The Trumpet September 2020 Volume 37 Issue 9

Firelands Presbyterian Church

2626 East Harbor Road

Port Clinton, Ohio 43452

419-734-6211

Fax 419-734-5411

www.firelandschurch.org

Rev. Mark Cooper, Pastor

Dave Moore, Clerk of Session

Musical Arts Series
Susan Larcey and Kay McIntosh, Musicians
The Canal Street String Band
Vicki Wheatly, Treasurer
Sunday, September 13, 2020
Janine Dress, at 3 PM – 4 PM
Administrative Assistant Lakeside Chautauqua
Steele Memorial Bandstand
Mark Owen, Custodian
With three voices, fifty-five strings, and a pair of cow
bones, The Canal Street String Band puts a brand-new
Table of Contents shine on some seriously fun old American music.

Committee News ................................... 2 Fiddle tunes....sea shanties....cowboy songs....canal

Session Highlights ................................. 2
Bistro 163 Announcement ...................... 3
Special Prayer ...................................... 3
ditties....mountain music....western swing...and
originals too, with banjo, fiddle, twin mandolins, string
bass, dobro, guitar, octave mandolin, assorted "pocket"
instruments, and three-part harmonies.

Pastor’s Page ........................................ 4

September Lectionary ............................ 5
September Celebrations &
Monthly prayer list ................................ 6
Calendar .............................................. 7
Annual Meeting Sunday
September 27
Our Annual meeting of the congregation will be following
Worship. Annual reports will be available Sunday
September20 for you to read to be prepared for the
meeting.

Worship Services Begin

at 10:30 AM on September
13!!!!
September 2020
Mission Committee
Your mission team has been busy organizing the
preschool equipment. The preschool/daycare facilities in
our community interested in looking at what they can
use are: Pathway Inclusion Center, Rainbow Acres and
Great Lakes Community Action Preschool.
We decided not to price the items but to post signs
saying "Donations Welcome. Thank You." Keith Grine,
who does our yard maintenance, has taken some items
from the playground. In payment he will give us a free
month of lawn service. A thank you note has been sent
to Keith. As things wind down and less is left, we will
contact Portage to see if they would like items to sell.
There are many books stored in the preschool room that
our congregation may like to take a look at for their
grandchildren or other children they know. If there is
interest in this, please let me know and we can set up a
mutual time for all interested to take a look (no more
than a few at a time however; masked!) Please either
text or call me if interested: 419-345-4140.
Thank you to those who graciously contributed to "Tools
for Schools." The Salvation Army does appreciate our
support.
Our next mission meeting is on September 1. The
proposed Mission Budget for 2021 has been sent to our
Treasurer.
Till next time, Ginny
Worship and Music Committee
There is just something about outdoor worship. I love
this verse from Revelations 3:6 "Are your ears awake?
Listen. Listen to the Wind Words, the Spirit blowing
through the churches." Outdoors it is easy to listen to
the Wind Words along with a few airplanes and
occasional thunder.
Again we can be thankful that our pavilion was built with
the encouragement of Pastor Bob Butcher. We are
thankful for Ed Bettendorf and his team of Elders, Dave
Moore and Tim Flora who help set up chairs and take
temperatures and John McIntosh, keyboard wrangler
extraordinaire.
This September the Firelands Folk will be returning on
September 6 and Susan Larcey will be presiding at the
keyboard on September 13th. Another note of thanks
for the way all of you are wearing masks with gracious
care for one another. In reading more literature about
the safety of singing, I discover that singing is still one
of the major suspects of spreading the virus. This is the
Page 2
main reason that musical theaters and operas are not
reopening. So as the choir director I can't believe I am
encouraging you to sing softly behind your masks.
We hope and pray that our wonderful weather will
continue through the month of September so that we
can continue to enjoy outdoor worship together.
Kay McIntosh
Highlights of Stated Session
Meeting August 11, 2020
 Session gave Mark approval to perform a small
wedding ceremony at Firelands Church (this
occurred on July 15th). The wedding was for
Courtney Austin Hudson and Theresa Christi
Jeremy (the service involved only 6 individuals).
 Session gave approval for our church to be used
for meetings of 10 or fewer. This is for
fellowship hall specifically and for church
members only. Social distancing must be
followed; chairs/tables must be cleaned
afterwards.
The Reservoir
On Sunday, August 16th, before the service, I talked
about a program of reflection that several of us are
using to learn more about the Holy Spirit. If any of you
are curious about this mysterious gift from God, you are
welcome to join us as we follow a self guided daily
devotional book called The Reservoir. This scripture
based program shares how we can discover the path of
prayer and meditation that Jesus took as he drew closer
to his Father.
The members of our group are discovering how the
early disciples learned from Jesus and how we can use
these daily practices to help us find peace and purpose
for our lives in these troubled times.
The group gathers monthly to share where we are on
our journey and to talk about ideas that have been
important to us along the way. Each person travels at
his or her own pace through the book and, as in life, we
all are in different places.
If you are interested in joining us or finding out more
about this opportunity, call or text me (John: 440-725-
1695) or (Kay: 440-725-1546) or reach us by email,
jkinbay@gmail.com.
John McIntosh, Elder Christian Nurture
September 2020 Page 3

