c. Missions Committee Report – Heather Everett

Missions

Elder: Heather Everett Staff Liaison: Pastor Jim Noble Members: Tom Bowie, Mark George, Rev. Ed and Nan McCallum, Rhonda Noble, Chuck Starnes, and John Thurston

MISSION STATEMENT Our purpose is to facilitate the participation of Desert Hills Presbyterian Church in God’s mission of gathering, nurturing, equipping and sending people into all the world through acts of compassion and words of faith and salvation that will build up and expand the body of Christ locally, regionally, and globally. As Missionaries we seek to follow Jesus’ Great Commission, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”

2021 GOALS To focus on regular communication with the congregation regarding the ministries and missions DHPC supports and how best to pray for each group’s specific needs. To continue to pursue the fulfilling of the

Great Commission. To seek others who can actively engage in expanding DHPC’s mission work locally as well as abroad.

2021 ACCOMPLISHMENTS Provided additional financial support to several missionaries who were negatively affected by COVID. Prayerfully and financially commissioned (June 2021) and supported Todd Haidet in full time mission work with Youth with a

Mission (YWAM ) in Lausanne, Switzerland. Reconvened (cancelled in 2020 due to COVID restrictions) our Fall Faith Festival joining with our Leupp family with much joy and the rekindling of relationships between the churches and their members. Youth With A Mission (YWAM) Todd Haidet is serving with YWAM in Lausanne Switzerland and is enrolled in Ministry and Leadership Development courses.

During Todd’s time with YWAM, he has had the opportunity to serve as a staff member for the English Learning for Missions where he was able to spend three months helping students from across the world learn English. He struggled with

COVID during Christmas break but ended up welcoming the time for rest and recovery and found that his time in quarantine allowed him to gain mental rest and spend extra time with God. For regular updates, please follow Todd on his monthly blog at www.hangoutnation.com/blog.

EPC World Outreach (WO) Workers The EPC General Assembly and the EPC Presbytery of the West provide the framework for the guidance of both global and local mission activities. Both are supported by DHPC and have produced tremendous results. The General Assembly Office produces weekly podcasts hosted by Stated Clerk Dean Weaver that discuss a variety of topics related to the EPC and the greater Church. Episodes are available on a variety of podcast platforms, including Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Podbean, Spotify, and many more. Search “In All Things” on any of these services or go to https://epc.org/news/inallthings/ All send their deep appreciation to DHPC. To receive occasional newsletters from WO go to https://www.epcwo.org/reach/. Brian & Keri lead the member care team of

Pinnacle Teaching Solutions that supports and cares for 300 staff in East Asia and teaches English at a university in that area. At over 30 universities, thousands of students have been called out of darkness to be light in a context of persecution.

Thankfully, B & K have been able to work virtually. 2021 allowed them to continue equipping/preparing new staff and support/ train member care personnel on new resourcing platforms. Please intercede for the

Missions

successful return of staff and for the perseverance of believers, especially those who covertly serve the great commission globally. They visited DHPC September 5 after the 2nd service helping us see into their lives and work.

Dave & Mindy Fenska serve as Global Mission Mobilizers for the three western Presbyteries and continue to mentor those sensing a calling to serve as global workers.

They increasingly are serving a local refugee community in San Diego. They have run online workshops entitled, "Connecting with Your Muslim Neighbors." Nine people from DHPC plus two from another church participated in the

Sept/Oct workshop. Another workshop will begin the first Tuesday of March 2022. For more information contact dave.f@epcwo.org

Ed & Nan McCallum serve in the International

Theological Education Network (ITEN) in two southeast Asian sites. Invited in, they "train trainers" to teach and send their own to proximate unreached peoples. At Site 1

Zoom classes continued in 2021 for bivocational pastors/farmers who taught 500+ others. Ed wrote an Old Testament study guide now translated into two languages as a primary resource. Next to come is an in-depth Genesis guide. DHPC funds the salary of an invaluable incountry administrator of this program.

Many thanks! Bi-monthly Zoom classes continue at Site 2 to improve leadership’s grasp of theological terms/concepts and lift their eyes off daily challenges living under a harsh government. They, in turn, have been a blessing through their example of faith and perseverance in difficult times.

ITEN was able to send $3,000 in COVID relief to Site 2. Additionally, Nan is the

Senior Child Safety Officer for WO workers. Contact them at Ed.m@epcwo.org nan.m@epcwo.org and itenglobal.org Sean & Angie continue to lead the Presbytery of the West’s global church planting project utilizing a business platform enabling expatriates and national church planters to work in remote unengaged Muslim communities in a developing SE Asian country through a sea cucumber farming business.

