FFFFOUNTAINOUNTAINOUNTAINOUNTAIN HHHHILLSILLSILLSILLS PPPPRESBYTERIANRESBYTERIANRESBYTERIANRESBYTERIAN CCCCHURCHHURCHHURCHHURCH Our mission is to reach out in worship, education, fellowship and service to all.

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“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. . . .Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” (Mt. 5:14-16 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. (Acts 2:42) At a Presbytery gathering not too long

ago, Jody McKewen, then freshly-installed as pastor at Church of the Master in Mesa, asked the most important question of the entire meeting:

If your church were to close down, would your neighbors care?

Now, it’s no secret that the Church (Capital “C”) has

been struggling its way into irrelevancy since it began to secu-larize itself in the mid-‘60’s in an effort to become, if not “all things to all people,” at least more things to more people. We now boast an constantly-broadening spectrum of beliefs and a consistently-diminishing number of members.

Coincidence? I think not. If we’re serving the equiva-lent of spiritual junk food, who wants to break bread at our ta-ble?

In the late 80’s a one-hit-wonder named Aaron Tippin made a splash on the Country Music Charts with a song enti-tled, “You’ve Got to Stand for Something or You’ll Fall for Anything.” In retrospect, we should have added it to the Pres-byterian Hymnal.

But, it’s easy to sit at a smug distance and throw stones at the Institutional Church. To say, along with the Phari-

Fountain Hills, AZ August 2012

From Our Pastor

see who stood by himself praying in Luke’s Gospel, God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector (18:11).

So, let’s rephrase Jody’s question. Let’s bring it home to the ‘hood:

If FHPC were to close down, would OUR neighbors care?

A group of our elders met through the summer

months to prayerfully and thoughtfully take on the challenge of this question. What, they asked themselves, must we look like as a community in order for the answer to be one we’d want our Lord to hear?

Seeking guidance in scripture, they heard the voice of the Spirit in the verses cited at the top of this piece. They sensed Christ directing our vision. They saw the early church setting the agenda for our work. Then, they responded with two concise statements articulating both Vision and Mission for our shared future here at FHPC.

CHURCH OFFICE SUMMER HOURS

Until September 3rd, the Church office will be open Monday through Thursday from 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM. The office will be closed on Fridays until after Labor Day.

Continued on page 4...

See photos pages 8 and 16

Our Vision: We hear our Lord’s commandments -- calling us to be a city on a hill; reflecting light into Fountain Hills and all the world beyond, giving glory to God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. calls us to . . . Our Mission : We respond in faith, hope, and love –stretching upward to the One God and reaching outward to all people through worship, education, fellowship and service.

In Touch page 2

On the Inside: From Our Pastor…. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . . Focus on Finance .. .. .. ..… … … … .. . … .. . .. … . … Music ministry . .. .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . Mission Ministry . . … . . . .. .. .. .. . . . .. . . . . … .. . . . . Presbyterian Women .. .. .. …. .. . . . . .. . … .. . . .. . . .. BLOG … .. …. .. . . .. . . . . . . … .. . .. . . . .. . . . . . . …. Membership News.. .. . . . . . .. .. . … . . . . .. . . . . .. . . . .. VBS 2012 … .. .. .. . . .. .. . . . .. .. . . … .. .. . … . … Youth Mission Trip.. .. .. . . … . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . Christian Formation News. .. .. .. . . . . .. . … .. .. .. . . From our Director of Christian Formation .. .. .. .. .. . . Interesting Stuff .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... .. .. . .. .. . . . . . . . Men’s Fellowship Group News. .. .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. Note of Thanks.. . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . … . .. . . . . . . . . ... Need Accurate Addresses .. .. … … .. .. . .. . … . .. .. . .. Library Footnotes.. … .. …. .…. …. …. …. …. …. …. CLAF NEWS.. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... Necrology for 2012… .. … .. . . .. … .. … . .. … . .. . .. Thank You Note. . .. .. . . . . . … . . . . . . … . . . . . . . . . . August Birthdays… .. … …. … … …. … … .. .. . . . VBS 2012 .. . . .. . .. .. . . . .. .. . . . .. . .... . . . . ... .. .. . . ..

1 2 3 4 6 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 13 13 14 14 15 15 15 16

