C h u r c h S c h o o l : 9 : 1 5 a . m . S u n d a y W o r s h i p : 1 0 : 4 5 a . m . 110 North Adams Street Tallahassee, Florida 32301

Phone (850) 222-4504 Fax (850) 222-2215

email: office@oldfirstchurch.org w e b s i t e : w w w . o l d fi r s t c h u r c h . o r g

www.facebook.com/oldfirstchurch Pastor’s Blog: b r a n t c o p e l a n d . c o m

CHURCH OFFICE HOURS: 9:00 AM—12:30 PM AND 1:30PM—5:00PM, Monday—Friday

Lenten Book Group Tuesday, April 2, 2019 at 6:30 p.m.

Book we are reading: A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

Join us as we explore how a grumpy man and the neighbors around him, show us the profound impact one

life has on countless others. Through the story we will look for themes related to the season of Lent: grace, forgiveness, redemption, reconciliation, faith, sacrifice and transformation.

Books are available in the Christian Education Office for $15 or the Kindle Store electronic edition for $12.99. This week you can get copies at Midtown Reader for 10% off the cover price.

You will find them in the Book Club section.

If you are planning to participate in our Lenten Book Group on April 2 at 6:30 p.m. please email christy@oldfirstchurch.org. Many of you had the book or had already read it; so, we want to be sure to send

information about the book group to all who are interested in participating.

Spring Break Mission Trip to St. Simon’s Island: March 17-22, 2019

Our theme for this year’s mission trip will be environ-

mental, specifically the fragility of our coastlines and

our water quality. We will work with three biologists

from the UGA environmental extension office to test

water, sea life and clean up marshes. We will also

take a hands-on look at the poverty that often sur-

rounds the beauty of a resort community. What is

the price on our earth and a local people when a

community begins to have residents from around

the country build huge homes for rental and vaca-

tion? Where do our values for enjoying a beautiful

setting intersect with the price nature pays when we

over-tax an eco-system? P ray for us as we explore

these issues while getting dirty and wet!

Participants include: Brant Copeland, Christy Wil-

liams, Abigail Cleveland, Jacqueline Cruz, Molly

Kennedy, Camille Peterman, Casey Keating, Ethan

Tozer, and Thomas Kennedy.

The Community Remembrance Project has received preliminary approval from the Equal Justice Initiative to bring the duplicate

column from the Peace and Justice Memorial to Tallahassee. The committee will continue to encourage partnerships and dialogue as this effort moves forward. To that end, a civil

rights tour of Montgomery has been organized for interested community members

June 17 and 18.

We will visit 7 museums and sites while we are there, with a particular focus on the EJI

sites. This is designed to be an inter-faith, inter-racial, and inter-generational tour. It is hoped after visiting Montgomery, which has

done the hard work of facing their history and reconciling to move forward as a stronger

community with hope, that participants will return invigorated for the work ahead as we

continue to seek partners and engage in dialogue with our neighbors.

If you are interested in joining this pilgrimage, please contact Debbie Gibson at:

656-3659 or gibsond1207@gmail.com.

If all goes according to schedule, you will be seeing some big changes taking place in the court-yard this week. Contractor Bill Kimberl’s crews will be installing the platform on which the col-umbarium structure will rest. Under the supervision of the Columbarium Committee’s chairper-son Ann Riccardi, the courtyard will also receive a facelift. Trees, shrubs, and benches are in-cluded in the master plan.

Technically, the entire courtyard will be the “columbarium,” an element of which will be the marble structure containing the niches where ashes (cremains) will be interred. In common parlance, however, people tend to call the niches themselves “the columbarium,” so I am going to follow that custom.

The columbarium is scheduled to arrive on May 6. The plan is for a large crane to lift the struc-ture over the trees along Adams Street and place it on its base in the courtyard. A dozen of the marble niche fonts will already have been inscribed with the names and dates of people whose ashes are to be interred. We have not yet set a date for the dedication of the columbarium niches, but that should take place shortly after the niches arrive. At that service urns will be placed in niches and the niches will sealed. (Think in terms of the committal service that ends a Service of Witness to the Resurrection.)

The columbarium will have a feature that was not part of the original design. There will be “memorial columns” on which a loved one’s name, date of birth, and date of death can be in-scribed. This is for those whose ashes are not interred in our columbarium, but whose memo-ries are dear to us. Several people have asked for this option, and I am pleased that the new design will accommodate this feature.

The cost for purchasing a niche (which can hold the remains of two people) is $4,000.00. The cost for adding a name to the memorial columns is $1,000.00. These fees are considerably lower than those of commercial cemeteries, but there is no guarantee that they will not in-crease over time. If you wish to purchase a niche or memorialize a loved one, now is the per-fect time to act.

This project has been in the works for several years. I am not the only one who will rejoice when the task is accomplished. I am including a photo of a columbarium of identical design so that you can see what the First Presbyterian columbarium will look like.

Pastor’s Column by Brant S. Copeland

The wait for First Presbyterian Church’s Columbarium is almost over. Prior to the May 6th de-livery, you may purchase a double niche for $4,000 or an engraving on the memorial panel for

$1,000 to recognize someone who is not going to be interred at First Presbyterian Church. Please contact Lori, our Church Administrator, with any questions or to finalize the details of the purchase. Your payment may be made by check or by card credit through the Church’s

website.

Lectionary Readings

March 24, 2019 3rd Sunday in Lent

Isaiah 55:1-9

Psalm 63:1-8

1st Corinthians 10:1-13

Luke 13:1-9

Our nursery and preschool rooms are staffed by childcare

providers from the Heavenly Helpers Agency. These child-

care professionals are background checked and trained in

infant/child first aid and CPR. They are present in both

rooms from 9:00 a.m. – Noon each Sunday.

