August Valley Vine 2020

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Valley Vine MOVING FORWARD TOGETHER

August 2020

Volume sixty-five, Number seven

Valley Presbyterian Church

Senior Pastor

DAVID JOYNT

Watch all videos at: vimeo.com/valleypres

Dear friends, Words are marvelous things. Through words we grasp the world, describing what we see and sense, giving voice to discovery. Words allow us to frame questions and seek answers, to pass on our wisdom and to create a store of knowledge that can be tested and enhanced.

Words mark and shape us. Blessings and encouragement solidify our psyches and expand our souls, while curses and criticism cripple us psychologically and spiritually.

God used the divine creative energy of His speech to bring the cosmos into being, He spoke and it came to be. When He entered the stage of history personally, it was as the Word made flesh. God’s words carry special power and authority, they have the capacity to alter lives and history.

In our sermon series for August and September, we will look at “World Changing Words” spoken by the prophets. God not only speaks, He lends us His words, giving messages which shape history through His prophets and teachers. The words of Old Testament prophets He inspired have changed the way we should think about worship, justice, culture, hope, and God Himself.

My prayer is that these words will change us as well. Tie into our worship themes in a deeper way through online devotionals, in video and written formats.

2 Yours faithfully,

New Series begins August 23

Highlighte d

EVENTS

Drop off donations in Landes Center through August 3

We need your help before school begins gathering supplies to support Paiute neighborhood's Hirsch Academy and Hohokam/Yavapai Elementary. Contact Chris Woodard: chrisw@vpc.church Thank you for caring for our local schools and teachers! See below for the supply list: Crayons Glue Sticks Pencil Bags/Pouches Lysol Wipes Scissors Pencils Notebooks/Paper Sanitizer Erasers Markers Face Masks Tissue

August 14 & 15 Landes Center

Schedule your donation: vpc.church/blooddrive

VPC is partnering with the American Red Cross to host this special event and donate blood for hospital patients in our neighborhood.

The need for blood is constant, but only three percent of the U.S. population donates. By rolling up a sleeve, donors can play a critical role in the treatment of accident and burn victims, heart surgery and organ transplant patients, and those receiving treatment for leukemia, cancer or sickle cell disease.

Eligibility requirements: Individuals who are 16 years of age (in most states) who weigh at least 110 pounds and are in generally good health.

4 *Screening test for COVID-19 antibodies will be taken with your blood donation.

A Discussion about the Current Status of COVID-19 August 29, 9-10AM Online Register: vpc.church/care

Join local Infectious Disease Physician Dr. Joseph Zachariah of Banner Health for a discussion covering the current status of COVID-19 in our community.

Topics will include an overview of the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic, the impact to our communities, an overview of testing and treatment for COVID-19 and leave time during the hour for some questions and answers. Audio and video options are available for those who may not have access to a computer. VPC member and Banner Hospital CEO Lamont Yoder will help open and facilitate the discussion.

Register: vpc.church/care This event is online only. Please register by noon, August 28 to confirm your attendance.

Meeting details: You'll receive an email with links to Microsoft Teams audio or video following registration. Using a computer or tablet will allow you to "raise your hand" or type a question. However, if you do not have a computer you may listen to the audio portion only via phone. You will be asked to keep your phone on mute.

Voted a top doctor in Phoenix in the past, Dr. Zachariah has spent every day of this pandemic working inside Banner Health caring for COVID-19 patients.

Dr. Zachariah attended medical school at Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed his residency and fellowship at Henry Ford and Wayne State University. He is board-certified in internal medicine and infectious disease.

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VIRTUAL MINISTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL Family

The state of our world right now is making it clearer that training up our children to be disciples of Christ is important work that starts at home! While we miss you all and are busily preparing for the time that we can return to in-person Sunday School, we are also working hard to support you to help your child grow in faith from home.

Tina Gilbreath

Talking about your faith and asking your child about theirs helps families build relationships, experience their faith together, and think about who God is in their lives. This is something we can do everyday, not just Sundays! Not sure where to start? We will continue to send Parent Guides home that are connected to Sunday's Children’s Messages, and we are excited to announce we will begin Virtual Sunday School on August 16, which will include talk starters in the Parent Guides, as well!

Director Family Ministry

Whether you enjoyed the Summer Sunday Kits and activities connected to the Children’s Message and worship service each Sunday, or missed out on them, you will be happy to know we will be continuing to send a Sunday Worship Parent Guide home each week via email. The Sunday Worship Parent Guide will include links to printables, as well as suggestions for peppering your faith into conversations with your child throughout the week.

