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“I whisper over to myself the way of loss, the names of the dead.
One by one, we lose our loved ones, our friends, our powers of work and pleasure, our landmarks, the days of our allotted time. One by one, the way we lose them, they return to us and are treasured up in our hearts. Grief affirms, them, preserves them, sets the cost."
~ Wendell Berry,
Jayber Crow
Sunday Preview
Sunday, November 4, 2018
Sacrament of the Lord's Supper
All Saints
Worship Services @ 8:15 & 10:45 AM
Education Hour (for all ages) at 9:15 AM
Homily:
"Good and Great" by Marcia Mount Shoop
Scriptures:
Deuteronomy 6:1-9; Mark12:28-34
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2nd Wednesday Dinners | November 14 | 6:00 PM | Fellowship Hall
Take a break from cooking and make some space for connecting with your church community.
These events are intergenerational. (No childcare).
RSVP to
Sherrie
by 12:00 pm on Monday, November 12th
so we can have a rough estimate for our order with Urban Burrito. But, if you forget to RSVP we hope you'll still come!
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PC(USA) Social Justice Resources
The Presbyterian Church (USA) has an Office of Public Witness in Washington, D.C. This office is hard at work advocating for the action of our denomination's General Assembly. You can go to their
website
and subscribe to their informational emails about all the important work they are doing. They also offer great resources for congregations and presbyteries like this upcoming
webinar on Yemen.
The Director of the Office of Public Witness, The Rev. Jimmie Hawkins, will be at Grace Covenant in the Spring of 2019 to share more about what the PCUSA is doing with movements like the Poor People's Campaign. Any questions, feel free to reach out to Marcia or Richard.
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"How Can We Keep From Sharing?" Update
As of 11/01/18, here's where we are on our pledging:
179 Pledges Received, 78% of 230 Goal
$
756,183.00
Pledged, 74% of Goal
This includes 26 new pledges from families that did not pledge in 2018. 63% of pledge renewals have increased their pledge from last year.
If you haven't already, please complete your 2019 pledge card, handwritten or
online
, and return to the Finance Office as soon as possible.
If you have questions about your gifts or pledge, please contact Natalie Weaver, Stewardship & Financial Administrator, at 828-254-3274, ext. 202 or
giving@gcpcusa.org
.
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AUTO GIVING
DOESN'T
ALWAYS AUTO RENEW
If you currently give through GCPC's online portal, your online giving may end 12/31/18 and was specifically linked to the 2018 General Fund. If you'd like to renew the auto-drafts or make changes to the amounts, you can do so for the 2019 General Fund online
here
.
From there, log in to manage your account and set up recurring weekly or monthly gifts.
The Give + mobile app is also another easy way to set up and manage recurring gifts. Simply download “Give Plus Church” from your app store on your smart phone and search for “Grace Covenant Presbyterian.”
If you are unable to set up your online payments or would prefer our Finance Office complete this request, please complete a new authorization form and return it to Natalie Weaver, our Stewardship & Financial Administrator, at
nweaver@gcpcusa.org
.
She is also available in the office Tuesday - Thursday and happy to help!
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As the Great Depression unfolded, Mom’s best friend asked one day, “Have you and Joe ever thought about tithing?” Mom responded, “ Not seriously Christine. I know the Bible talks about that. I just don’t think we can afford to do it. Things are so tight as it is.” Christine responded, “Try it for six months. See how it works. Most people are amazed at how God seems to provide for us when we take seriously our responsibility to give of our possessions to the church." Mom said she would talk with Dad and attempt to do this. Six months later, Mom was stunned that needed funds were always there. She tithed until she died at age 83, including in her final instructions that we were to complete her tithe for the year. “I promised that money and the church relies on us to fulfill our promise,” she wrote. Mom understood stewardship as a way of life for the faithful.. How can we keep from sharing?
~ Contemplation on Stewardship shared by Heath Rada
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Creating Sanctuary Team (CST)
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What's happening at the border? | Sunday, November 11 | 12:00 PM | Fellowship Hall
Join us for lunch, stories and pictures from The Rev. Joyce Hollyday, Bill Ramsey, and Becca Heskamp - who spent a week in a UCC trip to the southwest US border this fall. Please come! (This will serve as the CST meeting for November.)
