What Did We Learn at the BNC Summit?

After church on Sunday, November 18th, nearly 50 people from the Trinity congregation gathered in the lower level of the church for the Bryant Neighborhood Center Summit. This presentation and conversation offered an opportunity for the Transformational Presence Team to share with the congregation the developing vision, mission, and programming plans for the Bryant Neighborhood Center (BNC).

The Vision and Mission Statements

The drafts of the vision and mission statements were written with an eye towards the values of the Trinity Outreach Programs, and the outcomes we aspire to at the BNC. Both statements were well supported.

We presented the following draft Vision Statement:

We envision a diverse, connected, and empowered Bryant Neighborhood, with neighbors actively participating in the development of a healthy, just, and sustainable community.

Many respondents supported and appreciated the phrase, “neighbors actively participating.” It was also suggested we better define our terminology and scope, though the general consensus was that this accurately represents our vision for the BNC.

We also presented the following draft Mission Statement:

The Bryant Neighborhood Center serves as a community hub to link local residents with high quality resources, where young minds learn and grow, relationships are formed, and basic needs are met, amplifying residents’ vision for the community.

Attendees appreciated the idea of “amplifying residents’ vision for the community,” but some felt that other phrases needed to be clarified. The BNC will be a place for people of all ages, and some of the phrasing needs to be updated to represent that. The Transformational Presence team is excited to continue crafting our mission statement with the feedback we received.

Programming in the BNC

Blue: Trinity’s Current Outreach Programs; Green: Current Community Partners

The Summit took a look at what programming will be offered once the BNC opens.

Trinity’s current Outreach Programs already actively address many needs in our community. When this new space opens, we expect to expand programming and opportunities in our neighborhood. Trinity Outreach Programs currently serve 3,500 people each year. Within the first five years of the BNC, we seek to grow that number to nearly 5,000.

Below, see some of our current thinking on how that might impact our current programs.

TAP - The Trinity Afterschool Program

TAP generally serves 10-12 students every year. If we want to serve additional students, we might step away from our one-to-one, student to volunteer ratio, find a new way to recruit additional volunteers, or expand the program to serve students with different needs on different days. Whatever happens, we will continue to provide opportunities for involvement and developing relationships with the students and families from Bryant Montessori.

Learning Center

The Bobcat Learning Center will continue to be hosted on site at Jason Lee, Monday - Thursday. The classroom spaces and partnerships with teachers and community members serve the program well. However, events like the weekly Friday programming, Spring Break Week, Parent Nights and other special events would benefit from the revitalized space of the Bryant Neighborhood Center.

Tony’s Kitchen

Tony’s Kitchen will continue to offer soup and conversation. Our team of volunteers do an excellent job building neighborhood relationships, and we are excited to see that continue. With our revitalized space, we could potentially expand and host a meal more than one day a week.

Pat’s Closet

Our Pat’s Closet leadership is discussing changes to our current model that would focus more on distributing specific, high-need items throughout the year, such as socks, gloves, hygiene items, and coats. Our new space means less room for clothing storage, and this shift is causing  us to consider how we might serve our neighbors in even more mindful ways. Pat’s Closet and Tony’s Kitchen will likely continue to operate alongside each other, possibly with an even greater capacity than before.

The Trinity Neighborhood Clinic

The Clinic will continue to operate at Trinity House each Tuesday evening. After much conversation, the Clinic board determined that the current arrangement works remarkably well for a ‘pop up’ weekly clinic. The BNC will seek to create opportunities in coordination with the Clinic around health education and workshops.

Opportunities We’re Exploring

Blue: Trinity’s Current Outreach Programs; Green: Current Community Partners; Orange: Potential and Planned Partnerships

While Trinity Outreach Programs are already meeting many needs of our neighbors, the Bryant Neighborhood Center also opens up opportunities for even more investment and intentionality, as well as new programming that could be brought into our neighborhood. One potential opportunity highlighted at the Summit is the Play To Learn program run by the Children’s Museum of Tacoma. In conversations with the Children’s Museum, there is excitement on both sides to see a Play To Learn group potentially hosted in the BNC.

The Trinity community was eager to discuss the many opportunities the BNC will afford, and is looking forward to having a bright, open and welcoming space, with a crowd-friendly kitchen to host and care for our neighbors. The list of ideas is as long and diverse as the church members in attendance, and the community we seek to serve. Check out some ideas below!

