Easter Egg Hunt, March 19
To better serve our vision and mission, the Congregational Life Center made changes in the annual Children's Easter Egg Hunt. This year, we’re moving the egg hunt to Southampton Presbyterian Church, a new church start on the corner of Macklind Avenue and Nottingham Avenue in the Southampton neighborhood of St. Louis. The church is just getting started and wants to be an active part of their community, and what better way to do that than to hold an egg hunt for kids there? So, we’re going there to live into our mission to reflect and live God’s love, accept and affirm all and inspire a passion to do God’s work.
As in the past, we are asking for donations of plastic Easter eggs and candy (nut free, please).
The hunt will start at 11 AM at the Southampton Church, located at 4716 Macklind Avenue, and will be open to the children of the surrounding neighborhood as well as our own. We are hoping some of our older youth and adults will come with us at 9:00 AM on Saturday morning March 19th to help hide eggs and organize the hunt for the younger children. After the hunt, we’ll grab a bite to eat at Russell’s Café across the street from the church.
This will be a good opportunity for our children to have fun and for all of us to show our support for the Southampton Church.
GO Sunday will be on April 3. There will be breakfast available in the Gathering Space at 9:30am, followed by a brief service from 9:45-10:00am. We will then GO and serve the following organizations! You can sign up on the attached signupgenius accounts or in the Gathering Space. Childcare will be available until 1:30. It will be a great day working together to improve our community and help the groups/organizations that we support!
FOOD COLLECTION
Organization - Circle of Concern
Location - Frontenac Schnucks
Circle of Concern is a food panty that serves west St. Louis County. We will need 2-3 volunteers to collect food outside of Schnucks from 10am-1pm. Volunteers will set up a table outside of the store. They will hand out a list of needed items to customers and collect purchased food.
www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4aaba922a5fd0-food1
GARDENING
Organization - Lydia's House
Location - Downtown (address withheld for safety reasons)
Lydia's House provides safe, affordable housing for victims of domestic abuse.
We will need 2-3 volunteers to plant approximately one dozen potted plants for the porches of the women and families living there.
www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4aaba922a5fd0-gardening
BLANKET MAKING
Organization - Soldiers Angels
Location - Faith Des Peres Gathering Space
Soldier's Angels delivers blankets to soldiers in military hospitals here in the United States. We will need 5-10 volunteers to make no-sew fleece blankets for the soldiers.
www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4aaba922a5fd0-blanket
GARDENING
Organization - Doorways
Location - 4385 Maryland Avenue (Central West End)
Doorways is an interfaith organization that provides housing for people living with HIV/AIDS. We will need 5-10 volunteers to help clean up the community's gardens.
www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4aaba922a5fd0-gardening1
INDOOR CLEAN UP/PAINTING/GARDENING
Organization - Southampton Presbyterian Church
Location - 4716 Macklind Avenue (near Tower Grove)
Southampton Presbyterian Church is a new church development in our Presbytery and the first Presbyterian church started in the city in over 60 years. We will need 15-20 volunteers for painting, carpentry, yard clean-up, and trash clean-up. There will also be jobs available for children.
www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4aaba922a5fd0-painting
SANDWICH MAKING
We will also need volunteers to make sandwiches/lunches for everyone!
A Photo-a-Day in Lent
About 24 people are part of the Photo A Day in Lent Facebook Group. Each day, rethinkchurch provides a word, and the group members submit their pictures. It’s been fun and insightful to see everyone’s take on the words (go, mighty, injustice, celebrate, voice). Some of the pictures have been serious, and others insightful; some frivolous, and others introspective. If you’re interested in being in the group, go to Faith Des Peres’ Facebook page, and scroll down for the link to the group. Anyone can join. In fact, we’ve had people from all over join the group. You can also join the group to see the photos.
