On Sunday, September 9, Westminster will celebrate Homecoming Sunday with a Kirkin’ O’ the Tartan.   From the church steps at 10 a.m., the pipes and drums of the Schenectady Pipe Band will call the congregation to gather.  At 10:15, the pageantry will continue into the church with a parade of family tartans.  During the service, the Scottish heritage of the Presbyterian Church will be remembered in hymn, psalm, sermon, and creed.  Following worship, the pipes will lead us downstairs to the Assembly Room for a reception featuring Scottish shortbread.

     Since the Kirkin’ O’ the Tartan was first  celebrated  at  Westminster  in 1979, we have been honored with many outstanding guest preachers.  This year we will welcome the Rev. Dr. Hugh Nevin, who served as our Interim Pastor from November 1982 to October 1983.  While he has held many other pastoral positions throughout New York State, Dr. Nevin’s special calling has been campus ministry.   He has served as Protestant Chaplain at both Union College and the University at Albany.  Now officially retired and living in Schenectady, Dr. Nevin and his wife, Vaughn, spend time with family and  traveling the world.  At the Kirkin’ service Dr. Nevin will be wearing the Lindsay Tartan, the official tartan of Schenectady.

     Despite the emphasis on our denomination’s Scottish Presbyterian heritage, the Kirkin’ was actually an American invention.  During World War II, the Rev. Peter Marshall introduced this service at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. while he was serving as Chaplain of the United States Senate.  Rich in color and pageantry, in the dark days of the War the sense it evoked of family, history, and tradition with our Allies across the Atlantic was especially comforting.  The Kirkin’ must have hit a deeper chord, too, because over the years its popularity has spread throughout the world — even to Scotland!

     The Kirkin’ O’ the Tartan is primarily a service of worship and praise focusing on the Church as the family of God.  That must be the key to its universal appeal, the unity and support we all feel as brothers and sisters in Christ.  So…whether or not you have a drop of Scottish blood, make your way to Westminster on September 9^th.  You’ll hear the pipes from blocks away!  Bring a friend to join the celebration and come “home” to Westminster!  You’ll be greeted with “a hundred thousand welcomes!” or, in Gaelic, “Cead Mille Failte!”

Susan Filipp

     The Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC) met for the first time on August 16.

     Members of the Committee are Art Buell, John Bossung, Cindy Dwyer, Tim Gordon, Wilma Jenssen, Lawrie Lierheimer, Julie Mader, Lynne McKee, Tom McPheeters, Virginia Moore, Anne Older, Ben Wilhelm, and Sheila Wrede.

     The search process could take a year or longer and will be guided by two Albany Presbytery representatives.  The committee will be meeting on a weekly basis and  will be using the results of the Percept ReVision document to complete the Church Information Form (CIF).  This will provide a profile of who we are and help us find a minister to lead us into the future.

     Questions may be directed to any committee member.          Lynne McKee

From the Church Records

Death: 7/11/01  Robert W. Raymond

Directory changes:

Eve Ryan

66 Willett Street

Albany, New York 12210

Dorotha Conklin

2256 Burdett Avenue #125B

Troy, New York 12180

271-1866

Elizabeth Dunning

Guilderland Center Nursing Home

Main Street

Guilderland Center, New York 12085

Lectionary for Lord's Day

September 2001

 2    22^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Jer. 2:4-13; Ps. 81:1, 10-16

    Heb. 13:1-8, 15-16; Luke 14:1, 7-14

 9   23^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Jer. 18:1-11, Ps. 139:1-6, 13-18

    Philem. 1-21; Luke 14:25-33

 16   24^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Jer. 4:11-12, 22-28; Ps. 14

    I Tim. 1:12-17; Luke 15:1-10

 23   25^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Jer. 8:18-9:1; Ps. 79:1-9

    I Tim. 2:1-7; Luke 16:1-13

 30 26^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Jer. 32:1-3a, 6-15; Ps. 91:1-6, 14-16

    I Tim. 6:6-19; Luke 16:19-31

All Ages Invited

To Ghana Program

     An African dinner and intergenerational program on Ghana will be held on Saturday, September 15, from 5 to 8 p.m., in the Assembly Hall.

     The program will begin with group activities at 5 p.m., followed by dinner and Ghanian songs at 5:30 p.m., and then a slide presentation on her recent trip to Ghana by Linda Crawford, Associate Presbyter of the Presbytery of Albany, at 6:30 p.m.  Other recent visitors to Ghana, including Rachel Otty, are also expected to speak about their experiences. 

     The dinner, which is free and open to the public, will feature African recipes cooked by Marie McClumpha and Valerie Shanley.

     Diane Bossung will be in charge of activities for the children.  Other members of the planning committee are Julie Mader, Marianne Rings, Carolyn Smith, and Lois Wilson.

     At the end of the program, there will be a discussion of ongoing ministry efforts with the Ghana Presbyterian Church and possible future trips there.  Reservations may be made by calling the church office.

Youth To Report On Mission Trip

     Are you curious to find out what five youth–and youthful– Westminsterites did on their summer vacation?  Then please plan to stay after worship on September16 to listen to five different stories of how the GROUP work camp trip to West Virginia changed our lives and those for whom we labored.

     You will also see a slide show and get to ask questions about our work camp experience.  (Maybe you will want to accompany the group next year!)  We'll see you there!

