GOOD NEWS

from the

Presbytery of Great Rivers

We are called to share Christ's love by partnering in service, 

uniting in worship, and risking in ministry.

September 13, 2024

Announcements

Called Meeting of the Presbytery of Great Rivers

You are invited to a Zoom meeting. This is a fully virtual Called Presbytery meeting.

September 26, 2024, 6:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada) 

The Special Called Assembly is a response to an approved action item from the Stated Meeting on August 24, 2024, in which the body voted for the COM to reconsider the recommendation of a 0% increase in minimum effective salaries.

The only action item for this Special Called Assembly is from the COM: a recommendation of a 2.5% increase to minimum effective salaries. 

Register in advance for this meeting:

https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIuf-iprz0uHNKPOX-tphg8y4dstg1SKd4j 

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Class Cancelled

The Geography of Grace class offered to the Presbytery has been cancelled due to lack of interest. If you are interested in participating in the class that will be held at the Danvers church, contact Rev. Bryan Burris for meeting details (309-838-3114).

You’re Invited

The Presbytery of Great Rivers invites you to the ordination and installation of

Brenda Horth and Peter Horth to the Ministry of

Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (USA).

Sunday, September 29, 2024

4:30 pm

College Avenue Presbyterian Church

501 S. College Avenue

Aledo, IL 61231

Following the service, the celebration will continue at 

Hamlet Perryton Presbyterian Church, 

where Peter Horth will also be installed as pastor

1848 170th Ave

Reynolds, IL 61279

Clergy are invited to wear red stoles.

Board of Pensions

Employer Agreement dates and next steps

The time to review Employer Agreements for 2025 benefits is Thursday, Aug. 29 through Friday, Oct. 4. During this period, congregations’ designated representatives will log in to Benefits Connect to review their Employer Agreement. Call 800-PRESPLAN (800-773-7752) (TTY: 711) if you need assistance.

From Your Finance Team

Churches, 

Budgeting for 2025

At the Aug 24th assembly meeting, 2025 per capita was approved. The increase to $38.29 is the result of an increase by the General Assembly. The Synod and Presbytery amounts remain the same.

Board of Pensions – 2025

Your 2025 Employer Agreement is available for you to review in Benefits Connect.

Aug 29 through Oct. 4, log in to Benefits Connect and review your 2025 Employer Agreement.

•If you would like to make changes to your benefits offerings, call our Employer Services team at 800- 

                  PRESPLAN (800-773-7752) (TTY: 711). They will walk you through the process.

•If you do not want to make changes to your benefits selections for 2025, your Employer Agreement is complete.

Your employees will complete Annual Enrollment in Benefits Connect Oct. 21-Nov. 8.

Thank you to all churches who have contributed towards Per Capita

We’ve had 46 churches pay their 2024 per capita in full!

Thank you to Aledo-Sunbeam, Alexis – Norwood, Athens, Bartonville, Bloomington- St Luke Union, Bushnell, Carlinville, Carrollton, Carthage, Chatham, Chenoa, Clayton, Clinton, Coal Valley, Divernon, East Moline, Edwards, Elmwood, Eureka, Fountain Green, Greenview, Ipava, Knoxville, Lincoln, Mason City, Media, Milan, Morton, Mt Sterling, New Windsor, Normal-First, Normal-New Covenant, Oneida, Orion, Pekin, Peoria – First Federated, Petersburg, Quincy, Reynolds, Rock Island, Springfield-First, Springfield – Korean, Stronghurst, Virginia-Sangamon Valley, Warsaw, Washington & Yates City!

2024 Per Capita is $37.25, an increase of $1.00  

2024 Per Capita is based on your final membership numbers reported for 2022.

If you have a question about how much you still need to pay please email me at smcgrath@greatriverspby.org.

