Windows

March 1st, 2024

Lilies for Resurrection

On March 31 we will celebrate the Resurrection of the Lord. Let us do so in worship spaces adorned with Easter lilies in honor or in memory of those we love and appreciate. To order one or more lily plants, either click on the link below, fill in the form you will find at the church and return it to the office, or order online by clicking on Give Now on our homepage, then choosing “Easter Lily” from the drop-down Fund menu. Each plant costs $20. The deadline for ordering is Monday, March 25. To access the form, click here.

Security Officer

As many of you have noticed, the church has hired a new security officer to help with security on Sunday mornings at the church. If you haven't had an opportunity to greet Officer Boone yet, make it a point to do so. He is very friendly and helpful, and his primary concern has always been to help put the community's mind at ease during worship in light of all the terrible headlines we so often hear about. As part of this hire, the church continues working on revising security policies so that we provide a safe environment for the community to gather.

Join FPC on an intergenerational summer adventure to Orlando, Florida to serve and play! Departing from the church on June 22, the group will head down to Orlando, Florida for a week of missions, beach, and Orlando fun. Experience the richness of working along side people of all ages and building new relationships within our church family. Participants will have the opportunity to serve with different ministries around Orlando. Each day is full of new opportunities and mission experiences. The group will be housed in dormitories at Forest Lake Academy. Meals will also be provided by the academy. The week will include beach time and an optional day at Universal Studios! We will return home June 29. The schedule will be flexible for families who are attending. We want it to be a rich and enjoyable experience for all! This is an event you won’t want to miss! Start making plans and inviting friends and get your $100 deposit in by March 1 to reserve your spot! Fill out the registration form here.

The Paramount Chamber Players are performing a free concert on Saturday, March 2nd at 7:30pm here at First Presbyterian Church. While admission is free, donations are gratefully accepted. Don’t miss this exciting event!

BAMA Award

At the annual Black Heritage service at Lee St. Baptist church this past Sunday, February 25, 2024, Pastor Sam received an award from the Bristol Area Ministerial Alliance for his advocacy work in bringing relief to residents suffering from the landfill, as well as his work to bring changes to the landfill remediation plan with the city of Bristol and the state of Virginia. Pastor Sam was given the service award by the Bristol Area Ministerial Alliance's President, Jackie Nophlin. Pictured with one of his best friends, Bryziah (Jackie's niece), Pastor Sam was honored by this recognition.

Lee Street Baptist Church has called a Pastor

Serve one another humbly in love—Galatians 5:13 (NIV)

Rev. Dave Mabry will officially be installed on April 6th as the new pastor of Lee St. Baptist Church. The service will be held at 3pm. Pastor Sam will be one of the officiants at the service. There will be a catered meal following the service. We would love and appreciate it if you would join the festivities. If you would like to join the Tri-Cities Mass Choir to help celebrate the event, practices will be held at Lee St. on: Monday, March 18th at 6:00 pm, Monday, March 25th at 6:00 pm, Monday, April 1st at 6:00 pm, and Friday, April 5th at 6:30 pm. We so look forward to fellowshipping and worshipping with you.

Volunteer to help with a FUN DAY!

First Pres. is delighted to again host the Pi Day Party for home-educated kids in our region. Over 150 kids will attend Wed. March 13th, 8:30am-2:45pm and 150 different kids will come Friday March 15th, 8:30am-2:45pm. There are SO many volunteer jobs!

Welcoming families

Directing parking

Helping our teachers teach Sorting paperwork

Organizing doorprizes

Helping lead a “Math Scavenger Hunt Station” in the afternoon! For example, each competing group is challenged to “Show 5 ways to make a stack of coins equaling 83cents.”

For more info about this event, visit here. If you’d like to volunteer, email Alison Meredith at alisonm@techeagles.com.

Double Your Blessing: Both Yours and Those You Serve

In addition to serving dinner at Sharing Christ, this year Mission & Outreach (M&O) is adding A Place to Be (APTB) to our week of service and also provide their Wednesday noon meal – yes, the same week we serve at Sharing Christ!

For those not familiar with this outreach effort, here is a bit of background:

• Family Promise of Bristol coordinates A Place to Be, a day center to provide care for unhoused people in Bristol in the Salvation Army building. APTB is open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. A noon meal is provided each of those days, with a hot lunch served on Wednesdays.
• Sharing Christ Ministries and Worship Center is a small non-denominational, evangelical church called to fill a need in downtown Bristol. They host a free meal each Saturday night from 5:30-6:30 and have a clothing ministry. When we serve at Sharing Christ, we usually provide approximately 25 bagged lunches (PB&J, banana, Little Debbie cake). FPC has volunteered for many years.

You are invited to be part of providing the meal and serving at either or both of those venues, both to occur on the same week. The first opportunity will be the week of Wednesday March 13 and Saturday March 16. We will provide the hot lunch at APTB on Wednesday 3/13 and a few days later, provide the same meal to guests at Sharing Christ on 3/16.

