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"And now we had no place to live, since we didn’t know
How to live with each other"
~ Joy Harjo, from
"Once the World Was Perfect"
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Sunday Preview
Sunday, November 10, 2019
New Member Sunday
Sacrament of the Lord's Supper
Worship services @ 8:15 & 10:45 AM
Education Hour (for all ages) @ 9:15 AM
Homily:
"Belonging to this Age" by Marcia Mount Shoop
Scriptures:
Job 19:23-27a; Luke 20:27-38
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Presbyterian Women (PW) Christmas Social | Monday, December 2 | 5:30 PM | Fellowship Hall
Please join the Presbyterian Women for a festive evening of fellowship, food and a Christmas carol sing-along. $15 per person for a delicious catered dinner.
Our mission will be Asheville Poverty Initiative's
12 Baskets Cafe. An offering will be taken at our dinner. If you would prefer to donate an item, the following are needed - sugar, creamer, salad dressings, ketchup, mustard, napkins, paper towels, toilet tissue, trash bags (large and small) and cleaning supplies (Dawn dishwashing soap, Simple Green concentrate, Pine Sol, Magic Erasers, etc.) Sign-ups begin this Sunday, November 10 in the narthex. Please email or call Cathy Froehlich with any questions:
oremont2@gmail.com or 828-775-1016.
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Facing the End as a Community of Faith: Grief, Planning, and Funerals | Sundays in November | 5:00 – 6:00 PM | Sanctuary
What does it mean to approach grief and death from a Christian perspective? How we even begin to make sense of advanced planning in light of the multitude of options today? Join us on Sunday evenings in November to learn about the end of life through the lens of faith.
- Nov. 10: Living faithfully in light of today's medical and legal choices with Dr. Eric Mount, Rodes Professor Emeritus of Religion at Centre College
- Nov. 17: Understanding, writing, and notarizing Advanced Directives with Ashley Caswell, LCSW and Johanna Williams of Four Seasons Hospice.
- Nov. 24: Navigating funerals and our options with Frank Starling, RN of the Center for End of Life Transitions
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We STILL Need Your Pledge!
To submit a 2020 pledge,
you can fill out an easy
online option here
or put your completed pledge card in the Sunday plate, bring it by the office, or mail it to 789 Merrimon Ave, Asheville, NC 28804. Pledge cards are available in the pews, narthex, and at the Welcome Desk.
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Stewardship Campaign Update
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One dreary, dark, autumn evening a young mother drove slowly into a turn lane and rolled to a stop. She was a shadowed silhouette. In the back was a child’s seat. She waited for the light. While waiting she shared a message for an anxious and troubled world. Her license plate read “FEAR NOT.” The light turned green. She slowly went down the hill. Her tail lights disappeared around a corner below, probably heading home all the while sharing a message of angels; a needful vision of hope.
What are some of the visions of hope that inspire members of GCPC to do ministry? Doing justice? Loving kindness? Walking humbly with God? Loving our neighbor? Taking care of each other? Being merciful? Feeding the hungry? Solidarity with our neighbors? Singing a new song? Take a moment. Think about it.
What needful vision of hope from God inspires you to do ministry?
Grace Covenant lives by a vision: a vision of being a faithful servant community; a vision of making a difference in the world on behalf of Christ. Our congregation is getting ready to build a ministry budget for 2020. So far 195 people and families have pledged in order to contribute to what that budget might do.
A pledge, of course, is not a contract. A pledge is not a solid promise. A pledge is simply a statement of intent. Upon those statements of intent a budget is revealed and a vision for the upcoming year becomes more clear. If you have not yet pledged, please consider doing so soon. Your intent is needed.
If the idea of pledging makes you a little nervous, we have a message of encouragement for you. It comes from a young, faithful mother and her own vision of hope.
FEAR NOT.
~ Grace and peace to you,
Lon Bechtel, Stew Crew Co-Chair
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Pledge Confirmation
Can't remember if you turned in a pledge card yet? Not sure if it went through online?
Rest easy, you should receive a pledge acknowledgement in the mail within a week of when the pledge was received confirming your total pledge recorded.
If you didn't receive this acknowledgement, we may not have your pledge.