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All Welcome at Yassin’s in Knoxville, Tennessee
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Faced with increasing violence in Syria, Yassin Terou left the country with his family in 2011 and applied for asylum within the United States. He initially supported his family by selling falafel sandwiches after daily prayer services outside his local mosque, eventually opening a restaurant in downtown Knoxville in 2014. In October 2017, when a protester accused him of taking jobs away from Americans, Terou offered to hire him. Now his restaurant has two locations, and has won not only culinary awards but also the 2018 Peace Award from the Knoxville Rotary and this year’s “Nicest Place in America” award from Reader’s Digest. Arabic doesn’t utilize “p’s,” making it difficult for Terou to pronounce the word, ‘peace,’ but as he says, he knows how to make it.
~ Contributed by Anne Callison Stokely
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“Extending the Table”| Sunday, November 4 | after church | Narthex
The Creating Sanctuary Team (CST) invites you to extend the Communion table on the first Sunday of each month by writing our congressional delegation about how we are called as Christians to respond to specific topics relating to immigration. CST will provide pen and paper; congressional addresses; a list of relevant topics; and relevant information about each topic from the PCUSA Office of Immigration.
We hope this monthly opportunity will enable each of us to educate ourselves more fully about the complex immigration crisis and to respond as people of faith who are called to live faithfully in support of others.
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Power and Race Team (PART)
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The Racial Justice Book Club |
Thursday, Nov. 8 | 12:15 PM | Jerusalem Room
The Racial Justice Boo
k Club is reading a list of 12 books examining institutional & interpersonal racism and racial equity. Come and join us for all twelve discussions or for just one or two. All are welcome, whether you have read closely or are just interested in learning more about the subject. Copies of the books can be found in the church library.
For November
, we are reading
The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row
- Anthony Ray Hinton.
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PART Meeting | Thursday, November 8 | 7:00 PM | Garden Room
Tami Forte-Logan will be facilitating our time together. We will be exploring the role and future of PART at GCPC. Everyone is welcome at PART meetings.
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Earth Team Meeting | Wednesday, Nov. 7 | 5:30 – 6:30 PM | Senior High Room
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STRAWS Documentary Screening | Tuesday, November 13 | 7:30 PM | GCPC Sanctuary
STRAWS is a short documentary which charts the history of straws and reveals our culture’s current obsession with single-use conveniences. A discussion will follow. $5 suggested donation. Sponsored by the Creation Care Alliance of WNC, Earth Team of Grace Covenant Presbyterian, and Toward Zero Waste. For more information go to
www.creationcarealliance.org
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This Sunday's Education Hour (for all ages)
Adult Education - Fall Term | September 16 - November 18
Pressure Points - Connecting Mass Incarceration and Forced Deportation: A Faithful Conversation about Justice |
*Fellowship Hall (room change)
Members of two active groups in our congregation, PART (Power and Race Team) and CST (Creating Sanctuary Team), will co-facilitate a 10-week series to explore "Capital J" Justice. We’ll explore connections and commonalities between issues of power and race, mass incarceration, immigrant detention, and forced migration. The discussion-based class will utilize a variety of resources, including segments of two films,
Healing Justice
and
The Genesis of Exodus
. We’ll examine and reflect on how we, as followers of Jesus, can interrogate U.S. practices, laws, and systems while bringing theology into the realm of social justice.
Facilitators:
PART and CST
Digging In - Women of the Old Testament | Jerusalem Room
This class will offer a fresh look at some of the women in the Old Testament who may have unfairly been the recipients of negative press. Many of these women have been portrayed as failures: evil, irrational, unfaithful. Could this be due to an effort to reaffirm the structures of patriarchy in spite of Jesus' explicit affirmation of women?
*This week we will be covering Naomi and Ruth.
Facilitators:
Barbara McLean and Jamie Lloyd
The Improv - God at the Movies and Theater |
*Choir Room (room change)
You sit down in your favorite theater, and Jesus walks up and asks to share your popcorn. You think, ‘What is God doing here at the movies?’ In this intergenerational class, Senior high youth and adults will be exploring how movies and plays can deepen or change how we understand our lives and our faith. A list of titles can be found on our website under Adult Education. For information or to host a screening, reach out to
Richard
or
Samantha
.
*
This week we will be covering Lady Bird (movie, R).
