Author: Susan George

Editor’s Note: On the first Thursday of each month (or close to it), the eNews feature article highlights the mission focus for the month. In October we’re lifting up feeding those who are hungry.

During the COVID pandemic Derry Church, through the Mission & Peace Committee, provided additional funding to our non-profit partners’ Feeding the Hungry programs.  Here are two of the organizations Derry generously supported with additional funding this past year:

Central Pennsylvania Food Bank

Food shouldn’t be an impossible choice.  For many, a daily meal is just a choice of what to eat for dinner.  For those facing hunger, a daily meal poses a very different type of choice. It is often an impossible choice between food and other critical needs such as utilities, housing or medicine. How will you choose to end hunger?

The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank is the primary supplier of food and nutrition programs to many of our non-profit partners. Derry Church provided $10,000 in additional funding to the Food Bank, and church members volunteered to pack food boxes during the pandemic.  

Downtown Daily Bread

Downtown Daily Bread (DDB) is a mission project of the Pine Street Presbyterian Church in downtown Harrisburg. For 88 years, DDB has been a gateway to basic human services for hundreds of homeless and hungry individuals in Harrisburg. DDB offers a Soup Kitchen with weekday breakfasts and daily lunch meals; a Day Shelter with cots, computers, phones, and staff counselors; a winter season Night Shelter for men, and numerous assistance programs such as showers, lockers, mail delivery, laundry cards, vouchers for photo IDs, clothing, and other personal hygiene items.

In 2020, the Soup Kitchen prepared and served 11,465 breakfasts and 34,218 lunches. On an average day, 19 people come for showers, 61 people pick up mail, and 40 people check in to receive assistance at the Day Shelter. From December 1 to March 31, 28 men found winter overnight shelter every evening. Bag meals continued throughout the COVID pandemic, and after modifications to the facility, in-person meals and services resumed.

Derry Church provided $10,000 in additional funding to support COVID related building modifications and Day Shelter HVAC upgrades. Church members continued to volunteer in the soup kitchen throughout the pandemic.

In the midst of challenging times, I am grateful for the ministry of our Board of Deacons, whose main responsibilities are providing compassion, witness and service to those in need.  They are supported and assisted by Shepherd Group leaders who especially in these anxious pandemic months have helped reach out in kindness and care to our church family. That’s not easy when our congregational members live in a variety of communities from Lebanon to Carlisle and lots of places in between. 

More than 25 years ago, visionary leaders at Derry organized a caring ministry of neighborhood regions called Shepherd Groups. A Derry member from each geographic group has committed to being the Shepherd Group leader and to work with a Deacon to keep in touch and provide care to members and welcome newcomers. Your Shepherd Group number can be found on your church name tag. You can also find Shepherd Group numbers listed in the Joys & Concerns section of the eNews and on the weekly prayer list.

When it was not so easy to visit in person, our Shepherd Group leaders and Deacons have been busy sending cards, making phone calls, providing meals and organizing meal trains. They have made visits on your door steps, delivered devotions and smiles (behind masks), and kept you in their prayers. When you have a need, please do contact your Shepherd Group leader or Deacon, as well as the church office. We are a stronger church family because of their gifts of time and commitment to reaching out in Christ’s name to offer God’s love and compassion.

Click here for a list of the  2021-22 Shepherd Group leaders and Deacons (PDF). If you don’t know your Shepherd Group, contact the church office or Pastor Marie. To volunteer as a Shepherd Group leader for one year, contact your deacon.

The Apostle Paul reminds us to clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness and patience and above all clothe yourself with love which binds everything together. (Colossians 3:12) That’s a good recipe for any church family.

We have reached September and are entering budgeting season, so it is time for my annual update on how the church is doing financially and my projections for the rest of the year.

As of the end of August, we have a year-to-date surplus of $48,000 for the general operating budget compared to a year-to-date surplus of $46,000 at the same point last year. We have moved the timing of some payments to the end of the year, so when taking that into account, the comparable surplus to last year would be closer to $26,000. I believe we will probably end the year in the break-even to slight surplus range. In 2020 and so far in 2021 contributions to the general operating budget have trailed 2019 contributions. The lower contributions have been offset by lower expenses due to reduced spending related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As Session, the Stewardship and Finance Committee, and the other committees look toward the 2022 budget and the future, we are working to ensure that Derry Church provides for the current needs of the church members and the community, and also maintains financial stability. We are looking at capital projects over the next several years and are working with the committees to make sure they align with the mission and vision of the church. By planning for the future, we can make sure we are managing our resources responsibly.