Please keep the confirmation letter for your records and let Natalie Weaver, Stewardship & Financial Administrator, know if you have any questions or if changes are needed: 828-254-3274, ext. 202 or
nweaver@gcpcusa.org
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Creating Sanctuary Team (CST)
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Creating Sanctuary Team Meeting | THIS Sunday, November 10 | after worship | Garden Room
Tish Anderson will provide an update about the documentary film "Stories Beyond Borders" shown recently at AB Tech and the discussion which followed involving local groups involved in immigrant justice. All are welcome!
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“Feliz viaje!” welcomes travelers from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, to El Paso, TX.
But on the Juarez side of the border, “Cerrado” – Closed – declares current conditions for those seeking asylum in the US.
“Double-speak” in George Orwell’s
1984
once seemed an unimaginable fiction for the Western world, but our “Migrant Protection Protocols” (MPP) are precisely an example of “double-speak.” Writing in the October 1 issue of
The New Yorker
, Jonathan Blitzer explains that MPP detains Central Americans seeking asylum in the US, “assigns them a distant court date, and requires them to remain in Mexico for the duration of their legal proceedings, which can last several months… When it’s time to appear before a U.S. immigration judge, asylum seekers must travel back to the port of entry and reenter custody; at the end of the day’s proceedings, they’re bused to Mexico, where they must remain until their next court date. Since the institution of MPP in January 2019, close to fifty thousand asylum seekers have now been returned to Mexico, where many of them have faced extreme levels of violence.”
~ Contributed by Tish Anderson
Photo: Prof. Barbara Weitz
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Power and Race Team (PART)
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November is Native American Heritage Month
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Racial Justice Book Series | Thursday, November 14 | 7:00 PM | Jerusalem Room
For November
, we are reading
My Grandmother's Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending our Hearts and Bodies
by Resmaa Menakem.
"
The body is where our instincts reside and where we fight, flee, or freeze, and it endures the trauma inflicted by the ills that plague society. In this groundbreaking work, therapist Resmaa Menakem examines the damage caused by racism in America from the perspective of body-centered psychology. He argues this destruction will continue until Americans learn to heal the generational anguish of white supremacy, which is deeply embedded in all our bodies. Our collective agony doesn't just affect African Americans. White Americans suffer their own secondary trauma as well. So do blue Americans—our police.
My Grandmother's Hands
is a call to action for all of us to recognize that racism is not about the head, but about the body, and introduces an alternative view of what we can do to grow beyond our entrenched racialized divide." (from Amazon)
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Art Installation | Sunday, November 17 | 5 - 7 PM | Market Street at Court Plaza
The City of Asheville and Celebrating African Americans Through Public Art (CAAPA) are pleased to announce the selection of two local artists — Joseph Pearson, a mural artist and Phyllis Utley, a literary artist — to work alongside Art Ecologie. Their collaborative artwork will be installed at the corner of Biltmore Avenue and Eagle Street. Their transformation of the space includes a mural and a multi-dimensional cube installation of metal/wood and bright imagery representing the past and the future of the community.
Artists, community partners, and leadership team of Celebrating African Americans Through Public Art (CAAPA)
invite the community out to celebrate the installation and unveiling of this completed work, and an additional Art Ecologie artwork. Refreshments will be served.
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“People, Not Property” Volunteer Opportunity
Descendants of enslaved people in the US can’t look for their ancestors in birth and death certificates, marriage licenses, or detailed census data. Why not? Until 1865 (5 generations ago), enslaved people were considered to be “property”, just like a piece of land. Their humanity denied, they were only occasionally mentioned in property-related deeds like bills of sale, deeds of gift, wills, and other documents that track the transfer of ownership. But these deeds sometimes include names, ages, occupations, and movements of enslaved ancestors; they can yield valuable information for historians, genealogists, and descendants trying to trace their families.
You’ve probably heard of Buncombe County’s Registrar of Deeds’ work digitizing “Slave Deeds”. Now there’s a project at UNC Greensboro to digitize and make available the records of additional NC counties. “People, Not Property—Digitizing Slave Deeds in North Carolina” needs volunteers to locate and label, index, and transcribe property deeds that mention enslaved persons so that a searchable data base can be built. If you have a computer and internet access, you can work at home on this important project that allows this painful truth to be told and that “reclaims the names of the victims.”
The online training manual teaches you how to decipher antique script and read deeds. The manual also addresses “historical trauma”, the emotional distress that affects all people who engage with this work regardless of how distant one feels from the histories. Confronting the realities of slavery is painful, but you will be participating in the healing work of honoring the humanity of people who were enslaved . Learn more about “People, Not Property” and volunteer at
https://library.uncg.edu/slavery/deeds/.
