In the Presbytery of St. Augustine Our mission is " to support our faith community, so that together we are a greater witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ!"
| | News From Around the Presbytery | | |
Dear Presbytery of St. Augustine family,
I hope you are doing well. I’d like to personally invite you to consider applying for The Playground, a continuing education project I’m honored to be part of that’s designed to support and pour into ministry leaders like you.
This is a heavily subsidized, year-long cohort journey focused on exploring ancient Christian practices like Sabbath, Play, and A Rule of Life through unique theological lenses. Throughout 2026, participants will engage in in-person gatherings, online connection, and a class pilgrimage, all of which are designed to offer you rest, restoration, and vision for your ministry.
I believe you would be a wonderful fit for this 2026 cohort, and I would love for you to consider joining us for one of our three classes. Information about classes and dates as well as the application form can all be found here: www.flagler.edu/playground
I’ve looped in the Assoc. Director of The Playground, Kristen Maiocco (theplayground@flagler.edu). If you have any questions or would like to talk further, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
Be well!
Justin
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Presbytery of St. Augustine Youth Engagement initiative & 2025 Grants – Update
Read on for an exciting update to the grant award program! Even churches with few youth attending can be eligible.
The Presbytery of St. Augustine has been blessed with a very generous anonymous donor, who desires to support and encourage our congregations to actively engage young people. Over the past two years, twelve churches have received financial gifts for their work in this area.
Now, we are preparing to gift six more churches with similar awards, thanks to the donor’s continued generosity.
In consultation with the donor, the youth team has expanded the definition of ‘youth engagement” to include interactions your congregation has with students both within your own congregation and in your local community. These students do not have to be members of your church, or even attend worship or other church programs.
Some examples:
· If your congregation offers or participates in a mentoring or tutoring program for youth in your area, that counts!
· If your congregation actively supports a local youth organization (Scouting, 4-H, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, music programs, RiverKeepers, Habitat for Humanity or other similar organizations, etc.), that counts!
· If youth participate in the life of your congregation is formal or informal ways, that counts!
· If students attend “traditional” church/youth programming, that counts!
The process remains the same – follow the link HERE or in the email sent to your church to complete the survey to be eligible for consideration for a grant this year.
| | Please join the Presbyterian Women on Saturday August 23rd. Click here for all the information. s | |  | You are invited to attend an exciting Presbyterian Women Synod Gathering October 17-19, 2025 at Epworth by the Sea Conference center. Click here for all the details. t | | | Click here to read a great article from the Presbyterian News Service! | | |
Presbyterian Youth Triennium
July 28 – July 31, 2025
Louisville KY
We will be taking a delegation and invite youth who are CURRENT 9th through 12th graders their adult advisors to join us.
The cost is $199 for youth and $219 for adults for the conference itself
and includes meals while we are there. The hotel will cost approximately $270 per person, double occupancy. Transportation costs are to be determined. We hope to fly but this will be determined by the number of people and cost. The presbytery will help
with the costs once we determine how many are attending and hope to cover
transportation. Additional costs will include meals coming and going, as well as any individual incidental purchases.
To register please e-mail Mary Townsend at dunnpreschurch@gmail.com. Her
number is 1-352-489-2682 and she can be reached Tuesday-Friday, 8:00 to 2:00.
If you have questions, please call Vickie Bossuot at 904-472-6376.After the
delegation sheet is complete we will have you complete the participant registration
forms. DEADLINE FOR REGISTERING - MAY 15, 2025!
Checks for the conference cost should be made out to the Presbytery of St Augustine and send to The Presbytery of St. Augustine 1937 University Blvd W., Jacksonville Fl, 32217.
You can also click on the image above for more information.
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Registration is now open for Stewardship Kaleidoscope 2025–
Stewardship: The Art of Resiliency
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Stewardship Kaleidoscope, an ecumenical conference planned by volunteers from the PCUSA and ELCA, is designed for pastors and lay leaders to provide practical tools to strengthen your congregation's stewardship and generosity programs. This year’s conference will be in New Orleans, Louisiana, September 22-24, with an online virtual registration option as well. In-person attendees will be able to choose from dozens of workshops in addition to attending diverse plenary sessions and worship experiences. Virtual attendees will be able to join us for live-streamed and recorded plenaries and worship, and will also have access to 8 workshops, 4 of which will be available via be livestream.
