OPMH E Gram (Nov 18, 2007)

Meeting House Worshipers: Hear Ye, Hear Ye!

This is Youth Sunday involving the following participants (in approximate order of appearance):

Janet Yieh, Jody Frye, Mollie Lane, Elizabeth Anderson, Rachel Hass, Annie Trimber, Nora Biette-Timmons, Susan Clare Duncan, Cate Elmore, Katherine Gardner, Eleanor Kenimer, Allyson Gibson, Meredith Poe, Julia Peterson, Meredith Davidson, Matt Comey, Katherine Davidson,

Morning Services (8:30 and 11:00 am)

Scripture

Exodus 3:1-12

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Meditation

Hymns

Come, Now is the Time to Worship

To Everything There is a Season

Kum ba Yah

O Come, All Ye Faithful

Lord, I Lift Your Name on High

Other Special Music

Prelude:                Antiphon V:  How Fair and How Pleasant Art Thou – Marcel Dupre

Introit                         Share the Well

                                    Special hymn on bulletin insert

Anthem:                My Lord! What a Morning – Sue Ellen Page

Communion                Antiphon III:  I Am Black but Comely, O Ye Daughters of Jerusalem – Marcel Dupre

Postlude:               Toccata in E minor – Johann Pachelbel

Coffee Hour: Join us in Fellowship Hall after the 11:00 am service. The host this week is the Confirmation Class and their sponsors.

Christian Education. Sunday morning education classes and Bridges to Worship resume this Sunday

Children’s Education: Classes for children, age 3 years through Grade 12 meet at 9:30 in the Education Building and Flounder House. Children in grades 1-5 continue their study of Jonah – check the board in the Education Building entrance for your grade’s room assignment.

Looking Ahead: In the month of December, all of our children’s classes will focus on the nativity story. To enrich our children’s experience we are assembling a “museum” of crèches and nativity scenes. They will be on display in Room 26 on Dec. 2, 9, and 16. Children will tour the exhibit with a guide. If you have a nativity or crèche you are willing to share with us please contact Priscilla in the Church Office.

Adult Education

Wednesday Evening Bible Study: The Book of Acts, 7:30-8:30 pm, Flounder 1b, through Nov. 28.

Westminster Hall: The Gospel of Matthew, continues through Dec. 23.

Heritage Hall: “Practicing our Faith,” continues through Nov. 25.

Fellowship Hal: “Presbyterian 101,” a four-week study exploring our Reformed heritage, continues through Nov. 18.. This week’s discussion will explore our polity and form of church government.

Reformed Institute: Look on the web site for these special offerings.

Fellowship, Study, and Prayer Groups:

Youth: No Fellowship this Sunday evening. Next week: bring in your filled stockings; we will be packaging them during the Fellowship time, 5 to 7 pm.

The Fall series of Confirmation Classes concludes today. The youth participating include Elizabeth Anderson, Sally Day MacLeod, Margaret Kerr, Nina Pharis, Janet Yieh, Eleanor Kenimer, Nash Sanderson and Katherine Davidson. The Winter series will begin Feb. 3. If you know of any high school students who have not yet been confirmed and would like to join the class, please have them contact Priscilla.

20s/30s: This group is open to all in their 20s and 30s (married, single, members, visitors, friends). Join us Monday nights at 913 Oronoco Street at 7 pm. All are welcome! For more info., call Mike Campagna at 703-785-4736 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

First Sundays with the Stephen Ministers: An informal time of fellowship on the first Sunday of each month in the Elliot House Parlor. We welcome all who are experiencing loss or struggling to find joy in their lives to meet, one-on-one, with a Stephen Minister. Call Susan Grandy (703-780-4134 or 703.836.6701) if you have questions.

Please join the Celebration married couples group for Scottish Walk and their annual Christmas luncheon on Sat., Dec. 1. We will attend the church service at OPMH, have coffee at the McElveen’s (212 ½ S. Pitt St.), and watch the parade, followed by lunch at the Warehouse Restaurant in Old Town at 12:30. Reservations for lunch are necessary not later than Thurs., Nov. 29. Email Jean Rood at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 703.323.9503.

Calling all Scandihoovians! Join in a day of lefse-making in preparation for the holidays. We will take over the Fellowship Hall kitchen and break into teams to peel 20+ lbs of potatoes (depending on number of participating households), boil them, rice them, make lefse dough logs, enjoy a lunch of soup while the dough logs cool, then start rolling out and cooking the lefse until it is all made! This is a lot of fun in a group and everyone will go home with lefse to put in their freezer or consume as they choose. Call Lisa Anderson to RSVP and coordinate at 703.549.5609 or cell, 703.851.0189. Tentative date reserved on OPMH calendar is the Friday after Thanksgiving. If too many interested in joining in will be out of town that day, another date can be planned.

