Faith Presbyterian Church

A few reminders for everyone at Faith:

This year, Stewardship Sunday falls on November 16. On this day, we will collect and dedicate our pledges for 2009. There will be two stewardship dinners, both after church, on November 2 and November 9. Please make sure to take a moment on Sunday and sign up on the forms in the vestibule for one of the dinners. This will help us plan how much food we need to prepare in advance.

Pastor John will be using the insights from In Heaven’s Name, Why on Earth? By Harry Wendt. Dr. Wendt is the founder of Crossways International and the author of The Divine Drama. We will discover why stewardship involves much more than supporting the church budget!

Also, don’t forget that it’s almost Jambalaya Dinner Time! The Jambalaya Dinner Sale will take place this coming Friday, October 17th from 11 am - 1 pm. If you haven’t already, please make sure to purchase your tickets in advance. If you have any tickets left to sell, please try to do so! If you need tickets or have any questions, please call the church office at 225-275-7393.

There are a few dates coming up on the church calendar that you should be aware of.

Once again we will have our annual Fish Fry with Art Frens doing the cooking! The date is set for September 21st after worship. Fish, Hush-puppies, and Coleslaw will be provided. Please bring a potluck dessert to share with the group!

Also, Tickets are now available for the upcoming Jambalaya Dinner Sale! The date of the sale is October 17th. Dinners will cost $5.00 each and will include jambalaya, salad, and bread. Delivery of dinners is available with a pre-purchase of 10 dinners or more. Ask people at your office if they would be interested!

Please call the church office at 225-275-7393 for more information or to purchase your tickets!

Thank you to everyone who took so much time out of their busy schedules to volunteer and help with VBS 2008! It was a huge success and we couldn’t have done it without all of you! The kids had a blast and it’s really gotten people excited to be a part of our church!

Some of you may have noticed that during Rainforest Adventure last week we had a visitor from The Advocate taking pictures and talking to many of the kids and volunteers. This last Saturday our church and some members of the congregation were showcased in a great article in the People & Faith section of The Advocate about VBS and how far it’s come over the years! Below is a thumbnail of the article, and if you click on it it will bring you to a large version that you can read!

How exciting that the Word is spreading! God works in so many ways, and it shows in the lives of all who took part in Rainforest Adventure! Keep the Word and excitement alive until next years VBS!

If you have any problems clicking this thumbnail to view the large version, you can also right click and choose “open link in new window” or “save link” to save the file to your computer to read!

If you have any of the following items and would be willing to donate them, purchase them or make them for the skits for next week’s VBS, please call the office and talk to Kelly at 225-275-7393. Thank you!

Day One:

• Plastic or paper sack
• Pineapple (real or canned)
• Clipboard
• Table with Fruit
• Garbage can with a lid
• Sign reading “For Party on Friday, DO NOT TOUCH!”
• Large crate or box labeled “Seeds”
• Pots, gardening tools, and other potting materials
• Large sign reading “Party for the King in _____ days”

Day Two:

• Can or Container filled with seeds

Day Three:

• Coconut
• Seeds, Various Sizes
• Magnifying Glass
• Potting Soil
• Sprouting Seeds

Day Four:

• Something that looks like pruning sheers
• Something that looks like a saw
• Fruit Basket
• Gardening Gloves

Day Five:

• Large sign that reads “PARTY TODAY”

Many members of the church have already stepped forward to give of their time and talent in this venture. However, there is room for everyone to be involved! Not only is there a need for more volunteers to help in the planning and during the week of VBS, but supplies are needed as well!

If you have any of the following or would be willing to purchase them for this years VBS, please call the church office to find out which items are still needed. You may bring your donations to the church office during the week or drop them off after church on Sunday. Any donation, however small, will be greatly appreciated!

Needed for Rainforest Rhythm:

• Maracas
• Rainforest Stickers
• Drum Sticks
• About 4 Drums (received 1 drum)

Needed for Snacks at the Coconut Cafe:

• Animal Crackers
• Raisins (small boxes)
• Candy Corn
• Fruit Juices (small multi flavors)
• Trail Mix (with dried fruit)
• Donations (Monetary)
• Goldfish (individual bags)

Needed for Pre-school class:

• Crayons (preferably washable, fat crayons)
• Markers (preferably washable, fat markers)
• masking tape
• Scotch Tape
• Washable white school glue
• Tissues
• Band-aids
• Sanitizing Hand Gel
• Alcohol Swabs
• Posterboard (white)
• Cardstock
• 3/4″ (2cm) black pompoms
• 3/8″ (1cm) black pompoms
• multiple colors of craft tissue paper
• twine
• non-latex balloons
• rubberbands
• children’s washable paint
• paper plates (white, plain)
• construction paper
• cotton swabs
• double-sided tape
• rainforest stickers
• 12″ paper towel or wrapping paper tubing
• colored masking tape
• wax paper
• aluminum foil
• heart stickers
• pipe cleaners/chenille craft stems
• variety of seeds
• felt (green, red)
• wiggle eyes (large)
• tacky or fabric glue
• mustard seeds
• crepe paper (green)
• brightly colored feathers
• magnets for science exploration
• small red paper plates (20)
• glue sticks
• plants (real & pretend)
• 10 square been bags ( ~ 3″ x 3″)
• Magnifying glasses (preferably plastic)
• Magnets for science exploration

Needed for decorations:

• plants (real & fake)
• brown paper bags and paper
• green crepe paper
• half gallon paper containers
• volunteers to help with decorations
• monetary donations to help cover costs of supplies purchased

VBS Group Leaders — If you receive a donation that is on this list, please let the church office know so that we can keep track of the current needs for this years VBS! We will mark through items on this list when they are received and no longer needed.

