A pair of little pink moccasins with butterflies were left in a blue worship bag last Sunday. They, and MANY other items, can be found in the lost and found basket in the office.

Mark your calendars for the annual Mound Ridge Church Retreat. September 5 - 7. It is a weekend of spiritual reflection, renewal and celebration in the beautiful forested area surrounding the Meramec River. No telephones, no television, no electronics - just God, family and friends of all ages! Look for more detailed information soon or contact Traci O'Bryan.

- Bonnie Roy

Whether it's a friend, a family member, or the neighbor down the street, we all know someone who has been touched by cancer. Many of us are concerned about this disease and want to do something to make a difference. That's why I've decided to take part in the American Cancer Society Relay For Life. It's an event that brings together the whole community and helps raise funds for the fight against this disease. I know you care about cancer, too, and I'd love for you to join me as part of my Relay team. This is a team I set up for a women's organization I am part of and we only have a few members signed up, so the more teammates we can get from Trinity the better!

At the event, June 6-7 (Friday-Saturday) from 6pm-6am, we'll camp out overnight, walk around the track at SLU High School, and meet lots of new people. There is an incredible tribute to cancer survivors and caregivers that starts off the night and a moving ceremony honoring those who have fought the disease. I can truly say Relay is unlike anything else you'll ever do. It's a night full of fun, hope, and remembrance. You can sign up for a walking shift (details to come) or donate to the Trinity team.

Location:

SLU High School
4970 Oakland Ave
St. Louis, MO

You can get more information about Relay For Life and the American Cancer Society by clicking the link below. Won't you join me in this fight? Contact me at bonniecarinroy@yahoo.com, call the church office or go online to join the team!

Visit my personal page: http://tinyurl.com/5ljm2j.

Visit the team page for Team Marguerite at http://tinyurl.com/69n9re.

The website provides two options 1) To Join the Team and 2) To Donate. If you would simply like to contribute you can do so online or make checks payable to 'American Cancer Society'. I can turn these in for the group or you can complete the online form and send to the local American Cancer Society office at:

American Cancer Society
4207 Lindell Boulevard
St. Louis, MO 63108

The daughter of our Soprano soloist, Laura Brady, is a photographer. Gena's black and white photos with religious themes are hanging in the Gallery. Check them out!

Cancer affects all of us in some way-either personally or ones we love. This church certainly has felt its impact these past 6 months. On June 6 & 7, the American Cancer Society will hold its Relay for Life at SLU High School. Is anyone at Trinity interested in coordinating the formation of a walking team? Please contact Liz in the office (725-3840).

- Habitat For Humanity St. Louis

Our 2008 Build has kicked-off and we are need of construction volunteers to help us ensure we meet our required number of volunteers during our Phase 1 blitz. We are trying to recruit approximately 80-88 volunteers for Wed, June 4^th; Thurs, June 5^th & Fri, June 6^th.

This is an OPEN PLEA, which means you do not have to attend orientation prior to volunteering! Please click the date below for which you would like to volunteer. Spots are filled on a "first respond, first schedule basis". We must keep count of the number of open volunteer slots, as we will supply water and lunch for you.

We will send you a RSVP email with a waiver, directions, and volunteer brochure to confirm your attendance. Once we reach our required volunteer numbers we will send you an email letting you know all slots are full! Please do not come to work if you do not receive a confirmation. Our build schedule calls for a specific number of volunteers to complete each task. If we go over those numbers then we end up with people standing around disengaged with the project. We do not want Habitat volunteers to feel they have wasted their time.

You must be 16 years or older. If you are under 18 years old there should be 1 adult for every 4-5 youth. Small groups of 3-5 volunteers are welcome, as well as larger groups of 10-15.

Waiver: We must have a 2008 waiver on file. When we send your RSVP we will attach a waiver for you to print out and bring to the site. Please remember the waiver is 2-sided and we need both pages. Anyone under 18 must have a waiver signed by a parent or legal guardian-no exceptions!Please DO NOT fax your waivers to our office.

Time: You should arrive no later than 7:45AM; the day will go until about 4PM for construction volunteers. Please keep in mind that this is a full day commitment if you sign up for construction; no exceptions.

Please click the day for which you would like to volunteer.You can RSVP for up to 3 people, and you can volunteer for more then one day.

