Coming Up:



Fri. April 18 @ 7:00 pm: Good Friday Service

Sat. April 19 @ 9:00 am: Easter Egg Hunt

Sat. April 19 @ 2:00 pm: Walt & Doris Friday Memorial Service

Sun. April 20 @ 10:00 am: Easter Sunday Service

New Elders and Deacons Installation and Ordination Sunday is May 18th 2025

Office is closed Monday May 26th for Memorial Day

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).

A Note from Pastor Kelly:

Dear Friends,

It feels more like an Awful Friday instead of Good Friday today. Not only do we remember the undeserved and violent treatment Jesus received during his lifetime but we see the same cruelty in our own world, happening around and to us. It’s been a hard few months. I invite you to make the Good Friday service a part of your spiritual practice this Holy Week. We will move between music, silence, Scripture and prayer by taking a slower approach to our gathering. If you need to breathe, rest, sit or weep, this is the service for you. It is only after we enter the darkest places, that the light slowly begins to make its way through Holy Saturday until we arrive at Easter.

April 18 @ 7pm

Good Friday – “Blessing for the Brokenhearted”

A candlelight service of song and meditation

April 19 @ 9am

Easter Egg Hunt

(Youth at 8:30am)

April 20 @ 10am

Easter Worship Service

Ever onward,

Pastor Kelly

Session Friday Blast

The Westminster Session met for their Stated Meeting on Wednesday, April 16 at 6:00 in Russell Hall. All members were present and Dick Hughes joined as a guest via Zoom. It was reported that two separated groups/or individuals have submitted ideas for the “Creative Budget Initiative,” one by Gloria Hill and another by Michele Hare, Shirley Layne and Pamela Schmidling. We would like to thank them for their ideas!

The session did some advanced preparation and brainstorming on the six ministry areas for the next class of elders coming in on June 1. They also brainstormed some ideas for next steps for our mission and budget.

The Budget and Finance Committee will present a first quarter of 2025 budget update to the congregation after church on April 27th in Russell Hall. Please attend and get your questions answered.

Participate:

April is Diaper Drive Month!

Come and help fill the porta-crib in the narthex with diapers and wipes during April. Size 4 is the most needed diaper size. This is in support of Family Building Blocks.

It's time for the Easter Egg Hunt!

This event will be a gentle, child-centered, cozy event, held on Saturday, April 19, at 9:00 am.

Want to participate in Moral Mondays at the capital with the Oregon Poor People’s Campaign? We meet every Monday, 12pm, at First Presbyterian Church. Contact Michele (michelehare25x2@gmail.com ) or Paul Negstad (pandd.negstad@gmail.com) to join or just show up! Next: Monday, April 21, 2025. Learn more: poorpeoplescampaign.org.

Memorial Services:

A memorial service honoring both Walt and Doris Friday, will be held on Saturday, April 19, at 2:00 pm, at Westminster. Many of Doris' banners, as well as her quilts, and memorabilia from both Doris and Walt will be on display. Please join the Friday family for this opportunity to remember Doris and Walt who were long-time active and contributing members of Westminster.

Earth Day Champinefu River Walk:

Tuesday, April 22nd at 2:00 pm. Stroll along the ancient Marys River, homeland of the Ampinefu Kalapuya, which has seen radical changes in the past 180 years. Experience publicly accessible land along the Marys & Willamette Rivers with a new lens and a new appreciation on our 18^th Annual Corvallis Earth Day Tour.

Free and open to the public. To register and receive the meeting place and route, contact Dave Eckert at: deckert@willamettewatershed.com

Sponsors: Marys Peak Group Sierra Club, & the Corvallis Sustainability Coalition Water Action Team

Opportunities:

Vacation Bible Camp is scheduled for August 18-22 this year! This may seem like a long way off, but planning is happening now, so don't wait to put it on your calendars and let us know if you want to participate. We are partnering with St. Paul's Episcopal Church again this year for Changemaker's Lab VBC.

• Volunteers: Many volunteers are needed! We need adults and youth (completed 6th grade or older) to help with crafts, storytelling, snacks, games, registration, and moving from station to station with the kids. 

