Newsletter
July / 14 / 2020
New Life from Church Closing
" God’s church doesn’t close. Instead, the local ministry is dissolved into the presbytery and the local community like a teaspoon of sugar in a cup of coffee.”
Our Presbytery - Our Work
Weekly Prayer Basket

  • Please pray ... Claire Calvin, 6 years old and was diagnosed with DIPG, with additional mass on her spine.
  • Please pray for... Helen Jennings Cash family in her sudden and unexpected passing, she was an Elder and the church treasure, Park Hills Presbyterian
  • Please pray...for our Missions in Nicaragua and Peru
  • Please pray for... for churches as they plan to re-open to regular services, and for continuing to support of those home bound
  • Please pray for... for an end to the rising infection rates, and for a vaccine to become available.
PC(USA)
Quick Connect
Support Ministry
Help Wanted
Parish Paper

2020-2021 Planning Calendars
The 2020-2021 Planning Calendars will be $9.75 each. We can mail small orders for the cost of shipping. Orders over 5 will need to be picked up. PC(USA) expects them to be delivered mid to late August.
Email or call Leigh Porter to reserve your copy today, by reaching out to [email protected] or 314-772-2395.
Presbytery of Giddings-Lovejoy
Upcoming Election Information
Social Witness Policy Action Team
Missouri August 4, 2020 Election
VOTING ALERT
If you're fearful about contacting COVID-19 at the polls, please contact your Board of Election Commission to request an Absentee Ballot or Mail-in-Ballot. The request must be received no later than July 22!
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Although Illinois' next election takes place isn't until the General Election Tuesday, November 3, applications are now being taken for mail in ballots. The deadline for requesting a Mail In Ballot is October 29.  Click here for details.
Webster Groves Presbyterian Church
Offering Free Notary Services
Sunday, July 19 & Sunday, July 26
12 p.m. to 3 p.m .
Webster Groves Presbyterian Church will offer free mail-in ballot notarization services on Sunday, July 19 from noon to 3:00 p.m. and on Sunday, July 26 from noon to 3:00 p.m. The notary services will be held on the parking lot on the east side of the church, 45 West Lockwood in Webster Groves.  Directions found here
  • All Missourians will be able to vote by mail for the August 4 and November 3 elections. Except for those age 65 and older or those with specific health-related exemptions, most voters will need to have their ballot notarized before mailing it in.
  • Participants will need to sign their ballot envelopes in front of the notary, present an ID and sign the notary’s log.
  • All voters and participants will be required to wear a mask. If you do not have a mask, one will be provided for you. Social distancing will be maintained. The activity will take place outdoors, rain or shine. 
  • Please share with your congregation, friends and family! For more information, call:  Janice Seele 714-642-3376
Medicaid Expansion On the Ballot
Many Missouri families are slipping through the cracks in our healthcare system — forced to choose between paying for life-saving care and putting food on the table or making a mortgage payment to keep their home. These families earn too much to qualify for Medicaid and not enough to be able to afford coverage on the health insurance exchange.
Medicaid expansion closes that coverage gap and ensures that hardworking Missourians will have access to affordable healthcare. It helps people nearing retirement who have lost their insurance, those with chronic medical conditions, and all Missourians who earn less than 138 percent of the federal poverty level (that’s less than $18,000 for an individual or $30,000 for a family of three). Medicaid expansion would provide healthcare to more than 230,000 Missourians - including more than 50,000 parents and 18,000 near retirees.
Upcoming Team Meetings
NOTE: In light of the Covid-19 Pandemic, meetings will be restricted to Zoom or conference call. If you are unsure how to participate, please contact your team moderator, or call the office 314-772-2395, and select Leigh Porter, Office Manager.

Presbytery Upcoming Virtual Meetings
This Week
Next Week
Thurs., July 16
9:30 a.m - History Team - Click Here
10 a.m. - Social Witness - Click Here
12 p.m. - HR Pastors - Click Here
4 p.m. - Vision Team - Click Here