Through the generous support of the congregation, we have been able to do large capital projects, like the new organ installation, without pulling significant funds from the session designated accounts that are invested. Also in the past year, we have received generous contributions to create new restricted accounts like the transportation account which enabled us to purchase a new van.  We’ve also been able to add principal to session designated accounts like the Legacy and Capital Facilities Funds  which help maintain our church and further the mission of the congregation. We have been able to use dedicated and restricted funds to do mission work in our community and throughout the world – whether it be helping youth with college scholarships or building a new wing on a school in Pakistan.

I would like to thank the congregation for your continued support of the church and of mission work in our community.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss anything related to Derry’s finances, please contact me.

Editor’s Note: On the first Thursday of each month (or close to it), the eNews feature article highlights the mission focus for the month. In September we’re lifting up the Peace & Global Witness Offering that encourages the church to cast off anxiety and fear, discord and division, and embrace our God’s mission of reconciliation to those around the corner and around the world. Read about how Derry is making a corner of Pakistan a better place for eager young students.

For the past several years Derry has talked about and publicized the role we play, as part of our global mission outreach, in providing scholarships to poor, impoverished students (primarily Christian) in the Punjab Province of Pakistan.  A number of Derry members have been involved each year in donating, through Friends of PEB, either $365 (for a day student) and/or $720 (for a boarding student).  These amounts fund a student for an entire academic year.  

This interest and involvement in scholarships culminated with a group of 12 Derry members, all of whom were sponsors of students, traveling to Pakistan as guests of the Presbyterian Education Board (PEB) in the fall of 2019. The visits to schools and students, especially with specific students sponsored by Derry, were extremely rewarding, gratifying, and reassuring. Particularly reassuring was the concrete sense the Derry group had that their contributions were being fully and efficiently utilized. They could see it in the quality of education, the excitement of students to learn, and the passion for teaching in the teachers. 

After the Derry group returned to Hershey, they decided to accept the challenge given to them in Pakistan to help build an additional wing at the boy’s school in Sargodha (Sar-go-da). Through their own contributions and contributions by other Derry members and the Mission and Peace Committee, nearly $430,000 has been raised or pledged. The wing is projected to be completed in 2023. What better global outreach can there be – outreach beyond scholarships and buildings that provides opportunity, hope, changed lives, cross cultural tolerance, and a better world?

In addition to scholarships and buildings, your otherwise undesignated donations provide for other essential resources to include classroom furniture, science lab equipment, fans, laptops and PCs, teacher training and workshops, paper, pencils, and workbooks.

Get involved.  Make a difference where you can actually see a difference. You will derive a sense of great satisfaction and, in the future, perhaps travel yourself to meet some amazing people.  Learn more by visiting Friends of PEB and the Presbyterian Education Board.

“You better come quickly: Eric has had a bad accident,” a girlfriend of Eric’s told me over the phone on October 7, 2002. “He is at Lancaster General Hospital.” Dave and I were in Canada for his job. I called him at work as I quickly packed some clothes and our dog and cat. We drove seven hours to Lancaster. As we crossed through customs at the border, I was on the cell phone trying to get more information. Dave told me to get off the phone. It was midnight when we arrived at the hospital. We had to go through the emergency room. We asked to see Eric.  They told me they needed to page the chaplain. I panicked and thought he had died. 

Later, we learned that this was the procedure. The chaplain appeared and walked with us to the neuro-intensive care unit. Eric was unrecognizable. He had fallen off a roof he was repairing and landed on his head. He was in a coma.  He had acute brain trauma.

The doctors and nurses told us the next several days would determine if Eric would survive. It was important to keep his temperature lower with cooling blankets. He had a pressure gauge on top of his skull. Eric was 22 years old and in great shape from his Army service. He had shattered his skull in his face and broken his right arm. Time became a blur. Dave and I slept in a nearby conference room. Family arrived and took our dog and cat with them. Eric was in a coma for three weeks. It was the nurses who kept reinforcing to us that he would recover. They gave us hope.

Eric had procedures done to place a tracheostomy tube in his throat and to repair his right arm fracture. He had a peg tube for nutrition. He also had a filter placed in his lower legs to prevent blood clots from traveling to his upper body. When he came out of the coma, he was transferred to a regular hospital room. He could not talk or eat or walk. We were told he needed to recover in a nursing home.  I believed the Rehabilitation Center at the Hershey Medical Center would be able to help him better.