OUR CHURCH STAFF

Rev. Bill Good Pastor/Head of Staff

Rev. Stan Jones Parish Associate

Debby DeBernardi Director Christian Formation

Marta Ludwig Administrative Coordinator

Debbie Fisher Director of Music Ministry

Dorothy Parris Pianist

Caryl Bates Organist

Lynn Medley Custodian

CHURCH TREASURER

John Skewes

CHURCH SESSION Class of 2012

John Brockelman Susan Phillips Terri Schmidt John Wyman Class of 2013

Charlie Eberspacher Susan Owens

Jim Roy Donna Yordy Class of 2014 Gail Botsford

Jerry Cain Carol Hencz Jerry Maples Letha Neely Trey Uphoff

BOARD OF DEACONS Moderator: Ruby Pearson

Class of 2012 Ben Fast

Ruby Pearson Bev Watters Chris Young Class of 2013

Yvonne Ellingson Sandy Heunisch John Schopbach

Donna Sims Class of 2014

Irene Cain Phyliss Kern Linda Maples

****** Rev. Glenn Atchinson

Pastor Emeritus

Focus on FinanceFocus on FinanceFocus on FinanceFocus on Finance

It has been called the “Summer Swoon”, the “Bathtub Ef-fect” (due to its image plotted on a graph) plus a host of oth-ers. What is it? The plunge in cash collections after our Win-ter residents return home and the local folks leave for a sum-mer vacation. (Good Lord willing, it reverses in the Fall.) Although our budget is seasonally adjusted for this, Income for the months of May and June fell way below even our shortened expectations. We are now $5,466 off target for Income. The Expense variance is due to timing, not savings. We have fallen behind and have some ground to make up. Respectfully, John Skewes, Treasurer

May/June Income $ 54,721 Budget $ 61,620

May/June Expense $ 67,594 Budget $ 68,291

Yr to date Income $ 202,944 Budget $ 208,410

Yr to date Expense $ 203,275 Budget $ 206,628

Financial Status Considering the seasonal drop in attendance and with many in the congregation em-barked on or considering summer vacations, your Church continues to experience an uncomfortable decline in contribution and pledge income, while month-to-month staff, mortgage and utility expenses remain at budgeted levels! In view of this, the Finance Committee again asks that members make every effort to keep pledges cur-rent! Thanks a bunch! -Finance Committee

Music MinistryMusic MinistryMusic MinistryMusic Ministry

It's the middle of July, hot and humid, yet, the church is still very well attended, and very much alive. There are good ser-mons, good worship, there are friendly greeters, good music and good fellowship. There are stories with adventure from those who have left town for awhile, and there is anticipation by those who

are heading out of town, preparing to relax in a different environment. Some are going abroad, and some are going just to fish in another state! Some are going to islands where you have to relax since everyone else is! Some are work-ing through the summer, not yet able to get out of town and still others are actually entertain-ing friends and family who come here in the mid-dle of summer. My husband’s Canadian fam-ily tried that a few times...we'd wake up with our A/C down to 58 degrees...I'd have to sleep with a down comforter! It is good to relax, though, to vacate what keeps us occupied for the rest of our year. I've been spending extra time reading, study-ing, practicing and preparing for the upcoming season of choir rehearsal, bell rehearsal, working with the youth and all the pleasures that working in music brings. So many people are involved in our music ministry which provides such a wonderful opportunity to participate with so many who are truly good, solid musicians, and good Christian people who are hearty, and lively, and respectful. I look forward to each and every one of them being involved, and the rehearsals that keep our hearts and minds in tune with what God expects of us. This summer's VBS experience was great fun! What a wonderful turn out! It was summer camp for all of us! The kids response was great, as well as the families it served. They brought their excitement into the worship service with dance and song. The older youth who worked by my side in caring for them when we had music and recreation were superb. I feel very fortunate to have such vibrant youth to work with. We've been continuing the youth band rehears-als through the summer, and now there are enough younger ones to add a consistent time to rehearse on Wednesday's before the older ones meet to rehearse. It works out very well. We will continue this through the school year, having

the youth at 4:15 pm on Wednesday, in the Sanctu-ary. Spread the word! It has been a pleasure working with so many through the summer months who have kept our music program going, presenting reverent and uplifting se-lections. I love the different styles of presentation. I once asked Dorothy about playing "Amazing Grace" with others who were going to play along, and she played through 5 different styles until we landed on the one we all wanted to do. That's been what has

been part of our church for so long, the ability to play music apart from what can end up a stagnate part of worship, if we're not careful, or, it can go the total opposite way, where a simple melody like "Amazing Grace" can end up so far from the original tune that the focus is redirected away from the meaning of devo-tion that the composer had towards express-ing God's love. One time, a few years ago, I took some of our youth to a weekend camp, a fun-filled time of Christian fellowship, and the last night was a concert by a Christian Band that had a different, more aggressive

approach to sound, not recognizing the music, but, it was "theirs" to experience. The end of the song came, and I finally recognized that it was "This Little Light Of Mine!" What a different style! We continually talk about styles of music in the youth band practice, that they might agree to choose styles that work to bring about a worship experience for all who hear them. I think they are doing a great job in learning that! They are a great group! I have enjoyed the more relaxed summertime to work with them, chatting, experiencing different instru-ments and styles. Deborah Fisher Director of Music Ministries " O sing to the Lord a new song, for He has done marvelous things!" Psalm 98:1

page 3 August 2012

To tell the truth To prepare for a sermon on honesty, a pastor asked church members to read Joshua 25. The next week, he asked, “How many of you read it?” Half the hands in the church went up. “Great,” the pastor said. “You’re the ones I want to talk to...because Joshua has only 24 chapters.” ...From The Tale of the Tardy Oxcart, Charles Swindoll The Newsletter Newsletter by Communication Resources, Inc

In Touch page 4

Mission MinistryMission MinistryMission MinistryMission Ministry

McDowell Mountain Elementary School School Supplies Thank you also for your continued support of the school supplies collection for the children at McDowell Mountain Elementary School. We are working with the school again this year to pro-vide for those children in need that cannot afford to buy their own supplies. These items are for children in grades KDG-3rd. Members of our Mission Committee will be delivering all the items when the school opens again in early August. Thank you again for helping!

