Supported By: OPC
Session.
Its mission: Our
mission is to encourage and equip our congregation for 1) growing in
faith through witnessing and evangelizing worldwide, 2) equipping the
church for transforming missions that reach out and help the less
fortunate, 3) to raise awareness of issues in our society that require a
Christian viewpoint and response and engage ourselves in ministries of
reconciliation, justice, healing and grace and 4) living the Good News
of Jesus Christ in community with people who are poor .
Who may be interested in joining: Three elders lead this session
committee and we could use more at-large members. Anyone with a passion
for mission, especially for helping the poor or needy in our community,
or helping us all become more aware of societal issues or injustices
are encouraged to join us.
Activities: In addition to the activities mentioned in the
missions team descriptions below, we sponsor several mission offering
collections including One Great Hour of Sharing, Pentecost Offering ,
Peacemaking Offering and the Christmas Joy Offering (www.pcusa.org). We
also oversee the church’s Presbyterian Benevolence gifts through
Blackhawk Presbytery (www.blackhawkpresbytery.org)
and to local missions including Hesed House, Wayside Cross, Kendall Co.
Food Pantry and Mutual Ground. We encourage awareness of the worldwide
ministries of our denomination. In 2006 and 2007, we hosted
international peacemakers. We maintain a
Missions Team bulletin board and
brochure rack in the narthex where we post information about mission
opportunities and upcoming events. In the coming year we want to
consider adult mission trips and activities for helping those newly
released from jail.
Individual ministry
opportunities: There are many ways, either as a leader or as a
helper, to be in ministry in the various activities mentioned above and
in the missions team listings below. And if you have an idea for
starting a new "missions" ministrymissions\" ministry" , please contact
us (name below). We want to encourage and support individuals who are
willing to champion a “missions” activity or group project.
Time commitment: Our monthly team meetings are on the 1st
Monday of each month, from 7:00-8:30 PM. The time for actual missions
work will vary with the activity and could be substantial but very
rewarding.
Contact: Nancy
Webb
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 Adults Mission
Trip Team
Supported By:
Missions Team
Steering Committee
Its Mission:
To organize adults (college age
and older) mission trips to provide help in a
disaster assistance or poverty relief projects.
Trips recently done: On Apr 24 - May 2, 2010, a team of
nine from OPC and three from Franklin Grove Presbyterian Church completed another mission trip to
Slidell, Louisiana.
Click here for a report on this
April 2010 trip including
pictures. In April 2009, a
team of seven from OPC went on a mission trip to Slidell along with several others from Blackhawk Presbytery churches.
Click here for
pictures from the 2009 trip..
Opportunity next year:
We hope do another mission trip next year around the end of April
and perhaps a second trip in late June.
Send an email to
Ken Mozingo if you think you may
be
interested in going with us
on one of these trips.
Who May Want To Join:
Adults who would like to
join other OPC adults in allocating a week or a weekend
to answer the call to help on a very important missions project. Also folks having a passion to help organize and lead a missions trip.
Contact:
Ken Mozingo
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Supported By:
Missions Team Steering Committee
Its Mission: To help
provide for basic humanitarian needs such as food, water, medicine,
shelter and other critical supplies through the Presbyterian Disaster
Assistance Alternative Giving Program and to heighten awareness of other
types of alternative giving.
Who May Want To Join:
Those who are interested in learning about and promoting alternative
gift giving and other activities such as those related to Enough for
Everyone the Global Discipleship Program of the PC(USA) including fair
trade and sweat-free shopping.
Upcoming opportunities:
Christmas is coming (other birthdays too)!
What do
you give someone who already has what they want? In their honor, you
can give a gift of clean water, bicycles, building supplies, community
tool kits, food, and more through the Alternative Giving Program of
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. Presbyterian Disaster Assistance
(PDA) enables congregations and mission partners to witness to the
healing love of Christ through caring for communities adversely affected
by crises and catastrophic events. Brochures are on the table by the
Mission Bulletin Board. The recipient of your gift will receive a gift
card stating what the gift is and whom it is from. Take a brochure or go
on line for detailed information.
