The Giddings-Lovejoy Committee on Local Arrangements (COLA) is busy working on planning for hosting next year’s General Assembly, to be held June 16-23 at the Convention Center in downtown St. Louis. Commissioners and other registrants will be housed in 7 hotels close by.
Tours, both mission and cultural, are being finalized; Worship teams are beginning the work of planning the various services to be both faithful to our Reformed tradition and reflective of the wide variety of voices and styles contained within PCUSA; plans are beginning for welcoming folks at the airport and hotels.
All the congregations of Giddings-Lovejoy have been asked to support our hosting by making a financial contribution, based on the size of the congregation. We are not yet at 100% participation, so we hope to hear from everyone soon. For those of you who are participating, we send a big “THANK YOU.” Remember 2017 pledges should have been paid; 2018 pledges are due before May 1, 2018.
Each congregation also has been asked to have a local contact – Local Church Coordinator (LCC). This should be someone who is well-connected within the congregation and willing to be a cheerleader for local participation with GA, a conduit for information and encouraging volunteers.
Another big THANK YOU to those congregations who have offered to host commissioners at their local worship services on Sunday, June 17. You’ve offered more than enough spaces for the expected participation. For those of you too far in distance to invite guests, consider how else you might be part of this event, maybe partner with another congregation that will be hosting.
The COLA leadership group is indeed experiencing some “Kin-dom building” throughout the Presbytery.
Thanks be to God!
Carol DeVaughan and Cedric Portis
Committee on Local Arrangements Co-Moderators
