Thursday, April 29, 2010

It's done!


Tickets are purchased for four of our July Guatemala mission team members. We're awaiting word on whether we're to purchase zero, one, two, or three more tickets. Ellen is purchasing her tickets separately (and will stay longer). We'll fly through the Houston airport (whose terminal interior is pictured above). Away we go! Happy Pegasus Parade Day/Oaks Day eve everyone!

-- Perry

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

We're on!


Things are moving ahead on many fronts. Earlier this month the third term of the joint James Lees-Covenant Community Crescent Hill English as a foreign language teaching ministry began, again with mixed results student population-wise (pictures from day one of term three above and below). Last week Crescent Hill folks cooked. After wavering throughout the month, after the Thunder Saturday vigil and prayer service, the July 2010 trip planning group plus decided to plow ahead with the trip, with a late addition (Ana) to the probable list. The definite list: Claudia, Jane, Lowell, and Perry, as well as Ellen (tickets for all but Ellen to be purchased, probably this Wednesday). Two other people, besides, Ana, are possible. Next Tuesday – the Tuesday after Derby – term two of Ada’s Spanish class begins also. Moving ahead during Derby season!



Prayer service



A dozen Crescent Hill folks gathered after the Men’s Breakfast on Thunder Saturday for a 30-minute vigil and prayer service coinciding with two important events with our partners in Guatemala: a big Estoreño Presbytery youth and young adult gathering in El Estor and the departure of two Estoreño pastors three days later for a summit of Q’eqchi’-speaking Presbyterian church leaders from around the country discussing a possible Q’eqchi’ theological training and reflection ministry in Coban. Crescent Hill folks prayed silently, then offered prayers for our partners and for youth and young adults of the church (complete with pictures and mementos folks had brought in and displayed), and joined in unison in prayer and in song. Ana offered a closing prayer in Spanish and English.

-- Perry


Thursday, April 15, 2010

Affirm youth


Affirm youth quietly on Thunder morning! There will be a vigil and prayer service between 10:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., on Saturday, April 17, in the Fireside Room, following the Men’s Breakfast. The event is slated to coincide with the start of a presbytery-wide assembly of the youth and young adults of Crescent Hill’s Guatemalan partner presbytery, the Q’eqchi’ Estoreño, Izabal Presbytery. (A group of Arca de Noe church youth and young adults is pictured above.) Participants are invited to bring a photo or symbol of a young person important to them, as the group will pray for young people in many places around the world.

Sunday, April 4, 2010

Today is the day!


Easter Sunday is the day we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus - and the deadline for folks planning to go on the Crescent Hill July 2010 Guatemala mission trip to plunk down your $250 deposit and let Pastor Jane know about your scholarship needs. We're looking for a group of anywhere from 5-6 to 10-12 people to travel to Coban, Guatemala, for Bible study, worskshops, partnership planning, and cultural tourism with a similar number of folks from Guatemala's Estoreño Presbytery. Look for Martha, Stephanie, and others fanning out or tabling in the Gathering Room and give them your checks and/or look for Jane to talk about your financial needs.

-- Perry

Saturday, April 3, 2010

Easter eve morning


Saturday morning a small group of Crescent Hill folks interested in Guatemala mission met back at Heine Brothers in St. Matthews. The group OKed the budget/scholarship scheme for the July 2010 mission trip that Pastor Jane and Perry had developed earlier in the week (pending the session or Outreach Council’s OK): $1,000 from the church budget Guatemala mission line item, $2,000 or so from the Guatemala mission partnership (subsidized by extra revenue from Ada’s Spanish classes), and nearly $1,000 in donations already pledged – to go to: $1,000 for a coordinator, $1,200 to reimburse Estoreño Presbytery representatives for their bus fare and room and board to the April and July meetings in Coban, and almost $2,000 in up-front, before-fund raising scholarship aid to people who talk about financial need with Pastor Jane. We are looking for $250 deposits on Easter Sunday from all who want to go on the trip (and at the very least people need to talk with Jane this weekend about their interest and need).

We also called Pastor Gerardo, with whom the smaller trip planning committee had spoken by phone a few weeks ago. Gerardo said that Pastor Pablo and Pastor José Sub (from the church near Puerto Barrios) would be going to the April meeting about theological training in Coban. Because José will be traveling from further away, they will need about $250 total (which Perry will ask Jack L. to send to the Middle Tennessee Presbytery leader). Already picked for the July trip are pastors Gerardo, Pablo, Fidel, and José and two elders (including one from Gerardo’s Arce de Noe church). Other churches are currently picking two deacons to go, as are the presbytery’s Presbyterian Women group and the youth and young adults group.

Speaking of youth and young adults: Gerardo said that at 1 p.m. their time on Saturday afternoon, April 17 (Thunder Saturday) 175 youth and young adults from around the presbytery will gather together for an assembly. In the evening they will have a worship service. (The group talked about having a short (20-30 minutes?) vigil/prayer service – perhaps at 10 a.m. in the Fireside Room – to pray with Guatemala partners for this service. Perry will check with Patti about the availability of this room (otherwise – we might do it in the sanctuary) and will check with Jane about the option of inviting folks there to make a donation towards the cost of the Christian education/leadership development . Perry and Ana and perhaps others will plan the vigil/service. Perhaps the trip planning group can meet before or after the vigil/prayer service.)