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Asheville Greenworks Hard 2 Recycle Event - South | Saturday, November 16 | 10 AM - 2 PM |
16 Miami Circle, Arden
(use the Long Shoals Rd entrance)
Hard 2 Recycle events are free to the public collections geared to bring awareness to alternate modes of recycling to our area. Our goal is to educate and collect and divert items that would normally end up in the Landfill i.e Styrofoam, electronics, books, batteries and much more.
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This Sunday's Education Hour (for all ages)
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Adult Education - Fall Term | Sept. 15 - Nov. 24 | 9:15 AM
Pressure Points - The Church and Native Americans: Grappling with the Past, Facing the Future | Fellowship Hall
This 11-week program will outline a Christian's response to social issues related to Native American Peoples of North America. This will involve educating ourselves about the history of native peoples (from their perspective using The Great Courses as an academic basis for this education) prior to European contact and the philosophical/theological/political concepts that were employed against Native peoples after contact. In the second half of the course's term, we will deal specifically with Cherokee Indian issues as a case in point of our country's and our church's involvement in oppression of native culture, highlighting the Cherokee Nation/ECBI's response to that oppression. Ultimately, we would like to posit for our class how we should prayerfully yet actively respond to these issues in the future.
Facilitators:
Buzz Durham, Mike Fleenor, Jaan Ferree, Mary Berg, Marcia Mount Shoop
The Improv -
The Spirituality of Vulnerability: Brené Brown and Richard Rohr
| Choir Room
“Vulnerability is the birthplace of love, belonging, joy, courage, empathy, and creativity. It is the source of hope, empathy, accountability, and authenticity. If we want greater clarity in our purpose or deeper and more meaningful spiritual lives, vulnerability is the path” (Brené Brown,
Daring Greatly). In this class, we will be discussing how the insights of shame researcher Brené Brown and spiritual writer and Franciscan friar Richard Rohr can inform our spiritual lives.
Facilitators:
Richard Coble, Nancy Gaskin, Paul Rogers
Digging In - Living the Questions | Jerusalem Room
Living the Questions is for those who are looking for a resource that encourages questions they’ve always wanted to ask and sparks open dialogue in a safe place. It’s also for those asking what a meaningful faith can look like today. Living the Questions provides a context where people can pursue their questions and deepen their understanding as part of a life-long spiritual journey. This video-based program (along with downloadable participant guides and readings) includes conversations with scholars and clergy. Spirituality, Bible, God, creation, Jesus, Gospels, Paul, evangelism, evil, suffering and forgiveness are some of the topics we’ll consider.
Facilitators:
Denise Snodgrass and Tim Hamel
Toddlers (ages 2-3) | “God Loves Me”
| 9:15 – 10:15 AM | Toddler Room (downstairs, Children’s Center)
Preschool/Kindergarten (ages 4-5) | Godly Play
| 9:15 –10:15 AM | Preschool Sunday School Room (downstairs, Children’s Center)
Elementary (grades 1-3) | Godly Play
| 9:15–10:15 AM | Temple Room (Education wing, upstairs)
Elementary (grades 4-5) | “CONNECT”
| 9:15–10:15 AM | Indie Room (Education wing, upstairs)
Middle School & Senior Highs (grades 6-12)
| 9:00-10:15 AM | Youth Rooms, (Education wing, upstairs)
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*Nursery care is available throughout Sunday morning beginning at 8:10 am.
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OTHER EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES...
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A Deepening Love Affair: the Gift of God in Later Life
by Jane Marie Thibault
This book is for all those who yearn for “something more” in their life, in their relationship with God. That something more, the author contends, is the gift of an intimate relationship with God. This gift may be received at any time in life, but the older person is best suited to fully enter into this relationship.
Dr. Thibault explores the topics of vocation in later life, discontent, awareness, greed, the inner work required to fully receive the gift, and the radical freedom that age can bring. Throughout, she introduces the reader to fascinating older persons who have accepted the gift that God offers in later life and the empowerment they have experiences in this new relationship.