Bistro 163 News

On Tuesday, August 4, 2020, Bistro 163 reopened its doors to the

Ottawa County community as a “pay it forward” restaurant. The
bistro is now open 5 days a week, Tuesday through Saturday,
serving fresh lunches from 11:00 until 2:00 PM. In collaboration
with the Ottawa County Health Department, reduced seating is
available inside the restaurant, and reservations are available for
small groups of 6 or less. Patrons may call in their orders for pickup
at (419) 734-9887. And, a Community Dinner is also being served
“drive-up style” from the side door on the second and fourth Monday
of each month, from 4:00 – 6:00 PM. The September dates for
dinner are September 14th and 28th.

Bistro 163 is very proud of our General Manager, Babs Klacik! She earned her degree
in Food/Hotel Management from Bowling Green State University, and began a career in
food service that spanned more than 40 years. She has managed Marina Del Isle, the
Brush Wellman cafeteria, the Tin Goose Diner, and now Bistro 163. Hospitality is truly
her passion, and has been a way of life for Babs. She found her niche in excellent
customer service, high quality food, and adhering to health and safety precautions. For
Babs Klacik, the restaurant industry has been more than just a job; it has also brought
her great joy.

And, we are just as proud of our new line cook, Daniel

Snyder. Dan has been a veteran volunteer at Bistro 163,
never missing a day while we gave away more than 22,000 free community dinners during
#feedtheneed. He donated his time and energy for the benefit of people in need in our
community, and we are delighted that he has chosen to stay on.

A Prayer As I Put On My Mask

Creator, as I prepare to go into the world,
help me to see the sacrament in the wearing of this
cloth-let it be "an outward sign of an inward grace"-a
tangible and visible way of living love for my neighbors,
as I love myself.
Christ, since my lips will be covered, uncover my heart,
in the crinkles around my eyes. Since my voice may be
muffled, help me to speak clearly, not only with my
words, but with my actions.
Holy Spirit, As the elastic touches my ears,
remind me to listen carefully-and full of care-to all those
I meet.
May this simple cloth be a shield and banner and each
breath it holds be filled with your love.
In your name and In that love, I pray.
May it be so.
May it be so.
Rev. Dr. Richard Bott,
moderator of the United Church wrote this prayer
September 2020 Page 4

Pastor’s Page

A few years ago some Christians were wearing bracelets with the letter, WWJD on them. They stood for, “What
Would Jesus Do?” People wore the bracelets, but I’m not sure they actually asked themselves that question before
they formed an opinion, took a certain action, voted, or whatever. You would have to think they didn’t, since a lot of
people were wearing those bracelets and the world didn’t seem to change appreciably because of it. It probably didn’t
change because even if people asked themselves that question the answer was usually something like, “Well, he’d go
ahead and do whatever it was I planned to do anyway, of course!” There are many, many stripes of Christians, people
claiming to follow Jesus, who see and do things in radically different ways. How can all of them claim to be followers
of the same teacher? I don’t know the answer to that, other than to say that we are all guilty of the same sin -
creating God in our own image rather than the reverse of that.

I have spent my whole life trying to understand, follow, and teach the Christian faith. Looking back on the beginning,
I think it all came out of a love for the church. I found the church to be a warm, loving place, full of wonderful, loving
people. Loving the church really didn’t have much to do with theology. That love for the church led me to preparing
for the ministry. It was only after starting off on that path that I became consumed with the effort to understand just
what it was I was doing. As hokey as it may sound, “Theology has been my life.” Still is, I guess. Some habits are
hard to quit.

The point of all this is, imagine my surprise after all these years, after all the schooling, all the reading and pondering
and analyzing, to find that the whole thing turned out to be so incredibly simple. Dr. Michael J. Svigel is chair of the
department of theology at Dallas Theological Seminary, as conservative an institution as it is possible to find on this
particular planet. He said this:

“Theology 101: The question should never be, ‘Is this action leftist or

right-wing...liberal or conservative...socialist or capitalist?’ The question

should be, ‘Does this action love my neighbor...look out for their interests

more than my own...manifest the fruit of the Spirit?’”

Being a Christian turns out to be so simple. It simply means, as the bracelets asked us to do, to act and love as Jesus
would. And what he would do is love. Jesus would look out for the well-being of God’s children, his own brothers and
sisters. Looking back, it seems all the theologizing turned out to be a distraction. Wow.

