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The Tutoring Our Neighbors (ToN) program meets in Fellowship Hall on Wednesdays during the school year and it is based upon a very basic principle that is foundational to any mission: relationship.
In my missiology courses in seminary, I learned that shared discipleship and partnership are what make any mission project good, faithful, and most of all, sustainable. It's not about a person or organization of privilege helping those who are "less fortunate," or assuming that you know what's best for them and so you are in charge of determining what help they really need. No, mission work is Christ's work, and thus it should look like Christ's own mission and ministry! And if there's anything we know about Jesus, it's that he was constantly meeting people where they were and building relationships with them.
That's what ToN is all about. For decades now, Patrick Cunningham, a teacher at Love School, has been building relationships with students and their families; and we are a big part of it! Our volunteers, many of whom are not members but friends of our church, form relationships with kids from Love School so they can encourage them, uplift them, and inspire them to excel in school socially, academically, and creatively. The program involves one-on-one tutoring as well as group activities ranging from mixed media art projects to singing songs with our ToN Troubadour, Noel Calhoun. But at the heart of it— even though it is a secular-focused program— are the relationships that bloom from the Love of God that these kids experience when they are here with us.
Your pledges give space for these relationships to naturally breathe and grow! By supporting ToN, you are directly supporting an intergenerational mission that bolsters Jamestown Public Schools and greatly benefits the children in our school district. ToN helps kids feel like they are a part of something more than just their regular studies. It helps them be truly seen and feel deeply loved in a way that is more personal and impactful. ToN exposes the children of our community to beauty, truth, and goodness found within a holy community, and we don't even have to break out the Bibles to do it! We simply accept each and every student for who they are and celebrate the gifts they bring, all the while we offer our own gifts to help them flourish! And without even knowing it, Love starts to change us all.
I will be honest, Friends, in saying that sometimes I get a little frustrated when members of our congregation say things like "gosh, if only we had more kids here," simply because we don't have a pew stuffed full of them on Sunday. Don't get me wrong, I would be delighted to have a row full every Sunday, but these kinds of statements usually develop from a false assumption that because we don't have kids on Sunday, we must not have any at all!
But this church serves dozens of children each and every day, and our ToN program welcomes nearly 20 every Wednesday! Your pledges help us engage these kids and reach out to even more. Your support makes First Pres a place that children feel Loved and accepted, a place that they look forward to coming to each week. Don't believe me? Show up around 3:00 on a Wednesday and see how much joy our building can hold :)
Jesus says, "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven." (Matthew 18:3). This is not a threat from Jesus, but rather a keen observation: The joy of children is something we are called to nurture and grow with as much as we help them grow. In building relationships with our children, we not only change them but they change us! Your pledges provide an opportunity for our church to be at the heart of these beautiful changes. You help us create a holy community for the children in our area who most need it. Your pledges help our children truly feel the Love of God. And in the process, you too are changed.
~ Rev. J. Davis Creach
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