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On Sunday, April 14, Dr. Riyad F. Nassar, President of Lebanese American University (LAU), will visit Westminster to thank us and First Presbyterian Church for our gifts to the Peace and Justice Education Program at LAU.

He will provide a “moment for mission” during the worship service and then lead a second hour program in the Assembly Room, following a light lunch. The program and lunch are free, but reservations are requested by calling the church office by April 8.

The history of LAU goes back to 1835 when American Presbyterian missionaries established the American School for Girls in Beirut. Since then, the school has undergone several transformations, from a high school program for girls to a coed university system with three campuses.

Westminster has had a long and productive relationship with LAU and Lebanon, thanks to Dr. Matt Elbow, a faculty member of the school when it was the Beirut College for Women. This connection has encouraged understanding of our different cultures, through workshops, educational materials, and exchanges of visits.

Recently, LAU established the Center for Peace and Justice Education to promote the creation of “a peaceful, just, democratic, and humane society” by raising awareness of the many issues that undermine peace, such as poverty, social and economic inequality, and lack of freedoms. By supporting the center, Dr. Nassar has said, we assist in creating “a climate of tolerance and a sense of global citizenship.”

Guest from Ghana

The Rev. Christian Ocloo, General Secretary of the Children’s Department of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, currently at Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, Va., will preach at Westminster on Sunday, April 28.

Lunch will be served at the beginning of the second hour, and then the Rev. Ocloo will lead a question-and-answer session on the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, and discuss some of the many issues it is facing today.

His visit to Albany that weekend is being coordinated by the Committee on Ghana which has been meeting at Westminster since last September and includes representatives from four other area Presbyterian churches and several native Ghanians now living in the area.

While in Albany that weekend, the Rev. Ocloo will also speak at a mission fair at First Presbyterian Church on Saturday at 3 p.m., and then attend a community potluck dinner at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Delmar Presbyterian Church.

The children of Westminster have been asked by the Rev. Ocloo to write a prayer, and their recitation of it will be videotaped and sent to the Ashaiman Central Presbyterian Church and a children’s home in Ghana.

Lectionary for Lord's Day

April 2002

7 2^nd Sunday of Easter

Acts 2:14a, 22-32; Ps. 16

I Pet. 1:3-9; John 20:19-31

14 3^rd Sunday of Easter

Acts 2:14a, 36-41;

Ps. 116:1-4, 12-19

I Pet. 1:17-23; Luke 24:13-35

21 4^th Sunday of Easter

Acts 2:42-47; Ps. 23

I Pet. 2:19-25; John 10:1-10

28 5^th Sunday of Easter

Acts 7:55-60; Ps. 31:1-5, 15-16

I Pet. 2:2-10; John 14:1-14

Volunteers Sought to Attend Conferences

Westminster’s Mission Committee will sponsor representatives to any of three peacemaking conferences being held in May and July.

The first, “Tackling Terrorism,” will be held at the United Nations in New York City from May 2 to 5.

The second conference, “Building Peace in a Violent World,” will take place from July 6 to 10 in Orange, California, and again from July 23 to 27 at the Montreat Conference Center in North Carolina.

For more information or to volunteer to attend one of the conferences, call Sheila Wrede at 478-0290.

Spring Music Events to Benefit Organ Fund

‘Vox Mix’ Scheduled

A program being called “Divas in Duo” will be presented in the Westminster sanctuary on Saturday, April 6, at 7:30 p.m.

It will feature soprano Sharon Stohrer and mezzo-soprano Susan Hermance Fedak performing classical, sacred and operatic duets, accompanied by Michael Clement on the piano. The program will include music of Bach, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Rossini, and Verdi.

All three performers are members of the faculty at the College of St. Rose. Susan Fedak is also Associate Minister of Music and Arts for Westminster

College Group to Sing Here, Housing Needed

The award-winning Marygrove College Chorale from Detroit, Michigan, will perform a free concert at Westminster on Wednesday, May 1, at 7:30 p.m., as part of its annual spring concert tour.

The 30-member choir, directed by Ellen Duncan, has toured extensively and won several international com-petitions.

Volunteers are needed to help prepare and serve an evening meal at the church that night, and to provide overnight accommodations for the college students.

Anyone who can help with the meal before the concert, or invite students to stay overnight following the concert, is asked to contact the church office. Those who hosted students at the last college concert found the experience delightful, according to Al Fedak, who urges as many as possible to participate this way–after enjoying the concert.

Next month, tenor Rand Reeves and baritone/countertenor Fred Schwartz will be joined by Ann-Marie Barker Schwartz on the violin and Alfred Fedak on the piano in a special “Vox Mix” program to be presented on Sunday, May 12, at 2 p.m., in the Westminster sanctuary.

