Linden Updates

At NAPC we are committed to serving in the community of Linden in Columbus, OH. Check back to this page often for updates from Team Linden.

Thanksgiving Meals – 11/4/2020

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It’s that time of year again…fall is upon us, the leaves are rapidly coming down…AND…Thanksgiving is around the corner!

In previous years, NAPC has coordinated a large effort to collect and distribute Thanksgiving meal kits to families in need.  Over the years, we have tweaked this outreach opportunity a bit and began to focus our efforts more specifically in the Linden area.  Team Linden has continued to spend a considerable amount of time getting to know the community and the needs that are presented by the families who live there.  The team has also been taking a closer look at what we have done in years past, and if indeed those things were helpful for our Linden friends.

What we have discovered is that many of the residents in Linden are far more likely to “heat up” a meal than cook it on a stove or in an oven, and so we began to reconsider our efforts around the holidays each year, and how we go about changing lives and glorifying God through relationship building opportunities.

NAPC exists to glorify God through lives changed by Jesus Christ.  This very statement insinuates “relationship”.  Lives cannot and will not be changed unless we make a continuous effort to be in relationship with the families in the Linden community.  This takes time and consistent effort.

Team Linden exists to identify and provide opportunities that foster relationship building within Linden and enable NAPC members to evangelize, disciple, and encourage the restoration of relationships between God and His people.

In light of our mission, we will be doing things a little differently this year for our Thanksgiving meals.

Families with whom we have already begun to establish relationships through Fellowship of Christian Athletes(FCA through Linden-McKinley High School), RESET(religious education through Como Elementary), and the Linden Park Neighborhood Early Childhood Education Center (who reside in the Linden area) will be the recipients of our thanksgiving meals.
We will not collect items and a gift card in light of the things we have learned.  Instead, we are asking NAPC families to adopt a specific family and provide a hot Thanksgiving meal for them during the week of Thanksgiving.

Sign ups will be available on Sunday November 15th at our registration tables with Lauren Polk and Rebecca Glick.  We will provide you with the names, contact information and address of the recipients.  We then ask you to order a hot Thanksgiving meal from Bob Evans that you will pick up and deliver to the family during the week of Thanksgiving.  You will be able to arrange the time and date of your delivery directly with the family you have adopted.

We will have detailed instruction sheets for you when you sign up for a family, to help guide you through this new process.  We will also provide an informal training video for any NAPC families who choose to participate.

In addition, we would like you and your family to include a card with a personal note of encouragement as part of your gift from your family to theirs, in order to foster “relationship”.

If you have any questions, please contact Team Linden at Linden@NewAlbanyPresbyterian.org.
Thank you for prayerfully considering this opportunity to build relationships with our Linden friends.
Team Linden

We have a new ministry partner: TWENTYEIGHT:19 – 10/13/2020

  • What is TwentyEight:19?

TWENTYEIGHT:19 is a faith-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to serving those most in need, through lasting relationships, by sharing and living out the light of the Gospel. It was founded in 2018 by NAPC members Jim Haley, Tom Skoulis, and Patrick Smith, who have dedicated their time, prayers and finances to getting the organization established. We now have a 1500 sq. ft. ministry center which opened a few weeks ago and has been undergoing major improvements over the last six weeks. This facility is located at 948 Oakland Park Avenue, Columbus 43229. 

  • How will NAPC support them? 

Anyone from NAPC with a heart to serve in Linden is welcome to serve and support the organization. NAPC’s Team Linden is partnering with TWENTYEIGHT:19 to help organize, staff and support programs at the facility.  Given the facility provides a significant benefit to NAPC, Team Linden (NAPC) is planning to provide financial support of the organization on an ongoing basis. This support will help to defray the costs of operating the facility and the program expenses.  

  • What is their mission?

TWENTYEIGHT:19 exists to foster positive generational change by bringing the Gospel into the community of Linden with one goal – to make disciples of Jesus Christ.

  • How can I volunteer there? 

The TWENTYEIGHT:19 website is under construction and will ultimately serve as the go-to for volunteer information, sign-ups and program details.  Stay tuned for more updates! In the meantime, TWENTYEIGHT:19 is working through Team Linden and directly with the members of the NAPC congregation to communicate volunteer opportunities.

  • Is just RESET there? 

RESET is happening there on Tuesdays/Fridays from 1-4p, and we could use a few more volunteers. Additional programs are under development and will organically evolve.  Currently, worship on Sundays via NAPC live-stream is now on-going (last week we had 29 attendees).  NAPC members are welcome to attend a service if they are interested in seeing the facility and joining in fellowship. A Linden-based Saturday Men’s Group will soon begin.  Events introducing the TWENTYEIGHT:19 Center to the local Linden community are also being planned. 

Linden Update – 10/12/20

We have exciting news to share from our friends at the Early Childhood Learning Center (ECLC) in Linden.  The administrative staff is now working onsite, as Columbus is preparing to (hopefully) return to a Hybrid model of learning in the next few weeks.  After speaking with the principal at the ECLC, some concerns and prayer requests were shared with us.  She is asking for prayers from all of us at NAPC for a smooth transition for both the children and teachers, as they work to meet the needs of their “littlest learners”.  As you may imagine, there are many layers and concerns in the community that could easily hinder the return to school and in-person classroom learning.  These children need to have some face to face learning, and they will need their teachers to be there in order for that to happen.  Please partner with us in praying over the “littles” and their learning at the ECLC.  

Another exciting update for our Linden community involves our partnership with the R.E.S.E.T. program.  For the past few years, we have provided volunteers for the R.E.S.E.T. program through Como Elementary.  This program is one in which parents grant permission for their child/children to receive religious education once a week during their normal school day.  In light of Columbus City Schools operating with 100% virtual learning for the fall, this wonderful opportunity to continue investing in relationships with these children and families had been in jeopardy.  However, we have now been able to partner with a new non-profit organization in the North Linden community called Twenty-Eight 19.  Children and families that we previously connected with through the R.E.S.E.T. program at Como Elementary are now able to come to this non-profit for religious education a few afternoons a week.  In light of this, we are in need of volunteers to help us each week.  If you are interested in finding out more about how you can help, please email Bob Milroy at Linden@NewAlbanyPresbyterian.org. 

We will be sharing more updates with you in the near future, as we plan for how we can make a difference in the lives of our friends in the Linden community. 

Team Linden

Linden McKinley FCA Update: 9/30/2020
In recent weeks, many of you have been inquiring about what is happening in the Linden community and how you might be able to help.
We are happy to let you know that NAPC is feeding the Linden McKinley Football team during their shortened season, in conjunction with the FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) program at the school!  There are however some changes in light of the current restrictions as related to COVID.
Volunteers are bringing food and drinks to the school and serving it outside each week.  Despite not being able to have a lesson or discussion, it has been wonderful to see their smiles and the joy in their eyes when they receive their to-go meal package after their football practice.  (The smiles get even bigger when there are leftovers to share!)
If you would like to help serve any of the meals in October, please email Janet Dehmer at Linden@NewAlbanyPresbyterian.org. Thursday is our serving day, and we will be providing a meal throughout the month of October (1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd, and 29th).  Only 2-3 volunteers will be needed each week, and masks are required (we will provide gloves).  We will fill the slots on a first come/first serve basis.  If you are interested, send an email with the date(s) you can serve and we will respond with an email confirmation.
Please continue to pray for our efforts in the Linden community.  We will have another update for you within the next few weeks.
Team Linden

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