Homestead Presbytery
|
| Mission spans the history of Homestead Presbytery through the service of Dr. Paul and Judy Jewett, formerly of Beatrice and Lincoln, Nebraska, respectively. Beginning in 1968, some ten years before Homestead Presbytery even existed, the Jewetts faithfully served in Miraj, India, in Malawi, and in Haiti. As medical missionaries, their postings varied from pioneering an open-heart surgical program in a teaching hospital within the university setting of Miraj, to providing basic medical service in a remote bush hospital in Malawi.
When they returned to Homestead Presbytery, they interpreted their mission widely and brought home countless stories. They told about illiterate women trapped in their lives as commercial sex workers who became empowered by learning to read the Bible and realizing their worth as God’s beloved children. They shared stories of patients in Malawi who traveled as far as forty kilometers in bullock carts or bicycles, or walked, or were carried on the backs of family or friends, and who expected quick and permanent cures. They told of hardship and poverty, of God’s grace and hope. The Jewetts provided a continuous, tangible connection with God’s work through Presbyterian mission abroad, with a steady call to recognize and respond to the plight of others. On their first tour in Malawi, Paul noticed that the Embangweni Hospital used diesel fuel to pump water. Watching the hot African winds blow, he recalled how in Nebraska, windmills were used for that purpose. A phone conversation with the Rev. Jimmy Shelbourn of First Presbyterian Church in Beatrice led to the shipment of a windmill to Malawi, the cost shared by the congregation of First Church and Dempster Windmill. Although it took several years to find the proper site, in 1995 the windmill was erected using just muscle power and a pickup truck. It remains operational today. The Beatrice congregation feels blessed to have participated in PC(USA)’s mission abroad. Mr. Shelbourn still shows the videotape of the mill tower being “raised” to his confirmation classes—teaching that they too can make a difference. The Jewetts retired in 2003 and now live in Georgia. Homesteaders are seeking to form relationships with other missionaries, but the legacy of the Jewetts remains. Their words echo: “Expect to see us again, in God’s good time. Meanwhile, we ask that you pray for our sisters and brothers in Christ in Africa . . . India . . . Haiti. . . .” Homestead Presbytery has 11,199 members in 61 congregations. Calvin Crest Camp and Conference Center and Clark Jeary Retirement Center are in its bounds. |
 Elder Reginald S. Kuhn, member, GAC Presbytery Staff Rev. Dr. Peter Frazier-Koontz, executive presbyter Rev. Don Steiner, stated clerk Elder Willard Bouwens, treasurer Elder Barbara Hipple, mission and outreach coordinator Elder Kris Peterson, Homesteader editor Elder Carole Philippi, administrative assistant PC(USA) General Assembly Staff Rev. Leslie Sauer, WMD Joann L. Saunders, WMD Alex Say, FDN |
 My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast. I will sing and make melody (Ps. 57:7). |
 Ps. 47, 57, 85, 145 Micah 2:1–13 Rev. 7:1–8; Luke 9:51–62 |