The recipe for the casserole to be served will be provided, which is easily doubled. We anticipate the need for 12-14 single casseroles for those weeks we serve the meals.

What we need is those with a servant heart to –

Provide casseroles (recipe to be provided; can be prepared ahead and delivered to the church at any time prior to the dates)

Purchase

• Large cans of green beans and another side TBD
• Little Debbie cakes or something similar
• Dinner rolls

Willing hands to serve and clean up (Wednesday 11:30-1:30, Saturday 5-6:30) For the lunches at Sharing Christ, we will still need: Sandwich bread for 25 sandwiches

Little Debbie cakes (25)

Bananas (25)

Becca Tate (404-790-1223) and Beth Flannagan (423-956-3837) will be coordinating the meals, so contact them to sign up. AND if you’re interested in scheduling your service for all FOUR dates of the year, the additional dates are June 12 & 15; September 18 & 21; December 11 & 14.

Chicken Rice Casserole

Ingredients 3 cans white meat chicken, with liquid

2 cups water

1 pkg. white rice (8 ounces)

1 can (10.75 ounce) cream of chicken soup

1 can (10.75 ounce) cream of celery soup

1 can (10.75 ounce) cream of mushroom soup

Ground black pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder to taste (you can use dried minced

onion and garlic, if you prefer)

1/2 cup butter (1 stick), sliced into pats & bread crumbs

** Can add peas and/or pimiento for color if you wish

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease sides and bottom of a casserole dish.

2. Stir chicken (break up the clumps), water, rice, cream of chicken soup, cream of celery

soup, and cream of mushroom soup together in the prepared casserole dish; add

seasonings to taste. Arrange pats of butter evenly over the top of the chicken mixture

& sprinkle with bread crumbs.

3. Bake in preheated oven until the rice is tender and the chicken is cooked through, 1

hour to 75 minutes.

Gifts to the Church

Memorials and honoraria are published in the newsletter only after the family has been personally notified by our business office. Today we gratefully acknowledge the following gifts in memory of:

Louise Bowdoin: to the Minister’s Discretionary Fund from Happy Anthony, from Blue

Stocking Club, from Ann-Marie & Pratt Brown, from Mr. & Mrs. Jame A. King, from

Lavonda’s book club friends, from C. Douglas Martin, from Nancy Martin, from Anna

Morgan, and from Karen Pennington

Lee North: to the Memorial Fund from Jeff & Lorri Looney

Cora Lee Raccioppo: to the Mission & Outreach Fund from Robert & Diane Harrison and to

the Flower Fund from Karen Pennington

Dave Whitesides: to the FPC BSA Troop 3 Fund from an anonymous donor

Organist's Footnotes

I recently learned of the passing of Charles Callahan (1951-2023) on Christmas Day, 2023. I decided to pay tribute to the man whom I had the pleasure of meeting years ago at Rollins College in Florida. Callahan was well known as an award-winning composer, organist, choral conductor, pianist, and teacher. He earned degrees from the Curtis Institute of Music and the Catholic University of America, with additional study in England, France, Germany, and Belgium. He taught at Catholic University, Middlebury College, Baylor University, Rollins College, and the Bermuda School of Music. He served as organist and music director for churches in Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Washington, D.C., where he was a member of the Cosmos Club. Callahan was a prolific composer. His works were performed frequently in church and concert. His writing style was described by the Washington Post as “gentle, confident lyricism.” I have selected several movements from his “Partita on New Britain” which I will play for the Opening and Closing Voluntaries as well as Communion. -Bob Greene

We want to pray for and celebrate with you! Send us your prayer requests and glad tidings.



Congratulations

Congratulations to Lee & Betsy Galliher on the birth of their granddaughter, Avie Grace Galliher on January 17, 2024 in Greenville, South Carolina. Avie is the daughter of Pearce & Carlye Galliher.

The session continues to encourage masks for those at higher risk of complications from COVID-19 or not fully vaccinated. The session encourages everyone to consult their medical professional about vaccinations and boosters.

Wednesday of the week of publication is the deadline for contributions to Windows. Subscribe to our free e-newsletter by sending your name and preferred email address to the editor. Livestream our worship services and other activities at  FPC Bristol on YouTube. Click on the link and hit Subscribe to receive notifications of new videos. Find us on Facebook at FPC Bristol. Several accounts will show up. “Like” the page or ask to join a group.

We encourage you to use text, mail, or our website to safely continue your faithful support of our ministries. Give online here; choose a fund from the drop-down menu. Text fpcbristol  to 73256 to send your pledge, offering, or special gift to the church. Messages and data rates may apply. Message varies frequency. Text HELP to 73256 for help. Text STOP to 73256 to cancel. If you prefer, you may mail your contribution to the church.

701 Florida Avenue | Bristol, TN 37620 | 423-764-7176 | fpcbristol.org