With persistence, the Rehabilitation Team accepted Eric’s transfer. He celebrated his 23rd birthday at the HMC Rehabilitation Center.  The team of nurses, doctors and therapists were aggressive with treatment. The tracheostomy was removed right away.  Eric had to learn to swallow, talk, eat, walk and toilet. The only therapy he disliked was music therapy. To bribe him, we would get him soft ice cream.

This whole time Eric had many visitors from family, friends and ministers and lots of prayers. He had a little black dog, a Lab and Jack Russell mix named Jack. His cousin took care of Jack while Eric was recovering. Eric missed his dog and wanted to get home. Jack even visited him at the Rehabilitation Center. After 28 days in rehab, on November 27, 2002, Eric came to our house. He got stronger and healed over the next year as we took him to outpatient therapy. 

Today, Eric is working, married to Amy, and the father of Coleson (6) and Kayla (2). We are so grateful that he recovered with God’s help from his injuries.

I imagine most of us are familiar with the beautiful “Footprints” poem that many have hanging in their homes, have shared with others during troubled times, have heard in song form on a Christian music station, or simply remember reading at some point.  The words in this poem are a wonderful reminder of how special it is to have relationships with God and Jesus.  We can all find comfort in these words as they give us hope when we need it most…during those hard and challenging times.  These words also serve as a guide to help me with my job in the Children’s Ministry here at church.  

“Footprints”

One night I dreamed a dream. I was walking along the beach with my Lord. Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life. For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand, one belonging to me and one to my Lord.

When the last scene of my life shot before me I looked back at the footprints in the sand. There was only one set of footprints. I realized that this was at the lowest and saddest times of my life. This always bothered me and I questioned the Lord about my dilemma.

“Lord, You told me when I decided to follow You, You would walk and talk with me all the way. But I’m aware that during the most troublesome times of my life there is only one set of footprints. I just don’t understand why, when I need You most, You leave me.”

He whispered, “My precious child, I love you and will never leave you, never, ever, during your trials and testings. When you saw only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”

This coming school year the children will have the opportunity to continue “Trekking Through the Bible” which we started this summer during camp week. Our stories will present us with moments of thanksgiving, teachable situations, times of great sadness, lessons about friendship and true love for others, and most importantly, stories that remind us that we never have to walk alone if we invite our Lord to be with us.

I look forward to the excitement and energy that comes with the start of a new program year.  We will kick off our programming on Sunday, September 12 from 9:00-10:15 am with our Rally Day fun. Families will be invited to come together with their children to get a taste of what to expect in the coming months during Sunday School. We will meet in Fellowship Hall and enjoy games, activities and fun snacks that will prepare us for “Trekking through the Bible”.  

September 12 will also be our first Sunday for the return of our KIWI class (Kids In Worship Instruction).  Children age 4 through Kindergarten are invited to join Mrs. Steelman in the Chapel after the Conversation with Children.  We will enjoy our time together learning more about Worship, explore the common symbols we find in Holy spaces that help us on our faith journey, and we will learn The Lord’s Prayer and Doxology so that the children can participate during worship and feel even more connected to their church family.  

Children in grades 1 & 2 are invited to attend a special new class that we will run for the fall semester called RECONNECT.  This class is designed to help the children adjust to worship again.  This class will be led by our pastors and will offer the children the opportunity to learn more about worship, ways they can participate in worship and ultimately be ready to sit with their families after the winter break.

During the month of September we will begin Pilgrim Fellowship gatherings. Pilgrim Fellowship is for children in grades 3-5 and meets twice each month after the 10:30 am worship service.  Our time together includes a meal (lunch) and time for fun, learning and mission work. This program is a wonderful opportunity for the children in grades 3-5 to make stronger connections with their peers.  These connections and friendships are priceless and often lead to the children asking when they will get to see their church friends again. This becomes even more important as the kids head into middle school and high school… those times we can all remember valuing true friendship.

Sunday School and KIWI are not only fun for the children of the church: this time is a wonderful chance for parents to participate and show their children that God and Jesus are important to you. I welcome parents to get involved. Our Sunday School classrooms, our church nursery and our KIWI and RECONNECT programs require volunteer helpers to serve as an extra pair of hands and a second adult so that we can be sure to keep all of the children safe.  Offering to help in one of these areas is not only a big help to our church staff, it is also a way to help your children see that you want to continue to grow your own faith as you serve your church family. 