Mission Ministry Meeting Our next meeting date will be Monday, September10th at 3:00 pm in the conference room off the main office. Please consider join-ing our vibrant and compassion-ate group as we strive to help those around us in need. We wel-come you, and are looking for those with energy, ideas, and leadership!

Precision-crafted

God engineered the human body so our 206 bones, the heaviest part of us, make up only one-fifth of our weight. Yet bones are strong enough to protect and support every other cell, bearing the compression and tension we exert through ordinary activities such as walking and lifting heavy items. By comparison, wood snaps at such impact. And steel, strong enough to bear such force, weighs three times what bone does and would hinder our movements. No other matter strikes such a perfect balance and weight. Furthermore, our bones are hollow - a big part of what reduces their weight - and the interior efficiently pro-duces a trillion red blood cells each day. With the psalmist, we can proclaim to God, “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14, NRSV). The Newsletter Newsletter by Communication Resources, Inc

A special Thank you to all who have donated non-perishables to Extended Hands Food bank as well as “Pockets Full of Hope” spare change.

Mission Ministry Elders, Carol Hencz and Susan Owens

From Our Pastor… continued from page 1

Over the coming months we will hold these statements before us as we begin to explore what it will mean for us as a church to live into this Vision and to live with this Mission. This is exciting stuff! And, we’ve already got a great start!

Our geography gives us the hill. Our Lord gives

us the light. So, let’s get our shine on. Let’s stretch and let’s reach. Let’s give our neighbors something to care about.

Grace and Peace,

page 5 August 2012

Mission ProjectMission ProjectMission ProjectMission Project SUMMERTIME BEGINS DONATION AND COLLECTION TIME FOR TROOPS BOXES There was another “Sorting Day” in my garage the end of May. Many thanks to Violet Wieder and Sandy Heunisch, who helped sort, sepa-rate and count all items that had been collected and stored in the “Troops Donation” box, up to that point in time. There will probably be one more sorting day prior to the packaging and boxing of the holiday boxes in early November. Heartfelt thanks to the Mission Committee for selecting the “Support Our Troops” project as one of two recipients of their recent held Coffee project fund-raiser. These funds have been set aside until October when the “Holiday Boxes for the Troops” project gets into full swing with the pur-chasing of snacks and other items that may be needed prior to bagging and packaging. Have also been in contact by email with Dick Westphal’s grandson Michael who is back in Afghanistan on his second deployment. In Mi-chael’s response to my “Happy July 4th” greeting, he reminded me of the extreme heat over there, av-eraging 130 degrees daily (and we think it’s hot here). I want to thank all who have placed dona-tions in the Troops Basket in the Narthex or who have dropped items off at the Church office to be picked up. Items currently needed: Dark t-shirts - sizes L & XL; Chapsticks; and Sunscreens. And lastly and most important, please re-member to keep all of our Troops in your thoughts and prayers. Donna Sims Deacon

Helpers Sandy Heunisch and Violet Wieder

Minister to your minister

A Accept them as persons. B Build them up. Say “thank you.” C Communicate with them. D Defend them when someone is trying to run them down. E Entertain them. They like to have fun, too! F Family. See that they have a family life. G Genuine. Be honest with them. Be yourself around them. H Honor them. Do not put them on a pedestal. But respect them. I Income. Pay them enough so that money doesn’t become a major concern. J Judge not! Don’t be judgmental. K Kind. Be kind to your ministers. L Love. See 1 Corinthians 13. M Maintain. Their families have the same needs as any other family. N Nurture. Help them grow in grace. O Offer to help. The list of things we can do is endless. P Pray for them. Lift up their names to God daily. Q Quench not. Encourage them. R Rejoice in and with them. S Surprise them. There are so many ways. T Trust them. Believe in them. U Understand them. Put yourself in their place. V Vacation. They need time away. W Welcome them into your home. Don’t wait for them to make the first move. X eXpend yourself, not them. Y Yoke. Help them bear their yoke with grace and dignity. Z ZAP all gossip! East McKinney Christian Church McKinney, Texas The Newsletter Newsletter by Communication Resources, Inc

A dark and stormy night During a loud summer thunderstorm, a mother tucked her son into bed. As she turned off the light, he asked with a tremor, “Mommy you sleep with me tonight?” The mother smiled and gave her son a reassuring hug. “I can’t, dear,” she said. “I have to sleep in Daddy’s room.” After a long silence, the boy replied, “The big sissy.” The Newsletter Newsletter by Communication Resources, Inc

page 7 December 2011

Presbyterian Women Coordinating Team for 2011-201 Moderator: Ilene Berg Mission Coordinator: Mary Alice Bivens Vice-Moderator (Program): Susan Lickman Historian: Barbara Oakeson Secretary: Linda Warren Membership/Yearbook Coordinator: Maria Berry Treasurer: Maria Berry Bible Study Coordinator: Evelyn Hrunek Publicity: Terry Martin

