Currently, eight churches are participating in this annual event:

• Mebane Presbyterian
• Mebane First Baptist
• Mebane United Methodist
• Hawfields Presbyterian
• Agape
• Grace Reformed Baptist
• Crosslink Community Church
• St. Marks Mebane

To win the challenge we must have the most participants and or the most miles covered. We must have a report of the number of participants from our church no later than April 3. Please contact me if you are interested.

The Kickoff will be April 6, 9:00am at the Mebane Arts Center. Participants should come dressed to walk or run.

Our participants will report their mileage to me weekly between the kickoff and the end of the challenge on June 2. The ending ceremony will be June 8, at the Farmers Market in Mebane. I must have mileage from participants on Sunday of each week.
If you ride a bike or use other forms of exercise, contact me for conversion numbers. One need not be a member of our church to participate. Please call your aunt, co-worker, brother, child, friend or anyone else and invite them to walk for Mebane Presbyterian Church.

The prizes are $250.00 each for the most participants and the most miles walked/run/etc. When we win (positive thinking), the money will be given to a charity of our choice.
This is a fantastic way to meet people, get healthy and enjoy the great outdoors. If you would like to start a group (i.e., mothers with strollers, a Sunday school class, dog walkers, teenagers or whatever) contact me with the information.

Mebane Walks has three scheduled, lead walks, if you wish to participate in these: Tuesday and Thursday at 6:30 at the lighted sign for the bowling alley and on Saturday morning at 9. You are free to choose the number of miles you will walk. My dog (the Hulk) and I plan to be there. Pull your walking shoes out of the closet, dust them off and start practicing! I look forward to seeing you soon.
 

Dorothy McCoy

drmccoy86@aol.com

mw_boc_conversion_chart_list

“One my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; to help other people at all times, to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight.”

I am hopeful that all former scouts and the current ones are seeking to live by these words.

In the Fall of 2012 the troop was thrilled to honor Joshua Tyre with the Eagle Scout Award, the highest honor for a youth. Joshua’s project was to build an after-hours collection box for Loaves and Fishes. Go by and drop off any of your extra food items, any time, the door is always open.

We also participated in a backpacking trip in the Doughton Park Recreation area, just below the Blue Ridge Parkway near Sparta, NC. This trip was highlighted with a day hike up the Basin Creek Trail with numerous stream crossings, sightings of chimneys and home foundations from the late 1800s. Seems a flood during 1916 wiped out several in this community. The scenic views of waterfalls were very relaxing.

So far in 2013 we have participated in the annual “Scouting for Food” service project, where nearly 700 canned items were collected for Loaves and Fishes Food Ministry. Recently we began work on the Cooking Merit badge and took a 10 mile hike in the Eno River State Park.

Our upcoming events include:

April 26-28 – Camping at Carolina Zipline and Canopy Tours. We will also do some hiking in Hanging Rock State Park.

April 29 – Webelos Crossing over Ceremony

May 6 – Order of the Arrow Elections

May 10-11 – Camping at Chockley’s and Cycling on American Tobacco Trail in Durham.

May 20 – Spring Honor Court

June 16-22 – Summer Camp

If interested in joining us send us an email or come to one of our meetings, Monday nights at 7:30 – 9 pm.

Yours in Scouting,

Ivan Tyre, Scoutmaster Troop 43

Structure
The Team is accountable to the Session
The Team will meet monthly and report to the Ministry Council at least quarterly
The Team Leader is appointed by the Session for a two year term
The Pastor is an ex-officio member

Primary Responsibilities:
Plan and oversee all worship services
Oversee the music ministry of the church
Oversee Pulpit Assistants
Provide and care for all communion supplies, candles and paraments
Prepare the elements for communion and organize elders for serving
Oversee the Ushering Team
Oversee the acolyte program
Plan occasional prayer vigils in coordination with the Prayer Team
Train and equip team members for ministry growth and future leadership
Administrative tasks including but not limited to:
- Verify and approve invoices received for the Worship Ministry
- Develop and implement policies and procedures related to worship.
- Prepare the annual Worship Ministry Plan and budget in alignment with church’s vision statements and goals

.