Additional Ideas from the Community

• A Bike Program

• Partnership with Metro Parks

• Parkour on the handicap accessible ramp

• Resource Center

• Neighborhood Council

• Youth Game Night

• Yoga

• Non-profit Coworking Space

• Cooking Classes

• Affordable Daycare

• Music Education

• Opportunities for Special Needs Kids

• Community Organizing

• Exercise Classes

• Parenting Classes

• Evening Pick-Up Basketball

• Free Legal Advice

• Veteran Support Group

• Financial Counseling

• Baby/Mom Meet Up

• Talk Time

• Parent Resource Center

The BNC Summit was one more important step in the process of building and developing the Bryant Neighborhood Center. We are grateful for such a well-attended meeting, with so many enthusiastic and invested members of the Trinity community! Thank you for showing up, sharing your thoughts, and demonstrating how we truly are Here for Good.

Sign-Up Online to be in Annual Christmas Pageant

This year, you can sign up online for your child to participate in Trinity's 2018 Christmas Pageant. The Christmas Pageant will be in the Sunday, December 23rd, 10 AM worship service.

Trinity is doing a traditional Christmas Pageant based on the Gospel birth narratives. Actors with lines and without are needed, as well as readers, dancers, and musicians. The only rehearsal will be Saturday, Dec 22nd, 9 am-12 noon. Younger children with smaller roles come in for only 1 hour.

If you have questions, please contact Julia Corbett at juliac@tpctacoma.org

Youth Service Reflection

This reflection is written by Kyle Bradshaw, Trinity Youth Ministry Coordinator.

Peering around the circle where we stood at Venture Apartments in South Tacoma, the students wore visible signs of the hard work they had just completed: blue latex gloves from picking up trash around the complex, dirty knees from raking and stooping in the dirt to pick up leaves, and mustard smears on sleeves from our sandwich assembly line at Nativity House earlier in the day.

Justin Mootz, our host for this second and final stop in our day of service stood across the circle from me and introduced us to one of the tenants of the apartments and a friend of the Mootz’s. Justin asked her questions and translated for us from Spanish explaining that she had been awake for over 36 hours, working several different jobs in order to provide for her family. Then she began to pray for our team and gave us a blessing. I was humbled and amazed at the generosity within this woman. She had been working nonstop and rather than coming back and going straight to bed she took the time to meet with our group and bless us.

“ Learning propels us toward service.”

On Saturday, I was reminded of the importance of service-learning. These service outing find their true value in the hyphen between service and learning. The service we completed on Saturday is not nearly as valuable if not paired with the opportunity to learn from the stories this woman shared with us or from Bill Bruno at Nativity House who took us around the shelter while sharing stories and breaking down stigmas behind homelessness

At the same time learning propels us towards service. Justin and Amanda Mootz invited us into their apartment to teach us about many of the challenges people living in poverty face in their community. With this new knowledge fresh in our minds we stepped outside to try and make the apartment a little bit more of a beautiful place. I’m proud of our students for raking leaves and wearing mustard on sleeves and for their commitment to service-learning.     

Trinity Deepens Commitment to Arts & Worship

Trinity Presbyterian Church is excited to announce their participation in this year’s Cascadia Worship & Arts Residency program, run by Fuller Seminary Northwest. The goal of the Cascadia Residency is to deepen the connection between artists and the worship life of the church. Paul & Lisa Duke will act as Trinity’s delegate with Paul serving as an "artist in residence", bringing his gifts in theater, and Lisa helping to gather other artists. The program involves a series of short retreats where Paul & Lisa will gather with artists and congregational leaders from other churches along the I-5 corridor from Vancouver BC to Portland. 

Preparation for Ministry Complete

While in academia, Carol McLaughlin began to question her calling. Academics or ministry? She took her thoughts and questions to her pastor, Rev. Matt Robbins-Ghormley. Thus began a five year journey which recently culminated in the Presbytery of Olympia certifying Carol as ready to submit her credentials to churches seeking a pastor. 

Bev Hatter, Carol's Session representative at Trinity, reflects on her walk with Carol down this beautiful and difficult path.

One of the perks of serving on Session is the opportunity to walk with a candidate for ministry in their journey to realizing their call.  Five years ago, Carol McLaughlin was pursuing a doctorate in religion at George Fox Evangelical Seminary (now Portland Seminary) while teaching religion classes there.  Carol had been undecided about whether to continue teaching or to apply to the Committee for the Preparation of Ministry (CPM) through the Presbyterian Church. She loved the academic challenge and richness of the teaching profession but wasn’t sure which path would better use her unique gifts. I was given the opportunity to serve as Carol’s Session liaison with the CPM while Carol went through the process of readiness and discernment.