Beginning August 16, the Children’s Ministry team will be starting Virtual Sunday School! We are busy writing, recording, and editing content to send home each week. Each Virtual Sunday School lesson will include video from our staff, plus music and content from our Sunday School outline for the 2020-2021 school year. Links to both preschool and elementary versions will be sent out weekly and your child can watch them whenever is convenient for your family. This weekly email will also include a parent guide connected to the lesson. We hope that you take advantage of the suggestions for prayer and faith talks in that guide, and seize the opportunity to engage with your child regarding their faith.

We understand that these are difficult times. Both adults and children are struggling as our routines are gone or are changing, we are separated from friends, and confusion and uncertainty seem to be the order of the day.

So, while we’d love for you to use all the materials we are sending home, we hope you’ll give your family grace, relax and enjoy the time together. Consider our suggestions, just that, suggestions and choose what works for your family, but do continue your faith journey at home. Hebrews 12:1 “…let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us…”

We will reevaluate our timeline for in-person Sunday School after Labor Day, but plan to continue to provide this virtual option indefinitely. Mark your calendar and watch your email for updates as we move into the fall:

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August 9 August 16

Tune in to our live stream worship for the Blessing of the School Year Begin Virtual Sunday School

Virtual Sunday School starts August 16 Preschool—5th grade

ORGAN INSTALL MINISTRY UPDATE Music

As you may have seen in recent worship services, the installation of our restored organ has begun!

Staff from P.J. Swartz Inc., an organ company based in Greensboro, Georgia, arrived on Wednesday, July 22 to start the preliminary work to get the organ chamber ready for installation. The parts arrived on Thursday, July 23 and they have been hard at work installing refurbished pipes and parts into our chamber. They did the work on our organ at their shop in Greensboro and at Organ Supply Industries in Pennsylvania.

We have been working since 2015 to have our organ refurbished. Parts had been damaged or worn out and some parts were completely unusable. We hired organ Jennifer Hamm consultant Scott Riedel to help us finish our dream Minister of Music project. After soliciting several bids, he helped us hire P.J. Swartz. When Sanctuary demolition started in April of 2019, they came out to uninstall the instrument. Due to COVID-19, some of their work had to stop while Pennsylvania was in lockdown. We are so glad they are finally here to bring us back our beautifully restored instrument. This restoration ensures that the organ will be in top condition and help carry VPC forward into its next chapter.

Some exciting things to look forward to in our restored organ: • Two new stops • An added trumpet and harmonic flute • Fully repaired Choir Division (formerly completely unusable) • Repaired wind reservoirs, allowing for more supportive leadership in congregational singing • Revoicing of the principal chorus, also allowing for more support of congregational singing • Repair of many pipes that had warped over the years • Beautiful new movable console The crew consists of four men: Phil (President), Nick (Vice-President), James, and Steven. Please keep them in your prayers while they are here for three to six weeks working on the install!

News from

SESSION

IN-PERSON WORSHIP SERVICES

Session has been meeting every few weeks to evaluate resuming in-person worship services. The Risk Management Committee proposed a detailed mitigation plan which was passed by Session in early June. The top items are: temperature check, mandatory masks, capacity limits, and the use of alternate rows for seating, physical distancing, and intensified cleaning and disinfecting.

Pastor David Turner has trained the ushers and twenty additional members to carry out the mitigation measures at each service.

After reviewing the most recent COVID-19 report from the Department of Health Services and much discussion, Session voted unanimously on July 28 Karen Meyer to resume in-person worship services along with live streaming services on Clerk of Session Sunday, August 23. There will be an opportunity to register for these services to 480-368-6567 help us plan Sanctuary seating. This will be communicated to the Congregation through all our available channels. Session also agreed that small memorial services could be held in the Sanctuary. The mitigation plan will be followed during these services, as well.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Respectfully submitted, Karen Gill Meyer, Clerk of Session

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GIVING AND ITS LIFE COMMITTEE CHANGING EFFECTS Stewardship

Giving is often done in faith—with the hope that lives are changed— whether we hear the story of change or not. Other times we get a glimpse into the miraculous, which always leaves the fingerprint of God. Such was the case with one family connected to VPC through the Valley Day School (VDS) Ministry.

It was a day in December much like any other day with the mother of four waking to her responsibilities of preparing breakfast and making sure her David Turner children were properly prepared for school. After dropping one of her sons Pastor of Congregational Care off at VDS, she returned home to monitor their finances and in particular the status of their checking account. She knew that their mortgage would automatically come out of their checking account on the 16th of the month, and she wanted to make sure that they had enough funds to cover this expense. After studying their bank statement, she realized that her husband’s check from his third job had not yet cleared and that they’d be about $200 short for their mortgage payment. Knowing that they had no more expected income from their jobs to cover this payment, she decided that her only option was to take several things of value to the pawnshop—something she’d done before in order to make their mortgage payment.

