Tidings Newsletter - February 2026

Trinity Presbyterian
8 minutes ago
13 min read

Pastor's Corner

Reflections on My First Year As Transitional Pastor of Trinity

I started my work as a transitional pastor at Trinity on February 16, 2025, and so I am coming up on my first year anniversary in that role. I thought I would use my space in our monthly newsletter to reflect on my first year with you.

It has been such a delight for me over this past year to get to know you better as a congregation and as individuals. What a great group of people gather at Trinity!

Now that I’ve attended mission meetings of various kinds, read detailed church financial statements, and seen and heard firsthand how much our folks give of their time and energy and money to missions both local and international, I am all the more impressed by the extensive mission outreach of Trinity. May this church always be that way!

I have so enjoyed being in worship with all of you. The type of worship you do is the type of worship I most enjoy being a part of. Every Sunday morning I am reminded about how many members of our congregation it takes to provide worship every Sunday, and I am so grateful that so many are willing to play their part.

It has been so heartening to me to see how so many of you care for others in our congregation. I can tell you matter to one another.

May this church always be that way!

I am struck by how many opportunities there are at Trinity to have some really good conversations together about things that matter. All that talking leads to lots of good things for Trinity, for the community, and for God’s wider world.

It’s so good to see the church building and space used by so many groups. I like to drop in to the various groups and find out what they are doing and they all seem to be having a wonderful time together.

The church staff has been very easy and fun to work with. Each staff member makes such a unique and essential contribution to the life of the church.

The church is served well by a variety of highly competent leaders willing to lead in areas of the church they feel called, and there are so many members of the congregation willing to work with those leaders.

I can’t get over how many human needs are met at Trinity and the variety of those needs–spiritual, social, emotional, relational, physical, financial, intellectual, aesthetic, vocational. Lots of whole-person ministry goes on at this church.

Summing up, in my view Trinity is such a great church, and I feel privileged to be able to finish out my 35 years of ministry here. Thanks so much for having me as your transitional pastor!

—David Garnett

Associate Pastor's Note

TRUE OR FALSE:

Trinity’s Sunday worship liturgists are an exclusive club of only the most learned, supremely spiritual, and exquisitely talented public speakers from the congregation.

Okay, this is is sort of a trick question. Yes, clearly the knowledge, spirituality, and public speaking abilities of Trinity’s worship liturgists are beyond reproach — however, these good people are not in any way part of an exclusive club! In fact, we’d love for you to consider lending your own voice to this group.

a “priesthood of all believers,”

Liturgy is defined as “a rite or body of rites prescribed for public worship,” derived from the Greek leitourgia, meaning public service or “the work of the people.” At Trinity, as in many other Christian churches, liturgists share in the leadership of worship. The presence of members of the congregation in worship leadership reminds us that worship is for all, not just for those who wear the black robes, and adds a variety of voices to our Sunday services. (We do claim to be a “priesthood of all believers,” after all.)

But we’d like to have even more variety! If you’ve ever sat in the pew, listened to our liturgist lead worship, and thought to yourself “Hey, I could do that!” (or even if you haven’t thought that), well, consider this your invitation to join the team. Our liturgists lead the Prayer of Confession and the accompanying Assurance of Pardon and read one of the Scripture lessons used in the service. We have a helpful manual of tips and resources, and we’d love to talk with you about being a liturgist if you’re interested.

Thank you for considering this invitation to share in leadership of Trinity’s Sunday worship.

Peace,

—Dwight Christenbury

Pastor Nominating Committee

PNC Update Trinity –

The PNC Committee wants to give an update to the progress we are making as we search for the next leader of our church. This is a very challenging process, and it is quite lengthy. Out of respect for our charge as a committee, we are taking this very seriously, knowing that what we do as representatives of our church body will impact our church’s future, wholly and completely.

We understand we have to protect what we have while also moving forward, knowing we need to continue growing as we serve God’s purpose.

The first portion of our task is complete. We met repeatedly in the fall, working with the mission study David so meticulously prepared as a foundation for our submission to Presbytery. This took many, many hours and multiple sessions to discuss nuances and wording to fit within the character limits. Our goal was to have this ready for the Presbytery at their December meeting, and we met that goal!

We met again with our Presbytery representative in early January to discuss the next steps. Our submission has to be uploaded into the database, and we do not have control as to that timing. Part of the issue is a switch to a new database by the Presbytery. Everyone is learning the new system, and there are some hiccups to navigate. We have asked to be informed as soon as our document is live.

