On the anniversary of Hamas’s horrific attack on Israel, marking a year of the Israeli bombardment of Gaza and in the midst of escalation in the Middle East, we join Churches for Middle East Peace in a prayer for justice and healing.
Churches for Middle East Peace is a Mission Partner of Nassau, educating churches, empowering us to advocate for policy changes moving toward peace, and connecting with Christians in Palestine. Join CMEP for a daily prayer over Zoom or watch their daily updates on the state of the crisis in Gaza, Israel, and the West Bank at cmep.org/resources.
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/.
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.
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.
Consider donating to the Raritan Valley Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Manville. They have a partnership with Housing Initiatives of Princeton (HIP), one of Nassau’s Mission Partners. HIP received an exceptional grant from Nassau’s Mission & Outreach Committee in January for their transitional housing move-in/move-out days. Often a family is in need of furniture as well as a home. HIP’s partnership with the ReStore helps families furnish their new apartments.
The Nassau Church Refugee Coordinating Team has provided this update on the Hashimi family, the Afghan refugee family that Nassau Church has sponsored.
This past summer, the Coordinating Team reported the good news that the family’s asylum applications had been approved. This gave the family the legal right to live and work in the United States and to apply for permanent residency and eventually citizenship.
More recently, the father of the family who is stranded in Dubai has received preliminary approval for his spousal asylum application and an invitation to submit his information for a visa. That could still take a long time to resolve, but the Coordinating Team is hopeful that things are moving in a positive direction.
There is other good news. The second oldest daughter has passed her GED and is enrolled at Mercer County Community College. Her mother and older sister are also enrolled there.
The oldest son is still working at Princeton Orthopedics, and his brother is in the process of enrolling in a commercial pilot training program which will prepare him for a promising career.
We are grateful that they and all the members of the family have been such cheerful and enthusiastic partners in our work together.
We want to recognize the ongoing commitment of the Refugee Coordinating Team, who are walking alongside the Hashimi’s as they continue to navigate immigration, education, and medical systems. Our thanks to them and the other volunteers who have given of their time and resources as part of Nassau’s commitment to support refugees.
From the Refugee Coordinating Team, an update on the Hashimi family, the Afghan refugee family that Nassau Church has sponsored.
Last October, the Hashimi family was kind enough to share their inspiring story during an adult education class. Since then, they have continued to make progress in building a new life in Princeton.
By the end of last year, they had completed the arduous process of applying for asylum in the United States. After waiting patiently for months, now all of their asylum applications have been approved (except for one still pending for one of the sons). For those who have been approved, that means they now have legal status to live and work in the United States – and may eventually apply for permanent residency and citizenship.
As asylees, the family can also seek approval to visit the father in Dubai, where he is stranded. He has applied for humanitarian parole status and is also applying under other programs for the right to join his family here, including through his wife’s new status. All of these options have significant wait times.
There is also progress on the housing front. We are glad to report that the Hashimi family has moved out of the temporary housing that had been provided through Princeton Seminary and are now in their own housing at Princeton Community Village.
Another key priority had been their education, and they are making progress on that as well. One of the older sisters is working hard to earn a high school equivalency degree. She had been on the verge of finishing high school when they had to leave Kabul, and her credits could not be transferred. We are excited that she recently passed the social studies section of the GED and continues to work on the rest.
All of this progress was aided by volunteers from Nassau, including many of you here this morning. So, on behalf of the Refugee Coordinating Team, our thanks to you and all others who have given of your time and resources as part of Nassau’s commitment to support refugees. We are truly grateful for your support and ask for your continued prayers for the family, and particularly for their reunification with the father. Thank you.
Celebrating and ensuring the indelible mark of Johnsonburg on the future
Over the past six weeks you’ve heard from friends and members of the Nassau community as they recounted their memories of Camp JBurg and their hopes for its future. We invite you to join the Cook Davis, Mackichan Walker, Olsen, and Wood Yeh families (among many more in our community) in supporting the “Marked for the Future” campaign.
Johnsonburg is a place where all may gather, and all are welcomed in God’s beautiful creation…and we are registering for SUMMER CAMP!
As New Jersey’s only Presbyterian summer camp, we have been the highlight of summer for thousands of kids across our 63 years.
We’ve got six 1-week overnight sessions for kids in rising 1st-12th grades from June to August. We have tons of activities, and our camp counselors are carefully hired, screened, and trained to be great role models for campers. Summer camp has been shown to increase social and emotional wellness in children and youth, as well as teaching them to be more independent and helping them to make friends. Compliment the faith building you are doing in church and at home with what will be your child’s favorite week of the summer. For more information, visit campjburg.org/summer-camp
Homeworks Trenton, a mission partner of Nassau Presbyterian Church, is a non-profit charitable organization dedicated to providing free after-school and residential support for marginalized high school girls in the Trenton public school system. For more detailed information, please see its website: www.homeworkstrenton.org.
Tutoring
Homeworks is asking for volunteers to tutor their high school scholars (9 freshmen, 1 junior and 1 senior) in high school level math (including pre-calculus), English, science, and history (particularly US history). The tutoring is done late afternoon (3-4:30pm for 1 Junior) or the evenings (7-8:30pm for all other scholars) four nights a week at their facility located on the main campus of Rider University in Lawrenceville, N.J.
Anyone who is interested in volunteering as a tutor at HomeWorks, please apply through its website, www.homeworkstrenton.org; go to the tab for ways to give, volunteer and click tutor.
Donating Books and Snacks
Homeworks is also trying to build its own library to supplement and enhance the learning opportunities and environment for its scholars. They are currently looking for used high school textbooks, study aids for collegiate entrance examinations and other standardized tests, and books by and about girls and women of color.
They are also looking for snacks for scholars to eat after school, specifically dry snacks that do not expire (cheese-its, cheetos, lays, cup noodles – chicken, sun chips, granola bars, popcorn, fruit snacks, takis, poptarts, velveeta microwavable mac and cheese, apple sauce) and drinks (ex: Caprisuns, Hawaiian Punch).
Anyone who is interested in donating any of these snacks, please go to the website, www.homeworkstrenton.org and complete the In-Kind Donation form which can be found under the ways to give, donate tabs.
Contact Homeworks Trenton
If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Natalie Tung, Executive Director and founder of Homeworks, at , and Len Scales at . Thank you for your kind generosity.