Maundy Thursday Worship April 13 at 7:00 p.m. Join us in the lower level for an informal communion service remembering the Last Supper.

Good Friday Worship April 14 at 12:10. We host the Ministerial Association Community Good Friday Service, lower level.

Easter Worship April 16. The 8:30 & 10:30 services in the sanctuary which will include strings, choirs, pipe organ, and brass, as we celebrate Christ's resurrection. The Bridge will have a special Easter service at 9:30 a.m., lower level.

Easter Egg Hunt

On Saturday, April 15, join us in inviting our neighborhood children to an Easter Egg Hunt on the Saturday before Easter. (More)

Organ Concert

Renowned Organist Frederick Swann will be in concert Friday, April 21, 2006 at 7:00 p.m. For 25 years Swann served as Organist of the internationally famous Riverside Church in New York City. During the final 16 years of this tenure he was also Director of Music and conducted one of the most distinguished music programs in the city. In 1982 he was appointed Organist and Director of Music of the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, California. As chief musician for "The Hour of Power" he became the most visible and widely heard organist in the world.(More)

Spring Women's Retreat

Spring Cleaning for the Soul

An ancient proverb claims that each person is a home with four rooms: Spiritual, Mental, Emotional, and Physical.  Unless we spend time in each of these rooms daily, we'll never be whole.  How much time do your spend in each room?  Is it time to dust some of them out?

Spend a day surrounded by the relaxing beauty of Fernwood Botanical Gardens, and do a little Spring Cleaning of the Soul as we explore ways to nourish each of these areas in our faith.

Saturday, April 22
Fernwood Botanical Gardens
Cost: $20.00, includes lunch and supplies
Deadline: Please register by Sunday, April 16

What time is it?

This newsletter will come out on Palm Sunday, which marks the end of spring break and the beginning of Holy Week this year. The juxtaposition of the two weeks sets me to thinking...

Americans in general and Protestants in particular are not big on "pilgrimages," but that word comes up frequently in connection with spring break. College students make "pilgrimages" to warmer climes, and families make "pilgrimages" to vacation spots or the homes of relatives. For some, the spring break trip becomes almost a ritual, and the week becomes almost "holy" in being set aside for a special (though not necessarily divine) purpose.

I don't condemn spring break trips. In those fortunate years when spring break does not coincide with Holy Week, clergy families enjoy it as much as anyone. Last year, our family went to Wisconsin and spent several glorious days at a Wisconsin Dells waterpark. This year, Marge spent most of the week helping sort and clean at her late mother's house, and she and our boys spent several days visiting old friends in southern Indiana.

If you polled students, parents of school-age children, teachers, or other school personnel as to the relative importance of spring break vs. Holy Week, what do you think you'd find? I'd guess that spring break would win, hands-down. After all, it's about having fun, and who among us couldn't use more fun in our lives? And for families, vacation trips are often the best chance for parents and children to deepen their relationship (assuming they don't drive one another crazy!).

Indeed, for most people, including most Christians, the tendency is to conflate Palm Sunday and Easter, and to skip Holy Week altogether. It is to emphasize the "fun" parts of the week - waving palms on Palm Sunday, dressing up and hearing wonderful music on Easter, perhaps an egg hunt for the small children - and pay little attention to the dark events in between: the betrayal and sadness at the Last Supper, the horror and tragedy of Jesus' arrest, trial, torture, and suffering, the darkness and despair of His crucifixion and death.

Why focus on those things? Don't we have enough depressing thoughts in our lives without adding to them? Why not just stay with the up-beat, the positive, the happy parts of our faith? Unlike the media emphasis on preparing for Christmas, there is no popular push for preparing for
Easter.

But to skip Holy Week, to leap lightly from palm branches to Easter baskets, to skip immersion in Jesus' passion through Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, is to miss something important and life-giving, something deeper and more tasting. To quote Timothy George, Dean of Beeson Divinity School:

Of course, we know that all is not right with the world nor indeed with ourselves. Good Friday does not permit the kind of unscrupulous optimism usually found on our Easter greeting cards. But it does declare that at the heart of the universe there is a personal presence, a God who has chosen not to remain in his heaven, cocooned within himself, but who has become a part of the world he has made, and taken upon himself the burden of loving it back to himself This he has done as a humbly born baby in a manger, as a suffering man on a cross.