Walking To Jerusalem
We've walked 3,311,938 steps! Well done everyone. But, we have a long way to go to reach 12,000,000 by Easter. If you haven't turned in your steps email Annie or leave your count on the table in the Gathering Space. And remember, 20 minutes of any activity equals 2000 steps. Anyone can participate and we need everyone to participate!! Don’t leave us stranded.
Next food packing at Food Outreach is Saturday, March 12 at 8 am.
Want to know how you can make a difference in people’s lives in just a few short hours? Come join members of Faith Des Peres at Food Outreach on Saturday morning, March 12. There we will pack food into individual meals that will be given to those living with HIV/AIDS and cancer that are living at or below the poverty level. We start at 8am and are done before 11 am. Food Outreach requests that volunteers be at least 11 years old and in 5th grade. Please sign up in the Gathering Space.
Buddy Pack Volunteers Needed
The buddy packs program is still in need of more volunteers. Please consider helping this important cause that provides weekend meals for 12 students at Tillman Elementary school. See Clarissa with any questions. Sign up using these links:
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4aaba922a5fd0-buddy
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4aaba922a5fd0-buddy1
Collecting Old Cell Phones
Thank you to everyone for your donations. We are still collecting cell phones to benefit Lydia's House. These phones are sent to a recycling company in Florida which then sends a check to Lydia's House for each phone received. A box to collect the cell phones is still on the table in the Gathering Space. No smart phones please.
We’ll get together on Saturday, March 5 to talk about Pastrix by Nadia Bloz-Weber. Plan on 10am, at Daily Bread, 11719 Manchester in Des Peres. Please email or call Annie to confirm you are coming so she can save enough chairs. Thank you!
Congratulations to our newest member, Mark Antunes, for winning First prize in our Chili Cook-off last Friday. You can find a copy of Mark’s winning recipe below.
· 2 medium yellow onions, coarsely chopped
· 1 medium bell pepper, coarsely chopped
· 6 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped
· 1 tsp chili powder
· 1 package chili seasoning
· 1/2 tsp ground chipotle pepper
· 1 tablespoon ground cumin
· 2 pounds lean ground beef
· 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
· 1 (14-ounce) can tomato sauce
· 2 (15-ounce) cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
· 1/4 cup coarsely chopped pickled jalapeños or green chiles, drained
· 1/4 cup salsa
· A pinch of dried oregano
· A smaller pinch of cayenne pepper
· Cook the ground beef in a frying pan. Sprinkle some chili powder on top while it's cooking. Drain off the fat. Cook peppers and onions in frying pan a little bit (optional). Then put all ingredients in a crock pot on low for 8-10 hours.
Best served with shredded cheddar and/or sour cream
Again this year, we will decorate the sanctuary with a variety of blooming flowers (6” pots). Cost per plant will be $10. See the sign-up sheet in the Gathering Space to place your order or you can email Yolanda at adminasst@faithdesperes.org. Make checks payable to Faith Des Peres and note that the funds are for Easter flowers. Thanks!
By God’s grace, each day is a gift, an opportunity for a new beginning. Through abundant and generous gifts to One Great Hour of Sharing (OGHS), for many years Presbyterians have faithfully heeded God’s call to serve people seeking to reclaim and restore their lives.
Your gift to OGHS is a gift of hope. Your gift allows Presbyterian Disaster Assistance to restore communities around the world affected by natural and human-caused disasters. Your generosity helps the Presbyterian Hunger Program work with Presbyterians and other partners to alleviate hunger and eliminate its causes in this country and internationally. Your sharing makes it possible for Self-Development of People to affirm the dignity of all by assisting in the empowerment of economically poor, oppressed, and disadvantaged people.
The programs supported by OGHS depend on continued and increased support from congregations like ours. We will collect the OGHS offering on Easter Sunday March 27.