• Wed, June 4^th
• Thurs, June 5^th
• Fri, June 6^th

Click here for a printer-friendly flyer.

Trinity Presbyterian Church is in a time of great transition right now. Paul Vasile is leaving his position as Minister of Music to take the same position at a church in New York City. Susan Hayes is concluding her service as our Interim Minister of Christian Education as she is about to be ordained as a Minister of Word and Sacrament at St. Mark Presbyterian Church in Ballwin, MO. Rhonda Dunbar, our youth leader for the past three years, is moving to Richmond, VA, to attend seminary. Dan Tilden, one of the assistants with the youth group for the past three years, is graduating from Washington University, and will serve with Teach for America in North Carolina. Dan Haeusser and Carissa Gigliotti, who have been active with the Trinity Choir, FEAST, Bible Study and preaching, are moving to Pennsylvania State University as Dan pursues a post-doctorate degree. Kim Martin and her family are moving to Columbia, MO, so they can be close to her new job. Phew! That's a lot of change!

I have done a lot thinking about this time of transition we are in. Is this all coincidence? Is God up to something? A few observations:

• We don't always like to be reminded of this fact, but change is a constant of life. We grow up, we grow old, our health changes, we are called to new work and service, the culture around us changes. This fact can be hard for the church; all of us need places that provide continuity and peace. For many of us, the church is one of those places and a lot of change disrupts that need. So, many of us enter this time of transition admitting we don't like it.
• Every person who is listed above is moving to a new and exciting chapter of his or her life. We can look at this as our loss (and it is!). But this is also the evidence that God is at work, not only in the lives of those moving, but in each of our lives, calling each of us (whether we are moving or not!) to new patterns of life and service. This is why we have a sending ritual at Trinity: to send people with blessing, and to remind all of us that God is the Lord of our lives and leads us to the places we need to be.
• Transition is a rich time for discernment and seeking new direction. God is present with us all the time and is leading us all the time. But we become especially aware of that presence when our community is changing and when we are feeling sadness and loss. We are reminded that these wonderful servants were brought to us by God and that God will bring new servants - and with that change will come new directions and new opportunities. By approaching this time in prayer and expectancy we will catch glimpses of a new future and will receive new hope and courage to embrace that future.
• While the church and the world around us may change, God does not. Hebrews 13:8 reminds us that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. As we find ourselves in the midst of great and even disruptive change, we can enter that time without fear or anxiety because Jesus continues to bless us every day with power and grace.

I am certain that the coming months will be full of sadness and even, at times, confusion - that is the nature of change. I am also certain that we will find blessings upon blessings in this time and that together we will arrive at a new day, with renewed purpose and renewed faith.

Mark your calendars to gather in the Dining Room Friday, May 9^th for a meal and some music as we celebrate all that we have experienced together and all that Paul Vasile has shared with us and the community during his ministry with us.

• Time: 6:30 pm
• Dinner: $13/adults; $7/kids 8-11; kids under 8 are free
• Kids who do not want to stay for the program will have childcare in God's Creation
• Please RSVP to the church office (725-3840) by Friday, May 2nd for a catering count
• Donations towards a gift for Paul are also being accepted in the office. Call or email Liz Nelson for details.

- Susan Hayes

My plan upon arriving at TPC was to lay low, to avoid getting "too close" to you all. I had thought I could leave my heart out of the experience; I could be professional, detached even. I did not intend to love you but to serve God and get out. And then I met your children...your beautiful, gifted, loving children. They don't even know the word "interim" - they move through their innocent days full of wonder and joy facing the future with wide open hearts and minds. I loved them immediately...your quiet and edgy teens, your lively and curious pre-teens, your precious and precocious little ones and oh...those babies! I hold fast to memories of Julia falling asleep in my lap at Mound Ridge, and Mia presenting me with countless masterpieces of crayon art complete with hearts and I love you's, and Tati out growing her shyness and bounding into Sunday school like she can't wait, and Alex and Ira wise beyond their years, and Peter celebrating worship like the most seasoned disciple, and Karl, just Karl...and Noah raising his hand to help whenever asked...and Hayden and Tessa receiving their river baptism...and Leah craving M & M's...I celebrate with you our eager and committed youth worship leaders. Each of your children has touched my heart and gifted me along the way.