Facilitators:
Richard Coble and Samantha Gonzalez-Block
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Toddlers (ages 2-3) | “God Loves Me”
| 9:15 – 10:15 AM | Toddler Room (downstairs, Children’s Center)
Preschool/Kindergarten (ages 4-5) | Godly Play
| 9:15 –10:15 AM | Preschool Sunday School Room (downstairs, Children’s Center)
Elementary (grades 1-3) | Godly Play
| 9:15–10:15 AM | Temple Room (Education wing, upstairs)
Elementary (grades 4-5) | “CONNECT”
| 9:15–10:15 AM | Indie Room (Education wing, upstairs)
Middle School (grades 6-8)
| 9:15-10:15 AM | Middle School Classroom, (Education wing, upstairs)
Senior Highs (grades 9-12)
| 9:15-10:15 AM |
*Choir Room - note room change, (Education wing, upstairs)
*Nursery care is available throughout Sunday morning beginning at 8:10 am.
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OTHER EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES...
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Godly Play Informational Gatherings | November 11 & 18 |
12:00-1:00 PM | Temple Room (across from the Choir Room)
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Have you ever seen Godly Play, the story-based educational model at GCPC, in action? Well, here is your chance. There will be two identical opportunities for folks to experience Godly Play first hand. Knowing more about Godly Play, you will be well equipped to share with visitors, members and even folks in the community, how our children’s faith is being formed.
So, if you are a parent, a youth, a grandparent whose children live far away, if you are a partnered or single with children or without, if you are working in the home or outside the home, retired or an empty nester…this invitation is especially for you. If you feel a spiritual stirring within and long to go deeper with the stories of God and God’s people, you really should join us!
No need to RSVP. Childcare will be provided and light snacks served. Please take this time to see and hear our amazing educational model that invites all ages into God’s Story. For more information, contact Heather Ferguson (
hferguson@gcpcusa.org)
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The Spirituality of Parenting | Sundays | 5:00 – 6:00 PM | November 4 (*Last class) | Indie Room
Can the every day mundane practices of parenting actually be spiritual practices? Do our lives with children bring us opportunities to practice our faith in new ways? In this class we will explore how parenting (across generations and within communities) helps us learn about ourselves, our humanity, and our Creator. We will also investigate ways to infuse our lives with new practices that enhance our capacity to notice and honor the sacred trust of caring for and living with children. We invite all congregants, of all seasons of life, to come and share your experiences and learn about parenting as a spiritual practice.
Facilitators:
Marcia Mount Shoop, Richard Coble, Heather Ferguson and Carol Hovis.
*Childcare will be provided for these classes.
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Bible Study | Wednesdays | 11:00 AM | Garden Rm
Join the pastoral staff to read and study our sermon texts for Sunday. No preparation needed; just come ready to open scripture and discuss!
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Food pick-up companions needed at
12 Baskets Cafe!
At 12 Baskets, we rescue food from around the city, which allows us to serve free meals to the community five days a week. We need some folks willing to pick up leftover food from Mela and India Garden around 3pm on the weekend. If you are interested or want more information, contact Klari Farzley at (501) 749-8295 or email
ashevillepovertyinitiative@gmail.com
.
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Haywood Street Congregation -
Ways to engage this holiday season:
- Saturdays in November | Angel Tree workshop. More
- Monday, Nov. 19 and Tuesday Nov. 20, "All hands on deck" Thanksgiving meal prep | All day between 9am-3pm
- Saturday, December 22 | Christmas feast meal prep | All day between 9am-3pm
- Worship every Wednesday at 12:30 pm and Sunday at 3:15 pm.
- Regular Wed/Sun meal and worship schedule remains without changes throughout the holiday season. Check "About/Visit" on website for full details, www.haywoodstreet.org.
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VRQ—BBQ Cook Team | Next cook date: Tuesday, Nov. 6 | 4:45 or 5:45 PM
Come help us serve a meal to the veterans! Come at 4:45 to help cook or 5:45 to help serve. This mission service has a long history. We would love for you to be a part of the service & camaraderie. Questions? Contact Bill Neeriemer, bill.nmer@gmail.com.
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CIMA's 16-year Celebration | Saturday, November 3 | 6:30 - 11:00 PM | Land of Sky UCC (
15 Overbrook Pl
)
In October, CIMA-Compañeros Inmigrantes de las Montañas Acción is turning 16 and is inviting community members to learn more about their work and celebrate their victories. This is also a celebration/fundraiser to help continue their programming and sustain the work and leadership of the community. There will be food, music, clowns and raffle items.
