Seen Around Church – Week of June 23, 2024
June 26, 2024
Faces of Faith: Adrienne Jaquith
July 2, 2024SMPC Member Receives Two Graduate Degrees from Union Presbyterian Seminary
Congratulations to SMPC member Melissa White! Melissa received a Master of Divinity and a Master of Arts in Christian Education from Union Presbyterian Seminary on Saturday, June 29! Melissa is married to Kevin White and is the mother of Jackson, Nicholas and Alec and the daughter of Pat Bryant. Melissa – You are a gift and inspiration to us all!
Melissa has led several adult Bible studies with Director of Spiritual Formation Rebecca Guzman. The pair will lead this fall’s adult Bible study, How to Study the Bible, Sundays beginning September 8 at 9:00 a.m. in the McQueen Room or via Zoom. More information and register on Realm.
Photo Credits: Melissa White, Whitney Bayer and Lindsey Odom
The Greatest Love of All: Passing on our Faith to the Next Generation
Speaking of inspiring SMPC mothers, when Amy Zagora dropped off her middle school son, Jake, at SMPC for the Middle School Conference 2024, she was wearing a t-shirt she got when she was a camper at Massanetta (we won’t say the year, but we will give you a clue – Bon Jovi’s “You Give Love a Bad Name” and Whitney Houston’s “Greatest Love of All” are listed as top songs of that year!)! Isn’t it just the best when we can pass along our beloved faith traditions to the next generation? The cutest!
Photo Credit: Shelby Ullman
SMPC Youth Grow in Faith, Fellowship at Massanetta Middle School Conference
What a week the youth had in Massanetta! SMPC brought 17 youth for Middle School Conference at Massanetta Springs in Harrisonburg, VA last week! We will be posting their reflections on the week soon, but until then, enjoy these awesome photos! Thank you to our leader, Associate Pastor of Youth and Missions/Outreach Lindsey Odom and chaperones, Curtis Guy, Courtney Ritchie and Whitney Bayer. We couldn’t have done it without you! And thank you to our middle school youth who brought their energy, light and love for Christ all week. We pray they will carry the feelings of love and friendship forward with them through the summer!
Find more Massanetta photos here.
Read the youth’s reflections on Massanetta here (these are a must-read!!).
Photo Credit: SMPC Youth
SMPC Columbarium Takes Shape
The SMPC Columbarium has really taken shape this week! We are forever grateful for the tradesmen who work so hard in the hot summer sun!
If you are interested in learning more about the columbarium, please check out our website or contact Charlie Metzler.
Two Thumbs Up for Camp Grier!
These three cuties had a BLAST at Camp Grier last week!! Camp Grier is in Old Fort, NC (not far from Black Mountain and Montreat) and is an SMPC Youth favorite!
Photo Credit: Rebecca Guzman
Faces of Faith: Adrienne Jaquith
Check out “Faces of Faith” weekly as we spotlight SMPC members and learn more about them! This week we’ll get to know Adrienne Jaquith!
Name: Adrienne Jaquith
Family: Married to husband, Chris, for 22 years and have 2 children, Zach (19) and Emily (16)
Years at SMPC: Almost 20! How is that possible?! I became a member just prior to Zach’s baptism around his first birthday.
What brought you to SMPC? I started visiting churches when I was pregnant as I knew I wanted a church home once I had children. Although SMPC was right down the road from our house I held off on visiting until I saw a sign that there was a new pastor and my mom encouraged me to attend. I knew after my first Sunday that SMPC was where I was meant to be. It reminded me of the Presbyterian churches I grew up attending – a little traditional, incredibly welcoming and it just felt “right”. I love that the overwhelming message at SMPC is one of welcome and acceptance.
How have you found connection at SMPC? I initially got involved with the Membership Committee thanks to another longtime church member, Leisa Lackey, who invited me to attend a meeting. My involvement on Membership led to so many other opportunities for involvement including chairing the Stewardship Committee, becoming an Elder, teaching Sunday School and volunteering for VBS.
You’re coordinating this year’s VBS . What do you love about this ministry and how can we get involved? What’s not to love about VBS?! It’s the best week of the summer! I love that VBS is for ALL children, not just the children of church members. I love that our VBS volunteers are ALL ages, from our devoted, youth, to parents and even grandparents. I love that we have volunteers that don’t even have children attending VBS but want to be a part of the fun. It’s an exhausting week but it is the BEST week and is a week that children carry with them into adulthood. I bet many adults who attended VBS as a child still remember the fun they had and the love they felt during VBS.
If you want to be a part of VBS this year, check out the signup genius (2024 VBS: Adults: 2024 VBS Volunteers (signupgenius.com) to see where you can volunteer or send an email to smpcvbs@gmail.com . We are especially in need of volunteers and drivers for Mission Possible for our 4th and 5th graders. (check out the first tab on the signup genius). You won’t regret the time you spend helping to make VBS a success!