Presbyterian Women Presbyterian Women Presbyterian Women Presbyterian Women

Fountain Hills Presbyterian Women (FHPW) currently has two Circles, and the possibility of a third Circle starting this fall. Circles meet monthly September through May for Bible study and a short business meeting to plan local mission projects and Gatherings which are held three times a year. There is strong support from PW Members at Large at our Gatherings and for the mission work of FHPW. Special interest groups that meet on the same scheduled months are Hooked on Books, a reading group, and Out & About, a group of ladies that enjoy lunch and fellowship at various restaurants. Presbyterian Women of the Presbytery of Grand Canyon (PWP) annually publishes a reading list of books that have been reviewed and recommended. Women who read 5 or more books from the list are recognized at the Winter Gathering each year. The Goals of FHPW include the support of mission work, both our local church mission projects and special mission projects undertaken by PW; to increase interest and mem-bership in PW and to give support and encouragement to the children and youth in our church. A Second Mile Giving

In Touch page 6

Ragamuffins Accepting a gift with humility.

When Jesus said to His followers, “To enter the Kingdom of Heaven, you must come as little children,” I just assumed He meant because children were innocent. Then, reflecting back on my time as a child and times I have watched my own children or others playing, I could only conclude that “their innocence” was not the virtue to which Jesus was speaking. Children were loved in the first century. Yet, unlike children today, the world did not revolve around them— gifts for every occasion, birthday parties and trips to Disney World. Children were more humble, having fewer expectations than children today. The Kingdom will be a gift to people who know they are not worthy of such a gift —“the poor in spirit” — the people who are not trying to impress others or position themselves where they will look good to the King. Thus, “Come as little children” means come to Him in humility, expecting nothing, knowing that grace and salvation come as His gift - a treasure we are incapable of obtaining on our own. A relationship with Christ will always be more about the gift that we receive rather than what we give…. up.

Greetings. This blog is an answer to a question. The more that we learn – the more we should want to share. This blog is for the sharing of information to help with our journey / adventure towards a deeper understand-ing of our faith. You may also go online thru our website www.fhpresbyterian.info and click on the BLOG button and add your comments, as well as see what others are thinking. Check it out.

pledge – money given over and above a pledge or tithe to the church - is collected at Circle meetings and Gather-ings to support our mission opportunities. Other special offerings collected include the Fellowship of the Least Coin, a world-wide ecumenical project, and a Thank Of-fering and Birthday Offering which are a part of PW’s creative ministries. All Circles use the Bible Study published each year by Horizons magazine, the official publication of Presbyte-rian Women. The 2012-2013 study topic is “Dispatches to God’s Household – The General Epistles” written by Nancy-Benson-Nicol, a teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and currently serving as university chap-lain at University of the Ozarks in Clarksville, Arkansas. Pastor Stan Jones meets with study leaders each month to help them prepare the lesson. We welcome all women to join us in finding ways to live out their faith in an inclusive, caring community. If you have any questions, please contact Ilene Berg at 837-3771 or Marta at the church office, 837-1763.

Not Yet A Member? If you are interested in joining our church family, please see or call Susan Phillips at 480-837-1225 or Gail Bots-ford at 412-613-3312 or call the church office at 480-837-1763.

FACEBOOK PAGE: Fountain Hills Presbyterian Church

Go to our website and click on Facebook on our home page. When you are there also click on the like it icon. When you do that you will get news feeds directly from our site whenever anything new is added. It is just another way to stay connected.

MembershipMembershipMembershipMembership

Cookbooks are avail-able in the church office. A corrections page has been printed. Pick up your correction page

on Sunday morning or in the church office during the week. Please pick up as many correc-tion pages as cookbooks you have purchased.

Elders, Susan Phillips and Gail Botsford

page 7 August 2012

If you’re not yet a member of our Fountain Hills Presbyterian church family, but have been attending for a while, we want you to know that we value each and every one of you and we are very happy to have you with us. Maybe you are interested in membership but are unsure how this works, this article will show you how. I will list several scenarios for you and maybe one of them will pertain to your situation: *If you are attending our church and don’t have membership in another church, you can join our church by profession of faith and receiving the Sacra-ment of Baptism or, if you’ve already been baptized, you can join by reaffirma-tion of faith in Jesus Christ. *If you belong to another church, but would like to transfer your mem-bership to our church, we can arrange for a letter of transfer from your current membership-church to ours. *If you are a winter visitor and are an active member of another church “back home”, you can become an Affiliate member at our church here and main-tain your full active membership there. An affiliate member is entitled to all of the rights and privileges of active members with the exception of the right to vote and hold office.

We periodically have new membership inquiry meetings on a Tuesday, evening in the church narthex at 6:00 pm. The meeting lasts about one hour and if you choose to become a member, we would present you to Session and the congregation on an upcoming Sunday.

Please feel free to contact us, Susan Phillips, at 480-837-1225 or Gail Botsford at 412-613-3312 or call the church office at 480-837-1763.