• Children: VBC will run 9:00a.m. to noon Monday through Friday for children entering Kindergarten through 6th grade. The cost is $10.00 per child but no more than $20.00 per family. Registration is open now at https://forms.gle/SbyrnV8mbnyd5iXx6. 

If you would like to help or have questions, talk to Terri Crall or email westpreskids@gmail.com.

This Earth Day, join us for a time of sacred pause, powerful prayer, and faithful imagination.

We invite you to attend our Ecumenical Earth Day Prayer Service.

Inspired by Creation Justice Ministries’ 2025 annual resource, The Power of God: From Extractive Theology to Transformative Faith, this virtual service will guide participants into prayerful reflection through seven original pieces of music, created exclusively for the resource.

The service will also feature a powerful reflection from Derrick Weston, Creation Justice Ministries’ Director of Theological Education and Formation.

Ecumenical Earth Day Prayer Service

🗓️ Tuesday, April 22, 2025

🕐 1:00 PM ET

📍 Online via Zoom

Register

Together, we will explore how God’s power renews us—and how we are called to use our power to renew God’s Creation.

This ecumenical service is open to all and free to attend.

I hope you’ll join us in prayer, music, and contemplation this Earth Day.

In Hope,

Derrick Weston 

Director of Theological Education and Formation

Creation Justice Ministries

One Great Hour Of Sharing: Repairing the Breach:

The theme of this year's One Great Hour of Sharing is taken from Isaiah 58, in which God tells us to show our love. By sharing our love with OGHS, we can help repair the breach in so many of our interactions in our world today. This special offering is taken during the Lenten/Easter season and we will be receiving our donations on Easter Sunday, April 20.

The three programs supported by OGHS are: Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, Presbyterian Hunger Program, and the Self-Development of People. These three programs all work in different ways to serve individuals and communities in need. From initial disaster response to ongoing community development, their work fits together to provide people with safety, sustenance, and hope.

Each gift to OGHS helps to improve the lives of people in these challenging situations and it also provides us a way to share God's love with our neighbors in need. In fact, OGHS is the single largest way Presbyterians come together every year to work for a better world.

OGHS offering envelopes are available on the table next to the Offering Box.

Join us for Oregon Interfaith Advocacy Day on Tuesday, 

April 29, at St. Mark Lutheran Church in Salem. 

Now is the time for people of faith to rise up in hope and to call for justice and compassion in our legislative system. 

The morning session at St. Mark Lutheran Church will feature a keynote address, training on effective advocacy and issue briefings. In the afternoon, participants will march to the Oregon Capitol Building, where they will present concerns to their legislators. Talking points and legislative appointments will be provided. 

ISSUE AREAS

May include the following: Immigration & Refugees, Housing & Homelessness, Climate & Environment, Healthcare, Hunger, Criminal Justice Reform

SCHEDULE

Morning session: 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

A sack lunch will be provided for participants.

Afternoon meetings with state legislators: times will vary.

REGISTRATION

$20; scholarships available. Register now.

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

The 2025 Westminster Festival of Fine Art Dates: Friday, October 17 - Sunday, October 19

Note that this is one week later than the Festival has been held in the past. This is so that our Show does not conflict with a four day holiday weekend (school inservice day on Friday, Oct. 10 and Columbus Day celebrated on Monday, Oct. 13).

We will open on Friday the 17th at noon, with the Artist Reception from 6 to 8pm. 

Watch for more information in the coming months!

Interested in being part of our planning? Contact Sheila Powell or Doreen Negstad or email us at wpcfafestival@gmail.com

We would love to hear your ideas

NWSDS (Northwest Senior & Disability Services) has a program called the Otago Exercise Program. This program is delivered in your home for people 60+ with 2 chronic conditions or an adult with disabilities AND has had a recent fall or is fearful of falling. A trained instructor visits you and provides a set of individually prescribed exercises. The program can last 6-12 months. Participants are expected to do the exercises three times a week, and walk at least two times a week. Progress is monitored through home visits and phone calls. For more information, please call 833-673-9355 or email health.promotion@nwsds.org.

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