Thursday Memo: January 2013

January 24, 2013

Thursday MEMO for January 24, 2013

Services for this coming Sunday, January 27th, the Third Sunday after the Epiphany, will be at 8 and 10 am. Annual Reports for 2012 have been printed and distributed to your Parish Hall mailboxes. Please pick up your copy and take it home to read in preparation for next Sunday’s meeting.

Readings for this Sunday: Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10; Psalm 19;
1 Corinthians 12:12-31a; Luke 4:14-21

Coffee Hour Hosts are needed: Please check the signup sheet in the Parish Hall for dates that need to be filled for after the 8am and 10 am services. There are people who will gladly show you the ropes if you have never hosted.

Next Sunday, February 3^rd – ONE service and our annual Meeting! Get here any way you can. If you need a ride, call the office my Wednesday. Please join us in the parish hall after church for a sit-down brunch, followed by our Annual Meeting. Come and say thank you to Sammie Wakefield who is stepping down after 5 years as Sr. Warden and other retiring vestry members. Then vote for new ones! See the slate below. Bring a dish for the food table and we will all feast together!

Also please check the posted list of members eligible to vote. If your name is not there and you would like to be voting member of St. Andrew’s, please talk to Rev. Heidi.

The Nominating Committee presents the following slate for 2013:

Senior Warden: Carol Tubman (1^st year of two-year term)

Clerk: Chris Mills (1^st one-year term)
Treasurer: Bob Seston (2^nd one-year term)
Vestry:
            Lynne Clough for a one-year term (to fulfill Chris Mills’s unexpired term)
            Barbara Lord (1^st year of two-year term)
            David Manley (1^st year of two-year term)
            George Rau (1^st year of second two-year term)
            Phil Wallick (1^st year of second two-year term)

Convocation/Convention Delegates:
            Bruce Kennedy (1^st year of second 2-year term)
            Cathy Lewis (1^st year of second 2-year term)
            Kaitlyn Marshall (Youth Representative)
            George Rau (1^st year of second 2-year term)
          Parish Representative to Nominating Committee: Lisa Thompson

A reminder of Parish Policy about Nominations “From the Floor:

While additional nominations may not be made literally “from the floor” at the time of the meeting, additional names will be accepted between now and this coming Wednesday, January 30th. Please do not nominate without consulting your nominee and contact George Rau, chair of Nominating Committee, if you would like to put someone forward.

Plan ahead! In two weeks on Sunday, February 10, our new bishop, Rob Hirschfeld will be here at Saint Andrew’s for his first visit. We will have ONE service only on this occasion, and it will be at 10:00. Bishop Rob is eager to get to know this parish and our people (including you)! Mark your calendars now and save the date.

Food for reflection from Brother Curtis, SSJE in this season of increasing light…
You are a living mirror. Bear the beams of God’s love. Let God’s light teem from your own countenance. Look upon others and be radiant with God’s love for them. They may otherwise never know how much God loves them.

Stay warm and enjoy the pristine beauty of these frigid days and sparkling, moonlit nights!

Blessings,

Heidi+

From the office at St. Andrew’s: Office Hours: Tuesday-Friday 9am-Noon

*******

Winter Weather Advisory!!! Please keep in mind during the winter when the weather looks questionable for safe travel to call the church before you leave home to check for schedule changes. If a storm comes in on Saturday evening or Sunday, I will make a judgment by 6:30 AM about whether to hold, cancel, or delay services. Cancellations will also be announced on WMWV radio 93.5. I will also send an email out to you if you have provided me with your email address. PLEASE do not travel if it feels unsafe to you. Enjoy a Sabbath morning at home and remember St. Andrew’s in your prayers.

*******

UPCOMING WEEK’S CALENDAR:

Fri 1/25:

               10 AM-noon Food Center

Sat 1/26:
                8 PM AA & Al-Anon (PH,PR)

Sun 1/27:
                8 AM Holy Eucharist Rite I
                10 AM Holy Eucharist Rite II
                5 PM Dinner Bell
            (Cook Team: Clyne/Beecher)

Mon 1/28:             Church office closed
                6:30-8:30 PM Boy Scout Troop (PH)

Tue 1/29:

                10 AM – noon Food Center
                8 PM AA Step Meeting

Wed 1/30:
                9 AM Service of Morning Prayer

Thu 1/31:

January 17, 2013

Services for this coming Sunday, January 20th, the Second Sunday after the Epiphany,
will be at 8 and 10 am.
Readings for this Sunday: Isaiah 62:1-5; Psalm 36:5-10;
1 Corinthians 12:1-1; John 2:1-11.

Last Sunday:

Preston served as crucifer for the first time.


Mother Heidi helped the children think about the promises that are made at the time of a Baptism.

Servers at the altar.

ALL ARE WELCOME to join a Service of Morning Prayer, every Wednesday at 9 AM, led by one of our three licensed worship leaders.

Reminder for all Committee Chairs: Please get your reports in for inclusion in our Parish Annual Report. Material is due to Debra, emailed to the office [office@standrewsinthevalley.org] by January 18th. Please do not send hard copy as it will require Debra to retype it.

Plan ahead! Our new bishop, Rob Hirschfeld will be here at Saint Andrew’s on Sunday, February 10 for his first visit. We will have ONE service only on this occasion, and it will be at 10:00. Bishop Rob is eager to get to know this parish and our people (including you)! Mark your calendars now and save the date.
Bishop Rob was consecrated August 4^th and served as bishop coadjutor until January 5th, when he was installed as our diocesan bishop and Bishop Gene Robinson officially retired.

From the office at St. Andrew’s: Office Hours: Tuesday-Friday 9am-Noon

*******
Winter Weather Advisory!!! Please keep in mind during the winter when the weather looks questionable for safe travel to call the church before you leave home to check for schedule changes. If a storm comes in on Saturday evening or Sunday, I will make a judgment by 6:30 AM about whether to hold, cancel, or delay services. Cancellations will also be announced on WMWV radio 93.5. I will also send an email out to you if you have provided me with your email address. PLEASE do not travel if it feels unsafe to you. Enjoy a Sabbath morning at home and remember St. Andrew’s in your prayers.
*******

UPCOMING WEEK’S CALENDAR:

Fri 1/18:

                10 AM-noon Food Center

Sat 1/20:
                8 PM AA & Al-Anon (PH,PR)

Sun 1/21:
                8 AM Holy Eucharist Rite I
                10 AM Holy Eucharist Rite II
                5 PM Dinner Bell
            (Cook Team: Sandwich Friends)

Mon 1/22: Church office closed

6:30-8:30 PM Boyscout Troop (PH)

Tue 1/23:

                10 AM – noon Food Center
                8 PM AA Step Meeting

Wed 1/24:
                9 AM Service of Morning Prayer

Thu 1/25:

January 10, 2013

The Insulation for under the Parish Hall arrives!

This coming Sunday, January 13 and the Baptism of Our Lord, we will have services at 8 and 10 AM. We hope you will join us for worship and for coffee and sociability following each service in our newly insulated Parish Hall!

The Sandwich Early Music Consort enriches our Epiphany.

Don't miss the picture gallery from Bishop Rob's installation at the end of this posting.

A change in how we handle Altar Flowers: In an effort to keep our 2013 parish budget appropriately “trimmed,” the Finance Committee and the Vestry have decided not to provide money in the budget for Sunday altar flowers, but rather to be fully dependent on altar flowers by contribution. What this means is that if no one has signed up to offer flowers (either by making a contribution and having the office order them, or by actually providing the flowers) we will not have purchased flowers. We have been very successful at providing our own flowers from May into October; we always have simple greens during Advent and poinsettias (thanks to your contributions) during Christmas and early Epiphany; by choice we have bare branches during Lent and potted flowers (again, thanks to you) for much of Eastertide. That still leaves about 12 unclaimed Sundays.

Flowers enrich the beauty of our sanctuary and the special intentions add richness to our corporate prayer as we remember departed loved ones and honor special celebrations and thanksgivings. If you would like to provide flowers directly, please make use of the sign-up chart on the door of the Parish Hall closet, and let the office know your plans and details. If you would like to have the office order flowers ($25), please sign up on the chart, fill out an envelop with the memorial or thanksgiving information and your contribution, and leave that on Debra’s desk in the office.

Mission and Outreach conversation.

Outreach and Mission Discussion Report: A group of about twenty met last Sunday to discuss our allocation of funds to the various organizations the parish has chosen to support with the outreach money we have raised during 2012. The list of recipients reflects two additions: CASA of NH, with whom Marty Cloran volunteers, and KEAP (Kenyan Education and Aids Project), with which the Reinfusses and the Wakefields are actively involved.

In making the recommendations, priority is given to organizations and projects with which members of the parish are actively involved, with a particular focus of support to children, food, and health. Another gathering will be held in the near future when we look ahead to 2013 and 2014, so stay tuned. Thank you to all whose generosity of time, talent, and treasure has made this giving possible. This is one significant way in which we as a parish reach out beyond our own walls as the heart and hands of Christ in the world.

Agape Ministries … $250
Community Food Center … $300
Tamworth Community Nurse Assoc … $300
Tamworth Caregivers … $218.75
Ossipee Concerned Citizens … $168.75
Starting Point … $84.35
NH Community Load Fund … $125
Conway ALC Support (NAMI) … $50
CASA of NH …$100
Bearcamp Valley School …$275
Ossipee Children’s Fund …$259.40
TCCP … $300
Child Advocacy of Carroll county … $50
KEAP (Kenyan Education and Aids Project) … $100
Seafarer’s Friend … $250
Episcopal Relief and Development …$250
Pilgrim Center for Reconciliation … $50
TOTAL $3,131.25

The Rt. Rev. Rob Hirschfeld was officially installed as our Diocesan Bishop on Saturday, January 5 at Saint Paul's Church, Concord.

Bishop Rob knocks at the door of the church.

The questioning, by Bp. Stephen Lane of the Diocese of Maine.

Judith Esmay, Canon for Lay Ministry, preached.

Bp.Rob greets his flock; newly retired Bp. Gene with former diocesan bishop Doug Theuner, offer their enthusiastic support.

Bishop Rob blesses the people.

Save the date reminders...
Annual Parish Meeting is scheduled for Sunday February 3, following a 9 AM service and brunch. All are welcome. If you would like to be a voting member, please talk to Rev. Heidi and she would be pleased to explain the (very simple) process of transferring your membership to Saint Andrew's.

Our biennial Episcopal Visit, the first by our new bishop, will take place on Sunday, February 10. On that day we will have ONE service only, at 10AM.

Food for thought and reflection in this Epiphany season:
The Kingdom is a gift, and is to be received with delight and anticipation.
May we all be participants in the receiving of the Kingdom and in making it manifest to the world.

See you in church!
Blessings, Heidi+

January 3, 2013

This coming Sunday, January 6^th, is the Feast of the Epiphany!

We will have ONE service only, at 9 ’clock, with Ginger Heard’s recorder ensemble joining us to provide special music. Plan to arrive early to enjoy their ten-minute prelude. A coffee hour will follow, and after about 15 minutes, all who are interested are invited to gather for a Mission and Outreach conversation to discuss the distribution of the money we raised in 2012 designated for the support of our outreach to the wider community and the world.

The Women’s Lunch Bunch will meet Wednesday, Jan. 9^th, at noon at the Mt. View Station Restaurant in Center Ossipee. If you would like to join them or have questions, please call Dale Appleton at 539-3761.

Temporary inconvenience! Permanent improvement! This week from Wednesday early morning to Friday early morning (Jan 9-11) the church will be off limits, while the insulation contractor will be insulating the floor of the Parish Hall. They will begin their work first thing Wednesday morning and the building MUST remain empty until Friday morning so that the spray foam can fully “off-gas.” For your own health and safety PLEASE stay out of the building during this specified time.

Reminder for all Committee Chairs: Please get to work on your reports for inclusion in our Parish Annual Report. Material is due to Debra, emailed to the office [office@standrewsinthevalley.org] by January 18. Please do not send hard copy as it will require Debra to retype it.

Thank you to Tom Reinfuss and Lisa Thompson for so ably conducting services last Sunday in my absence. The release day provided Duane and me with a Sunday to spend with our son Ben and his family in Massachusetts.

Bishop Rob was consecrated bishop coadjutor on August 4^th. He will be installed as our diocesan bishop this Saturday at 11:00 in Concord, at which time, Bishop Gene Robinson will officially retire.

A prayer for the Feast of the Epiphany…

O King of kings and Lord of lords, who was born at Bethlehem and revealed to the nations as God among us, grant us a portion of your heavenly wisdom, that we may always be guided on our journey by the light of your salvation, shining for all the world to see. Amen.

Blessings in this season of increasing light.

Heidi+

From the office at St. Andrew’s:
Office Hours: Tuesday-Friday 9am-Noon

This week: The office and the entire building will be
closed Wednesday and Thursday because of insulation work.

*******

UPCOMING WEEK’S CALENDAR:

Fri 1/4:

                10 AM-noon Food Center

Sat 1/5:
                8 PM AA & Al-Anon (PH,PR)

Sun 1/6: Epiphany
                9 AM Holy Eucharist Rite II
                5 PM Dinner Bell
            (Cook Team: Tamworth Congregational)

Mon 1/7: Church office closed

6:30-8:30 PM Boyscout Troop (PH)

Tue 1/8:

                10 AM – noon Food Center
                8 PM AA Step Meeting

Wed 1/9:
                CHURCH CLOSED FOR INSULATION

Thu 1/10:
                CHURCH CLOSED FOR INSULATION