Senior Chat for June

Learning new ideas and skills is good for our health, especially our brain’s health. At the twice-monthly Senior Chats, we hear speakers with new information and share ideas that we may not encounter anywhere else. We have two great presenters set for our June meetings in the Fireside Room, beginning at 10:00 a.m. Everyone is welcome, and no RSVP is necessary. For more information, call Rev. Dona Smith-Powers.

• June 12 Identity Theft and Scams
  Bill Bauriedel, who has worked in the field of Information Security at Stanford for 33 years, has much useful information to share with us. We all need to know the basics of protecting ourselves in a world where our resources are increasingly at risk. Elders are particularly vulnerable.
• June 26 Tai Chi and Balance
  Winslow Rouse, a Senior Care Manager, will share his expertise on this subject, also giving us some clues on “how to fall” if that is about to happen. Many of us, when we have a balance issue, have fallen and broken a wrist or leg bone, and there are proven ways to help the fall have less impact.

Boomerang Express Bible Camp

Mark your calendars and tell the kids and grandchildren and neighborhood kids! Covenant’s Boomerang Express Bible Camp is coming next month, July 27-31, 1:00-4:00 p.m. daily.

This popular program for children kindergarten through fifth grade fills up fast, and preregistration is required so that we can plan for enough teachers and supplies. The registration fee is $30, and scholarships are available.

We will need lots of helpers, adult and youth. If you’d like to be part of this rewarding program for young children, we’d love to have your help. Contact Jane Bernstein for more information. See registration form on the Web to sign up for the camp.

Green at Covenant Meeting

Green at Covenant will meet after worship on Sunday, June 14, for about an hour in the Fireside Room to consider what it would take for Covenant to become a certified Green Business in Santa Clara County.

Using a Green Business Checklist, we will break into small groups to consider the areas of General Standards, Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling, Energy Conservation, Water Conservation, and Pollution Prevention. Each group will go through one portion of the checklist, about 2 pages each; then we will reconvene as a large group to discuss highlights.

The purpose of this meeting is to help us understand what might be involved in becoming a Green Business and opening our eyes to possible ways of reducing our impact on the environment. If you are unable to attend and you wish to provide any input, please contact Carol Holsinger.

First Breath--First, Breathe

Dear Friends,
Like Christmas and Easter, Pentecost is more than just a day on the church calendar; it is a season. This year May 31 is the celebration day that begins the long stretch of what we also know as “ordinary time”, as the liturgical flaming reds and oranges cool to green. Just as Psalm 23 conjures images of green pastures as places of refreshment and salvation, the days of the Pentecost season offer that to us.

Take time to meet our new members soon!

This is the work of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit came as a rushing wind on Pentecost, but spirit in both Greek and Hebrew additionally means breath. At its birth, the church drew its first breath; the breath of the Spirit has been inhaled and exhaled through all its days since. The Spirit invites us in this season to “just breathe.” Let us take some deep breaths together, then, clearing our lungs of stale particles (perhaps with some coughing!), relaxing the tightness in our shoulders, feeling how good it is simply to be alive, open to the Spirit and what comes next—in the long, green summer and beyond.

Breathe on (and in and through) us, Breath of God!
Blessings,
Paula

Library's New Books for Children

At Pastor Alison’s recommendation, last year I removed our old children’s books from the library because they were so unappealing, and there had been no visible activity in the past 15 years or so in that section of the library. Our discards went to good causes: some to our own Children’s Center and others to the local Friends of the Library. Now we are starting over with the two books described here, my favorites out of several on my personal list for our library. Credit for helping me discover them goes to speakers at recent meetings of our local Churches and Synagogues Library Association chapter.

Ryan and Jimmy and the Well in Africa that Brought Them Together, by Herb Shoveller (2008), is a true story of a first-grader near Montreal who takes the initiative for action after he hears about the problem of bad water in Uganda making thousands of adults and children very ill. Despite repeated discouragement as he attempts to make a difference, he tries over and over again and challenges others to join him. After several years, he meets his pen-pal Jimmy in the village after an expensive pump has been installed. The story has one amazing chapter after another and ends with an update that the Ryan’s Well Foundation has now built more than 300 wells in Africa, Asia, and South America. The book is beautifully put together with many photos of the children involved in Canada and Africa.

