Jerene Mortenson has every right to be proud.  Her son Greg co-authored best-seller “Three Cups of Tea“, recently received the Star of Pakistan, (that country’s highest civilian honor) and is also a nominee for the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize.  Not bad for a former self-proclaimed ‘dirtbag mountain climber’ who after a brush with death 16 years ago vowed to build a school for the poor villagers who saved his life.

Jerene, an elementary school principal and founder of ‘Pennies for Peace’ will speak about her son’s ongoing efforts to combat terrorism through secular education at St. Luke Presbyterian Church on Thursday, October 29 at 7:00 p.m.  All are welcome.

Mortenson’s non-profit foundation, the Central Asia Institute (ikat.org), has built 78 schools serving 28,000 students in remote, politically volatile pockets of Pakistan and Afghanistan, and it runs nearly 50 others in regional refugee camps.

St. Luke is located ½ mile west of hwy 494 on Minnetonka Boulevard just behind Groveland School.

For more information contact:
Pastor Gwin Pratt
952-473-7378
gwin@stluke.mn

 Ultimate Compassion Conference, Oct. 30-31 at Woodland Hills Church, St. Paul

There are more than 400 passages in the Bible (spanning over 3000 verses!) that encourage Christ-followers to serve and be in relationships with those living in poverty. “Ultimate Compassion: God, Poverty, and Actions that Make a Difference” will help equip you, whatever your economic status, to understand the impact of poverty and decide how to respond.  Keynote speakers Greg Boyd, Sandra Unger, Jin S. Kim (PTCA Moderator) and Efrem Smith and practitioners from around the Twin Cities will be sharing their experiences and ideas at both large group sessions and workshops. Scriptures, stories and statistics will help you understand the impact of poverty and decide how to respond.