Please wear your mask in the church building. We are implementing the statewide mask mandate for indoor settings. This includes vaccinated individuals. We do this, not out of fear, but as an act of love for our neighbors in the Spokane community and to practice Romans 13:1.

Are you ready to be involved as a volunteer in worship again? If so, we'd love to have you! You can sign up as an USHER HERE, a DOOR GREETER HERE, a COFFEE FELLOWSHIP HOST HERE, or an ACOLYTE HERE. Thank you!

One of our members, Anita Sather, works at Hamblen Elementary and has noticed an immediate need at the school. She is asking for help with a mask shortage there. She has reached out to our congregation with this request, "During this pandemic, we have run out of kids' masks over and over since they are lost and damaged quite frequently as kids do! If any members are interested in making or donating kids' masks, we would be very grateful. We are down to our last box of disposable masks and we're hoping we could start changing to cloth for the sake of longer wear. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated, and we thank you for all you do for Hamblen Elementary."

For those of you who are handy with a sewing machine, HERE is a link for instructions on sewing masks for kids. If you are able to help with reusable cloth or single-use disposable masks, please bring children's mask donations to the information table at the church. Thank you!

"What about the men?" is a question many people ask when hearing about CEDEPCA's commitment to empower women and girls. This year, CEDEPCA has begun equipping young men to embrace a "new masculinity" to challenge the dominant culture of chauvinism and violence. Come along on our next Virtual Journey to Guatemala to meet some of these young men and their program leaders and hear about the culture change that the Spirit of God is inspiring. This virtual travel opportunity, designed for an English-speaking audience, will include travel footage, powerful stories, and breakout room discussions.

Featured Speaker: Rev. Kevin Frederick, author of "Men in the Mirror: Constructing and Applying a Christ-Centered Masculinity to Interpersonal Relationships."

Registration is required: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcqcO2hqz4rEtbcyolBSdces5TB7Ip-5FDO  

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

This past Sunday, September 19, was our J.A.M. Sunday School kickoff at Hamblen Park Presbyterian Church. We had a fun and exciting morning learning about Heroes of the Bible, our theme for this year. Thirty two kids laughed, played, and learned during our time together. What a great turnout! We played Moses Red Sea Putt Putt golf, Elijah’s Flaming Altar, Crowning Queen Esther, Noah’s Operation Rescue, Daniel’s Mane Showdown, David’s Bopple Topple bowling, and Jesus’ Hero Cookies. All the kids got to take home fun gizmos. After J.A.M. Sunday School the kids got to slide on a 16 foot inflatable slide in the Skylight Room. Thanks to all that participated!

World Communion Sunday is observed on the first Sunday of every October by Christians all over the world. On October 3, we will sing and hear different types of music from across the globe. Guest musicians will be Keleren Millham, Paul Raymond, and Todd Milne.

Thank you for your donations toward backpacks for Adams and Ferris. We delivered 18 to Ferris and 13 to Adams. Both schools were excited and grateful for our donations. Again, our congregation showed its support for our neighborhood!

You can sign up HERE to help with J.A.M. Sunday School, Wednesday evening Journey program, or other volunteer opportunities that impact children. For questions, please contact Joe Bruce at [email protected].

Presbyterian Disaster Assistance is delivering aid to those impacted by Hurricane Ida. This will be a long-term commitment to the people impacted by this catastrophic destruction. PDA will continue to work with Presbyterian leadership to respond to Hurricane Ida and remain engaged in the recovery efforts during the hurricane season of 2021. PDA will provide emotional and spiritual care as well as long-term recovery to address unmet needs. We invite you to join in this effort by donating HERE. Thank you for your support!