Dear Faith Des Peres Community,
What does it mean to endure? What allows us to endure our darkest moments? What does it take to show resilience in the face of adversity? These are some of the questions that I’ve been thinking about this week as I get ready to preach on Luke 4: 1-13, the story commonly referred to as the temptation of Jesus. But what if, instead of thinking about the story in terms of the temptations Jesus faced, we instead think about it in terms of the endurance Jesus had to have? For me, this changes the story and puts it in a different light. For while there are temptations we all face (the extra piece of cake, the questionable tax deduction, the purchase we can’t afford), there are also the things we have to endure – the miserable job, the marriage we’ve chosen to stay in but isn’t satisfying, the parent relationship that didn’t live up to expectations. We have to endure these things on a daily basis. How can our faith help us endure? This is what we’re exploring Sunday.
Don’t forget that when you arrive for worship you can “take part” in any of the prayer stations
set-up around the sanctuary. These are meant to help you prepare your heart and mind for worship.
I hope to see you Sunday.
Blessings,
Annie
Chili Cook-Off Tonight, Friday, February 26
FDP’s second annual Chili Cook-off is today, Friday, February 26 in the Gathering Space. All varieties of chili welcome. Doors open at 6:30 pm. First, second and third prizes awarded to the winning chefs. Be sure to invite your friends and neighbors to this fun and tasty event!
Rockhaven Ecozoic Center Spaghetti Dinner, Saturday, February27
Rockhaven Ecozoic Center is holding its annual Spaghetti Dinner on Saturday, February 27 at Grace Episcopal Church 514 E. Argonne Drive in Kirkwood. Doors open at 5:30 and dinner is at 6:30. The cost is $20 per person ($24 at the door) and kids under 8 are free. Tickets can be purchased at www.rockhavencenter.org or you can get them in Kirkwood by calling Sister Cheryl Kemner at 314-965-3700.
Easter Egg Hunt, March 19
To better serve our vision and mission, the Congregational Life Center made changes in the annual Children's Easter Egg Hunt. This year, we’re moving the egg hunt to Southampton Presbyterian Church, a new church start on the corner of Macklind Avenue and Nottingham Avenue in the Southampton neighborhood of St. Louis. The church is just getting started and wants to be an active part of their community, and what better way to do that than to hold an egg hunt for kids there? So, we’re going there to live into our mission to reflect and live God’s love, accept and affirm all and inspire a passion to do God’s work.
As in the past, we are asking for donations of plastic Easter eggs, candy (nut free, please), and help filling the eggs after worship on Sunday, March 14th.
The hunt will start at 11 AM at the Southampton Church, located at 4716 Macklind Avenue, and will be open to the children of the surrounding neighborhood as well as our own. We are hoping some of our older youth and adults will come with us at 9:00 AM on Saturday morning March 19th to help hide eggs and organize the hunt for the younger children. After the hunt, we’ll grab a bite to eat at Russell’s Café across the street from the church.
This will be a good opportunity for our children to have fun and for all of us to show our support for the Southampton Church.
Next food packing at Food Outreach is Saturday, March 12 at 8 am.
Want to know how you can make a difference in people’s lives in just a few short hours? Come join members of Faith Des Peres at Food Outreach on Saturday morning, March 12. There we will pack food into individual meals that will be given to those living with HIV/AIDS and cancer that are living at or below the poverty level. We start at 8am and are done before 11 am. Food Outreach requests that volunteers be 11 years old and in 5th grade. Please sign up in the Gathering Space.
Walking to Jerusalem
e’ve walked just over 1,500,000 steps which gets us just east of Washington DC. Yes! But, we have a ways to go. So, if you haven’t turned in your steps, or you think you aren’t needed in this challenge, think again! And, please don’t leave the rest of us stranded! All movement counts; 20 minute of activity equals 2000 steps. One mile of walking or running, etc. also equals 2000 steps. Being physically healthy contributes to our spiritual health. Please leave your step count on the table in the Gathering Space, or email Terry Baker or Annie. Thank you!
