“No matter who you are, no matter where you are, you are welcome here!”

July 12, 2024

Dear Beloveds,

Charlie, my wonderful groom of over 30 years, is always sending me interesting and new things to read; articles he reads in the newspaper, journals, poems, and books; I am always delighted to learn new things with him and because of him. I wanted to share the latest tidbit that he shared with me; perhaps you have already heard of what I will share. It was an article in the New York Times about the graduation speech that Roger Federer gave to this year’s graduating class for Dartmouth College. As the article states, there are many unremarkable graduation speeches, even those given by some remarkable people; I have heard my share!

But this particular speech seems to have struck a collective chord in so many people with both its wisdom and veracity. I will quote the article who, in turn, quotes Federer:

“In the 1,536 singles matches I played in my career, I won almost 80 percent of those matches. Now, I have a question for all of you. What percentage of the points do you think I won in those matches?” (The answer was only 54 percent.) “In other words, even top ranked tennis players win barely more than half of the points they play.’” He went on to say, “Even top ranked tennis players win barely more than half of the points they play. The truth is, whatever game you play in life, sometimes you’re going to lose. A point, a match, a season, a job.”

I loved that wisdom! It resounded with me so heartily, and I can understand why it brought so much hope to so many people. We all pass through difficult seasons in our lives--you may be in one right now. How comforting to know that we do not need to just simply survive, but we can come out on top AND be better, victorious people-- even with losing half the time!

I hope that Federer’s words brought you as much hope and encouragement as they did for me. As Charlie reflected as we were discussing the article, it is a beautiful and reassuring reinforcement that truly, sometimes we win and sometimes we lose; but the key is to keep trying.

This is the same hope that God asks us to have in our lives and in our perspectives; to know that there will be good days and bad days, but that God will always and eternally be walking with us, through thick and thin, through all the wins and the loses, through good and bad days. And God is the God of hope.

So, on the days that we lose, I pray that we can remember to embrace both Federer’s math and wisdom- and remember that God is with us in all our wins and loses!

With great love for you,

Pastor Grace

Thank You, Julie

After an amazing 25-year career leading our very popular preschool, Director Julie Baczewski has announced she will be resigning at the end of her current contract, on July 31. The Personnel Committee is working with Julie and others to establish strong, seamless interim leadership as the new school year opens and will then begin the process of searching for a new director who can continue to grow the school and continue the nurturing and innovative program that has distinguished PPP throughout Julie’s tenure.

The landmarks Julie created during her tenure here are many; here are just a couple:

• The first preschool in LA County certified as an Outdoor Classroom Demonstration Site

• Added a Transitional Kindergarten Program to give parents a choice between private and public TK for their children

• Became a Quality Start Los Angeles (QSLA) member and received an annual grant and coaching for teachers and administrators

• Closed for only three weeks when COVID hit and pivoted quickly to a virtual program

• Helped all our teachers earn a teaching permit from the California Teaching Commission, making Pali Pres the only Palisades preschool with permitted teachers from the State

• Applied for our Infant Program license in May with plans to provide this much-needed service to our community to give families a quality program for children age 5 months to 6 years old

We are excited for Julie’s future and so grateful for the legacy she has created here and with each of the students and families who have passed through our preschool. Please stay tuned for news of a celebration of Julie in the coming weeks.

Calling all Volunteers for Vacation Bible School!

If you would like to donate your time, talent, donations, or bring snacks, to make VBS a smashing success, please sign up by contacting Ms. Lucy. Thank you for all your love and support!

Pali Pres Prodigals: Championship Bound

Pali Pres Prodigals (12 - 0): 25

Beverly Hills/Brentwood Pres (2-10): 1

The regular season is over and there was nothing regular about it at all! The Prodigals have gone undefeated! From zero wins in 2022, to zero loses in 2024! An about-face rarely seen in the wide world of sports, let alone the brutal crucible known as Interfaith Softball! However, the time for bows, curtsies and parades is not yet here. It’s time to bring home the championship.