Volunteers may sign up HERE for delivery of Bite2Go food kits to Hamblen Elementary. We are again supporting 20 students with Bite2Go take-home meal supplements this school year. Your support has been tremendous the last several years and we look forward to your continued commitment. Volunteers are needed to pick up food at 2nd Harvest and drop off at Hamblen Elementary. Monetary donations help fund the program, which is $5.00 per week, per student. For those who wish to give support through monetary donations, please designate them for ‘Bite2go’.  You can find instructions and a map to Second Harvest HERE. For questions, call Karen Kelly at 509-599-7518. Thank you for committing to this ministry.

Church office hours are Monday-Thursday, 9 AM to 4 PM, and Friday, 9 AM to Noon. As always, staff will be available for appointments and meetings beyond the posted hours.

Wednesday morning Bible study kicks off on September 22. Join us each week at 9:30 AM in the Fellowship Hall as we explore 1 Thessalonians. 

We need God and we need each other! After a year and a half of being apart, we want to offer a chance to come together again, grow as disciples of Jesus, and build back our sense of community. We invite you to commit to a 40-day practice of daily devotional reading using the book 40 Days of Community Devotional: What On Earth Are We Here For? Each day there is a short reading, a Point to Ponder, Verse to Remember, and Question to Consider, centered around five purposes: fellowship, spiritual growth, service, worship, and sharing the good news.

For 7 weeks, two groups will meet to discuss their experiences with the book, one group will meet on Thursday evenings from 6:30-7:30 PM, starting September 30, and the other on Sunday mornings immediately following the worship service, starting October 10 (this date is a change from the print newsletter). Both groups will meet in the Skylight Room and will be facilitated by Heather Notske. If you would like to purchase a book, have questions, or would like more information, contact Heather at 509-385-0627 or [email protected].

This popular group for retirement-aged friends meets the 1st Tuesday of the month at 11:30 AM starting in October. We had hoped to meet at church starting in October, but we feel it would be prudent to wait at least another month to meet in person. A Zoom link will be sent out in next week's What's Happening at Hamblen. We hope you will join us and Mike Aleman online for a poetry reading and discussion on October 5th at 11:30 AM. Upcoming topics:

To save your seat, contact Trina or Heather in the church office ([email protected] or [email protected]).

Fourth graders are invited to attend an upcoming Acolyte Training being held Sunday, October 3, at 10 AM in the sanctuary right after the worship service. Contact Kathy Williams at [email protected] with any questions.

For more information, contact Betty Thompson at [email protected].

October: The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah

November: Created For Commitment by Audrey Witherall Johnson

January: We Band of Angels by E. Norman

February: The Widow’s War by Sally Gunning

March: The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See

April: Girl Waits With Gun by Amy Stewart

May: The Girl Who Wrote in Silk by Kelli Estes

For information on our children's programs, visit our website or contact our Director of Children's Ministries, Joe Bruce, at [email protected] or 509-385-0626.

Come join us for a hangout, games, and some Jesus time! For more information on our youth programs, visit our website's youth page at hamblenpres.org/youth. For questions, contact Mitchel Pierce, Director of Student Ministries, at [email protected].

To make a donation to HPPC (one-time or recurring gift) you may do so HERE.

We are here for you! Office hours are Monday-Thursday, 9 AM to 4 PM and Friday, 9 AM to Noon. You can connect with pastors and staff by clicking on a link below to email them. Our cell numbers are also listed. Please reach out!

Click to email Pastor Steve Watts, Pastor, Head of Staff, or call/text: (509) 251-0366

Click to email Pastor Jennie Barber, Interim Associate Pastor, or call/text: (206) 794-0689

Click to email Heather Notske, Dir. of Operations & Group Ministry, or call/text: (509) 251-6468

Click to email Joe Bruce, Director of Children's Ministries, or call/text: (509) 954-3041

Click to email Mitchel Pierce, Director of Student Ministries, or call/text: (206) 739-6126

Click to email Kyla Fague, Interim Worship Director, or call/text: (509) 270-6848

Click to email Trina Limbaugh, Administrative Assistant, or call the office: (509) 448-2909 ext. 101

To submit a prayer request or to be added to the prayer chain, send an email to [email protected].