We are invited by ... Holy Week to believe beyond all doubt that ... there is redemption in and beyond, though not apart from, suffering and pain, ... that time is a God-given opportunity to learn to love, and that love is the one thing we experience in time that remains in eternity

I invite you this year to observe Holy Week. To get beneath the surface of life, to "go to dark Gethsemane," to meditate on Jesus' "sacred head, now wounded," to ask yourself, "Holy Jesus, how have I offended?" In doing so, you will be prepared for a deeper and fuller understanding of the joyous good news of Easter, that indeed "Jesus Christ Has Risen Today, Alleluia!"

         

Spring

We have been waiting for that magical word for the past five months. Spring is a time for new beginnings and for growth. Christian Education takes on a new excitement during the spring months. We have many activities planned during the coming weeks. Make sure you watch your bulletin for weekly updates. You won't want to miss a single thing. We will need many hands to make the work lighter. Please consider helping on the upcoming Children's Ministries projects. The eternal pay is the greatest!

Family Fun Camp-in

On Friday and Saturday, March 24 and 25, we had our Family Camp-In. There were three families in attendance. Although our numbers were small, we had a great time of fellowship and getting to know one another. Families were allowed time to slow down their pace and connect again. We had family contests and a great time around the campfire. Thanks to Mary Freed and Mindy Suhr for organizing and to Pastor Steve for coming and leading the campfire. If you missed it, you missed a great time.

Community Egg Hunt

On April 15 at 10:00 a.m., we will be having a Community Egg Hunt. Sydney Rieckhoff is the person to contact for this.Our next big event is our Community Easter Egg Hunt. It will be held at our church on April 15 at 10:00 a.m. Sydney Rieckhoff is chairing this event. We are in need of many pounds of candy to fill the eggs. There are candy drop boxes in the foyers. Please make your donations in those receptacles. The purpose of this event is to attract folks from the community. Invitations are available to pass out to children that you know. They will be available from the ushers starting April 9. Please invite all children from ages 3-Grade 5. Please see Sydney if you can fill eggs on Thursday, April 13 at 6:00 p.m., hide eggs, work on registration, or be a crowd control person on Saturday, April 15.

• There are over 1,200 eggs that need to be stuffed. We will be stuffing eggs on Thursday evening, April 13 at 6:00 p.m. until done.
• We are in need of about 50 lbs. of candy to fill the eggs.
• On Saturday, April 15 at 8:30, prior to the egg hunt, we can use ten people to come and hide eggs. Come and join us as we share Jesus with our community!

Vacation Bible School

VBS is coming soon! Put the dates of on your calendar and come and help us for a great time.VBS is coming soon! We will begin our fundraiser April 30 and it will run through May 21. Vacation Bible School is a very costly venture, but allows us the most opportunity to place intensive spiritual emphasis on the needs of children and their families. This is money that is well spent and the ripple effect of spiritual gains lasts for many generations. Please contact Cheryl Ann Miller or Linda Hartman to offer your services. It will be the most fun few hours you will ever spend.

You can teach!

We are still looking for a few dedicated teachers for the Sonshine class at 10:30-11:30 a.m. This is for children from 3-5 years of age. Can you help with these little ones once a month?

Thanks for all you do for people! Jesus paid a great price for us! The least we can do is to minister to the "least of these." Have a glorious Easter season!

Upcoming Adult classes

Sunday: Tough Issues...will return on Sunday, April 30 at 9:30 with Pam Duncan leading the discussions.

Sunday: Parenting Teens…is being planned for Sunday mornings at 10:45 a.m. - watch for a start date and details.

Wednesday: The DaVinci Code...In anticipation of the May release of the movie, we'll offer a Wednesday night discussion of the Biblical issues raised in this best-selling book, beginning April 26 at 6:30 p.m. Leader: Kathleen O'Connell.

Thursday: We had so much fun with our "Sin of the Week"study, that we want to continue! We're still figuring out our next topic, but this weekly discussion/study and brown bag lunch will continue on Thursdays from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. after Easter with Kathleen O'Connell. Join us!

Presbyterians on the GO

PoGO is sponsoring a trip to see Agatha Christie's Mousetrap at the Elkhart Civic Theatre in Bristol on Sunday, May 7 at 3:00 p.m. Mousetrap is Christie's most successful play. It is the longest, continuously running play of all time.

