“Here’s Where We” - images.acswebnetworks.comimages.acswebnetworks.com/1/2866/095357_May... · only (sometimes with guitar chords – see below), not in ... dinator position

“Here’s Where We...”

May 2018

ROB BLUMER ON MY MIND

Some years back, an acquaintance of mine told me of his experience visiting his son, a Marine, who took him through the National Muse-um of the Marine Corps in Trian-gle, Virginia. The most astonishing thing about the tour, my friend told me, was not the power of the mov-ing exhibits showing the full, two hundred, forty-three year history of the Corps, but rather how at every exhibit, his son, while telling the story of the Marine’s past, continual-ly used the phrase, “Here’s where we …” It was clear, my friend said, that the Corps had drilled into his son how every Marine is connected to all Marines of every generation on each inch of ground ever gained or lost in

battle. “Here’s where we….” That’s a good mantra for church members, too; and, not only in looking at the past, but also at the present moment in our own congre-gational life. “Here’s where we.... Did you know that our monthly dinner for the homeless in which we, usual-ly 70 to 85 of us, divvy up everything from meatloaf to biscuits and feed usually upwards of 300 folk is an ef-fort that we undertake which vastly exceeds at least one sister congre-gation with more than 5 times our membership? (Ok, might be a brag, but it is a fact…it is one of the things that we do well.) Did you know that we minister to more families and children through our basketball pro-

gram than every other Presbyterian congregation in the city except for the two largest congregations? And, no, we aren’t near third largest. Did you know that we minister to more persons in this city, struggling with addiction to drugs and alcohol than any other congregation in the city? I could go on telling of the things we have been doing and are con-tinuing to do, but we are doing new things, too. Contained in these pages are articles that tell us how we are doing in OUR Capital Campaign, an-other telling us how we are coming along on our new gym plans, and

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2 | SHARON PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

AT A GLANCE SHARON EVENTS

ANNOUNCEMENTSInterested in membership? We will be receiving new church members on Sunday, May 20, 2018 during the 10:30 am worship service. If you are interested in join-ing that Sunday or at another time, please contact Rev. Ron Nelson, [email protected] or 704-553-0869 for details.

INVITELYRA Vocal Ensemble - Saturday, May 5th, 7:30pm, ChapelLYRA, an a cappella group of five professional vocalists from St. Petersburg, Russia, will present a concert of Russian choral music. The first part of the concert - sacred music of Russian Orthodox Church, includes an-cient songs to works of famous masters and little-known but remarkable Russian composers from the 18th - 20th centuries. The second part of their program is made up of Russian folk songs: comic, lyric, dancing, love songs. $15-general admission / $10-students and seniors. Visit our website, www.sharonpcusa.org/events to purchase tickets. Tickets also available at the door.Next Steps Gathering – May 6th, 4:30pm, ParlorNext Steps Gatherings are for newcomers and not-so-newcomers who want to get to know each other, know more about Sharon Presbyterian Church, and be encouraged in their faith journeys. Please join us as we explore who we are as Presbyterians and what we believe. For questions or to RSVP, please contact Ron Nelson at [email protected] or 704-553-0869.Women’s Basketball –May 8th, June 5th & 19th, 7:00pm, GymCalling all Ladies: Dust off your hightop tennis shoes and come join us every other Tuesday night for pick-up basketball in the gym. Come check it out! Any questions, you can call/text Maria Harvey at 704-904-4982.Spring Family Campout – May 4th, 4:00pm, BallfieldThis will be our third SPC Family Campout! Come out with your tent and enjoy a fun evening under the stars or just come for the evening and enjoy a campfire with good company! Contact [email protected] for more information!

Youth Sunday – May 20th, 10:30am, SanctuaryA beloved tradition of many congregations including our own is that of “Youth Sunday” in which our young peo-ple will lead us through liturgy and worship. Join us in worship to be led by our youth, praying, preaching, and reading to bring us closer to God.

