Thanks to all who came and participated in our congregational meeting Sunday, August 20, 2017! The congregation affirmed Session's recommendations to reduce Maggie Breen's pastoral role from 14 to 8 hours per week, prioritizing her leadership in Compassion, Justice, and Peace and ending her long work with our youth. This action was taken at Maggie's request after her transition from REACH Executive Director to Community Engagement Manager for the Center for Religious Wisdom and World Affairs at Seattle University's School of Theology and Ministry. It is effective July 1, 2017. In worship we celebrated Maggie's 10 years of youth ministry and thanked both Maggie and Derona Burkholder for their gifts and graces. Please be in prayer and conversation as we discern future priorities including our ministry with youth and children.

Dear St. Andrew members,
 
This is a long-overdue introduction of myself as the “new” St. Andrew Treasurer.  I assumed the position from Andy Resor in July, and with Andy’s valued assistance I’ve been coming up to speed – one month-end at a time.  When I took the position, I knew there would be occasions when I would be away from home, so I’ve explored ways to perform the job remotely, and have largely succeeded.   In support of that goal, there are two ways the congregation can help:
     
Electronic Payment Vouchers:  If you have a reimbursable expense, it can be submitted to me using an e-mailed copy of the Payment Voucher form, following the “Guidelines” on the form.  Use of e-mail will allow me to receive the voucher wherever I am.  I can then initiate payment using our bank’s electronic Bill Pay system, which delivers a mailed check in 3-4 days.  An electronic copy of the Payment Voucher is located in the “Donations – Electronic” section of the church website.  Receipt of a voucher from a member’s e-mail address will satisfy the form’s requirement for a signature, and expense receipts will be requested after the fact, if needed.  My e-mail address is:  [email protected].

OK, campers, rise and shine! Join us this coming Tuesday, January 31 at 6:00pm, for the first of what we hope will be many St. Andrew Film Nights. As we ease carefully into February, watching for black ice and waiting for spring training (well, just spring would be fine), what better way to mark the month than by watching what Jonah Goldberg referred to as, “…what many believe is the best cinematic moral allegory popular culture has produced in decades.”
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In other words, we’re watching Groundhog Day, the 1993 comedy starring Bill Murray and directed by the late Harold Ramis. Two days before Punxsutawney Phil looks around for his shadow, we’ll celebrate with this now-classic fantasy of a bitter, arrogant, and just generally unpleasant man who finds himself repeating the same day, every day. It’s been referred to as a modern Pilgrim’s Progress, and has been cited often by theologians of many faiths as inspirational and enlightening. And hey: It’s pretty funny, too.

One of the great joys of St. Andrew is its scholarship program – both the Seminary Scholarship Program and the College Scholarship program. For the College Scholarship Program, the Newell Scholarship Fund and the Thomas Scholarship Fund helps members and friends of St. Andrew who need financial assistance for undergraduate college education or vocational training. The objective of the college program is to provide at least a $500 scholarship each year to a qualified student(s) who is graduating from high school and is seeking their first degree, either in a college undergraduate program or a vocation school like RTC.  College or vocation school students are welcome to apply for each year of their study until they graduate. Eligibility requirements for the scholarships include:

• Applicant or applicant’s family member must be an active participant in worship or other activities of St. Andrew
• Qualified to enroll in an accredited college, university or vocational school
• Needs financial assistance in order to pursue studies

The Scholarship Committee is now accepting applications for college scholarships for the 2017-2018 school year which starts next fall. Application forms are available on the church web site or from any of the Scholarship Committee members. Applicants are requested to prepare a personal essay and provide three letters of recommendation. Applications should be submitted with the essay and letters of recommendation to the Scholarship Committee by March 1, 2017. Additional instructions can be found on the application form.

The scholarship program at St. Andrew has been an effective way to help our St. Andrew youth and it has also been gratifying for the donors. Since its inception in 2000, the undergraduate scholarship program has provided 28 scholarships for students to study at colleges and vocational training schools. Donations to the scholarship program are always welcome and they help ensure the vibrancy of the program. If you would like to make a donation to the fund, just indicate that your donation is for the “Scholarship Fund” and include it in the Sunday offering.