The Brown Bag Book Bunch meets on the first Monday of each month at 11:00 a.m. to discuss the current book.
The upcoming selections are:

May	Green Grow the Victims	Jeanne Dams
June	The Egg and I	Betty McDonald
July	Good Bye is Not Forever	Amy George
August	Alias Grace	Margaret Atwood
September	Biting the Moon	Martha Grimes
October	The Emancipator's Wife	Barbara Hambly
November	Portuguese Irregular Verbs	Alexander McCall Smith

Join us in the Reception Room.

Palm Sunday (April 9) - Celebrate Christ's entry into Jerusalem with palms and music.
Maundy Thursday (April 13) - Join us at 7:00 p.m. on the lower level as we remember the Last Supper, celebrate communion, and carry the cross to the front of the church.
Good Friday (April 14) - We host the Ministerial Association's Community Good Friday service at noon. Join us for a multimedia service on the lower level.
Easter Worship (April 16) - Celebrate the Resurrection with lilies and joyful music from our choirs and instrumentalists. We will share the Lord's Supper. There will be no church school.

Jonah and the Whale

On Sunday, April 30, the Jr. Chorale will present a short musical, "Jonah and the Whale" at the 10:30 a.m. worship service. The story begins on a large sailing vessel, featuring Jonah, his relationship with God, and his experience with the whale. Come enjoy this "whale of a story" as "Jonah and the Whale" is told by a hearty crew of enthusiastic singers. WELCOME ABOARD!

Ushers & Greeters

As part of our reorganization, we are moving toward a new way of recruiting ushers. We are also re-examining the role of ushers and greeters. We need:

Can you help? Please sign up near the Gathering Place or call the church office.
Thank you to all who volunteered to usher or greet on the worship time survey.

Adam Hoffer, our Coordinator of Music for Contemporary Worship, has accepted a new job in Florida. He, Beth Ann and Devon will be moving sometime toward the end of May/early June, depending on when their house sells.

Adam has been a valued part of the Bridge Worship Team since the beginning, and we will be very sorry to say good-bye to him. Once we know more about his final date, we'll plan a special farewell in worship. As Adam leaves, Dennis Hoffer (keyboardist for the band, and the original Music Coordinator) will return to that position.

Thank you to all who helped with our Wednesday night Lenten soup suppers and Evensong worship: Marge Mason Braden for planning and leading the services; Abigail Circle and others for providing the suppers; pianists Luella Karay, Daryl Greising, and Dennis Hoffer, Kathleen O'Connell, and Dale & Kay South for filling in where needed.

 

Presbyterian Women

We commit ourselves:

to nurture our faith through prayer and Bible Study,

to support the mission of the church worldwide, to work for justice and peace,

and to build an inclusive, caring community of women that strengthens the Presbyterian Church (USA) and witnesses to the promise of God's Kingdom.

Women's Spring Retreat
Mark your calendars now for a relaxing day of fellowship and renewal.

Check the church literature racks for brochures with more information.

Spring Gathering…Saturday, April 29, Presbyterian Women from around the Presbytery will gather in Kokomo. The main speaker of the day will be Sue Ella Rich, who participated in the Global Exchange trip to Brazil last year. Contact Jill Stoll if you would like to attend. The cost is $7.

Birthday Offering…The needs of people around the world and in our own communities can seem staggering; it's easy to assume that individuals can do nothing to help. Not so. When we all get together, pool our resources and contribute to a single effort, women acting in faith can do big things. Since 1922, PW has given more than $29,000,000 in support of mission projects all over the world. The PW Birthday Offering will be collected on Sunday, April 30.

This year's grant recipients are:

• Forman Christian College Women's Hostel, Lahore, Pakistan providing on-campus housing for women in college.
  
• Kentucky Refugee Ministries, Inc. Refugee Family Center, Louisville, Kentucky providing on-site child care for refugee women as well as education and training for women.
  
• The River, Johnson City, Tennessee providing a safe place for women to do laundry, take classes, receive counseling, participate in Bible study, etc.
  
• ROSE Advocates Maple Tree House, Weiser, Idaho providing shelter, life skills classes, job training, and personal counseling for abused adults and children.
  
• Single Parent Resource Center, Inc. Resource Central, New York, New York providing parents with one-stop access to approximately 25 nonprofit and public service providers.