The arms of Jesus A teacher took her class of 7-year-olds to visit residents of an Alz-heimer’s care center. One boy spied an elderly woman sitting alone on a bed, slipped into her room and gave her a hug. She … and many who saw the interaction … shed tears. The boy scurried back to his group, apologizing for making the woman cry. “She just looked like she needed a hug,” he said meekly. To the boy’s surprise, the teacher commended him: “Your arms were the arms of Jesus to her.” Scripture tells of Jesus taking children in his arms (Mark 10:13-16). This child became Jesus to someone in her “second childhood,” taking her in his arms and blessing her. Based on “She Needed a Hug,” Chicken Soup for the Soul: Devotional Stories Sampler The Newsletter Newsletter by Communication Resources, Inc

VBS 2012VBS 2012VBS 2012VBS 2012

In Touch page 8 In Touch page 8

The spirit was moving among us on our campus! What great kids!

Youth Mission TripYouth Mission TripYouth Mission TripYouth Mission Trip

page 9 August 2012

Yes, they really used these tools. They finished paint-ing a house, laid a linoleum floor and baseboards, built and painted a deck, scraped and painted outside house trim, rebuilt (after demo with sledge hammer) and extended concrete ramp. Besides sharing a gospel message via VBS to the little ones.

Christian FormationChristian FormationChristian FormationChristian Formation

Christian Formation We are in the midst of summer; it is a doozy of a summer too. If you are like me, you are trying many ways to try and stay cool. One of my favorite

things is to be home with my two cats and read, planted under the ceiling fan and with the AC cranked up. Things have been jumping in the Christian Formation Department in June and July.

We have enjoyed all the little ones running around with smiles and laughter during our Vacation Bible School. It was such a joyous time and it truly reminds you how great God is and how his love grows as we teach the little ones. If anyone has ever doubted God’s love, just ask a child to describe who God

is. Their eyes will light up as they joy-fully go into detail, who could deny there is a God after experi-

encing this. We especially had fun with the program, along with Friday’s water day. I want to say THANK YOU again to all who so graciously donated their time and supplies, thus making our Vacation Bible School such a success. Our Volun-teers and Teachers are a vital part of our program, and as you can see from all the pictures (see pages 10 and 20) we have taken that fun was had by both Children and Adults.

The teens were a great help with Vacation Bible School, and they took on greater responsibilities, this year. This was a great learning experience for them and helped prepare them for their Mission trip to the Navajo Reservation. They de-cided after helping with VBS that they wanted to teach their own curriculum. So with the help of Debby DeBernardi, they

spent the next couple of weeks getting ready. The nine teens and four adults took off on Sunday morning July 15th, shortly after Church started. We will have to fill you in on the details of their trip next month. But knowing these teens as I do, I am sure they will do an outstanding job and have lots of fun doing it. I know that you all are as proud of these young people as I am. Be sure and stop them, when you see them, and tell them how proud of them you are. We have a small group of teens, but they are an awesome group and so talented.

Pastor Bill’s Bible Study On August 5th we will start

our Sunday morning Bible study again. We will continue with the book of John at 10:30 in the Adult Edu-cation Rooms. We have not gotten too far into the book of John; in fact we are still study-ing the second chapter. So you have not missed too much, please come on in and join us in our study of the Apos-tle John. We love hearing from anyone wishing to voice their questions and opinions.

Men’s Bible Study The men have continued

meeting this summer on Thursday mornings at 7:00 am in the Adult Edu-cation rooms. This Bible study is led by John Bivens, and volunteers take turns leading the discussions each week. John makes sure there is hot coffee ready for those who wish to have it, for these fun discussions and studies. The men have agreed not to meet for the month of August, but will be ready to start back up again after Labor Day. So if you are a male and looking for a fun group of men to study

In Touch page 10

the Bible with, come on by Thursday morning September 6th at 7:00 am.

Wednesday Evening Family Night: THE WAY

Starting August 15th we will begin our Wednesday evening studies. School will be starting around this time and the youth’s schedule will have to work around open houses and back to school programs. But unless otherwise notified, we will begin Adult classes again at this time. We will share a meal at 5:45 until 6:30 PM when classes be-gin. We ask that if you share a meal with us, the adults contribute $5.00 a person to help with cost of the meal.

Fall Programming Debby DeBernardi is busy plan-

ning fall programming both for Wednes-day evening as well as Sunday mornings, for the youth. We are hoping when we get this all set up that many of families from Vacation Bible School will attend. So any of you that wish to teach or help with this programming, please let Debby know.

Once again as I wrap up my

section of this newsletter, I hope to have been able to answer any questions for you. I try to be as informative as possi-ble on what we have going on here at Fountain Hills Presbyterian Church. If you have questions that I may not have addressed, please stop me around the campus and ask. If I don’t have an an-swer for you, I will try and find one. Please continue to remember us in your prayers as we try to meet everyone’s needs here at Fountain Hills Presbyterian Church. Be safe and continue to stay cool.