The ordination process is lengthy and demanding.  In addition to the educational component of completing a Master in Divinity degree, there are written exams in the areas of Bible content, theology, Bible exegesis, polity and worship and sacraments.  It is necessary to complete a psychological evaluation, submit character references, complete a unit of Clinical Pastoral Education and meet for regular consultations with the CPM. All the while, her faith and commitment were growing and changing and challenging.

Carol was well prepared to meet many of the challenges of the ordination process, however there were unplanned obstacles and events that occurred in her life.  In a very short span of time Carol and her family experienced the deaths of her father-in-law and brother-in-law, the serious car accident of her elderly mother-in-law and the premature births of twin grandchildren.  Any one of these difficult experiences could have derailed Carol’s process. Because of her maturity, faith and resilience, Carol took the time to care for self and family while she persevered in the process of her faith walk.  The CPM has recently approved her as a Certified Candidate for Ministry within the PC(USA). Carol is now invited to present her credentials to churches seeking a pastor.

I am grateful for this opportunity to sojourn with Carol while representing Trinity in its support of a highly qualified candidate for the ministry.  Please pray along with me as Carol faces her next steps in discerning her call.

New Community Group Forms

A Community Group is a small group of people from the Trinity community who regularly gather in a home to grow in relationship with God and one another. Members of a community group may prayer together or study together or work on a service project together. They share their life with one another.

This fall, a new community group is forming at Trinity which will be led by Jason & Julia Corbett. If you are interested in learning more about this new community group, please contact Julia at juliac@tpctacoma.org or call 253-272-8819 x104.

Bryant Late Start, 2018-2019

Trinity is offering childcare for students in Kindergarten - Fifth Grade on the "Late Start Days" in the 2018-19 school year.  Late Start is the second Wednesday of every month during the academic year. 

Students can be dropped off at Trinity starting at 9 AM. Trinity Staff will walk the students to school at 11:30 AM.

Our staff supervise fun activities and free time for the students, in addition to a light snack.

We have space for 20 students. 

TO REGISTER

Contact daniel@tpctacoma.org or call 253-272-8819 to reserve your space!

Cost is $10 for the first student, and $5 for each additional student in the family. Payable via check or cash when you drop off your student.

Click here to download the registration form. Return in advance, or turn in Wednesday morning.

Last Year at the BLC

Jaquette Easterlin has served as Trinity’s Learning Center Coordinator for seven years now. We are grateful for her leadership as we start a new year of programming this fall. The Trinity Learning Center offers academic support and enrichment activities to middle school students from Bryant Montessori and Jason Lee. Read on to learn some of what the Learning Center has done in the last year.

2017-2018 featured another amazing year at the Learning Center. We served a total of 194 students this school, alongside 15 volunteers, including 4 returned from the previous year. We added several new partnerships with Alchemy Skateboarding, Weikart Center, YPQI SEL, Tacoma Rescue Mission, and SnapEd.

When students were surveyed they highlighted how personable and supportive our staff was, and their appreciation for a safe/physical space to do homework! Our staff strives to provide all students with opportunities to grow emotionally and academically. We strongly believe in allowing students to have choice and voice in program. We do this by asking for input on current and potential activities. Several of our current enrichment activities came for a passion of a youth. For example, cooking, poetry, robotics, dance, and leadership.

This has truly been one of best years. I want to give a special shout out to Trinity’s Learning Center staff, Daniel Akamine and Laura Johnson, and to the Peace Community Center Staff we partner closely with; Maya, Tarik, Nichole, Que'Veon, and Ben. Thank you all for a wonderful year!

Tony's Kitchen: An Experience Not to Skip!

Every Friday from 1 - 2 PM, Trinity opens up our lower level to Tony's Kitchen, a long standing program offering soup and conversation to anyone who walks through the doors. We were happy to have Trinity Youth, Malia Neidlinger, spend an afternoon serving. Read her thoughts below.