In June we participated in our annual summer camp at Cherokee Scout Reservation just south of Yanceyville. We had 20 young men taking merit badges ranging from Astronomy to Wildlife (actually Fish and Wildlife). We earned the “Troop of the Week” award which consisted of several competitions including camp cleanliness, a gateway pioneering project, participation in the “Red-neck games” (think tossing toilet seats as horseshoes, and eating moon pies and you have the idea), a scavenger hunt, which we won, and taking home the prize for best main meal during the Scoutmaster’s competition – two years running now by the way!

In July, we took at 2-day canoe trip down the Dan River, camping over-night at Dan River Campgrounds (very nice place for your families that like camping). There had been some recent rains so the river was up and running swiftly with a few class 2 rapids, a size that can and did swamp a canoe. Not to worry wet scouts do dry out! The food was great with foil packs and pineapple upside down cake (which may be entered into the dessert competition next year). The Dan River will be one of those places we return to again next spring.

In August we climbed the highest peak east of the Mississippi – Mount Mitchell. We camped at Black Mountain Campground’s group site. Setting up in the dark is getting to be a habit for us with these mountain trips, but the guys are getting pretty proficient at it. We entered with warnings that there had been bear activity the previous weekend at the campground and even had some issues on the trial earlier in the summer. Yogi really loves it when humans are around since it is easy pickings for them. The hike was the hardest these young men (old ones too) had done in a long while. We covered 11.5 miles with it seeming like it was uphill the whole trip. I can tell you there is very little flat ground on the way up—whew! We did get a “visitor” on Saturday night, but not in our campsite. Seems some other campers left the chain off the dumpster and a bear did some diving and threw garbage out everywhere. A “Good Turn” was in order, so the whole troop pitched in to get the mess cleaned up (without the Adults asking them to do it by the way).

Our upcoming events include: A camping/ hiking trip to Linville Falls in September 22-23, the Alamance District Camporee in October, a backpacking trip (tbd) in November and a winter campout at Stone Mountain in December.

If you know of any young man (11 -18 years old) that is looking for adventure come join us. They may just learn a bunch along the way too.

Children in grades K-5 are invited to attend our Sunday School.  Children in grades K-5 gather in room (L-1) in the basement of the Sanctuary Building at 9:45 (be punctual parents!) to take attendance and sing some songs. They are then divided into two groups, K-2nd and 3rd-5th for Bible lessons and should be picked up by parents in their Sunday school rooms prior to worship.

Another scouting year has begun at MPC with the anniversary of our 65th year of chartering a scout unit. We began the celebration weekend with a distribution of collection bags for the annual food drive entitled “Scouting for Food” and subsequently picked up bags filled with 718 lbs of food the following weekend. During the morning worship service on February 5th the religious awards of “God and Family” were distributed to Michael Holmes and Judson Huey and “God and Church” to Jacob Anthony and Joshua Tyre. Troop 43 survived the coldest weekend of the year with temperatures hovering in the low 20s. Lastly, several Webelos scouts earned their Arrow of Light award and crossover to the troop during the annual Blue and Gold banquet.

March Update:

Members of Cub Pack and Troop 43, nearly 70 people, experienced the thrill of “camping out” over the March 10-12th weekend on a WWII aircraft carrier, the USS Yorktown harbored at Patriot’s Point near Charleston SC. The weekend was filled with tours of every level of the carrier including the flight deck and hangar bays that hold 25 historical naval aircraft. Sleeping in the birthing quarters, eating in the mess hall, starting the aviation merit badge and finally taking a evening ghost tour of Charleston proved exhilarating for most campers. The weekend also included a fireworks show in honor of Girl Scouting’s 100th anniversary.

What Is Happening?
After a long process of prayerful discernment, Mebane Presbyterian Church has decided to seek dismissal from the Presbyterian Church USA in order to join another Presbyterian Denomination.

Our session has requested to begin the process as specified in the Salem Presbytery Dismissal Policy with a letter sent February 23, 2012. Acknowledgement of receipt of the letter was received February 28, 2012. The next step in the dismissal procedure is that the Presbytery, through its Council, shall appoint a “Conciliation Team” and visitation will be offered.

February 18, 2013 Update

On February 12 Salem Presbytery voted to approve the terms of dismissal that had been agreed upon by the Resolution Team and our session. Our congregation voted to approve these terms on January 27, 2013. We have now officially been dismissed to the Evangelical Presbyterian Church! A special service will be planned when our congregation will be received into the Evangelical Presbyterian Church.

