About Presbyterian Women (PW) at Stone Church

Through the years, PW has provided a warm fellowship for women who have studied together, shared closely in each others’ lives, and applied themselves to many remarkable good works.

Several circles (circle is the traditional name for small fellowship and study groups usually meeting in members’ homes) meet each month; the specific schedule is printed in The Stone News. In addition there is a Focus Group, a Lunch Bunch, 2 Book Groups, Soul Feast groups, a Prayer Shawl Ministry group and Gatherings of the whole women’s community at least 3 times a year. Membership is open to all women of the church.

PW members’ good works have further expanded because of a generous bequest from Ruby Hudspeth, who was active in PW and our church from 1953 to 1968. The Ruby Hudspeth Trust was set up in 1995 and gives grants to mission within Stone Church, to the larger Presbyterian Church, and to mission beyond the Presbyterian Church, as well as scholarship assistance to post-secondary students and to persons attending specific church-related events.

PW Purpose (used by PW groups all across the country)

Forgiven and freed by God in Jesus Christ, we commit ourselves:

• To nurture our faith through prayer and Bible study
• To support the mission of the church worldwide
• To work for justice and peace
• And to build an inclusive, caring community of women that strengthens the Presbyterian Church (USA) and witnesses to the promise of God’s Kingdom.

PW in the wider Church

There is a PW organization on the Presbytery level of the church, Presbyterian Women in the Presbytery of San Jose. The coordinating team for 2007–2008 is moderated by Stone Church’s Claudia Hamm, and several Stone Church members participate on that CT. The PWPSJ has a program of 4 Presbytery-wide Gatherings each year, as well as a spring nurture retreat. The next Gathering will be on Saturday March 29, 2008 at the Foothill Presbyterian Church, San Jose, from 2 pm – 4 pm. The program is on “Greening” the church.

PW is also organized nationally, with offices in Louisville, KY at the Presbyterian Center. PW Churchwide publishes a top rated magazine, Horizons, which each month covers topics of timely interest to women. Each year there is a Horizons Bible Study publication, used by many PW circles as the basis of their monthly meetings. The study for 2007–2008 is called Above and Beyond: Hearing God’s Call in Jonah and Ruth, and will examine these familiar stories in new ways.

Information about PWPSJ or PW Churchwide is available from Claudia Hamm, or from Alice Thorn.

The PW Publication Linkage

PW publishes a Presbytery–wide newsletter called the Linkage on an approximately quarterly basis. To view the most recent one, click Here.

The Stone Church PW Coordinating Team 2007-2008

The Moderator is Sheri Cunningham. She can be contacted for further information. Or talk to these group leaders:

Amethyst Circle — Bea Groppuso
Emerald Circle — Rhonda Lakatos
Sapphire Circle — Jeanette Rapp
Lunch Bunch — Ida Raby
Focus Group — Diana Lim
Book Group I — Carolyn Clendenning;
Book Group II — Claudia Hamm
Prayer Shawl Ministry — Janice Goertz
Soul Feast groups — Janice Goertz