By Malia Neidlinger

During Foss High School’s 2018 Senior Skip Day, I decided I would volunteer at Tony's Kitchen. I assisted the head chef in baking bread, preparing cookies, cooking soup, and serving our guests. I served food to everyone who came in for the meal. I was able to discuss the importance of generosity, hospitality, and love, in community with people from all walks of life who happened to come through our doors. I had several interesting conversations with people I served regarding childcare and education in times of poverty. These conversations with our guests about their lives helped put things in perspective for me and my own life. Reflecting on the experience, I'm extremely grateful for the life I lead, and the opportunity to help those around me. I plan on continuing this activity long after my completion of the International Baccalaureate Program at Foss, and am so proud that Trinity continues to reach out to our neighbors in this way. If you’ve never helped out on a Friday at Tony’s Kitchen, I’d encourage you to do it!  You won’t be sorry you did.

Official disclaimer: Trinity Presbyterian Church does not condone students skipping school, but if one must skip school, serving at Tony’s Kitchen is a solid alternative for that day.

Summer Youth Mission Trip 2018

Reflections by Youth Intern Christian Rude

Nothing can prepare you for Grant on a microphone. Not when he's backed  by his band. There’s John, Bella, Ian, Zach and Katy all thrash their respective instruments. Heads are banging, hair is flying. Grant’s face is beet red with intensity. Like any good rocker his words are barely decipherable. It is a spectacle.

Julia looks at me, a wild glint in her eye. “This is why I love youth ministry” she says.

That was our third day in Novato,  a suburbia across the bay from San Francisco. We had just returned  to our host church, Living Word Chapel, after a long day of running a VBS, exploring the bay, and visiting a Sikh Temple. Your average humans would have been too tired for such a show, but not these kids.

About a month ago, Trinity's youth embarked on our first solo mission trip. None of us knew what to expect. Here we were traveling 746 miles south via van to work with a mission organization and church with whom we had no prior history. We'd be stuck together for seven days, for better, or for worse.

I’d be lying if I said the trip was all sunshine and rainbows. We didn’t sleep much. One student concussed themselves by walking into a pole. There was some conflict and shouting. We powered through though. The kids bonded in that uncomfortable , pressure cooker, can’t escape from each other kind of way. On numerous nights they stayed up to talk. Not to tell jokes and make fun of each other, but to be real and to listen.

We learned from each other and from people of other faiths, learned from people who shared our faith but followed Jesus way differently, learned from people whose home was under an overpass and whose homes were burned to the ground.

Under a bridge a lady named Tina spoke to us. She lived there, in a tent, with her huge pitbull Marshmallow. Her community was just yards away from six lanes of rushing traffic. Tina told her story, shared how she had seen Jesus, and prayed for us.  

Jesus said the Kingdom of God is like a someone who plants seeds. Whether the sower sleeps or rises the seeds grow, and she doesn’t know how. In a way, we just showed up and then God was doing things. I guess that’s one of the reasons the Kingdom of God is so good. We don't get to know, we don’t get to take credit.

Middle School Master Chef: Spring Break at the BLC

Throughout the academic year, Trinity's Bobcat Learning Center offers students at Jason Lee Middle school academic support and enrichment activities. During spring break, our staff turn their attention to community building and having fun with the students in their program. Read on to hear from Laura Johnson, LC Staff, as she shares what the experience means to her.

As April rolled around this year, there were two things that I was looking forward to: the possibility of sunshine and Trinity Outreach’s annual Spring Break Adventures with the middle school students at Jason Lee. When school is out every year, we prepare a few days of fun activities, team building challenges, exciting outings, and community service for our students. After a few busy (and often gloomy) months, our Spring Break Adventures is an opportunity for students and staff to take a break, have some fun, and reconnect.

This year was full of special activities that included watching Black Panther, grabbing food at Five Guys, playing Laser Tag at Odyssey 1, and undertaking the equal parts disgusting and fun Bean Boozled challenge. However, I was most excited for the return of an activity that we did last year. Inspired by such cooking shows as Chopped and Cutthroat Kitchen, Daniel and I created the Bobcat Cooking Challenge: two teams, two kitchens, $1000 Bobcat Bucks, five mystery ingredients, and two mystery recipes. Before cooking students bid against each other for sabotages (like having a staff member choose the music for the entire duration) and choice of mystery ingredient. The end result was a few hours of student led fun, creativity, and laughter.

In our regular programming during the week at Jason Lee, it is easy to get bogged down by tasks; there’s always another assignment to ask about, another teacher to talk about, another binder check to do. In our work to create and atmosphere and avenues for students to succeed academically, it is easy to forget what our main goal is: building community. For me, there are a few important times in the year to take a step back, reframe, and refocus on our values, mission, and efforts after school at Jason Lee, and Spring Break is one of the most important ones. At the end of the day, it’s often the moments for having fun with our students, acting silly, and laughing together that inspire the most connection and community.