TEACHWomen’s Bible Study – Wednesdays, April 11th – May 16th, 9:30am, Gathering Room 202Please join the Women’s Bible Study as we begin the 6 week study “Defiant Joy” by Candace Payne. Study Guides are available from www.christianbooks.com and Amazon. For questions, contact Carol Howie at [email protected] or 704-246-7705. Shipwrecked Vacation Bible School – June 18th-22nd, 9:00am, Entire CampusJoin us this year for Shipwrecked Vacation Bible School at Sharon Presbyterian Church! Go to www.sharonpcu-sa.org/events to register and to see a sneak peek. Ages 4yrs through rising 7th graders. Registration ends June 3rd.

SERVEVolunteers for VBS 2018 – June 18th-22nd, 9:00am, En-tire CampusRegistration for Volunteers is available online now through June 3rd. This is a wonderful way to get in-volved, meet fellow church members, and have a mean-ingful impact on hundreds of children. Even if you can only volunteer 1 morning during the week, we would love to have you! Please contact Liz DeNittis at [email protected] for more information.Lemonade on the Lawn Hosts - Sundays, June 3rd-Au-gust 26th, 11:30am, Patio of the SanctuaryGet your family together or grab a few friends and sign up to host a Lemonade on the Lawn. It’s simple and a fun way to meet new people. To sign up, go tohttp://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090d4aa4a-c22a46-spclemonade

Please visit www.sharonpcusa.org for more information

Upcoming Events

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GROW WORSHIP & MUSIC

In 2013 our denomination (Presbyterian Church U.S.A.) published a new hymnal - Glory to God: The Presbyterian Hymnal (GTG). We at Sharon Presbyterian currently use The Presbyterian Hymnal (TPH), published in 1990 (The PCUSA-sanctioned hymnal before TPH was published in 1955). Since its 2013 release, many of our sister PCUSA churches have adopted Glory to God, so an introduction to it is long overdue. Currently, we own several copies of Glory to God in several formats. Here are a few facts that I find most significant: CONTENTS: Glory to God: The Presbyterian Hymnal contains 853 titles while TPH includes 605. Approxi-mately 425 of TPH’s hymns made it into GTG and 425 are new. IMPORTANT NOTE: In the last two years, we have sung over 150 different hymns from TPH. Only about ten of those hymns did not make it into the new hymnal (GTG). FORMAT, Individual Hymns: Perhaps the most signif-icant and noticeable difference between TPH and GTG is that some GTG hymns are published with melodies only (sometimes with guitar chords – see below), not in “traditional” 4-part settings.

This may be disturbing to some but a large majority of GTG’s hymns, including all the ones from TPH are in 4-part harmony; however and in defense of the GTG editors, one must acknowledge that many Christian songs were conceived to be sung in unison, not in 4-part harmony and with different accompaniments in mind. Those songs are easier to include in melody-only set-tings (note: keyboard accompaniments to all of GTG’s hymns are available in an Accompaniment Edition, which we have purchased). FORMATS, Entire Hymnal: Unlike its predecessor, Glory to God is available in numerous formats beyond the pew version. For instance, it comes in one Web and two Projection Editions. The Web Edition grants access to view all the hymns in GTG online but does not grant permission to print all of them. One Projection Edition, which we already own, allows us to project any of the hymns in GTG. THEOLOGY: While our current blue hymnal pointedly includes “hymns related to Reformed doctrines,” GTG’s Theological Vision Statement tries to reach out to those “who have not had life-long formation by Scripture and basic Christian doctrine, much less Reformed theology.” This desire to find relevance to those outside of PCUSA’s theology can also be seen in the publication of the Ec-umenical Edition of Glory to God (although its contents are identical). SOME FINAL THOUGHTS: In researching this article, it is clear that the Presbyterian Committee on Congre-gational Song worked incredibly diligently and in great detail to choose the hymns in GTG. Some of the de-bates are fascinating and you can read about some here: https://www.christiancentury.org/article/2013-04/debating-hymns. So, should we adopt Glory to God: The Presbyteri-an Hymnal? I believe that if and when we consciously decide what kind of congregation we should be, we will know the answer. Until then, we will continue introduc-ing new hymns from Glory to God sparingly by project-ing them, but only if and when appropriate. Glory to God!

