Mission Activities at First Presbyterian Church

Presbyterian Child Development Center
Initiated in 1970, FPC operates a quality child development center located in the church’s lower level. Under the leadership of Director Sharon Portaro and skilled caregivers, up to 90 children from infancy to 5 years old are served daily from 7:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. After-school and summer care are provided for elementary-age children. The PCDC works jointly with Mon County Pre-K, Head Start, Even Start, and Early Start programs. For a tour or more information: 304-292-2194 or pcdc@commpluswv.net.

Westminster House Project
We are excited to have committed to building two six-story dormitories nearby to house 450 WVU students in a faith-based community and an expanded Presbyterian Child Development Center.

Pancake Breakfast
After several youth mission trips to other cities to serve the hungry and homeless, adult leaders of those trips recognized the need to do the same in our community. In 1996, FPC opened its doors to serve breakfast to those in the community who need a hot meal. Each Sunday from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m., 60 to 100 people are offered pancakes, eggs, juice, cereal, and coffee or tea at no cost. Some food items for the meal are donated by local businesses; others are purchased. Currently 8 teams of 5 to 8 people work one Sunday morning every two months. For more information or to join a team: 304-296-8236

Empty Bowls is an independently organized worldwide project established by the nonprofit Imagine/Render group to support efforts of other organizations to combat hunger. Since its beginning as a high school arts project in Michigan in 1990, Empty Bowls events have raised millions of dollars towards ending hunger.

The basic premise of an Empty Bowls event is simple: guests are served soup in a handmade ceramic bowl in exchange for a cash donation to fight hunger. They are asked to keep their bowl as a reminder of the meal’s purpose. Every time they take the bowl from the cupboard, they will be reminded that someone’s bowl is always empty and that on this one occasion they helped alleviate hunger and could choose to do so again at any time.

Empty Bowls Monogalia
First Presbyterian Church sponsored the first local Empty Bowls Soup and Bread Luncheon in February 2007. It was so successful the planners decided to expand Empty Bowls into a community-wide effort so more people could participate and more people would benefit from the proceeds. A community board, Empty Bowls Monogalia, formed and raised $10,000 for local hunger programs through the second soup and bread luncheon. In 2009, $15,000 was raised. For more information: Empty Bowls Monogalia, Mavis Grant-Lilley, 304-599-2352.

Presbyterian Women Mission and Outreach Projects

• Cookie sale benefits the Haiti Educational Foundation and a selected local non-profit agency (chosen each year)
• Salvation Army Stockings (about 30 each year)
• Odyssey House - fill approximately 12 gift bags for teenage girls and boys who have temporary residence at Odyssey House
• African Children's Surgical Program - provide one week of meals for child and family
• Empty Bowls - provide soup and participate in sale
• Annual PW Thank Offering - donations support foreign and national programs (educational, medicinal projects mainly)
• Lunch for a Buck - provide lunch for college students at Campus Ministry Center (twice annually)

The Stephen Ministry program at First Presbyterian Church consists of trained laywomen and -men from our congregation who have developed their gifts for bringing the concern and care of Christ’s community to people in need. The Stephen Ministry program is:

• A special ministry in which one Christian reaches out to another in time of need.
• A structured program of training and preparation for a caring relationship.
• An opportunity to reach out to others – the lonely, the depressed, the inactive, the bereaved, new people in town, those hospitalized and convalescing, the divorced, the aged.
• An on-going helping relationship with scheduled regularity, dependability, and confidentiality.
• A meaningful way for our church to use more fully our many talents in sharing one another’s burdens and joys.

Kenyan Sister Church
In 1999, First Presbyterian Church began a "sister church" relationship with Nyamachaki Presbyterian Church located in the Presbytery of Nyeri, Kenya.

Ongoing efforts to broaden the Kenyan Sister Church relationship with the Nyamachaki Church include:

• Pen pal letter exchanges between the people from the Nyamachaki and First Presbyterian churches, creating personal friendship to cultivate.
• An Adult Education series including a special representative from our Presbytery to share the origin and development of the partnership with the Nyeri Presbytery.
• Our plans to invite a representative of the Nyeri Presbytery to come to FPC, Morgantown for an extended visit were realized in 2003. We believed that to really increase our investment in the Sister Church relationship, we needed to have a direct, face-to-face relationship with someone from there. Phoebe Gachau actively ministered to us in a variety of ways while here, thereby giving us time to get acquainted, learn about their church, and learn how the Kenyan Presbyterians express their faith. Our own faith was enriched by such an experience.
• We continue to seek ways to learn from our sisters and brothers in faith and to find ways to respond to the spiritual, physical, social, and educational needs of the Nyeri community.

Bread for the World
First Presbyterian Church, Morgantown, is a covenant member of Bread for the World. Bread for the World is a Christian advocacy group with numerous members from a wide array of religious faiths that advocates for policies to eliminate hunger and promote social justice. These have included both domestic and international issues. Each year, our congregation takes time to write letters to our congressional representatives to express our concern for key legislation selected by Bread for the World. In addition, we keep up to date on these issues throughout the legislative session to follow the progress of these issues. For-up-to-date information on these issues: Bread for the World

Members of First Presbyterian Church have been involved with Mon County Habitat for Humanity since the affiliate's founding in 1990. In 2002 the church teamed with Wesley United Methodist Church to co-sponsor a home in Morgantown, and the youth of the congregation have spent many summer work camps building Habitat homes across the country. For more information: Mon County Habitat for Humanity or 304-292-0914.