January 27, 2013 Update

Our congregation voted today on the terms of dismissal from the PC(USA). The chairman of the Resolution Team was present and spoke to the congregation before the vote was taken. A quorum was present and the percentage to approve the terms of dismissal was 90%.

January 22, 2013 Update

There will be a congregational meeting following an abbreviated worship service on January 27, 2013 to vote on the terms of dismissal from the PC(USA). The terms have been agreed upon by the session and the Resolution Team from Presbytery.

December 4, 2012 Update

The session met with the Resolution Team and dismissal terms were agreed upon. These terms need to be approved by the Council before being voted on by the congregation.

November 27, 2012 Update

On November 27, 2012, session met with the Resolution Team from Presbytery. We discussed the next steps will involve finalizing the terms of dismissal. Once these terms are agreed upon, the congregation will need to vote on them at another congregational meeting. Because of a recent decision of the Permanent Judicial Commission of the General Assembly, the Resolution Team is required to take into account the property values of a church, the per capita giving, and giving to missions as part of the discussion for terms of dismissal. We discussed the years we have belonged to Presbytery, the estimated tax values of our property, our current budget, and our financial concerns going into 2013. Financial settlements were not discussed at this meeting. Session was asked to bring a proposal to a called session meeting on December 4 when we will meet with the Resolution Team again.

October 23, 2012 Update

The application for transitional membership in the Evangelical Presbyterian Church has been sent in.

October 22, 2012 Update
The congregation of Mebane Presbyterian Church voted to dismiss from the PC(USA) and to affiliate with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church at a congregational meeting on October 21, 2012, following an abbreviated worship service. 84.3% of the congregation voted in favor of the dismissal. We hope to hear from the Resolution Team soon to begin the process of negotiating the terms of dismissal.

September 10, 2012 Update
There will be additional informational meetings on Oct. 7 and Oct. 14 at 4 pm in the sanctuary in case you are unable to attend on Sept. 30. Letters have been mailed to church members on the active roll informing them of the upcoming meetings.

September 9, 2012 Update
The Conciliation Team from Presbytery has advised session that the congregation should have one resolution on which to vote on Oct. 21 – to dismiss from the PC(USA) and affiliate with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. This resolution is in keeping with Salem Presbytery’s dismissal policy which states that a congregation can be dismissed from the Presbytery but only to another Reformed body. Please contact session if you have questions.

August 31, 2012 Update
Representatives from the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC) will speak at an informational meeting on Sunday, September 30 at 4 pm in the sanctuary. Everyone is welcome to come. There will be a time for questions and answers.

August 28, 2012 Update
The session approved having a congregational meeting on Sunday, October 21, 2012 following the 11:00 worship service. The worship service that day will be abbreviated. The congregation will be voting on whether to dismiss from the PC(USA) and whether or not to affiliate with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC).

August 17, 2012 Update
Our session was invited to attend a meeting on August 16 to hear representatives from the EPC. Four elders were able to be present. The question and answer session was helpful.

August 1, 2012 Update
A Conciliation Team from Presbytery met with the session and our Denominational Issues Task Force on July 31. The majority of the meeting was spent discussing what had brought us to the point of wanting to be dismissed form the PC(USA). Session discussed its recommendation to affiliate with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. Our church will need to vote at some point on whether or not to be dismissed from the PC(USA) and which reformed denomination with which to affiliate. The Conciliation Team was helpful in recommending the next steps to take in the dismissal process.

July 11, 2012 Update
Presbytery has contacted the session. A Conciliation Team will be coming to our July stated session meeting on July 31. Members of our denominational issues task force have been invited to meet with us at that time. Please be in prayer for this meeting.

June 27, 2012 Update
Session is still waiting to hear from the Conciliation Team regarding the next step in the dismissal process. Please contact session members if you have any questions or concerns.

May 22, 2012 Update
On 5-22-12 session voted to recommend to the congregation that we affiliate with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC). At some point, the congregation will vote whether or not to be dismissed from the PC(USA) to another reformed denomination. The church will then need to decide on which denomination with which to affiliate. Session is waiting to hear from the Conciliation Team.

