Nicaragua Trip - 2011

Pictured: Left to Right: Olivia McCann, Alex DeJong, Sara Berg, Jenn Frayer-Griggs,
Dan Cummings, Jacob Watt-Morse. Missing from the picture is Peter Kaplan

As you may have heard, a group of our Senior High Youth will be going to Nicaragua on a mission trip this coming summer. But what exactly is this mission trip about? We hear about “Mission,” and often our first thought is “conversion.” Historically, the actual “mission” has been to convert people to Christianity and in many cases, even to this day, many Christian churches are traveling to far off lands in an effort to turn people to their own denomination because they believe that this is the “only road to salvation.” Well, I don’t think I need to tell you that this view of mission is not our group’s view of mission.

Although we will be performing challenging and at times back-braking labor, our “mission” is to experience personal transformation and growth. We know that we are not going to “save” anyone, and in most cases, we’re not even going to make a big difference in the Nicaraguan people’s lives. However, it is going to transform our own lives. It is going to challenge our views and our status quo. Our “mission” is to learn about poverty, about injustice, about oppression, about world politics and US policy issues. We will meet the Nicaraguan people and live among them and with them, even if for only a short period of time. We are going to attempt to reach an understanding of the challenges they face, but in the end, we will end up coming face to face with our own challenges. We will learn about these people’s strength and perseverance, and in the end, their deep faith! Yes, if anyone’s faith is going to be challenged, it is our very own! Our hope is that through these experiences, we will allow for the grace of God to take place in our lives and for the Kingdome of God to come to our world.

Like in past trips, we will be spending some time with the people of El Porvenir, the coffee cooperative that produces the very tasty organic coffee we sell at our church. These families have developed a great deal of love and gratitude for our church community and the assistance we have provided to them. They have become an important part of our lives as they teach us about the love of God and about humility.

This year our group will be working with CEPAD (the Council of Protestant Churches of Nicaragua). Our very own PC(USA) has delegates in Nicaragua who do their work through CEPAD. They will be accompanying us through our journey and developing their own relationship with the people of El Porvenir. We look forward to developing this relationship further ourselves.

Please pray for us. Pray that we will be open to experience God’s work in each of our hearts, that we will seek to transform our lives and our views of the world and that through this trip, we will continue to pave the paths to the Kingdom of God.

Thank you for your undying support!

The mission trip travelers

Benevolence Giving in 2010

Calendar Year 2010 was another remarkable year of giving by members of Sixth Church. In the Table 1 below you will see that your Church and Community Committee disbursed $17,615 to mission programs this year, including the Session budget amount of $17,505 and $10 donated by Glenda Rosenberry from her aluminum recycling efforts. These mission projects included local cooperative ministries and food banks, Presbyterian concerns, youth oriented support, and international support. But that is not all. Table 2 shows that you, the members and friends of

Table 1: Final Allocation of Locally Directed Mission Funds 2010

	2010 Actual
Budget	$17,605
East End Cooperative Ministry	$ 2,500
Wilkinsburg Community Ministry	$ 2,500
Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank	$ 2,500
Camp Crestfield	$ 2,000
Neighborhood Academy	$ 2,000
Mars Home for Youth	$ 1,000
Goats for Kids	$ 1,000
Just Harvest	$ 500
EECM Food Pantry	$ 500
Church World Services -Pakistan flood	$ 400
Pittsburgh Pastoral Institute	$ 100
Meals on Wheels (Sq. Hill)	$ 500
El Porvenir	$ 500
Neighborhood Academy Lunch reimbursements	$ 310
CROP Walk lunch reimbursements	$ 80
Peacemaking Fund Pakistan English Schools (PEB)	$ 1,225*
TOTAL	$17,615*

*includes extra $10 donation from Aluminum Recycling

Sixth Church have provided another $11,926 in "extra mile" giving to the special Presbyterian-wide offerings offerings this past year. Added to the mission support in Table 1, that comes to $29,541. Although that amount is remarkable in itself, there is more.

Table 2: Special Offerings 2010

ONE GREAT HOUR OF SHARING	$ 2,348
PEACEMAKING	$ 1,266
CHRISTMAS JOY	$ 1,994
LAZARUS	$ 2,752
OTHER (Haiti Disaster Assistance, Christmas Eve,etc.)	$ 3,566
SPECIAL OFFERINGS TOTAL	$11,926

Note: Sixth Church Share of Peacemaking Offering: $280 to Church World Services Pakistan flood relief, $1262 to Presbyterian Education Board for Pakistani English Schools in Sargodha, including $37 from 2010 and $1225 from 2009 carryover to 2010 budget

Table 3 shows other benevolence giving amounts for 2010. First, there is the annual contribution to the greater church mission. Last year we gave $20,067 to the mission efforts of Pittsburgh Presbytery, Synod on the Trinity, and the General Assembly. To get an appreciation of the scope of these mission projects, access the PCUSA website and find the Mission Yearbook link.

Next, there is the support we provide through the annual budget of two organizations that are important to the message of Sixth Church: More Light and Covenant Network. In addition, our Deacons also provide separate benevolence giving. This adds to $23,749 for a total of Sixth Presbyterian Church benevolence giving for 2010 of $53,290.

Table 3: Other Benevolence/Outreach Giving

Presybytery/Synod/GA Mission	$20,067
More Light	$ 500
Covenant Network	$ 500
Deacons	$ 2,682
Total*	$23,749

We would be remiss to not also recognize the record collection of $6593 from the annual East Hills CROP Walk. Our own Sue Koehler has led this event for years. Although this amount cannot be attributed exclusively to Sixth Church, it would not have been so successful without Sue's efforts and the giving of our members.

If we add the CROP Walk amount to the we see that, either directly or indirectly, Sixth Church was responsible for nearly $59,883 of benevolence giving in 2010. This is a remarkable achievement. Yet, it is typical of Sixth Church and reflects our continuing concerns about hunger, education, and social justice issues at home and abroad. Not only do we recognize the needs, but we put our faith into action.