On this #MissionMonday we highlight the work of Presbyterian Women (PW) in the Synod of the Northeast.
Nassau supports PW by giving to the Synod. Presbyterian Women educate, donate, and advocate for peace and justice locally, regionally, and globally.
We invite you to attend Adult Education on Sunday, October 6 for a special #JusticeSpotlight on the Presbyterian Delegation to the UN Commission on the Status of Women (read more here). Also consider attending the Fall Gathering of Presbyterian Women in the Presbytery of the Coastlands on Saturday, October 12, where you can hear from leaders advocating for protection from gun violence, Christian churches in Palestine, and improved healthcare in Haiti.
RSVP to by October 7. You can find more information at https://pwsne.org/.
“Let Justice Roll Down” Anna Strickland (graphic image, inspired by Amos 5:18-24) | A Sanctified Art LLC | sanctifiedart.org Used by special permission. All rights reserved.
Audio recordings will be posted below each class description.
October 6 | Lorraine Jackson
A Report on the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women
As a delegate with the Presbyterian Women’s group to the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW ‘68) Conference held in March 2024, Lorraine Jackson had the privilege of attending a number of discussions, seminars, and presentations by folks from around the world focused on the theme of “Accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective.” Having gleaned a number of fascinating personal stories, she will present a report on her experiences and share some of her impressions from that impressive gathering.
Lorraine Jackson, a long-time member of Nassau Church and Choir member, is also currently serving as the Co-Moderator of the Presbyterian Women in the Coastlands Presbytery. She has been a Deacon and Elder and active participant on several Mission and Worship Commissions. A four-decade dedicated library and adult literacy advocate, Lorraine has served as the Director of the South Brunswick Public Library where she founded Literacy Volunteers of America, Middlesex County. She has held executive roles in The American Library Association and the International Federation of Library Associations, where she founded portable library systems in developing countries. She still teaches English as a Second Language for the Library. For many years pre-covid, she practiced weekly with her fellow Scottish Country Dancers. She also leads the Jersey Jam Scottish Fiddlers. Lorraine lives in Cranbury with her husband Bart with whom she paddles, hikes, pedals their tandem bicycle, and grows the grapes for their own Chateau Bonne Chance wine. Together they have explored over 80 countries.
October 13 | Damon Venable & Rev. Dr. Russell Owen
Spotlight on Justice: Who Should Decide Who Gets a Second Chance?
New Jersey also ranks 4th among all states in its percentage of elderly people serving life sentences. Almost 500 people incarcerated in New Jersey are age 65 or older. The Rehabilitative Release bill now pending in the N.J. legislature will provide meaningful opportunities for elders in prison to petition the courts for sentence revisions or reductions. As communities of love, faith, and justice, how are we the voice of the voiceless and/or the vote of the voteless. Come and hear the perspective on the pressing need for this Second Chance legislation from two Lifers who survived over 30 years in the New Jersey Prison System. Rev. Russell Owen and Damon Venable will share their stories accompanied by videos lifting up other voices to explain why your voice and vote on this issue are critical.
Damon Venable is a Community Affairs & Policy Specialist with the New Jersey Office of the Public Defender. He was tried as an adult and convicted to a sentence of life imprisonment for a crime he committed when he was 16. While challenging his sentence, he was released on parole after serving more than three decades in prison. During his time in prison, he continued his education and received a degree in Justice Policy from Rutgers University. After his release, he joined the NJOPD as a paralegal and is now serving in a number of roles in that office, including as a liaison for the recently launched clemency initiative.
Rev. Dr. Russell Owen,at age of 19, was sentenced to 30 to life within New Jersey Correctional Facilities. He was released on parole after serving 32 carceral years. He has earned various degrees and continues to find solace as a student, while gathering tools of freedom and liberation. While incarcerated, he was one of the original contributors/students of the NJ STEP program, which has grown into one of most successful college prison programs nationally. He has received the Esther Award from New Brunswick Theological Seminary for Transformative Radical Truth-Telling. He is a Rutgers alumni and is a member of the Phi Alpha Honor Society for Social Work. Since being released in 2021, he is now the statewide Power Organizer of Live Free New Jersey, which focuses on ending gun violence, mass incarceration, criminalization, and police brutality at the local, state, and national level. He does this in unison with Faith in New Jersey, a multi-faith, multi-racial civic engagement vehicle for faith communities and everyday people who strive to fight for social justice.
Capital Harmony Works empowers young people as teams of musicians, providing an environment of abundant resources and high expectations, and enriching the community through the joyful pursuit of excellence together.