And, I thank you. I thank you for caring for me as I waited on God's call. I thank you for including me in your story and sending me off to continue mine. I have been blessed for being here. Blessed because your staff is actually a circle of friends and family who uphold and affirm one another. Blessed because you have touched me and I have grown. Blessed because God is so much smarter than I am and God knew all along I would love you!

I am very excited at the "new thing" God has done for me and St. Mark church and I will take you with me, beloved of God, as we continue to walk together in spirit and serve our amazing God.

- Vicki Carmichael

Paul Vasile's imminent departure from our Music Ministry will leave some pretty big shoes to fill. No, I'm not talking about his organ shoes, though they are big enough (we hope he'll remember to take those with him!). I mean that we need to begin looking for a new way to staff our Music Ministry with faithful and talented servants. The Session, Personnel Commission, Worship and Music Commission and the staff want to take advantage of the interim period to really reflect on the possibilities for this ministry and to discern in what musical direction God is calling us. Before we nominate a search committee to find a leader, we need some time for dreaming. Dr. Dan, Margy Brown (chair of Personnel) and I (chair of Worship and Music) will be appointing a diverse group of people to join us in our dreaming. With the session's blessing we will form a team of dreamers - individuals from a wide variety of niches within our congregation including parents, choir members, instrumentalists, members of different age ranges, and folks who prefer to just listen. We will discuss with our "Music Ministry Needs Dream Team": What kind of music ministry will not only best serve our congregation and enrich our worship time, but will also call us to greater faithfulness, comfort those in need, invite and engage our neighbors, increase our mission and enlighten and enliven our souls? What kind of gifts do we need in such a position? Where and how can we best seek these gifts? How will we know when we have found them? When we believe we have an idea where God is leading, we'll let the session know that it's time for a search committee. During this time of dreaming and discernment, please keep the future of our music ministry in your prayers.

- Diana Gray

Once again the Green Team is planning a special giving opportunity for Mother's Day. However, this year instead of donating live plants to a St. Louis area public garden, the donations will beautify our own Trinity gardens. Before Mother's Day you may make a donation in honor of the mother(s) of your choice, using the forms in the pew books. Please pen an honorary message for the bulletin on Mother's Day and make a contribution. You may attach the donation to the form and place it in the collection plate or send it to Liz Nelson in the church office. Please note that you will not be ordering a specific plant for a Mother's Day sanctuary display. Rather, we will wait to choose and purchase the plants after we have a definite landscape plan.

This leaves the opportunity for anyone who would like to contribute a floral arrangement for the Communion Table on Mother's Day to do so. For Mother's Day or any Sunday, please sign up on the dry-erase board across from the library or contact a member of the Green Team (Luise Hoffman, Elaine Pontious, or me). Thanks for all your support to making our church and grounds more green and beautiful.

New ministry opportunity! An individual or team is needed to organize and operate the church picnic. This is a one-time commitment for a project of short duration. Organizers will have flexibility in setting the date, the location and the content of the picnic. If you enjoy the picnic, get involved so that we have one this year! Please contact Rev. Julie March (725-3840) or Dave Nelson of the Equipping Team if you would like to learn more.

- Norma Vavra

In the Session notes published in the March issue of Trinity News, Stacy Shupe brought to our attention thoughts being currently focused on the Equipping Ministry. As you may remember, a group from Trinity (Lisa Bernhard, Liz Nelson, Dan Anderson-Little and Julie March) attended a week-long conference in Colorado in October 2006 on Equipping. This conference was Julie's first assignment as she was hired to head this ministry. Equipping is being funded by a vitality grant from our Endowment Board through December 2008. So the time has come to examine our progress in this journey and determine where we are to go and how we shall get there.

The Equipping Team has been involved in major one-time programs and ongoing projects. Major programs include: 1) honoring those 80 and above; 2) hosting a mission fair of possible avenues of service within Trinity and out; and 3) the CROP Walk. Information is being gathered on other programs Trinity might become involved with beyond the Food Pantry, Habitat, and youth and adult mission trips.

Another project is the conversations one Equipping Team has been having with recent members to help them find paths of service and equipping them to pursue those. An information database is in process to catalog interests of members to expedite connecting these persons with opportunities to serve. The current "Welcome Team" has developed through Equipping ministry to provide Sunday morning support through the ushers and the snacks for fellowship time in the Narthex.