The program will include classical, sacred, operatic, and popular songs, featuring the music of Purcell, Handel, Bach, Bizet, John Denver, and Leonard Cohen.

Admission to both events is free, and everyone is urged to come–and bring friends–to hear some inspiring and delightful music performed by these talented local musicians. Freewill offerings will be received to benefit Westminster’s Organ Restoration Fund.

Youth Recital to be Held

A recital featuring young musicians from Westminster is now being planned for June 9, following a Sunday morning worship service. Youngsters of any age who are studying music are invited to sing or play an instrument at the event.

To reserve a spot on the program or get further information, call Al Fedak at 436-8544 or 427-7744.

Focus on FOCUS

Food pantry

We are seeking a volunteer to help deliver Extra Helpings food orders to homebound individuals. Extra Helpings is our food buying club that has a monthly distribution, usually the fourth Thursday of the month, and pick-up is from the Albany Boys and Girls Club at 21 Delaware Avenue.

The food pantry will soon be purchasing computer equipment, and we are looking for volunteers to do data entry once the new system is up and running.

The Food Pantry Advisory Committee will meet on April 8, at 1:30 p.m., at Congregation Beth Emeth.

Breakfast program

The breakfast program will end this season on April 11. Our heartfelt thanks go to the many volunteers who sustain this vital program and the Westminster congregation for continuing to provide hospitable space. Since we opened last November, 5,369 hot breakfasts and 4,102 lunches have been provided to our neighbors in need.

School Supplies Project

Last year FOCUS conducted a school supply drive that was overwhelmingly supported by our churches. A total of 145 packets were prepared and distributed to low income children in our neighborhoods. Please call the FOCUS office if you are interested in participating in the project for the next school year.

Economic justice event

FOCUS is pleased to co-sponsor a free breakfast on Wednesday, April 10, at 8:30 a.m., at Emmanuel Baptist Church. The guest of honor will be Barbara Garson, author of “Money Makes the World Go Round: One Investor Tracks Her Cash through the Global Economy from Brooklyn to Bangkok and Back.”

The Capital District Labor-Religion Coalition will host the breakfast for clergy, labor, and community representatives. Ms. Gerson’s subject is international investment, ethics and social responsibility.

Pen Pal Program Expands

Westminster youth now have six names of potential Ghanaian pen pals. Committee member Kenneth Dako, from Hearts of the Father, was in Ghana in February and visited the home of Jack and Kyle Bossung’s pen pal. He confirmed that the package sent to him by the Bossungs (delivered through a relative of Professor Kwadwo Sarfoh, a Ghanaian Committee member), was received.

Five Ghanaian youth have not responded yet to their WPC pen pals. Locating pen pals via the Ashaiman Central Presbyterian Church (a potential partner church known to the Rev. Christian Ocloo) will be discussed by the committee at its April 28 meeting. Contacts for the Westminster pen pal program are Alexandra Frye and Nicholas Scaptura.

Group to Present Concert

The Capitol Hill Choral Society, which has been in residence at Westminster this year, will present a concert on Saturday, April 20, at 8 p.m., at Westminster.

The choral group is directed by Neil Keen. The concert will feature choral works of George Frederic Handel.

Tickets will be available at the door.

Special African Service Scheduled for June

At the request of the Committee on Ghana, the Rev. Sandra L. Hanna is arranging for a special African worship service to be hosted by Westminster in early June.

The lead musician will be Rodan Ngando, with whom Ms. Hanna has worked before in many settings.

Mr. Ngando sings and plays drums, has a group that sings at the Basilica in Minneapolis, and also has a career as a professional musician in Canada.

Area residents who have taken part in previous African worship services will be asked to participate. Anyone interested in participating, or who can recommend participants, is asked to call Ms. Hanna.

Deck the Walls...

The Arts Ministry of Westminster is embarking upon an inventory of the artwork in the church. Among the many prints and original paintings now decorating the walls and halls of the church house are several whose origin in unknown. Anyone who knows where a particular picture came from, is asked to contact Arts Minister Al Fedak.

Many of these works will soon be re-matted and re-framed, to be shown to best advantage to all art lovers

Interim Pastor.................... Sandra Lee Hanna

Parish Associate.............. James R. Thompson

Minister of Music and Arts.... Alfred V. Fedak

Associate Minister of Music and Arts.... Susan Hermance Fedak

Editor................................. Ann O. Treadway

Administrative Secretary........... Nancy J. Sokil

News deadline: 15^th of preceding month. Contributions welcome.