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Finally the sunshine is back, the warmth of spring, and the hope for summer. Easter has come, and with it the release from our long Lenten journey. Like captives set free, we can now proclaim “Christ is Risen!” and know and feel and believe, that “He is Risen, indeed.”
We’ve lost no time in celebration. A big part of our church life this year centers on our 300 years as a congregation. Even as we hold special events for our Tricentenary all year long, we celebrated our 300th Anniversary Day with particular focus on April 30th. We measured our anniversary back to the day closest to April 29, 1717, when our first pastor, The Rev. John Pierson, was ordained at the Woodbridge Church and preached every fourth week at a “small meeting house built in the north west part of the township of Woodbridge called Metuchen.” 1
By 1750, there were some disagreements between us as we haggled over property and preaching time with our larger parent congregation at the First Presbyterian Church of Woodbridge, like family sometimes does. And in 1794, we finally separated as an independent church and became the “Second Presbyterian Church of Woodbridge,” later to be renamed “First Presbyterian Church of Metuchin” (sic), in 1858.
So to make things right within the family, on our 300th Anniversary Sunday, we invited back some special guests from the Woodbridge congre-gation, still going strong all these years later. The Pastor, Clerk of Session and a passionate historian from “First Church” joined us for worship and found themselves right at home. The Mayor of Metuchen also came that morning and, in a festive reception in the social center, he presented us with a special proclamation, declaring April 30, 2017, to be “First Presbyterian Church Day” for the Borough of Metuchen. We also dedicated a Time Cap-sule to the next generation of our congregation with treasures inside – his-torical remembrances and testimony to our faith – and sealed it up for pos-terity not to be opened until year 2042! There’s more Good News to be found at our church as we look to the future. This month students from the Confirmation Class of 2017 will be joining our membership in celebration at worship on Sunday May 7th. We elect a new slate of officers: a new class of Deacons and Elders at our
Pastor’s Peace continues
Easter Service
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Distinguished Guest Speaker
Pastor Nominating Committee
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Children and Youth Ministries
Vacation Bible School
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Confirmation Class of 2017
Music Ministries
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• Tools of Hope
• Operation Homemade Smile
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Keeping the Promise 7
Welcome New Members
Church Directory
8
2017 Graduates
Clerk’s Corner
Parish Register
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Mark your Calendars
Presbyterian Women News
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FPC Indonesian Fellowship
Farewell to Seminary Intern
Church Staff
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Constant Contact/Church Picnic 12
Inside this issue:
May 2017
PASTOR’S PEACE
F i r s t Pre s byte r i a n C h u rc h 270 Woodbridge Avenue, Metuchen, NJ 08840
Telephone: 732-491-2300 www.fpcweb.org
http://www.facebook.com/FPCMetuchen Sunday Morning Worship starts at 9:30 AM
Rev. Ellen Clark Clémot
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PASTOR’S PEACE (continued)
congregational meeting on Sunday May 14th. And on Sunday May 21st we will celebrate in worship with a 300th Anniversary Concert Day – all music all morning. All good things to plan for and look forward to for this month of May and our warm-up for summer.
Having a 300 year old church – a congregation of many generations and a history of long faithfulness – helps keep life’s challenges in per– spective.
History offers a sense of hopeful-ness: that somehow we have sur-vived this far and for this long, by the grace of God and the living Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ. That is hope enough for all of us.
As you face each new day, and the budding promise of this particular day, remember the wisdom of Ec-clesiastes, who wrote that “for eve-rything there is a season…a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance.” May this be a time of dancing for each one of you, a time of laughter, and a time of Joy.
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Clémot
1 Thomas Weber, The Heritage of the First Presbyterian Church of Metuchen, N.J., at 13.
To submit an article to the
Parish News:
Please contact Tori Burke at:
Find First Presbyterian Church Online
Facebook : @FPCMetuchen
Website : fpcweb.org
VISION
To be an inclusive, connected, and loving community mobilized to serve.
MISSION
We are a welcoming and diverse congregation that serves God by improving the spiritual,
mental and physical well-being of people in our community and beyond through worship,
education, fellowship, music, and mission outreach.