If you would like to talk more about these opportunities, have questions about what is involved, or are ready to help now, please email me and I will happily connect with you to make sure you have all your questions answered. Please note that all volunteers will need to have their clearances up to date and on file with the church. 

With a world that keeps changing each day, it brings me great joy to know that we can still find fun ways to grow our faith and deepen our relationships with God, Jesus and one another. I hope that your family will join us for the upcoming program year. 

Editor’s Note: On the first Thursday of each month, the eNews feature article highlights the mission focus for the month. In August we’re lifting up Education of Children. You can find the current month’s mission focus in the Joys & Concerns section of the weekly eNews.

The Harrisburg School District Reading Mentor Program was developed during the height of the pandemic last fall, so that relatable and familiar mentors, educators, parents, and members of the local community could collaborate to provide reading and learning opportunities for children in Harrisburg. The goal was to keep students engaged in learning during the 2020-21 school year while they were virtual due to COVID-19. To this end, local community leaders were invited to read books that inspired them and reference their personal growth story while recording a video to support the academic, social, and emotional growth of Harrisburg’s students.

Derry Church provided funding for the pilot program that was conducted at Foose School. Leaders from the community — a State Representative, teacher, librarian, doctor, and several health administrators — submitted videos to YouTube. The videos have received hundreds of views over the last six months and are educational, creative, thoughtful, and heartwarming.

Thanks to the success of the pilot program, the Harrisburg Public Schools Foundation (HPSF) awarded $2,000 to Ben Franklin, Downey, Melrose and Scott Elementary Schools in Harrisburg for the purchase of culturally appropriate books to be shared on YouTube.

Coronavirus highlighted the growing need for creativity in learning, especially in particular communities where access and resource availability is limited. The program provided Harrisburg School District students with the flexibility to read and learn on their own schedule, thereby improving literacy, maximizing potential, and shaping a brighter future.

Click this link to view the YouTube videos:
Harrisburg School District Reading Mentor Program

I have a confession: once upon a time I was terrified of the church’s audio system. And that was back when it was a much smaller console with no cameras. I didn’t want to touch those sliders because I knew I would make something squeal and I wouldn’t know how to make the awful noise stop.

In those days my husband Jim and our son Matt were regulars running the audio system. Matt was in high school, and he sat at the console with his friends as they took turns running the board, heads down, whispering to each other. Even as they whispered and nudged each other, they managed to make everything sound just fine and I was glad they had found their niche on Sunday mornings, sitting with friends and paying enough attention to the service to turn the mics on and off at the right time.

By 2015, Derry’s first camera system had been installed along with other Sanctuary renovations, and it was time for me to learn how things worked back there. I liked running the cameras, yet there were aspects of the audio board that mystified me. But I didn’t worry much about it because Derry had a great AV crew helping to run the sound and video every week. 

Then the pandemic hit and we lost some key members of our AV crew. But one thing I’ve learned at Derry: if you ask, it will be provided. Now I’m looking for some new folks who are intrigued by what goes on in the back and want to learn more. Maybe, like me, the buttons and screens look a little scary. Well, I’m here to tell you that if I can learn how, anyone with a desire to learn can be trained. I invite you to take the first step and contact me. Or maybe your teenage son or daughter would like to learn, and we can kickstart the next generation of young people back at the board. Time commitment is from 9 am to about 11:30 am on Sundays, and training and plenty of practice time is included.

I’ll close with a few fun facts:

• From the beginning of 2021 until now, we’ve averaged 226 unique IP addresses watching the live stream on Sunday mornings. That’s not how many people are viewing, but how many devices are connected. With an average of 226 IP addresses, it’s safe to estimate that 300+ are worshiping online, though those numbers have taken a dip in the summer months and as more people have returned in person. We used to say that Derry had two congregations: one at 8 am and one at 10:30 am, and now, our live streamers make up a third congregation. We’re glad you found us and are worshiping with us, wherever you are.
• It takes three technicians to produce the virtual service: one operates the audio board, one operates the cameras, and one adds the captions and videos at the right time. Our technicians learn how to run all three pieces of equipment so everyone can step into any position when help is needed. If any of our techs are reading this article, pat yourself on the back. You are awesome and appreciated!
• Between 9 and 10 am on Sundays, the tech team runs through the service with the pastors, Grant Wareham and singers or musicians so we can test the microphones, set camera angles, and make sure that the text you see on the screen is correct. Pre-pandemic we never did run-throughs, and now I can’t imagine launching the live stream without it.
• You can choose from three ways to join the Sunday morning live stream: on the church website, on our YouTube channel, or on our chatty Facebook page. If you miss the live stream on Sunday, just go to the church website before the next Sunday and worship at whatever time works for you. 
• Subscribe to our YouTube channel and you’ll join more than 500 people who look forward to seeing our video content each week. If you like, YouTube can notify you when the service is starting and whenever Derry posts new video content (It’s a setting in YouTube notifications. Need help? Join me on Zoom for Tech Time at 1 pm on Mondays.)
• The church staff loves it when our live stream viewers sign the guestbook! We read every name and comment, and respond when questions or concerns are submitted. 