As another Spring Break Adventures came to a close, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed myself and how much I learned about my students. As we head into the end of the year, I am looking forward to creating more time and space for my students to connect with each other, staff members, and our community. Hopefully this time around, however, there will also be some sunshine as well.

A Day at the BNC

The Bryant Neighborhood Center is is both the future home of the current outreach programs at Trinity Presbyterian Church, and a space for potential community partners to use, offering programming that welcomes our community into this space. To accomplish this, we are working towards a $4.7M capital campaign. Read on to experience more of what a day in the completed BNC might look like, and consider supporting us in this journey! 

Special thanks to Tom Llewellyn for writing down this vision, originally shared at Trinity's 2018 Easter Service.

The first thing you see is the sign. You notice the name—Bryant Neighborhood Center. That’s your neighborhood’s name. That’s for you. This place is for you—for you and your neighbors.

And that’s who you see going in there. On a Monday morning, you hear and see a mob of preschoolers and their parents gathering in the new space—playing, creating, connecting with each other, and with professional parenting resources. You hear the sounds of kids playing—laughing, crying, shouting. You hear mothers and fathers talking—getting to know each other, building relationships.

After the kids leave, you watch adults come for a workshop for medical resources—less fun, but practical—connecting these people—your neighbors in need—to services that help folks navigate the complicated system of healthcare resources.

Then you see an after-school program. This one looks familiar. You recall it’s been going on for years, but here it is again, only this time it’s in a sparkling new space, brightly lit and brand new. And the quality of the space communicates something to you—a first-class level of love for your neighborhood and for the kids who live by you.

And then you hear the sounds of play again. More laughing and shouting, along with running feet and balls bouncing—when the gym is opened up for supervised playtime—a safe place for kids to gather, a safe place for kids to do the best of human activities—to play.

That same feeling of safety carries over to the next group that comes. This one is called the IF Project and it connects juvenile offenders to the resources and support they need to succeed on the outside.

And that’s just Monday—just one day of a busy week.

But there’s so much more to come in the rest of the week: support groups for Bryant Montessori parents, financial literacy classes, a professionally staffed health clinic, meeting space for community partners like AA and Youth For Christ.

One of your favorite things to watch is the bike repair workshop, done in partnership with a local non-profit, helping turn well-loved bikes into well-working bikes. You like watching your neighbors find the clothes they need at Pat’s Closet. And you like watching when Tony’s Kitchen turns the Center into place of soup and conversation. And on Sundays, you see the space fill with kids from the church above. Seems like a nice church. Seems like nice people.

But your eye keeps returning to that sign: Bryant Neighborhood Center. You smile when you look at it, because it means something—to have a space just for your neighborhood. Because, you know, lots of folks talk about helping, but talk is cheap. But that kind of dedication—I mean, such a nice place—such a busy place, just for your neighborhood. Well, that’s kind of what love looks like, doesn’t it?

Report: Neighborhood Clinic

The Trinity Neighborhood Clinic is open every Tuesday night, from 5-7 PM. Below, find the 2017 Annual Report, detailing the good work of the organization over the last year.

Our Patients

The Trinity Neighborhood Clinic offered high-quality medical care for over 322 individuals in the greater Tacoma area last year. We provide care to a culturally diverse population representing over nine languages, with Spanish being the most predominant non-English language spoken.

Our patients include people experiencing homelessness, people unable to qualify for Medicaid or subsidized coverage, people insured but unable to afford visit copays or prescription refills, and people who have experienced recent incarceration.

Our Services

Our services include acute medical visits, sports physicals, medication refills, and community referrals. Total patient visits increased from 308 in 2016 to 322 in 2017. Sports physicals continue to be our largest service offering. Fifty percent of sports physicals in 2017 were given to students that attend Lincoln, Jason Lee, Wilson, Foss and Stadium; more youth were seen for sports physicals from schools outside the Hilltop/Bryant neighborhood than in previous years.

The Clinic continues to prioritize prescription refills and health education as primary methods to address chronic disease. The pharmacy coverage program the Clinic budgets annual provides patients free prescriptions for needed medicines dispensed at Tacoma General Hospital. In 2017, the Clinic encouraged patients that had the financials to fill prescriptions at commercial pharmacies taht offered a low-cost prescription program.

