Westminster Weekly Quick Links 

Just before Christmas, WPC volunteers got the chance to “play Santa,” handing out hundreds of backpacks full of books from Book Harvest to families served by Iglesia Emanuel.

Wind down your week with Friday evening's "Bread and Pray, Any Day, a virtual workshop with baker, author, and theologian Kendall Vanderslice. Learn the basics of breadmaking while looking at the spiritual parallels woven into the process, and discover how baking bread can be a form of prayer. Sign up now to receive a recipe you can prepare along with Kendall. There's plenty of room in this Zoom event so why not invite a friend?

This CommUNITY Group will tap into the power of story. Participants will reflect on their own experiences with race and share stories with one another and begin to discern where God might be leading us next. These 90-minute gatherings will be guided by these prompts:  

Second Sundays, 9:45 - 10:45am 

Want to create sacred moments for your family without adding “one more thing”? Wishing you could help your children or grandchildren on their spiritual journey but unclear where to start? During these Sunday morning sessions while many children are in Zoom Church School, we will discuss four themes that are woven into the book, Faithful Families, by Traci Smith. 

Just over a year ago, in what now seems like a different world, we raised $21,975.02 for Durham Habitat for Humanity with our 2019 Christmas Offering. Our plan was to sponsor a home that our congregation could help build, as Westminster was in the progress of building a new Fellowship Hall. Our summer Church School for families would also focus on learning about Habitat and its mission. The pandemic put an end to that chance for volunteer service, but construction continued at 125 Laurel Avenue with the help of our financial support, as did MissionX, our summer virtual mission project for families. The new home is now complete and will be dedicated in a ceremony via Zoom on Tuesday, February 2, at 4:00pm. We invite you to celebrate with the new homeowner, and see the good that our offering has made possible. Click here for the Zoom link. Hope to “see” you there!

The pandemic has brought dramatic changes to our daily lives and so many struggles for many of our neighbors. In true WPC fashion, however, you all have been so generous and helpful in coming to the aid of our local friends. To date, Westminster has received nearly $19,500 in donations for our COVID-19 Relief Fund! Half of the funds have gone to the Durham Public Schools Foundation to help sustain food aid to families in need and improve digital equity for all children. The other half of funding has gone to Housing for New Hope to help its growing number of clients move from shelters into permanent housing. These organizations are beyond grateful for the support you have generously provided. As the government begins to disburse a new round of relief funding, you may decide you’d like to add to the Church’s support of these community partners. We continue to accept donations online via myWPC or you can mail a check to the church (write “COVID-19 Relief Fund” in the memo line). Thank you for your continued support in providing aid and assistance to our community in these difficult times. 

Due to the high number of COVID-19 cases in our area, all in-person Youth Group gatherings are on hold until it's safer for us to be together. While we're stuck at home, we're gathering on Zoom on Tuesday, February 2, at 6:00pm, for a casual check-in and some conversation about Youth Group in the spring and summer. The following Tuesday – February 9, at 6:00pm – we'll get together again on Zoom; this time, Alex will share about his experience of four days of silence at a Trappist monastery.