Dear Friends in Christ,
This Sunday we will welcome the Rev. Denise Pass to preach and help lead both services. This past August, Denise moved into the area to become the new Shared General Presbyter for Lackawanna and Lehigh Presbyteries.
As an introduction, Denise was born in Fort Worth, Texas, but her family moved to Denver in 1971, so Colorado is really home. As a single mother, Denise raised her son and daughter in the Denver area until 2003, when they moved to Princeton, NJ so that she could attend Princeton Theological Seminary. She graduated with an M.Div. in 2006 and served congregations in Cincinnati, Ohio and Garden City, Kansas, and as Executive Presbyter in the Presbytery of Plains and Peaks. Denise’s son, Edward, is finishing his third year of research toward a Ph.D. in Forensic Psychology at the University of Kingston, London, UK. Her daughter, Katy, is an actor in the Colorado Front Range area, specializing in work as a Standardized Patient for the University of Colorado Medical School. Sebastian, a 2-year-old Scottish Terrier rounds out Denise’s family.
This Sunday, we will also be having another “Noisy House” offering led by our children in support of our year-long FaithFULL Housing initiative that involves both Mission and Faith Formation. We are seeking to raise money to help those who are in danger of becoming homeless, through Family Promise here in the Lehigh Valley, and through Villages in Partnership ministry in Malawi. To date we have raised $3,459.26. We have recently received a grant that will match any new gifts up to $2500. If you are here on Sunday, please know that “quiet” offerings of cash and checks will be accepted along with “noisy” offerings of that change you have sitting around the house! And if you are not here, you can always make a contribution by marking on your check, “FaithFULL Housing.”
See you Sunday,
Signature
P.S. If you have not done so already, please prayerfully consider how much you hope to give to the ministry of First Presbyterian in 2025 – and then share that with the church: either through a pledge online or through the Realm app, or with a pledge card, or by email directly to our staff accountant, Tara Drayer. While your individual commitment for next year is kept confidential, the Session needs the collective pledge totals to put together a responsible budget in 2025. A generous response to this year’s financial campaign to support FPCA’s ministry in 2025 will be a great way to welcome the new lead pastor!