Funding

In 2017 the Clinic received generation grants and in-kind donations from faithful and new supporters, including:

• The Dimmer Foundation
• Pierce County Medical Society
• The Milgard Foundation
• MultiCare
• CHI Franciscan
• Anderson Island Community CHurch
• Bartell Drugs Foundation
• The Florence B. Kilworth Foundation

These donations pay for patient prescriptions, Clinic insurance, facility and assistive support from the Trinity House, and the Director's stipend. In addition to the above monetary donations, we receive many hours of donated time by providers, nurses and front desk support from members of our community. We could not operate without our generous volunteers.

Volunteers

In 2017 we were excited to welcome new clinic volunteers to our team. We are joined by a new provider, Dr. Norman Gosch, a retired family physician, and two retired nurses, Laura Gruse and Joann Smith. Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) students have also supported the Clinic by supporting the assessment and development of needed community resources for our patients.

Staff

Staff changes that occurred in 2017 included a change in Clinic leadership. R'Lene Brobak, the Clinic Director since 2014, turned in her hat to spend more time with her grandchildren and pursue new adventures. In her place, the Clinic welcomed Sarah Stacy. Sarah located to the South Sound this year to complete her master's degree in nursing at PLU. Prior to joining the Clinic, Sarah worked in various capacities to improve healthcare access in community health center settings.

Trinity's 2017 B2SN

Community Partnerships

Community partnerships and services are an integral part to the Clinic. Community partnerships maintained in 2017 included connecting with Pierce County's Project Access for specialist and dental care referrals, as well as additional support from MultiCare. Patient community referrals in 2017 coordinated by the Clinic included Pierce County Project Acces, Sea Mar Community Health Center, Community Health Care, and the Mary Bridge Mobile Immunization van.

In September, Clinic volunteers provided free sports physicals as part of Trinity Presbyterian's Annual Back-to-School Night. At this event, families in the Hilltop/Bryant Neighborhood are given backpacks filled with school supplies, hot dogs and snacks to celebrate the start of a new school year. One parent, so happy with the care their child received, donated the little money they had on hand to support the Clinic.

Communications

The Clinic Directory launched a weekly email newsletter communication for donors, community partners, and volunteers. This has been a successful method in coordinating Clinic workflow updates, supply and donation needs and volunteer opportunities. Providing consistent communication is also improving current and interested volunteer engagement at the Clinic.

The Trinity Neighborhood Clinic is an investment in the health of our friends, family, neighbors, and community. There is no greater method to improve healthcare access than by making medical services free of charge. There is no better time to make a difference in our community than now.

Sincerely,

-Sarah M. Stacy

Clinic Director

30 Hour Famine 2018

Every year, the Trinity Youth participate in World Vision's, 30 Hour Famine. This learning experience and fundraiser focuses on the 795 million people around the world facing chronic hunger. February 24-25, 2018, the youth spent 30 hours fasting, while learning about these important issues and serving at local nonprofits. Read on to hear a little more about their experience.

Twenty-nine youth and six adults gathered this year from Trinity, Overlake Park, Snohomish, and Calvin Presbyterian Churches for the annual 30 Hour Famine. It wasn’t our first, and it won’t be out last

We wanted to be together, to raise money, to learn about poverty here in Tacoma and around the world, to think critically about our call as follower of Jesus, serve our community, and have some fun while we were at it!

During one special time, we were visited by Anya, a refugee from Luhansk in Eastern Ukraine. She is 17 years old.

Anya spoke to us in Russian, translated by Children Youth and Family Director, Julia Corbett. Anya shared how she and her family got out of her city just weeks before the war erupted. They moved from refugee camps to apartments and back to refugee camps. Sometimes her Dad would bring home only one loaf of bread for the entire family. It never really felt like reality, always like a dream. She imagined she would wake up and be back in her old home. Now, Anya goes to Stadium High School with some of our Trinity Youth, but somehow they've never seen her until now.

Listening to Anya, volunteering at TRM, and holding a prayer vigil, we were reminded that the funds we raise for the 30 hour famine are for real conflicts and deep trouble that harm real people.

This year our goal was to raise $3000 to give to World Vision. We haven’t quite reached that yet. If you’d like to be apart of our effort, but have not had the opportunity to donate yet, it’s not to late. Click here and to get started.

Many thanks to everyone who prayed for us, donated, helped with breakfast, drove children, spent the night on the floor, and danced team name aerobics. None of this would be possible without you.

