Message from Pastor Kelly Wadsworth:

Everything In-Between: Meeting God in the midst of extremes continues this Sunday as we enter the 2^nd week of Lent. Jesus has set his face toward Jerusalem through familiar stories such as the Good Samaritan and the Lost Sheep. As modern readers, we sometimes lose the ‘shock factor’ behind Jesus’ words, as his teaching tactics likely felt extreme for those in his context. When we study these stories in their historical and cultural context, we see how they mirror the cultural and political divides many of us experience in our families, churches, and communities today. I’m looking forward to seeing you on Sunday as we explore Luke 13, celebrate a baptism, and welcome 8 new members.

Ever onward,

Pastor Kelly

Coming Up:



Sat. March 15 @ 8-11:30 am: Troop 108 Pancake Breakfast & Silent Auction

Sun. March 16: New Member Sunday, with Reception following the Service

Sun. March 16: Table of Plenty Sunday

Sun. March 16 @ 1-4:00 pm: Earth Summit

Tue. March 18 @ 6:00 pm: Men's Night Out at Gilgamesh Brewing

Mon. March 24 @ 5:00 pm: Solo Women's Group

Wed. March 26-Sat. March 29: Youth Collective Spring Break Service Trip

Sun. March 30 @ 11:00 am: Celebration for Vik's 16-year Tenure at WPC

Sat. April 5 @ 9-12 pm: Annual Spring Cleanup

Sat. April 12 @ 3:00 pm: Jean Nelson Memorial Service

Sun. April 13 @ 11:30 am: Our Stories Salon in Russell Hall

Sun. April 13 @ 4:00 pm: Passion Cantata

For the full church calendar see here. To change or add something to the calendar, please email or call the church office (office@salemwestpres.org), 503-364-3327).

Participate:

Whee! The months do speed by... and this Sunday is the 3rd Sunday of the month which means it is:

Table of Plenty Sunday

Please don't forget to put some extra cans or packages of food in your cart for our neighbor in need at TOP. Our Souper Bowl Sunday soups amounted to 89.2 pounds of food. Let's aim for at least 100 pounds this Sunday! You can place canned or packaged foods in the TOP food bins outside the church office at any time. No one wants to go hungry. Ideas? Peanut butter, soups, chili, pasta, and cereal boxes. The TOP crew delivers the food on the third Tuesday, every month. Thank you to the congregation for supporting this very needed mission project of Westminster.

CREATIVE BUDGETING INITIATIVE

Feb 20 – Apr 11, 2025

The session invites any individual, group or team at Westminster to propose ideas they may have for the next fiscal year utilizing the current levels of income. The elders hope this will be an opportunity for Westminster to think outside the box and consider new perspectives. In addition to Westminster’s treasures, the time and talent of volunteers is an indispensable resource as well so please feel free to include this in your proposals as well.

Creative Budgeting Initiative will run from Feb 20 – Apr 11, 2025.

1.    Project guidelines:

a.    Ask questions. Be curious & kind.

b.    Anonymous submissions are an option. 

c.     Budget & finance is hosting “office hours” during coffee hour on March 3 & April 6.

Come ask your questions.

2.    Current budget forecasts (included)

3.    Points of contact:

a.    How to submit your ideas?

                   i.     Email: clerk@salemwestpres.org

                   ii.     Drop off: Clerk mailbox in the office

                   iii.    Mail: Attn: Clerk of Session Westminster Presbyterian Church 3737 Liberty St S,

Salem, OR 97302

                   iv.     Due: April 11, 2025

Upon conclusion of the initiative, session will report back to the congregation. 

Spring Clean Up and Planting Day: Saturday, April 5 at 9 or 10 am

Please sign up to come to church on Saturday, April 5 in the morning to help clean up the grounds. The sign-up sheet is in the narthex just outside the office window. We need many hands so we hope to see you there.

If you have questions, ask Pamela or Ted.

  Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much - Helen Keller

The Bruce Reyes-Chow sessions at Westminster on Saturday February 22 were recorded (thank you Mike Friday).

Below are the links to the morning and afternoon sessions (in separate parts since there was a lunch break.)

We will be hosting conversations about the things we learned and discussed in coming weeks. Watch for the table with a sign with Bruce Reyes-Chow's photo at a table in Boulder Hall during coffee hours in the coming weeks if you want to come and join us in friendly conversations.

 Here are the links:

Morning Session: https://www.youtube.com/live/LV9kBCW_HK4?si=VuWauRf8Q4o8soqf

Afternoon Session: https://www.youtube.com/live/kWPMwKo5Yl4?si=4mVTe0_GVz9T9Rrz

Thank you to everyone who came and everyone who volunteered.