Registration rates as are follows:
Early Bird In-Person Registration (through June 30): $360
First Call Pastor or Seminary Student In-Person Registration: $200
Virtual Attendee Registration: $150
After June 30, regular In-Person Registration increases to $385.
Rooms at our event hotel, the Sheraton New Orleans Canal Street, are offered at the discounted rate of $179/night if you book by August 29.
Grants are available through the Presbyterian Foundation to assist pastors and New Worshiping Community leaders to attend the conference. For more information, visit https://www.presbyterianfoundation.org/resources/church-financial-literacy-and-leadership-program/grant/ or contact your Ministry Relations Officer, Rev. Dana Waters at dana.waters@presbyterianfoundation.org.
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Ongoing Prayers for Charlie Evans our Stated Clerk as he proceeds through cancer treatment.
Please pray for the Lord to guide the following church this week:
Grace Presbyterian Church
Jay Collins, Clerk of Session
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Church Spotlight
Grace Presbyterian Church
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Grace Presbyterian Church of Gainesville, FL was established in the mid 1950’s and has open arms to people in all walks of life and embrace all, as Jesus has taught us to. From the moment I walked into the sanctuary with my son 3 years ago, I felt welcomed and part of something special.
GPC has a very unique mid century architecture made up of 3 stand alone buildings that stands out amongst Gainesville, Florida’s other buildings. The sanctuary has incredible acoustics that our Music Director, John-Peter Ford, makes sure to share with the community. He said, “Grace Presbyterian hosts a vibrant music program for a smaller congregation. The Chancel Choir presents special music at least once a month, and guest artists are invited on a regular basis to provide concerts to the Gainesville community at no charge to attendees." Most recently Grace Presbyterian hosted the Texas A&M University Women’s Choir to preform in our sanctuary at the invitation of our music director, John-Peter Ford, during their spring tour.
Grace not only invites the community to enjoy our sanctuary, we also open our fellowship hall to different groups in the community. Alcoholics Anonymous meets here twice a week and a Girl Scout troop uses the hall for many fun activities. Several music groups also use our hall for rehearsals, including a barber shop quartet, “The Babagators”, the Gainesville Show Choir, and a very special square dancing club.
WT Chesnut, a member of the congregation and square dancing group had this to say about the group, “One of the neat things about Grace Presbyterian is we host a square dance club. About ten years ago, a local dance group needed to move from its previous building and they came to Grace. The square dance group meets on Monday in our fellowship hall. As part of the square dance group, we offered a class in round dancing, referred to as choreographed ballroom dancing. These activities have exposed about 30 couples to Grace in a positive light. In the past the square dance group has done fund raiser dances for the Shrine Crippled Children’s Hospital.
Square dancing is an excellent family activity. It is low impact exercise, uses our brain, is non-drinking and an excellent fellowship activity. The dancers are very appreciative of Grace for allowing the use of the facility.”
The congregation also uses the kitchen in the fellowship hall to prepare meals for those in need along with contributing to Gainesville’s Mighty Food Bank, Family Promise, and St. Francis House every month.
And lastly, while the congregation may have become older with fewer kids attending in recent years, but Grace Presbyterian does not let any space stay idol. They converted 4 of the Sunday School classrooms into art studios to make up what is now “Art Studios of Grace”. Our member, Jay Winter Collins, uses one of the four studios. She brings so much color to our church members and visitors.
Grace Presbyterian Church is full kind, dedicated, determined, and most importantly, loving members. Everyone has a part to play here and we work hard to support each other in keeping our small but mighty congregation going and growing in order to spread God’s love.
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Spring Service Day is scheduled for May 17, from 9:30am to 4pm. Help with last minute preparations for summer camp! Youth may earn community service hours. A continental breakfast and lunch will be served. Many hands make light work. RSVP by text to 352-473-4516.
Family Fun Day is our annual open house, scheduled for June 7 from 11 to 2. Come out for an open swim, archery, cabin tours, and meet this summer's staff. If you haven't been to camp in a while, this is a great opportunity to come and see all we have been working on!