Glory to God: An Introduction

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CONNECT COMMUNITY LIFE

Generous Gifts: Benevolence UpdateBe·nev·o·lence (be-ene-ve-len(ts)– dis-position to do good; an act of kind-ness; a generous gift (Merriam-Web-ster). For the last 11 months, the Be-nevolence sub-committee has been hard at work considering opportu-nities to “do good” through acts of kindness and generous gifts from this congregation. You may recall, our Growing to Serve campaign committed 10% of capital construc-tion costs for benevolence purposes. The initial phases of the capital con-struction (the chancel renovations and covered walkway) are now com-plete and the Session has approved the Benevolence sub-committee’s recommendations to release a total of $27,000 (10% of the chancel and covered walkway construction costs) to two organizations. The first organization is the local non-profit Lily Pad Haven. Human trafficking generates an estimated $32 billion of revenue each year. North Carolina is ranked as a top-10 state for human trafficking; Char-lotte is the top destination. Lily Pad is dedicated to assisting victims of

human/sexual trafficking. The group has four houses in the Charlotte area providing shelter and counseling to victims of sexual trafficking, helping them to rehabilitate and assimilate back into society. Lily Pad has ac-quired a fifth house, but it lacks the funds to pay for a house coordinator and to operate the house. The coor-dinator position is $12,000 annually and the operating cost for the house is $5,000 annually. Sharon Presbyte-rian will be donating $17,000 to Lily Pad to cover the coordinator posi-tion and operating costs for this new house for one year. With this dona-tion the newest house will become operational. To learn more about Lily Pad go to: www.lilypad-haven.org The second recommendation that was approved is to make a $10,000 donation to Devonshire Elementary School. Devonshire is a Title 1 school here in Charlotte where the vast majority of students receive free or reduced cost lunches. The student body is largely made up of at-risk Af-rican American and Hispanic youth. The $10,000 donation will be used to enhance an old neglected gar-

den facility in the courtyard of the school by associating with a nation-al organization called Real School Gardens that works with schools like Devonshire to build and maintain gardens for experiential lessons out-doors. Real School Gardens offers a professional learning curriculum to increase teacher effectiveness and student achievement through use of the garden to teach children math and other subjects in this unique setting. To learn more about Real School Gardens go to: www.real-schoolgardens.org The Benevolence sub-committee will continue to meet as it considers further opportunities to “do good” with your generous gifts as the next phase of capital construction begins with the new gym. If you have any questions or would like addition-al information, please ask one of the members of the Benevolence sub-committee: David Beers, Jac-queline Boersema, Amanda Buchan-an, Beth Flordelis, Letty Latta, Paul Osowski, Elizabeth Pickens, Tom Skinner, Merrill Tibbals (and Rob Blumer & Ron Nelson).

Presbyterian Women’s Service Project Many thanks for the wonderful support for the Presbyterian Wom-en’s Valentine service project!! This project was contributing (in ex-change for a Valentine) for a Church World Service blanket. A total of $1,707 was donated, which will pur-chase 170 blankets! These blankets will be distributed locally and around

the world to families fleeing their homes, recovering from disaster, and more. Rachael Knepp is shown holding one of these blankets.