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An Evening with Heart of Horse Sense | Wed., November 7 | 6:30 - 8:30 PM |
WNC Agricultural Center-Sale Barn (
761 Boylston Hwy
)
Special Guest, Tim Hayes, author of
Riding Home: The Power of Horses to Heal
, will address how horses help people heal, resulting in the kind of life-saving results that we see with equine-assisted therapy and learning every day. Heart of Horse Sense horses and some of our Veterans will demonstrate the horse-human connection that plays such a powerful role in human healing.
Come and enjoy great food and beverages from local purveyors, exciting equine-themed raffle prizes, and a chance to meet and mingle with the horses and Bruiser, the mini-donkey, with lively music in the background.
Click
HERE
for more info and to purchase tickets.
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Volunteer at St. Nicholas' Toy Store on December 11
Grace Covenant will be volunteering at the Eblen St. Nicholas Toy Store on Tuesday, December 11. This is a FANTASTIC way to support local families to shop for books. clothes and gifts for their families for the holidays AND we can volunteer together in community.
Click
HERE
to sign up for a shift this holiday season.
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Click
HERE
for a link to the 2017-2018 GCPC Ministry Partners brochure.
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GCPC 20s/30s “Room in the Inn: Potluck & Fellowship” | Thursday, Nov. 1 | 5:30 (sharp) – 7:00 PM | Fellowship Hall
We are excited to share food and fellowship with one another and the women of Room in the Inn (our rotating women’s shelter). Please sign up to bring a dish below. We will be eating dinner all together and your children are welcome. We should plan for approx.. 30 people and simple foods are recommended.
RSVP HERE ASAP
to share what dish you will bring.
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SOS ~ Save Our Sanity | Monday, November 5 | 7:00 PM | Anna Hamel’s home
A social, prayer, support group for mothers! Come with an appetizer or dessert; leave the kids at home. To be added to the list, email
Anna Louise
. For questions about the upcoming meeting, email
anna_hamel@yahoo.com
.
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Support Group for Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI Group) | Wednesday, November 7 | 12 PM | Garden Room
This support group introduces techniques for daily living with such issues, led by Paul Rogers, a retired physician in our congregation. We meet the 1
st
and 3
rd
Wednesdays of every month.
New participants are welcome at any time.
Contact
Richard
with questions.
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Moving Beyond the December Dilemma: A Gathering of Multi-faith Families | Sunday, November 11 | 5:00 - 6:30pm | Avenue M (private room) ~ 791 Merrimon Avenue
If you are part of multi-faith [or interfaith] family (in whatever way you interpret this), join Rev. Samantha Gonzalez-Block, Rabbi Batsheva Meiri and Rabbi Justin Goldstein for an evening of building community, asking questions, and sharing experiences as we prepare for the holiday season. We will meet in a private room at Avenue M and share appetizers and stories. All are welcome!
To RSVP or request childcare, email
Samantha
by November 7th.
More info here
.
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The Men @ GCPC | Thursday, November 15 | 7:00 PM | Location: TBA
Come for fellowship and relationship building. We are hopeful that this gathering will generate a group or groups that meet on a regular basis. Please RSVP to Richard at
rcoble@gcpcusa
. If you cannot make the 15th, but are still interested in being a part of the group, please let Richard know.
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J.O.Y. Group Gathering | Thursday, November 29 | 10:00 AM | Smith-McDowell House Tour
The J.O.Y. group (anyone 55 years or older) will be visiting the Smith-McDowell House to tour its lively Christmas Decorations. We will then head over for lunch at 12 Bones on the River. If we can get a group of 10 or more, the group cost for the tour is $5 per person.
Please RSVP by calling the church office at 254-3274 or emailing Richard (
rcoble@gcpcusa.org
) by Nov. 14.
It will be a great day!
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Candlelight Christmas at the Biltmore | GCPC Chancel Choir | Friday, December 14 | 5:30 – 9 PM
The Chancel Choir will be singing a 30-minute concert of traditional holiday favorites on the half hour. Tickets sell out fast so make your reservations today! Click
HERE
to buy tickets.
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Deacon of the Week
Each Sunday morning there will be a deacon available for everything from praying with you to giving you a tour of the building. This deacon will be wearing a purple sash and stationed in the narthex before 10:30 worship and in the front of the sanctuary after worship. He or she is also available during the week if you or someone you love needs assistance from our board of deacons.
