MADISON AVENUE
PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
921 Madison Avenue
(at East 73rd Street)
New York, NY 10021
Tel: 212- 288-8920
Fax: 212-249-1466
(at East 73rd Street)
New York, NY 10021
Tel: 212- 288-8920
Fax: 212-249-1466
In the wake of 9/11, MAPC, along with the Park East Synagogue and St. Vincent Ferrer Roman Catholic Church, made a special appeal to our congregations, to establish a scholarship fund for the children of one of the fallen firefighters. Gifts from the three communities were joined by an Appeal of Conscience Foundation grant, bringing the total scholarship to $75,000. Once the scholarship fund was established the hard part began - identifying the appropriate family from a fire house located on the Upper East Side (we wanted to ensure that it would honor and serve someone who had served us faithfully over the years).
Left to Right: Susan Magazine, Fr. Robb, Mrs. Hynes, Dr. Anderson, Rabbi Schneier, Commissioner Scoppetta
Last fall a decision was made. Caitlan, Dierdra and Kerry Hynes, the children of Walter G. Hynes, Captain of the 85th Street Fire House who was killed in the World Trade Center tragedy, would be the recipients of the educational scholarship fund. On a cold and wet Tuesday morning last November, Rabbi Schneier, Father Robb and I drove to 9 Tech Center in Brooklyn (headquarters of the NYFD) to present Captain Hynes's wife, Veronica, with the check for their daughters' education. A few weeks ago I received the following thank you letter from Mrs. Hynes.
"Dear Dr. Anderson,
It was my pleasure to meet with you, FDNY Commissioner Scoppetta and Susan Magazine on November 12 at FDNY headquarters . I would like to extend my sincere gratitude for the overwhelming kindness that has been shared with my family by the very generous gift toward my daughters' education.
My late husband, FDNY Capt. Walter G. Hynes, was so proud of our daughters. He was a loyal husband and a loving father. He touched many lives in his time here on earth and I pray that our daughters will follow in his goodness and life of life! He, along with his FDNY brothers, died tragically on September 11 doing what they loved most, helping others. I know they will always be with us, in our hearts and watching over us each day.
Knowing so many think of and pray for us still, has enabled us to face the new challenges we have in each day. God has been with us every step of this journey and I pray that he will continue to bless us with strength, courage and healing.Words cannot express our deep gratitude to you, so I offer a simple"Thank You" for this gift. May you be blessed each day, and I pray that peace will become a reality for all of our children. You will all be forever in our prayers.
With sincere gratitude,
Veronica A. Hynes"
Similar letters were also received by Rabbi Schneier and Father Robb.
The Annual Meeting of the Congregation and Corporation of the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church will be held on Sunday, February 2, 2003 at 12:30 pm in the Sanctuary.
The purpose of the meeting is to elect officers, receive the Session's reports on 2002 and the operating budget for 2003, and vote on recommended changes in the terms of call for the Pastors.
The meeting will be convened immediately following the Benediction at the 11:15 am service. There will be no coffee hour that day. Visitors are welcome to attend the meeting, though only Active Members are eligible to vote. The meeting, which is docketed to last 45 minutes, will be followed by refreshments in the Church House Lobby.
Please mark your calendars now for this important meeting.
Table-setting, salad-tossing and pie-plating help is needed for the Thursday evening Shelter Dinner program in the Parish Hall. Four teams serve one Thursday each month for two to three hours. The 20/30's group serves whenever there is a fifth Thursday in a month. Call Dawn Ravella, Director of Outreach Ministries for more information on how you can help (288-8920, x240).
*MAPC Member
The January activities for the MAPC 20s/30s group are as follows:
We look forward to seeing you at any or all of these events.
It was 6:45 pm on December 23 when the school bus pulled up to the 73rd St. Parish Hall entrance at MAPC. Our 12 overnight homeless guests were arriving. They were greeted at the door by two volunteers. We shook hands with everyone saying "Merry Christmas, welcome." Two long tables were set up with red cloths and poinsettia plants. Hot dogs, potato salad, sandwiches, sodas, juices, and a large array of cookies, cakes, fruits and some candy adorned the tables. We all sat together--the 20 of us! The highlight came when our pianist, Karen Gourgey, arrived. Song books were handed out and what a chorus of voices responded!!!! The depressed, lonely, troubled all sang with tremendous conviction (also in Spanish). I had such a genuine appreciation for the warmth and gratitude shown by these men who themselves were joyous and spontaneous.
—Joan Dietrich
Also, see: