April 2020 - fpcgeorgetown.org...Apr 10, 2020 · April 12, when worship will be live-streamed. The...

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April 2020

RRRRR O OO OO OO OO O T E D .T E D .T E D .T E D .T E D . R E FR E FR E FR E FR E F O R M E D .O R M E D .O R M E D .O R M E D .O R M E D . R E L E VR E L E VR E L E VR E L E VR E L E VA N TA N TA N TA N TA N T.....

G E O R G E T O W N , T E X A S

FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

FIRSTWORD

Dr. Sallie Watson, General Presbyter of MissionPresbytery, and Pastor Bobby at his installationMarch 1. Turn to page 3 for more photos.

T H E C H U R C HT H E C H U R C HT H E C H U R C HT H E C H U R C HT H E C H U R C H &

How the coronavirus affects ourworship and other gatheringsat First Presbyterian Church

Taking unprecedented but nec-essary action, First Presbyte-rian Church’s session voted byemail on March 17 to suspendall activities at the church un-til Monday, May 11, to help reduce thespread of the coronavirus, COVID-19. Theseactivities include worship services, SundaySchool, circles, Bible studies, LOGOS.Stephen Minister continuing educationprograms, senior seminars, session anddeacon meetings, committee meetings andchoir and bell rehearsals.

In-personactivitiessuspended

This action was recommended to thesession by Pastor Bobby after a meeting ofthe staff and the Safety and Security Com-mittee. He also took into consideration theWilliamson County judge’s declarationMarch 14 of a local state of disaster andimposing an eight-week ban on all gath-erings of more than 50 people.

Sunday services during this time willbe live-streamed from the Worship Center-Fellowship Hall.

Pastor Bobby called it “a painful anddifficult decision for the session,” butknowing “that the best way we can loveour neighbors in this unique time is to doour part in slowing the spread and dimin-ishing the impact of the COVID-19 virus,a virus that is proving particularly detri-mental to older adults but is readily car-ried and spread by folks of any age.”

The session will assess plans weekly andlet the congregation know if they change.

The day before the Sunday serviceMarch 15, the session voted to cancel in-person worship and live-stream a sermonby Dr. Tom Currie, a service whose par-ticipants included Penny Leone, MonicaKoenig, Philip Smith, Susan and ThomasIsenhour, Joy Bedford and Jeff Pratt.

In a letter to the congregation, PastorBobby said the staff and session have pro-visional plans “to help us continue andfollow Jesus together in this unique time.”

For an explanation of those plans, turnto page 4 and read the letter from PastorBobby.

2 Financial ReportApril CelebrationsEaster Lily Order FormAll-Church Retreat

3 Installation PhotosFlowers in WorshipEaster Lily Order Form

4 Letter from PastorBobby

5 New Members6 Presbyterian Women6 Ways to Give8 April Calendar9 Spotlight: Transient

Ministry12 Three Generations in

the Choir

Youth Ministry7 DL’s Column

Mission7 The Caring Place

Mission Sewing

Compassionate Care2 Among Our People8 Points from Parish

Nurse

12 F I R S T W O R D

elder and deacon at First Pres inDenton.

Of the FPC Chancel Choir, Donsays, “It’s fantastic—the best I’vesung in or conducted,” and he hasperformed with and often led manychoirs.

Tricia has been a member of FPCsince 2000 and was married to herhusband Chris here in 1997. “I gaveher away in the Sanctuary,” her dadrecalls. Both Ema, now 21, a soprano,and Carter, a tenor baritone, 16, werebaptized here and grew up in Sun-day School, LOGOS, LOGOS musi-cals and youth group.

Through Chris’s family, Ema andCarter are 7th generation George-town residents. Chris’ mother wasFPC member JoBeth Carter, now de-ceased. She first joined the churchin 1976 and was a member from 1985until her death in 2016. Tricia metChris, a church member since 1996,

when she moved to this area towork after college.

Tricia was FPC Director ofChildren’s Choirs for 11 years anddirected LOGOS musicals every yearduring that time, with Ema andCarter both participating. “In everysingle one of them,” they both echo.A tenor, Tricia has sung in the choirfor years and plays with the handbellchoir. She and two other women jointhe male tenors on the back tworows of the choir loft. “They makeup half of our tenor section,” Donsays with a laugh.

Ema: both singer and dancerEma sang in the choir and performedduets and solos for Youth Sundayservices while in high school. Shegraduated cum laude from StephenF. Austin State University last De-cember with a major in dance edu-cation and minor in English. Shecame home to work and look for ateaching job. Carter, an East ViewHigh School sophomore, has alsosung in the choir, occasionally forcantatas and other events.

While looking for a school posi-tion teaching dance, Ema is teach-ing dance at a local studio andworking on the central and southTexas staff of the American Danceand Drill Team School in Salado. Aformer drill team member at EastView High School, she judges dancecompetitions all over the regionsponsored by the school.

Pastor Bobby asked Ema to per-form a liturgical dance to “Seek YeFirst” and “Kumbaya” as part of theSunday, March 29, service (live-streamed) during the Lenten seriesof sermons on prayer.

She said, “I was unsure abouthow to approach such an emotionaland worshipful style when I heardabout the idea of incorporating litur-gical dance into this specific day’sworship. I know that God used thisopportunity for me to glorify him,using the talents he has given me. Iam so thankful for the chance toshare this wonderfully vulnerableform of worship with our congrega-tion.” —Marty Curtis

The Chancel Choir gained a newmember recently, and three genera-tions of a family, when Don Curljoined daughter Tricia Osborne,granddaughter Ema Osborne andgrandson Carter Osborne to sing atthe 11 a.m. worship service. It maybe a first. Two generations havebeen represented in the choir, butthree may be a record.

Don moved to Georgetown tolive with his daughter’s family in2018 and recently joined the churchafter visiting the Osbornes here formany years with his wife, now de-ceased. “This has been the closestthing to a church family that I’veknown in a few years,” he said. Donhas bachelor’s and master’s degreesin music education and is a formerschool band director. As a memberof First Presbyterian in Edinburg,Don, a baritone, directed the choirand served as elder, and he was an

Three generations in the choir

Clockwise

from left:

Don

Ema

Tricia

Carter

2 F I R S T W O R D

ANNIVERSARIES

Boldface indicatesa member of

First Presbyterian Church

BIRTHDAYS

Among Our People

Year to Date - February 2020General Operating Fund

ActualAnnualBudget

YTD %AnnualBudget

Income and Expense Report

Pledges $212,398 $841,881 25% Other $27,553 $105,180 26% TOTAL $239,951 $947,061 25% Expenses Validated Mission $11,926 $57,593 21% Local/Other Mission $1,000 $29,802 3 % Ministry of the Word $22,765 $148,5010 15% Program/Support Staff $79,450 $468,710 17% Christian Education $4,552 $39,350 12% Music and Worship $1,623 $21,756 7 % Evangelism/Care $1,769 $11,115 16% Property $16,099 $90,500 18% Stewardship/Finance $2,980 $19,700 15% Other Oper. Expenses $7,677 $42,820 18% Debt Retirement $16,259 $97,548 17% TOTAL $166,1000 $1,027,395 16%

Income

1 Charles Brainard2 Seth Basey3 Johnny Decker4 Joan Dudding5 Eric Seaman6 Lea Ann Hutton7 Vivian Leloux

Elizabeth McFarling9 Cynthia Guidici

Melissa Pilcher10 Shirley Galloway11 Terri Boroczk

Joyce PorchKasyn Walden

12 Cindee Molenda13 Kaye Bishop

Stephen Schellenberg15 Joey Mikel16 Dennis Hilgman

Megan Perkins17 Jeremy Gambell

Meghan MolendaJoan Shrader

19 Bill HindsCathy HubbardPeggy Taylor

20 Patricia Alexander21 Rebekah Pilcher22 Cindy Bausch

Bruce SorensonNelson Stubblefield

23 Roger NelsonCathy ShirleyDean TaylorRachel Taylor

25 Sarah HammitAnn Hindman

26 Ouida HendersonGayle Taylor

27 Bill Stanley28 Zayden Gibson30 Larry Burk

Sarah Ferguson

1 Jeremy & Alicia Gambell2 Bob & Joan Lutz

Roger & Suzy Taylor3 Lee & Amanda McIntosh7 Ken & Marilyn Peters12 Shawn Levsen & Adrianne

Brandt19 Chris & Tricia Osborne21 Bill & Faith Baechtel23 Bill & Margaret Shirley24 David & Carol Siekmeier

In the hospital last month: Jennifer Gunn(surgery) and Harvey Henning.

Our sympathy to: The Stubblefield Family on the deathof Carolyn’s mother and Terri’s grand-mother, Genevieve Boernecke, February27. Services were held March 6 in Okla-homa. Patrick & Amanda Tolbert on the deathof Patrick’s grandmother, Bobbie ErskineHesterly, February 27. Services were heldMarch 7 in Arkansas. Guy & Cynthia Guidici on the death ofCynthia’s father, Roy Vernon Boyd, Feb-ruary 27. Services were held March 13 inHurst. Beverly & Collin Jones on the death ofBeverly’s husband and Collin’s father, Rev.Dr. Justin B. Jones, March 9. He wasordained May 1, 1978, and served churchesin Nebraska, Georgia and Texas. He washonorably retired by Mission PresbyteryOctober 1, 2016. Services will be held at alater date.

In memoriam: Myrna McKee joined theChurch Triumphant on March 12. Serviceswill be held in Pennsylvania at a later date.Myrna had been a member of our congre-gation since November 1985.

Serving in the military: Col. Brian Burk,Larry Burk’s son; Maj. Josh Daleiden,Betty Bradford’s grandson-in-law; JohnDecker; Jared A. Gross, Robert Bedford’snephew; Brian Hall; Capt. Daniel Ham-mond, Keith & Sue Renard’s grandson-in-law; Garrett Herbst; 1st Staff Sgt. Mat-thew L. Johnson, son of Glen & Ann Kai-ser; Brandon Keith, Phil & Jeanne Smith’sson-in-law; Nicolaas Leloux; Tech. Sgt.Robert McClanahan, grandson of MintaMcIntosh and nephew of Lee McIntosh;Sgt. 1st Class Paul Rayburn; NicholasStamos, Larry & Helen Burk’s grandson;and Christian Winckel, grandson of SandyHayes.

September 18 - 20Mo-Ranch Hunt, Texas

Dr. Cindy RigbyGuest Speaker & Worship Leader

All-ChurchRetreat - 2020

We hope you will go with us.Registration begins April 15.

Visit moranch.org for more informationabout the Conference Center.

Would you like to help plan the retreat?Do you have a question?

Contact Joy Bedford, 512-863-3381or [email protected].

F I R S T W O R D 11

shown up in dire need, and helped withtheir transportation.

Our church “Transient AssistanceGuidelines,” which Christina uses, say:“If a person is insistent that they needmoney, give them up to $20 if you have itwith you. The church will reimburse you.This is to keep any one person from tyingup a great deal of your time.”

Those same guidelines read: “When aperson calls or comes into the office look-ing for financial assistance, the followingguidelines should be used. We DO NOThelp with rent or utility payments. Referall persons to The Caring Place. Our localmission money goes directly to The Car-ing Place for this specific purpose. In someinstances when a meal is all that is needed,we can offer a $10 H-E-B gift card, if avail-able. An applicant is eligible for a gift card onlyonce a quarter.”

At one time, FPC was a member of theGeorgetown Ministerial Alliance, whichdesignated a “Church of the Month,” towhich all other churches would referpeople seeking assistance during thatmonth. Christina said there has been dis-cussion of FPC’s again becoming a mem-ber of that group. If that happens, otherguidelines or practices would be consid-ered for our church’s transient ministry.

—Marty Curtis

families, Christina said. They are trulyless fortunate. These same people, wholive at or below the federal poverty level,are often clients of The Caring Place’sFood Pantry and its other services. “Al-though sometimes when they come intoour church office they may have ex-hausted the resources available to themat The Caring Place,” she added. Per-haps a more accurate description of thisFPC mission would be “Transient/Out-reach Ministry.”

So to answer the question: “Whydoesn’t the church office just refer thesepeople to The Caring Place?” They mayhave already been there and exhaustedthat resource.

One of the suggestions for use of do-nations to this mission is the purchaseof $20 H-E-B or Walmart gift cards begiven to families, with the $10 cards forindividuals.

Some of the people who come intothe church office for help are whatChristina describes as “regulars.” Theyhave been here for many years and arewell known to her and the previouschurch secretary, Cindee Molenda. Ac-cording to Christina, Cindee wouldoften give people money of her own, andoften give them a ride if they had noother means of transportation. Staffover the years have, no doubt, openedtheir pocketbooks to people who have

Mission Advocate(continued from page 9)

2,621 # of unduplicated families served6,659 # of unduplicated individuals served

40% below 18 years of age17% 55 years of age and above4% veteran or spouse/child of veteran33% uninsured13% homeless61% at or below 100% of the Federal

Poverty Level91% At or below 185% of the FederalPoverty Level

The Caring Place 2019 datathat reflect community need

Total resources provided: $3,259,047Food distributed to area families thru 4

food programs: 1,559,492 lbs.# Meals provided to area families: 1,299,577

Helping Handsof Georgetown provides meals inthe community forthe underserved,working poor andhomeless. Volun-

teers go out Monday-Thursday each weekto hand out brown bag lunches from amobile canteen. The organization alsoprovides a hot meal each Sunday night.Volunteers distribute any items they havecollected (clothes, toiletries, food) to peoplein areas of the community with a highneed, as well as areas with a homelesspopulation.

Ways our churchand membershelp people

in need

—From TCP’s 2019Annual Report

The 2020 FPC budgethas $400 earmarkedfor “transient minis-try” and has beenused to buy $10 H-E-Bgift cards (40 total),which are given topeople seeking assis-tance. LOGOS children make

“Blessing Bags” thatare given to peoplewho ask for help atthe church office. Look on the back of

your bulletin thisSunday to see a list ofboth local and globalagencies and entities,many of which servethe less fortunate.Those agencies andorganizations arerecipients of FPCmission dollars. Groups and individu-

als in our church,including the youth,volunteer to makesandwiches andlunches that aredistributed by HelpingHands of Georgetownfour days a week. (Seenext column.)Members volunteer at

The Caring Place, theGeorgetown Projectand Backpack Buddies(to mention just afew), which providefood and other ser-vices for adults andchildren.

F I R S T W O R D 3

Flowers in Worship/April

Sign up to donate flowersfor worship!Most people donate their arrangementafter the service to be used in ourFlower Ministry, which divides the ar-rangement into bud vases and re-giftsthem to our shut-ins and members inthe hospital.

Dr. Bobby Hulme-Lippert was in-stalled as pastor of First Presbyte-rian Church in a service held theafternoon of Sunday, March 1. In-stallation participants are (front,from left) Dr. Bill Pederson, Dr. RonSwain, Pastor Bobby and Dr. BillPoe; (middle row) Dr. Allen Hilton,Dr. Sallie Watson and Dr. StacyIkard; and (back) Karen Rayburn,Paul Stubbs and Evelyn Fox.

Dr. Bill Poe (left), FPC’s transitionalpastor during 2018-19, delivers thecharge to Bobby.

5 Tim & Becky Kennedy12 Easter lilies19 Marcia Sloma26 Ron & Patsy Becker

Name

I wish to donate Easter lily(ies) at $10 each, at a total cost of $

In honor of:

In memory of:

In celebration of:

Easter Lilies in Worship April 12

We will decorate the Worship Center-Fellowship Hall with lilies for Easter Sunday,April 12, when worship will be live-streamed. The flowers are $10 each. Make yourcheck payable to FPC and write “Easter Lilies” on the memo line. Complete this formand include it with your check. You may bring/mail it to the church office.

Please take my plantto a homebound or illperson.

I will pick up my plant(s)no later than April 17.


LOGOS got involved because,Jaime said, “we were looking formission projects that our kids couldphysically take part in. When thisidea came up, we knew it would meeta need in the community, and it wassomething the kids could help with.”

Bottled water, 2 granola bars,box of raisins, peanut buttercrackers, fruit snacks, chew-ing gum, gummies, lip balm,bar of soap, wet wipes, tis-sues, toothbrush/paste, floss,pair of socks and bandaids.

Left, Maddox Azuma-Hall andCathy Ramsey assemble bags.

What’s in a Blessing Bag?

The dental items in the bags are donated by thedentist practice in Hutto of Dr. John McEntire,FPC member.

The other side of the resourcesheet is decorated with a message bya LOGOS child. LOGOS pays formost Blessing Bag items with mon-ies from its annual fundraising din-ner. Some are donated by generouschurch members. —Marty Curtis

A label on the bag reads: “Youmatter! You are not forgotten!Hope this Blessing Bag brightensyour day! The church name,address, phone and web pageaddress also are on the label.

From left, Jaime Cowan, Christina Bondesen and Dawn Bookert check threeBlessing Bags to make sure all items are there.

LOGOS Blessing Bags for transient or homeless peopleAn FPC Blessing Bag is somethingChristina Bondesen can give a per-son seeking assistance at the church,even if he or she isn’t eligible for anH-E-B gift card that day. She will of-fer a bag to “anyone who walksthrough the door asking for help.”

Dawn Bookert, new mission ad-vocate for FPC’s transient/outreachmission, is familiar with these bags.Using LOGOS funds, she buys the17 items that are are put in largebaggies by LOGOS children. Lastyear, 30 bags were assembled. Thispast January, 60 Blessing Bags wereproduced, Dawn said.

The idea for Blessing Bags origi-nated with FPC staff member KathiDavenport. LOGOS Director JaimeCowan said, “She heard us talkingabout ways we as a church couldhelp those folks who come throughthe church doors looking for assis-tance. Kathi packs her own BlessingBags and she told us what’s in them.”

Jaime added, “Christina re-searched other items to include in ourbags. She also spent time looking forplaces or resources where recipientsof our Blessing Bags can go for helpin Williamson County. The result isa reference sheet that we include inevery bag.”

4 F I R S T W O R D

March 18, 2020

Dear First Presbyterian Church Family,

I continue to be grateful for the remarkable service ofworship put together and led by Rev. Dr. Tom Currie,Penny Leone, Philip Smith, Susan Isenhour, MonicaKoenig, Tim Smith, Jeff Pratt, Joy Bedford and ThomasIsenhour. It was such a joy, as well, to see how interac-tive so many of you were with that unique service.

I am writing to provide the latest update and plans thatthe session has for the church. We have taken into ac-count guidance from the CDC, and we are mindful of theeight-week ban that Williamson County has placed ongatherings of more than 50 (which began on Monday,March 16, and ends on Monday, May 11). Most centrally,we seek to love one another and our community in thebest way possible. In light of all of this, the session hasvoted to suspend all in-person activities at the churchuntil Monday, May 11. These activities include worshipservices, Sunday school, circles, Bible studies, StephenMinister continuing education, senior seminar, sessionand deacon meetings, committee meetings, choir and bellrehearsals, and LOGOS. Be assured, however, that weare still active with staff, session, and practicing our wor-ship continuously in albeit different ways.

We will assess these plans weekly and let you know if orwhen anything shifts from them. We want to remain flex-ible and adaptable as the situation evolves, and certainlyit would bring us great joy if we could meet again in-person before May.

Know, however, that as things stand right now this is apainful and difficult decision for the session. We readilyrecognize how foundational and formational our timetogether is. However, we also know that the best waywe can love our neighbors in this unique time is to doour part in slowing the spread and diminishing the im-pact of the COVID-19 virus, a virus which is provingparticularly detrimental to older adults but is readily car-ried and spread by folks of any age.

The staff and session have worked hard to come up withsome provisional plans to help us continue and followJesus together in this unique time. Below are some of theinitial plans, and these will be updated and improved aswe move through the coming days.

Worship: Like this past Sunday, worship will be live-streamed. We have already worked on improvementsto the audio so that it will come through more clearly

L E T T E R F R O M P A S T O R B O B B Y

this time around. The link for worship will be sentvia email on the Friday before worship. The link willalso be posted to Facebook and on the church website.The email will also include a worship bulletin anddiscussion questions that your household can workthrough after the service of worship. Hard copies ofthe sermon will be sent to members who do not haveor use computers, and those hard copies will also bemade available on the church’s website.

A Note on Memorial Services—If we have a deathin the congregation during this time, close familymay choose to have a service at the church orgraveside. However, public memorial services willbe scheduled after May 11.

Congregational Care: Each week, the officers of thechurch will be calling all of the members of the churchto check in and inquire ways the church can be help-ing in this time. When you receive your call, pleasetake the opportunity to express any needs you haveor ways the church can be helpful. Throughout thisseason, we will pay special attention to those whoare most isolated or already homebound and nowcannot receive visitors due to new visiting restric-tions in place at a number of our resident communi-ties. We will also do twice-a-week mailings to thosemembers who do not have or use a computer. Thosemailings will include things like the printed copies ofthe sermon, the bulletin for Sunday’s upcoming ser-vice and devotionals.

A Note on Transportation:Medical Appointments—For any members who needassistance getting to and from medical appointments,Penny Leone ([email protected]) is the pointof contact. She can assist in coordinating those, andanyone interested in helping provide rides may lether know of your willingness to do that.

Grocery Store Runs—For members who cannot shopfor groceries themselves or need to be especially mind-ful about avoiding crowds right now, please do nothesitate to contact Kathy Kerr Kubatzky ([email protected] or 512-705-7696). She is the pointof contact who will ensure a congregant will do thatfor you. If you would like to help shop for and de-liver groceries for members, please contact Kathy soshe has your information.

Education and Nurture: Joy Bedford, Jaime Cowan,David Lee and Sarah Hulsey and the Education andNurture Committee are pulling together various ideas

F I R S T W O R D 9

S P O T L I G H T

FPC’sTransientMinistry/Mission

“Then the righteouswill answer him,

saying, ‘Lord,when did we seeyou hungry and

feed you, or thirstyand give you

drink? And whendid we see you a

stranger andwelcome you, ornaked and clotheyou? And when

did we see you sickor in prison and

visit you?’ And theKing will answer

them, ‘Truly, I sayto you, as you didit to one of the least

of these mybrothers, youdid it to me.’”

—Matthew 25:37-40

There’s a new Mission Advocate at FirstPresbyterian, joining the 25-plus memberswho already advocate for a mission sup-ported by our church.

Dawn Bookert, Mission Committeemember and member of the LOGOS board,had a concern that the church’s TransientMinistry could use more resources. “At aLOGOS board meeting last fall, someonementioned we were almost out of gift cardsfor walk-ins. This was well before Thanks-giving. A discussion followed about thegrowing needs of the community.”

Not long after that, she said, “PastorBobby asked me to lead a prayer resourcetable on missions for the Leadership Re-treat in January. While preparing for that,I noticed there wasn’t an advocate for thetransient mission.”

In February, when the Mission Com-mittee discussed it as an agenda item,Dawn volunteered to be the advocate forthe Transient Ministry “because I believeit is a worthy mission based on scripture.”And the first thing she did was proposethat more monies be found to support theministry, which has a budget of just $400in 2020. She learned that someone com-ing to our church is eligible to receive a$10 H-E-B gift card each quarter (a totalof four each year, and a “Blessing Bag”with food and toiletry items. “I don’t think

(continued on page 11)

we’re doing enough to serve this popula-tion,” Dawn said.

At its February meeting, the Sessionvoted to allow donations from membersdirectly to the Transient Ministry fund, aline item in the mission budget. That $400has already been spent this year, buying40 $10 H-E-B gift cards in January to behanded out to individuals who seek as-sistance, mainly for food, in the churchoffice during 2020. Those 40 cards are ex-pected to last all year. Such gift cards can’tbe spent on alcoholic beverages or ciga-rettes. But they can be used to buy gas.

Christina Bondesen, church officemanager, is responsible for dispensing thegift cards, and she says that often her sup-ply is depleted by Thanksgiving, whensome people come in needing money tofeed their families during the holiday.

“Transient” might be a misnomer forthe target population this mission serves.Transient is defined as “a person travel-ing about, usually in search of work, aguest or boarder who stays only brieflyin a place.” In truth, although some aretransients or homeless, many of thoseseeking assistance are not transient orhomeless. They reside in Georgetown,although they may move around often,and don’t have enough money to makeends meet, or feed themselves or their

It now has its own Mission Advocate

F I R S T W O R D 5

to facilitate in-home discipleship opportunities forindividuals and families. More will be communicatedas those plans unfold. For now, know that minimallywe plan to email a devotional each morning duringthis extended time of social distancing. The devotionalis entitled “Closing the Distance: A Daily Devotional.”We hope it proves a source of encouragement in thistime.

Mission—The Mission Committee has been reachingout to our ministry partners to inquire about bestways we can be supporting them in this time. Wewill update you as opportunities present themselves.

Website—In the next 24 hours, we will have a newbanner on the front page of our website related to allof our plans being made in light of the COVID-19virus. Simply click on that banner, and you will betaken to a page with the latest information and re-sources.

Financial Stewardship: We hope you will continueto financially support FPC and our ministriesthrough this difficult time. You can do this in a fewways: Checks—You can mail your checks to the church

office (703 S. Church St., Georgetown, TX 78626) Direct Deposit—You can set up direct deposit with

the church. Contact Sue Bell if you would like to dothis ([email protected]). Online Giving—You can give one time or set up

recurring donations via online giving. Go tofpcgeorgetown.org and click on the “Give” buttonin the upper right-hand corner.

Church Office: We will remain open, but some staffwill be working remotely more frequently, both aswe attempt to keep a measure of social distance andbecause some of the staff are also doing more childcaregiven that many schools and daycares are closed forthe time being.

Summer Plans: If your committee has ministry plansfor the summer, continue forward with those. It isdifficult to know where we will be at that point, butfor now it makes sense to continue making your plansand meeting (virtually) as needed.

This hardly covers every detail that has been discussedamong the staff and session, but we do hope it gives youa solid picture of the current plan and some of the wayswe sense God calling us to step forward in faith for sucha time as this. Know, again, it grieves us deeply that weare not gathering as usual, but we do give thanks forGod’s abundant faithfulness and we are deeply encour-aged by the continued love and support that all havebeen offering one another in this time.

Certainly, we commend you to continue in that greatwork: Feel free to make phones calls and write letters toone another. Connect over social media. Create digitalsmall groups. Reach out to folks who sit in the pewsaround you each week; if nothing else, let them knowyou are thinking of them and praying for them in thistime. Undoubtedly, the gifts of God will be made knownall the more fully in the coming days as we connect withone another in these simple ways.

Grace and Peace in the Lord Jesus Christ,

Don Curl joined January 12by Reaffirmation of Faith.He is retired and enjoyshunting, fishing, horses anddogs. He is the father of FPCmember Tricia Osborne.(108 Ridge Oak Dr., George-town 78628; 956-874-5909)

Welcome,,,,, NEW MEMBERS

Roy & Nell Tucker joined last October 27by Letter of Transfer from First Pres-byterian, Crockett. Roy and Nell are bothretired educators and enjoy traveling. (704Rosedale Blvd., Georgetown 8628; 512-943-8618)

8 F I R S T W O R D

Points from Parish Nurse PennyPenny Leone, RNParish Nurse

[email protected]

C O M P A S S I O N A T E C A R E M I N I S T R Y

By the time you receive this , you will havesaid, thought, heard or written corona-virus or COVID-19 hundreds, if not thou-sands, of times. I honestly consideredNOT saying anything about it, knowingthat you’d be SICK (pun intended) of hear-ing about it. Then, what kind of parishnurse would I be to miss the opportunity?

A few facts about viruses in general:What is a virus? It’s a submicroscopic

microorganism that cannot grow or rep-licate apart from a living cell. Viruses areconsidered to be the most abundant bio-logical entities on earth. Viruses come indifferent shapes, such as round, spheri-cal, tubular, 12-sided or crown-shaped.(The family of viruses that looks like acrown is called coronavirus.)

What is a virus made of? A virus hasDNA or RNA (genetic materials) sur-rounded by protein. Some also have alipid (fat) layer. Unlike a cell, it does nothave organelles (a nucleus, mitochondria,ribosomes.)

How does a virus work? It invadesliving cells and uses the cell’s chemical ma-chinery to keep itself alive and replicate

itself. The cell is forced to produce thou-sands of identical copies of the originalvirus which spread to other cells, and thecycle starts again.

What can’t a virus do? 1) It can’t re-produce on its own. It must have a hostcell. 2) It can’t respond to anything. It can’tmove on its own. 3) It doesn’t have work-ing parts.

How long does a virus live outside ofa cell? This varies according to the type ofvirus, the temperature, the humidity andthe surface it lands on. Generally, viruseslive better on hard surfaces (plastics, met-als, etc.), whereas bacteria prefer soft sur-faces (fabrics, etc.).

How do I get rid of a virus? God madeyou wonderfully and fearfully! Your bodyworks hard as soon as you are infected tosend the virus packing. So rest (your bodyis working hard), drink plenty of fluids(your body uses fluids to flush out tox-ins) and eat healthy food. Seek medical careif your symptoms become worse. To loveyour neighbor, cover your cough, washyour hands frequently and stay home ifyou are ill.

Senior SeminarThursday, April 16

andVibrant Living Seminar

Monday, April 20

Canceled:

AprilCalendar

WEDNESDAY

1

8

15

22

29

THURSDAY

2

97:30pm Tenebrae Service

16

23

30

FRIDAY

3Church Office Closedat noon

10Church Office Closed:Good Friday12:00pm Good Friday

Service




TUESDAY

3110:30am Pastoral Care11:00am Staff Meeting



2110:30am Pastoral Care11:00am Staff Meeting4:30pm Newsletter

Deadline


MONDAY

30

6

13Church Office Closed:Easter Monday

20

27

SUNDAY

29Dr. Bobby Hulme-Lippert Preaching11:00am Worship - WCFH

5Palm/Passion SundayDr. Bobby Hulme-Lippert Preaching11:00am Worship - WCFH

12Easter SundayDr. Bobby Hulme-Lippert Preaching11:00am Worship - WCFH



6 F I R S T W O R D

Though we will not be gathering for sev-eral weeks, First Presbyterian Church stillneeds your generous donations. Pleasechoose the form that best suits you, andthank you for continuing to support FPCin these uncertain times.

Cash/Check—Mail your check directly tothe church at:

First Presbyterian ChurchAttn: Financial Secretary703 S. Church StreetGeorgetown, TX 78626

Bill Pay—Setup an Online Bill Pay withyour bank. This option gives you controlof updating your information at any timeand does not incur fees for the church.

Online—Visit our webpage at fpcgeorgetown.org and click on “Give” for ouronline giving option. You can set up a one-time or recurring donation optionthrough our 3rd party PayPal. Once youclick on “Submit,” the form will take youto a separate page at PayPal in order toactually process the payment. This optiongives you control of updating your infor-mation at any time: Fees to the church are$0.30/transaction fee and 2.2% processingfee.

Automated ACH Debits—FPC bankswith First Texas Bank. Complete an “Au-thorization Agreement for AutomatedACH Debits” form and the Financial Sec-retary will process your donation eachmonth directly through First Texas Bankand your bank. Please email or call thechurch office if you would like a copy ofthis form. This option does not incur feesfor the church.

Direct Distribution from an IRA or TaxAdvantage Account such as a 401(k)—Those members who have reached the agewhere yearly minimum distributions mustbe made from their IRA, 401(k), etc., canhave a direct distribution (a charitable do-nation) paid directly to the church. Thismethod does not incur any fees for thechurch and has a tax advantage for themember as these funds count towards yourminimum distribution but do not counttowards your income for the year.

Securities—A charitable contribution oflong-term appreciated securities—stocks,bonds or mutual funds that have realizedsignificant appreciation over time—is an-other tax-efficient way to give. This methodof giving is popular due to the followingadvantages:

Any long-term appreciated securitieswith unrealized gains (meaning theywere purchased over a year ago and havea current value greater than the origi-nal cost) may be donated to a publiccharity and a tax deduction taken forthe full fair market value of the securi-ties (up to 30% of the donor’s adjustedgross income). Since the securities aredonated rather than sold, capital gainstaxes from selling the securities do notapply. The more the appreciation the se-curities have, the greater the tax sav-ings will be.

This option requires time for the trans-fer of assets and coordination with theChurch Financial Secretary. Fees uponsale of the assets by the church will beincurred. The donation will be includedon your annual giving statement.

W A Y S T O G I V E

Email:[email protected]

Website:www.fpcgeorgetown.org

First Presbyterian ChurchDr. Bobby Hulme-Lippert

Pastor703 S. Church Street

Georgetown, TX 78626

FIRSTWORDpublished monthly by

Phone: 512-863-3381Fax: 512-868-1226

Consider these ways to give to thechurch during the coming weeks

While FPC is live-streaming services:Greetings, my Presbyte-rian Women! I sadlymust let you all knowabout some cancella-tions. The church issuspending all in-personactivities until May 11,and that will include allof our April circle meet-ings and our SpringGathering scheduled forApril 19.

As for May: We willlet you know throughyour circle leaders andchurch email announce-ments. I certainly missgetting to see you andyour beautiful faces, butas my mother hasalways wisely told me intimes of uncertainty,“this too, shall pass!”

I will leave you with averse from the book ofJohn: “Peace I leave withyou; my peace I give you. Ido not give to you as theworld gives. Do not let yourhearts be troubled and donot be afraid.” (John 14:27)

—In His Love,Becky Hesson-Smith

PresbyterianWomen

F I R S T W O R D 7

This semester during our WednesdayYouth Bible Studies we have been study-ing the fruits of the Spirit from Galatians5:22-23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love,joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, good-ness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is nolaw.” And I noticed a common misconcep-tion from the start of our series, not justfrom our youth, but from myself as well.

One of the favorite fruits is patience.I’ve said it, our youth have said it, andI’m sure you have said it: “Oh, yes, I needGod to give me more patience!” And that’swhere we have mixed up the factors andthe products (or results) of this “spiritual”equation. Take the equation 1 + 2 = 3, 1

and 2 being the factors, and 3 being theproduct or result. When we talk about thefruits of the Spirit, the fruits are the result(the end product) of the work of the HolySpirit inside us and our response to theSpirit.

And that’s why it’s been said, “Be care-ful what you pray for: God may give it toyou!” God doesn’t give us patience but in-stead will give us opportunities to respondto the Spirit that will result (bear fruit) inpatience.

I pray that during this challenging timeour church would be willing to respondto the Spirit in ways that would bear thefruits of the Spirit.

—God bless, David Lee Hulsey

Y O U T H M I N I S T R Y

M I S S I O N

Friends, because of the present concernabout the coronavirus, I have to report anumber of changes at The Caring Place.Both thrift stores, the one on RailroadAvenue and Second Helping on WilliamsDrive, are closed until further notice. Pro-grams and Services are also closed. TheFood Pantry will operate out of the dona-tions drive-thru from 10 a.m. to 12 noonnoon Tuesdays and Thursdays until fur-ther notice. There will be no daily bread.Donations of items are not being acceptedat the drop-off.

We are encouraged to make monetarydonations instead of food donations. Oneway of doing this is to use Amazon Smile.Designate The Caring Place as your non-profit, and 0.50% of the cost of your pur-chases can go to The Caring Place. Also,

you can link your Randalls RemarkableCard, designating The Caring Place asyour nonprofit organization. They willgive 1.0% of the cost of your purchases toThe Caring Place. Last, but not least, youcan make monetary donations, which willallow The Caring Place to purchase fooditems from the Capitol Area Food Bank.There we can buy three items for $1.

This is a tough time for all of us, but itwill hit those with monetary problemsmuch harder than the rest of us. Won’t youconsider monetary donations for the nextfew weeks?

For the effect of COVID-19 on The Car-ing Place operations, and updates, go towww.caringplacetx.org/covid-19.html orfollow the organization on Facebook@thecaringplace. —Jenny Carswell

Thank you to: Lenice Smithwick andAlison Harrison for thestuffed animals withblankets and books. The individual whogenerously donated thecolorful skeins ofdesigner yarns. Weappreciate yourthoughtfulness.

Any donations ofyour excess yarn, fabricand sewing suppliesmay be placed in theyarn barrel outside thechurch office.

—Kathy Jones

How you can help the The Caring Place whileservices are suspended until further notice

Mission Sewing

Studying the fruits of the Spirit

F I R S T W O R D 5

to facilitate in-home discipleship opportunities forindividuals and families. More will be communicatedas those plans unfold. For now, know that minimallywe plan to email a devotional each morning duringthis extended time of social distancing. The devotionalis entitled “Closing the Distance: A Daily Devotional.”We hope it proves a source of encouragement in thistime.

Mission—The Mission Committee has been reachingout to our ministry partners to inquire about bestways we can be supporting them in this time. Wewill update you as opportunities present themselves.

Website—In the next 24 hours, we will have a newbanner on the front page of our website related to allof our plans being made in light of the COVID-19virus. Simply click on that banner, and you will betaken to a page with the latest information and re-sources.

Financial Stewardship: We hope you will continueto financially support FPC and our ministriesthrough this difficult time. You can do this in a fewways: Checks—You can mail your checks to the church

office (703 S. Church St., Georgetown, TX 78626) Direct Deposit—You can set up direct deposit with

the church. Contact Sue Bell if you would like to dothis ([email protected]). Online Giving—You can give one time or set up

recurring donations via online giving. Go tofpcgeorgetown.org and click on the “Give” buttonin the upper right-hand corner.

Church Office: We will remain open, but some staffwill be working remotely more frequently, both aswe attempt to keep a measure of social distance andbecause some of the staff are also doing more childcaregiven that many schools and daycares are closed forthe time being.

Summer Plans: If your committee has ministry plansfor the summer, continue forward with those. It isdifficult to know where we will be at that point, butfor now it makes sense to continue making your plansand meeting (virtually) as needed.

This hardly covers every detail that has been discussedamong the staff and session, but we do hope it gives youa solid picture of the current plan and some of the wayswe sense God calling us to step forward in faith for sucha time as this. Know, again, it grieves us deeply that weare not gathering as usual, but we do give thanks forGod’s abundant faithfulness and we are deeply encour-aged by the continued love and support that all havebeen offering one another in this time.

Certainly, we commend you to continue in that greatwork: Feel free to make phones calls and write letters toone another. Connect over social media. Create digitalsmall groups. Reach out to folks who sit in the pewsaround you each week; if nothing else, let them knowyou are thinking of them and praying for them in thistime. Undoubtedly, the gifts of God will be made knownall the more fully in the coming days as we connect withone another in these simple ways.

Grace and Peace in the Lord Jesus Christ,

Don Curl joined January 12by Reaffirmation of Faith.He is retired and enjoyshunting, fishing, horses anddogs. He is the father of FPCmember Tricia Osborne.(108 Ridge Oak Dr., George-town 78628; 956-874-5909)

Welcome,,,,, NEW MEMBERS

Roy & Nell Tucker joined last October 27by Letter of Transfer from First Pres-byterian, Crockett. Roy and Nell are bothretired educators and enjoy traveling. (704Rosedale Blvd., Georgetown 8628; 512-943-8618)

8 F I R S T W O R D

Points from Parish Nurse PennyPenny Leone, RNParish Nurse

[email protected]

C O M P A S S I O N A T E C A R E M I N I S T R Y

By the time you receive this , you will havesaid, thought, heard or written corona-virus or COVID-19 hundreds, if not thou-sands, of times. I honestly consideredNOT saying anything about it, knowingthat you’d be SICK (pun intended) of hear-ing about it. Then, what kind of parishnurse would I be to miss the opportunity?

A few facts about viruses in general:What is a virus? It’s a submicroscopic

microorganism that cannot grow or rep-licate apart from a living cell. Viruses areconsidered to be the most abundant bio-logical entities on earth. Viruses come indifferent shapes, such as round, spheri-cal, tubular, 12-sided or crown-shaped.(The family of viruses that looks like acrown is called coronavirus.)

What is a virus made of? A virus hasDNA or RNA (genetic materials) sur-rounded by protein. Some also have alipid (fat) layer. Unlike a cell, it does nothave organelles (a nucleus, mitochondria,ribosomes.)

How does a virus work? It invadesliving cells and uses the cell’s chemical ma-chinery to keep itself alive and replicate

itself. The cell is forced to produce thou-sands of identical copies of the originalvirus which spread to other cells, and thecycle starts again.

What can’t a virus do? 1) It can’t re-produce on its own. It must have a hostcell. 2) It can’t respond to anything. It can’tmove on its own. 3) It doesn’t have work-ing parts.

How long does a virus live outside ofa cell? This varies according to the type ofvirus, the temperature, the humidity andthe surface it lands on. Generally, viruseslive better on hard surfaces (plastics, met-als, etc.), whereas bacteria prefer soft sur-faces (fabrics, etc.).

How do I get rid of a virus? God madeyou wonderfully and fearfully! Your bodyworks hard as soon as you are infected tosend the virus packing. So rest (your bodyis working hard), drink plenty of fluids(your body uses fluids to flush out tox-ins) and eat healthy food. Seek medical careif your symptoms become worse. To loveyour neighbor, cover your cough, washyour hands frequently and stay home ifyou are ill.

Senior SeminarThursday, April 16

andVibrant Living Seminar

Monday, April 20

Canceled:

AprilCalendar

WEDNESDAY

1

8

15

22

29

THURSDAY

2

97:30pm Tenebrae Service

16

23

30

FRIDAY


10Church Office Closed:Good Friday12:00pm Good Friday

Service




TUESDAY




2110:30am Pastoral Care11:00am Staff Meeting4:30pm Newsletter

Deadline


MONDAY

30

6

13Church Office Closed:Easter Monday

20

27

SUNDAY


5Palm/Passion SundayDr. Bobby Hulme-Lippert Preaching11:00am Worship - WCFH

12Easter SundayDr. Bobby Hulme-Lippert Preaching11:00am Worship - WCFH



4 F I R S T W O R D

March 18, 2020

Dear First Presbyterian Church Family,

I continue to be grateful for the remarkable service ofworship put together and led by Rev. Dr. Tom Currie,Penny Leone, Philip Smith, Susan Isenhour, MonicaKoenig, Tim Smith, Jeff Pratt, Joy Bedford and ThomasIsenhour. It was such a joy, as well, to see how interac-tive so many of you were with that unique service.

I am writing to provide the latest update and plans thatthe session has for the church. We have taken into ac-count guidance from the CDC, and we are mindful of theeight-week ban that Williamson County has placed ongatherings of more than 50 (which began on Monday,March 16, and ends on Monday, May 11). Most centrally,we seek to love one another and our community in thebest way possible. In light of all of this, the session hasvoted to suspend all in-person activities at the churchuntil Monday, May 11. These activities include worshipservices, Sunday school, circles, Bible studies, StephenMinister continuing education, senior seminar, sessionand deacon meetings, committee meetings, choir and bellrehearsals, and LOGOS. Be assured, however, that weare still active with staff, session, and practicing our wor-ship continuously in albeit different ways.

We will assess these plans weekly and let you know if orwhen anything shifts from them. We want to remain flex-ible and adaptable as the situation evolves, and certainlyit would bring us great joy if we could meet again in-person before May.

Know, however, that as things stand right now this is apainful and difficult decision for the session. We readilyrecognize how foundational and formational our timetogether is. However, we also know that the best waywe can love our neighbors in this unique time is to doour part in slowing the spread and diminishing the im-pact of the COVID-19 virus, a virus which is provingparticularly detrimental to older adults but is readily car-ried and spread by folks of any age.

The staff and session have worked hard to come up withsome provisional plans to help us continue and followJesus together in this unique time. Below are some of theinitial plans, and these will be updated and improved aswe move through the coming days.

Worship: Like this past Sunday, worship will be live-streamed. We have already worked on improvementsto the audio so that it will come through more clearly

L E T T E R F R O M P A S T O R B O B B Y

this time around. The link for worship will be sentvia email on the Friday before worship. The link willalso be posted to Facebook and on the church website.The email will also include a worship bulletin anddiscussion questions that your household can workthrough after the service of worship. Hard copies ofthe sermon will be sent to members who do not haveor use computers, and those hard copies will also bemade available on the church’s website.

A Note on Memorial Services—If we have a deathin the congregation during this time, close familymay choose to have a service at the church orgraveside. However, public memorial services willbe scheduled after May 11.

Congregational Care: Each week, the officers of thechurch will be calling all of the members of the churchto check in and inquire ways the church can be help-ing in this time. When you receive your call, pleasetake the opportunity to express any needs you haveor ways the church can be helpful. Throughout thisseason, we will pay special attention to those whoare most isolated or already homebound and nowcannot receive visitors due to new visiting restric-tions in place at a number of our resident communi-ties. We will also do twice-a-week mailings to thosemembers who do not have or use a computer. Thosemailings will include things like the printed copies ofthe sermon, the bulletin for Sunday’s upcoming ser-vice and devotionals.

A Note on Transportation:Medical Appointments—For any members who needassistance getting to and from medical appointments,Penny Leone ([email protected]) is the pointof contact. She can assist in coordinating those, andanyone interested in helping provide rides may lether know of your willingness to do that.

Grocery Store Runs—For members who cannot shopfor groceries themselves or need to be especially mind-ful about avoiding crowds right now, please do nothesitate to contact Kathy Kerr Kubatzky ([email protected] or 512-705-7696). She is the pointof contact who will ensure a congregant will do thatfor you. If you would like to help shop for and de-liver groceries for members, please contact Kathy soshe has your information.

Education and Nurture: Joy Bedford, Jaime Cowan,David Lee and Sarah Hulsey and the Education andNurture Committee are pulling together various ideas

F I R S T W O R D 9

S P O T L I G H T

FPC’sTransientMinistry/Mission

“Then the righteouswill answer him,

saying, ‘Lord,when did we seeyou hungry and

feed you, or thirstyand give you

drink? And whendid we see you a

stranger andwelcome you, ornaked and clotheyou? And when

did we see you sickor in prison and

visit you?’ And theKing will answer

them, ‘Truly, I sayto you, as you didit to one of the least

of these mybrothers, youdid it to me.’”

—Matthew 25:37-40

There’s a new Mission Advocate at FirstPresbyterian, joining the 25-plus memberswho already advocate for a mission sup-ported by our church.

Dawn Bookert, Mission Committeemember and member of the LOGOS board,had a concern that the church’s TransientMinistry could use more resources. “At aLOGOS board meeting last fall, someonementioned we were almost out of gift cardsfor walk-ins. This was well before Thanks-giving. A discussion followed about thegrowing needs of the community.”

Not long after that, she said, “PastorBobby asked me to lead a prayer resourcetable on missions for the Leadership Re-treat in January. While preparing for that,I noticed there wasn’t an advocate for thetransient mission.”

In February, when the Mission Com-mittee discussed it as an agenda item,Dawn volunteered to be the advocate forthe Transient Ministry “because I believeit is a worthy mission based on scripture.”And the first thing she did was proposethat more monies be found to support theministry, which has a budget of just $400in 2020. She learned that someone com-ing to our church is eligible to receive a$10 H-E-B gift card each quarter (a totalof four each year, and a “Blessing Bag”with food and toiletry items. “I don’t think

(continued on page 11)

we’re doing enough to serve this popula-tion,” Dawn said.

At its February meeting, the Sessionvoted to allow donations from membersdirectly to the Transient Ministry fund, aline item in the mission budget. That $400has already been spent this year, buying40 $10 H-E-B gift cards in January to behanded out to individuals who seek as-sistance, mainly for food, in the churchoffice during 2020. Those 40 cards are ex-pected to last all year. Such gift cards can’tbe spent on alcoholic beverages or ciga-rettes. But they can be used to buy gas.

Christina Bondesen, church officemanager, is responsible for dispensing thegift cards, and she says that often her sup-ply is depleted by Thanksgiving, whensome people come in needing money tofeed their families during the holiday.

“Transient” might be a misnomer forthe target population this mission serves.Transient is defined as “a person travel-ing about, usually in search of work, aguest or boarder who stays only brieflyin a place.” In truth, although some aretransients or homeless, many of thoseseeking assistance are not transient orhomeless. They reside in Georgetown,although they may move around often,and don’t have enough money to makeends meet, or feed themselves or their

It now has its own Mission Advocate

F I R S T W O R D 3

Flowers in Worship/April

Sign up to donate flowersfor worship!Most people donate their arrangementafter the service to be used in ourFlower Ministry, which divides the ar-rangement into bud vases and re-giftsthem to our shut-ins and members inthe hospital.

Dr. Bobby Hulme-Lippert was in-stalled as pastor of First Presbyte-rian Church in a service held theafternoon of Sunday, March 1. In-stallation participants are (front,from left) Dr. Bill Pederson, Dr. RonSwain, Pastor Bobby and Dr. BillPoe; (middle row) Dr. Allen Hilton,Dr. Sallie Watson and Dr. StacyIkard; and (back) Karen Rayburn,Paul Stubbs and Evelyn Fox.

Dr. Bill Poe (left), FPC’s transitionalpastor during 2018-19, delivers thecharge to Bobby.

5 Tim & Becky Kennedy12 Easter lilies19 Marcia Sloma26 Ron & Patsy Becker

Name

I wish to donate Easter lily(ies) at $10 each, at a total cost of $

In honor of:

In memory of:

In celebration of:

Easter Lilies in Worship April 12

We will decorate the Worship Center-Fellowship Hall with lilies for Easter Sunday,April 12, when worship will be live-streamed. The flowers are $10 each. Make yourcheck payable to FPC and write “Easter Lilies” on the memo line. Complete this formand include it with your check. You may bring/mail it to the church office.

Please take my plantto a homebound or illperson.

I will pick up my plant(s)no later than April 17.


LOGOS got involved because,Jaime said, “we were looking formission projects that our kids couldphysically take part in. When thisidea came up, we knew it would meeta need in the community, and it wassomething the kids could help with.”

Bottled water, 2 granola bars,box of raisins, peanut buttercrackers, fruit snacks, chew-ing gum, gummies, lip balm,bar of soap, wet wipes, tis-sues, toothbrush/paste, floss,pair of socks and bandaids.

Left, Maddox Azuma-Hall andCathy Ramsey assemble bags.

What’s in a Blessing Bag?

The dental items in the bags are donated by thedentist practice in Hutto of Dr. John McEntire,FPC member.

The other side of the resourcesheet is decorated with a message bya LOGOS child. LOGOS pays formost Blessing Bag items with mon-ies from its annual fundraising din-ner. Some are donated by generouschurch members. —Marty Curtis

A label on the bag reads: “Youmatter! You are not forgotten!Hope this Blessing Bag brightensyour day! The church name,address, phone and web pageaddress also are on the label.

From left, Jaime Cowan, Christina Bondesen and Dawn Bookert check threeBlessing Bags to make sure all items are there.

LOGOS Blessing Bags for transient or homeless peopleAn FPC Blessing Bag is somethingChristina Bondesen can give a per-son seeking assistance at the church,even if he or she isn’t eligible for anH-E-B gift card that day. She will of-fer a bag to “anyone who walksthrough the door asking for help.”

Dawn Bookert, new mission ad-vocate for FPC’s transient/outreachmission, is familiar with these bags.Using LOGOS funds, she buys the17 items that are are put in largebaggies by LOGOS children. Lastyear, 30 bags were assembled. Thispast January, 60 Blessing Bags wereproduced, Dawn said.

The idea for Blessing Bags origi-nated with FPC staff member KathiDavenport. LOGOS Director JaimeCowan said, “She heard us talkingabout ways we as a church couldhelp those folks who come throughthe church doors looking for assis-tance. Kathi packs her own BlessingBags and she told us what’s in them.”

Jaime added, “Christina re-searched other items to include in ourbags. She also spent time looking forplaces or resources where recipientsof our Blessing Bags can go for helpin Williamson County. The result isa reference sheet that we include inevery bag.”

2 F I R S T W O R D

ANNIVERSARIES

Boldface indicatesa member of

First Presbyterian Church

BIRTHDAYS

Among Our People

Year to Date - February 2020General Operating Fund

ActualAnnualBudget

YTD %AnnualBudget

Income and Expense Report

Pledges $212,398 $841,881 25% Other $27,553 $105,180 26% TOTAL $239,951 $947,061 25% Expenses Validated Mission $11,926 $57,593 21% Local/Other Mission $1,000 $29,802 3 % Ministry of the Word $22,765 $148,5010 15% Program/Support Staff $79,450 $468,710 17% Christian Education $4,552 $39,350 12% Music and Worship $1,623 $21,756 7 % Evangelism/Care $1,769 $11,115 16% Property $16,099 $90,500 18% Stewardship/Finance $2,980 $19,700 15% Other Oper. Expenses $7,677 $42,820 18% Debt Retirement $16,259 $97,548 17% TOTAL $166,1000 $1,027,395 16%

Income

1 Charles Brainard2 Seth Basey3 Johnny Decker4 Joan Dudding5 Eric Seaman6 Lea Ann Hutton7 Vivian Leloux

Elizabeth McFarling9 Cynthia Guidici

Melissa Pilcher10 Shirley Galloway11 Terri Boroczk

Joyce PorchKasyn Walden

12 Cindee Molenda13 Kaye Bishop

Stephen Schellenberg15 Joey Mikel16 Dennis Hilgman

Megan Perkins17 Jeremy Gambell

Meghan MolendaJoan Shrader

19 Bill HindsCathy HubbardPeggy Taylor

20 Patricia Alexander21 Rebekah Pilcher22 Cindy Bausch

Bruce SorensonNelson Stubblefield

23 Roger NelsonCathy ShirleyDean TaylorRachel Taylor

25 Sarah HammitAnn Hindman

26 Ouida HendersonGayle Taylor

27 Bill Stanley28 Zayden Gibson30 Larry Burk

Sarah Ferguson

1 Jeremy & Alicia Gambell2 Bob & Joan Lutz

Roger & Suzy Taylor3 Lee & Amanda McIntosh7 Ken & Marilyn Peters12 Shawn Levsen & Adrianne

Brandt19 Chris & Tricia Osborne21 Bill & Faith Baechtel23 Bill & Margaret Shirley24 David & Carol Siekmeier

In the hospital last month: Jennifer Gunn(surgery) and Harvey Henning.

Our sympathy to: The Stubblefield Family on the deathof Carolyn’s mother and Terri’s grand-mother, Genevieve Boernecke, February27. Services were held March 6 in Okla-homa. Patrick & Amanda Tolbert on the deathof Patrick’s grandmother, Bobbie ErskineHesterly, February 27. Services were heldMarch 7 in Arkansas. Guy & Cynthia Guidici on the death ofCynthia’s father, Roy Vernon Boyd, Feb-ruary 27. Services were held March 13 inHurst. Beverly & Collin Jones on the death ofBeverly’s husband and Collin’s father, Rev.Dr. Justin B. Jones, March 9. He wasordained May 1, 1978, and served churchesin Nebraska, Georgia and Texas. He washonorably retired by Mission PresbyteryOctober 1, 2016. Services will be held at alater date.

In memoriam: Myrna McKee joined theChurch Triumphant on March 12. Serviceswill be held in Pennsylvania at a later date.Myrna had been a member of our congre-gation since November 1985.

Serving in the military: Col. Brian Burk,Larry Burk’s son; Maj. Josh Daleiden,Betty Bradford’s grandson-in-law; JohnDecker; Jared A. Gross, Robert Bedford’snephew; Brian Hall; Capt. Daniel Ham-mond, Keith & Sue Renard’s grandson-in-law; Garrett Herbst; 1st Staff Sgt. Mat-thew L. Johnson, son of Glen & Ann Kai-ser; Brandon Keith, Phil & Jeanne Smith’sson-in-law; Nicolaas Leloux; Tech. Sgt.Robert McClanahan, grandson of MintaMcIntosh and nephew of Lee McIntosh;Sgt. 1st Class Paul Rayburn; NicholasStamos, Larry & Helen Burk’s grandson;and Christian Winckel, grandson of SandyHayes.

September 18 - 20Mo-Ranch Hunt, Texas

Dr. Cindy RigbyGuest Speaker & Worship Leader

All-ChurchRetreat - 2020

We hope you will go with us.Registration begins April 15.

Visit moranch.org for more informationabout the Conference Center.

Would you like to help plan the retreat?Do you have a question?

Contact Joy Bedford, 512-863-3381or [email protected].

F I R S T W O R D 11

shown up in dire need, and helped withtheir transportation.

Our church “Transient AssistanceGuidelines,” which Christina uses, say:“If a person is insistent that they needmoney, give them up to $20 if you have itwith you. The church will reimburse you.This is to keep any one person from tyingup a great deal of your time.”

Those same guidelines read: “When aperson calls or comes into the office look-ing for financial assistance, the followingguidelines should be used. We DO NOThelp with rent or utility payments. Referall persons to The Caring Place. Our localmission money goes directly to The Car-ing Place for this specific purpose. In someinstances when a meal is all that is needed,we can offer a $10 H-E-B gift card, if avail-able. An applicant is eligible for a gift card onlyonce a quarter.”

At one time, FPC was a member of theGeorgetown Ministerial Alliance, whichdesignated a “Church of the Month,” towhich all other churches would referpeople seeking assistance during thatmonth. Christina said there has been dis-cussion of FPC’s again becoming a mem-ber of that group. If that happens, otherguidelines or practices would be consid-ered for our church’s transient ministry.

—Marty Curtis

families, Christina said. They are trulyless fortunate. These same people, wholive at or below the federal poverty level,are often clients of The Caring Place’sFood Pantry and its other services. “Al-though sometimes when they come intoour church office they may have ex-hausted the resources available to themat The Caring Place,” she added. Per-haps a more accurate description of thisFPC mission would be “Transient/Out-reach Ministry.”

So to answer the question: “Whydoesn’t the church office just refer thesepeople to The Caring Place?” They mayhave already been there and exhaustedthat resource.

One of the suggestions for use of do-nations to this mission is the purchaseof $20 H-E-B or Walmart gift cards begiven to families, with the $10 cards forindividuals.

Some of the people who come intothe church office for help are whatChristina describes as “regulars.” Theyhave been here for many years and arewell known to her and the previouschurch secretary, Cindee Molenda. Ac-cording to Christina, Cindee wouldoften give people money of her own, andoften give them a ride if they had noother means of transportation. Staffover the years have, no doubt, openedtheir pocketbooks to people who have

Mission Advocate(continued from page 9)

2,621 # of unduplicated families served6,659 # of unduplicated individuals served

40% below 18 years of age17% 55 years of age and above4% veteran or spouse/child of veteran33% uninsured13% homeless61% at or below 100% of the Federal

Poverty Level91% At or below 185% of the FederalPoverty Level

The Caring Place 2019 datathat reflect community need

Total resources provided: $3,259,047Food distributed to area families thru 4

food programs: 1,559,492 lbs.# Meals provided to area families: 1,299,577

Helping Handsof Georgetown provides meals inthe community forthe underserved,working poor andhomeless. Volun-

teers go out Monday-Thursday each weekto hand out brown bag lunches from amobile canteen. The organization alsoprovides a hot meal each Sunday night.Volunteers distribute any items they havecollected (clothes, toiletries, food) to peoplein areas of the community with a highneed, as well as areas with a homelesspopulation.

Ways our churchand membershelp people

in need

—From TCP’s 2019Annual Report

The 2020 FPC budgethas $400 earmarkedfor “transient minis-try” and has beenused to buy $10 H-E-Bgift cards (40 total),which are given topeople seeking assis-tance. LOGOS children make

“Blessing Bags” thatare given to peoplewho ask for help atthe church office. Look on the back of

your bulletin thisSunday to see a list ofboth local and globalagencies and entities,many of which servethe less fortunate.Those agencies andorganizations arerecipients of FPCmission dollars. Groups and individu-

als in our church,including the youth,volunteer to makesandwiches andlunches that aredistributed by HelpingHands of Georgetownfour days a week. (Seenext column.)Members volunteer at

The Caring Place, theGeorgetown Projectand Backpack Buddies(to mention just afew), which providefood and other ser-vices for adults andchildren.

Inside

April 2020

RRRRR O OO OO OO OO O T E D .T E D .T E D .T E D .T E D . R E FR E FR E FR E FR E F O R M E D .O R M E D .O R M E D .O R M E D .O R M E D . R E L E VR E L E VR E L E VR E L E VR E L E VA N TA N TA N TA N TA N T.....

G E O R G E T O W N , T E X A S

FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

FIRSTWORD

Dr. Sallie Watson, General Presbyter of MissionPresbytery, and Pastor Bobby at his installationMarch 1. Turn to page 3 for more photos.

T H E C H U R C HT H E C H U R C HT H E C H U R C HT H E C H U R C HT H E C H U R C H &

How the coronavirus affects ourworship and other gatheringsat First Presbyterian Church

Taking unprecedented but nec-essary action, First Presbyte-rian Church’s session voted byemail on March 17 to suspendall activities at the church un-til Monday, May 11, to help reduce thespread of the coronavirus, COVID-19. Theseactivities include worship services, SundaySchool, circles, Bible studies, LOGOS.Stephen Minister continuing educationprograms, senior seminars, session anddeacon meetings, committee meetings andchoir and bell rehearsals.

In-personactivitiessuspended

This action was recommended to thesession by Pastor Bobby after a meeting ofthe staff and the Safety and Security Com-mittee. He also took into consideration theWilliamson County judge’s declarationMarch 14 of a local state of disaster andimposing an eight-week ban on all gath-erings of more than 50 people.

Sunday services during this time willbe live-streamed from the Worship Center-Fellowship Hall.

Pastor Bobby called it “a painful anddifficult decision for the session,” butknowing “that the best way we can loveour neighbors in this unique time is to doour part in slowing the spread and dimin-ishing the impact of the COVID-19 virus,a virus that is proving particularly detri-mental to older adults but is readily car-ried and spread by folks of any age.”

The session will assess plans weekly andlet the congregation know if they change.

The day before the Sunday serviceMarch 15, the session voted to cancel in-person worship and live-stream a sermonby Dr. Tom Currie, a service whose par-ticipants included Penny Leone, MonicaKoenig, Philip Smith, Susan and ThomasIsenhour, Joy Bedford and Jeff Pratt.

In a letter to the congregation, PastorBobby said the staff and session have pro-visional plans “to help us continue andfollow Jesus together in this unique time.”

For an explanation of those plans, turnto page 4 and read the letter from PastorBobby.

2 Financial ReportApril CelebrationsEaster Lily Order FormAll-Church Retreat

3 Installation PhotosFlowers in WorshipEaster Lily Order Form

4 Letter from PastorBobby

5 New Members6 Presbyterian Women6 Ways to Give8 April Calendar9 Spotlight: Transient

Ministry12 Three Generations in

the Choir

Youth Ministry7 DL’s Column

Mission7 The Caring Place

Mission Sewing

Compassionate Care2 Among Our People8 Points from Parish

Nurse


elder and deacon at First Pres inDenton.

Of the FPC Chancel Choir, Donsays, “It’s fantastic—the best I’vesung in or conducted,” and he hasperformed with and often led manychoirs.

Tricia has been a member of FPCsince 2000 and was married to herhusband Chris here in 1997. “I gaveher away in the Sanctuary,” her dadrecalls. Both Ema, now 21, a soprano,and Carter, a tenor baritone, 16, werebaptized here and grew up in Sun-day School, LOGOS, LOGOS musi-cals and youth group.

Through Chris’s family, Ema andCarter are 7th generation George-town residents. Chris’ mother wasFPC member JoBeth Carter, now de-ceased. She first joined the churchin 1976 and was a member from 1985until her death in 2016. Tricia metChris, a church member since 1996,

when she moved to this area towork after college.

Tricia was FPC Director ofChildren’s Choirs for 11 years anddirected LOGOS musicals every yearduring that time, with Ema andCarter both participating. “In everysingle one of them,” they both echo.A tenor, Tricia has sung in the choirfor years and plays with the handbellchoir. She and two other women jointhe male tenors on the back tworows of the choir loft. “They makeup half of our tenor section,” Donsays with a laugh.

Ema: both singer and dancerEma sang in the choir and performedduets and solos for Youth Sundayservices while in high school. Shegraduated cum laude from StephenF. Austin State University last De-cember with a major in dance edu-cation and minor in English. Shecame home to work and look for ateaching job. Carter, an East ViewHigh School sophomore, has alsosung in the choir, occasionally forcantatas and other events.

While looking for a school posi-tion teaching dance, Ema is teach-ing dance at a local studio andworking on the central and southTexas staff of the American Danceand Drill Team School in Salado. Aformer drill team member at EastView High School, she judges dancecompetitions all over the regionsponsored by the school.

Pastor Bobby asked Ema to per-form a liturgical dance to “Seek YeFirst” and “Kumbaya” as part of theSunday, March 29, service (live-streamed) during the Lenten seriesof sermons on prayer.

She said, “I was unsure abouthow to approach such an emotionaland worshipful style when I heardabout the idea of incorporating litur-gical dance into this specific day’sworship. I know that God used thisopportunity for me to glorify him,using the talents he has given me. Iam so thankful for the chance toshare this wonderfully vulnerableform of worship with our congrega-tion.” —Marty Curtis

The Chancel Choir gained a newmember recently, and three genera-tions of a family, when Don Curljoined daughter Tricia Osborne,granddaughter Ema Osborne andgrandson Carter Osborne to sing atthe 11 a.m. worship service. It maybe a first. Two generations havebeen represented in the choir, butthree may be a record.

Don moved to Georgetown tolive with his daughter’s family in2018 and recently joined the churchafter visiting the Osbornes here formany years with his wife, now de-ceased. “This has been the closestthing to a church family that I’veknown in a few years,” he said. Donhas bachelor’s and master’s degreesin music education and is a formerschool band director. As a memberof First Presbyterian in Edinburg,Don, a baritone, directed the choirand served as elder, and he was an

Three generations in the choir

Clockwise

from left:

Don

Ema

Tricia

Carter

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