Once our document is live, we expect at least six months will be required to receive, review, and research the candidates. There are several factors that play into this piece of the process. Please know that we will meet as often as necessary to thoroughly consider each candidate, keeping to our commitment to find the right leader for Trinity.

The PNC is held to strict privacy standards. We are not allowed to discuss any specifics about candidates. While we are a church family, we are respectfully asking that none of us on the PNC are pressed to violate our dedication to this process.

We ask for your prayers: that our PNC continues to seek and use God’s guidance as we prepare for the next chapter of our church’s legacy; that our PNC is able to move forward with wisdom, grace, and patience; and that our church family is patient as well!

Trinity is blessed to have the continued leadership of Dwight and the extensive experience of David as we proceed. In our interim, we are in the best possible hands.

With respect.

—The PNC

Worship Ministry

Let’s Try Something New - Or Not So New

Have you ever found yourself thinking, “I could do that”? Or, “ I’ve done that before, I could do it again.”? These are the very thoughts that came to me recently as I heard our choir sing under the leadership of a new choir director.

I also noticed that there were quite a few empty places in the choir that seemed to beckon to me. I have sung in church choirs before and enjoyed it. Why not do it again? Trinity Presbyterian Church has had some very talented music leadership and with our new Minister of Music, Lesley Bush, that tradition continues.

When I walked into the choir room at 7:30pm on Wednesday I was warmly welcomed and I picked up, where I left off five years ago…well almost. But it’s like riding a bike, you can pick it back up, pretty quick. There’s work of course, and one night a week I’m up after my bedtime, but Lesley makes learning new music fun. What’s more is that worship talks on a whole new spiritual feeling when I contribute and become part of worship leadership.

The choir would gladly welcome you, and I will too. I’m the new guy, Paul Hugger.

—Paul Hugger

Personnel Ministry

Dear Trinity family,

I cannot thank you enough for the beautiful reception. I was totally overwhelmed by the decorations, the flowers, the food, and the wonderful gifts. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

—Sally Beghtol

Fellowship Ministry

Wed Night Live! Please sign-up ASAP in the Narthex (or call/email the office). Dinners begin at 5:30PM followed by our presentations at 6:30PM. Please note: Starting in January, the cost of WNL meals will be $12/adult. This reflects the recent price increases charged by our catering partners.

—Lorraine Talbot

FEB 11, 2026

Mountain Aging Partners

MAP provides healthy meals and a safe and comfortable environment for seniors to actively engage under the careful attention of our compassionate staff.

MAP aspires to meet the growing needs of aging adults through focused, compassionate, community-based care that emphasized dignity, independence and connection.

FEB 25, 2026

Geriatric Jukebox

It took 69-year-old Alan Satz 28 years to convince his wife, Jean, they were good enough at singing and performing live music before they birthed the popular Hendo duo Geriatric Jukebox.

Now, most weekends the retired couple find themselves in front of diverse audiences cranking out the pop tunes of the 1960s and '70s with increasing popularity.

"I'm so glad he did because we are having more fun than we could have imagined. It’s never work and just one more fun thing that we do together," said Jean.

Local Missions Ministry

Undie Sunday: EVERY Sunday in February!

All four Sundays in February have been declared Undie Sunday this year, and we hope to set a new record! Your donations of new, packaged underwear for adult men (especially sizes Small and Medium) and adult women (all sizes) will help fill a very critical local need*. Children’s sizes are welcome as well.

The collection bins will be in the Narthex each Sunday in February, and at the end of the month Trinity’s Underwear Fairies will deliver a (hopefully) substantial number of packages to IAM, the Hendersonville Rescue Mission, and Homes for Youth.

Why does Trinity do this every year? Well, imagine you’ve fallen on exceptionally hard times. You reached out for help, which took a lot of courage. You’re fervently trying not to feel humiliated as you "shop" in the clothing closet of the Rescue Mission, or the IAM Thrift Shop, where you are encouraged to select a few needed items – at no charge. Your last item to search for: underwear. You brace yourself, expecting to be led to a shelf or container full of someone else's cast-offs. Previously worn shirts and jeans -- sure. Someone else’s underwear? Quite disconcerting.

Instead, you are led to racks holding NEW, PACKAGED underwear. Not cast-offs, not previously worn! Your size is there! And you learn that all this NEW underwear is donated by local neighbors with big hearts. You leave with exactly what you need. You silently say a prayer of thanks and hold your head up a little higher for the rest of the day. THAT’s what Undie Sunday is about.

