Missouri Union Presbytery

Please pray for the family of Julie Phillips, wife of Murray Phillips (Pastor Auburn and Whiteside churches). Her mother passed away in North Dakota. Services will porbably be held on Friday, May 9, which allows the Phillips time to travel to be with family.

Ola Mae Ellis, Clerk of Session, Auburn Presbyterian Church

Trinity Presbyterian continues with their year-round VBS, even as many groups and activities shift to a summer schedule. Every first and third Wednesday, adults and children of all ages gather to spend time together for a light dinner, storytelling, singing, crafts and fellowship from 5:30 to 7:30 PM. During June, the church also holds a yearly week-long Vacation Bible School–scheduled for June 23-27, this year. For transportation or more information, call the church office 573/445-4469 or 573/449-5239 or check the church website: www.trinity@tranquility.net. At Trinity Vacation Bible School is for EVERYONE!

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH(USA) PUBLICATIONS GARNER 13 ASSOCIATE CHURCH PRESS AWARDS
PC(USA) related publications won 13 awards in the 2007 “Best of the Christian Press” competition sponsored by the Associated Church Press [www.theacp.org]. HORIZONS the magazine of Presbyterian Women—led the way with four awards. See more at www.pcusa.org/horizons. The Presbyterian News Service (PNS) at www.pcusa.org/pcnews–received three awards, including second place in the prestigious “Best In Class” category for religious news services.PRESBYTERIANS TODAY–www.pcusa.org/today–and the independent PRESBYTERIAN OUTLOOK–www.pres-outlook.org–each received two awards. Two presbytery publications – NOTICiAS, the newsletter of Santa Fe Presbytery, and CONNECTOR, the newsletter of Upper Ohio Valley Presbytery, won the “acorn Award” for small-budget publications.

Presbyterian Men website address is now www.PCUSA.org/men/ . Take a tour ofthe new site. It's more compact and up-to-date, and contains a “Who We Are”, “News and Events”, and “Giving” pages. You will find it more user friendly.

International Peacemakers are leaders who are engaged in peacemaking in their own areas of the world. They are invited by the Presbyterian Church (USA) to visit with Presbyterians in the United States and to help us understand the peace and justice concerns of others around the world. Peacemakers are available to presbyteries, synods, Presbyterian colleges and seminaries for itineration through the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program. Requests should be made through your presbytery’s peacemaking committee and are due by June 15th. Hosts of Peacemakers are asked to pay $400 to help with travel costs within this country, and to provide room, board and ground transportation within the presbytery. For additional information visit www.pcusa.org/peacemaking/intl/international.htm.

Looking forward to taking time this summer for personal and professional renewal? Looking for opportunities to improve your ministry at an affordable price? Wanting to learn and exchange ideas with leaders serving in campus-based and congregationally-based collegiate ministries? Then come to suburban Kansas City, July 17-20, for “Convergence: Bridging Ministry,” the 2008 edition of the National Campus Ministry Association’s (NCMA) annual conference. Situated on the campus of the University of Saint Mary in Leavenworth, this four-day, workshop-based event will feature three concurrent tracks: one for campus ministers with less than three years of experience, one for campus ministry veterans, and another for congregationally-based campus ministry staffs. Scholarships are available on a priority basis to congregationally-based staff and first-time conference attendees. For more information and to register for the Convergence, go to www.ncmaconference.org

Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) is prepared to provide emergency assistance to survivors of the devastating cyclone in Myanmar that has killed nearly 4,000 people and left thousands more missing. Tropical Cyclone Nargis, a storm with winds of 190 kph (120
mph), hit the Irrawaddy delta over the weekend. The Irrawaddy Delta is the rice bowl for the impoverished Southeast Asian country of 53 million.
News reports indicate that three-quarters of structures in the region were destroyed by fierce winds, rain and the storm surge. The number of casualties may rise as authorities are able to reach hard-hit islands and remote villages.
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance will work with and respond as a member of ecumenical partnerships with Action by Churches Together (ACT) and Church World Service (CWS). Immediate relief operations are underway with a comprehensive assessment ongoing. The CWS Asia Regional Office is in direct contact with the Myanmar Council of
Churches, and ACT member DanChurchAid is also gathering information.
Profiteering is already starting to impact those coping with the storm's aftermath. Prices for food, fuel and building supplies have increased 300 percent. The General Secretary of the Myanmar Council of Churches reports communication throughout Burma have been compromised. Gifts for this disaster can be designated to DR000145 –
Myanmar/Burma.
Donations may also be sent through normal mission giving channels. Gifts by credit card can be made by calling PresbyTel at (800)872-3283 or online at http://www.pcusa.org/pda/donate/accounts.htm. Checks payable to Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) can also be mailed directly to:
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
Central Receiving Services
100 Witherspoon Street
Louisville, KY 40202-1396

Please keep the people in the affected areas of Myanmar and those
working to assist the survivors in your prayers.

Agape House of Vandalia has been notified that they will receive a Cardinals Care grant (from St. Louis baseball Cardinals) to be used for gas gift cards for guests. Many guests have cut back on trips to visit incarcerated loved ones in Vandalia or Bowling Green because of high gas prices. The assistance provided by the gas cards is much appreciated.

In addition to announcing this good news, Agape House Vandalia asks that if you hear of organizations or businesses willing to make grants to charitable organizations, to please provide them a contact name, address and/or phone number, so they can request an application. An Agape Board member is willing to write grant proposals. Please contact Agape House Vandalia at agapehouse3@yahoo.com or call Janet at 573/549-2881.

These non-preachy, reflective, actuality-based stories told by the person who experienced the life situation are heard on over 500 radio stations nationwide, the Armed Forces Overseas TV/Radio System, and into 16 foreign countries via the DX Shortwave Network. This long-standing, award-winning production reaches over 15 million listeners.
The stories come from everyday people who tell in their own words how life-changing problems or tragedies touched their lives and that through God's love found in Jesus Christ they made it through the passage point. It's not the usual kind of testimony, in fact, nothing about the program sounds like a conventional approach to radio ministry. It is God being active in people's everyday lives over and over again that captures the interest of the listener. Folks come from all walks of lives as special guests on the Passages Radio Program. Passages are produced by Dennis C. Benson with co-producers Bill Wolfe, Melodie Davis, and Gregg Hartung as a joint Presbyterian, United Methodist, and Mennonite public affairs program
For more information on Passages go and listen to some of the feature length programs (60seconds) at www.passages.org or contact Gregg Hartung at pmm@passages.org

A really superb response to “Faith Questions & Reflections” DVD produced by PMM for the “Summer Youth Institute” at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary is out in presbyteries and churches. For more information on this exciting program for theologically inclined youth in junior and senior high school contact Ellie Johns at mjohns@pts.edu