out last Wednesday with a bang!

We are picking the kids up from school Wednesday afternoons: walking to church for snack, Faith Formation and Music.

Mr. Aaron has introduced rhythm sticks and other percussion instruments to the children.

Jenni is teaching about Worship, Baptism and Communion. The kids will bake bread on the first Wednesday in October to share with our church family on World Communion Day, Oct. 6th.

The children will sing in worship on Oct. 13, Nov. 10 and Dec 22.

Meet Marissa Maxwell!

Marissa is an OSU Music student, she graduated from Kilbourne High School, Worthington last year and she is serving as a volunteer assistant to Mr. Aaron in Kids Music.

Marissa is an actor who was in many high school musicals and sang in her church choir at Worthington Presbyterian Church.

Please introduce yourself and say hello to Marissa when you see her.

Nancy Eucker

Dean and Nancy have been married for 64 years and have three adult children who are seniors in their own right, a son who lives outside of Zanesville, a daughter in St. Paul,  MN and a daughter in Napa, CA.  They have three grandchildren, a grandson in Kentucky, two granddaughters who live in Napa, Ca.  Then, they have an adopted son of 3 years, Lancelot, a Golden Retriever.

Both Nancy and Dean are retired, Dean from Abrasive Technology, and Nancy from Columbus City Schools.

The Euckers started together in St. Paul, MN where the two oldest children were born.  They then moved to Waterloo, IA where the youngest was born.  Next, they moved to Evansville and Newburgh, IN where they attended the same church that Wendy served, long before she came there. When they moved to Columbus, they joined St. Andrew Presbyterian Church where they were members for nearly 50 years until it closed.

Nancy’s hobbies are gardening, reading, and knitting. Dean busies himself with reading and managing a farm.

Nancy says, “We are happy to have settled here at First Presbyterian and have already made good friends.  We're home.”

Kelly Hart

Kelly raised her kids (one adult son, Sam, one adult daughter, Hannah who is engaged to Fred, and no grandkids yet) in Missoula, Montana where she lived for 20 years.

Kelly worked as an executive assistant (and part-time artist) in Seattle, Washington most recently.

She loves spending time outdoors. She also likes to hike, bike ride and be around water in any form whenever she has the chance.

Katherine and John Stiltner

John was born in VA and raised in WV. He moved to the Columbus area in 1970 after serving in the Air Force. He and his late wife Connie have a son, John and daughter, Rione. (John lives in Lewis Center with his wife Kate and 10 yr old twins, Joy and Julia.  Rione resides in Denver with husband Mike and 10 yr old son, Ethan.)

John retired from the City of Columbus as Assistant Administrator of the Division of Water. He then served as the General Manager of Southwest Licking Water and Sewer before his final retirement. He enjoys family time, golfing, and fishing.

Kathryn was born and raised in NE OH. She went to college in Atlanta GA and started her career in Contract Furniture there. Her positions as Major Accounts Manager with Herman Miller, Steelcase, and other manufacturers took her to Boca Raton and Miami, FL, Cleveland, OH, San Diego, CA, and finally, Columbus.  In retirement, she enjoys family time, watercolor painting, and gardening.

They married in 2015 and moved from New Albany to Granville in 2020. Kathryn’s brother and extended families also relocated from NE OH to Granville.

The Moyer Family

Aaron, Erica, Kari and Emily (and two older sons, who have grown and flown) They moved from Reynoldsburg to Granville two years ago. Kari is a cheerleader for GHS JV football and JV basketball.  Emily is a wrestler and softball player for GMS.  Erica and Aaron have taken on many new house projects as their new hobbies.

Starting Sept 1st:

The Pray Ground table will remain in worship for those who wish to gather at the table. After the Children’s Time, children ages 3-5 will be dismissed to Child Care, K-3rd grade will join Jenni in The Rest of the Story. Worship bags will be available to all children who remain in worship.

Wonderful Wednesday’s start on SEPT 4th!!!!