Sue Fedak

Treadway Reading Set for Sept. 29

     Jessica Treadway will read from her recently-published novel, “And Give You Peace,” on Saturday, September 29, at 7:30 p.m., in the Assembly Hall.  The reading is being sponsored by the Christian Education Committee.  Dessert and coffee will be served, and the public is invited.

     Daughter of Ann Treadway of our congregation, Jessica teaches fiction writing at Emerson College in Boston and directs the graduate fiction writing program there. She is a graduate of Bethlehem Central High School in Delmar and the University at Albany and did her graduate study at Boston University.  She has also been a reporter for UPI and taught at Harvard and Tufts.

     She has also published a short story collection, “Absent Without Leave,” which is available in local libraries. Copies of the novel are now available in the church library, by special arrangement of the Christian Education Committee, for anyone who might like to borrow  it before the reading.

     On Sunday, September 30, at 2 p.m., the Westminster Choir will perform, in concert, the Requiem by John Rutter.  The choir will be directed by Sue Fedak and accompanied by organ and chamber ensemble.  Instrumentalists will include Kristin Bacchiocchi, flute; Karen Hosmer, oboe; Petia Kassarova, cello;  John and Ian Antonio, percussion; and Al Fedak, organ.  Gene Marie Callahan will be the soprano soloist.

     This performance was to have taken place last June, but had to be rescheduled.  We are happy to be able to present this concert so early in the church’s program year, and to give the Westminster family and our local community the opportunity to hear this exquisite work.

     John Rutter’s Requiem is a work of great beauty and expressive power.  We encourage all our members to attend, and invite you to bring friends and family.  Admission is free, and a freewill offering will be received.

Al Fedak

Children’s Choir Invites Members

     "Praise God, praise God, all you little children!"

     Choir is starting on Saturday, September 22, at 9:30 a.m., for kids from 4 years old through sixth grade.

     We'll rehearse for four weeks and then plan to sing either on Saturday, October 20, and/or Sunday, October 21, as part of the celebration for the  Children's Sabbath Weekend.  So please come and invite a friend.  We'll join our happy voices together!

Ms. Fedak

Ding-a-ling!

     No, that's not the sound of the ice cream truck, but an invitation to join the Westminstrels Handbell Choir.   We will be starting practices on Monday, September 17, at 7:30 p.m.  If you can read music even slightly and like to laugh, bell choir has a place for you!

     Please speak with or call Sue Fedak for more information.  P.S. to regular members:  please let me know if you won't be able to join us in the fall.  I'll be looking for you, otherwise!

Bible Study Group Welcomes Newcomers

     A group of Westminster members will resume their Sunday morning Bible study sessions on September 16, at 9:15 a.m., in the church library.  New participants are invited.

          A small, informal group, those attending have a desire to “learn the word of God, discuss it, and understand it,” as one participant put it.

     The Book of James will be the first to be studied this fall, with the initial discussion to be led by Ada Linklater.

Isn’t AIDS Over?

            NO!  In the last five years there has been a 200 percent increase in the number of local residents diagnosed with AIDS.  Alarmingly, 51 percent of all new HIV infections in our country occur among people under 25.  The bottom line: we now have more people living with HIV/AIDS in the Capital Region than ever before.

     AIDS Walk 2001 offers us a way to respond to this epidemic.  On Sunday afternoon, September 30, more than 2,000 community-minded people will gather in Albany’s Washington Park in support of our local residents living with HIV/AIDS.  In its first four years this walk raised a cumulative total of more than $450,000. 

     Join us in this year’s walk.  Stand with persons living with HIV/AIDS and show them that you know AIDS isn’t over.  For more information contact Marianne Rings at 438-1280, and please let her know if you have already taken a sponsor sheet.

Second Stained Glass

Workshop Scheduled

     The stained glass workshop sponsored by Westminster’s Arts Ministry and led by Peter Leue on July 21, was a huge success!  Thirty-four people participated, many of them newcomers to Westminster. Immediately after the workshop, requests starting coming in for a second one – from people who were unable to attend the first, and from those who wanted to do more.

     Peter has agreed to offer a second workshop on Saturday, October 13, from 1 to 3:30 p.m.  Once again, this will be a basic introduction to the art and craft of stained glass. See the October Messenger for further details.

Al Fedak

Food Delivery Coordinator  Needed

     The FOCUS Interfaith Food Pantry is seeking a volunteer to schedule food

delivery drivers.  This person would be responsible for calling through a roster of volunteers willing to drive back and forth to the Regional Food Bank in Latham.  (The pantry has about 10 deliveries/pickups per month).

     Also, food delivery drivers are needed to pick up food orders and deliver them to the pantry.  Deliveries are bulky so volunteers must have a large vehicle (pickup truck, van or station wagon).

     Those interested may contact Deb Catozzi at 465-5161.

Food Pantry

     The FOCUS Interfaith Food Pantry welcomes new administrator Deb Catozzi.  Deb has been a long-time anti-hunger advocate and organizer in Albany and brings tremendous skills, resources and compassion to the position.  Please introduce yourself to Deb – she can be reached at the pantry during operation and has a desk at the FOCUS office.

Project Love

     More than 100 children participated in the seven-week day camp program at the Albany Boys and Girls Club. Thanks to so many of you, FOCUS was able to provide 29 camp scholarships for low-income children in our neighborhoods. So far, through your support, we raised close to $5,000. (Check out our website for the up-to-date amount).

FOCUS Summer Worship