Mission Giving Percentage Update

At the April 20th assembly meeting it was voted to change the percentage of mission giving for the 

General Assembly & Presbytery of Great Rivers – Synod was not changed it remains at 5%

Presbytery: Increased from 52.5% to 75%

General Assembly (Presbyterian Mission Agency): Decreased from 42.5% to 20%

Please be sure to submit a fully completed remittance form with any check you send to the presbytery. 

This ensures that we apply your payment as you intend. 

If sending from your bank online, you can email your remittance form to smcgrath@greatriverspby.org.

Please reach out to either of us with any questions or concerns.

Thanks,

Sabrina McGrath - Bookkeeper

Bill Strawbridge – Treasurer

Please click on the blocks below to follow the links:

We Go Four for Four!

Fifteen Great Rivers congregations are FOUR for FOUR! Within the past 18 months, each church received all four of the PC(USA) Special Offerings: One Great Hour of Sharing, Pentecost, Peace & Global Witness, and Christmas Joy. By doing so, they declared their connection with the ministries of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and joined in the efforts of Presbyterians around the nation and around the world to share God’s grace and endless love.

Thank you for your faithful mission and witness: First PC, Delavan; Faith United PC, Monmouth; Farmingdale PC, Pleasant Plains; First United PC, Knoxville; First PC, Springfield; Grace Church, Rock Island; Hope PC, Springfield; First PC, Macomb; First PC, Normal; United PC, Peoria; Trinity PC, Bartonville; Washington PC; Westminster PC, Peoria; Westminster PC, Springfield; and United Church of Woodhull.

Boundary Training in 2024

All pastoral leaders in Great Rivers Presbytery, Presbyterian and non-Presbyterian, Ministers of Word and Sacrament and Commissioned Ruling Elders, pulpit supply preachers and retired pastors who serve churches in any capacity are required to attend annual boundary training that is approved by PGR. You must submit a certificate of completion to Stated Clerk Elissa Bailey. 

The following class will fulfill your annual attendance requirement:

October 1 and 2, 8:00 am-11:00 am. On Zoom – must attend both days.

(Register using this link: https://www.leaderwise.org/solt). This class is an “Advanced Boundary Training.”

Celebrate Theological Education Sunday

Theological Education Sunday is celebrated each September in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). This year, Theological Education Sunday is officially set for September 15, 2024, or whenever best fits your congregation’s schedule.

You will find resources here. A sample liturgy, which includes a bulletin announcement, hymn selections, scripture suggestions and prayers, and a newsletter or bulletin announcement are available for download along with other resources at the Presbyterian Foundation website to help you prepare for and celebrate this important day.

Bulletin inserts include testimonies from Rev. Emily McGinley, senior pastor of City Church in San Francisco, and the Rev. Sam Codington, pastor of Faith Presbyterian Church in San Diego. Additionally, PowerPoint slides are available for your use in projection or in your digital worship service.

"Theological Education Sunday is an invitation to be part of the future of the church by supporting our seminaries and future pastors," said the Rev. Zoë Garry, Associate Director of Theological Education Funds Development. "It is through your generous gifts that we are able to continue to support our Presbyterian seminaries and covenant partners throughout the US and Puerto Rico, providing scholarships, programs and unique opportunities to our Presbyterian students and future leaders."

You can support the Theological Education Fund easily online here

September Ordination Anniversaries

September 12, 1999 – The Rev. Ann M. Schwartz, Presbytery of Great Rivers

September 12, 1999 – The Rev. Keith W. Meranda, Member-at-Large

September 16, 2018 – The Rev. Paul Stroup, Clinton Presbyterian Church

September 18, 1984 – The Rev. Lonna Chang-Ren Lee, Member-at-Large

September 22, 1991 – The Rev. Kenneth C. Shedenhelm, Retired

September 23, 1979 – The Rev. Paul S. Spalding, Retired

September 24, 1995 – The Rev. Linda Baldwin, Retired

September 24, 1995 – The Rev. Maura McGrath Nagle, Sunbeam United PC & Rio PC

September 28, 2014 – The Rev. Katherine Jasa Styrt, First Presbyterian Church, Milan