Spring Luncheon…Mark your calendar now for the Spring Luncheon on Saturday, May 13. Watch for more details coming soon!

It's time to register for the Churchwide Gathering! The Gathering is in Louisville, from July 7-11. Registration is open until June, but if you register now, it costs less. Information about the Gathering can be found in Horizons magazine, at the PC(USA) web site (www.pcusa.org), or you can speak to Jill Stoll or Alice Morris. Jill has registration forms. Singing, worshipping, praying, (and eating!) with 5,000 women is an awesome experience. Workshops, Bible study, skits, special music, dancing, and communion - it's a special time, spent with special people.

School Bags…For several years, PW have sewn school bags to send overseas and purchased backpacks for students in Elkhart. With your help, we have filled over 1,000 bags and backpacks and given children school supplies to help with their education. In May, we will have lists of supplies to hand out to members who would like to help again. But, we have a further need as well: it costs approximately $3 to ship each school bag overseas. ($1 to ship the bag to t e East coast and $2 to send it abroad.) If we send 120 bags this year, we will need $360 as well as the supplies. Whether you can help with school supplies, money, or both, you are appreciated! The children who receive the school bags are given not only necessary supplies to help them with their schooling, but the knowledge that they are loved, by God and by people they don't even know .

Susanna's Kitchen is an ecumenical soup kitchen currently housed in First Congregational Church, at Third and Marion. Our congregation serves food the fourth Monday of each month. Volunteers need to be there from 10:45-12:30. After many years of faithfully coordinating our congregation's participation, Susie Wu has turned coordination over to Walt & Beth Davis. If you would like to help, sign up in the Gathering Place or call Walt or Beth (293-7786).

Church Community Services (CCS), our ecumenical food pantry, distributes bags of food and (as funds are available) assistance with rent and utility payments to local families needing emergency help. Our church supports CCS with regular donations from our mission budget, and a number of our members make individual contributions toward rent assistance (since CCS now incorporates the work of the former Dave's Place). Several of our members volunteer at CCS, and they can always use more volunteers! We collect grocery donations each Sunday on the following schedule:

First Sunday – Fish (canned tuna & salmon) Second Sunday – Spaghetti & Spam (sauce & canned meat) Third Sunday – Oral Hygiene & Toiletries (toothpaste, personal care) Fourth Sunday – Canned Fruit Fifth Sunday – Cleaning Supplies for Faith Mission

How many ways can one say "Thank You" to so many supportive and caring members in this church and community? And how many ways can this congregation continue to express a loving concern to me and my family as we experience LIFE? It overwhelms me when I think of how often I have felt wrapped in the comfort of your care and concern during my family's various illnesses and emergencies. A simple "Thank You" hardly seems a sufficient expression of appreciation, but here it is:
Thank you, so much!
(I just had to add that "so much!" ) .
Mary Ann Graves

Thank you for your prayers and kind thoughts in memory of Marian. They have been a great comfort to us.
Don Ball and the Lehman & Melkus families

Easter Lily Memorials Contributions may be sent to the church office along with the name(s) of those in whose memory the gift is given. A list will be printed in the bulletin on Easter Sunday. Lilies will decorate the church for Easter and then be delivered to our homebound members. Contributions must be received by Monday, April 10. Funds remaining after lily expenses will be donated to the One Great Hour of Sharing.

Do you have a prayer concern?
Do you know of someone in the hospital, recovering from illness, etc.? Let us know, so we can hold you or your friend in prayer. Contact Pat Van Dyke to be placed on the prayer chain

The Sympathy of the congregation is extended to Ruth Eraybar on the death of her father Robert C. Horton, who died on March 25, 2006.

Church Office Closed...On
Monday, April 17, the office will be closed for Easter Monday

Interested in exploring membership in First Presbyterian? Our next membership class will be held on two Thursday evenings, April 20 & 27, from 6:30-8:00 in Room 100. Call the office for further information.

Hospitality Hostesses needed...Have you hosted a coffee hour lately? Volunteers are always needed to help with coffee and pastries in the Gathering Place on Sunday mornings. If you can help call Betty Rice at 875-8083.

Newsletter  Deadline
The next newsletter will be inserted in the bulletin on May 21 , and mailed the following week to those who are not in worship. Please submit articles for that newsletter by May 12.