As the September Adult Education series, Practicing Creation: Reflecting the Image of God, is underway, we highlight one of our Mission Partners bringing the joy of artistic creation to local children. The organization runs three programs: Trenton Children’s Chorus, Trenton Music Makers, and Music for the Very Young. Through music lessons, performances across the country, academic support, and college preparation, Capital Harmony Works encourages the sharing of expertise with and between Mercer County youth.
Learn more and volunteer to play games, mentor, or offer your musical expertise for participants on their website capitalharmony.works
THANK YOU for supporting our 2024 Summer Missions Projects! Through your joyful giving in partnership with Westminster Presbyterian Church, we were able to supply 150 students between Trenton with backpacks full of school supplies. We are thankful for all of those who donated backpacks, funds, and their time to make this possible. See the Thank You from Pastor Karenhere.
We also successfully fed 200 neighbors at St. Mary’s Cathedral through Loaves and Fishes on Saturday, August 24. Participants received a hot dinner, along with a bagged lunch, packaged leftover dinner for the next day, and personal care items. Thank you to everyone who helped shred chicken, brought bagged lunches, delivered meals, and served with us!
If you enjoyed direct service like the projects above, consider signing up to support the Arm In Arm Food Pantry this Fall Volunteers are currently needed for Monday and Tuesday during working hours:https://signup.com/go/PgptPDG.
Join us for an enriching and dynamic series exploring the gift of divine creativity. You are invited to engage with writers, dancers, poets, and visual artists who will guide our understanding of how creative practices can deepen our spiritual journey. Each artist will uniquely illuminate how we are invited into God’s creative power. Come and be inspired to appreciate and practice creation in ways that reflect the beauty, diversity, and imagination of God. The Adult Education Committee is excited to partner with Art of Faithfulness to more broadly introduce the congregation to a few of the artists who will offer small groups and art exhibits throughout the year.
Audio recordings will be posted below each class description.
September 8 | Carey Wallace
Everyone is an Artist
Carey Wallace is the author of The Blind Contessa’s New Machine (Penguin), The Ghost In The Glass House (Clarion), and The Discipline of Inspiration (Eerdmans). She works to help people from all walks of life find inspiration and build strong creative habits to sustain a lifetime of creation. She performs as a songwriter, exhibits her own fine art, and has spoken on art, faith, and justice with students at Princeton, Julliard, Emory, Pratt, and Yale. Her articles and poems have appeared in Time, Detroit’s Metro Times, and America.
Roz Anderson Flood has been reading, writing, editing and teaching poetry for over 50 years and currently serves on the board of Copper Canyon Press, a non-profit poetry publisher. At Nassau Church, she has worn many hats. Currently, in addition to participation in programs for the Art of Faithfulness, Roz sings in the Adult Choir. In her day job, she is Assistant Vice President for Planned Giving, Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Health in Philadelphia.
Meagan Woods is an interdisciplinary artist who works in dance, theatre, and costume design. She holds an MFA in Interdisciplinary Studies from Simon Fraser University and a BFA in Dance from Rutgers University. Her work has been shown at NJPAC, Bryant Park, Lincoln Center and venues across the US, Canada, Portugal, France, Taiwan, and The Philippines. Meagan has had the pleasure of choreographing for Nassau Church services as an artist-in-residence in 2010 and 2018 and is thrilled to be back this season. Learn more at www.meaganwoods.com.
Portraits of Immigrants: Unknown Faces, Untold Stories
Betsy Ashton studied both international relations and fine art at American University (B.A. 1966). After a 20-year career as a news anchor and reporter on radio and television in DC and NYC, she is now painting in a Long Island City studio. Betsy’s portraits have been shown in numerous juried shows and are included in public and private collections throughout the United States, the United Kingdom, and in Italy, including one that hangs in the collection of the U.S. Embassy in London.
We are excited about the coming program year at Nassau Presbyterian Church. This post contains registration and program information for the upcoming year.
REGISTRATION
We ask you to complete a new form each year to ensure we have accurate information on you and your child to ensure your child’s health and safety. If you have multiple children in your family, you will receive a separate registration email for each.
To complete your registration, please:
print the registration form that was emailed to you,
make changes/additions using the fields on page two,
with or without changes, please sign and date page one of the form, and
return these two pages to the church office as soon as possible – by Tuesday, September 3 or earlier – to make sure your child’s name appears correctly on our attendance lists.
If you are new to our church – Welcome! – or have an additional child to register, blank forms are available here and in the literature rack outside the church office:
Saturday, September 7, 12:00-1:00 pm, or 1:00-2:00 pm
These non-partisan events are intended to educate and provide assistance to eligible New Jersey voters, including how to: a) register to vote; b) request a mail-in ballot; and c) update your voter registration if you have changed your name or moved since you last registered to vote. Registration deadline is October 15 to vote in the general election on November 6.