September 29, 2013 – The Rev. Christian Choi, Westminster Presbyterian Church, Springfield

September 30, 1990 – The Rev. Charles Cunningham, Retired

September 30, 2007 – The Rev. William Starr McLean, First United Presbyterian Church, LeRoy

Midwest Call Finder

For the last several months, the Synod of Lincoln Trails has been working on building the Midwest Call Finder website. All congregations in our presbytery, along with the others in SOLT, will soon be able to use this tool for seeking pastors and staff for church positions. Likewise, pastors and other church professionals seeking positions can use Midwest Call Finder to learn about job openings in the region. We anticipate the site will go live in early September.

Attached is the template for postings. Churches are encouraged to spend some thoughtful time in advance preparing this information so that it is ready to post when the site goes live. 

The next phase will be to add a bulletin board where churches can share positive experiences with providers (contractors, organ tuners, stained glass window repairers) throughout the Synod that other churches might benefit from, and for providers to share their talents (such as retreat leaders, communications freelancers, etc.) with the synod. 

Ministry Opportunities

Music Ministry Director

United Presbyterian Church of Peoria is looking for a part time Music Ministry Director. Job responsibilities include:

• Serving as a role model for UPC’s vision for welcoming and inclusive intergenerational worship that connects people to each other and to God.
• Collaborating closely with the Pastor to plan engaging intergenerational worship experiences that support the spiritual and musical growth of the congregation, the community, and the musicians. This includes ensuring that music and worship activities and other liturgical elements support the theme of each service.
• Providing leadership for all music programs of the church, collaborating closely with the Pastor and the Worship and the Arts Committee to include all ages in music programming.
• Taking the lead in AV and digital ministries, managing the quality of the in-house worship sound and the livestreamed experience.

For more information, click here.

Open Searches for Pastoral Leadership

Associate Pastor, Westminster Presbyterian Church, Springfield click 

Solo Pastor, Hamlet-Perryton Presbyterian Church, Reynolds click 

Pastor, Yoked Ministry, New Windsor Presbyterian Church, Rio click

Music Ministry Director, United Presbyterian Church of Peoria click

Scenes from the installation service of Rev. Karol Faris Schilling at First PC, Normal, on August 25, 2024

PGR Newsletter Schedule

Newsletters go out the 2nd and 4th Friday of the month. Please send any articles for publication to StephanieSidotiVMA@gmail.com by Tuesdays at 5 pm.

Presbytery of Great Rivers Virtual Office

Virtual Office Assistant Crystal Goforth 309-683-6980 Email: office@greatriverspby.org

Crystal works remotely from South Carolina (Eastern Time) and is available until 4 pm CST Monday thru Wednesday and Friday, and 1:45 pm EST on Thursdays. Please leave her a message & she will return your call.

Bookkeeper Sabrina McGrath 309-683-6981 Email: smcgrath@greatriverspby.org

Sabrina works from Peoria IL.

Her regular schedule is Tues & Thurs between 8am-3pm (Central Time)

Lead Presbyter Ann Schwartz 309-683-6983 Email: aschwartz@greatriverspby.org

Ann's Sabbath Day is Friday.

Stated Clerk Elissa Bailey 309-371-2511  Email: pastorebailey@gmail.com

My regular office hours are Monday through Thursday from 7:30 am - 3 pm.(Central Time) If you have an emergency, please call or text me at 309-371-2511.

Get Connected!

Be sure to encourage your congregations, sessions, and even your church newsletter editorial staff and volunteers to sign up for our presbytery newsletter and follow our Facebook page so you don't miss out on what is going on in our community of churches!

Have you liked our "Presbytery of Great Rivers" Facebook page?

Subscribe to PGR’s YouTube channel to get notifications of our new videos (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7CXkkAsjR9Owi7gkXPtn8w. Share your congregation’s videos with us so we can let others know about your mission and ministry. If you have questions, need help, or want to share a video contact Cheyanna Losey, cheyannalosey@gmail.com or 309- 299-4790.