Not only was the prospect of selling some of their belongings difficult, they were nearing Christmas with no additional income to make a family celebration possible until after Christmas Eve. Before returning to pick up her son, she called her husband with the disappointing news, and that with Christmas in just over a week, they had no way to make the season special for their children.

After her sharing this difficult news with her husband, she picked up her son. Seeing his face and embracing him eased the difficulty of her morning if for just a moment. After their hug, she helped him gather his papers and the handmade Christmas wreath from his cubby that he’d made earlier that day.

As she helped him gather his loose papers, she noticed an envelope with her name on it and assumed it was a school related correspondence. It wasn’t until she arrived home that she opened the envelope and removed a note that simply read, “Merry Christmas.” Thinking there were additional instructions from the school, she removed from the envelope a check written out to her. Emotions began to overwhelm her as tears began to stream down her face. She was in disbelief that someone would not only think of her, but would also nominate her to receive a gift that couldn’t have come at a better moment. Because of this anonymous gift from someone from VPC, this family was not only able to make their mortgage payment on time, but there was enough money left to buy Christmas gifts for their four children.

This mother of four wrote a note of gratitude to our church saying, “The gift was truly amazing… almost magical; almost like a Christmas movie or story. To my Secret Santa: I am beyond grateful, and truly blessed to have you in my life. The gift that you nominated me for, not only affects me; it affects my husband, my three sons, my daughter, and my mother. It affects how we feel in these difficult moments, because you have lifted so much stress and anxiety from us. We are so thankful to you; words truly cannot describe how much this gift means to us. Thank you Secret Santa; and thank you Jesus for blessing us with this gift… but more importantly, thank you for your friendship; your community; and your love for God.” Miracles do happen when we have the courage to give generously…and every once in a while God allows us a glimpse into the life-changing work that God is doing everyday.

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19 OPERATIONS WEEKS Finances &

Nineteen weeks! That’s how long it’s been since we have worshipped together on campus. Initially, it was unthinkable to our staff that we could even cancel two weeks, let alone eight, but now here we are 19 weeks later (and counting).

Yet over those 19 weeks, amazing things have been happening: 1. You have continued to give faithfully toward the ministry of Jesus here at VPC. Our regular faith giving donations for the first six months of 2020 actually exceed the same period last year by over $80,000.

Kris Bahr Finance & Operations Director 2. Livestream worship of both traditional and contemporary services from the Sanctuary has begun. Livestream will continue to be a regular part of 480-991-6424 ext. 112 krisb@vpc.church our Sunday mornings, so you will be able to worship with us year round, no matter where you are.

3. At the end of June, over 80 families (150 children) participated in virtual Vacation Bible School. 750 VBS packages were put together in kits for families to help with lessons at home, and 40 Zoom sessions were conducted between staff, volunteers, and families.

Amazing things are happening with A New Heart for the Valley also. The process of reassembling the organ began in late July. Much has been accomplished on the new education building and plaza, and we are just a few months away from completion of the project.

Speaking of A New Heart for the Valley…

You have been so generous in your support of “New Heart,” with total pledges exceeding $12 million, and $10 million of that already paid – an amazing fact that has provided sufficient cash on hand to cover all construction costs through June.

While it is wonderful news that the project is only a few months from completion, it does mean that we took the first draw from our bridge loan this month (a “bridge” to cover timing differences between when construction costs are due and pledges are paid). We understand and respect the fact that most of you have set up pledge payments VPC finances year-to-date as of June 30, 2020 based upon your own personal financial Actual $ Budget $ Variance $ situation – whether regular payments Income from salary or fixed income, IRA Faith Giving 984,400 955,000 29,400 Charitable Rollover distributions, or **Other Income 130,000 55,500 74,500 Total Income 1,114,400 1,010,500 103,900 stock donations. However, if you do Expense have flexibility as to timing of payment, Pastoral Ministry 224,400 226,100 1,700 donations received early will help Admin & Facility 462,500 498,900 36,400 *Mission, Outreach, Cong. Care** 142,800 50,300 -92,500 reduce the amount we need to borrow Christian Education 135,400 182,400 47,000 and the resulting interest expense.

Worship & Music Total Expense

95,600 114,300 1,060,700 1,072,000

18,700 11,300

On behalf of the Finance and 53,700 -61,500 115,200 Operations Committee and the Building Net Income less Expense Committee, THANK YOU!!! God Bless *In addition, $61,700 mission support to MentorKids, Family Promise, Ministry of Hope and Presbyterian Disaster Assistance provided upon You, and we hope to see you SOON! repurposing of VPF Kurz Scholarship Fund. **$95,100 in special giving was allocated to Navajo churches, Family Promise, MentorKids, and Malawi.

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VP C

STAFF UPDATES We are pleased to introduce Lauren Pearson, Executive Assistant to Pastor David Joynt. Lauren joined our staff team on June 2, having recently relocated to the Phoenix area with her husband, Zach, from Tacoma, WA.