Whether you join in person or by live streaming, I look forward to seeing you on Sunday.

Derry family, we have reached the peak of summer, and this summer is already looking drastically different from last year. You could probably notice the changes in demeanor of choir members being able to exercise our lungs properly after so many months of silence! Fortunately, rusty windpipes will no longer be a concern, especially with the installation of our new organ in progress. 

When my musical side can be subdued, my work as a psychotherapist continues throughout the summer, usually with higher demand as people have a bit more free time for appointments. In my career I have learned there are peaks not only of seasons, but also of our human functioning throughout the year. This time of the summer typically brings increases in drug overdoses and relapses, more reports of anxiety and depressive symptoms among my adult clients, and general perceptions of feeling inadequate as we try to stuff our days with activities. Strange, isn’t it? We typically expect to feel more “low” in the deep winter, but somehow even the freedom of a good climate can serve as a trigger for brain chemical challenges. 

While COVID certainly did not help with these trends of mental health difficulties, I was able to observe some truly fascinating developments in my clients with their spirituality and acceptance of their current conditions. More often than ever before, I found myself in discussions of individuals’ faith in their higher power, specifically the ideas that “things had to get better” or “God’s will be done.” As excited as this made me to learn my clients were open to exploring their spiritual beliefs, I also have to support those who are more skeptical of such matters. However, even my most doubtful thinkers began to speak of hope that worldly situations would improve and some sort of normalcy would return. 

Hebrews 11:1 reminds us, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Watching skeptical minds embracing the thought of a better tomorrow is the best demonstration of what the Bible teaches about faith. What our eyeballs have seen is hardship, confusion, and hurt, but what God continues to instill in our hearts is trust and comfort. 

Many of you may not know that I relocated to central Pennsylvania entirely alone for graduate school, yet the trust God placed in me led me right to Derry and into your hands of comfort. I had never sung a solo in my LIFE for other people, but the spirit of the congregation quieted my anxieties enough to share my passion with you. God is always present, through the depths of depression and grief and the agitation of panic and anger, so long as our hearts remain open to the prospect of relief. I cannot thank you enough, church family, for bringing me to my own relief, and I wish you all a remaining summer of good health (both mental and physical). 

Editor’s Note: Rebecca joined Derry Church in February 2020 and throughout the pandemic, sang hymns and anthems that were pre-recorded for our Sunday morning live streamed services. Recently Rebecca made another move to the eastern corner of Pennsylvania: she is now in King of Prussia preparing to start at a brand new office as a licensed professional counselor.

This year has been different from others, but in other ways, things have been very much the same: there’s always something happening across the building and grounds as we maintain, repair, and improve your church.

We had just replaced the commercial stove/ovens in the kitchen before the church ended in person services in March 2020. Back then we were also in the process of remodeling and upgrading room 6 on the lower level, as shown in the accompanying photo. That included new flooring, a wall of storage closets, and rearranging the cabinets for better and varied use of the classroom space. In September we began the long process of removal and replacement of the Sanctuary organ that is still under way. Jeff Miller (custodian) and I have worked to remodel and rearrange many spaces to allow for the organ installers to move huge pipes around and rewire everything.

Outside, the parking lots have been sealed and all the lines were repainted. Several of our large trees were pruned hard ( and a couple removed as part of our ongoing tree maintenance program that monitors the health of the beautiful trees that surround us. We will also be removing several trees from inside the cemetery wall because of the poor health of some trees and the damage being caused to headstones and the stone cemetery wall. 

As the need for live streaming church services increased, I helped the installers with issues related to the building plans and wiring options for the completion of this large system upgrade.  