“This book deals with the inner work which I believe is the spiritual life task of the mature adult,” the author says. “There is nothing new in these pages, except my unwavering belief that those who are privileged to be experiencing late life have the challenge and opportunity to embark on a new vocation. That vocation is the call, the invitation, the experience, the union of an ever-deepening love affair with God in this life. I am convinced that God has saved the best for last.”
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SAVE THE DATE!
Community Garden Potluck | Friday, November 22 | 6:00 PM | GCPC Fellowship Hall
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Room In The Inn (RITI) | November 10 – 17 | GCPC
Room in the Inn returns this Sunday. Many thanks to all those who have signed up to help host the women. Your time and talents are appreciated!
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Ministry Partner News and Events...
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Asheville Greenworks presents "
Backyard Composting Workshop" | Tuesday, November 12 | 6:30 - 7:30 PM |
Jewish Community Center
This presentation will include an overview of the different types of composting, why it's important, the science behind composting, and how to start your own compost or improve your current practices. Click
HERE
to register.
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Asheville Writers in the Schools presents "Mountain of Words" |
Saturday, November 23 | 6 – 9 PM |
YMI Cultural Center
(
39 South Market Street)
Join us for an intergenerational literary and art event featuring nationally renowned journalist Latria Graham, award-winning poet Juan Sanchez Martinez, Cara Forbes, a frequent contributor to Natives in America and Word on the Street writers Sharissa Thomason, Niobe Wright and Ilah Pennacchini. All hosted by spoken word artist Shanita Jackson. The evening begins with a multimedia art showcase and music DJ'd by the Word on the Street Squad. Great food provided by Benne on Eagle, themed raffles baskets and much more. Child care provided. Click
HERE
to reserve your free ticket.
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Sisters at the Sea Retreat 2020 | February 6-9, 2020 | Folly Beach, SC | $210 (early bird rate)
“Cultivating an Inner Life of Grace & Clarity: Spiritual Practices for Everyday”
With guest retreat facilitator, Rev. Carol Hovis
Do you identify as a woman age 25ish-50ish who would like a weekend of connecting and rejuvenating in a beautiful natural setting? Mark your calendars for our lucky number 11th
annual SOS (“Save our Sanity”/“Sisters at the Sea”) retreat! This year’s guest facilitator, Rev. Carol Hovis, will help us explore approaches to spiritual contemplation that we can practice in even the smallest moments of our day-to-day rush, to develop and deepen throughout our lifetimes. Register today to ensure this special time of building friendships and centering your faith in the new year!
Registration:
- Early Bird Rate (by December 9th): $210
- Regular Rate (December 10th and after): $240
- $50 non-refundable deposit due at registration. Checks should be made to GCPC with “2020 Sisters at the Sea” in the memo line. Full and partial scholarships available (complete registration form to apply).
- TO REGISTER TODAY: Visit http://bit.ly/Sisters2020 to register online, or pick up a registration form at the GCPC Welcome Desk.
- *Registration ends on Jan. 15.*
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GCPC 20s/30s Gathering: "Friendsgiving!" | Monday, November 18 | 6:30 - 8:30 PM | GCPC Fellowship Hall
If you are in your twenties or thirties (or nearly these ages), let's give thanks for community by sharing in an evening of food, conversation and connection. Everyone is invited to make or bring a dish that represents their family or background. We will share gratitudes and get to know one another better.
Need Childcare? Children are welcome to attend, but if you would prefer childcare,
contact Heather Ferguson
by Friday, November 15th.
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Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) Group | Wed., Nov. 20 | 12 PM | Garden Rm
This support group introduces techniques for daily living with such issues, led by Paul Rogers, a retired physician in our congregation. We meet the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of every month.
*New participants welcome at any time.
Contact Richard,
rcoble@gcpcusa.org
, with questions.
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SAVE THE DATE!
"Las Posadas" | Thursday, December 19 | 6:30 - 8:30 PM | Cathedral of All Souls
The Cathedral of All Souls invites GCPC to celebrate "Las Posadas" with them in December. The event is a traditional celebration of Mary and Joseph trying to find room to be sheltered and cared for. The Church La Capilla
http://lacapilla.org
presides over the event and our role is to host and gather and bring the party! We provide food, piñata, and hopefully LOADS of people!
While the tradition is really focused on the exile of Mary and Joseph we acknowledge in our worship and singing and prayers together that many of our LatinX brothers and sisters are being turned away today and we pray for all to find homes and shelter and care and love during this time of re-birth of compassion.
