The Presbytery of Shenango
Pennsylvania
Volunteers from the Western Pennsylvania Table Project pause for a photo with Cindy and her new table. Building Tables, Rebuilding Lives” has become the catchphrase for the Western Pennsylvania Table Project, which seeks to encourage the love of woodworking while creating handcrafted dining tables for survivors of Hurricane Katrina.
Under the direction of Jim Moose, and with support from the churches of the Presbytery of Shenango and other denominations, the Table Project is a community effort that gathers woodworkers and school students of varying skill levels to help ease the pain of many displaced families as they start over — by welcoming them home. “A table offers a center to a home, a place for meals, playing cards, doing homework. In short, it’s a place for a family to be a family,” explains Moose. “It was humbling to realize that a group from Western Pennsylvania could reach across 1,100 miles and make a difference in the lives of complete strangers.”
Jim Moose adds, “I’m in my fifties, and this is the first time in my life that I’ve been involved in something where I felt I was making a difference. This project encourages people to become part of something bigger than themselves.”
To date, over 500 tables have been built and sent to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, and several hundred more are projected to be sent over the coming months. Read more about the Western Pennsylvania Table Project and learn how to participate.
The presbytery is composed of 13,905 members in 68 churches in Lawrence and Mercer counties. Grove City and Westminster colleges lie within its bounds, as does the New Wilmington Mission Conference, with which Shenango has a covenant relationship.
Presbytery Staff
The Rev. David Dawson, executive presbyter
The Rev. Jerry Mahaffey, stated clerk
Autumn Covert, executive secretary
Deborah Forsberg, resource center director
Sharyl Getway, financial secretary
Margaret Trautman, volunteer staff person for Christian education
PC(USA) General Assembly Staff
Sheila Bridgeman, GAMC
Kendra Bright, PPC
Gracious God, we thank you for involving us in your unfolding story. Continue to challenge and transform us by presenting opportunities to serve others in your name. Amen.
Ps. 62, 145 and Ps. 73, 9
Gen. 19:1–17 (18–23) 24–29
Heb. 11:1–12; John 6:27–40
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