Their presence continues impacting the villages with the gospel and jobs. Based in

Chattanooga, Sean and Angie are helping their children move into adulthood, and

Sean mentors and resources the church planters via calls and Zoom. He travels to the site as often a COVID allows and talks with investors to help the project grow in sustainability with impacts reaching beyond financial returns to social/ environmental/spiritual outcomes.

John & Carleen team with Sean & Angie in

SE Asia. John has been the visionary and science officer of the maritime project since 2013. He grew up as an expatriate in south Asia and later served in the Middle

East. The sea cucumber project is the only farm of its kind in the country despite it being a superb site for this type of farming.

They are not aware of any other successful seafood farming in the Indian Ocean. As pioneering workers in a remote location, there are no other churches with goals for both social and spiritual impacts with the potential for growth. He has guided this project from conception to profitable operation and is now trying to establish a second location. There are no other pioneering gospel workers who have come alongside unreached communities for long periods of time as they have. For more information contact mccurryje@gmail.com.

Rupesh & Susanna serve in South Asia as church planters and trainers. They are seasoned trainers with skills and passion to pass on what they have experienced as followers of Jesus. After receiving training with Youth with a Mission (YWAM) and taking on leadership roles at a U.S. center, they returned to Rupesh’s home country to

Missions

begin a new work. This year’s COVID surges have made face to face meetings challenging but they learned creative new ways to connect with people. Rupesh successfully battled a gripping case of COVID.

Local Yet Global Impact Operation Christmas Child International Mission Support: In 2021, DHPC filled 291 boxes for children in third world countries.

Along with an explanation of the gospel, 100 “Shoes that Grow” were sent which help kids walk to school and protect feet from injury. 50 soccer balls and pumps were also included in the boxes from

DHPC. Many gave money in lieu of shopping because of COVID and that money was used to purchase additional boxes online to be sent to the most difficult areas of the world to reach. In the past six years over 2,100 children were introduced to Jesus and given Bibles in their own language because of DHPC’s commitment to OCC.

Local Partnership Reaching Midtown Phoenix

The Spring Midtown, Phoenix, is a church plant supported by DHPC and other local churches for the past few years. In 2021The Spring Midtown saw several changes as its founding pastor, Luke Parker, took another call, and the church decided to be absorbed by a large Presbyterian church in the Presbyterian ECO denomination. As a result, DHPC’s support of this church plant project ended.

Local Ministries Chaplaincy for the Homeless: Despite COVID,

The Chaplaincy for the Homeless continued to expand its ministry during 2021.

Their Chaplains were closed out of several institutions where they ministered, but they took the ministry to the streets all over

Maricopa County. Here are some of their accomplishments: Four First Time Special Celebration Services on the Human Services Campus: Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Fourth of July and Thanksgiving as well as the Christmas Service. At each, after the Chapel Service was over, they issued clothing, hygiene kits, presents and spiritual guidance to large groups of homeless.

78 Worship (Chapel) services attended by 3,425 worshipers. 676 Bible Studies attended by 6,902 homeless students.

36,222 homeless served through street contacts in and around 17 different county locations. 1,200 Bibles distributed. 3,500 hygiene kits distributed (1,800 coming directly from Desert Hills) Their moto: 1 Corinthians 15:58 “Be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.”

For more information, please visit www.azchaplaincyforthehomeless.org or request a quarterly report from John Thurston, 480-220-6685.

Foothills Foodbank: For the last nine years one of our Covenant Groups has focused on the

Fixin’ Bag Campaign to support the Foothills Foodbank. The group is comprised of around eight members, but God has blessed us and the congregation in efforts to help feed the hungry of our community. For the first five years we passed out large grocery bags for people to fill with select items of food for the Foodbank to give out at

Thanksgiving to complete a Thanksgiving dinner. Also, money was donated for the group to buy and fill more bags. We have given over 500 bags of food for several years. Four years ago our group decided to give out small bags and collect money to give to the Food bank allowing them to purchase the food directly. The first two years, between $5,000 and $7,000 per year was donated. With COVID this year, we

Missions

asked the congregation to send financial contributions to DHPC. The foodbank gave out gift cards along with the turkeys to help cover the cost of the remainder of the meals. DHPC was also able to give over 600 Holiday Food Boxes valued at over $4,700. The Foodbank distributed over one and a half million pounds of food in 2021.

Foothills Caring Corps (FCC): Their mission is to “help older adults and individuals with disabling conditions who reside in the

Northeast Valley – Foothills Community to remain living independently in their own homes for as long as possible. They do this through a force of volunteers and staff who provide in-home services, transportation services, community services and support.