Contact:
Gloria Mathewson
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Supported By:
Board of Deacons
Its Mission:
An outreach
ministry to get
announcements and other information out to the community as well as to
the congregation about OPC events and ministries.
Who May Want To Join:
Those experienced in writing for newsletter or newspaper publications
and having
experience with the appropriate computer tools.
Activities:
Gathering and editing articles from the different ministry teams at OPC
to go into the worship service bulletin/clipboard, the OPC website or community newspapers.
Individual Ministry Opportunities:
Helping OPC “spread
the news” through publications.
Contact:
Lisa Sidles (newspaper
) or
Amanda
Swanson
(Sunday
bulletin) or
Ken Mozingo (OPC web site)
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Supported
By: Missions
Team Steering Committee
Its
Mission: To
support the community in helping with an important health project.
Next Blood Drive:
Our 2009 drive with
Heartland Blood
Center was on May 30
(and donors received an $11 gift card for Oberweis!).
There will be
another blood drive in 2010, probably in May or June. Not only will
whole blood donations be accepted as they will also do collecting of double red cells.
You must be 17 years or older and in good health to donate. 16 and under
can donate WITH their parent’s permission.
Click here to email Connie Emery
about the donation signup form.
YOUR DONATION COULD SAVE A LIFE!
Other help
needed:
We need volunteers to help during the blood drive. The first shift is from 7:30-10:30am and the other shift is from
10am-12:30pm.
Click here to email Connie Emery
if you would like to volunteer.
Contact: Rob
Blodgett |
Supported By:
Missions Team Steering Committee
Its Mission: To raise money for overseas & local hunger relief missions. 25% of
the money raised in our area goes to the Kendall County Food
Pantry.
Who May Want To Join:
Anyone interested helping with the hunger relief effort either as a
“walker” or just as a helper in soliciting sponsors’ donations.
Activities:
The key event is the three-mile walk near the end of September. "We
walk because they walk” - because some people in other countries
have to walk up to 10 miles for water. We support their efforts!
Individual Ministry Opportunities:
1. Help collect sponsor donations (about one month before the walk)
2. Be a walker.
3. Help organize collectors and walkers.
Meetings & Time Commitments:
There
will be two planning meetings (spring and late summer) prior to the
annual walk near the end of September.
Contact:
Kathy Davidson
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Supported By: Missions Team Steering
Committee
Its Mission: To provide people of faith with opportunities to
protect and honor creation. The mission is reflective of the
Presbyterians for Restoring Creation Program’s statement: “In the
Beginning- God called us to be Stewards, caretakers of the Earth we were
given”.
Who May Want to Join: Anyone who is interested in environmental
issues and eco-justice.
Activities: To be developed by team members.
Individual Ministry Opportunities: To be developed by team members
Meetings and Time Commitments: Incorporated into regular mission
team meetings. The environmental issues team will determine if any
additional planning time is required.
Contact:
Ted Mathewson
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Supported By:
Missions Team Steering Committee
Its Mission: To provide children with a quality, Christian preschool, and
encourage participating families to come into a relationship with Christ
through active participation in OPC outreach and Missions activity. In
response to God's grace, we show our commitment to His love and service
through our preschool curriculum and personal relationships. We are
called to be servants of Jesus Christ and do so by serving the
congregation, community, staff, family, and child.
Activities:
Registrations
are now being accepted for the coming school year. Half-day classes
will run from the beginning of September to the end of May.
Click here
for more information about God's Gifts
Preschool.
Individual Ministry Opportunities:
1. Parents of children in the preschool are expected to assist teachers
in the classroom from time to time
2. Volunteers from the OPC congregation will be welcome to help in
class activities and/or to help with fund raising projects from time to
time.
Contact:
Jodi Larson
or Kathy
Tamblyn
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Supported By:
Missions Team Steering Committee
Its Mission:
Hesed House is a center for ministry to persons who are poor
and homeless. One of the services is Public Action to Deliver Shelter
(PADS), which
offers food and sleeping accommodations each night for those in need.
This is done in the spirit of hospitality, which includes the concept of
equality and mutuality between guests and hosts. OPC is one of some 60
churches that provide volunteers one night per month.
Who May Want To Join:
Anyone in the
congregation who has an interest in assisting those less fortunate.