May 1, 2012 Update
As of May 1, 2012, the Session has not yet been contacted by the Conciliation Team. Information regarding dismissal is also available for checkout in the church library. Please contact session members if you have any questions or concerns.June 27, 2012 Update

The Issues At Hand
There are several key issues that are driving this decision.  As was addressed in the recent presentation given to church members, while there are certain topics which are media hot-button issues, the simplest explanation is that the PC(USA) has moved away from its Biblical, Reformed foundations in a way that we believe creates a theological gap that is impossible for us, as a congregation, to bridge.

Big Questions
Dismissal is a difficult process, and there are lots of questions about how it affects us as members, how it affects our staff members, and how it affects their benefits.  We have a few documents that we hope will address your concerns.

Do you have questions about the dismissal process?
Do you have questions about Salem Presbytery's dismissal policy?
Do you have questions about what will happen to our teaching elders?
Do you have questions about pensions held by the PCUSA?

Where Will We Go?
The Task Force has recommended that Mebane Presbyterian Church affiliate with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, a denomination that is aligned with Mebane Presbyterian's theological beliefs, mission outreach, vision, and calling to fulfill the Great Commission.  There are other denomination options that we may also consider.

Other Resources
There are other resources on the web available for you to research this issue, the denominations involved, and the affects it will have on our church.

Presbyterian Church (USA)
Evangelical Presbyterian Church
Presbyterian Church in America
Evangelical Covenant Order of Fellowship Presbyterians

Other sources

The Layman
The PC(USA) 2012: How We Got Here
Eight Leaders Urge Congregations to Rethink Leaving

A native of Franklin, NC. Jason is an English Teacher at Providence Grove High School in Randolph County.  He worked as a lifeguard and youth worker before earning his Bachelor of Science degree in education at Western Carolina University. He and his wife, Megan, reside in Whitsett, NC. Jason has been at MPC since February, 2012.

You can contact Jason at youth@mebanepresbyterian.org

The dynamic 27-year-old comes to Mebane Presbyterian with an impressive background in teaching, ministry and missions, as well as an intense interest in guiding young Christians.

Beginning Feb. 19, Jason will assume oversight of junior high and senior high school youth. Working with parental assistants, he will strive to strengthen the Church’s youth programs.

His task is to maintain a balanced program of spiritual, physical and social growth. Among his responsibilities will be the Youth Groups, Youth Sunday School and Vacation Bible School.

“My goal as the youth leader will be two-fold,” Jason said following his selection. “I want students to form their beliefs Biblicaly and understand why they believe the way they do, and I want them to implement their beliefs practically by learning how to share and minister to others.”

“I have many ideas of ways to accomplish those two goals that include Bible studies, weekend activities, ministry work trips, and spiritual growth retreats,” he added.

Pastor Jeff said, “We are very excited to have Jason join the leadership team here at Mebane Presbyterian.”

“Jason has a solid background in Christian ministry and brings a wide variety of experiences to the church from his high school teaching and his work as a youth minister & assistant to the pastor,” Pastor Jeff said. “We look forward to growth and outreach to the community under his direction.”

Since 2010, Jason has been teaching high school English at Providence Grove High School in Climax, N.C. His extensive experience with young people also includes a stint as summer youth leader at Sharon Baptist Church in Reidsville, acting as a part-time youth director of Bethany Baptist Church in Hartwell, Georgia and serving as a cabin leader at Camp Caraway, a Christian boys summer camp in Asheboro.

A native of Franklin, N.C. Jason became an Eagle Scout and worked as a lifeguard before earning a Bachelor of Science degree in education at Western Carolina University. His and wife Megan, a graduate student in physical therapy at Winston Salem State University, now live in Whitsett.

Jason said he has “always felt a strong desire to work with teenagers and children,” and he said, “I feel that God is continually grooming me for that type of ministry.”

“Recently, I have realized that I strongly miss working with teenagers in a youth group atmosphere; as a youth leader I can speak to students about my relationship with Christ in addition to modeling it for them…,” he elaborated. “I feel that God has brought me to this point with a plan in mind, and I look forward to discovering what that plan is.”

As he prepared to take over the reins of the MPC youth programs, Jason said “one of my primary goals will be to have fun but for us to also work together to discover what it means to be a Christian, and what that looks like in the lives of teenagers today.”