Issue 228 | December 15, 2022 | |
Click on an underlined title to go to the full article or link | |
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OUR NEW ADDRESS
Please use the following address for Presbytery mail.
Presbytery of West Virginia
PO Box 11720
Charleston, WV 25339
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Financial Administrator/Treasurer | |
The Presbytery of West Virginia, a body which serves more than 100 churches, is seeking to hire a full-time financial administrator/ treasurer. Duties include overseeing receipts and disbursements of the Presbytery, preparing financial reports, and helping committees with budgets.
Experience with QuickBooks and Excel is important, as is church treasury work and knowledge of investment management. Will work from home and attend meetings as required across the Presbytery.
The financial administrator/treasurer is an officer of the Presbytery. For a description of the position and duties, as well as the personal attributes required, click here.
To apply, send cover letter and resume to [email protected]. Applications will be accepted through December 31, 2022.
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A Word from our General Presbyter
2022 brought lots of changes to this presbytery. We sold our office building, and in many ways, that has to be the highlight of the year. I would include the May Presbytery meeting as part of that process. Not only was it good to be together again, but we also had some significant small group discussion at that meeting. Little did I expect and not even in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine that we would have an offer that was for more than our asking price within a month of that vote.
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What a year it has been for WV Interfaith Refugee Ministry!
Dear WVIRM friends and neighbors,
2022 has been an exciting year in our work to build the capacity to resettle refugees, including those from the Ukraine, in Charleston and across West Virginia.
Following our March 2022 event with Mayor Amy Goodwin, we’re now actively working with a few Ukrainian families relocating to WV. Constantly struck by their courage, skills, resilience and creativity, it has been a true honor to be even a small part of their move here. Read more about some of those we’ve had the joy of working with here. We invite you to join in our efforts by donating to WVIRM and by inviting others to join our email list!
What do your donations support? Imagine legally resettling to a new country where you may or may not speak the language, have to establish healthcare for loved ones, and find housing without local references or a stable income (work permits are typically not available for months following entry). Support takes many forms depending on individual family needs. It might be help in finding housing, transport to English classes, funds for a security deposit, partial support for the first few months of rent, legal fees to secure work permits, finding a safe car seat for a new baby, or a little extra to help purchase family holiday gifts (it’s that time of year!). Equally important are just in time donations such as a car in good working condition (a current need). Mostly it takes what West Virginians excel at - the power of people in community to quickly see the strength and courage of our new neighbors, listen to short term needs and partner with them as they become West Virginians. In the process, we all get to meet and work with some amazing people – both those who’ve come from countries afar and those who have been a part of welcoming them.
But we haven’t stopped there. Further building local resettlement capacity in 2022, the WVIRM board met with Catholic Charities of WV (CCWV) Refugee Resettlement Services to establish an agreement outlining ways our organizations can partner when refugees resettled through CCWV come to the Kanawha Valley. In addition, we continue to expand the diversity and skill set of our board and are increasing public outreach. It has been a year of opportunities to learn, engage, and grow as WVIRM works with Episcopal Migration Ministries to become the state’s second official resettlement agency recognized by the US State Department. It’s clearly an active and exciting time as we move into 2023!
The West Virginia Interfaith Refugee Ministry
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Earlier this week, the Presbytery office learned of the death in July of Honorably Retired Corresponding Minister Member Dewitt Furrow. Click here for his obituary. | |
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2022 year-end benevolence processing
As the year comes to an end, PWV Treasurer Rocky Poole wants to encourage churches to remit any amount remaining in your Shared Mission pledge, Per Capita, or other benevolence payments for 2022. The General Assembly is allowing us a little extra time to submit payments for this fiscal year, so please, forward all remaining 2022 contributions to the Presbytery office by Friday, Jan. 13 and they will be included in the 2022 records.