SHARON PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH | 5

SPY YOUTH CHILDREN’S CORNER

SPC Youth in the Community This month, the Sharon Pres

Youth Group had the opportunity to visit the Samaritan House of Char-lotte. Samaritan house is a program that provides free and safe housing for homeless individuals in Char-lotte after they leave the care of the Hospital. They provide housing for people regardless of age, having kept homeless Charlotteans as young as 15 and as old as 80 and are able to help people with all sorts of injury and illness from broken bones to cancer. The reason this program is so important comes in that homeless Charlotteans that return immedi-ately to living on the street from the Hospital have a very high likelihood of returning to the Hospital due to complications. For many of these Samaritan House residents, the opportunity to be off the street, to heal, and to be cared for, they are able to work to improve their quality of life after they leave and relax into normal human interaction. This is where our youth get the opportunity to interact with them. For the second time this school year our youth got to go to the Samaritan house and spend time with its res-idents in common community. Our youth watched March Madness with some of the residents while others played Scattergories and others just had conversations with the resi-dents. This is a phenomenal oppor-tunity for our youth to learn about mission right here in Charlotte.

6 | SHARON PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

SUPPORT SERVE

The New Building! Several years ago, Sharon Pres-byterian participated in an extensive process to assess how we wanted to participate in Christ’s ministry in the years to come. We learned that there was tremendous energy around opening our campus in community outreach and expanding our Youth and Music programs. In prioritizing these ministries, we quickly real-ized that we had long outgrown the physical spaces necessary for those ministries to thrive. The Growing to Serve Campaign seeks to address these immediate needs. We are excited to share that the Growing to Serve Campaign has generated sufficient funds for us to begin more detailed planning for the next phase of our campus develop-ment: a new building situated on the South side of the property, facing Sharon Road, which will house a Gym, dedicated Youth space, and additional flexible gathering spaces. A Gym Committee has been formed, led by Chris Moffat and supported by Carmen Adams, Randy Butler, Paul Osowski, Jenny Pusser, Darrell Shealy, David Stanford, Dave Stukey, and Lauren Wall.

In February, the committee host-ed a forum with the representatives from various Sharon ministries to listen to what our immediate needs are, and how the ministries might be improved or better served by the new space. Some of these immediate needs include: sufficient space for families to watch the many church-league basketball games we host; safer adjustable basketball goals; safe storage space; flexibility to divide the gym into two separate spaces via a curtain; room for Shep-herd’s Center ministry expansion, and appropriate, dedicated space for our Youth Groups to gather. The group also shared a number of ministries in which we’ve wanted to participate, but have not been equipped to do so. Some of these include: additional daytime Bible studies, travelling mission groups, and a multitude of new programs for Preschool, Elementary, Middle, and High School students. The list was extensive! The Gym Committee has con-sidered this feedback, articulated the scope of work, and is soliciting proposals from 4 architectural firms.

The group expects to hear these presentations by the first of June. From these concepts, the group will select an architect, commission formal architectural drawings, and select a contractor, so that when the Campaign has met the financial needs for this next phase, construc-tion can begin. Thank you for your support, your ideas, and your prayer that the Lord will open our minds to purposes for this space we have not yet con-ceived! The Gym Committee is pas-sionate about the opportunities this new space will provide for Sharon to continue our mission to Invite all seekers, Teach the Gospel, and Serve human need. Our campaign leadership team is still actively visiting folks to discuss the campaign and ask for pledges. If you have not been visited and are ready to make a pledge, or would like to increase your pledge, please reach out to Rich Barefoot, [email protected] or 704-516-2462. This is an exciting time for our Sharon community!

“Here’s Where We...”Continued from front coverstill another about how we are re-leasing the first benevolence monies that we determined were to be part of our capital campaign. Not to steal the thunder of the articles, but to give you a heads up, we are entering

the fight against human trafficking (sadly, Charlotte has become a major hub for this criminal act), and we are helping develop an innovative learn-ing program in one of Charlotte’s poorest elementary schools. We are glad that you are part of

US. And always, you are invited to become an even more active part in what we are doing together. Thank you!

