M ER. First Presbyterian Church s Summer Book Group. Montreat Youth Conference Congratulations Andrew Corzine

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1 J u l y 10, First Presbyterian Church Newsletter Sunday Worship:10:45 a.m. 110 North Adams Street Tallahassee, Florida Phone (850) Fax (850) office@oldfirstchurch.org w e b s i t e : w w w. o l d fi r s t c h u r c h. o r g Pastor s Blog: b r a n t c o p e l a n d. c o m CHURCH OFFICE HOURS: 9:00 AM 12:30 PM AND 1:30PM 5:00PM, Monday Friday First Presbyterian Church s Summer Book Group Congratulations Andrew Corzine Thursday, July 20 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. we will meet to discuss the issues and questions raised in the book, Waking Up White: Finding Myself in the Story of Race. We will focus on the first half of the book. Andrew graduated from Furman University in Greenville, SC, on May 6, He was awarded the BA degree Cum Laude in Music and English. As a percussionist, he participated in the Furman Marching Band, the Symphonic Band, the Furman Percussion Ensemble, and the Symphony Orchestra. His English interests were in creative writing and film. He has returned to Tallahassee to find work while contemplating graduate school in a year. S M ER M U Montreat Youth Conference 2017 Our combined First and Fellowship Youth Group along with chaperones and cooks, will head to the Montreat Youth Conference on July 23 and will return on July 29. We are thankful for those who have agreed to come as cooks for our contingent: Peggy Wright Cleveland, Amy Guthrie, Kerry Laird and Beverly Booth and those who will be chaperoning: Glenn Laird, Mary Vance, Lucas Heiker and Christy Williams. Please pray for our group of approximately 22 youth and the adults who are working with them as we journey to North Carolina. Usher Captains Needed Please join us for dinner this Sunday, July 16 at 6 pm in the Westminster Room. The Care and Outreach team will set up and provide lemonade you bring something to share. No rules, just food! Usher captains are needed for the summer months. You need not be an elder or even a member of the church; ANYONE can serve as an usher. It's easy, fun, and a great way to meet members of the First Presbyterian family. You can sign up online at the church website, send an to lpstevenson444@comcast.net or call or text Larry Stevenson at Larry is happy to talk with you about it and answer any questions you have.

2 Pastor s Column by Brant S. Copeland First Presbyterian s Summer Camp has been operating more years than I can remember. It began as a month-long day camp for elementary and middle -school age children, staffed by college and high-school counselors. Under Christy Williams able direction, the mission of the program was not only to provide activities and Christian nurture for campers, but also to serve as a training laboratory for young people. Through the years, dozens of young leaders cut their teeth as counselors. For many, being a counselor at Summer Camp was their first paid job. The campers in our program have always been a good mix of children from First Presbyterian, graduates of the Preschool and their siblings, and children from the community. In recent years, however, the number of elementary -age campers has dwindled. For the past two summers, Dr. Williams (I have to call her that every now and then) has held the camp for middle school-aged campers. Last summer, Camp culminated in a sojourn to Dogwood Acres, the outdoor ministry of the Presbytery of Florida. Last week, 15 campers went to Dogwood for the Night Owl Camp. Christy and I served as the camp chaplains. I wish I could convey to you the transformation that takes place when young people experience Dogwood. It begins when they surrender their cell phones and other electronic paraphernalia. It continues as they experience God s natural world and get to know college -age counselors who take a genuine interest in them and are committed to their welfare. Even after one night, the campers begin to let down their guard and give themselves permission truly to be themselves. No dissing is allowed at Dogwood. If you make a negative comment or put a colleague down, you are obliged to give that person at least 3 complements! Every contribution to worship and every act at the Talent Show is soundly supported. The kid who can barely read her Bible out loud and the kid who mumbles his lines in a skit are both praised and affirmed. You can see the shyest camper blossom right before your eyes. In other words, Dogwood is a safe place. I would even say a thin place a place where God s presence can be felt. When you look at photos of our campers, you will notice more racial diversity than you ll see in Sunday morning worship. In fact, the majority of our campers are African American. And many of those campers have been coming to camp since they were kindergarteners. When I look those photos, I see the church that God is calling us to be. Step by step, we re getting closer to the kingdom. Lectionary Readings Summer Childcare at FPC on Sunday Mornings July 16, th Sunday after Pentecost Genesis 25:19-34 Psalm 119: Romans 8:1-11 Matthew 13:1-9, July 23, th Sunday after Pentecost Genesis 28:10-19a Psalm 139:1-12, Romans 8:12-25 Matthew 13:24-30, Our nursery and preschool rooms are staffed by childcare providers from the Heavenly Helpers Agency. These childcare professionals are background checked and trained in infant/child first aid and CPR. They are present in both rooms from 10:00 a.m. Noon each Sunday. Main Floor Nursery: Our nursery is for infants and toddlers up to three years old. Parents can drop children off beginning at 10:00 a.m. and children will be cared for through the worship hour. There is a sign in sheet for parents to list who will be picking their child up, an emergency phone number and any particular needs the child may have while in the church s care. Children should come with a bottle or sippy cup, preferred snack and diapers. Diaper wipes and additional snacks are available. Preschool Care: Beginning at age three, children go to the third floor preschool room. Drop-off begins at 10:00 a.m. and children are cared for through the worship hour. There is a sign in sheet for parents. Snacks are provided.

