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Table of Contents
- Pics of the week
- This Week @ GCPC - Calendar and description of events this week @ GCPC
- Stewardship & Sustainability
- Important Announcements
- Prayer List
- Upcoming @ GCPC
- Community Working Together - Includes info from Covenant & Ministry Partners
- GCPC Out & About - Info about events in the wider Asheville community
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Worship Preview | Sunday, November 23, 2025
In-person and online service
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Deacon of the Week:
We as Deacons know holidays may be difficult for some of our congregants. The Deacon of the Week is available to talk, provide support, and coordinate care if needed. You are not alone. You are loved. Please reach out to our deacon of the week if you have any needs or concerns.
This week (11/16-11/22) Tyler Cook | email: tylercook.gcpcusa@gmail.com
Next week (11/23-11/29) Liz Harris-Lamkin | email: chaplainehl@gmail.com
Deacon of the Week Prayer:
Holy and gracious God,
We come before You seeking hearts that reflect Your truth and lives that honor Your calling.
Grant us transparency, Lord, the courage to speak honestly, to listen humbly, and to let Your light shine through our decisions and relationships. May we resist the temptation to hide in shadows, choosing instead the clarity that comes from walking openly with You.
Grant us accountability, not as a burden, but as a gift. Teach us to welcome correction, to admit mistakes, and to rely on the community You have given us. Strengthen us to seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly as we hold one another in grace and truth.
Grant us leadership shaped by Christ, leadership that serves rather than controls, that builds up rather than tears down, that leads with compassion, wisdom, and integrity. Make us faithful stewards of the responsibilities entrusted to us, and guide us to choices that reflect Your kingdom.
In the name of Jesus Christ,
Amen.
~ Tyler Cook
| | Stewardship & Sustainability | | |
How to Make Your 2026 Pledge
| | | Sunday, November 23 | GCPC Childcare (0-PreK) | begins at 9:00 am | | Sunday, November 23 | Hybrid Worship
(In-person and online) | 10:00 am | Sanctuary
(also on Youtube) | | Sunday, November 23 | Music with Ray!
(K - 5th grade) | 12:00 pm | Robing Room | | Sunday, November 23 | Worship Council:
Advent Prep | 12:15 pm | Sanctuary | | Sunday, November 23 | Campus Vision Team Mtg. | 1:00 pm | Indie Room | | Tuesday, November 25 | Prayer Group | 10:00 am | Youth Room | | Tuesday, November 25 | Session Mtg. | 6:00 pm on Zoom | | Wednesday, Nov. 26 | Centering Prayer | 6:00 pm | Sanctuary | | Thursday, November 27 & Friday, November 28 | OFFICE CLOSED |
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Music with Ray! (K - 5th Grade) | Sunday, November 23 | 12:00 PM | Robing Room
Music with Ray is a nurturing space where children can discover and express their amazing creativity through play, singing, movement, and playing instruments (chimes/bells, Orff barred instruments, and drums). Children will have opportunities to share their music making in our Sunday morning worship services as they feel ready. Come and bring friends!
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There will be NO Music with Ray, Centering Prayer or Choir Practice this coming Wednesday night, November 26th.
They will all return on Wednesday, December 3rd.
| | There will be NO GCPC Food Distribution on Thursday, November 27th. We will resume the following Thursday, December 4th from 11 AM - 1 PM in the Sanctuary. Join us as a volunteer to help with food distribution on Thursdays and/or help us stock the supply center with the items listed below. | | |
Meal Train for Olivia Goldstein
Olivia has had back surgery and needs our help and support! Let's show her some GCPC love while she is recovering!
Sign up here:
https://www.mealtrain.com/trains/2wzmv8
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Would you like to help usher on Sunday mornings at GCPC?
We are looking for a few more folks to helpm with ushering on Sundays. It is a great way to get to know folks at GCPC! If you are able to assist, please email Anna Louise at annalouise@gcpcusa.org.
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REALM Contact Information Updates!!
Please take a moment to add/update your contact information (including mailing address) in Realm. This helps us stay connected as a community.
Click HERE to login to Realm.
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Prayer requests will stay on the GCPC Prayer List for one month. Please let any staff member know if you (or your loved one) would like to remain on the list for longer. Email prayer@gcpcusa.org to add someone to the prayer list.
Iglesia Jerusalem congregation - specifically Marco Antonio Girón, Otilia de Ríos, Telma Camas, Helmont López, Jazmín López, Silvia Aquino, Dulce Maldonado, Victoria Lorenzo, Lorenzo Delgado, Rosabel Galindo
The Reparations Process in Asheville/Buncombe County (From PART)
Ariana DeToro-Forlenza (friend of Marta Alcala)
Baker Giduz (Lee Carol and Bob’s son)
Kimberly and daughters
Claudio Ivan Nuñez (father of Sarah Nuñez)
Joe Stern (Larry Stern’s brother)
Laura Meacham Keene (Kathy Meacham's sister)
Michael Riedesel (nephew of Steve Riedesel)
Suzanne Tierney (Paul Tierney's mom)
Theo (friend of Stacy and Kelly Haddenham)
BABES Network
Jasmine (Tami Forte Logan's daughter)
Susie Churchfield
Bonnie Stone
Michelle Chromey and family
Nancy Litten
Alexandra Lusak
Lynne Meacham
Jude Kaye (Linda Van Sciver’s wife)
Robin and Gordon Gaiser
Kelly Haddenham
GCPC member, Peggy Rada, died on Sunday night, November 16th. Please keep Heath Rada, Blake Bradley, Mary Talmage Rada, Matt Schroer and Anna Grace Schroer in your prayers. Our sympathies and support are extended to the entire family. Peggy's service is scheduled for 10:00 AM, December 20th, at Black Mountain Presbyterian Church.
