Month: May 2022

When you have ambitions, there are usually three stages I’ve noticed. First, you are young, naive, and start your journey believing that you will absolutely reach your goal. Second, after progressing for a while, you soon realize that there is a chance of failure. This could be due to seeing others fail to achieve similar goals, or it could just be due to yourself maturing. Either way, you now know that this goal you seek will be a lot more difficult than you originally thought. 

This can be a scary thought for some, but it is important. Accepting that you can fail makes succeeding all the more triumphant, because when success requires your own effort, rather than being a guarantee, it emphasizes that YOU earned it. 

This was how I viewed my journey to becoming an Eagle Scout, and as I look back on it, I love to observe how my peers and I grew over these years. We made so many fun memories in events like the Pinewood Derby and the Scout House sleepovers and went on so many fun outings like sleeping on a 19th century sail-only warship, sailing on the Chesapeake, and whitewater rafting in the Poconos. But finding safe spots to pitch tents, going on high-adventure ropes courses, learning new cooking skills, and acquiring merit badges… that is only a fraction of how scouting affected me. To say that scouting influenced my life would be an understatement. 

I have been with scouts since I was a Tiger Cub – nearly a decade. It has most definitely played a role in shaping me as a person. Overall, I would say that scouting was a very positive experience for me (after all, I’ve stuck with it for all of these years), but… it’s a very complicated journey – physically, mentally, and emotionally. Becoming an Eagle Scout and actually finishing this seemingly out of reach goal feels nothing but utterly surreal. Even now, as I am writing this, I think to myself… “Wow… this actually happened… I actually made it this far…”. It’s a truly incredible milestone. 

If you can only take away one piece of information from this message, let it be this: It is impossible to accomplish certain things on your own. And that’s okay. Achieving a goal this large is something that you cannot do by yourself. I certainly couldn’t make it without the support of my friends and family, and there should be no shame in seeking out that support. Humans, like many other animals, have evolved to be a social species. We rely on each other to help each other. So help others, but more importantly, accept help from others!

If you know any boys or girls ages 5-17 who are interested in joining the Scouting program or learning more about the opportunities, here is some helpful information. Derry Church sponsors three scouting units: Pack 200 Cub Scouts (for boys and girls grades K-5), Troop 200 Scouts (for boys grades 6-12), and Troop 2200 Scouts (for girls grades 6-12). 

It’s always fun when you come across a line of scripture and it speaks right to you. Years ago I wrote down the following words as I was working on Sunday School lesson plans…

Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established. (Proverbs 16:3)

I often find myself reciting these when I hit a roadblock in life.  You know, those times when you think you have a great idea, one that will surely be loved, only to find that the timing for such an idea is all off.  Or maybe during times when circumstances are outside of your control and cause you to rethink and rework all your plans.  Or maybe you just don’t have all the pieces needed, but you don’t realize that and it makes you want to simply give up. No matter what the reason, these words bring me comfort and remind me to focus on what is most important: if I am committed to living and sharing the works of God and Jesus, I will be led to where I am needed.

As Sunday approaches,, I can’t help but give thanks for these words from Proverbs, “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.”  After years of questioning, trying, struggling and praying, I am excited to share that Art in the Grove will celebrate our very first art show for the congregation on Sunday in the Narthex! The Art in the Grove ministry was established in 2018 and has been a trying ministry to establish at Derry for many reasons, but one that Elizabeth Gawron and I are passionate about and knew could be amazing once we found the right starting place.

You might be asking yourself, “What is Art in the Grove?”  In 2016 Elizabeth Gawron visited the church one Tuesday evening and Debbie Hough and I were blessed to bump into her and talk briefly about the art that is all around our building. That conversation led to the creation of an art program here at Derry, called Art in the Grove. This program was created on three principals… Rooted, Giving and Growing.  In the beginning we thought this would be a wonderful new intergenerational ministry here at Derry and for the first summer it was.  We then tried a variety of different programming options from Friday Night Women’s Bible Study & Art to paint nights, but we struggled to find a true path to follow.