Activities:
We prepare and serve food the 2nd Friday evening
every other month to approximately 125 individuals. In two shifts,
volunteers supervise various stations and activities from 6:30 to 11:00
PM. We also plan to help in preparing and serving lunch on a few dates
in December through February.
Individual Ministry Opportunities:
We need
volunteers to help with our 2nd Friday every other month work
including 1) preparing food in the kitchen at church (3:00 - 4:00 PM),
2) 1st shift (6:30 - 9:00 PM) serving food, assisting and
supervising and 3) 2nd shift (9:00 - 11:00 PM) serving
latecomers and supervising the upstairs men's sleeping quarters. We can
also use help in purchasing of food supplies, soliciting volunteers and
sharing in the coordination of the above activities - about 8 hours
every other month.
Meetings:
No meetings involved. We coordinate by phone and use of the
clipboard.
Contact:
Connie Scott or
Ken Mozingo
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International
Peacemaking Team
Supported By:
Missions Team
Steering Committee
Its Mission:
To increase our
awareness of potentially volatile situations in our world and how we
might assist in peacemaking efforts.
 Activities: Our most recent event was in October 2009 when we
hosted International
Peacemaker Rev. Probe Augustin Kabongo. He graduated from the Sheppards
and Lapsley University Seminary in Kananga, and has been a pastor at
Dikongayi Church since completing his seminary studies. He has been the
Executive Secretary of the Presbytery of Tshibashi, Presbyterian
Community in the Congo (CPC) , since 2001. He is the cofounder and
coordinator for Presbyterian Action Against HIV / AIDS. He has
been married for 16 years and has six children, three of whom are
adopted.
Click here for more about this event as
well as our other international peacemaker visits.
Contact:
Gloria Mathewson
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Kendall County Food Pantry Team
Supported By: Missions Team Steering
Committee
Its Mission: To assist
The
Kendall County Food Pantry in providing food and household items to low income people in Kendall
County.
Activities:
1. Donations of cash is greatly needed. For every $1 in cash they
receive, the food pantry can procure $6 worth of food from the Northern
Illinois Food Bank. Cash (or check) donations can be placed in an
envelope designated "Food Pantry" and put in the offering plate or
brought to the church office. Or you can
click
here for online donation to the Kendall County Food Pantry.
2. Everyone is invited to bring canned goods and other items for the
food pantry to the church office where there are collection bins. The
top-10 list of non-cash items needed follows: toilet paper, ketchup,
sugar, dish soap, laundry soap, cleaning supplies, canned fruit, paper
towels, cooking oil and shampoo/conditioner.
3. In the summer months, fresh vegetables and fruits can be brought in
as well.
4. Each year we also have volunteers in Oswego's
Prairie Fest Parade (on Father's Day Sunday) pushing "Tons of Love"
shopping carts and collecting cash and food items for the food
pantry.
Individual Ministry Opportunities:
1. Donate items or cash as noted
above.
2. Help promote the gathering of food and other items throughout the
year and to help take the items to the food pantry in Yorkville.
3. Help organize and promote
our "Tons of Love"
collections in the Prairie Fest Parade or join as a walker in the
parade. Meetings: No meetings involved. We coordinate by phone, use of the
clipboard and email
Contact:
Rob Blodgett
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Supported By:
Missions Team Steering
Committee
Its Mission: To deliver meals to folks in our
community needing a daily meal in their own home.
Who May Want To Join: Those
who have 11:15 AM to 1:00 PM free on Wednesdays – once per month – and
are willing to offer a friendly greeting.
Activities: One Wednesday per
month, team members pick up meals at the Church of The Good Shepherd
Church in Oswego and
deliver meals (in own cars) to folks on the Oswego and Boulder Hill routes.
The deliveries can usually be completed in about 45 minutes.
Individual Ministry Opportunities:
The chance to help serve (once per month) those who are in need of a
warm meal and a friendly face.
Meetings & Time Commitments:
Delivery on one Wednesday each month at approximately 11:15 AM to 1:00
PM. Each quarter the coordinator calls to set up the delivery schedule
(once per month) for the next three months.
Contacts:
Pam Van Boekel
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Click here to see descriptions of other
Missions Teams.
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