Welcome to the
First Presbyterian Church
of Monroe, NY.
Be sure to check out the Events Calendar for a listing of all up-coming events.
You may find all of the prayer concerns on the FPCMonroe Group board.
If you have any news that you would like to appear here, please contact the Webmaster on the Contacts Page.
Confirmation Sunday
Sunday, May 11, is Confirmation Sunday. Six young people will make their profession of faith: Caylynn Mary Crover; Jessica Ann Crover; Brianna Elizabeth Faig; Courtney Marie Gray; Henry Charles Martin; Allie Jean Montross. We welcome them into our membership today!
Mother's Day Greeting
We wish all of our mothers, grandmothers and mothers-to-be a most Happy and Blessed Mothers' Day!
Baron's Word – Help To Spread It!
Session met on May 7. I presented “The Summer Schedule - 2008” from May 11, Pentecost to Sept. 7, our kick-off Sunday starting us up for the Fall.
Summer already! Hard to believe. I noted with Session that I will have completed my first year at First Presbyterian in about 6 weeks. Again hard to believe. It was a year ago in May that Linda and I first visited Monroe for a tour and were shown the Manse in complete renovation – walls torn down, kitchen gutted, floors stripped and would it all be finished by July 1 our move-in date? [Read more]
Exciting Choir Director News
Join in at any or all of the following events:
- Saturday, May 10: 7:00pm — Ron De Fesi sings the bass solos in the Brahms “Requiem” at the First Presbyterian Church of Goshen
- Sunday, May 18: 4:00pm Ron De Fesi sings the bass solos in the Brahms “Requiem” at the Blooming Grove United Congregational Church
Honoring our Graduates
Every year at the Seamanville Cemetery service we honor our graduates. This year the service is on June 8th. Please e-mail me at lindaat1stpresbyterian@frontiernet.net any high school or college graduates with their name, school they are graduating from and their degree.
Thanks.
Linda
Report From The Mission Study Team
The Journey Forward Continues.
Sunday, April 6, 2008 was another milestone on our journey towards calling our new pastor. Over 140 congregants gathered in New Fellowship Hall for worship, fellowship, survey information and Vision Mapping.
We all participated in an uplifting and energetic worship service (energizing provided by the church youth!), which included Communion served family-style around each table (see below for the recipe for the wonderful French Toast that was served - thanks Gail!). Following worship, we all enjoyed a gourmet breakfast, compliments of Chef Gail and the Ministry to Members committee.
After worship and fellowship, Keith Brokaw gave a brief summary of the results generated by the Mission Study Survey, which gave us numbers and percentages for our church in relation to other churches, and the community as a whole.
Bruce Tischler from Presbytery led us in Vision Mapping. “What is Vision Mapping?” you may ask. For those who were able to stay, it proved to be a very interesting exercise. Each person was asked to write certain things on slips of paper. First were personal strengths or talents: playing hand bells, gardening, and cooking. Next was physical attributes of the church: the large Fellowship Hall, commercial kitchen, Food Pantry. Third were groups we are connected with: Boy/Girl Scouts, Rotarians, senior citizens. Then we spread all the papers out on the tables and looked for connections that could be made. Each table reported on some of the connections they discovered. There were suggestions such as creating programs to serve senior citizens in the community, starting a yoga class at the church, working with the Girl Scouts to benefit the Food Pantry, and many more. It was very interesting to find out more about our fellow church members, and exciting to see how many great ideas we generated that could turn into future programs in the life of the church and the community.
We will now work on the report for Session and ultimately Presbytery, which is the next step before forming a Pastoral Nominating Committee.
Lunch Bunch - New Book
Our Lunch Bunch Fellowship Group meets every Tuesday at approximately 12:15pm. We are reading a new book entitled: Dreams, A Way To Listen To God by Morton Kelsey. Here is a little taste of what's in store:
Why has the modern church, for the most part, ceased to become a channel for humankind to experience the power (Holy Spirit) of Christ? The sad answer to this question is that the Christian philosophies of the past 300 years have overlooked the fact that God wants to come into contact with us and that we can actually know God. God still does break through into our lives. But in what ways? How can we be in touch?
If questions like this intrigue you, come and join us. You can contact Linda at the church office for more information (783-1632).
PW News
At our last luncheon, we elected Lisa Schneider as our new treasurer. We were delighted that she will take on this important job. She replaces our long-time treasurer, Judy Wason. We cannot thank Judy enough for her terrific job over all those years!
Mothers’ Day will be on May 11 this year. This year, in honor of that day, PW will be selling gift cards for the “Net Workers Project.” Health experts have found that the distribution of treated mosquito netting is an amazingly effective way to combat the spread of malaria in tropical climates. As is often the case, money invested in disease prevention goes a lot farther than money spent on treatments of the infected. Your purchase of a $10 gift card can really make a difference in combating this worldwide scourge. We will have these cards available starting in early March.
Can you help our Church and community?
The Cottage, our nearly-famous thrift store, is not only vital to our Church’s financial health but it also provides a key resource to less fortunate families in our valley. But our volunteer ranks are stretched thin and we need more Cottage workers to share the load. It’s not a difficult job – it takes no special skills – but those who have volunteered have found it rewarding. We have day and evening hours, sorting, stocking and selling.
