Weekly Word

Time to play!

Our Preschool kids got to romp and play on the new playground Monday. Even though the playground has been updated with new turf, structures, swings, etc., (to make it safe and suitable for younger children and to replace the aging 20-year-old equipment), we have not met our fundraising goal. All donations will be matched by an anonymous donor! If you’d like to contribute, please do so HERE. Thank you!

Friendship Hall Update

Our renovation project is speeding along! New cabinets, new carpet, new stage, new AV booth, and a new instrument closet are all in—and we are in the final stretch of installing AV equipment. Please leave the doors closed; construction work is continuing a few more weeks (but ahead of schedule)! Pastors Rodger and Maggie are planning meaningful services to commission the updated space for worship and fellowship sometime this Fall.

September Sermon Series: “EPIC Church”

Rev. Dr. Rodger Nishioka explores what author Dr. Leonard Sweet calls the E.P.I.C. Church: Experiential, Participatory, Imagistic, and Communal. See you in worship or online Sundays!

• Sept. 7 – The Church is Experiential
• Sept. 14 – The Church is Participatory
• Sept. 21 – The Church is Imagistic
• Sept. 28 – The Church is Communal

Share Your Time and Talents. Giving isn’t just about money—our time and talents are also gifts from God meant to be shared. The Langdon family (above) served together in Lighthouse Kids on Kickoff Sunday. Choose one or more ways to serve this Fall. Fill out the pledge cards in the pews or online HERE. We promise that someone will follow up with you.

Serve

Food Pantry and Clothes Closet – September is peanut butter month! Help us fill the shelves with plastic, 18-oz jars. A $25 donation buys a case. At the Clothes Closet, start bringing us your gently used fall and winter clothes. The Antioch Campus is also collecting gently used household items. Thank you!

Engage, Grow, and Celebrate

Wednesday Family Dinners – 5:30-6:30 p.m. Wednesdays. To register for dinners, click HERE. (RSVP HERE to volunteer and eat free.)

Village Connect Groups – Deepen your faith and relationships with others. This year’s study, created by Pastor Rodger, is “Jesus’ Beatitudes: Blessings for Our Life Today.” Interested in joining a group? Stop by the Welcome Center between services, Sept. 21, or email Carol.

Grandparents for Gun Safety Forum: “Faith and Firearms: Turning Faith Into Action” – 6 p.m. Monday, Oct. 1 at Rockhurst University. Pastor, author, and social activist John Pavlovitz will provide a national perspective, while KC-area leaders will share how communities are turning faith into action to reduce gun violence. Learn more HERE.

Guns to Gardens – 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25, at Central Presbyterian Church, 3501 Campbell St., KC, MO. This second annual gun surrender event provides an opportunity to surrender firearms safely to be dismantled and repurposed into garden tools. Those surrendering firearms will receive a grocery gift card. Last year they collected more than 80 guns—the goal is to collect 200 this year! Learn more HERE. 

Village Golf – We will play Tuesday, Oct. 14, starting at 9:30 a.m. at Falcon Lakes Golf Club in Basehor, Kansas. Cost is $51 including the chance to win end-of-the-season prizes such as golf gloves and balls. RSVP to Brad Steil by Oct. 1.

ADULT FAITH FORMATION

Conversation with Rev. Dr. Rodger Nishioka – 6:30-8 p.m. this Wednesday, Sept. 17, Room 132, Mission Campus. Members, non-members, visitors, believers, skeptics—all are welcome to a conversation with our senior pastor.

The Culture Wars that Helped Create America – 6:30-8 p.m. Wedesdays, Sept. 17–Oct. 8, Room 124, Mission Campus. Dr. Lonnie H. Lee will examine the religious, cultural, and political differences in Post-Reformation Europe during the 17th century.

Find all Village U Classes in our Fall 2025 catalog.

children & family ministry

Child & Family Development Center Turns 30! Come to our party from 5-7 p.m. this Friday, Sept. 19. Bring the whole family to enjoy live music with Dino O’Dell, cake, snow cones, a garbage truck, and more.

international ministry

Hit for Haiti is Saturday, Oct. 4 – This annual pickleball and tennis event benefits Higgins Brothers Surgicenter—the only functioning medical center near Fonds-Parisien, which serves about 1,500 Haitian patients each month. Learn more and sign up to play HERE.

Auction/Raffle Items Needed – The Dominican Republic Medical Partnership (DRMP) of Village Church is looking for auction items for its annual fundraiser, Celebration Dominicana, on Oct. 11. Examples include gift cards, vacation rentals, airline vouchers, sports or concert tickets, artwork, jewelry, or gardening or interior design services. If you can donate, email Lora Garrison, or call 913-671-2390. Thank you!

music ministry

Te Deum – 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27, Mission Campus Sanctuary. Te Deum presents Rachmaninoff’s “All-Night Vigil” in English translation, honoring the work’s profound spiritual and musical legacy. Buy tickets HERE.

Wind Symphony – 7 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 5, Mission Campus Sanctuary. The Kansas City Wind Symphony presents “Destinations,” music honoring places we’ve been and places we’d like to go. The free concert will feature music by Hector Berlioz, Percy Aldridge Grainger, and Haydn Wood.

Pastoral care & Counseling

Growing Through Grief Starts Sept. 24 – Grief is a hard journey; we’re here to help you each step of the way. This 5-week class, facilitated by Rev. Tom Soule, offers support. We meet at 10 a.m. every Wednesday, Sept. 24–Oct. 22 in Room 132. Registration is required; email Linda Alley or call 913-671-2327.

Home Communion will be offered on Oct. 5, World Communion Sunday. If you’re interested, or know someone who’d like to receive this sacrament, let us know. Contact Linda Alley.

Presbyterian Women

MOTS (Moms of Teens) – 8:30-10 a.m., this Saturday, Sept. 20, Young Adult Space (Room 8); Mission Campus. Interested in talking to other moms with teens? Come for coffee and conversation.

Mingle & Bingo – 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 23 at O’Neill’s Restaurant in Leawood. Women of all ages are invited for games and featured speaker Rev. Maggie Johnson Phillips. The cost is $15 and includes appetizers. Bingo cards are $5 with proceeds going to the Village Food Pantry. RSVP to Becky Anderson.

Want more news and happenings? Read the September issue of the PW Messenger.

young adults

Royals Game – 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 19. Bring your friends and join us at Kauffman Stadium for a night of fun, fellowship, and baseball! Tickets: $20. Register HERE.

Picnic in the Park – 5:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 22. Young adults with kiddos: Bring the family to Taliaferro Park for an evening of playgrounds, popsicles, and dinner. No cost, but sign up HERE.

youth

Confirmation classes begin this Sunday, Sept. 21. Find out more HERE.

green tip of the week:

Teach Kids About Saving Energy. Practices such as turning off lights, closing the doors behind you, switching off the TV, etc., can be instilled in children through gentle reminders. *Village Presbyterian Church is a certified Earth Care Congregation.