May 30th, 2013
Saint Andrew’s-in-the-Valley
Thursday MEMO

This coming Sunday, June 2, the Second Sunday after Pentecost, there will be ONE service only at 9:00. The coffee hour will be hosted by the Vestry. We hope you will join us for worship and fellowship.


LATE-BREAKING NEWS: Mark your calendars!

The Vestry invites you to AN ALL-PARISH PICNIC at White Lake Park, off of route 16 in Tamworth, on Sunday, June 23rd! We have reserved the pavilion. We will gather at 10:30 a.m. for an informal outdoor eucharist that will be followed by the picnic and social and recreation time! Hamburgers, hotdogs, and veggie burgers – and the grills to grill them on – will be supplied. We ask you to bring salad, chips, beverages, or desserts. The lake will be available for swimming and kayaking. The lake is shallow for quite a distance, so it will warm up quickly and will not pose deep water risks for young ones. The pavilion and the rest rooms are wheel-chair accessible, so our hope is that it will be a fun, multi-generational gathering for everyone. Feel free to invite your friends.
The regular 8:00 service will be held at Saint Andrew’s as well.

The new grass is growing!
Thank  you, George!

Copies of People of the Way: Renewing Episcopal Identity, a book recommended by our bishop that is being read by Vestry members, are now available in the office. The cost is $15, checks payable to St. Andrew’s. We have ordered extra copies, so if you are interested, please pick one up. There is a “borrowable” copy as well. This book will jump-start an ongoing conversation about what’s next for us. Start reading. Start thinking and reflecting.
 We will be offering some Meal & Conversation opportunities this month. See the sign-up sheet on the easel in the Parish Hall. As the title implies, the book explores what is at the heart of Episcopal identity and the mission of the church, opening us up to new awareness, understandings and opportunities.

Questions about John Booty’s burial last weekend:
We remembered John in our prayers last Sunday with reference to the interring of his ashes. A number of people have asked me whether they had missed the service. Here’s the clarification. Last Saturday 25 of his family members gathered on the family farm to celebrate John’s life with a simple Prayer Book Burial Office and Committal service.

On Saturday, July 13th, at 3 pm we will celebrate his life here at Saint Andrew’s with a Requiem Eucharist for which our bishop, the Rt. Rev. Rob Hirschfeld, will be the celebrant, the Rev. Ellen Aitkin (a former student of John’s, a scholar, and professor at McGill University in Montreal) will be the preacher, and the Rev. Clare Fischer-Davies (also a former student of John’s, as well as rector of Saint Andrew’s-in-the-Valley from 1986-1990) will be vocal soloist.

Since John’s scholarly work, writing, and teaching have touched so many in the Episcopal Church, and because he has been so loved and admired, I expect we may have quite a number of guests. John dearly loved Saint Andrew’s and being part of this parish family. I hope you will plan to be with us on July 13 to celebrate and give thanks to God for John, and that you will plan to bring a contribution for the reception table. This will be another golden opportunity for us welcome guests and to share our beloved church Saint Andrew’s with new friends.


The summer Mountain Top is in the works.
Material is due in electronic form to Debra by Friday, June 7.

Readings for this coming Sunday: 1 Kings 18:20-39, Psalm 96, Galatians 1:1-12, Luke 7:1-10

Food for thought on the topic of Hospitality from Br. David Vryhof, SSJE…
True Christian hospitality requires a giving of ourselves, an opening up of who we are, a willingness to stretch our sometimes-narrow lives to step outside of our comfort zones. If we truly try to follow Jesus, our outlook on the world – especially its strangers, its poor, its homeless, its helpless, its needy, even its enemies – will be forever changed.

See you in church.
Blessings, Heidi+