These services provide access to activities that promote physical, mental and emotional health.” 93 people from DHPC either volunteer for FCC or are served by FCC.

Their services consist of friendly visits and phone calling, pet visits, medical transportation, group van trips, mobile meals, shopping assistance, caregiver relief, minor home repair, business correspondence and computer help, health advocacy and mobility equipment loans. Because of COVID,

FCC has temporarily suspended some of the services. Mobile meals, friendly phone calls, medical loan closet, and select medical transportation services remain in place.

If you would like to volunteer for or receive services from FCC, please visit the website at www.foothillscaringcorp.com.

Also, Steve Woods would be happy to answer any questions.

Neighbors in Need: A collaboration of area churches and agencies working together to facilitate connections between our neighbors in need and the agencies that provide services. 2021 saw the hiring of a new

Community Navigator, Gina Durbin, and the offering of several trainings for area agencies on issues of boundaries, deescalation, and mental health. NIN also partnered with DHPC to help launch the

BrainSavers program. For more information on NIN visit their website: https://neighborsinneedaz.org or help connect a person in need with their Community Navigator, Gina, at 480-745-2229.

Troop Care Ministry: The mission of the Troop

Care Ministry is “to provide troop care support, from a faith-based perspective to the local community, Desert Hills Presbyterian Church, and Leupp Presbyterian

Church.” This mission is carried out by the

TCM Team with the help of many DHPC volunteers. Four times a year in 2021, they sent care packages to active-duty personnel, totaling 115 boxes. In February, TCM collected from the congregation and purchased grocery gift cards totaling $1,420 for the Air Force Aid Society for emergency assistance at Luke Air Force Base.

Throughout the year, on patriotic holidays, they line the church driveway with flags.

With the help of many volunteers, TCM hosted a Veterans Day Celebration last November. 2,164 signed Christmas cards with handwritten messages that were sent to

United Soldiers and Sailors of America for them to distribute the cards to military bases and hospitals around the world.

Sister Church Relationships Mandeville Jamaica, Ebenezer United Church,

Pastor Khereen While the global pandemic kept us apart this year, it couldn’t dampen the bond we have shared since 2007 when Pastor Jim Noble,

John Thurston, Richard Dietrich and former member, Kay Robinson went looking for a “Church of Peace” with which to build a relationship. Being unable again this year to take a visiting team to Jamaica in 2021, we chose to support Ebenezer through a monetary gift of $8,000.

Ebenezer and the island of Jamaica continue to struggle with many of the same challenges as we do: temperature checks, social distancing, mask wearing and rising case numbers which is compounded with a lack of vaccinations available to those in the non-tourist areas of the island. Ebenezer continues to minister to their community during these uncertain times and appreciates the relationship our churches share.

Leupp, Arizona, Leupp Presbyterian Church,

Pastor Calvin and Native American Ministry 2021 is a story of seeking a new normal with the challenges imposed by the continuing pandemic. We have been the Clan of Christ with Leupp for 39 years and continue to keep our relationship strong in faith and friendship. Pastor Calvin’s live stream services are reaching the unchurched in several states in addition to his local congregation. The Leupp Church has also served as a community food distribution center for those in need. Progress on building the youth and fellowship center has continued during the pandemic. This building was used to live stream services when churches on the reservation were not allowed to open. About 65 visitors from Leupp participated in our Fall Faith Festival ministries.

Many of the elderlies stayed home as a precaution with the continuing spread of

COVID. DHPC was given a Navajo Nation

Flag to fly over the Fall Faith Festival much to the joy of those in attendance and a special treat was the Navajo Fry Bread freshly made to serve for lunch. DHPC, in partnership with Leupp, continues to support children and youth with donations for

Naomi House for abused and orphaned children, scholarships for college and support for youth summer camp attendance.

These are investments in the future of young people that will have lifelong benefits. Our sister church in Leupp has farreaching impact on the Navajo Nation through their live stream services. The Hope Resurrected music ministries and testimonials continue to be in high demand. The year 2022 is the 40-year anniversary of our Clan of Christ sister church relationship. We look forward to celebrating this milestone together with love and unity in Christ.

2022 GOALS To continue to focus on the Great Commission locally as well as globally and specifically the role that DHPC will play in supporting missionaries. To continue to faithfully communicate with the congregation about the activities and needs relating to the ministries and missionaries

DHPC supports. To encourage the DHPC family to become more involved in missions to spread the love of Jesus to our community and beyond through prayer, education, participation in local opportunities, and a greater level of communication with supported missionaries. To continue to evaluate potential missionary candidates and organizations for DHPC sponsorship.

Respectfully submitted, Heather Everett Missions Elder