Thank you to everyone involved and all those who give of their time, talent, and donations!

This year’s Summer Reading Program at Faith Presbyterian Church is into it’s second weekend of six and things are going great! We’ve had a nice turn out of children, but would love to see more! If you are interested in your child participating or would like more information please see our previous news post about our Summer Reading Program, or call the church office at 225-275-2393!

Here are a few pictures from this last Saturday!

Explore the canopy! It’s time to register for Rainforest Adventure Vacation Bible School!

• PLACE: Faith Presbyterian Church
• DATES: July 14th - July 18th
• TIMES: 6:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
• FOR: Kids ages 3 years to 6th grade

Join us for a rainforest program of faith-filled fun! Rainforest Adventure invites kids to share the good news of Jesus’ love for us by being caretakers of all that God has given us.

At Rainforest Adventure you will:

• hear stories about Jesus
• make cool crafts
• sing fun songs
• play zany games
• eat super snacks
• make lots of new friends!

We’ll have lots of fun sharing God’s love with everyone!

Parents, the cost of this year’s week long VBS is $10 per child, $18 for two children, or $20 for a family of 3 or more kids. (All children are welcome and wanted! VBS scholarships are available for families that are unable to cover this cost, so please do not let this keep you or your kids from participating!)

To register for VBS 2008: Rainforest Adventure please click here for a form that can be filled out online.

If you have any questions about this upcoming event please call the church office at 225-275-7393.

Vacation Bible School is scheduled for each evening of July 14th through July 18th. We are tremendously excited about this venture because it provides opportunities for evangelism, outreach and mission. VBS is a traditional educational tool for a congregation’s children, but it can also be a means whereby God’s Good News can be spread within a community by inviting neighborhood children to participate. As the children have fun singing, playing games, making crafts, and doing other fun activities they are learning Bible verses and themes which are reinforced by these activities. They also learn about important mission activities during this time and are encouraged to participate in the support of these missions.

Many members of the church have already stepped forward to give of their time and talent in this venture. However, there is room for everyone to be involved! Please contact the office to get more information about the different ways that you can give of yourself during this year’s VBS, which in turn will allow God to enter the lives of many!

If you are interested in more information about your child attending this summer’s VBS at Faith Presbyterian Church, please contact the church office through either the contact link above or by calling 225-275-7393.

In the coming weeks there will be more information about this year’s VBS posted on the website, including a form to download to sign your child up! Please check back soon!

Faith Presbyterian Church’s annual Chicken BBQ fund raiser will take place on May 31, 2008. Tickets cost $6.00 each and the dinner will include a half chicken, cole slaw and beans. The event will start at 11:00 AM and run until 2:00 PM.

Dinners will be available on a first come, first serve basis - so be sure to purchase your tickets beforehand to reserve your dinner as they go fast on the day of the BBQ!

If you are ordering lunches for an office or a group of 10 or more it may be possible to have your lunches delivered.

Please contact the church office by calling 225-275-7393 to purchase your tickets or get more information.

PARENTS, DO YOU NEED A COUPLE OF HOURS RESPITE ON SATURDAY MORNINGS AND A CHILD WHO ENJOYS READING?

• WHO? Children entering Grades 2-5

• WHAT? FREE SUMMER READING PROGRAM

• WHEN? From 10:00 a.m. until noon on Saturday mornings for six weeks, beginning on June 7, 2008. (p.s. No reading on July 5, 2008)

• WHERE? Faith Presbyterian Church, 12855 Old Hammond Highway On Old Hammond Highway just West of Flannery

We do not teach your children to read, but will help keep them reading and encourage them to fulfill their Summer Reading List assignment from their school. We make reading fun!

We also know that parents sometimes need a break once in a while. We can give you that break during the 2 hour period we spend with your children.

SPACE IS LIMITED SO ACT NOW!!!!

REQUIREMENTS

• Call Faith Presbyterian Church at 275-7393 right now to reserve your place and/or request a registration form.

• Complete and submit the simple one page application for each attendee. Applications can be downloaded by clicking here. Forms may be returned by:

fax to 225-275-7399

mail to:
Summer Reading
Faith Presbyterian Church
12855 Old Hammond Highway
Baton Rouge, LA 70816

e-mail to fkillen@gmail.com . Please reference “Summer Reading” in subject line of e-mail.

• Participants must bring a copy of their summer reading list and one book from the list. If your childs school does not provide a summer reading list, then please pick a book off of the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board’s recommended reading lists appropriate to your childs age and grade. Click here to visit the EBRP School Boards website for their list of recommended summer reading.

• Parents are responsible for ensuring their children’s transportation to and from the program.