2017 Easter Sunrise Service
FPC kicked off Easter Day with a Sunrise Service! Take a
look as members rise early for the first service of the day.
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Pastor Nominating Committee
Meet FPC’s Pastor Nominating Committee as they search for the person to be installed as the next
Senior Pastor of FPC.
(L to R) Committee Chair Jan Margolis, Heidi Hoffsommer, Wally Cook, Sonia Bafna-McDougal,
Brian Smith, Linda Valeriani, Howard Stein, and John Suparman. Not in the picture is Linda
Boughton.
The Reverend Dr. M. Craig Barnes was raised on Long Island, New York. After graduating from The King’s College and Princeton Theological Seminary, he received a Ph.D. in the Histo-ry of Christianity from The University of Chicago. He has served as a pastor to three congregations including The National Presby-terian Church in Washington D.C.
In the fall of 2002, he became the Meneilly Professor of Pastoral Ministry at Pittsburgh Seminary while also serving as the senior pastor of Shadyside Presbyterian Church. In 2012 he was elected president of Princeton Theological Seminary. He has eight pub-lished books including Searching For Home, The Pastor as Minor Poet, and Body and Soul. He also serves as an Editor at Large and frequent contributor to The Christian Century.
He is married to Dawne Hess Barnes who is an interior decorator.
They have three delightful children and two hairy dogs.
The Reverend Dr. M. Craig Barnes President, Princeton Theological Seminary
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FPC Youth Group
The final Youth Group of the year will be held on May 17th
Upcoming Fundraisers
Mark your calendar for three Habitat for Humanity fundraisers. We will be hosting two car
washes before our July trip: Saturday, May 13th and Saturday, June 17th. Chipotle restaurant is
on Sunday, June 11th.
Mattress Run
Following our June 17th car wash, we will be hosting a Mattress Run competition. If you have an
old twin or full mattress that you would be willing to donate, please contact Rev. Karmann.
Habitat for Humanity
Our Mission Trip to Roanoke, Virginia will be July 23rd-29th. Parents of Youth attending the trip
will be receiving a registration packet at the beginning of June. We ask that everyone keep our
Youth and chaperones in their prayers before, during, and after the trip. Also, please be praying
for the community we are serving in Roanoke and that we can share the love of Christ with them.
Vacation Bible School
June 26 - 30, 2017
Registration begins on Sunday, May 7th Download a form from FPC website or FB page.
Mail/drop your form along with your payment to:
FPC Office, 270 Woodbridge Ave. Metuchen, NJ
FPC members: $25 per child, Max. $50 per family
Non members: $ 25 per child
Questions?
Contact : Nancy Leardi, Director of Christian Education
Tel: (732) 491-2264 Email: [email protected]
OPEN HOUSE
FPC Christian Ed. Room 105
May 15 / Mon. 9 am - 12 pm May 16 / Tues. 2 - 5 pm
An exciting week of fun, faith, music, crafts and games in a cosmic space adventure!
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Children and Youth Choirs of 2017
Jubilee Choir Final rehearsal and pizza party: Tuesday, May 16
Junior Choir and Joy Ringers Final rehearsal and pizza party: Thursday, May 18
Westminster Choir Final rehearsal: Wednesday, May 17
A Celebration of Song Please join us on Sunday, May 21, for a special 300th Anniversary
performance featuring our singing and hand bell choirs. The perfor-
mance will also include the Somerset Brass Quintet.
Reid Busse
Domonique Dudley
Vinnie Eccleston
Noah Fong
Erin Kowalski
Diego Lijeron
Christine Purukan
Jessica Purukan
Sebastian Rohrer
Bridget Sanger
Jack Thompson
Chris Toreh
Lee Van Pelt
Emma Walters
The 2017 Confirmands at their Confirmation Retreat in Johnsonburg Center with their leaders Rev. Justin Karmann and Seminarian Intern Emily McCachren.
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Contributions to CWS Tools mean Church World Service will
be ready to help people around the world gain the resources
and develop the skills necessary to sustain themselves and
their families and to build viable communities.