Last year, Prodigals Coach and General Manager Will Saunders made a solemn promise to the Personnel Committee that an Interfaith Softball League Championship would be secured by Pali Pres within his tenure. As a man of his word, his first move of brilliance was to get himself as far away from a bat and glove as possible and resign to the bench.

Now with victory in sight, it’s important to not rest upon a stellar season. Too often, a tremendous season can be nullified by a poor playoff performance. Can you recall who lost the Super Bowl last year? If you can… did it take a minute?

The 1976 Rutgers Scarlet Knights basketball team (undefeated regular season)… the 2007 New England Patriots (undefeated regular season)… the 2023 Los Angeles Dodgers (100 regular season wins)… all three teams had exceptional records, yet, their dreams of a championship were dashed, becoming mere footnotes in the annals of glory. A list from which the Prodigals aim to remain absent.

The stakes are high, and the second best team in the league, the Westwood “Fighting” Methodists, have their sights set on a championship. How does this writer know this? Well, after Monday’s game, guess who showed up to practice on their bye week, at the very field upon which the Prodigals had just prevailed? That’s right: the “Fighting” Methodists. Not only that, but they were filming the Prodigals game. They’re determination to defend their title is clear.

Come on out to Cheviot Hills Rec Center next week and bear witness to what is sure to be an exciting conclusion to a historic season!

Monday, July 15th

First Round: 7:15pm, Field One, vs. IKAR

Championship Round: 8:30pm, vs. Westwood Methodist or Westwood Presbyterian

“Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth.” -Lou Gehrig

Not pictured: Pastor Matt, Jim Palladino, KC Robertson, Dave Olson and Ether Alva.

Summer Youth Events at Pali Pres!

Preteen Gatherings: Starbucks in the Village with Ms. Lucy on Sunday, July 21st.

Teen Gatherings: Bible study and lunch with Ms. Lucy on Sunday, July 28th.

Beach Day at Will Roger’s State Beach: July 28th at 4PM

Vacation Bible School: Counselors Wanted! August 5-9th

Vacation Bible School Training Day & Luncheon: August 4th

Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established. The human mind plans the way but the Lord directs the steps. -Proverbs 16:3,9

Please save the date for the Pali Pres Church-Wide Estate Sale on Saturday, August 24th!

Donations will be accepted beginning on Sunday, August 18th. Please save your treasures to donate to this important fundraiser.

If you would like to be on the volunteer committee, the next planning meeting is in late July.

If you have any questions, please contact Catherine Nadel, Nancy Gillette, Lyla Corrales or Stephanie Hubsch.

Join us for our Livestream Worship!

Join at 9:50am on Sunday Morning to enjoy the prelude, with worship beginning at 10am.

Sunday Refreshments

Bringing refreshments on Sunday mornings to share with our church is a loving and very important ministry. Thank you to all of you who have been doing this so faithfully. Please contact Refreshment Coordinator Jan Gong to sign up to serve.

Thank you to Margi & Dean St. Clair for last week's refreshments! This week's goodies are brought to us by Marie-Anne & Norman Helgeson and Annie Amitin!

Sunday Sanctuary Flowers

This week’s flowers are provided by Jan Gong, in celebration of Pastor Grace’s birthday! Happy birthday, Pastor Grace! We invite all of our church members and friends to provide donations for flowers to adorn our sanctuary, along with a special dedication of your choosing. The cost is $75 per week.

Please contact Will Saunders and the church will order flowers from a local florist to be placed in the chancel on Sunday morning.

Our Deacons will distribute the flowers to one of our members/friends after the service.

Thank you for helping make our sanctuary even more beautiful!

— Pali Pres Summer Sermon Series —

Exploring the Parables of Jesus

Join us each Sunday as we delve into Jesus’ parables, discovering anew the powerful impact they are meant to have on our everyday lives.

Give to Pali Pres

Don't forget, you can easily give your tithes and offerings through our website!

Save the Dates

Sunday, July 14th: Elder Installation

Sunday, July 14th: Deacons Meeting

Sunday, July 28th: Church Beach Day

Saturday, August 24th: Churchwide Estate Sale Fundraiser

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

-1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18