Mark
September 2020 Page 5

September Lectionary
First reading Alternative Second reading Gospel
Readings

September 6, 2020 Exodus 12:1-14 Ezekiel 33:7-11 Romans 13:8-14 Matthew 18:15-20
Proper 18 (23)
Fourteenth Sunday after Psalm 149 Psalm 119:33-40
Pentecost

September 13, 2020 Exodus 14:19-31 Genesis 50:15-21 Romans 14:1-12 Matthew 18:21-35
Proper 19 (24)
Fifteenth Sunday after Psalm 114 Psalm 103:(1-7),
Pentecost or 8-13
Exodus 15:1b-11, 20-
21

Holy Cross Numbers 21:4b-9 1 Corinthians 1:18-24 John 3:13-17

September 14, 2020
Psalm 98:1-5
or
Psalm 78:1-2, 34-38

September 20, 2020 Exodus 16:2-15 Jonah 3:10-4:11 Philippians 1:21-30 Matthew 20:1-16
Proper 20 (25)
Sixteenth Sunday after Psalm 105:1-6, 37-45 Psalm 145:1-8
Pentecost

September 27, 2020 Exodus 17:1-7 Ezekiel 18:1-4, Philippians 2:1-13 Matthew 21:23-32
Proper 21 (26) 25-32
Seventeenth Sunday after Psalm 78:1-4, 12-16
Pentecost Psalm 25:1-9
September 2020 Page 6

September
Celebrations

Doris Rowbotham 9 Sean Black 24 John and Ginny McCook 7

John Pugh 9 Marilyn Cromer 24 Jim and Heather Stouffer 7

Barb Kroll 13 Dave Moore 30 Dave and Sally Wahlers 21

Todd Jagucki 16 Shirley Stary and Bill Rodwancy 29

Rosemarie Shinde 21 Mary and Dave Caracci 29

Evan Viery 22 Is your birthday or anniversary missing or incorrect? Contact the

office so we can make the changes to the list!
Ed Bettendorf 23

Ongoing Prayer Concerns

For those receiving medical treatment or therapy, or undergoing medical tests:

Debbie Ballinger, Dan Barlow, Jenatha Boose, Phyllis Crisp, Harold, Kim Hudson, Diane Jordan, Joseph
Kakareka, Craig Kaiser, Stephen Kessler, Angjuli Lele, John McLaughlin, Ele McLaughlin, Simon Mercurio,
Michael, John Prestbo, Bob Reynolds, Sarah, Sue, Jack Schmidt, Jeff Thompson, Justin Waugh, Ann Wagnitz.

For those facing the infirmities of age:

Jeanne Black, Jane Kaiser, Jamie Petty, Betty Rodwancy, Bob Rodwancy, and Irene Wilson

For those seeking freedom, security, and hope:

Bobby, Justin, Sara, Val, and CASA Families

For those in the service of our country:

SMGT Jeff Bundy, Steven Coffin, FBI; Brant Crandall, USA; Cole Daniel, USCG; Matthew Devries, USAF;
Stu Gliwa, USMC; Aaron Haynes, USA; Andrew Hogue, USA, Ken Lewis USA Army Chaplain, Ted Livingstine,
USMC; Sanju Shinde, USMC.

For those in mission for our Lord:

Esther Wakeman, our co-mission worker in Thailand:

The National Presbyterian Church of Mexico, Berea Presbytery.

To add or delete someone from this list, please contact Janine Dress in the church office.
September 2020 Page 7

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2 3 4 5
1:30 Mission 10-12 Office
Committee Open
3:30 -5 Dulcimer
Group @ Pavilion
6 7 8 9 10 11 12
9:30 Worship 9 Quilting @ 10-12 Office
at the Pavilion Wilson’s Open
3:30 -5 Dulcimer
Group @ Pavilion
13 14 15 16 17 18 19
10:30 Worship 10 Pastoral Friends 3:30 -5 Dulcimer 10 Caregivers 10-12 Office
at the Pavilion @ Pavilion Group @ Pavilion Support Grp @ Open
3 MAS Concert 11:30-1:30 pm 7 Session Pavilion
@ Lakeside Office Open 1 Reservoir Grp
4-6 Bistro163 Drive @Pavilion
up Community
Dinner
20 21 22 23 24 25 26
10:30 Worship Office Closed 9 Quilting @ 10-12 Office
at the Pavilion Wilson’s Open n
3:30 -5 Dulcimer
Group @ Pavilion

27 28 29 30
10:30 Worship 11:30-1:30 pm 3:30 -5 Dulcimer
at the Pavilion Office Open Group @ Pavilion
11:30 Annual 4-6 Bistro163 Drive
Meeting up Community
Dinner