PILGRIM’S PROGRESS
Voice of the Pilgrim Presbyterian Church
Vinita, Oklahoma
May, 2012
A Pastoral Letter from the Sidelines
Dear friends,
There is a lot of gloom and doom talk regarding the future of our Presbyterian Church, but that is not
going to trump the vision and enthusiasm evident in Pilgrim Presbyterian Church!
Well do I remember our first meeting. Toni Moore, then chairperson of the Worship Committee, invited me to preach at a Sunday service in April 2005 - 7 years ago! There were eleven people in the congregation that morning. After the service, Jim Ratcliff approached me, and in a persuasive way said “we need you.”
Session took a risk and invited me “an old man” to be your “temporary supply pastor”. I accepted and I’m glad I did.
Working together, faith in action has infused new life into our beloved Church. Session, Deacons and our Committee of Mission and Outreach, chaired by Joyce Dishman, deserve much credit for renewal. Through the efforts of the Rev. Judy Hendedrson we are participating in mission in far away Malawi, Africa.
Brian Dishman and Jewell Morgan get kudos for making possible an outreach ministry, “Off Site-On Line”, which connects Pilgrim Church with hundreds of people each week.
Our “Monday at Ten” fellowship at Burroughs Manor, and the Deacons monthly sponsored “Bingo” afternoon at the Manor, have both been well received by our good friends next door. And, what a joy to see how many of you have supported our ecumenical relations with St. John’s Episcopal Church and the Salvation Army.
The Christian life is one of “good tidings of great joy.” You’ve got it. Don’t lose it. There are many challenges ahead. I only wish I could be with you as you meet them in a positive, exciting way.
Bless you and thank you for your kindness and support, especially in this past year, which has been a tough one for me.
With fond regards, always,
Richard
Well do I remember our first meeting. Toni Moore, then chairperson of the Worship Committee, invited me to preach at a Sunday service in April 2005 - 7 years ago! There were eleven people in the congregation that morning. After the service, Jim Ratcliff approached me, and in a persuasive way said “we need you.”
Session took a risk and invited me “an old man” to be your “temporary supply pastor”. I accepted and I’m glad I did.
Working together, faith in action has infused new life into our beloved Church. Session, Deacons and our Committee of Mission and Outreach, chaired by Joyce Dishman, deserve much credit for renewal. Through the efforts of the Rev. Judy Hendedrson we are participating in mission in far away Malawi, Africa.
Brian Dishman and Jewell Morgan get kudos for making possible an outreach ministry, “Off Site-On Line”, which connects Pilgrim Church with hundreds of people each week.
Our “Monday at Ten” fellowship at Burroughs Manor, and the Deacons monthly sponsored “Bingo” afternoon at the Manor, have both been well received by our good friends next door. And, what a joy to see how many of you have supported our ecumenical relations with St. John’s Episcopal Church and the Salvation Army.
The Christian life is one of “good tidings of great joy.” You’ve got it. Don’t lose it. There are many challenges ahead. I only wish I could be with you as you meet them in a positive, exciting way.
Bless you and thank you for your kindness and support, especially in this past year, which has been a tough one for me.
With fond regards, always,
Richard
ON THE PRAYER LIST
Please remember the following individuals
in your daily prayers:
Richard Evans – Our minister
Dilys Evans – Richard's daughter
Mary Draper – Church member
Melba Shelton - Church member
Shirley Spaulding - Church member
John and Louise Gullett – Janie's parents
Patricia Hemphill – Friend of the Church
Larry Skaggs – Friend of Todd Mariner
Bill Montgomery - Friend of Toni’s
Men and women serving in the military forces, and their families
CHURCH OFFICERS
Session Members
(Class of ’12)
Joyce Dishman, Wally Olson, Jim Shelton
(Class of '13)
Keith Cresap, Sue Ratcliff, Fred York
(Class of ’14)
Sarah Bruce, Kitty Brown, Irene Conine
Deacons
(Class of ’12)
Jim Dishman, Dianne Rapp
(Class of '13)
Jeanne Cowley, Jan Clark-Haney, Toni Moore
(Class of ’14) Liz Logan, Shirley Spaulding
Church Trustees
Wally Olson 2012
Keith Cresap 2013
Kitty Brown 2014
Church email: pilgrimpresby@sbcglobal.net
17 Lawrence Noggle
20 Jan Clark-Haney
26 Jim Ratcliff
28 Mark Curnutte
Birthday Sunday is celebrated on the 2nd Sunday of
the month.
Birthday Sunday Assignments:
May - Sarah Bruce
June - Shirley Rapp
July - Sue Ratcliff
August - Jan Clark
September - Janie York
October - Linda Burger
November - Toni Moore
December - Jeanne Cowley
(Bring cake & check on juice for children)
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Melba Shelton’s address is 821 N. Foreman #115
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Graduation Celebrations !
May 13 was the celebration of Vinita High
School graduates Caitlyn Spurgeon and
Madison Kroll. We are especially proud of
these two young ladies.
Caitlyn was crowned Basketball queen and
Madison was crowned Football queen this
past year.
Caitlyn Spurgeon is the daughter of John
and Cindy (Cresap) Spurgeon. Her
activities and honors include: being
named to the All-State basketball team,
becoming Vinita’s all time leading scorer
in basketball, track, cross country, NHS and Senior Rotarian. She was also
Valedictorian of her class.
Madison Kroll is the daughter of Chris
and Julie (York) Osborn. Madison is a
model in addition to being a football and
track trainer. She works for the Linda
Layman Agency, where she models and
teaches. Recently she was offered a
contract from Cing Deux Un, a modeling
agency in Tokyo, Japan. Her plans after
high school aren’t completely set in stone
but for the moment she is thinking about
going to Japan, where she will probably
model all the time and if she likes it will
sign a contract. She is excited about
seeing that part of the world. She
stated that if she doesn’t like it she will
come back home and go to college.
Excerpt from a letter from General
Presbyter, Greg Coulter:
“I am challenging each congregation in
this presbytery to do something,
anything, just one thing new between now
and the end of the year which advances
the gospel message in your community.
It has to be something you haven’t done
before and it has to reach out to
someone who isn’t already attending your
church.
Have some fun; experiment; trust in the
Holy Spirit to bless and multiply your
efforts. Then let me know what you did
and how it worked out!”
Grace and Peace,
Greg
Deacons:
- The Deacon's met on Sunday April 15th. Everyone was present but Jan.
- We made plans to celebrate Mother's day and our graduates on May 13th. Madison Kroll and Caitlyn Spurgeon will be honored as well as all the Mother's. Cake and punch will be served after church.
- We also talked about our July Pot Luck dinner. More on that meal after our May meeting.
- Bingo at Burroughs will play in May and June and then take a break until Sept. The residents really enjoy seeing some new faces and playing bingo is taken very serious. In April we had two bingo on blackout, first time that has happened. Jewell, Liz, Toni and Diane were the bingo helpers. Next bingo is May 19th.
Ministers for May/June
6 - Nancy Covington
13 - Craig Kilgour
20 - Greg Coulter
27 - Craig Kilgour
June 3 - Ken Bailey
Tearful Farewells:
Chris and Julie (York) Osborn have accepted
teaching positions in Hennessey, Oklahoma.
Chris will be the Athletic Director and Julie will teach elementary school. The family will be sorely missed.