Equipped to Serve Registration is now open for the presbytery's 2026 enrichment and training event. We are delighted to partner in ministry for this important training in the life of the church.
Summer Information - News and Updates!
Summer 2025's theme is Created to Care: Finding our Place in God's Creation. I am excited to be writing this curriculum, with a passion for God's gift to us in creation, and how we may care for our precious world and one another as Christ followers. I am grateful for the ministry partners who have encouraged me in this endeavor, and who will be reviewing and offering edits prior to sharing it with our campers.
This year marks the beginning of our new 3-year Leadership Development Program. This is a progressive program designed to equip our youth to be strong leaders at camp, in our churches, and in the world. While the main component of this program is during the summer in LIT1 & 2 and CIT camps, LDP participants will also have opportunities to gather throughout the year for service, fellowship, and learning. We will explore leadership styles, communication skills, and conflict resolution, while also learning camp programming, obtaining certifications, and developing connections with youth around the presbytery.
With the rise in labor and food costs, and a sobering cost-analysis for our programs, you may have noticed the substantial increase in camp registration fees. This puts our costs more in line with camps locally and around the nation. While costs have risen, our families' need for financial support has not wavered. We aim to increase our scholarship fund to help every camper have an opportunity to attend camp. Would you continue to support this vital ministry through our scholarship fund?
I'd also like to encourage your sessions to discuss your camp sponsorship programs and share that decision with your families. Some churches sponsor member children at 100%, and community children not affiliated with the church at 50%. Oftentimes families ask us at Montgomery what the church is sponsoring, and we cannot make that decision for you, as each church has its own budget restraints to work with. Please email rebekah@montgomerycenter.org with your intended sponsorship plans for summer 2025 so that we may best serve our camp families together.
Finally, we are in the busy season of hiring our summer staff! We have several counselors returning, but we are looking for more 18+ overnight counselors to serve our growing program. Applicants must love kids, love Jesus, and have a desire to make a difference in children's lives. This year's commitment to serve is only 5 weeks, training included. We are committed to being a Presbyterian camp, but we need your help to refer youth group graduates and students in your college ministries to serve this summer. More information about what it takes to be a counselor can be found at https://www.montgomerycenter.org/summer-staff.
Summer Camp 2025
Registration for Camp Montgomery Summer Camp 2025 is now live! Click here to view the schedule and learn more about the various camps. Register today with a special early bird discount.
Rebekah Rodgers
Executive Director | Montgomery Center
88 SE 75th St, Starke, FL 32091
352-473-4516 | 352-514-5124
www.montgomerycenter.org
Faithful in hope. Patient in affliction. Steadfast in prayer.
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Call to Serve
Are you called to serve God at the presbytery level? Several of our committees have positions that we need to fill to carry out our mission. We are looking for ruling elders and teaching elders that have time and energy to serve Christ beyond the local church.
For more information, please contact Beth Touchton, Volunteer Management Committee Chair, or David Rollins, Lead Presbyter.
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Your co Who am I writing for (Mission Haven
Click here to read updates from Mission Haven in their newsletter Haven Happenings.
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Resources: Jerie Lukefahr attended a workshop at APCE facilitated by a pastor in NE who has put together podcasts for Bible study use - for free. "Abundant Harvest: Midwest Ministry Hub" (FPC Hastings NE) Thought this might be worth sharing with the presbytery. https://midwestministryhub.org/
Congregations around the country that are on the front lines of welcoming all and providing sanctuary are beginning to deal with the reality that the landscape has shifted. If you are part of one of those congregations this may be useful https://pcusa.org/how-we-serve/global-engagement/immigration
Many years ago, I learned a wise approach to sharing resources and educational opportunities. I provide what I am able noting the resources are available to all but not required by any. It is reflected in the statement, all may, some will, none must. Use whatever is helpful in your particular ministry context and we will continually look for ways to resource our congregations.
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Positions Available In Our Presbytery
Check out the many ministry opportunities throughout our presbytery here.
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Blessings,
Cliff Lyda, Moderator of the Presbytery
Charlie Evans, Stated Clerk
David Rollins, Lead Presbyter
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Previous Staying Connected emails are available on our website.
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