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Centering Prayer | Wednesday Nights | 6:30 - 7:00 PM | Sanctuary
Christianity has a rich and ancient tradition of intentional and prayerful silence as a spiritual practice. Sacred silence teaches us to listen devoutly, humbly, and with trust. It is beautifully simple and a spiritual skill whose gifts goes deeper and gets more powerful the more one practices it. This practice is open to all and is come as you are able. Questions? Contact Marcia at
mmshoop@gcpcusa.org
.
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Deacon of the Week
Each Sunday morning there will be a deacon available for everything from praying with you to giving you a tour of the building. This deacon will be wearing a purple sash and stationed in the narthex before 10:45 worship and in the front of the sanctuary after worship. He or she is also available during the week if you or someone you love needs assistance from our board of deacons.
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Youth Committee Meeting | TONIGHT! Thursday, November 7 | 6:00 - 7:00 PM | Garden Room
All Youth, Advisors and Parents are invited to join the Youth Committee and lend their voice and ideas to the youth program. If you cannot attend, feel free to jump in another month.
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Special Youth Group "Bowling Night" | Sunday, November 10 | 5 - 7 PM | Meet/pick up Sky Lanes Bowling Center (1477 Patton Ave).
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Prayer List
[We are happy to pray for anyone who is in need. Concerns will stay on this list for a month unless we hear otherwise. Please keep us updated.]
Iglesia Jerusalem congregation
Pat Cocke (Les Stradley’s friend)
Deborah Strong (Robin Gaiser's cousin)
Nancy and Richard Schaadt (Donna Robertson's sister and brother-in-law)
Jeffrey Ferris (Mary Lou Nash's son)
Rebecca Wells' brother, Jamey
Jeff Combs (Bill McNeff's friend)
West Asheville Presbyterian Church
Marcia Zuzel (friend of Kim Hottle and Melissa Shook)
Virginia Bibee (Jamie Bibee Lloyd's mother)
Suzy Carter (David Carter's wife and Yvonne Smith's friend)
Jon Stone (Madge Francis' nephew)
Hettie Lou Garland
Betty Smith
Margaret Rada
Bob Higgins
James Harwell
Joyce Summerlin
Cory Hartbarger
Mary Ellen Horne
Penny Ponder
Florence Riedesel
Donna Robertson
Elizabeth Fisher
Earl Fowler
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Grace Covenant Community Out and About...
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2019 Fall Enneagram Gatherings
in the A-Frame @ GCPC
There is no gathering tomorrow, Friday, Nov. 8th.
We resume Monday, Nov. 11th.
Mondays, 6-8pm
and
Fridays, 10am-12noon
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Interfaith Thanksgiving Celebration | Sunday, November 17 | 5 - 7 PM | Congregation Beth Israel (
229 Murdock Ave
)
In mutual respect and thanksgiving, people of all ages are invited to join Asheville's faith communities as we share expressions of gratitude from a variety of traditions, marking this shared national holiday in both unity and harmony. Our GCPC Youth Choir will be sharing a song, accompanied by the incredible
Abraham Jam.
Light refreshments will be served.
More information here.
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The Asheville Threshold Choir
The Asheville Threshold Choir is hosting an upcoming demonstration of our musical repertoire:
- TONIGHT, November 7 | 6:30 PM | NC State Veterans Home (62 Lake Eden Rd.)
About The Threshold Choir:
The voice is the perfect vehicle to convey compassion and comfort at the bedsides of people who are at a threshold; some with living, some with dying.
When invited, we send two to four singers who offer soft, simple, restful songs to comfort, support and honor those at the thresholds of life, as well as their families and caregivers. Questions? Contact Mary Berg at
marhber@hotmail.com.
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Combatants for Peace
Upcoming Events in Asheville with Israeli and Palestinian Peacemakers:
- Congregation Beth HaTephila (43 North Liberty St.)| Friday, November 8 | 6-7 PM | Welcoming Reception
- Congregation Beth Israel (229 Murdock Ave.) | Saturday, November 9 | 1 PM | Luncheon followed by speakers
- First Baptist Church (5 Oak Plaza) | Sunday, November 10 | 5-7 PM | Program
To support this important peacemaker movement, or for more information, please contact
Asheville@AFCFP.org.
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Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church | 828.254.3274
789 Merrimon Ave. Asheville, NC 28804
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