Terri Schmidt

Christian Formation Elder

~ Laugh Loudly ~ Laugh Long ~

~~ Laugh Wholly ~~

From the Director of Christian FormationFrom the Director of Christian FormationFrom the Director of Christian FormationFrom the Director of Christian Formation Blessings and thanks to all of you for your comforting expressions of sympathy in the passing of my father, Eldon Schwieman. Dad had also become a dear friend and hockey buddy to my husband while living with us these couple of years. Being able to witness and join a spiritual transforming journey of a father is a rare and bitter sweet gift. After almost two years of having the gift of time with dad living with us and caring for him, he got his sandals and went home to his eternal dwelling. The last thing dad said to me before we prayed together was just that... " Get my sandals, I'm going home." I left ICU to come home to rest my eyes early morning July 3rd and dad "went home" 2 hours later. I was unable to get back in time to say or do anything else, but the ICU team told him I was on my way. We are all "on the way" home in various stages and seasons of our lives. Share your life as a living gospel.

By the time you read this, VBS and Navajo Mission Trip have physically passed, but the mission never ends! An-other wonderful VBS reached out to more children here and with one of the mission projects will reach about 1200 more children with the gospel of Christ around the world through KidZ At Heart International. Over 400 food items were collected and sent to Extended Hands. Yes, kids can make a difference. Thanks to our fantastic co-directors, Shawn Uphoff and Paula Eberspacher, they and their teams and teens gave children the opportunity to go deeper with God in their faith. I heard a lot of wishing comments like “I wish Bi-ble School would never end! I wish you could do VBS for another week. I wish I could move and go to church here!” Every child had a different “favorite” center that I talked to, so all of our leaders and teams were out-standing. My favorite part of VBS was witnessing the relationships being built and how God worked within them through prayer. Of course, seeing Pastor Bill go down the waterslide while being hit with water balloons as kids squealed with delight was a highlight! I can’t wait at the time of this writing for how God will continue to grow our faith, change lives and impact our church after the Navajo Mission Trip. I hope many of you were able to attend the thank you fellowship time, Sunday, July 29th to hear the student’s stories of how God is changing their lives and the holy habits they de-sire to embrace to practice being present to God and His leading. What a Kingdom impact! I wonder how this trip will impact our church, ministries and community through these incredible students. I wonder how their spiritual and leadership development will be lived out once home… because the mission never ends!

page 11 August 2012

Operation Overboard may be done, but the water is still flowing deep and wide on Sundays this fall with Rio – a spiritually forming curriculum that is God-centered to disciple leaders and equip kids to access God’s Word for themselves. The scope and sequence shows how all of Scripture, from Genesis through Revelation, is inter-woven and points us to the redeeming work of Jesus Christ. Rio creates an environment that teaches kids to lis-ten to what God is saying to them using a variety of creative prayer times, guided journaling and other opportunities designed to give kids space to begin to recognize and respond to God’s voice. Be involved in Rio: Relational (authentic relationships), Intentional (knowing God, not just knowing about God), and Over-flow (reaching kids by sharing your own faith journey) on Sundays this fall. Mid-week elementary will offer a new large group, small group program. It will focus on the Story of God’s re-demptive plan for elementary-age kids, allowing them to Anticipate, Celebrate, Respond, and receive a Blessing in a participatory environment. Many family helps in-cluding Homefront Newsletter with free mobile app for parents. The new flat screen will allow us to use video, music, and other tools to make both the large group and small group times special. We have not gone into the space age in our KidCommu-nities yet, but we do have new flat screens that were do-nated for the Youth Center and E Building! So why not kick off fall with a 3-D movie and popcorn for the younger kids and a time to share with parents how we might support fami-lies this year? Yes, the flat screens have 3-D capability and 1 ½ dozen 3-D glasses have also b een d o na ted . Watch for details!

Debby DeBernardi enjoying VBS

In Touch page 12

I scream for ice cream For many people, summer is synonymous with cool treats. “I must have eaten 10 tons of ice cream alone in my Lifetime,” said the late commentator Andy Rooney. “It makes life seem long and lovely just thinking about every bite of it.” Ice cream’s origins go back to the first century, when Roman emperor Nero served “sweet snow” at feasts. He had slaves gather snow from the mountains and flavor it with fruit, wine or honey. The Newsletter Newsletter by Communication Resources, Inc

When Death Comes

When death comes like the hungry bear in autumn

when death comes and takes all the bright coins from his purse

to buy me, and snaps his purse shut; when death comes

like the measles-pox;

when death comes like an iceberg between the shoulder blades,

I want to step through the door full of curiosity, wondering;

what is it going to be like, that cottage of darkness?

And therefore I look upon everything as a brotherhood and a sisterhood,

and I look upon time as no more than an idea, and I consider eternity as another possibility,

and I think of each life as a flower, as common

as a field daisy, and as singular,

and each name a comfortable music in the mouth tending as all music does, toward silence,

and each body a lion of courage, and something

precious to the earth.

When it's over, I want to say: all my life I was a bride married to amazement.

I was a bridegroom, taking the world into my arms.

When it's over, I don't want to wonder if I have made of my life something particular, and real.

I don't want to find myself sighing and frightened or full of argument.

I don't want to end up simply having visited this world.

