Written by Lynn Lease, VCN Member
Donning hats of all styles and themes, the ladies of VCN gathered on Saturday, April 20 in the VCN Fellowship Hall for fun, food, and fellowship. A gathering of Christian sisters is always a beautiful opportunity to share, encourage, and laugh!
Hats took center stage thanks to Pam Starr and her collection of assorted hats set as beautiful centerpieces on each table. Thanks, Pam!
The food was a hit with Sandy Bradford's famous chicken salad set on croissants accompanied by fresh fruit on salad greens. Sandy and her dedicated food committee went all out with desserts galore to satisfy any sweet tooth. And of course, we had tea, which we all drank with our pinkies up!
Hats were on parade thanks to Mary Lou Cox who coordinated a hat contest offering prizes for (1) Most Creative/Original, (2) Fanciest Theme, and (3) Best of Show. Winners were (1) Jan Lappin, our beloved pie baker for her very original pie pan hat, (2) LeeAnn Helzer for her Hawaiian luau theme hat, and (3) Lynn Lease for her Bees in the Flower Garden hat.
Music was provided by Beth Calabro, keyboard, and Tammy Barbee, vocals. These beautifully talented ladies offered a collective rendition of worship songs to focus our hearts and minds on our gratitude for our Heavenly Father.
Debbie Henderson gave a personal and encouraging reminder of the many hats we wear. Here’s a short excerpt from her talk in which she encouraged us to turn to God for help in removing the hats from the enemy and to replace them with hats from the Father:
“As women, we wear many and varied hats over our lifetime. Hats are both protective and ornamental. But there are hats that we sometimes wear that others have placed on our heads. They are not hats we would choose for ourselves and some are downright painful. We need to become aware and intentional about our hats as Christian women. Hats that are God’s design are purposeful, protective, and ornamental. Christ laid down his heavenly crown and chose a crown of thorns for us so that we might be saved. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we can remove those hats designed to steal, kill, and destroy us and put on the hats that give abundant life.”
We are grateful for the VCN Ladies Ministry. With thankful hearts, we tip our hats to the leaders, Juanita Jones and Marlys Shride. Many hours of brainstorming, planning, preparing, and praying go into this ministry. If you see them, please tell them thank you for sharing their time and talents!
The VCN Ladies Ministry will pause during the summer months. There are some fun activities already planned for the next year starting in September, including a Craft Fair, a Thrifty Shopper outing, a Christmas Home Tour, a Game Night, a Talent Night, and other events including the possibility of a VCN Ladies Retreat! More details will be shared in the fall.
In the meantime, if you are looking for other fellowship opportunities this summer, see the VCN Weekly Updates or your church bulletin for details. Stop by the Welcome Desk on Sundays to learn more and to sign up for some of the fun things happening in our church community.
For now, enjoy these pictures - and we hope to see you at the next event!
