wfn.org | GAC awards celebrate 'Mission for Christ'

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03-July-1996 
 
GA96070 
 
    GAC awards celebrate 'Mission for Christ' 
 
ALBUQUERQUE - The General Assembly Council awards celebration honored nine 
GAC program areas Wednesday for their achievements in becoming "Partners in 
Mission for Christ." This is the second year for this awards 
format--accomplished in a fast-paced, upbeat, colorful multimedia 
presentation. 
 
Here is a summary of the awards. 
 
    *New Church Developments:  43 new church developments born in 1995 were 
honored. Each was given a certificate bearing the first verse of Psalm 127 
- "Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain." 
This marked the sixth consecutive year for celebrating new churches. Those 
honored are: Soos Creek Presbyterian, Kent, Washington; St. Andrews 
Presbyterian, Beulah, Mich.; Heartland Presbyterian, West Des Moines, Iowa; 
Rolling Hills Presbyterian, Spearfish, S.D.; Community Presbyterian, 
Rochester, Minn.; Ebenezer Presbyterian, Chicago; Good Shepherd 
Presbyterian, Rock Island, Ill.; Korean Presbyterian, Lawrence, Kan.; 
Central Sung Ahm Presbyterian, Chicago; Irvington Presbyterian, 
Indianapolis; and Calvary-Third United Presbyterian, Ft. Wayne, Ind.  Also, 
LaGrange Presbyterian, LaGrange, Tenn.; Grace Chapel Presbyterian, Madison, 
Miss.; United Presbyterian, Granite City, Ill.; United Presbyterian, 
Roxana, Ill.; Arrow Rock Federated Presbyterian, Arrow Rock, Mo.; Salt & 
Light Presbyterian, Lutherville, Md.; United Presbyterian, Amsterdam, N.Y.; 
Good Shepherd Presbyterian, Yonkers, N.Y.; Imani Community Presbyterian, 
Trenton, N.J.; Princeton Glory Presbyterian, Monmouth Jct., N.J.; Korean 
Presbyterian Church of Tri-Valley, Pleasanton, Calif.; Blackfoot Community 
Presbyterian, Ovando, Mont.; Blackfoot Church of Potomac, Bonner, Mont.; 
Mountain Lakes Presbyterian, Seeley Lake, Mont.; Oviedo Presbyterian, 
Oviedo, Fla.; Dong-Sahn Presbyterian, Norcross, Ga.; and Church of the 
Hills, Duluth, Ga.  Also, Belair Community Presbyterian, Evans, Ga.; Grace 
Presbyterian, Ft. Mill, S.C.; Gardens Presbyterian Lake Park, Fla.; Hahn 
Bit Presbyterian, Decatur, Ga.; California New Canaan Presbyterian, Los 
Angeles; Korean Hope Presbyterian, Cerritos, Calif.; Faith Presbyterian, 
San Diego, Calif.; West Valley Presbyterian, Avondale, Ariz.; Community 
Presbyterian, Alpine, Ariz.; Iglesia Presbiteriana Hispana, Roswell, N.M.; 
Korean Presbyterian, Tulsa, Okla.; Covenant Presbyterian, Sherman, Texas; 
Korean Presbyterian, Corpus Christi, Texas; First Presbyterian, Nocona, 
Texas; and Ohio Presbyterian, Aliquippa, Penn. 
 
 
    *Higher Education:   Dr. Cordell Wynn, president of Stillman College, 
Tuscaloosa, Ala., received the 1996 Higher Education Award. The award, 
given annually since 1988, goes to an individual who has "rendered long and 
distinguished service" on behalf of the Presbyterian Church. Wynn, who has 
been Stillman's president for more than 15 years, also has chaired the 
College Fund, United Negro College Fund, and the National Association for 
Equal Opportunity.  Wynn said the award affirmed what his grandmother 
taught him about success - "Success is measured not in achievements but in 
lessons learned and lives that are touched along the way," and certainly by 
faith in a sovereign God. This year, five individuals also were placed on 
the 1996 Honor Roll, indicative of the strong group of nominees. They are 
the Rev. Robert K. Bondurant; Henry Luce, III; Dr. Charles Ping; Dr. Ruth 
Schmidt, and the Rev. Dr. Walter A. Soboleff, Sr. 
 