Pastrix Book Club
We’ll get together on Saturday, March 5 to talk about Pastrix by Nadia Bloz-Weber. Plan on 10am, at Daily Bread, 11719 Manchester in Des Peres. Please contact Annie by email or phone to let her know you are planning on coming so she can save enough chairs. Thank you!
Nadia is a heavily-tattooed, profanity-laden ELCA (Lutheran) pastor in Colorado. She wrote this book “for people who hunger for a bit of hope that doesn't come from vapid consumerism or navel-gazing; for women who talk too loud, and guys who love chick flicks; for the gay man who loves Jesus, and won't allow himself to be shunned by the church. For people who listen to “This American Life” and have more education than money; for people who know the difference between American cheese and real cheese. In short, this book is for every thinking misfit suspicious of institutionalized religion, but who is still seeking transcendence and
mystery.”
A Photo-a-Day in Lent
About 24 people are part of the Photo A Day in Lent Facebook Group. Each day,
rethinkchurch provides a word, and the group members submit their pictures. It’s been fun and insightful to see everyone’s take on the words (go, mighty, injustice, celebrate, voice). Some of the pictures have been serious, and others insightful; some frivolous, and others introspective. If you’re interested in being in the group, go to Faith Des Peres’ Facebook page, and scroll down for the link to the group. Anyone can join. In fact, we’ve had people from all over join the group. You can also join the group to see the photos.
Mound Ridge annual spring fund raiser dinner and auction.
To celebrate the 65th year of summer camp ministry, the team has reserved the James S. McDonnell Planetarium on Saturday, April 9, 2016. The event starts at 6:00 pm.
This special evening – “Under the Heavenly Skies” – will consist of a time-travel going back to what the heavenly constellations were like on that first summer experience, when children of God began connecting with God, life, nature and making friends for a lifetime.
Ticket prices are $75 per person or $700 for a table of 10. Contact Mound Ridge 573-265-3098 or moundridge@glpby.org or see Annie for more information.
Margaret works at Barnes Jewish Hospital on their wound care team. In her free time she is planning a June 2016 wedding and likes making jewelry. Mark is an analyst for the federal government. He is originally from Virginia but moved to St. Louis in 2009. His interests include baseball, photography and traveling. Margaret and Mark wanted to join Faith Des Peres because of how welcoming and accepting everyone has been.
By God’s grace, each day is a gift, an opportunity for a new beginning. Through abundant and generous gifts to One Great Hour of Sharing (OGHS), for many years Presbyterians have faithfully heeded God’s call to serve people seeking to reclaim and restore their lives.
Your gift to OGHS is a gift of hope. Your gift allows Presbyterian Disaster Assistance to
restore communities around the world affected by natural and human-caused disasters. Your generosity helps the Presbyterian Hunger Program work with Presbyterians and other partners to alleviate hunger and eliminate its causes in this country and internationally. Your sharing makes it possible for Self-Development of People to affirm the dignity of all by assisting in the empowerment of economically poor, oppressed, and disadvantaged people.
The programs supported by OGHS depend on continued and increased support from congregations like ours. We will collect the OGHS offering on Easter Sunday March 27.
Updated Church Directory
An updated church directory is now available. If you would like a copy emailed to you, please let Yolanda know. Her email address is adminasst@faithdesperes.org. Please remember to keep the church updated if you have a new address, phone number or email address. Thank you!
Dear Faith Des Peres Community,
This Lent, we’re delving into the subject of Jesus as boundary breaker. Jesus continually told stories about unjust situations that point to going against societal norms. But we’re also doing more than just exploring it, we’re also going to look at the boundaries we’re called to break, and ask some tough questions of ourselves about the things we’re called to change, both internal and external, so we can challenge the present to change the future to make Christ known.
This Sunday in particular we are going to talk about how we are called and challenged to love others despite the differences we have with them. In preparation, think about someone in your life that fits that description.