Monkey Business; Stories from Around the World, by Shirley Climo, and illustrated by Erik Brooks (2005). A few weeks ago I heard Climo speak about this and other children’s books she has written. As the dust cover tells it, this is her 23rd children’s book. “This collection of monkey lore combines her love of storytelling with her fascination for finding the facts that hide behind the fiction.” The fourteen chapters are a mix of fables and facts about monkeys, which are native to three continents, and the related family of primates native to Madagascar, the lemurs.

So, that is a start. I hope this new library venture will grow and that some of you will become a part of the effort with your own suggestions and recommendations.
Rudy Dyck, Librarian

Celebrate Pentecost

“And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” (Acts 2:2-4)

Fifty days after Easter, we observe the Day of Pentecost, marking the movement of the Holy Spirit among the apostles and the winning of new converts to the gospel.

At Covenant, we will observe Pentecost in a special way this year with the reception of new members from our “Journey” confirmation group. The celebration continues after worship with a “Birthday Party” and a chance to share fellowship as we look toward summer and the end of our regular program year.

You are invited to join us for this special celebration of the nearness of the Holy Spirit and the growth of the early church. Wear red and share the spirit—invite a friend to join us.

Annual Meeting Scheduled

Sunday, May 24, 2009, after worship

The major agenda item for the annual meeting is the election of Deacons and Elders. Five positions on the Session are open: three 3-year terms to replace retiring Elders Diane Jones, José Espinoza, and Carol Holsinger, who completed the last year of George Van Hare’s term. In addition, two years remain of two positions not filled last year. Three Deacon positions will be vacant with the retirement of John Akers-Bell, Jane Bernstein, and the shared position of Bette-Jane Ferandin and Lorraine Johnson. We will also elect four Members-at-Large to the Nominating Committee for a one-year term.

The Nominating Committee has begun identifying potential candidates for both offices. This year’s Nominating Committee includes Elders Diane Jones, Moderator, and Fritz Beyer; Deacon Kristen Sheau; and four Members-at-Large from the Congregation elected at last year’s meeting, Kay Coffey, Dick Davies, Jennifer Espinoza, and Chuck Wunder.

We thank our retiring Elders and Deacons and this year’s Nominating Committee for all their work. We encourage you to consider prayerfully our responsibilities for leadership in the church and contact any member of the Nominating Committee if you or someone you know feels called to serve God and Covenant in this way.

Bread for the World

Sunday, May 3, 2009, after worship

“Trying to end hunger with food drives is like trying to fill the Grand Canyon with a teaspoon.” —Joel Berg, All You Can Eat: How Hungry is America?

The Faith Works Ministry invites you to join us after worship in Fellowship Hall on May 3 to take a few minutes to write a letter on behalf of hungry people.

Bread for the World is a collective Christian voice urging our nation’s decision makers to end hunger at home and abroad. Each year, Bread for the World invites churches and other groups to take up a nationwide Offering of Letters to Congress on an issue important to hungry people. This year, we will urge Congress to rework U.S. foreign assistance policies to make them more effective in reducing poverty. For additional information, contact Carol Holsinger, and plan to stop by to write a letter on May 3.

Pentecost Offering Set

Sunday, May 31, 2009 during worship

On Pentecost Sunday, we will receive one of the four special offerings set aside by the Presbyterian Church (USA) in support of particular needs. The Pentecost Offering "provides a direct way to meet the needs of children at risk, youth, and young adults."

Covenant’s share (40%) of the offering will go to local missions like the Ecumenical Hunger Program’s back-to-school programs such as Kits for Kids, which supply backpacks filled with school supplies, and for summer camp programs like the one provided at EHP by Stanford Haas Public Service Center. Sixty percent is sent to General Assembly for programs in leadership development opportunities for youth and young adults and national efforts supporting children-at-risk. We encourage you to give generously to this special offering.

Come to the Pentecost Party

Sunday, May 31, 2009, after worship in Fellowship Hall

Pentecost is sometimes thought of as the "birthday" of the church—the time when the disciples were empowered by the Holy Spirit to leave the upper room and go into the world to preach the good news of the gospel.