Any of the Scholarship Committee members will be happy to answer your questions.  Committee members this year are Derona Burkholder, Karen Mullen, Lezle Resor and Don Patterson. This scholarship program made possible by the Newell family and the Thomas family brings to life the Mission of our church   -  “St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, through God’s grace, is a loving, accepting, inclusive congregation serving others and fostering spiritual and personal growth for all ages.”

We want to hear from you!

​As part of the review process this year, the personnel committee again wants to invite members of the congregation to provide feedback regarding the ministry of the pastoral staff. Annual reviews are a means of celebrating past successes and exploring future opportunities.

There are a couple of ways you can help us by providing your feedback and insight. This link will take you to a pdf form that contains all the questions. You may print it out, write your responses separately for each of the pastoral staff and return it to personnel chair Dan Clawson or leave it in the personnel box in the church office. Alternately you can send comments electronically to Dan at [email protected]. The questions are also listed below if you’d prefer to simply copy them into an email.  

1. What do you consider to be this pastor’s greatest strengths? Please share specific examples, if possible.
2. What areas of improvement and growth do you suggest for this pastor?
3. What additional support or resources do you think would be beneficial to this pastor?
4. At St. Andrew, shared ministry is a common goal. How does this pastor contribute to the shared ministry concept?
5. After reviewing this pastor’s job description, what responsibilities and expectations do you think need to be deleted, added, or adjusted in some way?
6. What do you think should be this pastor’s highest priority in the coming 6-12 months?
7. How do you think the ministry of St. Andrew can be improved, and what would be this pastor’s role in that improvement?

For your reference, these links will take you to current position descriptions for Scott, Maggie, and Julie Kae. Dan will review all responses and present a written summary in person to the Session. A few parameters to keep in mind:

• The questionnaire includes 7 suggested questions. Please don’t feel obligated to respond to all of them, but only those about which you have specific knowledge and would like to address.
• The process is intended to be constructive for all concerned. No anonymous responses will be considered. Encouragement and honest reflection are welcomed!
• We will complete the feedback process by January 25th.

Thanks so much for your partnership in this work and for your prayerful support of our staff!

​The Personnel Team

​Last Sunday, Barb Glasscock shared about the Crittenden's ongoing work in Haiti after the recent hurricane. Here's an update:

Hello Haiti Education Enthusiasts and Supporters:
 
Well, it always seems like our friends in Haiti just can’t catch a break.  The earthquake in January, 2010 shook most of our schools to the ground, and after almost seven years, we have been well on our way to getting most of them repaired or replaced.  And now the largest hurricane ever to hit the south coast of the island (at least since 1963, perhaps ever) has destroyed AT LEAST nine of our thirty-five schools.  Our new school at Petite Rivière was built to survive a Class 5 hurricane and it apparently survived Hurricane Matthew fine.  We are thankful for that.  I’m sure that it was used as a shelter.  I’ve been communicating with Maccène Ulisse, the principal, and he told me that the roof blew off his tiny house but that the school is fine.

​The Building Team continues to make progress toward phase one improvements to the existing building. We have selected Mountain Construction, a General Contractor that specializes in church remodeling projects and will be working with them to finalize the remodeling plan. The plan, which will be presented for approval to Session at the October meeting, will include a detailed list of work, a "not-to-exceed" cost estimate, and a construction schedule.
 
Currently, the Building Team is also holding meetings with groups that use the building to ensure their questions are answered and to understand how to minimize the impacts of the remodeling on their activities. If you have additional questions be sure to join in the discussions or contact  anyone on the Building Team: Patti Warden, Bob Seel, Frank Sickinger, Mike Dittmar, Dan Clawson, or Dan O’Rear.

​For the past few years we've been engaged in a process of discernment, clarifying how to best utilize and improve our physical space to support our purpose and mission. Here's a summary of where we've been and where we're going. If you're having difficulty making out the smaller type, you can download a slideshow here.