    *Commitment to Evangelism:   Five presbyteries where more than 50 
percent of the churches have signed the Commitment to Evangelism were 
honored--the Presbyteries of  Abingdon and Shenandoah, Synod of the 
Mid-Atlantic; the Presbyteries of Central Florida and Tampa Bay, Synod of 
the South Atlantic, and the Presbytery of Grand Canyon, Synod of the 
Southwest. 
 
     *Sam and Helen R. Walton Fund Grants:     New church developments 
which had been named recipients of $30,000 Sam and Helen R. Walton Fund 
Grants were recognized: Covenant Community Church, Vacaville, Calif.; 
Eastfield Road Presbyterian NCD, Huntersville, N.C.; First African 
Presbyterian, Lithonia, Ga.; Macland Presbyterian, Powder Springs, Ga.; New 
Hope Presbyterian, Fishers, Ind.; Plymouth Presbyterian, Plymouth, Minn.; 
Southminster Presbyterian, Gastonia, N.C.; and Taiwanese Presbyterian 
Church in South Bay, Redondo Beach, Calif. 
 
    *Commitment to Peacemaking:   Two presbyteries and one synod where more 
than 50 percent of the congregations have adopted the Commitment to 
Peacemaking were honored-- the Presbytery of Missouri River Valley; the 
Presbytery of Whitewater Valley, and the Synod of the Northeast. Six 
presbyteries where 75 percent of the congregations have adopted the 
commitment also were honored -- the Presbyteries of Western Reserve, 
Milwaukee, Boise, Stockton, Santa Barbara, and Kendall. 
 
    *Restorative Justice Award:   The Honorable Patrick J. Morris, a judge 
of the Superior Court of San Bernardino County, Calif., received the 1996 
Restorative Justice Award. The award defines restorative justice as the 
belief that "neither punishment nor incarcerating people are the point, but 
that as Christians we are in the business of redemption and change." 
Morris told the Assembly, "Please pray for the judges." 
 
 
    *PHEWA:   Two local programs were honored by the Presbyterian Health, 
Education and Welfare Association, which is celebrating its 40th 
anniversary at this General Assembly. Doorstep Ministry, Topeka, Kan., was 
honored by the Community Ministries and Neighborhood Organization network 
of PHEWA. Doorstep is a social welfare ministry sponsored by 48 
congregations, five of which are Presbyterian. Seventh Avenue Presbyterian 
Church, San Francisco, was honored for their work as an urban congregation 
by the Urban Presbyterian Pastors' Association, a PHEWA network. 
 
    *Ecumenical Service Awards:    Two presbyteries and two congregations 
were honored with Ecumenical Service Awards. The Presbytery of Indian 
Nations was commended for its participation and leadership in the 
ecumenical response following the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal 
Building on April 19, 1995. 
 
    The Presbytery of Northern Plains was honored for its leadership with 
ecumenical partners that brought together more than 2,000 people from 
several Christian traditions to worship together in an historic Ecumenical 
Assembly June 9-11, 1995 in Bismarck, N.D. The United Presbyterian Church 
of Silver Bay, Minn., was commended for their "great experiment" in 
ecumenism and community. Silver Bay was "born" in the 1950s when a taconite 
plant was built, and the church was established to serve the families. 
 
    The United Protestant Church, which relates to five denominations, was 
commended for its work to make visible the unity of the Church. 
 
    *General Assembly Mission:   Eight presbyteries were recognized for 
excellence in support of General Assembly mission.  The awards went to the 
presbyteries that have given the greatest number of dollars total, and on a 
per member basis, in five mission categories. 
 
        -Basic Mission Support:  the Presbytery of Philadelphia, with total 
giving of $504,130; the Presbytery of Carlisle, with per member giving of 
$20.94. 
 
        -Churchwide Special Offerings:  the Presbytery of National Capital, 
with total giving of $380,986; the Presbytery of Santa Fe, with per member 
giving of $12.14. 
 
        -Other Specific Appeals:   the Presbytery of Pittsburgh, with total 
giving  of $195,072; the Presbytery of Shepards and Lapsley, with per 
member giving of $8.64. 
 
        -Presbyterian Women's Giving:    the Presbytery of Pittsburgh, with 
total giving of $167,158; the Presbytery of Eastern Oregon, with per member 
giving of $7.62. 
 
        -All General Assembly Mission Support:   the Presbytery of 
Philadelphia, with total giving of $1,096,051; the Presbytery of Donegal, 
with per member giving of $35.57. 
 
Nancy Borst 

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