Echoes of DHPC | Leupp Special Edition

Desert Hills Presbyterian Church

34605 North Tom Darlington Drive P.O. Box 874 Carefree AZ 85377 480-488-3384

Echoes

Echoes LEUPP SPECIAL Desert Hills Welcomes Our Navajo Sister Church November 2nd & 3rd, 2013: 31 Years Together!

Leupp has shared so much of their culture with us. In November, we will share our international ‘countries of original heritage’ from around the world with our Leupp family.

Annabelle Smallcanyon teaches us some Navajo language as she welcomes DHPC guests so we may better understand their culture and share in their worship.

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Desert Hills Presbyterian Church Echoes • Leupp Special

Leupp November 2nd & 3rd Weekend Agenda Saturday Nov. 2 Morning Through Mid-afternoon Our Patio: Navajo Jewelry & Craft Sales Our Sanctuary: Time of Sharing – Worship & Special Music After Sharing: Fellowship Center • Special International Food Feast and Customs • Presentation By Our Own Members • Celebrating the diverse culture of our country with samples of international foods brought by immigrants from around the world • Special music and dance surprises

Departure: Leupp Navajo Guests Depart DHPC with host families

Sunday, November 3rd

8:30 A.M. 9:45 A.M. 11:00 A.M. 12:00 P.M.

Worship Service Worship Service Praise Service Box Lunch for Leupp & Departure

From April visit to Leupp A bond evolved this spring between Dedrick McCabe and myself when he captured my emotions with his powerful testimony. It ended with a poem he had written titled “God’s Soldier”. I too write emotional poetry and God in all His glory has blessed this friendship as we continue to share our writings with each other.

-Connie Traugh Cherry Hills Community Church, Site of the 33rd General Assembly

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Desert Hills Presbyterian Church Echoes • Leupp Special

From April visit to Leupp Learning The Secrets Of Making Navajo Fry Bread Jennifer Toadacheenie demonstrates how Navajo Fry Bread is made. According to Navajo tradition, Fry Bread was created in 1864 using the flour, sugar, salt and lard that was given to them by the United States government when the Navajo Native Americans, living in Arizona, were forced to make the 300-mile journey known as the “Long Walk” and relocate to Bosque Redondo, New Mexico onto land that couldn’t easily support their traditional staples of vegetables and beans.

Making & Serving Blue Corn Mush Corn is a sacred plant in the Navajo perspective. It provides not only food, but it also plays an important role in prayer. Corn is used to make many dishes in the Navajo culture and it is used as sacrifices and offerings in prayers or ceremonies.

Carrie Thompson demonstrates how it is made and enjoyed.

Desert Hills Presbyterian Church Echoes • Leupp Special

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The Arizona Daughters of the American Revolution were asked by the National DAR, to provide an ‘Arizona’ symbol for their new museum in Washington D.C. Thanks to our member, Kathy Shields, they contracted a friend of First Presbyterian Church of Leupp on the Navajo Reservation, to make this lovely rug.

From April visit to Leupp

Navajo children and youth all join in the weekend celebration.

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Desert Hills Presbyterian Church Echoes • Leupp Special

From April visit to Leupp

It is always a special honor to be with George B Willie Sr., long time member of Leupp Presbyterian, and one of the last living Navajo Code Talkers who served with such distinction in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II.

Tom Morgan brought his custom made smoker & treated everyone to a variety of smoked barbecue meats to the delight of everyone following Sunday worship.

Natalie Begay conducted a hands on class in which we were shown how the Navajos make their special jewelry with everyone being able to make a bracelet or necklace for themselves.

Desert Hills Presbyterian Church Echoes • Leupp Special

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A special highlight of our Leupp trip was visiting the North Leupp Family Farm (NLFF) located close to the Leupp church.

NLFF allows families to have a plot to plant as they choose. The goal is to encourage healthy eating and to pass along the knowledge of farming and nutrition to future generations. The visits provided interesting insights into various aspects of Navajo living and an opportunity to sample some of their salad fixings. In early July there were many people working on their plots, and the crops were making progress (see photo). The Farm Facebook page reports that the solar project is also making progress, and has a photo of the solar panels installed on the site. It will save $3000 per year that can be used elsewhere (the previous cost for fueling the diesel-run pumps).

