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Best’s BlogTiffany McCafferty, from the First Presbyterian Church of Paw Paw, continues to be excited about celebrating 175 years of church history. She goes on to speak about how they have decided not to be the most technologically advanced church or have the latest and greatest music. Instead focusing on God’s will in loving thy neighbor. Being only three blocks from the county jail, the church has become a beacon of hope as prisoners get released and see the big white cross. Recently it went from being an informal mission, to a formal mission of the church. Released individuals are quite often there in the morning, and members of the church will direct them to a hot meal or a place to stay. They are showing what it truly means to be doing God’s work. Even the youth groups assist by taking backpacks that people have donated and filling them with essential items. These items include socks, bus tokens and anything else they might need. They have also given assistance to refugee families. By using the Synod grant to help purchase a dependable vehicle for a refugee family, others got inspired to help as well. The wife of the owner of the car dealership, then turned around and asked how she could help.
Tom Wrasse, from the First Presbyterian Church of Buchanan, is excited about how his church is certified as being an Earth Care Congregation. Which is a program that was started by the PC-USA. They have a certification program where the church must earn 100 points to become certified, and 50 points every year after that to continue certification. These points are earned in four different areas; worship, education, facility, outreach. One of the first missions his church was involved with, was the restoration of the Great American Chestnut Tree. Being an Earth Care Congregation is not just a casual thing, you must be committed to doing things to help save God’s beautiful creations.
Tiffany McCafferty, from the First Presbyterian Church of Paw Paw, is excited to tell about how the church is celebrating its 175th Anniversary. She talks about how rewarding it was to learn the history of the church, having only been there for three years. She recalls that almost as soon as she became a part of the Presbytery, she got involved with the youth strategies team. The one thing every member of the team holds in common is a deep passion for youth ministries. The team coordinates are the Urban Plunge. It brings together hundreds of youth. They go out and do community service projects and ministry in the hosts churches community. Another event the team coordinates is Triennium, Montreat. She is passionate about bringing ministry to the youth of the church and meeting them where they are in their lives.
Scott Crane, from the First Presbyterian Church of Dimondale, discusses how involved in the community they are. One of their local missions is the Food Ministry. It is a cooperative with the Lansing Food Bank. They also collaborate with a United Methodist Church for personal items. He is excited they are working together in bigger ways and are not divided. He explains that this is not a ministry they started. It was there with passion in the people for this ministry. It is a celebration in the fact that this is more of a community ministry, and many from the community help with it. He enjoys that he can really connect with everyone in the church and community. Something that can be harder to accomplish with a larger parish and city.
Patricia Weatherwax, from First Presbyterian Church of Downtown Battle Creek, talks compassionately about their Health & Fun Fair, in conjunction with Synod of the Covenant. It started about three years ago when the sent a group of people to the Health & Fun Fair in inner-city Detroit. We said we need to be doing something like this in Battle Creek. It is now going into its third year and they hope to do it every year. She goes on to say how great this has been to connect with the whole city and its surrounding neighborhoods. They have partnered with many different groups throughout the city, from local pharmacies, women’s shelters, and different employment groups. They have started sharing their abundance of space, along with other agencies and their volunteer resources, to start an outreach program. The connection and involvement in their community are exciting.
Neil Myer serves as Youth Director for U-Kirk Ministries, which brings together college level young adults from MSU, LCC, and other education opportunities in the Lansing area. U-Kirk stands for University Church, which is the name decided on at the General Assembly. Neil recounts that one of their first missions was with Advent House. They painted the space that is used as a day shelter for Advent House Ministries. They also help serve meals from time to time. Neil spoke about how in the beginning they had put together prayer stations, then they waited for students to show, to no avail. The next event was a pancake social. They only had one griddle, only two students showed up. That two became four, and it kept increasing, and now they have 50+ in their group.
Chrissy Westberry, from Kalamazoo First Presbyterian Church and Meredith Alspach First Presbyterian Church of Richland goes over the Kalamazoo county-wide Youth Group which is in its fourth year. This youth group is students sixth through twelfth grade. This combines the youth from five different churches; First Presbyterian Church of Richland, Westminster Presbyterian Church of Portage, North Presbyterian Church in downtown Kalamazoo, First Presbyterian Church of Kalamazoo, and Pine Island Presbyterian Church. They meet at 5 pm at the host church for the week and have about twenty minutes of time to reconnect. Then they proceed with the evening activities. They all agree the best part is how it brings together a diverse group of kids that would not normally come together on their own and are forming lifelong bonds and friendships.
