Greetings in Christ,
I hope everyone is having a great summer! I wish to take the opportunity to remind the presbytery of our second in-person Darkness to Light Training which will be held at First Presbyterian Church, Statesboro on Tuesday, August 22, at 10:00 a.m. The training will take about two hours. Darkness to Light is an organization that empowers adults to prevent, recognize and react responsibly to child sexual abuse through awareness, education, and stigma reduction. Our own presbytery’s Child and Youth Protection Policies require that all persons who are engaged in a validated ministry receive this training every three years. This also includes presbytery staff. At our June event at Richmond Hill, we had laypersons who were involved in children and youth ministries in their respective churches participate as well. Over thirty were certified. See the photos below. To register for the August 22 D2L event, please visit the Savannah Presbytery website, Administrative Resources, Forms and Documents. The training is also offered on-line via of the following link. https://www.d2l.org/get-trained/
Our gathering in August will be held in conjunction with the District 2 catered luncheon at noon. All clergy are welcome and are invited to bring your Point of Contact Person or another church leader with them. Reservations are required. Please RSVP me via email no later than Friday, August 18.
Blessings,
Rick
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Don’t miss out! Day Trip #1:
Deadline is August 3rd
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Come join us Saturday, September 9th, as we spend the day engaged in learning and fellowship in District I of Savannah Presbytery. We will meet at First Presbyterian Savannah at 9 AM (520 Washington Ave, 31405). Led by Christen Clougherty & Heather DuCloux of The Nobis Project, we will tour the Owens Thomas House & Slave Quarters, the King-Tisdell Cottage, engage in reflection activities on our experience and share a meal. Registration is open now for participants 13-years-of-age and older and will close on August 3rd. Please use the following promotional poster and video to share these opportunities with your membership.
Partial scholarships and some overnight accommodations are available for those in need so that cost and distance will not prohibit participation. To learn more about all Day Trip opportunities or to register visit: Pilgrimage Day Trips - Savannah Presbytery
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"Point-of-Contact" Update |
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We have received a point-of-contact for the following churches:
First, Douglas
First, Savannah
First, St. Marys
First, Statesboro
Henry Memorial
We are still in need of a point-of-contact from most of our churches. Please email your church's p-o-c to Jaclyn ASAP
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Save the dates for NEXT YEAR:
July 8-12, 2024
The Jean Breitenhirt Scholarship Fund helped offset camp cost for 17 campers at a scholarship total of $2,550.00. If you would like to support camp and help replenish this fund, donations can be made at www.savannahpresbytery.org (Donations Or Payments (eservicepayments.com) by using the Breitenhirt Donation HERE (“button”) or make checks payable to Savannah Presbytery, earmarked for Breitenhirt Fund, and mailed to 450 N. Cromwell Rd, Savannah, GA, 31410.
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If your congregations are sending students to Statesboro, Georgia we'd love to welcome them and become their church home away from home (or conveniently available pastoral care as needed ). We're hosting a cookout on August 11 where new students can connect with one another and current Georgia Southern students and ministry staff.
Help us build the faithful bridge from congregation to campus; help your college students find their spiritual home!
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Our Ongoing Journey Toward Justice:
Our next Holy Conversation
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The Racial Justice Ministry Team will be hosting its second Holy Conversation on Thursday, November 2nd from 6:30-8 PM via Zoom. We invite individuals, small groups, Sunday school classes, Presbyterian Women Circles, Youth Groups, and entire congregations to gather to watch the Disney movie Encanto by Tuesday, October 31st. Next, REGISTER FOR OUR ZOOM CONVERSATION (link below). We will unpack the movie’s themes and how we might apply what we learn to our lives and ministries! Come join us! (Churches will also have access to the discussion questions if they choose to hold in-person discussions on their own or by partnering with a sibling church!)
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We would like to include a photo in the password protected online directory for each minister of Savannah Presbytery.
Check out Rev. Ed Ayers’ entry to see how your photo would be displayed.
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African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund |
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Do you know a historic Black church that needs funding to strengthen its capital, staffing, operations, or endowment? They may be eligible for a Preserving Black Churches grant, a preservation project from the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund.
Grants from Preserving Black Churches are intended to preserve historic Black houses of worship (with either active congregations or those that have been repurposed for new uses in local communities) and advance ongoing preservation activities.
Today Black churches across the U.S. are experiencing challenges like deferred maintenance, insufficient funds, and threats of demolition. To support their permanent protection, the National Trust’s African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund created the Preserving Black Churches program, a $20 million initiative with leadership support from Lilly Endowment Inc.
With grants ranging from $50,000 to $200,000, the Preserving Black Churches grant program is an investment in Black communities to reimagine, redesign, and redeploy historic preservation to address the institutions’ needs and the cultural assets and stories they steward.
To apply for a grant from Preserving Black Churches, submit an online application by Wednesday, August 23, 2023.
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First Savannah will host a District 1 Clergy Lunch on Tuesday, August 29 at Noon in Stewart Hall.
Allie Matthys, Lead Organizer of Justice Unites Savannah Together (JUST), will speak briefly about the organization.
JUST is an interfaith, interracial justice advocacy coalition in Savannah that includes one mosque, two synagogues and twenty churches.
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Where can I find the information I need on Savannah Presbytery? |
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