~ Mary Oliver ~

(New and Selected Poems, Volume I)

INTERESTING……

PRESBYTERIAN : When you rearrange the letters: BEST IN PRAYER ASTRONOMER : When you rearrange the letters: MOON STARER DESPERATION: When you rearrange the letters: A ROPE ENDS IT THE EYES: When you rearrange the letters: THEY SEE THE MORSE CODE: When you rearrange the letters: HERE COME DOTS DORMITORY : When you rearrange the letters: DIRTY ROOM SLOT MACHINES : When you rearrange the letters: CASH LOST IN ME ANIMOSITY : When you rearrange the letters: IS NO AMITY SNOOZE ALARMS : When you rearrange the letters: ALAS! NO MORE Z 'S A DECIMAL POINT : When you rearrange the letters: I'M A DOT IN PLACE THE EARTHQUAKES : When you rearrange the letters: THAT QUEER SHAKE ELEVEN PLUS TWO : When you rearrange the letters: TWELVE PLUS ONE

Important information about addresses! We are now mailing out the monthly newsletter to all members, affiliate members, friends and prospective members. It is very important that we have a correct address for you. It is especially important for those of us who have two addresses. Our computer program can maintain two ad-dresses and if we know your months of residency here, the program knows which address to use for mailings. We mail out the newsletter in bulk mail. But if we have the wrong address, it gets returned to us and we are responsible for full postage for it and you miss out on the newsletter. Can you please help us and insure that we have the correct dates for your alternate address? Please call or email the church office with your information. 480-837-1763 or fhpc.marta@gmail.com. Thank you for your time and caring.

page 13 August 2012

I don't know how to express how much I appreciate all of you. You are wonderful friends and wonderful Christians. I can't believe the outpouring of love, concerns, prayers and offers of help you have given Chandler and myself. I want to thank all of you that drove Chandler to his radiation therapy and those of you that offered. A big "thanks" to Bob Lull, Dieter Ludwig and John Brockelman for helping me with outside projects at my home. Thank you to Marta and Rev. Bill for passing on information regarding Chandler's condition. Our Rev. Bill did a great presentation at Chandler's Me-morial and Debbie sang like an angel as usual. Thank you both. A BIG "thank you" to Terry Martin for

making such a beautiful power point presentation of Chandler's life, shown before Chandler's service, and a Web Site as well. You worked many hours on those lady, and I really appreciate what you did for Chandler and me. And, so much gratitude for those of you that visited Chandler during his three stays in the hospital and here at our home. He smiled at every "get well" card that he received and a big smile when I brought home the Vacation Bible School T-shirt that Shawn sent him. Sorry to say he was so weak he couldn't try it on - but he had that big smile. Thank you Shawn. The Caring Bridge Web Site was terrific to tell all that got on it of his condition, and I am so grateful for those of you that sent comments and tributes. He had 1,254 visits from you. Thank you to all who sent contributions to the Caring Bridge. I am so glad that most of you came to the Fellowship Center after the Memorial Service and let me give you a big hug. Last but certainly not least, the Deacons. He loved serving on the Deacon Board. As the "Caring Arms of the Church" you do so much to help others. He loved getting there early for the meetings to make coffee for Toni and now Ruby. I'm not forgetting all of you ladies that made delicious desserts for the reception. Thank you for serving at his Celebration of Life Service. I can't imagine belonging to a more caring and loving congregation. A light has gone off in my life but I have 28 years of beautiful memories. I pray that God will be as kind and loving to you and yours as you have been to us. With love, Helen Roesch

Attention!!!

SEPTEMBER MEETING OF THE FHPC MEN’S FELLOWSHIP GROU P

As a way to show our great appreciation for the efforts of the combination of young people and adults who recently conducted a very successful mission project on the Navajo Reservation, the Men’s Fellow-ship Group is inviting all of them to be our guests for breakfast in the Fellowship Center on Saturday, September 15. This will be the group’s first meeting of the 2012-2013 season and we encour-age all men in the FHPC congregation to participate. Those who regularly at-tend know we are long on camaraderie and short on speeches.

If you have questions, contact: John Bivens, Jerry Maples or Norm Collins

BOOK REVIEW

The Year of Living Biblically A.J. Jacobs

God has a sense of humor and he passes it along to the author, A.J. Jacobs. “The Year of Living Bibli-cally: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Pos-sible” contains a healthy dose of humor, earnestness, reverence, and irreverence.

Jacobs was a Jewish agnostic author and an editor of Es-quire magazine living in New York City when he decided to undertake this Biblical project. He grew up in an in-credibly secular home. Jacobs became increasingly inter-ested in the role of religion in our world today and wanted to see if following the Bible as literally as possible would make a difference in his life. He also wanted to see what – if anything – he was missing by having no organized relig-ion in his life. In order to really gain an ancient Biblical perspective for the year he grew a long Moses-like beard and wore a white robe and sandals – a bit of a spectacle in New York City.

page 14 August 2011

Library FootnotesLibrary FootnotesLibrary FootnotesLibrary Footnotes

In Touch page 14

Jacobs attempts to follow the many rules, guidelines, and suggestions he discovers in the Bible. In addition to the Ten Commandments, he found more than seven hundred rules in all. Many were obscure and perplexing like the blowing of trumpets on the start of each month and the ban on wearing clothes made of mixed fibers. Among the most difficult rules were those about avoiding the sins we all commit every day – gossiping, lying, covet-ing, etc. The Biblical journey significantly changed Ja-cobs’ life. He said “It affected every part of my exis-tence: the way I ate, dressed, talked, bathed, walked, worked, and raised my kids.” There seems to be a mes-sage in that quotation. This book is very funny and provocative for those inter-ested in the relevance of faith in our world today. It can be enjoyable and humorous and it can be troubling and thought stimulating at the same time. Enjoy!