Prayerful thought needs to be given to the Equipping Ministry. Decisions will be made by the Session in early summer. If you would like your voice to be heard, talk to a member of the Session or the review team (Stacy Shupe, Bonnie Roy, Norma Vavra, Jim Person). Written comments are welcome also. It would be helpful if your thoughts are shared before the June 4^th Session meeting.

- Stacy Shupe

At our last Session meeting, we spent time in small groups interviewing each other about our understanding of equipping and how Trinity's emphasis on it has affected both our personal lives and our life as a church. Our interviews led to a reflective and engaging discussion of the joy, confusion, peace, frustration, and blessings that the Equipping Ministry has brought to us. We also shared our spiritual hopes with each other. As I listened openly to what others shared, I felt somewhat confused about the diversity of views, but I ultimately felt peace that through this process of discernment, we will know where God is nudging us.

- Chris and Stacey Carman

Do you like to shop? Well, then, do we have the opportunity of a lifetime for you! You can shop till you drop for the Winger Food Pantry in May and June. Don't hesitate. Call now for this wonderful opportunity. Contact Stacey to get all the details.

If you would rather shop from home for the food pantry, try this on for size! All you need to do is set up an Amazon.com account through their program called "Subscribe and Save". They will process the order for the food pantry, charge your credit card and ship it directly to us. There is no charge for shipping and there is a 15% discount. You can set it up to automatically order as often as you like. It's that easy. Thanks to Lisa Bernhard for this tip.

The list of items we offer in the food pantry is below:

- Dave Nelson

1. Elise Baechle suggested "Jesus is Risen" for the title of the paper, while Karl suggested "The Good News of Easter". The children agreed to combine the names. Elise took on the title page adding her illustration that she captioned "Jesus went to heaven because he was risen from the dead on Easter Sunday.":
   
2. By Tatiana Pontious. Jesus and an angel:
   
3. By Daniel Hasler. An Easter montage with the cross, the empty tomb, resurrected Jesus and a heart:
   
4. By Elise Baechle. Jesus is nailed to the cross:
   
5. By Evan Hasler. Jesus on the cross.:
   
6. A picture of the cross after Jesus' body was taken down.:
   
7. By Peter McCown. The empty tomb with Jesus walking away while an angel descends.:
   
8. By Tatiana Pontious. Tati's rendition of the Angel in the Tomb.:
   
9. By Mia Schindler. Resurrected Jesus walking away from the empty tomb, while the women meet the angel at the tomb.:
   
10. By Karl Nelson. Jesus (r) appears to the disciples in the locked house at night.:
    
11. By Karl Nelson. Jesus asking the disciples "Now do you see my cuts":
    
12. By Evan Hasler. Jesus showing his cuts - our story that day was doubting Thomas:
    
13. By Tatiana Pontious. Tati drew a picture of Jesus with the disciples inside him.:
    
14. By Daniel Hasler. More Easter symbols with the draped cross from our sanctuary, an Easter egg, Jesus' cross, and Jesus with his wounds.:
    

These past few weeks have been a whirlwind for me. Transitions like the one I am about to undergo are a bit of organized chaos. At the same time I am writing a goodbye to you, I am writing words of introduction to the congregation at Park Avenue Christian Church. At the same time I am selling a house, I am exploring apartments in New York City. I feel something like Janus, the two-faced god in Roman mythology who looks both forward and backward at the same time. The emotions are truly bittersweet and as I reflect on my seven years here at Trinity I feel inclined to share a few words that I hope can adequately sum up my gratitude.

The music ministry of a church is about the gathered people of God singing their praise and prayer from the heart. In the past seven years we have found wonderful and diverse ways to express our joys and grief, our fears and hope, our doubts and our faith, to the God who gave us the gift of music. Worship has welcomed music from so many styles, countries and traditions; gifts have been shared by a steady stream of children, students and professionals; we have heard Scripture sung and proclaimed with great energy, color and depth. But the music ministry has not been done by me. Yes, I have had an important leadership role. I have supported and shaped the congregation's and choir's singing. I have encouraged and cajoled. I have I have taught and shared music that I love. But I am convinced that the music ministry of Trinity Presbyterian Church has been done by you all along. On those Sundays when the organ has dropped out of a hymn and I have heard the strong, rich tone of the congregation a cappella, or those moments when I have heard a service response or Psalm refrain sung with great gusto by young and old alike - those are the times that my heart has been filled with incredible joy. I have heard the congregational choir leading worship. And that, my friends, is at the heart of a healthy church - a sign of vitality. And it tells me that the music ministry of this congregation will continue to thrive long after I am gone.

