Sometimes mission is about a kind word, a warm smile, or a generous dollar.  But sometimes it’s about literally lending our hands.

Here are some opportunities for you to serve our larger community with your time and talents:

Presbyterian Women

The Presbyterian (PW) currently has three Circles which meet monthly —  Hope, Discovery, and Love —  giving our women a choice of day and/or time for their meetings.  each has a Bible Study of their own choosing, plus social time to connect with each other.  The Circles carry out PW’s calendar of activities for all women of our church.

Hope Circle:  Meets on the 2nd Wednesday of each  month at 1:00 p.m.

They organize the Spring Fling Luncheon and the Fall Gathering in September.

 

Discovery Circle:  Meets on the 2nd Wednesday of each month at 7:00 p.m.

They host the June Gathering and  the Thank Dinner in November

 

Love Circle:  Meets on the 2nd Thursday of each month at 9:30 a.m.

They plan the Winter Retreat and assist with the Headstart graduation.

 

All work together on the Annual Rummage Sale/Bake Sale in August, on Bereavement Lunches, and Christmas Cookie packs for our shut-ins.

“Least Coin” and Birthday Offerings are sent to the PW of Whitewater Valley Presbytery.  Also, a pledged amount of the General Offering is sent to help defray expenses of the Presbytery’s (PW)

Gatherings, operating expense, and mission projects.

Happy Stitchers

The Happy Stitchers is a group of women who like to chat and enjoy each other while sewing items for children close-by and far away.

They make “Pillow Puppies”—soft pillows with the faces of adorable puppies which children in the at St. Francis Hospital just love.

Another kind of pillow they make are surgical pillows—pillows for grasping and support after one has had surgery at Johnson County Hospital.

The Happy Stitchers also make blankets for the Linus Project, which provides “comfort blankets” for children in hospitals.

Further afield, the women make washable sanitary napkins for girls in Africa, under the auspices of “Little Dressings for Africa.”

The Happy Stitchers meet on the third Thursday of each  month from 1:00 to 4:00, downstairs in the Sharing Place.                                                                                                                                                 

Isom School

A number of our members volunteer weekly for tutoring elementary children at Isom Elementary School, which has a high percentage of children whose families live below the poverty line, and is our nearest elementary school.

St. Thomas Clinic

Several members volunteer at the St. Thomas Clinic, a free clinic which offers care and ministry to low-income, uninsured adults of Johnson county.  We also donate to the clinic through our General Fund benevolences.

Scouting

The Greenwood Boy Scout Troop 266 meets in church on Thursdays, from 7:00 p.m. till 8:30 p.m. throughout the year.

Cub Scouts meet Thursdays at 6:00 p.m.

For more information see their website:  troop266webmaster@gmail.com

 

Girl Scout Troop 1552 meets at the church, too:

Daisy, Brownies, Junior, and Cadettes.

1st and 3rd Tuesdays of the month at 6:30 p.m.

For more information, email Cristy Roleson at croleson@yahoo.com or call at 317-437-3130

A.A.

Alcoholics Anonymous has three meetings a week at GPC:

Every Sunday                           at 8:00 p.m.

Every Monday                         at 6:30 p.m.

Women’s AA on Mondays    at  8:00 p.m.

 

DENOMINATIONAL OFFERINGS

The One Great Hour of Sharing

The One Great Hour of Sharing is received on the Sunday before Easter and supports the Presbyterian Hunger Program, Presbyterian Disaster Services, and the Self-Development of People.

The Pentecost Offering

The Pentecost Offering:  each year on Pentecost Sunday we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit and the birthday of the church.  Each year this celebration is marked by receiving the Pentecost Offering, which nurtures the faith of those who are the church to come – children, youth, and young adults.

The Peacemaking Offering

The Peacemaking Offering is received on the first Sunday of October and supports the efforts of the Presbyterian Church, (U.S.A.) to live out a deeper commitment to peacemaking as part of our faithfulness to God.  Twenty-five percent of the offering stays in the local church for its peacemaking programs.  Twenty-five percent stays in the Presbytery for its programs, and fifty percent goes to the General Assembly (the national church) for its national and international peacemaking efforts.

The Christmas Joy Offering

The Christmas Joy Offering is received on the Sunday before Christmas, and is divided between support for clergy and their spouses who retired before the implementation of the pension plan, and racial ethnic educational institutions.

We also encouraged our congregation to offer to any of three possible Special Offerings.  In 2018, they were:  heating fuel for Syrian Refugees, sewing machines for individuals and small businesses in Africa, and water filters for Flint, MI.