For more information, contact Bill Creager (email), Arthur Hui (email), or Pam Wakefield (email).
Nassau Presbyterian Church
Thursday, April 25, 6:00-9:00 pm, Assembly Room
Saturday, April 27, 1:00-4:00 pm, Front Portico (weather permitting) or Assembly Room
Nassau Presbyterian Church is working with its sister congregations at Westminster Presbyterian Church and Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church, along with members of the Presbyterian Church of Lawrenceville, to conduct voter registration/services events before the May 14 deadline to register to vote in the June 6 New Jersey primary election and before the October 15 deadline to vote in the November 5 general election.
These non-partisan events are intended to educate and provide assistance to eligible voters, including how to:
register to vote;
request a mail-in ballot; and
update your voter registration if you have changed your name or moved since you last registered to vote.
To kick-off this initiative, Nassau Presbyterian and Witherspoon Street Presbyterian churches are co-sponsoring these two events at Nassau. Please spread the word! Volunteers will be able to help individuals register to vote or update their registration details. A representative from the League of Women Voters (Princeton chapter) will also be present to help answer questions for voters from any state. Light refreshments will be provided.
Westminster Presbyterian and the Lawrenceville churches will be co-sponsoring similar events in the greater Trenton area at dates and times to be announced. Check back here for more details.
Contact Bill Creager (email), Arthur Hui (email), or Pam Wakefield (email) for more information and/or to help volunteer at these or other upcoming events.
June 30, July 28, August 25, during 10:00 am Worship
This offering supports the following mission partners: HomeFront, Presbyterian Hunger Program, Send Hunger Packing Princetons, Trenton Area Soup Kitchen, and Uniting Reformed Church in Stellenbosch, South Africa. Thank you for giving until all are fed. Use the “Hunger” fund when you give online (“Give Now”) or in the memo line of your check.
Providing supplies for success. We are once again joining with Westminster Presbyterian Church (WPC), our partner church in Trenton, to provide backpacks filled with school essentials for local students. Our goals are 150 backpacks and $5,000 for the supplies to fill them. Bring backpacks to the Narthex on Sunday mornings; use the “School Supplies” fund when you give online (“Give Now”) or in the memo line of your check.
Join us for our 32nd year of service. Volunteering for Loaves and Fishes, whether it’s donating food, money, or time, is an opportunity to be fed and to join our community of faith in action. Use the “Loaves & Fishes” fund when you give online (“Give Now”) or in the memo line of your check. Use the Sign Up button below to donate food or time.
Restock the PTS Coat Closet. To help prepare international students at the Seminary for the New Jersey winters, donate gently worn men’s and women’s winter coats, fleece pullovers and winter accessories. This year we are also looking for donations of new socks for both men and women. Bring items to the Assembly Room on Sunday mornings; contact the church office to drop off during the week.
HomeWorks Trenton is a free, community-based, after-school residential program designed to provide a supportive and safe space where high school girls learn to self-advocate, become leaders, and achieve academic success.
Four aspects define our program:
Residential Boarding: From Sunday evenings to Friday mornings, our scholars live in our dorm with three staff and spend weekends with their families. Residential boarding creates a structured, stable environment for scholars to focus on academics and personal growth. It provides an immersive community experience for scholars to collectively grow in ways traditional, non-residential programs do not allow.
Core Curriculum (Academics & Identity-Driven Leadership): Our academics programming focuses on daily tutoring, skill development, and college preparation. Additionally, scholars engage in Black and Brown girl-centered workshops, social justice discussions and readings, and a public service capstone and internship. This curriculum equips scholars with the tools and confidence to become leaders that ultimately creates systemic change in their communities.
Career Readiness: Third and fourth year internships and electives allow scholars to explore their academic and career interests, making an impact in the community while gaining valuable work experience.
Wellness, Field Trips, and Travel: Group Therapy offer spaces for scholars to develop mindful habits and practice self-love. HomeWorks also sponsors group travel to local organizations (like local theater productions) and cities such as New York and Washington D.C. to further supplement their public education and offer experiential learning opportunities outside of the classroom.
HomeWorks offers the support girls need to graduate from high school, attend college, feel confident in their discovery and evolution of self, become effective leaders, and create change. Our mission is to inspire and equip young women from marginalized communities to achieve their potential and positively transform the world around them by providing a supportive and educational residential environment.
On this #MissionMonday we highlight the work of Presbyterian Women (PW) in the Synod of the Northeast.
