What Do You Want Your Community to Know About Your Church

February 19, 2018

Inside this Edition

A World Uprooted: Advocacy Training

The Center Volunteer Work Day

Pastors' Retreat: The Person Behind the Pastor.

Strangest Things "Teen" Symposium at Central PC

Baritone Daniel C.X. Rich in Concert at Faith Presbyterian Church

Lutheran Church Musicians Event

Next Church Conference in Baltimore Feb. 26-28

NAPC Conference: "Dragons, Frogs & Other Fairy Tales of Women in Ministry

Meetings

Committee and Commission meetings will be held at the Presbytery's office (unless noted otherwise.)

Committee on Preparation for Ministry will meet at 3pm on Wednesday, Feb. 21 at Catonsville PC

Personnel Committee meets at 10am on Thursday, Feb. 22

Steering Cabinet will meet at 1pm on Wednesday, Feb. 28

Commission on Reconciliation will meet at 6:30pm on Wednesday, Feb. 28

Gathering Team meets at 11am on Thursday, Mar. 1

Cuba Partnership will meet 7pm Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 1st PC, Howard Co.

Praise & Prayer

Please pray for Ira Marshall, 92 a retired Presbyterian pastor who worships at First Presbyterian Church of Bel Air, who is hospitalized with a serious illness at Upper Chesapeake Medical Center.

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Please pray for Pastor Ed Terry who is recuperating at Northwest Hospital Rehabilitation Center following knee surgery. Terry shepherds Mt. Paran Presbyterian Church in Randallstown. Well wishes and cards may be sent to his home at 3914 Falls Run Road, Randallstown, MD 21133.

Presbytery of Baltimore Hosts

Free Communications Workshop

for Church Media Workers

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What do you want your community to know about your church? __________________

Well, you don't have to have a huge budget or a large staff to effectively tell the story of your work inside and outside the church walls. On Saturday, Mar. 10, the Presbytery of Baltimore will host a free communications workshop for professional and non-professional church media workers at Central Presbyterian Church, located at 7308 York Road in Towson. The workshop will be held from 9am to 3:30pm and include free lunch, as well. The Presbytery invites two members of your congregation, including clergy, to attend this one-time event.

Presenters from PC(USA)'s Presbyterian Mission Agency's Communications Ministry will offer tips, techniques and advice during this intensive, day-long workshop that explores a vast array of issues confronting churches in an era of digital communication. One of the most challenging issues covered in the workshop concerns creating a strategic communications plan for your church -- the backbone of any successful organization's structure. Presenters will provide participants with a template for strategic communication planning and offer keen insight about the best methods to use to convey your church's key message to targeted audiences within and beyond the church doors. Attendees will also learn proven techniques for using social media tools like Facebook and Twitter; how to effectively respond to crisis and controversy; the do's and don'ts of pitching church stories to local media; and, tips on church websites.

Informative, easy-to-navigate websites are important for maintaining church identity in a world that's increasingly connected through the internet, social media and mobile devices. Maintaining a relevant church website relevant -- and, not just a marquee displaying the who, what and where of a congregation -- is another challenge for church communicators. The presenters will provide participants with tips on how to create a website and update an existing one; as well as, offer guidance on setting goals for exploring ways to use your church website to emphasize key issues, address concerns, raise funds, share stories and inspire readers to take action.

Seating is limited for the communications workshop for church workers. The registration deadline is next week, Monday, Feb. 26. To register, email [email protected] or call the Presbytery office at 410.433.2012 and confirm your seat with Deborah Greene, Director of Communications.

Take Note/Act Now

Presbytery and Churchwide

Announced for Compassion, Peace and Justice Training Day! Register Today - Space is Limited!

Advocacy Training Weekend , which includes Compassion, Peace and Justice Training Day and Ecumenical Advocacy Days , is scheduled for April 21-24, in Washington, D.C. The theme for this year's conference is

"Confronting Chaos, Forging Community - Racism, Militarism and Materialism."

Click here to register or click here for flier

Do you enjoy construction and repair work? The Center is looking for a few skilled volunteers to help with minor repairs and projects in its dorm facility. Join us for a work day on Saturday, Mar. 10 from 9am-12pm. Projects include: removing built-in counters, installing a cabinet, installing a small shelf, and removing broken floor tiles and replacing with new ones. To sign up or for more information, please contact Kate Foster Connors, [email protected] or 410.433.2012.

The Person Behind the Pastor: Who are You When You Are Not Being a Pastor?

Make plans to join your colleagues in ministry Wednesday & Thursday, Apr. 11 & 12 at Bon Secours Retreat Center for 24 hours of personal and spiritual refreshment in a beautiful, inspiring setting. There will be time for spiritual practices, including yoga, walking the Labyrinth, meditation and worship. There will also be Open Space conversations and plenty of time for relaxed conversation with others in ministry. The cost of the retreat is $75. Scholarships are available. For more information, contact Debbie Schmidt: [email protected].

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Sponsored by the Commission on Spiritual Leader Development

Churches

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

Faith Presbyterian Church presents baritone Daniel C.X. Rich in concert of music by African American composers at 7pm on Friday, Feb. 23.

Daniel has performed with several opera companies including the role of Surnani in an operetta commissioned by The Smithsonian and the Sultanate of Oman. He is a graduate of Morgan State, and currently a graduate student at Manhattan School of Music. A meet the artist reception will follow.

Click here to learn more . . .

Other

The Association of Lutheran Church Musicians is planning an event to be held at the United Lutheran Seminary campus in Gettysburg, PA on April 14. You can find out more about it here: https://alcm.org/event/gettysburg-pa/ . Although this event is planned by Lutherans, it may be of interest to Presbyterians, as well.