SHARON PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH | 7

CHURCH LIFE

Wills Emphasis Sunday Most of us have spent a great deal of time making plans concerning our fu-ture, yet many of us haven’t taken the time to plan for what happens to our assets after our lifetime. Estate planning is not an unman-

ageable task, yet some may avoid it because it makes our mortality a reality. A will is the cornerstone of a well-organized es-tate plan and can serve to proclaim our Christian faith. Despite faithful stewardship during our lifetimes, many times when a will is prepared we fail to think about ex-tending our support for the church after we are gone. On May 6, our church will join Presbyterian churches nationwide for Wills Emphasis Sunday. Our hope is that you will be inspired on Wills Emphasis Sunday to include Sharon Presbyterian in your estate plans. If you don’t have a will, hopefully you will make one and consider including the church as a beneficiary. If you already have a will, a simple amendment known as a

codicil may be all that is necessary to make a bequest to Sharon Presbyterian. Making a bequest in your will to the church is a wonderful opportunity to give witness to your faith and values. It is also an act of stewardship for future gen-erations. Bequests can play a critical part in continuing Sharon’s mission and in helping lay the foundation for new outreaches. Including a gift to the church in your will not affect your finances now and you don’t have to be wealthy to bless the church with a bequest. No matter how much you can give, with a bequest, you can strengthen your church family and make a difference for the future. The Session has approved the establishment of The 1831 Legacy Society to honor those who include the church as part of their estate plan. On Wills Emphasis Sunday there will be a brochure insert in the bulletin providing more information about The 1831 Legacy Soci-ety. Please consider leaving a gift to the Sharon Presbyte-rian in your will, making a gift that gives forward!

Presbyterian Women Luncheon 2018 The Presby-terian Women’s luncheon, Sunday March 18th, had lots of delicious food, fellowship, and a dynamic speaker. Anne Finlay-Chamberlain’s talk was “Tales from the end of the Road” which was based on her experienc-es from her last pastor position in Hawaii.

If you missed it, you missed her humor, wit, and inspiration. Anne is currently the Director of Practical Spirituality at In Christ Supporting Ministries.

The next luncheon will be Sun-day August 26th for the installation service for the PW board and circle moderators. Please mark your calen-dars and join us.

THE CHURCH SCENE: EASTER 2018!

5201 SHARON ROAD, CHARLOTTE, NC 28210704-553-0869 | WWW.SHARONPCUSA.ORG

DEADLINE FOR THE NEXT ISSUE IS:MONDAY MAY 14, [email protected]

CONTRIBUTORS TO THE MAY NEWSLETTER:

Writers & Editors:Rob BlumerTim GilbertAJ JarneckePaul OsowskiMartin PruittDavid TangLauren Wall

Photography Martin PruittDawn Rogers

May 2018

May Birthdays 1 Jeff Brewer, Mary Brown, Chris McGraw 2 Ansley Flordelis, Anne Hawkins, Ellis

Pickens 3 Ken Garfield, Marna Polhil, Duane Rose,

Will Specker 4 Aspen Nelson, Jay Perry 5 Linda Bruning, Laney Clodfelter, Janat

Schramm, Nolan Weyhrich 6 Van Dale 7 Henry Jones, Rita Mullins, Michael

Rogers, Lisa Simpson 8 Kristin Blanton, Logan Farmer 9 Nick Barringer, Kaye DuMond, Caroline