Thank you SO much for helping our neighbors in need. Shop online*, shop in stores, just get those packages to the church during February - the month that’s all about LOVE!

—Leslie Nissen

Tackle Hunger:

The Souper Bowl of Caring

Sunday, February 8, 2026

AND February 15 extended!

The Souper Bowl of Caring is an annual, multi-denominational, nationwide effort to fight hunger in local communities. Trinity has participated nearly every year since 2000, and over the years we've collected over $7,000 and 2,500 pounds of food.

This year's Souper Bowl offering will be collected on Sunday, February 8 (extended to Feb 15). Just look for the display table and the giant soup pot in the Narthex.

The whole Trinity family is invited to join in this annual effort to fight hunger; donations of food and money will go to Interfaith Assistance Ministry. Thank you!

Learn More

Christian Nurture Ministry

Lenten Bible Study:

Youth Events:

Presbytery:

Library Notes:

The library has received several donations recently.

Two are poetry books by local authors:

Richard Morgan - Grapes, Raisins, and Wine: New Poems (NOTE: Richard did a presentation at the January 14th Wednesday Night Live)
Timothy Dale Jones - Love Still Here (NOTE: Tim is a Deacon at St. James Episcopal Church)

Two fiction books:

Allen Levi - Theo of Golden
Karen Kingsbury - Coming Home

These books are located in the library cabinet in the Atrium.

—Linda Stokes

Trinity Book Group:

Hello Readers,

It’s never too late to join our Trinity Book Group. All are welcome.

Please read the book of the month and join us for our next Book Group meeting:

Date: Thursday, February 26, 1:30 pm at the Church

Book & Author: The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

Discussion Leader: Pat Donovan

Host: Margaret Bolick

If you have any questions, please contact Billie Hicklin or Angela Kuykendoll.

Happy Reading!

—Angela Kuykendoll

Stewardship Ministry

All About Love!

Valentine’s Day is in February. So, we think of romantic love but also of platonic love that may be expressed by “Galentines” for gal friends. We think of familial love. We think of Jesus’ command to love each other and even love the stranger and the enemy.

We remember that “God is love” and “God first loved us”. God is the source of love that makes it possible for us to love others and for them to love us.

At Trinity, we often remember loved ones by donating Easter Lilies and Poinsettias in the name of loved ones. You can pay for the Sunday morning worship flowers in the name of loved ones. Go to “Sign-Ups” on our webpage.

Here is another suggestion: Just between you and God (and the Trinity bookkeeper who keeps things confidential) you can donate a check or cash in the name of a loved one. For example, in addition to your usual pledge, donate $100 to honor what would have been the 100^th birthday of someone you love. Or donate $63 to celebrate a 63^rd wedding anniversary. Just your private way of saying thanks to God for this love that has been in your life.

And yes, when you think of those you love, say a heartfelt prayer of thanks to our loving God.

—Barb T.

Matthew 25 Ministry

Voting Information

With the primary elections quickly approaching, here is some information to help you with your voting experience.

The first is the Henderson County Board of Elections 2026 Mid-Term Elections Calendar.

Also, here is additional information from the Henderson County Board of Elections which includes how to register to vote, early voting, sample ballots, absentee by mail voting and where do I vote.

https://www.hendersoncountync.gov/elections!

—Jan Furr

Immigration Enforcement Policy in North Carolina and Beyond

The Henderson County League of Women Voters and El Centro of Henderson County are hosting a lunch and learn program on “Immigration Enforcement Policy in North Carolina and Beyond” on Tuesday, February 24 from 11:30-1:00pm at First Congregational Church, 1735 5^th Ave. W, Hendersonville, NC.

Dr. Felicia Arriaga will discuss how immigration has become criminalized. Her discussion will focus on the racial, economic, and political issues that have factored into federal, state, and local policies leading to increased enforcement in immigrant communities.

Dr. Arriaga, who was born and raised in Hendersonville, is an Assistant Professor at Baruch College in New York City and author of “Behind Crimmigration: ICE, Law Enforcement, and Resistance in America.” (University of North Carolina Press, 2023).

All are invited to attend. Beverages and light refreshments will be provided.

Earth Care Ministry

We Welcome Jim Scott

Mark your calendars for Feb 22!! Jim Scott in a special concert at 2 pm at The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Hendersonville, located at corner of Kanuga Rd. and Price Rd. Doors open at 1:30. Donation $20.

