PWs That Play Together, Stay
Together
by Beth M. Snyder
Across
the United States, members of Presbyterian Women are gathering
for fun, keeping the purpose of Presbyterian Women alive and
well by "building an inclusive, caring community of women"
with imagination and energy. For every group asking the question,
"What's the secret to a healthy, growing, multigenerational
PW circle?" there's another group that's answered that question
and is eager to share their story. Here's a glimpse at some fun,
fresh approaches to monthly circle meetings.
Traveling Circle
Presbyterian Women from First Presbyterian Church in Washington,
Indiana are on the road again. This group has traveled to conferences
at Montreat, to PW synod events and to annual meetings of the
General Assembly. For three years, these women have expanded
their horizons (and their odometers) by traveling to Presbyterian
events, near and far.
 In 1999,
Reverend Kathleen Weller saw a need to expand the two small women's
circles to include women who might not have the time or the inclination
to make a regular monthly commitment to a circle meeting. She
sent notes to all of the women in her congregation and the Traveling
Circle was born. When an invitation to a 1999 PW in the Synod
of Lincoln Trails event in Effingham, Illinois crossed Kathleen's
desk, the group undertook its first journey outside the Presbytery
of Ohio Valley. Six young women hit the road and returned with
enthusiasm following their adventure.
Their most recent and longest trip was to the 2001 Montreat Women's
Conference, last summer, where they immersed themselves in the
different aspects of the Horizons Bible Study on Esther. The
Traveling Circle's membership is constantly changing, but that
seems only to add to the ways these women are strengthening the
community of Presbyterian Women.
Aerobics Circle
For fifteen years, members of Presbyterian Women in Aguadilla,
Puerto Rico have been keeping fit thanks to their Aerobics Circle.
Since 1986, this uniquely active group of 25 to 30 women, ages
18 to 81, has been meeting thanks to the efforts of founder Irma
Flores.
The group meets Monday through Thursday from 5 to 6 p.m. for
a time of devotion, followed by exercise. Best of all, this is
an ecumenical gathering, with women from varying denominations
and religions, ranging in age from 18 to 81. The circle is open
to the public and the charge is 25 cents per session.
Habitat Circle
One way members of Presbyterian Women support mission is to give
of their treasure. But in the summer of 2001, PW in the Synod
of the Trinity PW thought they would try contributing their time
and talent as well. They arrived in their cooking aprons and
ended up exchanging them for tool belts as they helped to complete
a Habitat for Humanity home in Greene County, Pennsylvania.
PW in all eight of the synod's presbyteries contributed financially
to the project, but participants who volunteered to put on work
gloves, roll up their sleeves and hang dry wall and siding, are
confident they had the most fun. Synod PW Moderator, Gloria Straub,
created a photo scrapbook of Habitat workers and the PW fundraisers
that it took to surpass the $55,000 goal and raise almost $70,000
for this Synod PW mission project. It took the PW community,
plus family and friends, three weeks working in three-day shifts
to complete a Habitat house in the coal mining town of Carmichaels.
What's more, this group went on to help complete two other Habitat
houses and plan to continue leaving their aprons at home, with
no end to their work in sight.
Email Circle
 Necessity is indeed
the mother of invention and when members of Presbyterian Women
in Seattle, Washington were looking for an alternative to face-to-face
meetings, they turned to a recent invention to meet their needs-email.
Della Lium explained that members of PUPS, (Presbyterians United
to Preserve Sanity), have always been active in the leadership
of PW; this is just a new process for sharing information and
staying connected.
The twelve women involved in PUPS use email to set a time and
place to meet every couple of months-for a potluck lunch in someone's
home or at a park-where they talk about church concerns, PW news
and what's happening in their lives. The Email Circle hasn't
replaced their meetings, but allows the group to meet less frequently
without losing touch.
Moms and Tots Circle
The women of Mountain View United Presbyterian Women in Scottsdale,
Arizona, credit countless babies with the life and vitality their
circle enjoys. The Moms and Tots circle has met every Wednesday
for the past two years. Lorna Jensen organizes their activities,
which include trips to the zoo, fire station, parks and holiday
parties. Because of their busy schedules, attendance fluctuates,
but the group averages around 25 moms and when you add the tots
(from newborns to preschoolers) that figure often triples.
These women have become good friends as their children play and
learn to interact together. Lorna says one of the benefits of
being part of the group is that you can get some of your "mom
questions" answered ("Is my kid the only one who does
this?" or "Am I the only one who feels this way?").
It's also a great networking tool. Participants stay connected
to the larger body of Presbyterian Women through other activities,
such as the annual week-long rummage sale. Members of the Moms
and Tots group contribute their time and talents by taking charge
of the children's area-collecting and cleaning toys, and sorting
through kids clothes.
Cookie Circle
 What is a Sunday fellowship or
coffee hour without cookies? Members of Lake Burien Presbyterian
Church in Seattle, Washington certainly know their value, thanks
to the intergenerational Cookie Circle that meets monthly at
the church to provide the goodies when their congregation gathers
each week.
A member of Presbyterian Women, and the church's Christian educator,
Gail Lane, involves all ages in the Cookie Circle's efforts,
relying on participants to bring cookie dough to the PW meetings.
Before the evening's program, the cookies are baked and decorated.
After the program, cookies are sampled, packaged and frozen for
the next month's worth of Sunday fellowship times.
North, south, east and west, participants in Presbyterian Women
are creating a new look for PW. As Paul described in his letter
to the Ephesians "the whole body, joined and knit together
by every ligament with which it is equipped . . . promotes the
body's growth in building itself up in love"(Eph. 4:16).
Loosely interpreted, this means there is not one way to conduct
a meeting of a PW circle-each separate group, whatever they enjoy,
need and can bring to their gatherings, has to establish what
works for them. Healthy, creative and active circles can't help
but add to the body of PW, and ultimately, to the body of Christ.
If you haven't asked the question already, ask yourself now:
in this Easter season of new life, how can my PW circle or group
grow in love and be rejuvenated?
--Beth M. Snyder has served as the PW Enabler for Ohio
Valley Presbytery since 1988. She lives with her husband and
four children in Seymour, Indiana, and works at the Presbyterian
Center as a PW program assistant.
What is the secret to your circle's
success?
Send a description of the unique or creative way your group approaches
its meetings to Presbyterian Women, attn: Leah Bradley, 100 Witherspoon
St., Louisville, KY 40202-1396; fax 502/569-8085; email lbradley@ctr.pcusa.org.
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