Our Pentecost celebration will continue after worship in Fellowship Hall with a BIG RED Birthday Party. In addition to celebrating Pentecost, we’ll honor our newest members, our youth whose three month "Journey" toward confirmation ends with their formally joining the church during worship.

Wear red, and join the fun at the Big Red Birthday Party on May 31.

Senior Chat in May

Friday, May 8 and 22, 10:00-11:30 a.m. in Fireside Room

Senior Chats are one of the best things going for our ecumenical connections. We have folks from five churches visiting the chats, and the discussion is always stimulating. Sometimes our brains and bodies are really challenged by the presenters, who are professionals in their fields.

You’re invited to join us on the second and fourth Fridays each month in the Fireside Room, 10:00-11:30 a.m. No RSVP is necessary. For more information, call Rev. Dona Smith-Powers.

• May 8 Balance and Posture
  Jean Couch from the Balance Center will give us some simple, but often overlooked, guidelines for taking body pain away. Typically, as we age, we have more aches and pains and tend to curl our bodies in response to that pain. In this session, we will learn how our body posture can straighten more and more as we age. This program just may give us some of the answers we are looking for.
• May 22 Spiritual Aspects of Death and Dying
  Jane Garrison is a minister working with Hospice of the Valley. She has researched and experienced death and dying first hand. If you’ve ever had questions about death, its meaning, and the afterlife, perhaps this would be the time to ask those questions. This is a subject that we don’t often get to explore in our culture, one that tries to deny that death is a reality.

Men's Breakfast

Saturday, May 16, 2009, 8:00 a.m. in Fireside Room

Covenant’s Men’s Breakfast Group will meet on Saturday, May 16, at 8:00 a.m. for breakfast, fellowship, and study. Rudy Dyck and José Espinoza are cooking. Frank Bernstein will lead the discussion, topic to be determined. All men are welcome.

Covenant Green Meeting Planned

Sunday, May 17, 2009, 12:15-1:15 in Fireside Room

Green at Covenant will meet on Sunday, May 17, from 12:15-1:15 p.m. in the Fireside Room. After gathering information from sources like Foothill Presbyterian Church and the Palo Alto Nonprofits Go Green event, we need to consider what we have learned and how Covenant might become more environmentally responsible. Join us to talk about what we have learned and what to do next. Faith Works will meet after the discussion from 1:30-2:00 to confirm our summer plans. Do bring a bag lunch if you get hungry early.

Library: Something for Everyone

This month, the Library column has something for everyone: a new book and some book reviews for kids, teens, and their families.

The new book is The Young Reader’s Edition of Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Journey to Change the World, One Child at a Time, by Greg Mortenson and David Relin, and adapted by Sarah Thomson, (2009) 303/M. The first edition of Three Cups of Tea, which we have in the library, is one of my all-time favorites, so I am pleased to add this new version of Mortenson’s amazing adventure story. In 1993, mountain-climber Mortenson was welcomed by a tiny Pakistani mountain village after his climb, and the experience turned his life around. Now he devotes his life to building girls’ schools in places like that. Today he is married with a daughter, Amira, 12, and son, Kyber, 9, and in this book, Amira is an active participant in the enterprise in Central Asia, even while the family maintains its home in Montana.

The book reviews that interested me this month are from Congregational Libraries Today (Sept./Oct. ’08) in a section titled “guiding young believers.” In Promises from the Olive Tree ($17.99), Noreen Jacks, a Bible teacher and Middle East traveler, bases her book on Psalm 128:3: “Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children like olive plants around your table.” With this image of the olive tree, parents will learn more about guiding their children through various stages of their lives. Topics include respect in a family, the importance of table fellowship, and working in dysfunctional families. Parents will learn how to encourage their children at all phases of life so they grow in wisdom and love of the Lord. The prayers for mothers at the end of the book are moving.

The other two books are 101 More Great Games for Kids: Active, Bible-based Fun for Christian Education by Jolene Roehlkepartain ($16.00), for ages 3-12, and A Relentless Hope: Surviving the Storm of Teen Depression, by Gary E. Nelson ($18.00). All three of these books came out in 2007. The reviews for these books and others are in the library on the small stand.
Rudy Dyck, Librarian