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Pride Collective Gathering | Saturday, December 6 | 5:00 PM | Susan & Joyce Foster's house
Joyce and Susan Foster will be hosting a Christmas party for the Pride Collective at their home on December 6 at 5pm. We will be having dinner and a white elephant gift exchange. Joyce and Susan will be providing soups as the main course. Please bring a salad, side, or dessert to share, along with a gift for the white elephant exchange that is $20 or less.
| | Community Working Together | | |
Standing with Immigrant Families Across WNC
Pisgah Legal Services stands in solidarity with immigrant families across Western North Carolina and throughout our state. We recognize that recent developments—particularly in the Charlotte area—have sparked fear, confusion, and uncertainty for many of our neighbors. Concerns about traveling to work, taking children to school, and simply engaging in daily life have become deeply unsettling under the threat of detention or family separation.
To our immigrant neighbors: you are not alone. You have rights under the law, and Pisgah Legal is here to help you understand and protect those rights.
As part of our commitment to access to justice and making sure that people understand and exercise their legal rights, we have compiled a comprehensive set of resources to support immigrant families. These resources are available in our Immigrant Rights & Resources sheet.
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Safe Shelter Update!
"Both Winter Safe Shelter locations have been near or at capacity this past week. We have had multiple nights where all 60 beds at Safe Shelter have been full.
As we serve 3x our year-round capacity, our supply needs are greater than ever.
We are deeply grateful for our community in helping us meet many of our urgent needs before the cold spell this past weekend. Many of our needs from our previous list have been met — thank you for all of your support!
If you are able to continue helping Safe Shelter during our winter expansion, here is our updated needs list. Drop off donations anytime between 12pm-7pm at Home: West Asheville Hub, 27 Balm Grove Avenue, Asheville, NC 28806"
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Open Enrollment for 2026 Marketplace coverage is happening now through January 15, 2026.
This year brings big changes to the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid, including higher premiums for many plans and updates that could affect your coverage. Even if you had Marketplace insurance last year, it’s important to review your options to make sure you’re getting the best plan for your needs.
Certified health counselors with Pisgah Legal Services offer free, unbiased help to people in 18 WNC counties. Our team can help you compare plans and enroll before the deadlines:
- Dec. 15 for coverage starting Jan. 1
- Jan. 15 for coverage starting Feb. 1
Learn more or make an appointment at pisgahlegal.org/health or call 828-210-3404. Help is available in English and Spanish.
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Resisting to Strengthen Community
At a time when there is a federal administration that is threatening so many of our neighbors, it is important that we stand together. Since these are our neighbors, knowing what each of us can do to support them is crucial.
While recent election results indicate that these tactics are opposed by the great majority of those who voted, sowing chaos, dividing us, and focusing on fear and lies is how this administration works. There are no easy answers, but there are ways each of us can make a difference.
Offering opportunities to make a positive difference is what I am hoping to offer with this Social Justice e-newsletter. There are certainly other good resources available, and I will try to share them as I become aware of them. Feel free to pass along additional resources to me and to others who might be interested.
While this e-newsletter edition provides several opportunities to learn and take action, here are three of note. You will find more information about each of these three highlighted items in the sections below.
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The first highlights the important work that one of our faith communities, Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church, continues to offer. Rev. Marcia Mount Shoop shares a message in a video below that presents the current challenges in supporting many of our neighbors with rent and utility payments, but there are ways to assist.
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A second features Protect Democracy, a national organization that offers "Eight Rules" which can be used to resist movements toward authoritarianism along with case studies from other countries which show how their citizens have negotiated the erosion of democracy. We can learn from their experiences.
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And third, with the ICE "invasion" nationally and of our state and region, it is important for businesses, nonprofits, faith communities and each of us to know our fourth amendment rights. The video at the end of the e-newsletter explains our rights. And Land of the Sky United Church of Christ offered these ways to take action.
Thanks for all you continue to do to maintain our democracy, support social justice, and make positive change! If there are people wishing to subscribe to this e-newsletter, they only need to complete this form and click the subscribe button.
Ron Katz
Editor
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12 Baskets Café & Asheville Poverty Initiative
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The MLK Association of Asheville & Buncombe County M.A.R.C.H. newsletter
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7 Directions of Service hosted their 4th annual "Truthsgiving" event earlier this month.
They encourage us to prepare for the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday by engaging with the Truthsgiving resources and prompts below.
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The church office is open Tuesday - Thursday, 10am - 3pm.
We recommend calling ahead or emailing to set up an appointment if you are wanting to meet with a specific staff member. Please note, many staff are off or work remotely on Monday and the office is not open on Friday.
Coming to visit? We have a video doorbell to assist with security. To access the building or office, please enter through the far left glass doors off the courtyard (the one labeled Enter). Ring the doorbell to have the door unlocked. The GCPC office is to the right, down the hall, past the Sanctuary.
You can also reach our staff by email or phone at 828.254.3274
Marcia Mount Shoop - marcia@gcpcusa.org, x. 203
Luke Harkema - luke@gcpcusa.org, x. 204
Ray Landis - ray@gcpcusa.org, x. 207
Brett Pinkston - brett@gcpcusa.org, x. 202
Anna Louise Murchison - annalouise@gcpcusa.org, x. 201
Olivia Goldstein - olivia@gcpcusa.org
Jonathan Barros - jonathan@gcpcusa.org
Dani Hernandez - dani@gcpcusa.org
Marcella Martinez - marcella@gcpcusa.org
April Andrews - april@gcpcusa.org
Jasmine Moore - jasmine@gcpcusa.org
Chelsea West - chelsea@gcpcusa.org
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Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church
789 Merrimon Ave. Asheville, NC 28804
828.254.3274
www.gcpcusa.org
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