Join us for an ALL-AGES meal and worship service each Wednesday. We start with a game (which determines who eats first, always a fan fav), dinner is served from 5:30-6 pm, followed by singing, scripture, a short lesson/worship, and are finished at 6:30 pm!
Dinner menu next week: Corn Dogs, Potato Salad and more yummies!
Rsvp to kream@granpres.org

I am nearing the end…

of the Master of Christian Education (MACE) program at Union Presbyterian Seminary in Charlotte, NC.

The last requirement is to partake in “Supervised Ministry”. This is a bit like student teaching if you are pursuing an Education degree. I have been working as a Christian Educator for 24 years and I WANT to learn something NEW. I have never worked in a small church, I don’t know how the small church does Faith Formation, forms a budget, nominates officers, worships with less than 25 people, or how the small church office is run!

To that end, I asked Rev. Emily Kraus-Corzine to be my Supervisor, and my goal is to connect with THREE small churches in our Presbytery.

I will attend Session meetings, meet with Pastors, and various Committees, and offer MY experience and help to the churches with whom I partner. West Berlin, in Delaware, and Circleville 1st Presbyterian Church have expressed interest in working with me.  I attended the Presbytery meeting this past week and shared what I was doing. I trust the Holy Spirit will direct me to the third church.

Please keep me, my fellow UPSEM student colleagues, and our Presbytery in prayer.

---Jenni

Third Grade Bible Presentation – this Sunday!

Reed Collins and Natasha Hoffmeister will each receive their very own copy of God’s word. This is a beloved spiritual milestone for our families. We invite you to please pray for Reed and Tasha and their families as they continue to grow in faith.

This Sunday

Back to School Blessing: Bring your backpack to church for a special blessing!

Each student will receive a tag for their backpack to remind them they are LOVED.

We will bless the donated school supplies that are going to Carson Elementary School, as well.

 A Prayer for Back to School  (written by Rev. Traci Smith)

At the start of the school year, we are beginning something new 

New things can be exciting 

New things can be scary 

New things can be wonderful 

New things can be confusing 

God, you are always with us

You are with us when things are exciting, or scary, or wonderful, or confusing 

You are with us every day 

And all the time 

God, please help us to feel your presence with us on the first day of school, and every day, Amen

Picnic and Photo Scavenger Hunt!

BBQ pork sandwiches, slaw, chips and brownies.

Teams of 4-6 people will compete for 1st place in the super fun “Photo Scavenger Hunt”. Each Team will be assigned 20 “missions” – the Team with the most points earns bragging rights and Whit’s gift card.

Please rsvp to Kristin or Jenni by Aug 6

Enjoy Fellowship, Fun and Food together.

Thanks,
Jenni

Save the date: Aug. 18th, 10 am Worship

Guest Preacher

Dr. Paul Kim

On July 21 we welcome Dr Paul Kim as our guest preacher. Dr Kim is a Presbyterian minister and Professor of Hebrew Bible in the Williams Chair of Biblical Studies at the Methodist Theological School of Ohio in Delaware. Dr Kim holds degrees from Princeton Theological Seminary and Claremont Graduate School. His areas of expertise include prophetic literature, biblical theology, and Asian/Asian-American hermeneutics [interpretations]. At the seminary, he teaches intro classes on the Old Testament as well as classes on the prophets and the psalms. We are blessed to have such an excellent teacher and preacher lead us.

Our Middle Schoolers attended Massanetta Springs Middle School Conference last month.

The theme was “Keep Calm and Rejoice!” (Philippians 4:-4-7)

We played games, worshipped, sang songs, danced energizers, met new friends, and spent time in prayer with God.

Middle schoolers to MSMC!

Please hold our group in prayer next week!

Please hold our group in prayer as we prepare to attend Massenetta Springs Middle School Youth Conference - June 25th-28th (Harrisonburg, VA) Elyse, Emie, Rylee, Charlie, Lauren and Jenni are attending from our church, and they are also taking another student, William from KY, whom Charlie and the Reams met at Montreat last summer! (What an amazing BIG church connection!). This conference is designed for Middle Schoolers and is led by SENIOR HIGH YOUTH, called Advocates. Our very own Rachel Schmidt will be there serving as an Advocate.

