Next Week at FPC (May 27, 2022)

Dear Church Family,

It has been a heavy week for our nation. When tragedy strikes, I feel particularly drawn to gathering together with my faith community. It gives me strength and reminds me that God is the ultimate source of all comfort and peace. Please join us for worship in the coming weeks so we can grieve together and lift one another up during this trying time.

The church schedule is a little confusing right now, so I want to make sure we clarify:
This Sunday, we will worship as one at 11am in the Sanctuary, and there will be no Sunday school. During this service, we will recognize and honor those who have served in the United States Armed Forces and have now passed on.
The following week, June 5, there will be Sunday school (two adult classes and regular youth and children’s classes), and we will also have only one service at 11am for Pentecost, which will feature special jazz music. Afterward, I hope you’ll join us for birthday cake as we celebrate the birth of the Church.
The summer schedule will officially begin on Sunday, June 12.

Peace,
Leslie

UPCOMING SUNDAY LINE-UPS:

Sunday, May 29
11:00am ONE Worship Service (Sanctuary)

Sunday, June 5, PENTECOST (lots more info below)
9:45am Sunday School for All Ages
11:00am ONE Worship Service (Sanctuary)
12:00pm Summer Sizzle: Pentecost Party

Sunday, June 12
Start of Summer Worship Schedule
8:30am Traditional Service (Chapel)
9:30am Sunday School for All Ages
10:30am MorningSong Worship (Fogartie)
10:30am Traditional Service (Sanctuary)
11:30am Reception for John Daniel DeBevoise

Stream our services live on FPCSpartanburg.org/worship, YouTube, or Facebook.

NEXT WEEK
All Church Facilities will be closed on Monday, May 30 for Memorial Day. Enjoy the time with your family as we remember and honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.

Next Sunday: Pentecost Jazz Service!
On Sunday, June 5, we will celebrate the birthday of the Christian Church and the power of the Holy Spirit with ONE Worship service at 11:00am in the Sanctuary, which will include Jazz Music; John Moody will be joining as guest pianist. This service will be a time to open ourselves to God’s creative new future. Remember to wear red.
Prior to the Service, all Sunday School classes will meet.
During the Worship Service, we will have a parade of flags representing countries around the world, many with whom we have mission partnerships. If you are available to help carry a flag and can arrive at the church by 10:15 that morning, please contact Dawn Bingham (binghamdawn@hotmail.com; 864-275-5432).
After the service, we will have our first Summer Sizzle of 2022. Come Join the Pentecost Party as we celebrate the birthday of the church with cake and lemonade!
Adult Summer Sunday School: Emmaus & Friends
Starting June 5 in Room 2207
Join with the Emmaus Class this summer as they explore the New Testament Church though lectionary passages

from Acts and the Letters of Paul in June, before turning to the other work written by the writer of Acts (the

Gospel of Luke) in July. Enjoy good coffee and fellowship before diving into the Bible. Each session stands on its

own. So come as you are able!

Adult Summer Sunday School: LIFT & Friends
Starting June 5 in the Purnell Room
Join LIFT and Abide in the Purnell Room, at 10:00am, starting June 5. Each week we will target a passage from Acts and connect its wisdom to life today. Bring your coffee and curiosity to be inspired by God’s Spirit. What a great summer to dive a little deeper in faith and fellowship!

Summer Book Discussion – Starting Thursday, June 2
Thursday Mornings, 9:30-10:30am in the Small Private Dining Room
Pastor Leslie will be facilitating a book discussion on Frederick Buechner's Secrets in the Dark: A Life in Sermons in June and July. The group will meet for 8 weeks, starting on Thursday, June 2. All ages are welcome to join whenever you are available to participate! You will need to purchase your own book: BUY THE BOOK HERE. Let Leslie (llang@fpcspartanburg.org) know if you would like to be added to the email list.

SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES
VBS Volunteers
There’s room on Adventure Island for lots of helpers. Be a part of our fun and pass along the faith by helping for a day or all week in hands-on-ways or behind the scenes!
Here is the volunteer link: Volunteer HERE!
Contact VBS Co-director, Suzy Cole, with your questions or to find your perfect spot to help: suzyboulwarecole@gmail.com. Thanks for being church family to our little ones!