Fast forward to 2021 and our hope to rebuild some of Derry’s beloved programming after more than a year apart from one another. The programming team began talking about Terrific Tuesdays and children’s music and we quickly realized it would take more than choir practice to bring kids back together on Tuesday evenings. This led to the creation of K.I.C. Club (Kids In Christ Club). We decided to make our Tuesday evening programming a collection of Derry’s creative ministries, which includes music, creation and fellowship.  We invited Elizabeth Gawron, Claire Folts and Debbi Kees-Folts to join us, along with members of our inclusion team to help make this night enjoyable for all children. After a few weeks we realized we were creating something special. We had community friends joining with children of Derry Church and together they were creating and connecting in ways that were inspiring to us all.

We have loved watching each child become ROOTED in God’s love as they express their faith through their creations in art and music. We helped the children learn the joy of GIVING as they led us in worship with their music and we turned their artwork into cards to lift one another up.  And it will be amazing to see them GROWING over the coming years as they continue to learn more about God’s love through creative expressions.

Life will certainly present us with struggles, hard times, temptations and choices to make, but committing our work to God and Jesus will help us overcome and persevere.  I hope you will help us celebrate the years of patience, trials and errors, and determination this weekend as we display a beautiful collection of artwork made by many of the 1st-5th grade kiddos of the church.

Editor’s Note: On the first Thursday of each month, the eNews feature article highlights the mission focus for the month. In May we’re lifting up the Pentecost Offering, where your gift helps the church encourage, develop, and support its young people, and also address the needs of at-risk children. Derry Church will send 40% of its Pentecost Offering receipts to support the work of Joshua Group in Harrisburg. The remaining 60% is used to support children-at-risk, youth, and young adults through ministries of the Presbyterian Mission Agency. You may give online or write checks to Derry Church notated “Pentecost Offering.”

For over 20 years, the Joshua Group has been providing educational opportunities for at-risk, marginalized young people living in the Allison Hill community, within the Harrisburg School District. These students are at an increased risk of falling behind their peers in school readiness skills and cognitive development. Research demonstrates that children who do not read on grade-level by fourth grade have a much higher risk of dropping out of high school, or worse, ending up in prison. Reported year after year, the Harrisburg School District continues to be one of the lowest performing school districts in the state and is failing to prepare its students academically for a successful future. We are focused on education because the Joshua Group believes that education is the anti-poverty program that works.

In Harrisburg there is a huge disparity in the Reading and Math proficiency levels of low-income minority students living in Harrisburg and their more affluent peers in suburban school districts. The PA Department of Education continues to identify Harrisburg School District as performing in the bottom 5% in the state, as well as only graduating 69% of its students compared to a state average of 86% (2018-2019 school year) and a 3.3% dropout rate compared to a state average of 1.44% (2019-2020 school year). The most recent PSSA Report Card for the Harrisburg School District indicates only 12% of the students scored proficient in Math compared to a state average of 45% and only 23% scored proficient in Reading as compared to a state average of 62% (based on 2018-2019 school year). Our Joshua Group students have limited educational opportunities and lack the family resources necessary to increase their capacity to learn.

Over the last year, with the support of Derry Church and other community partners, we provided education services to over 200 at-risk youth. Our scholarship program is providing scholarships to more than 170 students to attend private school from kindergarten to 12th grade. Those students are required to attend the J-Crew After School Program and the Summer Learning program (K-9th grade) to support their learning objectives. Our preschool and kindergarten provide students access to free early learning programs which are crucial to educational development. Our outcomes remain stellar with our program participants.

• Our Joshua K-12 students earned a 97% promotion/graduation rate.
• A 95% or better attendance record was achieved by 92% of K-12 students.
• Today there are 25 former Joshua students either graduated from or enrolled in college. None would be there today without the Joshua Group’s educational programs.
• An improved academic performance demonstrated by a 2.0 or higher GPA was achieved by 86% of Joshua Group students.

On behalf of The Joshua Group and the students we serve, a heartfelt thank you for the continued support from Derry Church to help break the cycle of poverty through education.