The 2024 theme is “Keep calm and rejoice! The Lord is near,” based on Philippians 4:4-7

This Sunday – VBS Sunday

10 am Worship on the street between Centenary UMC and First Presbyterian Church. Important things to know below…

• Bring a lawn chair to sit in. (extra folding chairs will be provided)

• The street will be closed, please park accordingly.

• The worship service will be live-streamed on our normal streaming service: www.granpres.org/livestream

Join us for a Juneteenth picnic!!!

Please RSVP to Jenni by Monday at 9 am so that she can order the right amount of BBQ for this fun time together! ALL Ages are invited! We’re ordering City BBQ for dinner and we’ll learn about how Juneteenth became a holiday and why we celebrate it!

Centenary and 1st Presbyterian are joining to worship together.

10 am Worship will be OUTSIDE on the street between the two churches.

Bring a lawn chair from home. (We will have extra folding chairs, too) The STREET will be CLOSED. Please use side drive to park or park on the side street.

Thanks,
Jenni

Prayers for…

VBS Leaders, Teachers, Class Guides, Helpers, Crossing Guards, Teen Volunteers, and the many hands who are prepping and planning for THE BEST WEEK IN GRANVILLE! (June 10-14)

We ask for the Holy Spirit to surround, fill, and blow through “Camp Firelight.”

The Pray Ground is a space in the Sanctuary for children to engage in worship using age-appropriate books of faith and play.

-Children who are toddlers and preschoolers will find a table with kid-size chairs set up in front of the pews.
-Children ages Kindergarten through 3rd grade are welcome to sit in the front pews with Ms. Jenni.
Books, color sheets, fidgets, stuffed animals and puzzles will be available. The children may choose 1-2 of these items to take to their seats.
Each week the “Pray Ground” activity will be introduced in the Children’s Message and it will link with the scripture and the sermon of the day.

After-VBS was designed to meet the particular needs of our congregation, with working parents. This year for After VBS – We have 18 kids, 5 teens, and 3 adults signed up to help lead our time! Check out all the neat things we’ll be doing with our week!

Our LAST Wonderful Wednesday is next week –

May 22! We will finish our season with a CELEBRATION! Please join us for food, games, singing and fun fellowship.

But – wait! It ISN’T our LAST Wonderful Wednesday……because we are offering THREE SUMMER EDITION Wonderful Wednesday’s! 5:30 pm with dinner included at the beginning of the evening.

June 19th – Juneteenth Celebration

July 10 – Outreach and Mission (and commission Montreat participants)

Aug 7 – Photo Scavenger Hunt

We need Set Builders!

Saturday June 1, 2024 10am-12pm

Read below for FULL details.

When?   Saturday, June 1, 2024, 10 am-12 pm

Where?  Heritage Hall

What? We need folks to help make fake rocks, ponds, waterfalls, and a fire pit, as well as build a billboard and puppet house.

We will paint, create, and build for two hours.  The more hands we have on deck, the quicker the work will go.

Also needed are 5 folks with expertise in lumber and building to create a puppet house and a large 6-foot by 81-inch board that will serve as the backdrop on the Chancel at First Presbyterian.

We also need several additional items to help make the set work for our space.  If you have any of these items sitting around your house, we would love to borrow them til the end of VBS.

Here is a list of some of the items needed to enhance the stage:

• Various blue plastic tablecloths to be made into a small lake and waterfall

• Pillow stuffing from 2 pillows

• Twigs and branches

• White lights to be strewn hung across the stage

• 4 Sandbags to support the board

• Braces to put on the back of the board to hold it in place.

• Kayak for the "lake"

Items can be dropped off outside Philip’s office which is upstairs on the piano side of the sanctuary.

We will create the set on June 1 and then on June 9th after church, we will tear down the Chancel and put up the set.

Feel free to click on the link to sign up for what you would like to help.   If you'd rather, you can send Philip an email about what you'd like help create, at peveringham@granpres.org

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0F48AFA92CA6FAC16-49722894-vbsset