Ron & Vicky Crowe From April visit to Leupp

One of our treasures from our relationship with Presbyterian Church at Leupp is a “Storm” rug woven by 88 year old Betty Kelley from wool sheared from her own sheep, carded, spun and dyed by her hands the traditional Navajo way. Traditional and contemporary cultures are intimately interwoven at Leupp much like the intricate patterns of the Navajo rugs.

With our Leupp Church friends, we have grown to expect the unexpected and return home spiritually renewed.

Chuck & Dorothy Starnes 8

Desert Hills Presbyterian Church Echoes • Leupp Special

From April visit to Leupp Music is always a central part of the worship services with special music performed by both Leupp and DHPC congregations. This was the 10th year that Lloyd & Donna Meyer have put together fun, easy to do, choir arrangements as our musical contribution where all DHPC members in attendance participate whether or not they have previously sung in a choir. Lloyd is fond of saying that Donna can more than compensate on the piano for any mistakes that happen so we all just enjoy singing together. Donna also plays for the worship service and accompanies the Navajo musical groups.

Min Damm from DHPC shared a special drum presentation featuring her Korean heritage.

Eric Steinberg from DHPC and Dedrick McCabe from Leupp shared their personal testimonies of how they found faith in Christ and the impact on their lives.

Desert Hills Presbyterian Church Echoes • Leupp Special

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Leupp children take an active part in the worship services, learning to play musical instruments and sing at a very young age.

Eunice Kelly presents a gift to Jim Noble to cheer up Rhonda, who was recuperating from back surgery.

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Desert Hills Presbyterian Church Echoes • Leupp Special

A familiar duo at our Leupp gatherings. The two pastors from our sister churches ministering together in English and Navajo.

HOW OUR 31 YEARS TOGETHER STARTED In the early 1980’s, our member, Orion Steen, served on the Presbytery Committee on Native Americans.

He decided that the best way to learn about the Navajo Presbyterians needs was to meet them! On a very rainy Sunday, Orion drove north by himself to the First Presbyterian Church of Leupp. The Leupp women described their astonishment at the only Anglo man to ever have visited them, other than their local representative. They watched as Orion, with boots on, got stuck in the mud with every step. When he walked into the church, he introduced himself and said, “I’m here to learn how to make fry bread from you all!” Leupp hearts were won immediately as Orion flipped his fry bread dough. Those moments were the beginning of the fantastic ties our church enjoys with the Leupp Christians.

• Our Mission Committee provided Leupp with seed money for music recordings, in order to share Jesus through song.

• Our church has been treated to sheep herding, pot painting, great testimonies, hospitality, horticulture lessons, tours of Japanese Concentration Camp & the Hopi three sacred mesas and worked together in teaching music for years to teens.

We have learned much from each other not only about our cultures but about Jesus Christ. Many Leupp members have very little in terms of worldly possessions yet share everything they do have with lots of love. Such relationships are God-sized indeed and prepared us for sister relationships with other cultures including Jamaica’s Ebenezer Church and recently the Rwandan Churches.

Orion perceived that we could provide a venue for Leupp artists to sell their jewelry and crafts, thus supporting their church and their individual livelihoods.

The Leupp visits progressed from one Saturday a year, to staying at a motel, and later to being hosted in our church members’ homes.

Ours is one of the most unique Anglo/Native American relationships in the country. Our ties are now in their 31st year! On the east wall in our sanctuary, hangs a beautiful banner, which says “In God We are One” in English and Navajo. Our Presbyterian Women’s Group designed it and also the one hanging in the Leupp church. Other unique insights include: • Both congregations joke about how much the other congregation members look alike!

• Former Leupp Pastor Raymond Begay called our relationship “The Clan of Christ”, referring to the most important Navajo family tie (the ‘Clan’) being the most important way to identify oneself, thus indicating that both churches are related through Christ.

Desert Hills Presbyterian Church Echoes • Leupp Special

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Monument Valley Music Camp!

August 2013