3 STILL SEEKING GUEST EDITORS UPDATE: No back-up as of today. Save the Date Sunday, August 27th 3:30-5:00 pm Presbyterian Women's Fall Gathering In the Westminster Room The Reverend Trinity Whitley will introduce our new Horizons Bible Study Cloud of Witnesses The Community of Christ in Hebrews This year, we will bring school supplies for our Preschool. Watch future newsletters for a list of needed items. Have you wondered what it would be like to prepare and edit our newsletter? Do you use Microsoft Publisher or another publishing software the can be converted into a pdf? If so, there s an opportunity for you to serve. Preparing the newsletter each week is a joy filled ministry for me and I hope to be able to continue to do this for many years to come. That being said, it would be great to have back-up! I would like to assure that there is at least one person, preferably 2 or 3, who is/are prepared to fill in for me occasionally. If you are interested in serving, please contact Kathee Winstead at newsletter@oldfirstchurch.org. Employment Opportunity Part-time Administrative Assistant UKirk Tallahassee, a Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) campus ministry, is looking for a part-time Administrative Assistant. The Administrative Assistant will perform a variety of administrative and clerical tasks, including financial record keeping through Quickbooks, scheduling facility usage, creating flyers and social media events to promote ministry activities, organizing ministry meals, and interacting with students and faculty. Duties of the Administrative Assistant include providing support to our Campus Minister, assisting in daily office needs and managing UKirk s general administrative activities. The ideal candidate should have excellent oral and written communication skills, a welcoming presence, computer proficiency (Quickbooks, Word, Microsoft Publisher or Adobe Creative Suite, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), and organization. Salary: $15/hour Hours per week: hours Application process: Submit a resume, cover letter, a personal and professional recommendation. Please send to shannon@faithpcusa.org no later than July 15th. Schedule for summer Newsletters July 24 Resume weekly publication August 7 Please plan your submissions for publication in the newsletter accordingly. Although the deadline for submission of an article is noon on the publication date, you may always submit earlier; just specify the date or dates you wish the article to appear. Submit items for publication to: newsletter@oldfirstchurch.org

4 SUMMER CAMP WEEK ONE Summer Camp at First Presbyterian spent the first week of camp together playing, taking field trips (Fun Station, The Old Capitol Museum and The Animal Shelter) and doing service projects.

5 SUMMER CAMP WEEK TWO Our second week of camp was spent at our Presbytery s camp, Dogwood Acres. Brant Copeland and Christy Williams were the chaplains for the short week. Lucas Heiker and Aidan Tozer were two of the 14 counselors recruited to work with campers and prep the activities at camp. Together we studied the Bible, hiked, swam, ate, slept, danced, displayed our comic-talents and learned to live in Christian community as well as love the great outdoors.

6 First Presbyterian Church Calendar for JULY 2017 Date Time Event Location Comments Sunday Schedule 10:00 a.m. Nursery Opens Education Building Care for children last through the worship hour. 10:45 a.m. Lord's Day Service Sanctuary All are welcome. 10:00 a.m. Choir Rehearsal Choir Room Each Sunday morning during Summer Schedule. Sunday, July 13 6:00 p.m. Summer Potluck Supper Westminster Room Bring a dish to share. Thursday July 20 6:30p.m. Summer Book Group Education Building Discussion of the issues in the first half of Waking Up White: Finding Myself in the Story of Race.