Jim is an American guitarist, singer-songwriter and composer in the genres of jazz, classical and folk music. He has made it his business to create and perform music that celebrates peace, justice and the earth with lyrical melodies and memorable verses. Pete Seeger describes him as Some kind of a magician!

He has visited over 700 churches, and several of his songs are featured in UU Hymnals. For more information, please visit his extensive website: https://jimscottmusic.com/

His concert,’ Mission for the Planet’, will lead you on a journey that will take you from concern to celebration — from protest to motivation — to sustain life on our living earth. Jim’s melodies and lyrics and poetry will give something to celebrate what’s beautiful, amazing, and fragile about our Earth. The performance is a timely educational, entertaining, and upbeat program that both adults and children will enjoy, while introducing the audience to many different ethnic rhythms and styles that will keep you on tapping your toes. There are many views of the living earth and of the people who inhabit it. It’ a beautiful and poignant celebrations of the place we call home! $20 donation suggested for the concert.

For questions, please contact Jan Partin, 828-606-9191.

Global Missions Ministry

Guatemala Partnership

Fuente de Vida Iglesia, you worked hard to prepare and host this meeting. Your repairs to the church look Great! I believe the presbytery meeting was a success. Now you need to rest. You are few, but mighty! Dios la bendiga.

—Carole Ball

Luopad Project for Malawi

We would like to offer a big shout out to two of our luopad heroes this month. Catherine Langdorf (second from left) wrote a grant and received $250 for the Luopads for Malawi project. Kathy Steinbaugh (far right) used her excellent shopping skills to spend the grant money and returned with seven (7) bolts of flannel fabric. Thank you both for your terrific work and thanks to all who continue to support the girls and women through this Global Mission project.

—Vickie Hugger

Wise Women Network

WISE WOMEN NETWORK IS THRIVING

The Wise Women Network, a new group for women of Trinity who are widows, has been meeting and helping each other since June and is becoming a valuable network to its members.

In this time, we have assisted each other with practical matters such as transportation, recommending service personnel for jobs best handled by pros, providing guidance on matters of decluttering, selling online, health insurance, estate planning, and many other topics. We’ve also discovered new friends that make outings together more fun, and we’ve visited local Inns during the holiday season, gone to the movies, visited museums and other small towns.

We’re available to all Trinity widows and welcome any ideas to continue our practical objectives. We meet the 2^nd Wednesday of the month from 4-5 p.m., Room 207 at Trinity. For more information, contact Jan Prichard and janicemp4@gmail.com, 828-243-7840.

—Jan Prichard

February Birthdays!

Calendar

Check out what's happening this month on our web calendar

Trinity Calendar

A couple of highlights, but check the website for details and full listings:

Wed, Feb 11 - Wed Night Live Dinner & Presentation with Mountain Aging Partners (Dinner - 5:30, Presentation - 6:30)
Sun, Feb 15 - Youth Bowling! (1:00 PM)
Tues, Feb 17 - TENTATIVE New HVAC System!!! (Happy Mardi Gras)
Wed, Feb 18 - Ash Wednesday Worship Service (6:30 PM)
Thu, Feb 19 - New Lenten Bible Study begins! (10:00 AM)
Sat, Feb 21 - Choir Retreat (9:30 AM)
Wed, Feb 25 - Wed Night Live Dinner & Concert with "Geriatric Jukebox" (Dinner - 5:30, Concert - 6:30)
Sun, MARCH 1st SNEAK PEEK! - We will gather after the 11 AM worship for a special party to celebrate the 100th birthday of Margaret Sharke

Photos!

We will bookend this issue of Tidings with some of our church's true grand dames.

Littlest Trinity family member, baby Josie Tolleson (soon to be 1), with parents James Tolleson and Sabrina Poms, catches up with Dwight in New York City.
Ruth Mills with Sally Beghtol on Ruth's 101st birthday! Between Margaret Sharke's 100th birthday and Myrl Jean Hughes' absolutely IMMORTALITY, there must be something healthy in the Trinity water supply!

Keep on growing, ladies - big sisters and little sisters.

Social Media Nerd Moment:

If you’d like to see more of what YOU and your Trinity family are up to, you can FOLLOW US on Facebook. Yes, I know you can look us up, but if you want to be notified when we post something about all the good stuff YOU ALL are doing in the community, you can go to this link and click “follow”. (I won’t spam you, I promise 😘 - Come on, it’s ME!)