-
- Mission
Statement
- Programs
- History
- Bible
Studies
- Calendar
- Church
Leadership
- FAQ
-
|
-
- How God Has Worked At Veto
Presbyterian...
-
- In the early 1800's, a large
group from Argylshire, Scotland, set sail for America to
find more freedom. After landing in Marietta, many
came to this community and established farms. Later
other settlers joined them.
-
- On November 27, 1896, seventeen
of these people by the names of Shaw, Drain, McKay, Breckenridge,
Andrews, McGill, and Spartling petitioned the Presbytery
of Athens to organize the Presbyterian Church of Veto. As
a result of their efforts, the church was built and was
home to forty-five members by the end of 1897. The
land for the church had been donated by siblings, Dougald
and Ella Shaw.
-
- In 1961, a second donation
of land came from Harry and Margaret Fleming. On November
14, 1965, ground was broken for a new education wing.
-
- A third parcel of land on
the north and east of the church was donated in 1977. It
was in memory of Dougald and Ella Shaw.
-
- In 1999, a building committee
was organized for the purpose of exploring the possibilities
of expanding the existing sanctuary or building a new one.
That committee consisted of Marlies Davis, Bob, Anita,
and Sarah Francisco, Ida Holdren, Sue Kesterson, Becky and
Robin Swinsburg, Flo Tackett, Lyle Dayhoff, John Hastie,
Steve Venham, and Cecil Wright. When the Carlos Starkey
property just north of the church went up for sale in 2000,
the committee recommended that the church buy it. The
church agreed, and then later decided to sell the house
while retaining part of the land; thus they acquired the
necessary space for expansion.
-
- In order to facilitate their
dream to build this new sanctuary, the members hired Neil
Orchard of River Tree Stewardship Services to conduct a
fundraising campaign. Without Neil's leadership, the
committee felt that the building project would never get
off the ground. Neil organized teams, in-home meetings,
and classes on The Treasure Principle. His
prevailing theme was "Not Equal Giving but Equal Sacrifice."
Members were asked to consider what they might give
up or what extra task they might take on in order to make
the stewardship campaign successful. Among their creative
responses was selling machinery, cutting the TV cable bill,
delaying the purchase of a new car, giving up a cleaning
lady, and taking on a part-time job. Even some children
took on extra chores at home in order to earn the money
for their weekly commitments.
-
- A significant part of this
stewardship campaign was the commitment to prayer.
The prayer team divided the pages of the church directory
and prayed for the individual families daily. A flyer
listing forty days of prayer requests was given to the congregation
so that they could pray for specific needs. A Concert
of Prayer was held on October 14, 2005, in which members
prayed corporately and individually to praise God and ask
for His guidance. The Concert of Prayer was followed
by an all-night Prayer Vigil lasting from 9:00 PM to 11:00
AM. Throughout the night, different members came to
the church to pray. Two members walked around the
church seven times and prayed that the congregation would
seek and obey God's leadership in this matter. (Joshua 6:4)
-
- And God clearly answered
that prayer. Perhaps we can say with Queen Esther
(Esther 4:14) that we were born "for such a time as
this." With the new bridge crossing the Ohio
River at Blennerhassett Island and the prospective increase
in population and traffic, it was time to expand our Christian
outreach to the community.
-
- God is good! When the
members were obedient step-by-step, God poured out His blessings.
In addition to the $217,000 initially committed by
the congregation, individual donations of $1,000, $2,000,
$5,000, $5,700, $15,000, and $100,000 came in.
-
- As we gratefully look back
on how God has led and blessed us, we eagerly look forward
to how He's going to use this congregation at Veto to further
His kingdom. To God be the glory!
-
- Submitted by Drema Gillespie
- November 18, 2007
-
|
