Jackson Springs Presbyterian Church has announced that Paul B. James began serving as church pastor in the role of commissioned ruling elder (CRE) on Aug. 1. James is a bi-vocational pastor in that he is minister at Jackson Springs while continuing his dentistry profession of nearly 30 years in Robbins. His commission was approved by the Presbytery of Coastal Carolina in June.

A service of celebration of commissioning was held at the church on Aug. 5. The Rev. Larry Lyon, of West End Presbyterian Church, led the service, and the Rev. Don Welch, chaplain of the Chapel in the Pines, in Seven Lakes, preached the sermon. Other celebrants in the service included: Judy Boroughs, clerk of session at Jackson Springs; the Rev. Chip Pope and the Rev. Dudley Crawford (retired), of West End Presbyterian Church; Roger Simmons, CRE Class of 2012, of Community Church in Pinehurst; Edna Ann Loftus, Ph.D., CRE Class of 2012, and professor at St. Andrews University; Allen McLean, CRE Class of 2012, and member of Blandonia Presbyterian Church in Sanford; the Rev. David Helms, senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Southern Pines; and the Rev. Tom Currie, retired Presbyterian minister living in Carthage.

The celebration continued with a reception in the church fellowship hall.

"What a blessing it is to join the faithful and energetic people of Jackson Springs Presbyterian Church in ministry," said James. "This church has a long and rich tradition of loving God, caring for each other, and serving this community for the last 195 years. Now, all of us have our focus on the future and, with God's help, we want to explore new and exciting ways to serve our Lord."

A special offering was received during the service for the food pantry at the West End United Methodist Church. The pantry serves 230-250 families biweekly in the Jackson Springs, Seven Lakes and West End areas. As the food pantry has experienced a decrease in food donations from the Food Bank of North Carolina, its expenses have risen to as much as $40,000 each year. The offering of $850 to the WEUMC pastor, the Rev. Won S. Namkoong, was the following Sunday.