Karen Fitz La-Barge, from North Kent Presbyterian Church, talks about the preschool playgroup called “Moms and Munchkins”. This is a playgroup that they started with a need for a safe place for their preschool-aged kids to play. Karen discusses how they can support up to 15 preschool aged kids in their group at one time. She recounts on how they have little bikes and trikes, for their kids to ride, and how they ride in a big circuit around their church. She is very passionate about the program and how it connects the families in their community.
Jim Hegedus, from First Presbyterian Church of Jackson, speaks about unaccompanied refugee minors and how they have taken them in to both their homes and hearts. He discusses how with the first batch of minors, some were going to turn 18 within a year and they would not have their immigration status. The boys, that have aged out, now live in a house they call the “Aged-Out House”. The First Presbyterian Church of Jackson is working together with the Faith Lutheran Church to house these boys. There are volunteer immigration lawyers working through (LIRS) Lutheran Immigration Refugee Services, who work with these now over 18 refugees without immigration status.
Jim Rausch, from First Presbyterian Church of Muskegon, discusses how excited he is with the motivating gift of their congregation. He looks forward to seeing how God intends to use his congregation in the future. One of the ways God is using them is through their mission work within the community, through the Family Promise Program which gives families in need a place to sleep. They also participate in Supper House and they sponsor Food Trucks that go out into the community and serves the hungry.
After the Commission released its preliminary report, numerous people from across the Presbytery of Lake Michigan offered feedback during four listening sessions and via written communications. The Commission enjoyed hearing from those who support the Greenwood Ministries Association. The main messages we received were that the Greenwood Ministry Association (GMA) needed more time both to create a sustainable organization and to raise funds with which to purchase the camp property at a reduced rate.
Upon reflection, the Commission has revised its final report with new key provisions. The following is only an executive summary of items listed in full within the report. A copy of the complete report is available here.
Extend the covenant with GMA until December 31, 2021.
This provides three more years for GMA to work with the Commission to develop a sustainable organization and to continue to implement its strategic long-term goals. The Commission also will reduce its reporting requirements from monthly to quarterly to allow GMA to focus on its work.
This provides three more years for GMA to use the main camp and additional property as outlined in the report, while also removing all subleasing restrictions previously placed on the property. The lease will continue (as it was in 2017 and 2018) to be $10.00 per year through the life of this lease. This is a significant savings over the market value of $75,000 per year as noted by the accounting firm that GMA retained for financial review in 2018. This lease provides use of roughly three-quarters of the current camp property, including the main camp and the portions GMA has noted as ecological and conservation sites.
Not only does the Commission recommend that GMA be offered the available camp property at 50% of its appraised value (full survey upcoming), this provides almost three more years for GMA to fundraise and institute a capital campaign. The Presbytery will gift the remaining value of the property to GMA should it raise the money to purchase the property.
To provide support to GMA and to mediate this new extended covenant and lease, the Commission will remain in service to the Presbytery for three more years.
This gift will allow GMA to cover any transitional costs it incurs from the sale of properties recommended to be sold in the final report.
A copy of the full and detailed final Greenwood Administrative Commission Report, including the background and basis for these recommendations and additional provisions necessary to fulfill those actions listed above, can be accessed by clicking here.
A copy of the the Administrative Commission’s preliminary report, including the background, can be accessed by clicking here.
To view a copy of the Greenwood Map Addendum to have a better sense of the properties involved Click Here
At Westminster Presbyterian Church – Grand Rapids.
At North Westminster Presbyterian Church – Lansing
At First Presbyterian Church – Paw Paw
At First Presbyterian Church – Jackson
The Commission will present its final report and recommendations to the Presbytery at the December 4, 2018 meeting. We hope that these listening sessions will provide the opportunity for discussion and discernment necessary to make an effective and appropriate decision on this important matter.
Those unable to attend a regional meeting can send comments to Greenwood Commission Moderator Rev. Cal Bremer at cbremer07@gmail.com or to him at 541 Bluff Dr. Middleville MI. 49333. All comments on the Preliminary Report and Recommendations must be received by November 09, 2018 to be considered prior to the Commission’s final recommendations which will be distributed on or before November 22, 2018.