John Bivens

Dollars and sense In Fearless, author Max Lucado likens trusting in money instead of God to trying to make a purchase with play money. Pretend bills from Monopoly or other board games might look real to children, but even kids soon learn those don’t do any good at the cash register. Sure, money is essential to meet our basic daily needs, and conventional wisdom urges us to save for retirement. But that’s a far cry from seeding security in accumulating things we don’t really need and spending more energy growing our financial ac-counts than our relationship with God. Paul’s words to Timothy still ring true in our modern-day economy: “As for those who in the present age are rich, command them not … to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but rather on God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment” (I Timothy 6:17, NRSV). The Newsletter Newsletter by Communication Resources, Inc

SAVE THE DATE January 20, 2013

Please put January 20, 2013 on your calendar. On this date, there will be an all church Talent Show. More information will be coming later.

Congregational Life and Fellowship

page 15 August 2012

HAPPY AUGUST BIRTHDAYS!

08/23 Lynn Medley 08/23 JJ Prokupek 08/26 Maria Berry 08/26 Kent Martinson 08/27 Bill Monahan 08/27 Richard Uphoff 08/28 Ryan Zenhausern

08/11 B. J. Shuck 08/13 Pat Ahrens 08/14 Ruth Tessmer 08/17 Suzie McCready 08/18 Mary Ann Nickel 08/20 Wanda Collins 08/21 Terri McDermid 08/22 Charles Eberspacher

08/03 Carol Hencz 08/04 Jerry Miles 08/06 Marjorie Koepke 08/08 Norm Collins 08/09 Letha Neely 08/10 Ben Owens 08/11 Maurene Gerson

With deepest sympathy we list those members who have passed away in 2012. Don Gallentine

Don Tepfer Marjorie Rennie Esther D. Wilson Peggy Johnson Bob Brown

Dorothy Delahanty Chandler Roesch Eldon Schwieman

“Well done, Thou good and faithful servant…. Enter thou into the joy Of thy Lord.”

Matthew 25:21

Hospitalized? Call the church!

If you are sick, hospitalized or home recovering from ill-ness, we want you to call the church and let us know! In a con-gregation like ours where people leave in droves for extended summer months, it is easy for the staff, elders and deacons to assume, when we don’t see someone, that they are simply “vacationing away”. The truth is that some of you are sick and we are not aware of it. You can help us by simply letting one of the staff know of your situation. We have an excellent support system in place due to the diligent efforts of our deacons. Help us serve you by communicating your situation.

Back to school Early one morning, a mother woke her son, who whined about having to go to school. “Give me two reasons why you don’t want to go,” she said. “Well,” he complained, “the kids don’t like me, and neither do the teachers!”. “Nonsense,” she said. “Come get ready.” “Give me two reasons why I should go,” the son protested. “Well, for one, you’re 52,” she said. “For another, you’re the principal!”. The Newsletter Newsletter by Communication Resources, Inc

The well wishes of all of you showed me how spirit filled the Fountain Hills Presbyterian Church is. Thanks for all your

help in my recovery. Blessings, Marty Baxter

Fountain Hills Presbyterian Church

13001 N. Fountain Hills Boulevard

Fountain Hills, AZ 85268

Non Profit Organ.

U.S. POSTAGE PAID

Permit NO. 299

Scottsdale, AZ

In Touch is published monthly; deadline for each issue is the 15th of the month before publication. News and information should be submitted to the church office in hard copy, or email to fhpresbyte-rian.office@gmail.com Editor, Marta Ludwig; Assistant Editor, Carol Hencz; Proof Reader, Helen Roesch; Staff Photographer: Gary Oakeson; Production and Circulation: Mary Wernecke, Bobbie Dan-gremond, Ruby Pearson, Arlene Olsen, Marilyn Humes, Barb Hegwood, and Vivian Virden. Travel to Bulk Mail Post Office: Mary Martinson.

Fountain Hills Presbyterian Church 13001 Fountain Hills Blvd. - Fountain Hills, AZ 85268

Phone - (480) 837-1763 Fax - (480) 837-1729 Office E-Mail Address: fhpc.marta@gmail.com Office Hours: Monday – Friday : 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. www.fhpresbyterian.info

Pastor/Head of Staff: Rev Bill Good email: fhpc.billg@gmail.com cell phone: 480-329-8090

If anyone is not getting our newsletter or Presb-E-News and would like to, please let the church office know at 480-837-1763.

Current Resident or

VBS 2012

To see the photos in beautiful living color, go

to our website: www.fhpresbyterian.info

Pastor Bill a.k.a. Dive Chief Trey Uphoff, Emily Welsh and Jon Trautman