During the time you were not here, we relied on our cleaning crew to deep clean under, behind and above every part of the building. The buildings and grounds committee has been working on and is about half done with planned lighting upgrades. The exterior is mostly done, and interior work should be done by fall. This project will increase the light quality, energy efficiency and safety throughout the property.

I don’t want to end without recognizing Jeff Miller. We have all been blessed with having Jeff  as a very important part of the staff maintenance team and the helping hand on whom everyone relies. Thank you, Jeff. We wish you the very best as you begin your retirement in August.

I’m excited to share with you two summer worship opportunities happening later this month:

On Sunday, July 18 at 7 pm, I invite you to join me as I lead worship at the historic Mt. Gretna Tabernacle with Grant Wareham and some of our musicians. You’ll hear a new and updated version of “Checking Our Blindspots” that I preached at Derry last January.

I was scheduled to preach that sermon at Mt. Gretna last summer, then it was postponed because of the pandemic. I reworked the sermon for this past winter’s “Truth and Love” series and I’m revising it again for Mt. Gretna. We’ll have the fantastic Natalie Taylor sing a solo and our Derry Low Voice Ensemble will reprise their powerful Holy, Holy, Holy anthem. The Derry Brass will be there to play the prelude and postlude. 

The Mt. Gretna Tabernacle is a covered outdoor space, so worship will be held rain or shine. If you haven’t yet had the opportunity to visit Gretna, the 18th is the perfect time. Come early, grab dinner and explore the area. Or plan to stay after worship and enjoy ice cream from the one and only Jigger Shop with friends new and old. 

I’m also happy to announce that Engage worship is back! Our Engage services are creative and participatory worship services that explore different musical genres and artists at each service (and yes the music does all tie into the scripture and worship themes). 

On Saturday, July 31 at 6 pm, we will “engage” with the music of the great Billy Joel while considering the promise of God’s peaceable Kingdom and the power of community to help bring it to life. We’ll hear Grant bring Billy Joel to Hershey through piano renditions of favorites, we’ll have soloists sing some classics, and of course the congregation will get to sing along to some of Billy Joel’s greatest hits. 

I hope you’ll join us for one or both of these extra worship opportunities, where masks are optional for all who are vaccinated. Both services will be a lot of fun, so come out to  Mt. Gretna and join me in Engage worship featuring the music of Billy Joel.

Editor’s Note: On the first Thursday of each month (or close to it), the eNews feature article highlights the mission focus for the month. In July we’re lifting up Elder Care. You can find the current month’s mission focus in the Joys & Concerns section of the weekly eNews.

There is nothing better than seeing someone smile from ear to ear and knowing that you did something special to lift their spirits, brighten their day and help them feel loved. This spring, some of our Derry Church children and their families enjoyed working together to prepare gift bags for many of our senior friends who we knew were feeling the hardship of living in isolation during these covid times. Our hope was to share a gift of love with these friends and help lift their spirits.

These special gift bags were filled with “comfort” items which we hoped would be useful, cherished and enjoyed. One special item in each bag was a small wooden holding cross, a size that fits perfectly into the palm of your hand.  Our wish was that these crosses would be loved and used often. Many of our senior friends wrote and shared that these crosses did just that; they brought a welcome and much needed sense of peace and comfort.

While our families enjoyed stuffing these bags full of fun items and treats, they also felt a deeper connection as they included a handwritten note from their family. What a blessing to receive a letter saying hello and offering a reminder that each and every one of us here at D.P.C. is being thought of and prayed for by their church family.    

Sharing a passion for mission at an early age is a gift that will keep on giving. Finding ways for even our youngest friends to share God’s love with others is such an important part of one’s faith journey. In Proverbs 17:22 we read, “A joyful heart is good medicine.”  The beauty of mission work is that a  joyful heart can be seen in everyone involved…those who give and those who receive. 

I hope you will enjoy reading a few of the many wonderful words of gratitude we received from our friends…

“Your visit, your gift bag and your prayers warmed my heart and I’m still smiling.”

“Thank you for the delicious treats, warm and loving thoughts, and most especially your continued prayers.”

“We placed your artwork, card and holding cross outside our door for our neighbors to enjoy as well. Thank you for thinking of us.”

“When I found the gift bag at my door, it did bring a smile to my face and warmed my heart to know that your thoughts and prayers are with me. It also reminded me of 80 plus years ago when the Easter bunny left a bowl full of goodies for me on Easter morning. What a treat!”