Sincerely,

Christian

Session: Class of 2018

Trinity Presbyterian Church is governed by Session, a body of nine elders and our two pastors. Each year, three new session elders are elected, and three complete their term. This year, we say a fond farewell to Erika Mariani, Nalani Linder, and Tom Llewellyn. We are so grateful for the time, wisdom, and leadership they have shared. Read on to learn a little about the experience, and what kinds of things a Trinity session elder does.

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It is amazing to think that my 3 years as an Elder on Session is coming to a close soon.  When I said “yes” to this commitment it was because I had no solid reason to say “no”. I felt God calling me to serve in this way during this specific season of my life and this period of our church life.  The many months of meetings, emails and ongoing discussions we have had as a governing board all blend together now, but I am left with a strong impression of the tremendous teamwork and collaboration I felt in working with these amazing people that make up our Session and our church.  I value each and every one of the members of Session and felt honored to serve alongside them as we discerned over and prayed about all of the decisions made in the past 3 years.  Thank you all for this opportunity to serve the Trinity community.

Erika Mariani

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I’m grateful for having been part of the Presbyterian process and structure of Session these past three years.  Like most acts of faith and service, I got a lot more from it than the I put into it.  I sincerely appreciated being in closer community with the other Session members through the monthly meetings, and grappling together with a variety of issues facing Trinity.  It was great to work more with Matt and Rod, who are both highly competent leaders administratively as well as in church on Sundays. A ‘bonus’ for me was getting to do tasks assigned to Elders and Deacons that were surprisingly touching and meaningful for me: serving communion, talking about faith with new members, and other activities that called me into deeper reflection and relationship with God and with others at Trinity.   

Importantly, I also got an insider look at the extraordinary work that happens every day (and night) at Trinity House.  It’s a very special place, doing important and sometimes difficult work.  The stories of the many people who use Trinity House grounds as a place to sleep, stay and linger—often bringing drugs and/or weapons with them—breaks my heart, has me worried about the safety of staff, and invited us as session members into ongoing discernment about what the Christ-like response is in such complex circumstances.  These will continue to be questions for Session and staff, and all of us who care for Trinity and the Bryant Neighborhood.

As the 3 of us cycle off, I offer blessings to the ongoing and new members of Session as we move forward with the campaign, temporary relocation, and renovation.  Such exciting times and an important time for leadership.  Thank you for your service!

Nalani Linder

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The top five things about serving on session:

Number five: Serving as an elder is indeed a time commitment, but it’s a small one. One elder meeting a month and then, typically, involvement in one other team, such as children and youth, budgets, personnel, nominating—that sort of thing. But beyond that, serving is an honor—a sacred duty. So, if someone on that nominating team calls you in the future, say yes. You can fit it in.

Number four: Serving on session is indeed sacred—more than I imagined it would be. I sit in meetings all day at work, and originally kind of dreaded another meeting, but these gatherings are different. Matt works to create sacred space when we get together—with time for prayer and reflection.

Number three: Session is a remarkable reminder that we really are in this weird thing called the body of Christ. It’s a reminder that, at Trinity, it’s easier to get through life when we do it together, with each other’s diverse talents, skillsets, and personalities. Session works the way our larger church does, on a smaller scale, and it’s kind of awesome to watch the wisdom, hard work, and generosity move into action. We’ve got some gifted folks. It’s been inspiring to hang out with them one Tuesday a month.

Number four: You get to know all the secrets of being a Seventh-Level Trinitarian: sacred handshakes, hidden passages under the pulpit, vegetable sacrifices. OK, none of that actually happens. In fact, what you learn is that our leadership is incredibly transparent and incredibly human. No secrets. No mysteries. Just people praying, asking God for help, and doing their best to make decisions in an orderly fashion.

Number five: Snacks. You get snacks.

Tom Llewellyn

Annual Meeting Review: 2018

Last Sunday, February 11th, Trinity hosted our 2018 Annual Meeting. Take a few minutes to review some of the important information shared and covered during that time.

Building Project Update

2017 Annual Report

Click here

2017 Financial Documents

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Elder and Deacon Nominations

Sunday, February 11th, Trinity has our Annual Meeting. Here, the Trinity Nominating Team will bring the following nominees to the congregation for election as Deacon and Elders at Trinity.

Elders exercise leadership, government, spiritual discernment, and together (as a Session) have responsibilities for the life of the congregation. The office of Deacon is set forth in Scripture as one of compassion and prayer, witness and service after the example of Jesus Christ. Click to learn more about the role of the deacons, or the roles of the elders.