Lucy Foster-Chair, Welcoming Journey Core Team

Team members: Liz Callahan, Lisa Dukes, Grubby Hain, Kristin Kuhns and Ann Montgomery 

Save the Dates:

Troop 108's Pancake Breakfast & Silent Auction Fundraiser - Tomorrow!

Are we ready for the next wildfire, flood, or heat wave?

Come and learn more about community resilience

and preparedness for our families and neighbors.

Salem Hub: Ike Box upstairs room, hosted by Environmental Faith Network.

Join the virtual statewide plenary session, followed by an in-person session including workshop options.

Register now at emoregon.org

Tickets prices range from $0-25

Mens' Night Out will be held on Tuesday, March 18, at 6pm, at Gilgamesh Brewing on SE Madrona. Please come and join us for conversation and camaraderie. Contact John Dalen to sign up.

CELEBRATING VIK:

As most of you are aware, our beloved Youth Director, Vik Schaff, completed her work at Westminster and moved into a brand new job in February. Her 16 years (yes, SIXTEEN YEARS!) at Westminster impacted generations of youth and enriched the Church in countless ways.  

Let's join together and celebrate Vik on Sunday, March 30^th at our own version of a Mardi Gras party, immediately following services. There will of course be tons of food and drinks, fun decorations and a gift table where you can drop off a card or remembrance. 

We hope y'all will come - "laisse les bons moments rouler" (i.e., "let the good times roll!") 

Women's Retreat! May 2-4:

It’s been six years since our last Women’s Retreat, so it’s time to have another one. Come join us for a weekend (or just for Saturday) at Lincoln City. More information to come, but mark it on your calendar. Sign-ups in the narthex after services in March. Please sign up now so that planning can begin! Questions? Contact Susan Ray (raysu1@comcast.net).

New Members:

Please join us in welcoming our most recent new members to Westminster. Here are some of their bios to assist you in getting to know them.

Lana Gerber: I have a strong Presbyterian background having been baptized, confirmed, married and a deacon in Presbyterian churches in Iowa, Minnesota, and Oregon. I grew up in several Midwestern states and moved to Oregon when I was 18. I am 82 now, but in my mid years I fell away from church attendance and I questioned my faith. Luckily faith was restored by God and He placed me on a spiritual path once again. I was then active in West Hills Baptist Church in Salem from 2010 to 2023, where my son was pastor, but I did not join that church. In my early married years I raised two sons who are now 60 and 63—one a pastor, one a musician. My family is very important to me. I entered the workforce at 35 and joined Tektronix in Beaverton where I worked for 25 years. I was the

liaison person between customer service representatives and IT. As part of that job I traveled worldwide to many Tektronix locations and trained personnel on service software. I loved the travel! After retirement, husband Roger and I did additional local and international travel. I have had a life long interest in crafts involving fabrics, texture and color. At times throughout my life, I pursued selling crafts as my occupation. For over 15 years I have happily participated in the very lovely art show held each fall at Westminster Church with my jewelry, dolls and cards. This attracted me to Westminster as a church that I would be happy to make my new church home. Now in my 80’s, my energy is waning, but I look forward to making friends at Westminster and working with them to serve God. It is a blessing to me to become part of such a loving, vibrant, welcoming church.

Christian Arroliga: Originally from Nicaragua, I moved to the U.S. in March 2024 to begin a new

chapter. Though I had never been to Salem before, everything aligned for me to come here. I don’t believe in coincidences; God always has a purpose. That same sense of purpose guides my work. I am a Program Portfolio Manager in development programs with Food for the Hungry and volunteer with

DisasterReady.org. My background is in psychology, and while I once pursued medicine, my path led me to master’s degrees in Social Management and Corporate Social Responsibility with a Human Rights approach. In my first week in Salem, missing my church and community, especially during

Holy Week, I found Westminster. The Good Friday concert touched my heart, and when I returned on Easter Sunday, I experienced a warm, welcoming community that truly lives out its faith together. I strongly believe in the healing power of community - we grow and heal together, and that allows us to serve others. Beyond that, the liturgy, the social justice message, and the hymns deeply resonated with me, making me feel at home. Because of all this, I knew I had found a place to stay. I come from a Baptist tradition, where service was central to my faith. In Nicaragua, I was involved in the church choir, Sunday school, and youth ministry. Now at Westminster, I sing in the choir and serve on the Building and Grounds Commission. I look forward to continuing to use my gifts in service.