Pastor Gerardo also OKed the idea of Estoreño folks staying an extra day Wednesday in July. Apparently neither he nor probably any of the other Estoreño folks have been to the Semuc Champey waterfall area, which we would be able to see if we all stayed an extra day. Gerardo said we would all be learning together.

Gerardo also told us that he had been ill. In fact, his leg was so swollen that he had to miss part of recent presbytery meeting.

Folks at the meeting also shared some of their own health/discernment concerns and asked for traveling mercies for Nora, Sara, and Soni.

After the meeting, Perry and Ellen talked via Skype. Ellen was concerned about the potentially small number of Crescent Hill folks going to church and the possibility of there being as more PC(USA) mission co-workers on the trip than Crescent Hill folks. She was concerned that if we broke up into small groups there might only be one Crescent Hill person per group, and she also thought it would be unwise to have more PC(USA) mission co-workers on the trip (Roger? Ellen? Amanda? Karla?) than Crescent Hill folks. Perry said he hoped there would be at least five or six Crescent Hill folks and even with that number the church would likely want to limit the mission co-worker teammates just two, Roger and Ellen.

Ellen is getting settled in in her two-bedroom apartment in Brevard, North Carolina, and this weekend was busy participating in worship events in both Spanish and English at various churches in the area.

Left undecided at Heine Brothers were scheduling the time, date, and place of the next trip planning group (after the vigil/prayer service?), scheduling a place for the next Guatemala mission task force gathering (9:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 8, at the Laras?), and who would write a May newsletter blurb (Perry?). Also not discussed was fund-raising possibilities. Jane, you’ll recall, had proposed a church yard sale (oriented towards both in-church and community buyers), after most of the concert lineup ideas she thought of didn’t pan out. Trip orientation and installment payment schedule were also not discussed.

Perry

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Maundy Thursday e-mail

Spanish-language e-mail message to Pastor Gerardo, Rene, and colleagues:

Saludos de sus hermanos y hermanas en Cristo desde Kentucky.

Un grupo de nosotros y el Pastor Gerardo Pop hablemos por teléfono hace dos semanas. Hablamos sobre muchas cosas incluyendo un viaje de unas mujeres de la presbiterial por todo el presbiterio. Hablamos también sobre un grupo de unas personas de nuestra iglesia y uno grupo de personas de su presbiterio se encontraran en la ciudad de Cobán para cuatro o cinco días en Julio, empezando a la mañana del Domingo, 11 Julio, para adoración, discusiones, oración, y viajando por toda el ciudad. Esperamos que Ustedes vayan a venir a Cobán (12 personas), incluyendo por lo menos dos mujeres de la presbiterial, dos jóvenes, y dos ancianos o diáconos. Hablemos con Pastor Gerardo sobre nosotros proveyendo dinero para los boletos para el autobús, alojamiento y también para la comida en el Centro Nazareno para estas 12 personas. También para 2 personas para ir a otra reunión en Cobán en el mes de Abril. (Nadie de nuestra iglesia vamos a poder a estar a esa reunión en Abril.) Pensamos que Rogelio Marriott, Ustedes, y nosotros vamos a trabajar juntos para hacer planes por la viaje y la reunión en Julio. Vamos a mandar unas ideas a Rogelio y a Ustedes pronto. Ya tenemos una pregunta nueva. Pastor Gerardo y nosotros hablamos sobre un viaje y una reunión de cuatro días, de domingo a miércoles. En Julio quisiéramos ir de Cobán a Semuc Champey, es un área con cascadas. Creímos que Ustedes y nosotros no tendríamos un día entero para un viaje a Semuc Champey. Pero si Ustedes y nosotros podríamos quedarnos por una día mas, hasta jueves, tendríamos tiempo suficiente a ir a Semuc Champey. Pueden Ustedes pensar sobre si quisieran quedarse para un día mas viajar y ver Semuc Champey?

En Enero recibimos un correo electrónico de Armando Chub. También Rogelio recibió una correo de Antonio Cucul sobre los problemas con el edificio de la congregación el Chupon. Durante el culto de nuestra iglesia suplicamos para la congregación el Chupon y para el templo (edificio).

Gracias a Dios, la primavera comenzó en Kentucky. Bendiciones de Dios a Ustedes en Guatemala, donde creemos ya han estado en primera durante un gran rato. Bendiciones también para el viaje de unas personas a Cobán en Abril. Esperamos que Ustedes vayan a contar sobre esa reunion.

Easter eve gathering


In between Crescent Hill's 12:15 p.m. Good Friday service and Anamchara's 8 p.m. Easter Vigil service, a slimmed down group of folks interested in Guatemala mission will gather at 9:30 a.m. on Easter eve (Saturday, April 3 - on the one-year anniversary of the return of Crescent Hill folks from the last Guatemala mission trip), back at our old gathering site: Heine Brothers on Chenoweth Lane (just around the corner from Perry and Stephanie's) in St. Matthews. On the agenda will be reflecting on the Karla Koll talk event last weekend, Sunday school class and Spanish class and English as foreign language teaching ministry updates, discussions about some April and July trip details, and a possible phone conversation with folks in Guatemala (our first ever at a cafe!?). Everyone interested in Crescent Hill's Guatemala mission partnership is welcome - See you for coffee!

-- Perry