Elder Nominees

Alicia Klumpp

Alicia and her husband, Matt Aosved, have attended Trinity for nearly 13 years. Prior to moving to Tacoma, she directed youth & young adult ministries for 10 years.  

"I look forward to how God will use my gifts and grow my faith as I learn to serve in a new way."

Sarah Nyland

Sarah began attending Trinity regularly in 2002 after her medical residency, and was looking for a small church with a mission focus. She loves how Trinity has been open to hard questions and challenging discussions. She is married to her high school sweetheart, Gerrit, and they have two boys Henry (15) and Max (13).

"Trinity is my family. I love coming to worship every Sunday and miss it when I can't be there. I am truly blessed to be nominated and hope I can some good work over the next three years."

Todd Rorem

Todd and his wife, Anne, have been attending Trinity since 2004. They have three kids involved in Children's Ministry.

“Over the past 14 years, I have witnessed and experienced Trinity's mission to serve our church body and surrounding community.  I am excited to be apart of session and  have the opportunity to serve.“

Deacon Nominee

Mike Smith

Mike and his wife Holli have attended Trinity since 2004. They have four kids. Mike has been involved in various committees and volunteered in Sunday school for many years.

"We came to Trinity because we heard that there was this church nearby where the people were actually "real." That shared value of authenticity is why we stayed. My prayer to God is often that I can be useful to His Kingdom. My hope is that I can be of use to the Trinity community as a Deacon."

Lenten Devotional

As the Church enters the season of Lent (February 14th to March 31st), we are invited to make room for God's work in our lives by renewing our commitment to the spiritual practices of prayer, service, and fasting. Click here to download a .pdf. Additional copies available in the entry of the church.

Annual Report 2017

As we approach Trinity's 2018 Annual Meeting, you are invited to review our 2017 Annual Report, reflecting on the ministry, programs and events hosted in the last year. Click here to view the .pdf.

Trinity Neighborhood Clinic

The Trinity Neighborhood Clinic is a free clinic available to non-insured and under-insured individuals throughout the area. Our dedicated team of volunteer nurses and practitioners work alongside Clinic Director Sarah Stacy to continue to provide this valued service to our community. Read on to hear a little more from Sarah about the good work our team does!

The Trinity Neighborhood Clinic is off to a great start in 2018! We continue to provide medical care and community referrals to individuals and families in the Hilltop/Bryant community. In 2017, our volunteer providers and nurses served over 171 individuals, totaling 413 medical visits and sports physicals. Medical care and prescriptions continue to be provided at no cost to the patient, ensuring equitable healthcare access for all. We are always pleased to see our patients leaving the Clinic with hope and support.

A family, recently immigrated from Africa, learned about the Clinic through their children’s school. They came to the clinic to access services, including the coordination of free specialty care through Pierce County’s Project Access program. One woman, a month after being seen, came back to the Clinic and made a cash donation because “the Clinic helped her in a time of need and [she] wanted to pay forward the service for someone else.” One of the volunteer nurses made a home visit to a family seen at the Clinic, providing them with a full Thanksgiving meal. The two children in this family were also gifted beds when the nurse identified they had been sleeping on the floor in a 1-bedroom apartment.

These stories are the essence of the dedicated number of hours our volunteers provide our community. It is the helping hands of our volunteers that enable us to support access to healthcare and services in the greater Tacoma area.

In addition to providing excellent medical care, the Clinic has a few projects underway to enhance our service offerings in 2018. A Pacific Lutheran University nursing student recently conducted a needs assessment from our volunteer clinical staff to enable a better understanding the needs of our patient population. In January, the Clinic welcomed a student intern from the Health Information and Technology program at Tacoma Community College, who is building an electronic population health management tool. Both of these projects will enable the Clinic to improve referrals and identify social needs for the patients and families we serve.

Earlier this year, the Clinic entered into a partnership with Sea Mar Community Health Center which provides the Clinic with a patient navigator - an expert in health insurance enrollment and community resources and services. In just two Clinic nights, the patient navigators have enrolled four individuals into Medicaid, and have connected two families to social services such as WIC and food stamps. The have also provided translation services for those patients that are Spanish-speaking, therefore improving the quality of care and coordination to community resource.

It continues to be a very good year for the Trinity Neighborhood Clinic. We are excited that we will continue to provide much-needed excellent medical care and services here in our community.