■ Worship each Sunday at 10 a.m.
in the sanctuary;
live streaming on Facebook

■ Online worship available later on YouTube and the church website

The Swift Church Session met on June 21.

   ■ We began with prayer.
   ■ We heard from the safety team regarding emergency exit signs and lights that need repaired/replaced. Also, approved a contract to monitor our fire alarm.
   ■ Church annex air conditioning is up and running properly.
   ■ Susan Pichoff is our new clerk of session upon Sue Ann Lay’s recent retirement.
   ■ We have a contract for the driveway/parking to be seal-coated and parking places striped. Work is about three months out. The preschool is providing the funding for this work.
   ■ Continuing with live streaming using the church’s iPad. We will need volunteers to rotate monitoring the equipment.
   ■ Set July 18 as the date for congregational meeting to elect a nominating committee. Mike Barnwell and Mark Melton will serve as elders on the nominating committee.
   ■ There was a lot of valuable discussion regarding restarting 8:00 worship. The deacons will be asked to contact previous 8:00 attendees to see their interest/intent.
   ■ Heard that Sept. 12 will be a churchwide welcome back day with choirs, classes, lunch, worship.

The meeting closed with prayer.

The handbell choir will be playing during worship on July 25. Jenni Cain and Lisa Cardwell will be playing piano duets for the other Sundays in July.

BUTTERFLY GIRLS/GUYS NIGHT OUT
Thursday, July 15 • 6:30 p.m.
O’Charley’s — 3030 S. McKenzie St., Foley

All are welcome, so feel free to invite others who are not Swift Church members to join us.

Please contact Mary McNair at 251-295-5267 (texts preferred) or marymcnair@centurylink.net, (even if you’re just a maybe) so adequate seating can be reserved. We will continue to have the ladies and men sit at separate tables, so don’t think this is just for couples.

Can’t make it this month? Then mark your calendar to plan ahead for future months since we always gather on the third Thursday, with restaurants changing each month. (Suggestions of places to go that aren’t extremely expensive and take reservations are welcome.)

The food pantry served 43 families and 72 individuals during June. This month, the food pantry will be open on the second and fourth Wednesdays, July 14 and 28.

The Presbytery of South Alabama received a bequest several years ago with the stipulation that it be used to install a water purification system in Guatemala. The Guatemala team researched several different types of water purification systems and concluded that Living Waters for the World has the best support and long-term success rates. Our next step will be sending a group of people to Clean Water U to train as team leaders. Our goal is to have several teams with representatives from multiple churches in the Presbytery. Clean Water U will be held Oct. 5–9 at Camp Hopewell near Oxford, Mississippi. The cost of the training will be covered by the bequest. Team leaders will need to commit to making at least three trips to Guatemala over the next three years, participants will be expected to cover their travel costs for those trips. We are looking for team leaders now, but we will also need people to participate in short-term mission trips to cultivate relationships and to install the systems. We anticipate that our short-term mission trips to Guatemala will resume in June 2022. If you, or someone you know, would be interested in serving as a team leader, please contact Rhoda Burns Passmore (Trinity Presbyterian Church) at rhodapassmore@gmail.com or 251-586-2235.

Cheryl’s class meets in room 2 in the annex every Sunday at 9 a.m.

We have an empty chair that needs to be filled by you. Coffee and the Bible are served. Come grow with us. You are loved with an everlasting love.

— Cheryl Jensen

“Snacks with Susan and Daryl” will not meet during July, to allow class members time to travel and vacation. Look for updates about a new study that will begin in August.

— Susan and Daryl Pichoff

Swift Church youth and adult chaperones attended the Montreat Youth Conference in the North Carolina mountains from June 6–11. The theme for the conference was “Called To Connect.” The week was filled with worship, small groups, energizers, hikes, back-home discussions, making new friends, candlelight service by the lake, Bible study, music, kickball, food, fellowship and lots of fun!

We look forward to the youth leading our worship service on Sunday, Aug. 8.

The youth group will meet again on July 11 (and every other Sunday) from 4 to 6 p.m. at the church. All youth are welcomed.

For more information about the youth group, please contact Tracy Akins at tracyakins@live.com or 251-979-7798.

Generosity describes the Christian’s unselfish willingness to give in order to make a positive difference for the purposes of Christ. Extravagant generosity describes practices of sharing and giving that exceed all expectations and extend to unexpected measures.

Thank you for your generous pledges and ongoing offerings. Your financial support will enable Swift Church ministry to plan for the coming year. Your support and commitment to our church is greatly appreciated.

Using your “smart phone” and this box you can connect to the church’s online giving page. You can set up for automatic donations of your tithes or one-time gifts to a number of funds benefiting ministries of Swift Church. Use this by either entering your credit/debit card information or your checking account information. Of course, this is a secure website.

You can also do the same thing by clicking a donation link on the church’s website.

We will welcome Doug Marshall as our guest speaker on Sunday, July 11. Doug joined the Presbyterian Home for Children in Talladega as president and chief executive officer in November 2017.

Swift Church actively supports the Home for Children, which serves teenage girls who have been subjected to extreme trauma and neglect, homeless boys and girls with their female caregivers, homeless young female adults, and families in need of in-home intensive services for family preservation and reunification.

Marshall came to the home with more than a 30-year career in a variety of positions in Birmingham, including Ernst and Young, Energen, Alagasco, United Ability and Alabama Family Trust. He is a certified public accountant who holds a minister of theology degree as well.

Doug uses his leadership, finance and organizational skills in his position, as well as a big heart for people, especially children. Marshall says he feels the Lord’s hand has been in his life directing him to his place of service at the children’s home.