Mission

Stockings for Soldiers: Help our OPMH Youth send some Christmas cheer to soldiers in Iraq and and other overseas locations. Simply pick up a stocking from one of our youth after today’s service and stuff it with goodies for the holiday. A list of suggested items will be in each stocking. And don’t forget a Christmas card and personal note to let the troops know they are not alone. Children’s drawings are a real hit! Please return stockings to the church on Sun., Nov 18 or 25. Questions? Contact Cristy at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or Emily Oehler at 703.836.1625 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Thanksgiving Offering: Each year, the Meeting House receives five special offerings that support the larger work of the Presbyterian Church USA. The Thanksgiving Offering will be received on Sunday, Nov. 25, and goes to benefit several regional Presbyterian organizations that provide services for children in crisis: Edmarc Hospice for Children, Presbyterian Children’s Home of the Highlands, Presbyterian Homes & Family Services, and Volunteer Emergency Families for Children.

The Global Missions committee plans to organize another trip to Bay St. Louis, MS, April 13-19, to help First Presbyterian Church with their continued reconstruction efforts following Hurricane Katrina.  An information meeting for those interested in learning about this mission opportunity is scheduled for Jan. 13 following the 11:00 am service in Elliot House Library.

Join the No. VA AIDS Ministry at the inaugural Concert for Hope on Fri., Nov. 30 at 7:30 pm. The Concert for Hope is a musical celebration in recognition of World AIDS Day, and will feature performances by the Howard Gospel Choir, Jason & deMarco, and the Unity Fellowship Church of DC Drum Ministry. Location: Kenmore Middle School Auditorium lacated at 200 South Carlin Springs Road in Arlington. Tickets are available online at www.novam.org or by calling 703.533.55.05, x 13.

Music:

Adult Choir rehearses on Thursdays, at 7:30 pm in the balcony. Everyone is welcome!

Children’s Choir’s rehearses on Sundays, in room 22, Education Building. 12:05-12:50 pm.

If you’ve ever thought about singing with our adult choir but don’t have the time to devote to it permanently, you might consider joining for only a few weeks. On Sun., Dec 2, the choir is performing Antonio Vivaldi’s “Gloria” during both worship serivces and we welcome you to join us. Rehearsals begin at 8:15 pm on the Thurs evenings in Nov. You don’t need to be a budding Pavarotti or ‘American Idol’ finalist to join, a nice voice and the ability to read music is helpful. For more information contact Robert Saladini at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Churchwide News:

An advent service and wreath laying will be held at the Old Presbyterian Meeting House on Saturday, Dec. 1, at 9 am, as part of the Scottish Christmas Walk festivities. All are invited.

Flower Dedications/Memorials: Kerri Stevens, the new point of contact for OPMH’s flower dedications, is seeking contributors for the next three months. Dedications are needed for Sunday, Oct 21^st onward. Donation cost is $65. Please contact Kerri at 703.966.3895 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it to schedule your date and related dedication.

Wondering What To Get All Those Hard-To-Shop-For Relatives and Friends For Christmas? Local and National/Global Missions will again be sponsoring Alternative Giving Sundays on Dec.  2, 9, and 16 in Fellowship Hall following the 11:00 am service. You may "purchase" items destined for use by various charities, such as book bags, medical supplies, Bibles, or livestock; we'll provide a gift card for communicating your purchase. A limited amount of other gifts – such as pins, notecards, or ornaments – benefitting OPMH-supported charitable organizations will also be available.

Noonday Noël's (Wednesdays, Dec. 5, 12, 19).  Take a break in the midst of your day to refresh your spirit with the true spirit of the season!  These 1/2 hour concerts, held in the OPMH Sanctuary, will begin promptly at noon, and feature seasonal music.  Stay afterwards for a light lunch in Heritage Hall, and then head back to home or work filled with food, worship, music, and peace!  An offering will be received to benefit the Family to Family ministry of OPMH, which provides emergency assistance to the working poor.

Dec. 5:  Douglas Beck, organist, with Caroline Shaul, soprano; Dec. 12:  Timothy Howe, tenor and guitarist; Dec. 19:  Neil Gladd, mandolin player, with Marjorie Bunday, alto.

Did You Know - A single trauma victim can require 30 to 40 units of blood in just a few hours! (30 to 40 units would require the entire north side center aisle donating a unit each - or the south side on the side aisle!) Someone you know could need your blood. Please participate in the Blood Drive on November 25 from 11:00 to 3:00 sponsored by the Deacons. Sign up before adult education, at coffee hour, or call the Church Office.

Are You Ready?  A Book entitled A Letter to My Loved Ones is available for sale in the Church Office. It is a self-help book to guide you through the process of collecting information your survivors will need after your death.  It includes actual legal forms, listings, addresses and other useful hints to make it easy to compile your wishes. The book is offered for $10 by the Spirit organization of the church.

The Presbyterian Cemetery, located on Hamilton Lane in Alexandria, is a mission of OPMH. For nearly 200 years, it has provided tranquil final resting places for members of this congregation and others of our faith. Interred in these hallowed grounds are a number of patriots of the American Revolution, leaders from Alexandria’s historic past, members of the clergy, and many others. The cemetery still contians space for more than a thousand burial plots, and a new columbarium will provide 192 niches to serve as permanent repositories of cremated remains when it is completed later this month. For more information, contct Bob Ellis, the Cemetery Superintendent at 703.626.0879 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it