Could you work a few hours once a month? Do you know a friend who could do so? Please call Cindy Wykretowicz (783-2893) to find out more.
Wishing you all a safe, healthy and blessed spring,
Marcy Berchtold, President, Presbyterian Women (783-4782)
Presbybuild Talent Show
Help support Habitat For Humanity of Greater Newburgh. Come to the Presbybuild Talent Show at the Bethlehem Presbyterian Church, 1520, Rt. 94 (at Jackson) in New Windsor. This event will be held on Saturday, May 17, from 7:00-9:00pm.
TICKETS: Adults are $10.00 each; Children ages 6-12 are $5.00 each; and Children 5 and under under 5 are free.
Open House at Holmes Presbyterian Camp/Center
Camp does kids a world of good! Make new friends, gain confidence and enjoy the outdoors at Holmes Presbyterian Camp and Conference Center. Offering Day Camps, Elementary Camps, Junior Camps, Junior High Camps, Senior High Camp and camps for Families and Adults. We make Bible Study and worship come alive in a whole new way.
Open House at Holmes Presbyterian Camp and Conference Center is just two weeks away! Sunday, May 18, 2008 from 2 pm-5:30 pm. If you are not sure what camp is all about or can’t spend enough time at camp, come join us for a fun filled afternoon! Our open house is a chance for parents, campers, youth groups and old and new friends to enjoy a day sampling some of the varied activities at Holmes. Come meet the staff and if weather permits, we plan to go boating, play games, go hiking, etc. Food will be grilling and available all afternoon. Sign up for camp at Open House and receive the early bird registration discount. For more information or questions, please contact the Holmes office via e-mail or by phone (845-878-6383) or visit us online at www.presbyteriancenter.org/interest.htm.
Preschool Summer Camp
Our Monroe Presbyterian Preschool is now accepting Registration for Summer Camp July 7-25, 2008 for ages 2-5. For information, call 781-7814
September 2008 Registration: Ages 2-5 Mornings Or Afternoons 2 day, 3 day or 5 day program.
News From The Food Pantry
Thanks to all who have been remembering our “Drop A Can or Drop a $$” on Communion Sundays. It is a big help – every donation is an item we don’t have to buy and our grant monies go further. We can always use cereal, complete meals i.e. Beef Stew, Chili, Ravioli, Tuna, Canned Meats and the like. Also personal care products, toothpaste, toothbrushes, dish soap etc.
For all who requested it, following is the Recipe for the French Toast:
Overnight Caramel French Toast
- 1 loaf French bread
- ½ cup butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons Karo Syrup (corn syrup)
- 6 eggs
- 1 - ½ cups milk
- 1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract
- Cinnamon
Directions: Melt butter and brown sugar and karo syrup over medium heat stirring. Bring to boil and then pour into 9 x 11 casserole pan. Slice bread into 1 inch widths and lay over caramel mixture. Mix eggs and milk and vanilla and pour over bread. Sprinkle top with cinnamon and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight. Uncover and bake in 350 degree oven 45 minutes or until puffed and lightly brown. Enjoy!
Property Committee News
Great News! The Goldman Trust has donated $50,000 to the church for capital improvement projects. Hopefully all of this amount can be used for this purpose as opposed to using some of it to help balance the operating budget. The Property committee has already begun getting estimates to upgrade the sanctuary. In addition, the committee will gather estimates for some of the other much needed projects such as new fellowship hall acoustics, new windows, etc. along the north wall in the old fellowship hall, the parking lot, and exterior work at the manse. This will help us to get a good idea of additional funds needed in the near future.
During April the main sewer pipe at the manse was repaired. Thank you Baron and Linda for your patience during the repair. Also a good portion of the wooden fascia behind the gutter along the parking lot side of the education wing was replaced.
Again please remember the now blue “Capital Fund” envelopes which are part of your offering envelopes (they used to be yellow). There is one envelope per month. Money collected in these envelopes is put aside for large projects. Also there is a separate “Manse Fund” that you can make donations to at the church office.
LOGOS
Through Christian relationships, in the arena created by the LOGOS Program, young people and adults discover they belong to God. As they live in Christian community and grow in their faith, they find direction and purpose to their lives as disciples of Jesus Christ.
We celebrated our 2007-2008 year with our Holy Hilarity Banquet on March 26th.
Special Thanks to LINDA, GAIL, RON, JOHN, NANCY AND PASTOR BARON for the support they have given to our youth and the time they gave us. We are truly a “FAMILY”.
LOGOS in a nutshell: Every Wednesday, October to the end of March, 4:15pm until 7:15pm; all Youth in Grades K-12. Conversation is purposeful. Games are played. Friends are made. Birthdays are celebrated.
Why not join us in October. You have time to make schedule arrangements. So if you’re interested and have any questions contact Linda (783-1632). We would love to have you join us.
Silver Bay Youth Conference News
The Silver Bay Presbyterian Youth Conference will be held this year from Monday, July 7 to Saturday, July 12 at Silver Bay, Lake George, NY. This year's theme is: Destination Life - A Safari into the Unknown. First deadline for lowest rate is in April. Contact Rev. Chip Low for more information at (845) 236.4189 or e-mail him at RevLow@hvc.rr.com. Keep watching the website and church announcements for more news.