Main Floor Nursery: Our nursery is for infants and toddlers

up to two years old. Parents can drop children off begin-

ning at 9:00 a.m. and children will be cared for through the

worship hour. There is a sign in sheet for parents to list

who will be picking their child up, an emergency phone

number and any particular needs the child may have while

in the church’s care. Children should come with a bottle or

sippy cup, preferred snack and diapers. Diaper wipes and

additional snacks are available.

Preschool Care: Beginning at age two, children go to the

third floor preschool room. Drop-off begins at 9:00 a.m.

and children are cared for through the worship hour. There

is a sign in sheet for parents. Snacks are provided.

YOUTH GROUP

March 17 & 24, 2019

Enjoy your time with family and friends over this Spring Break.

The Praying Project for Lent

created by the youth of

Fellowship and First

Presbyterian Churches

Using the daily lectionary, our

youth group worked in small

groups to study, reflect and

then write prayers for each

Monday and Friday in Lent. We

ask that you join the youth in

studying, reflecting and praying

this Lent and that you use this

resource to help your discipline.

Photos of the youth who

worked on each day are

included so you might also pray

for each of them.

Please use the following link to

find this week’s scripture and

prayers on the FPC website.

Praying Project

Visitation Ministry

Are you able to visit with members who cannot attend worship, either for a short time (such as when a mem-ber is recovering from an injury) or long-term? Do you know a member who would appreciate some extra con-tact with our church family? Please let the Care and Outreach team know by contacting Ann DelRossi, chair, at adelrossi@fsu.edu.

Mary and Martha Circle

March 19 Hostess: Esther Mooring

Helpers: Robyn Stevenson, Debbie Gibson

Study Leader: Carol Weissert

April 7th Mission Workshop

Bring a Brown Bag Lunch

Dessert and Beverage will be provided

Everyone is invited – men, women, youth and children. Join us on April 7th immediately after Worship in the Westminster Room for lunch, fellowship and mission work. We are pleased to have Jane Atkinson and Ruben Diaz as guest speakers during our meal, when they will discuss root causes of Central American migration. Afterward, you will be able to choose from any or all of the following opportunities:

1. Give a helping hand to the Hannah Circle who is partnering with John Wamsley, pastor of First Church Marianna. Circle mem-bers will be sorting donations and assembling cleaning kits and personal hygiene kits to be distributed by John to those still in need as they recover from Hurricane Michael.

2. Assist Together in Service as they partner with Project Linus to provide blankets to residents of the Panama City area who still recovering from Hurricane Michael. The fleece will be pre-cut and no sewing is required to finish the blankets and prepare for donation – a fun and appropriate project for all ages.

3. Find out how to transform your yard into an edible garden with Regine Maligne and take some plants home to get you started.

4. Write letters in support of climate justice with Pam McVety. 5. Help Rich Peyton to prepare stamps and find out more about

how Stamps for Mission has made an impact on the lives of others.

6. Support the work of Grace Mission Church in our community by preparing needed donations for their free clothes closet.

7. Demonstrate love, concern and prayers for children affected by Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico - create a special personalized pillowcase for a child to be distributed in partnership with the three presbyteries on the Island of Puerto Rico.

Items we are collecting for use at the workshop may be brought to the church office or directly to the workshop:

· Men’s (S/M/L) and Women’s (S/M) underwear

· Size 5 & 6 diapers

· Deodorant – both men’s and women’s

· Diaper wipes

· Cleaning supplies – disinfection wipes and spray for kitchens and bath-

rooms

· Personal hygiene items – soap, shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste, tooth-

brushes

· White standard pillowcases

· Stamps for Missions – cut used commemorative stamps out, leaving a ¼

inch paper border

March 24, 2019 9:15 a.m.

ADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASSES

Adult Bible Study Class Calvin Room (across from the church

office) We will continue our study of the Book

of Romans with Chapter 10-11. Each Sunday we read selections from

the Bible and discuss their meaning for our lives today.

Visitors are welcome to join us!

Hearing the Word Room 205

This class meets to discuss articles, books, and essays of the class mem-

bers’ choosing that relate to faith experiences and serving in the world.

Inquirers’ Class

Westminster Room 208

The Inquirers continue with Living the Questions 2.0 (about). The provocative theological discourse—among progres-sive theologians featured in the videos

and among class participants—will make you think. Newcomers welcome; each session in the series stands on its

own. This week’s program is titled, “Social Justice: Realizing God's Vision.” Our background reading is pp. 12-15 in

“LTQ2c-Call-To-Covenant.PDF” (John emailed copies on March 13

if you did not get yours, please contact the church office).

Submit items for publication to: newsletter@oldfirstchurch.org

no later than noon on the

Monday of publication.

First Presbyterian Church Calendar for March 2019

Date Time Event Location Comments

Sunday

Schedule 9:00 AM Nursery Opens

Education Bldg. Care for children last through the

worship hour

10:45 AM Lord's Day Service Sanctuary All are welcome

Wednesdays 7:30 PM Choir Practice FPC Choir Room The Adult Choir meets each

Wednesday

17th—22nd Youth Mission Trip

If you have the urge to begin your spring garden, wel-

come to the monthly meeting of Apalachee Audubon to

hear four experts present Backyard Biodiversity: Garden-

ing for Wildlife, including Donna LeGare of Native Nurse-

ries. The meeting will be held on Thursday, March 21st,

in the King Sciences Building on the FSU campus from

7:00 to 8:30 p.m.

See https://www.apalachee.org/chapter-programs.

Do You Love Gardening? Do Care About God’s Creation? This May Be the Workshop for You.