Tools of Hope June 18 - Father’s Day
We choose to celebrate Father’s Day with a special offering. A contribution to the Church World Service Tools of Hope makes a wonderful alternative gift to honor your father. Complete and return this form to the Church Office. Make your check payable to the First Presbyterian Church ( P. O. Box 385, Metuchen, NJ 08840) with a notation that the money is for “Tools of Hope.”
Deadline to submit forms: Wednesday, June 7, 2017.
INFORMATION FOR BULLETIN INSERT & ACKNOWLEDGMENT
GIVEN IN HONOR OF : _____ __________ __________________ HONOREE’S ADDRESS: ___ ____ GIVEN IN MEMORY OF: __ _________________________ _______________ __
NAME PHONE NUMBER AMOUNT OF CONTRIBUTION $____ ____________________________ ($5.00/Tools) PLEDGE ENVELOPE # ____ _
Operation Homemade Smile
for our Servicemen and Women Overseas Sunday, May 21
After-Worship Refreshments
Dear Friends and Members of FPC-Metuchen,
Please bake your favorite homemade cookies and on Sunday, May 21, bring a small portion of your
batch to share with the church and place the remainder of your cookies in a zip-lock bag to be sent
to our servicemen and women overseas.
For those who do not bake and would like to donate, we will be collecting soap bars, tissues, dark-
colored socks, crossword puzzle books, pens and pencils, new playing cards, and writing paper/blank
cards and envelopes
Yours in Mission,
Members of the Mission Commission
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Mission Accomplished . . . and the Legacy Continues
Our six year “Building the Future” Capital Campaign was a success!
We had a lofty vision . . . and reached for the stars.
We built the walls, the lights are on.
Our hopes and dreams are being realized.
Our beautiful Social Center is serving more people than ever before.
You made this possible with your Capital Campaign pledge dollars. Thank you for your generous
support and strong vision for our church’s continued legacy.
Now you can continue this legacy by prayerfully considering committing all or part of your Capital
Campaign financial pledge to your annual pledge to help our church reach many of its New Begin-
nings goals, such as:
An expanded food pantry
Improved office technology to support our volunteers
New Communications Coordinator to help expand our internal and community outreach.
Innovative, inspiring year-round celebration of our 300th anniversary that extends beyond our
walls and into our community.
Expanded technology training for our church staff to improve efficiencies and expand our com-
munity offerings.
Upgraded sanctuary sound system.
Continue our dynamic children and youth programming as well as our renowned music program.
Following are your options on how you can send in your pledge :
1- Pledge online at http://fpcweb.org/pledge.
2- Send a note about your increased pledge amount to the church office by emailing our
Church treasurer : [email protected] OR
3– Send a note by mail to 270 Woodbridge Avenue; Metuchen, NJ 08840 , Attn: Sue Harmon.
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Our family album won’t be complete without YOU!!
We are in the process of updating our Church Directory complete with photos. We hope to have the whole FPC family participate in this project.
Sign up online and enjoy the convenience of reviewing the schedule and reserving the date that works for you.
Family photographs will be taken on June 8, 9 and 10. Please member site: https://booknow-lifetouch.appointment-plus.com/9rk69258/
Say hello to our new members!! Here are a few photos from the New Members Class and the light luncheon hosted last April 2 in their honor .
We are pleased to present to our congregation Jane Brown, Niall Corbalis, Jonathan Fernandez, Karen Rubarski, Lindy Rutter, Kristina Scoglio, Kenneth VanDerSluis and Susan VanDerSluis.
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Please submit names of those graduating from high school and college. Deadline for submission of information is Monday, June 12. Graduates will be recognized at the worship service on Sunday, June 25, and their names included in the Son-Day Paper and the July-August Parish News. Email the following information to Merry Matlock at [email protected] :
• Name of Graduate
• School
• Plans for further education
• Degree obtained
Session passed a motion for the Strategic Planning Committee to submit its final recom-mendations to Session. SPC will report its findings to the Congregation on Sunday, June 11th in the Sanctuary immediately after worship.
