Upcoming Working Groups for the SW Region

Dear Commission members and friends, 

It’s been a little over a month since the Southwest Regional Commission had it’s first meeting at Marple Presbyterian Church. What a great evening that was! We enjoyed good food and fellowship, studied scripture and prayed together, looked at who we are as a regional commission and began a conversation about what work God might be calling us to do together. We sat around tables and talked to friends and to “reasonably friendly strangers”. It was exciting to hear about what was already happening in our congregations, and there was a great spirit as we began to think about what more could happen. The evening ended with the Lord’s Supper around the tables, with each person serving his or her neighbor. I think that’s a great image of what our commission might be.

The Leadership Team would like to continue the work we began that evening over the summer. We divided into three Working Groups at the meeeting based on some of the responsibilities that our Commission has been given. The groups are: Shared Ministry and Mission; Developing Congregations and Leaders; and Care and Support of Leaders. These Working Groups aren’t committees yet – they are just groups of interested folks who want to have a conversation about where our commission might go next. Some people said they would be interested in further conversation on the topic. Other people who weren’t at the meeting in May may also be interested in being part of these conversations. Anyone who is interested is invited to these meetings.

The dates and times for Working Group Meetings are:

  • Shared Mission and Ministry – July 9 or 18, Gladwynne, Todd Stavrakos convening – (for more information, contact Todd at pastortoddgpc@comcast.net)

  • Care and Support of Leaders – July 23 11 a.m. Princeton Presbyterian Church, Pam McShane convening (for more information, contact Pam at pastorpam2@aol.com

  • Developing Congregations and Leaders – July 30, 7:30 p.m. Calvary-Riverview Presbyterian Church, Claire Jones convening (for more information, contact Claire at cjmem@aol.com

The next meeting of the full Regional Commission will be Wednesday, September 25 from 6:30-9 p.m. at Overbrook Presbyterian Church. Please put the date on your calendar now! Our focus will be on sharing what our congregations are doing in mission, particularly in their own communities. You are invited to bring a display for our “mission fair” so we can see and hear about the good news from your church.

A key piece in having our Commission work is staying in touch. I’ll be sending out monthly emails like this one. Soon we’ll have a facebook page for our commission where you can share news, thoughts and questions. We’ll let you know when that’s up.

Have a great summer! May it be a rich, growing season for each of you! 

Peace!

Pam McShane, SW Regional Convenor