The worship arts team has been hard at work getting ready for Lent. In the sanctuary you'll find four "prayer stations" with different "activities": writing a prayer or candle, leaving your spare change, etc. These stations are there to help you prepare for worship, so feel free to take part in them when you arrive. There will also be a time after the sermon for you to visit one of the stations.
There are plenty of other things going on at church during Lent, so make sure to check out the rest of this blog.
See you Sunday!
Annie
Chili Cook-Off Friday, February 26
FDP’s second annual Chili Cook-off is Friday, February 26 in the Gathering Space. All varieties of chili welcome. Doors open at 6:30 pm. Sign up to enter your signature pot of chili or sign up to let us know you’re coming to eat and judge. First, second and third prizes awarded to the winning chefs. Be sure to invite your friends and neighbors to this fun and tasty event!
Rockhaven Ecozoic Center Spaghetti Dinner, Saturday, February27
Rockhaven Ecozoic Center is holding its annual Spaghetti Dinner on Saturday, February 27 at Grace Episcopal Church 514 E. Argonne Drive in Kirkwood. Doors open at 5:30 and dinner is at 6:30. The cost is $20 per person ($24 at the door) and kids under 8 are free. Tickets can be purchased at www.rockhavencenter.org or you can get them in Kirkwood by calling Sister Cheryl Kemner at 314-965-3700.
Pastrix Book Club
We’ll get together on Saturday, March 5 to talk about Pastrix by Nadia Bloz-Weber. If you have a suggestion for a place that isn’t too noisy AND where we can get a good cup of coffee, let me know. Plan on 10am, and I’ll let you know the place once it’s been decided. Thank you!
Nadia is a heavily-tattooed, profanity-laden ELCA (Lutheran) pastor in Colorado. She wrote this book “for people who hunger for a bit of hope that doesn't come from vapid consumerism or navel-gazing; for women who talk too loud, and guys who love chick flicks; for the gay man who loves Jesus, and won't allow himself to be shunned by the church. For people who listen to “This American Life” and have more education than money; for people who know the difference between American cheese and real cheese. In short, this book is for every thinking misfit suspicious of institutionalized religion, but who is still seeking transcendence and mystery.”
Walking to Jerusalem
And we’re off! So far we’ve made it over 850,000 steps toward Jerusalem. That’s approximately 425 miles, which gets us to about Huntington, WV. Wave hello! Don’t forget, one mile equals 2000 steps, and 20 minutes of any activity equals 2000 steps. And regular old steps equal steps! You can email your weekly total on Saturdays to Annie or Terry Baker. You can also turn them in on Sunday at the door. Thanks to Diane Asyre there’s a really nice chart in the Gathering Space; you’ll find a basket and slips of paper with it. Put your name on the display as a traveler, too. We can do this!
A Photo A Day in Lent
About 24 people are part of the Photo A Day in Lent Facebook Group. Each day, rethinkchurch provides a word, and the group members submit their pictures. It’s been fun and insightful to see everyone’s take on the words (go, mighty, injustice, celebrate, voice). Some of the pictures have been serious, and others insightful; some frivolous, and others introspective. If you’re interested in being in the group, go to Faith Des Peres’ Facebook page, and scroll down for the link to the group. Anyone can join. In fact, we’ve had people from all over join the group. You can also join the group to see the photos.
Mound Ridge annual spring fund raiser dinner and auction.
To celebrate the 65th year of summer camp ministry, the team has reserved the James S. McDonnell Planetarium on Saturday, April 9, 2016. The event starts at 6:00 pm.
This special evening – “Under the Heavenly Skies” – will consist of a time-travel going back to what the heavenly constellations were like on that first summer experience, when children of God began connecting with God, life, nature, fun, and making friends for a lifetime.
Ticket prices are $75 per person or $700 for a table of 10. Contact Mound Ridge 573-265-3098 or moundridge@glpby.org or see Annie for more information.