Mon., July 20
12 p.m. - Rural Pastors - Click Here

Becoming Matthew 25
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How Do We Engage Socially Distancing and still participate in Mission & Ministry?
Creatively Serving Meals
During a Pandemic
First Presbyterian - Alton volunteers, Fred Delano, Karen Woods & Claudia Droste, served lunch on Saturday, July 11, passing out 36 meals of fried chicken & potato salad and 21 Good Neighbor bags.
Send us your stories of how your congregation is maintaining congregational vitality during this pandemic. Send stories to Office Manager, Leigh Porter at [email protected]
What We Are Learning in Reopening
Essential Workers
PPE - Safety First
Rev. Cedric Portis partnered with Bespoke Apparel to bring affordable and timely personal protective equipment to churches and schools as some plan to reopen during this Covid-19 pandemic. 
As a pastor, he know the constraints of budgets and COVID-19 is completely unexpected. This is why he wanted to make this offer to the churches in particular as we navigate forward.  
Below find this church and PPE usages.
At Third Presbyterian Church we have operated a summercamp and preschool since reopening on June 1, 2020 servicing 80-100 kids 5-days a week for 12-hours a day. I want to give you the benefit of some of the lessons learned especially where PPE is concerned:
  • We purchased the 3A GRADE washable reusable for our teachers/counselors.
  • We placed our logo on masks. This was also for security to be able to distinguish our staff from parents or anyone else in the buildings.
  • These masks were comfortable and could be worn all day without face abrasions/irritations.
  • While the Alginate Washable masks proved successful it made it difficult for classroom instruction at times. Therefore we also purchased the KN96 masked for our teachers/counselors which could be worn easily during classroom instruction and they were changed out once a week. They could breathe better and this cone shaped mask didn’t distort their voice.
  • If the teacher is far enough away from the students a face shields can be worn in place of mask so communication can be successful as lips can be read thru the shield.
  • We go thru a lot of disposable gloves because of student/teacher/foodservice contact etc. Each adult 20 total would go through 5 pair of gloves daily.
  • All no-contact thermometers are not created equally. For speed/accuracy, quality thermometers are essential to not get bottlenecked at check-in.
  • We have also supplied pastors with face shields to preach to save the cost of constructing costly Plexiglas partitions. 
I pray that was helpful as some prepare for reopening. Any other questions please contact me and I look forward to partnering with churches to keep our communities safe. Feel free to pass this information on to other pastors/leaders as supplies will be harder to get once schools begin to make their orders.
To Open or Not to Open – A FREE Webinar
Thurs., July 16 at 1 p.m.
Join Rev. Rob Dyer to explore the fears, joys, and confusion over returning to in-person church gatherings. Thursday, July 16th at 1pm CT/2pm ET. This webinar will help anyone who is discerning how and when to resume in-person church life. For those who have already started in-person, this will serve as a great way to review your current plans. Your issues and concerns will drive much of the content so we can address your actual context. Sign up here , and we’ll email you the link to the webinar!
News & Activities
Racial Justice Summer Movie Series 
Wednesdays at 7 p.m.
AMEN St. Louis invites high school and college students to join us for a racial justice summer movie series featuring the films Just Mercy, The Hate U Give, Moonlight, and Whose Streets?. Watch the films and join AMEN staff for facilitated discussions via Zoom on Wednesdays at 7pm CST.
Zoom In - Click Here If you are calling in, please call 312-626-6799  and enter the meeting number 849 4257 5991, followed by the # sign. If prompted, the password is: 698732.
July 15 Discussion
The Hate U Give covers topics including the Black Lives Matter movement, police brutality, and Black identity by following high schooler Starr Carter.
Join us!
First Presbyterian Church - Sullivan
Movie Night on Wed., July 22 at 6 p.m.
Join Us As We Watch “Overcomer” Just Bring A Snack And Have Great Fellowship With Us!!! Free! Everyone Welcome!
Please contact the church for any safety protocals that might be in place at this time, prior to attending. Their Facebook page can be found here. Directions found here.
Fourth Sunday Sermon from the Synod
Have you encouraged your Pastor to take a break through this pandemic? Most have added hours to their planning each week, and could really use a bit of a break. Self-care is crucial in anxious times. Consider encouraging them to take that break by sharing the Synod of Mid-America FREE sermon for the fourth Sunday of each month.
Sermon files for Sunday July 26, 2020.
Title: The Kingdom of God is like...
Scripture: Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52
Preacher: The Rev. Landon Whitsitt, Synod Executive, Synod of Mid-America
Themes: God's reign, evangelism
NWCC Dreaming & Discerning
Tues., Aug. 18 at 7 p.m.
The Holy Spirit may also be firing the imagination of some of you around Giddings-Lovejoy Presbytery to see visions and dream dreams of inviting disciples into Jesus’ loving mission and ministry through launching a completely new worshiping community. As you look around your corner of God’s creation, the Holy Spirit may be breaking your heart for hurting people you are being called to creatively serve through launching something new. The Giddings-Lovejoy New Worshiping Communities Commission would love to partner with you in discerning and supporting your visions and dreams for launching a new worshiping community. Learn more here.
Summer Camp 2020
Campers go to  https://moundridge.org/virtual-camp/ to register for this free program. We then send packages of supplies to the campers and they follow along online! Space is limited so please register asap!
Camp runs June 15- July 17th and the website is open until August 1st.
Light for the Darkness
Meeting Day/Time Change
Join us Mondays at 7 p.m.
Feeling anxious or depressed, or know someone who is? Light for the Darkness has started a virtual group for anyone struggling with mental health to connect with others who understand and explore where God may be in the midst.Mondays at 7 pm. Please connect with Thirza Sayers, who is intimately aware of these struggles, if you have any questions at  [email protected]   or 404.313.4549. Learn more about Light for the Darkness by clicking here.
Current Support Ministry Position Openings
Coordinator, Congregational Ministries and
Member Care - Ladue Chapel

Organist/Pianist - First Presbyterian, Jackson, MO

Interim Pastor - John Calvin Presbyterian

Called Pastor - Faith DesPeres Presbyterian