Photographers Needed
We are very thankful to Budge Bean and Landon Hammett for offering their photography skills to our church. However, they cannot be at every event - but perhaps you can help! We are building a list of photographers that we can contact when there is a need. We will reach out to those photographers when we need pictures taken; everyone on the list would be welcome to say yes or no to any event. So… you are not committing to anything! Our hope is to have a big enough pool of photographers that no one will be overtaxed. Please reach out to Craig Foster (cfoster@fpcspartanburg.org) if you are interested.

Mobile Meals Volunteers Needed
Mobile Meals has resumed daily deliveries and needs more volunteers! You can sign-up to participate in a regular route or offer to be a substitute driver when it suits your schedule. If you'd like more information, please contact Vivian Tanner at Mobile Meals (vivian@mobile-meals.org)

Crafters Needed!
Do you knit, crochet, or cross stitch? Would you like to share your gifts and talents with your church family in a meaningful way? The Life Events Committee needs your help! Please contact Scottie Lummus (scottie.stan@gmail.com) or Meg Evatt (m_evatt@hotmail.com) for more details.

Ministry Finder
Find all sorts of ways to get involved in serving God and serving others on the church website through Ministry Finder!

OTHER NEWS
New Staff
Director of Children’s Ministry
On Sunday, August 7, Kara Clark will begin her ministry with us as our new Director of Children’s Ministry. Kara most recently served as a middle school teacher at McCracken Middle School and for ten years has worked at Montreat during summer camps, most recently as Director of Children’s Camps. We believe that Kara’s extensive experience shepherding children, ability to build strong relationships with families, and high energy with thoughtful purpose make her uniquely qualified to lead our church in this most important work.

Associate Pastor for Youth and Campus Ministries
On Sunday, May 22, the congregation of First Presbyterian Church, Spartanburg unanimously voted to accept the recommendation of the Associate Pastor Nominating Committee and called John Daniel DeBevoise as our New Associate Pastor for Youth and Campus Ministries. John Daniel’s first day in office will be Wednesday, June 8. We look forward to welcoming John Daniel and his fiancée, Eliza, into the life and ministry of First Presbyterian with a special reception on Sunday, June 12!
Find out more about our new staff by clicking their names: Kara and John Daniel.

Family Life Center SUMMER Gym Hours
Beginning Tuesday, May 31, the new Summer Hours for the Gym are: Mondays through Thursdays (8am-8pm) and Fridays (8am-2pm). If you have never used the gym facilities, stop by and check it out!

Order Your Kirkin’ Tartan – Yes, It is Time! ORDER HERE
First Presbyterian Church will hold its annual Kirkin’ o’ the Tartans Worship Service on Sunday, October 30, 2022. At our Kirkin’ service, we remember ancient times, as well as past and present kith and kin, while asking God’s help and blessings in the future through special music and a procession of bagpipes and tartans. The tartan fabrics are ordered from Scotland, so we need your order and payment by Friday, July 22. The cost of a banner is $135. ORDER HERE
*Some clans have multiple patterns available. If you want a particular pattern, please indicate on the form. Otherwise, we will order the most common pattern for that clan.* ORDER HERE
At the conclusion of the service on October 30, the tartan banners will be given to the sponsor for storage or display until the next Kirkin’. Only the staffs and banner stands will remain at the church.
Questions? Contact Martha Bean at mtbean@icloud.com.

Celebrate College & Grad School Graduates!
We would like to be able to celebrate together as a church the hard work of all our college and graduate school graduates. Please email the names of those in your household who are graduating, as well as the college or university from which they are graduating, to fpc@fpcspartanburg.org by July 1 so that they may be included in the August edition of First News.

First Pres “Store”
FPC Tartan Ties and Scarves: Ties and scarves in the FPC tartan pattern are once again available for sale. The ties are $25, and the scarves are $35. You can order here or by contacting Lynise Clarke.
Church Ornaments: First Presbyterian Church 175^th anniversary postcard ornaments are available for $10. The porcelain ornaments feature a picture of the Sanctuary with the anniversary date 1843-2018. Place your order here.

LOOKING AHEAD
June 5 – Pentecost (ONE Service at 11:00am in the Sanctuary; Sunday School at 9:45/10:00am)

June 12 – Summer Worship Schedule Begins
June 12 – Welcome Reception for John Daniel DeBevoise
June 13 – CAST Camp
June 15 – Youth Hike
June 26 – Installation of Rev. Alan F. Dyer (ONE Service at 10:30am, Sanctuary)
June 27-30 – VBS

More activities and events can be found in First News.

Unsubscribing
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