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THIS WEEKEND:
No youth group this Sunday evening.
Senior High Camping Trip | This Saturday, November 3rd, 2 PM - Sunday, November 4th, 2 PM | Celo (Meet/pick up GCPC parking lot)
Senior Highs, if you registered to come camping this weekend, you should have received an email with all important information. Let
Samantha know ASAP if you did not receive it.
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Middle School Retreat 2018 ~ Camp Grier | Next Friday, Nov 9th, 5:15 PM - Sunday, Nov 11th, 12 PM | Old Fort, NC
Middle Schoolers, if you registered to come to Camp Grier next weekend, you should have received an email with all important information. Let
Samantha
know ASAP if you did not receive it.
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It's time to register:
Richmond Youth Mission Education Trip | January 18-21 (MLK Jr. Weekend)
Let's "be the change" together this winter! A highlight each year, we will travel to Richmond, a city with a complicated and facinating history and present. We will explore diverse neighborhoods and monuments, as well as engage in meaningful service work (and even discover hidden artifacts). Get ready to grow in faith and share in a whole lot of fun. The cost is $150 (full and partial scholarships available).
Register digitally HERE by November 18th.
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Prayer List
[We are happy to pray for anyone who is in need. Concerns will stay on this list for a month unless we hear otherwise. Please keep us updated.]
Iglesia Jerusalem congregation
Sherry Harcke (Les Stradley's friend)
Pat Cocke (Les Stradley’s friend)
Glenn Russell (Robin Gaiser's brother)
Francis Miller (Nancy Miller's son)
Steve and Joanna Bowman (Mike Fleenor's brother-in-law and sister)
Nancy and Richard Schaadt (Donna Robertson's sister and brother-in-law)
Shaketia Simpson and children (Habitat Partner family)
Louise Seitz (Janet Schifflin's friend)
Hettie Lou Garland
Dot Holladay
Teresa Stern
Betty Smith
Margaret Rada
Steve Dykes
Marty Johnson and Gabe Boehm
Bob Higgins
Lynn Milner
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Grace Covenant Community Out and About...
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Enneagram learning opportunities with Carol Hovis!
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The weekly enneagram gatherings resume next week
on different topics pertaining to all 9 types
. We meet
Monday evenings, 6-8pm
and
Friday mornings, 10am-12noon
in the A-Frame Room through December 14th, facilitated by Carol Hovis. For more information, including cost and content, email Carol,
cmhovis@gmail.com
. All are welcome. Click
HERE
to see flyer.
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An Evening with Kate Bowler | Saturday, November 3 | 7 PM | First Presbyterian Church
Kate Bowler, author of
Everything Happens for a Reason (and other lies I’ve loved)
will speak at First Presbyterian Church, Asheville.
Diagnosed with stage IV cancer at the age of 35, Kate writes powerfully about the transformation she has experienced in the face of tragedy. As a young mother living with cancer and a historian of American religion, Bowler frankly address the uniquely American concept that tragedy is a test of character, and looks at the different ways that people try to rationalize suffering and catastrophe, for better or worse.
Dr. Bowler will speak in the Sanctuary from 7-8 pm and allow time for questions. Signed copies of her memoir will be available for purchase.
Tickets are $10 in advance and sale ends tomorrow!
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Abraham Jam | Sunday, November 11 | 7:00 PM | Trinity United Methodist Church (
587 Haywood Rd.
)
You are invited to join for a community music event called a "Concert for Harmony." We hope this event will serve as a moment of peace and assist in bridging people of different faiths. The music will be performed by: David LaMotte (Christian), Billy Jonas (Jewish), Dawn Wharnsby (Muslim).
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Open for Lunch
Book Release & Signing by Robin Gaiser | Friday, November 16 | 6:00 PM | Malaprops Bookstore (
55 Haywood St.
)
In her new book,
Open for Lunch,
Robin Russell Gaiser writes of her encounters with a dozen strangers in casual lunch spots from upstate New York to Asheville, North Carolina. She began these encounters almost by chance when she invited someone in line with her at a Subway restaurant to share her table. But as she pursued such encounters over the years, she gradually became “the reporter reporting on myself. Soon the stunning stories of my lunch mates took me deeply into my own narrative.” Please join Robin for a reading, signing and celebration!
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Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church | 828.254.3274
789 Merrimon Ave. Asheville, NC 28804
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