I recently received an email from a regular visitor to the congregation and want to share her words with you as an encouragement. "I think that the greatest tribute that the congregation could offer is to continue the work that you started with community involvement and outreach through the Arts, and continue to integrate the celebration of the Arts with the celebration of the Word." I certainly have no control over the future, trusting that God will bring strong interim leadership and guidance as you begin to search for a new pastoral musician. But I cannot leave without a challenge to keep extending a radical, gracious welcome to all. Over the past years, Trinity has gained a reputation as a congregation that is hospitable to the community, and many of the relationships that we have cultivated have returned countless blessings. Keep it up! And as you reach out, don't forget to keep reaching in, too. Celebrate the amazing gifts within this congregation. There is so much untapped potential - the many talented, young musicians coming up the ranks, as well as the singers, instrumentalists, composers and creatives who are and will become part of the church. Don't let music become something reserved just for a few but be a church that provides a place for all to share their notes, their phrases, their arias or even their kazoo solos. For we have truly and deeply welcomed others only when we have truly and deeply received their gifts.

It has been an incredible honor and joy to serve as the Minister of Music here at Trinity. You have provided a place for me to grow and risk, to succeed and to fail, to share my passion for music and for my faith. You have offered freedom, honesty, support and love in such large measure. I am proud of the work we have done together - building a diverse, inclusive music ministry, a refurbished pipe organ, new choir robes and musical outreach to the community. But, above all, I am proud of the ways that we have grown in our welcome of the new and unfamiliar, in our ability to speak with respect and love about our preferences and differences, and in our openness to the ways that music can bring new life to our faith.

I leave you with the words of another Paul, because he says it better than I ever could. I love you all and will miss you dearly.

And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It's your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it. Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing. And cultivate thankfulness. Let the Word of Christ-the Message-have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. Instruct and direct one another using good common sense. And sing, sing your hearts out to God! Let every detail in your lives-words, actions, whatever-be done in the name of Jesus, thanking God every step of the way.

(Colossians 3:14-17, from The Message)

- Liz Nelson, Church Administrator

While there weren't baby toys floating across God's Creation, there certainly was a huge mess in our basement as the heavy rains of Wednesday, April 9th forced rainwater and waste water ("black water") out of the basement bathroom drains and into the nursery, pre-school room and much of the main children's area by Thursday morning. Most wood items were damaged (bookcases, chairs, toys), many foam and plastic toys were contaminated beyond use, and the floor and walls were harmed. We are working with our insurance company to have the area dried, decontaminated and repaired for future use, as well as to replace the many damaged items. We will be back in that space within a few weeks, as we create a safe and welcoming space once again.

March 21, 2008

Dear Pastor Dan, Paul, Liz, Digna and everyone:

Words can never convey the extent of our gratitude and indebtedness to your Church Family for the success of the March 1-12, 2008 residency of the Boys Choir of Kenya with the St. Louis African Chorus. All the boys and their directors are back in their home country and have requested that we lend their voices and hearts to express profound gratitude to you. Thank you, and thank you. May our eyes open to see how God continues to use Trinity Presbyterian to bless and leaven our St. Louis community.

As our brother Paul prepares to assume his new call in New York, we at the St. Louis African Chorus, while we deeply will miss his ministry in the flesh, would like you to know that our relationship with Trinity will remain enduring. For it is Paul's and ours and we believe your wish as well that we nurture the bond we have forged.

Much peace and blessing to all of you.

Sincerely Yours,

Katie Guyton
Chairperson, Board of Directors

Fred Onovwerosuoke, Ph.D.
Chairperson, Board of Directors Founder and Artistic Director

On March 27, 2008, Bradley Roy and his partner John Jones were publicly recognized at the 2007 Fourth District Police Officer Awards Luncheon sponsored by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the Downtown St. Louis Partnership held at the Hyatt Regency St. Louis Riverfront. Bradley and his partner were the Officers of the Month in May 2007 for their courage and hard work.