Lauren & Zach Pearson

Lauren earned her Bachelors in Sociology degree from Azusa Pacific University in Azusa, CA. She has over 10 years of experience in administration, both executive and personal.

She loves event planning, organization, and learning the “behind the scenes” of how different businesses function.

Lauren also loves the people aspect of her job and how she can best help and be a listening ear - and “working with an amazing team of individuals I can learn so much from!”

In Lauren’s own words – “I love any chance I can get with my husband Zach, who is my best friend. We love getting outside and hiking, exercising, traveling, and exploring new places. Our two favorite topics are building strong marriages and getting out of debt! We are very passionate about these topics and love encouraging and learning from others about them! I am a learner at heart and love doing almost anything where I can discover something new. A few things I really enjoy are flowers, nature, seeing rainbows, laughing, and taking any opportunity to celebrate.

Life should be FUN!”

Matt McGowan

Matt McGowan, VPC's new Audio & Visual Tech, is the son of Dr. John and Cathy McGowan, both professional musicians and educators. Matt began his preparation for a career in audio and music production at age three when he started studying classical violin. He is originally from the Syracuse, New York area where he lived until 21 years old when his family relocated to Tucson. While residing in Tucson he developed a passion for music production and became a professional recording artist. Matt worked for his family’s church, Saint Andrew’s Presbyterian Church as a Production Technician where he was involved in both Contemporary and Traditional worship as both a producer and musician. During his time at St. Andrew’s he realized he was being called to use his unique gifts in ministry.

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Having received his calling, he began praying for God to guide him toward the place where his presence was most needed and his gifts could be immediately put to use. God answered these prayers and Matt moved to the Phoenix area in June to join the Valley Presbyterian Church staff.

Matt has received degrees and certificates from The University of Arizona, Berklee College of Music and Pima Community College. An avid runner, Matt ran the Phoenix/Mesa Marathon for Team World Vision in February. He still plays the violin and produces music in his free time.

We recently had to say goodbye to Karley Wilke-Nadler, Student Ministry Assistant Director. She left the VPC team to become the Kid's Pastor at McDowell Mountain Community Church. We are excited for Karley as she embarks on a new adventure, but we sad that she has departed.

Karley has been a profound blessing on our students and church-wide community. Her immense energy, hard work, and faithful witness to Jesus have been deeply appreciated by all, and we thank her for her many contributions during her time at VPC. We pray for God's grace and blessing on Karley and Kevin as they begin a new season in their lives.

Karley Wilke-Nadler

Any questions or needs contact Travis Kingma: travisk@vpc.church

IN MEMORIAM I am greatly saddened to announce the passing of my father, former VPC Associate Pastor, Rev. Dr. John F. Shaw. He passed peacefully on the morning of June 23, 2020 at his residence in Seattle, WA.

Rev. Dr. John F. Shaw

While John was not at VPC for its birth, he assisted Rev. Herb Landes through the infancy and toddler years, and well into the teens of the church from 1958-73. He was in charge of building what was then considered one of the most vibrant youth and high school programs in the Valley. He handled most of the Pastoral Care and Visitation duties. It was at this time he realized his true calling was in this direction, even if he wasn't sure how he would do it. His highlight at VPC was to oversee the construction of the new Sanctuary. Our family lovingly called this "The House That John Built." He was on site almost every day during construction, working with architects, contractors, tradesmen, and others. He was one of the first ones to arrive at the side of a worker who fell from scaffolding and died at the scene.

Upon Herb Landes' retirement in 1973, John served as interim Pastor until a successor could be found to take VPC into the next phase of life.

—Sincerely, Jeffrey Shaw

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Steps for a safe worship environment

When VPC returns to in-person worship, we will ask the congregation to take the following steps:

Engage in Social Distancing by allowing for six feet between individuals.

If you feel sick or have a fever, stay home.

Masks are required for all worship attendees. Please bring your own, but VPC will have extra available.

No-touch temperature checks will be conducted as people enter the Sanctuary.

Alternate rows will be used for seating. Ushers will bring families and individuals to their seats.

No handshakes, hugs, or other physical contact during Passing of the Peace.

Collection boxes will be in the back of the building to receive offering contributions.

We will not be able to provide bulletins, Bibles, hymnals, or friendship pads.

Worship spaces will be cleaned and disinfected after each service.

We invite families to worship together. Feel free to get a Sunday School kit (one per child).

• These guidelines only apply to worship. The VPC campus is still closed to any other public gatherings.

• We hope to open the nursery during worship in a few weeks. We will share more details soon.

12 • We thank you in advance for your patience and grace with VPC and your church family as we navigate this new and augmented way to gather.