Hardaway, Bryan Kernodle, Katie Lovejoy, Audrey Morrison, Miriam Wilson

10 Jaci Baldwyn, Carlysle Johnson, Lisa Mason, Cal Mason, Sherry Ross, Emily Skinner

11 Beth Jarnecke, Matthew Long, Ryan Stone

12 Suzanne Parker, Bill Stanford, Becky Zelinski

13 Kameron Jackson, Robert Osowski, Donna Shea

14 Jim Gorman, Tony Greiner, Nicholas Tutwiler, Emma Zelinski

15 Elizabeth Gray, Ed Tennent

16 Lisa Rogers 17 Olivia Aldridge, Jason Fedell, Robbie

Fedell, Maryann McGarity, Vickie Saine, Beth Trotter

18 Randall Bumpious, Conni Stanifer 19 Hanna Baldwin, Jocelyn Ferber, Will

Harvey, Isabella Tennent, Mary Welton 20 Jon Bagyi, Glenn Gagnon, Cathy Hines,

Van Talley 21 Sydney Hines, Timothy Nowaczewski,

Abby Ridenhour, Payton Streicher 22 Rich Frame, LeighAnn Fresina, Naomi

Poffenbarger 23 Bill Harpootlian, Timothy Rogers, Susan

Visbeck 24 McRae Adams, Melanie Hudson, Scott

Odom, Matthew Walker 25 Jessica DeLucia 26 Drew Dries, Killian Dries, Matthew

Henderson, Gene Manning, Mary Purser, Pete Rounds

27 Nancy McIntyre, Carter Milkey, Emily Mularz, Roger Suiter

28 Wes Oates 29 John Broadus, Ricky Griffith, Susan

McGinn 30 Elizabeth Chappelear, Sally Fullager,

Susan Goeldner, Doug Whitley 31 Colton Ash, Bill Unferth, Joe White

May 2018

May Anniversaries

1 Jack and Debbie Jenkins 2 Chad and Christine Cornwell, Don and

Bernice McCullough 3 Pete and Myra Rounds 4 Trey and Elizabeth Burgess 5 Jeff and Sarah Brewer, Nick and Tammy

Bagyi, Andy and Andrea Davis 8 Darren and Melissa Charnock 10 Bob and Jean Cottom, Paul and Kelley

Mickler, Jason and Megan Talley 11 Russell and Brenda Ash, Shelton and

Aimee Soniat 13 Mike and Becky Hively 14 Peter and Susie Banks, Chris and Liz

DeNittis, Rob and Sue Owen 17 Wes and Courtney Oates, Jim and

Michelle Peterson, John and Bailey Shafer

19 Travis and Marcy Doak, Matthew and Diane Fisher, Jeff and Dawn Rogers

20 Ken and Suzanne Parker 22 Casey and Kristin Edwards, Charlie and

Frances Furr, David and Jayne Hollifield, Bill and Rebecka Nelli

23 Andrew and Sarah Kromer 24 Ed and Allison Tennent 25 Kris and Emily Mularz, Grier and

Gemetta Stanford 26 Ron and Michele Dougherty 28 Gary and Maureen Christian, Dean and

Shannon Dunbar, Cheng and Margaret Vang

29 Rich and Jacqueline Boersema, Ron and Lisa Nelson, Chris and Amy Smith

30 Chris and Lindsey McGraw

Gifts In Memory and in Honor of Loved Ones: In Honor of Martin and Anna Pruitt, by SPC Choir In Memory of Freida Caldwell, by Mary Baker

In Memory of Sybil Starnes, by G. Mitchell Hagler, Melva Hanna, Lyon Group Holdings, Kaye Dumond, Katherine Langer In Memory of Marvin Ward, by Roger and Sandra Fink, Tom Paxton Phillips, Barbara Heilig, Mary Keith, Miriam and David Wilson, Mary Baker

Please Remember in Prayer: in the hospital: Mary Jo Alley; recently discharged from the hospital: Grayson Robillard; those at home: Ray Cannon, Carol Ann Allen, Sara Jamison, Mary Baker, Sally Shane, Julie Lewis, Jim Harper, Jr., Chris Price; and our homebound members; other concerns: Leola Furr (Sherry Ross’ mother); Jeremy and Luta Garbat-Welch (PCUSA Missions in Malawi); Our Mission Partners in Peru; Rusty Edmondson and Sara Armstrong (PCUSA Missions in Peru). The prayer list is reset on the second Monday of each month. To submit or resubmit a prayer request, please contact Ron Nelson ([email protected]). By request, prayer concerns may remain private and will not appear in the published list.