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2023 Shared Mission pledge request
The 2023 Shared Mission pledge request and Per Capita notice letter were recently mailed to the treasurer, Clerk of Session, and pastoral leader of each church. Please watch your mailbox for them, and please return the pledge card to the Presbytery office at your earliest convenience. We encourage each Session to thoughtfully consider our request. The information provided when a church returns their pledge card, no matter the response, is essential to our effective management of the presbytery’s financial resources. So, we urge treasurers, Clerks of Session, and pastoral leaders to make sure that their church has returned their pledge card to this office by January 31, 2023. If you have any questions about shared mission pledge, Per Capita, or other benevolences, please contact Rocky Poole at 304-744-7634 or [email protected].
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2023 Per Capita rate information
The 2023 Per Capita rate will be $30.30 per member, according to the church’s membership in the most recently filed statistical report. The 2023 Per Capita was approved at the August presbytery meeting. With the total rate at $30.30 per member, the Presbytery of West Virginia will keep $18.05 and sending $9.85 and $2.40 to the General Assembly and Synod of the Trinity, respectively. Helping us understand the importance of Per Capita to our connectional church is this excellent article from Presbyterians Today, titled (coincidentally enough) “Understanding Per Capita.”
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Expanding Your Ministry Toolbox: How to Be a Hybrid Church
9:30-4:30 Jan. 19, 2023 on Zoom
The pandemic taught churches and their congregations that we can worship, learn, pray, and gather virtually. Today, churches are faced with a new challenge as they consider how to minister both in person and online. Churches are beginning to build the bridge between what they did, what they’re doing now, and what they will do in the future. Discover why becoming a hybrid church is about more than the addition or maintenance of a virtual worship service. Learn how to honor both parts of your congregation equally and to engage those who worship primarily online. Presenter Christen Kinard is the creator of Digital Congregations, which sits at the intersection of her desire to do meaningful work, her belief in the importance of faith communities, and her talents and experience. The cost per person for this course is $40. Register by Jan. 12; registrants will receive the Zoom link on Jan. 17. Questions? Contact Susan Sharp Campbell at [email protected] or 304-667-9428.
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2023 ECCA Retreat: Gift vs. Grasp with Richard Boyce
Feb. 20-21 at St. John XXIII Pastoral Center in Charleston
This retreat is for educators, clergy, Commissioned Pastors, and Authorized Lay Preachers. Led by Richard Boyce, Associate Professor Emeritus of Preaching and Pastoral Care at Union Presbyterian Seminary, it will explore shifts in power throughout the church and society using stories from the Succession Narratives in the Hebrew scriptures as we think about getting and letting go of power and influence, and the ways these decisions reflect our experience and understanding of God. It will run from lunchtime Monday to lunchtime Tuesday. Register by Feb. 10. If you have questions, please contact Susan Sharp Campbell at 304-667-9428 or [email protected].
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News from the Presbytery's Treasurer
- Sending Benevolence to the Presbytery
- 2023 PWV Budget
- Board of Pensions news
- That time of year...
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- Year-end checklist
- Minister and staff Christmas gifts
- 2022 Special Offerings
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Getting to Know Our Newer Pastors: Jennifer Anderson
“They asked me to preach because I was the only one there that wasn’t terrified of public speaking,” Jennifer joked. It was 2016, and her home church, the First Presbyterian Church of Whitesville, was looking for someone to do pulpit supply because their preacher, Michael Lykens, was unable to preach the next Sunday. So Jennifer preached and found that she enjoyed preaching and leading worship. Michael was not able to return, so Jennifer kept on doing pulpit supply for them. All joking aside, Jennifer had been sensing that God was calling her to ministry for many years.
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Davis & Elkins students were grateful to choose from a variety of hats and gloves provided as gifts by the Presbytery of West Virginia at their recent meeting on campus. (Photo by Tina Vial.)
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Enslow Park seeks office manager
Enslow Park Presbyterian Church in Huntington is seeking an office manager. This is a flexible full-time position. The individual must have exceptional interpersonal and organizational skills; a comprehensive functional knowledge of Microsoft Office Word and Excel; typing, editing, bookkeeping and data collection skill; and the ability to use a computer for word processing and financial accounting. Click for full job description.
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Editor's Note: In order to keep PWV News fresh, articles will generally run for two consecutive issues. If you would like a piece to run longer, please update (with refreshed content, new wording and/or a different photo) and resubmit. | | | | |