Chuck & Ann Baumann: Ann and Chuck moved to Oregon from Iowa in 1988. Shortly after that they had their kids Will and Katie. Will lives in Salem and Katie and her husband, Ian, live in Seattle

and have a wonderful 3 year old, Arlo, who gives them great joy. They had the privilege of being his caregivers for a year and now catch up with him regularly. Prior to moving to Oregon, Chuck taught high school and once settled here he worked for the State of Oregon in communications until retiring in 2023.He also spent 40 years officiating high school basketball until hanging up his whistle in 2019. He’s looking forward to becoming more active in the life of Westminster. While their kids were at South High they were active in the music community - especially band - and met the MacMorris-Adix family and were introduced to Westminster! It’s just taken us a few years to put down roots here. :) The friendliness and welcoming nature of the congregation has been good for our souls! Ann is looking forward to becoming a part of the Westminster community as well. She enjoys Bible study and learning together as well as service to others. She’s always happy to help behind the scenes. She is a mostly retired speech/language pathologist who worked primarily with preschool children who had hearing loss at Salem Heights. This specialization allowed her the opportunity to work with children, parents and their teachers in Vietnam over a number of years with a terrific organization (The Global Foundation For Children With Hearing Loss - it’s a mouthful!). Those years were life changing and mind expanding.

She really appreciates Westminster’s emphasis on social justice and care for others. No matter where we live, what we do or whatever else may decide status, we are all connected and not so different - we are all God’s children and belong to Him.

Bill & Junia Fitzgerald: Junia and I moved to Salem at the end of October, 2023. We were members of the Grace Methodist/Episcopal church in Buena Vista, Colorado. Junia grew up as a Methodist and I as a Catholic. We have attended mostly Methodist churches since we were married. We tried several churches in Buena Vista before settling on Grace Church. We both prefer more traditional church services rather than the current trend towards non-denominational churches or megachurches. After moving so Salem we attended services at about eight or nine different churches before settling on Westminster Presbyterian. We both believe in acceptance of everyone regardless of political beliefs, ethnicity, orientation, or any other divisive category. We had never attended a Presbyterian service before, but it was the warm welcome and open arms approach that made us

decide on Westminster. This was the main attraction for us at Grace Church as well. We are delighted to have found a church where we are comfortable with both the clergy and the laity.

Opportunities:

Nurses' Christian Fellowship group is being formed in Salem. Diane Stegmeir, RN, CDCES, is starting a group for nurses and nursing students. NCF provides support and encouragement to members that face the challenges of health care and providing patient care. For anyone interested in getting together for coffee to discuss this opportunity, please contact Diane at DiStegs@aol.com or office@salemwestpres.org.

There is a new support group at Westminster for single women who are dealing with grief. The Solo Women's Grief Support Group meets on the fourth Monday of the month in Boulder Hall at 5:00 for a potluck meal and discussion. The next meeting is March 24. Any single woman is welcome to join us. Contact: Deacon Betty Fennell

Salem First Pres - Women @ Noon:

Salem First Pres has extended an invitation to the women of West Pres to drop in or attend on Zoom, their book club at noon on Wednesdays most weeks. The book they are reading right now is "The Return of the Chaos Monsters and Other Backstories of the Bible" by Gregory Mobley. Contact Christine Talbert at 703-944-1952, or email: talbertcc@earthlink.net, if you want additional information. They are a small group with half belonging to other churches and they invite diverse perspectives and usually have lively discussions.

The Presbyterian Hunger Program strives to walk with people in moving toward sustainable choices that restore and protect all of God’s children and Creation. In Lent, we slow down, take time, and examine our internal spiritual lives and the way we live out our Christian faith in the world around us. PHP's 2025 Lenten calendar is intended to be the beginning of actions intended to create more mindful behaviors throughout the year. Access the resource here:https://hubs.ly/Q03413kW

Personnel:

We are recruiting for our new office manager and a facility manager. Please help spread the word to folks who might be interested. We’ve posted the openings, but you’re our best recruiters. The most effective job referrals come through word-of-mouth.

Resumes should be emailed ASAP to: Jobs.SalemWestPres@gmail.com

Copies of the job description and recruitment are available in the church office. Or send an email to the above address.

Thank you from your Hiring Team and the Personnel Committee.

Thanks!

Westminster congregants and community members,

Thank you so much for volunteering your time and above all your BLOOD at the Westminster Presbyterian American Red Cross blood drive on Monday, March 10. We filled nearly all the whole blood appointments and even had a couple of Double Red appointments filled.  Despite a few deferrals (mostly due to low iron/hemoglobin levels) we still came through with our usual strong blood drive showing.  

Our next blood drive will be on Monday, May 12. You can always use the online sign-up for that. You may need to scroll down to find the Westminster location.  

Again,

THANK YOU! 😀

Regards, Bill Nelson, Bobbi Clyde, and the rest of the team that make our blood drives possible.  

Pray:

Please join us in praying for the family of Alicia Bonesteele. Alicia passed away on March 2, 2025.

Reminder about email scams:

Westminster and/or Pastor Kelly will never ask for money or gift cards outside of church-sponsored programs and initiatives. If you receive a suspicious email or text and are unsure whether to respond, contact the church office. 

Westminster Presbyterian Church