Session received an update from the Technology Committee. The church is in the pro-cess of moving to a cloud based web system for church communication and administra-tion, and the FPC Staff training for the new system is underway.
More baptisms and New Member Welcome to the Congregation are scheduled for June.
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Sunday school teachers and classes will be in recess on Memorial Day weekend, May 28th
Nursery care will be available
June 4, Pentecost Sunday and All Church Community Picnic So many significant events to take note of this day.
Wear RED to celebrate Pentecost Sunday! Our Distinguished Guest Preacher the Reverend Dr. M. Craig Barnes will deliver the sermon. Come in your 'picnic casual' and be prepared for good food, fun games, and wonderful company! This year's picnic has a new twist! As part of our 300th Anniversary Celebration we will open the event to the whole community.
There will be a Community Dinner on June 11th, and then resumes in September.
Birthday Lunch - Wednesday, May 17th
We’re 300 years old, and this covered-dish luncheon is a delicious, time honored tradition! Steal away and join us for an hour!
The PW Craft Circle will meet on Friday, May 26, 2017 at 10 am in the PW Lounge
• The Presbyterian Women extends a great big “THANK YOU” to all who donated items to our Rummage Sale and to our wonderful, dedicated group of volunteers from First Presbyterian Church, the YMCA, and the community-at-large. We raised $9,042.43! Your support enables us to continue our many mission projects. Praise the Lord!
Reminder: The Presbyterian Women and the Board of Deacons are offering Camperships to FPC Youth who attend Camp Jburg this summer. Register online at www.campjburg.com. Only $100 reserves a camper’s choice. Online is the 2017 Brochure, Schedule of Events, Registration, and the Forms Packet which must be completed. FPC campers do NOT need to complete the “Church Reimburse-ment Acknowledgement Form”. Applications for Camperships from the Presbyterian Women and the Deacons are available in the Church Office and on the FPC website. After your camper is registered and has made his/her selections, please email the following infor-mation to Dee Bonner at [email protected]:
Camper’s Name * Grade in School in September 2017 * Birth Date * Name of Camp Event Attend-ing, and Date of this Event.
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First Presbyterian Church of Metuchen
270 Woodbridge Avenue, Metuchen, NJ 08840
(732) 491-2300 fpcweb.org
Facebook.com/FPCMetuchen
Church Staff
Temporary Senior Pastor/ Head of Staff Rev. Ellen Clark Clémot
Temporary Associate Pastor Rev. Justin D. Karmann
Pastor Emeritus Rev. Robert A. Beringer
Student Minister Emily McCachren
Minister of Music Brenda Day
Assistant Bell Director / Accompanist Elaine Hansen
Director of Christian Education Nancy Leardi
Church Treasurer Sue Harmon
Administrative Assistant Merry Matlock
Part-Time Office Assistant Vicky Lacson
Facilities Manager Jonathan Hollenbeck
Assistant Facilities Manager Roger Donnan
Communications Coordinator Tori Burke
Sunday Morning Worship begins at 9:30 am
First Presbyterian Church of Metuchen’s Indonesian Fellowship
Since 1991 this active ministry has worshiped, celebrated, and served in many wonderful ways: Worship services
Every Sunday at noon, plus special services on New Year’s Day, Good Friday, and Christmas Day
Music
Nazareth choir, Zion choir, music festivals
Missions
Homeless ministry visits to Penn station, visitation to nursing homes, and shut-ins.
Fellowship
Saturday home fellowship meetings, and potluck fellowship after worship service
Meet Our New Church Staff
Vicky Lacson
Vicky, who also started in March, works in the church office and will be the first person you see when you walk in the office.You may email her at [email protected]
Tori Burke
Tori, who started in March, works remotely but you can catch her after hours or via email at [email protected]
Farewell
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The Parish News May 2017 First Presbyterian Church P. O. Box 385 270 Woodbridge Avenue Metuchen, NJ 08840
TO:
Address Service Requested
NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION
US POSTAGE PAID
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ
PERMIT 746
The information contained herein is for Church use only. Individuals using this information must receive permission of the Session of the First Presbyterian Church of Metuchen, NJ.
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