April 30, 2025

Important Announcements

Spring Stated Meeting 2025

Dear Presbytery of St. Augustine friends and colleagues:

It is time to register for our May 13 meeting of Presbytery! Our host is Countryside Presbyterian Church, 7768 SW Highway 200 Ocala, FL 34476. This will be a HYRBID meeting with both in-person and Zoom participation.  In-person gathering time begins at 8:30 am, with our meeting beginning at 9:30 am.

Information about this meeting can be found here: 

Next Meeting/Past Meetings – Presbytery of St. Augustine

Please know that additional information will continue to be added until the meeting date.

IF YOU WISH TO ATTEND IN-PERSON: Please email info@staugpres.org with your

1) name 2) meeting role (Teaching Elder, CRE, Ruling Elder Commissioner, Certified Christian Educator, Visitor) and 3) lunch RSVP, yes or no.

When you arrive at Countryside, please visit the registration table for your name badge and to leave $15 for your lunch. Cash or a check payable to POSA are acceptable. If you would like to register in advance for lunch you may pay here.

IF YOU WISH TO ATTEND BY ZOOM: Simply follow the Zoom link the morning of the meeting. No need to pre-register. Please make sure your Zoom name is complete and indicates if you are attending as a TE, CRE, Ruling Elder Commissioner, CCE or visitor.

IF YOU WISH TO CHANGE FROM ZOOM TO IN-PERSON, or VICE VERSA: Just drop an email to info@staugpres.org to let us know.

Background Checks

Background Checks continue to be processed and all results are kept in a locked confidential file in the presbytery office, per FDLE regulations. Results are not sent to individuals, and we will not be sharing the results with anyone unless there is an issue that could impact employment. 

News From Around the Presbytery

PC(USA) has lots of great resources for our ruling elders to check out:

Missed any re:RE Issues? Click the links below for more!

• January 15, 2025:  Rooted: The Foundations of Presbyterian Polity — Getting Started

• February 14, 2025:  Rooted: The Foundations of Presbyterian Polity — Denominational Identity

• March 14, 2025:  Rooted: The Foundations of Presbyterian Polity — The Rules that Make Play Possible

PC(USA) Regarding Ruling Elders April Issue Now Available: Rooted: The Foundations of Presbyterian Polity — The Mission of the Church

More Leader Formation Resources here

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.

Registration is now open for Stewardship Kaleidoscope 2025–

Stewardship: The Art of Resiliency

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.

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.

Mission Haven

Click here to read updates from Mission Haven in their newsletter Haven Happenings.

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.

Prayer Corner

Ongoing Prayers for Charlie Evans our Stated Clerk as he proceeds through cancer treatment.

Prayers for the family of Dale Stewart who passed away on March 28, 2025. A service of Witness to the Resurrection will take place at Dunnellon Presbyterian Church May 3, 2025, at 11:00 am.

Please pray for the Lord to guide the following church this week:

First Presbyterian Church of Gainesville

Rev. Mark Hults, Pastor

Trudy Bonerba, Clerk of Session

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.

Scott Brooks-Cope shares his Post-Easter Respite at Montgomery Conference Center

I arrived very tired from a busy season of ministry and was glad for the few days I spent at Montgomery after Easter. Executive Director Rebekah Rodgers and her team made this available free of charge. I had plenty of time to read, write, rest and exercise in various ways at the beautiful setting of Camp Montgomery. The Inn rooms are very comfortable, and a kitchenette allowed me to bring some of my own food.  It brought back so many wonderful memories for me of times when our four children were campers there or when our daughter Patricia served as a counselor there when she was in college. It also reminded me of times my wife Suzanne and I served as camp pastors there. Swimming in Lake Emerald, walking the labyrinth, hiking through the woods, lunch with volunteer David Huh and breakfast with Maintenance Director John Raimer and his Rotary group were all renewing for me. I was there on earth day and saw deer, all kinds of birds and thankfully no alligators. What a gift we have in these beautiful and natural 168 acres. What a sacred place!  I’m thankful for this opportunity and hope that more clergy will come join me in the future for this week of self-care and spiritual renewal following Easter. You or your church might also consider a special gift to help with the upcoming summer camp ministry. With gratitude, Scott Brooks-Cope

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.

Synod of South Atlantic

Home | Synod of South Atlantic

Positions Available In Our Presbytery

Check out the many ministry opportunities throughout our presbytery here.

Blessings,

Cliff Lyda, Moderator of the Presbytery

Charlie Evans, Stated Clerk

David Rollins, Lead Presbyter