June 2016 Trinity Tribune

In This Issue:
Stewards of Summer
The Rev. Paul Nancarrow
With Memorial Day past and the month of June beginning, we start to move into "summer mode" at Trinity Church. It's the "green season" of the church year, the weather's getting hotter (well, after that cold wet May, we hope it will get hotter!), we at Trinity gather for two services rather than three on Sunday mornings, life starts to settle into a different rhythm. In a change of pace from years past, Lee and I are taking our major vacation this June - and for us that really makes it feel like a different season!
 
The change of season heightens our expectation of summer things - we turn our attention to time off from school, slower days at work, longer evenings with lingering sunsets, freer weekends, time at the beach, vacation travel plans, summer camp schedules. We begin to anticipate the promise of time in the summer to come.
 
Summer time comes to us as a gift - and, like all the gifts of God, it gives us the potential to give of ourselves, to others and to God. Summer vacation gives us the chance to practice the stewardship of our time in a special way. For many of us, "stewardship" means "pledge drive," and it's something we associate with the fall. But stewardship comes in all forms, and stewardship of time is an important part of our lives.
 
Take some time this summer to pray. Get up a little earlier as the sun rises higher, or take a moment just before sunset, or pause as you're settling in at the vacation home at the seashore - take some time to read from the Bible, or have a conversation with Jesus, or simply sit in silence and awareness of God's presence. Remember that as you look at the world, God looks through your eyes; as you feel quiet and calm and at peace, God feels as you feel; as you experience joy in simple summer fun, God rejoices with you; and God takes all these feelings into Godself and prepares from them the potentials for the next moments of creation. Prayer can happen anywhere: on the soccer field, in a boat, at a picnic, in a thunderstorm. All it takes is a quietness of spirit and the intention to be open to God. Summer affords us time enough for that.
 
Take some time this summer to serve. Share the gift of time you receive by giving your time and your presence to others. There are lots of ways to give hours in service: participate in a clean-up day at the local park, join the altar guild and help prepare the church for worship, volunteer to deliver flowers or magazines at the hospital or a nursing home, write to your legislators (local and national) about issues that matter to you, babysit for the neighbors free of charge, ride your bike in a dollars-for-miles charitable fund-raiser, have phone visits with shut-in parishioners, mow your neighbor's lawn for them (with their permission of course!), take care of your friend's pet while your friend is away on vacation - or perhaps there's some other service you've always thought of doing but haven't yet taken the time to try. Service is a double gift, giving again from the gifts we have received. Summer affords us time enough for that.
 
Take some time this summer for delight. Set aside moments (or hours, or days!) just to enjoy. God creates us out of sheer love, and gives us the gift of joy and wonder in all God's works. Take some time this summer to accept that gift. Stay up late and look at the stars. Watch the dance of flames in a campfire. Make some s'mores. Take your kids (or grandkids, or great-grandkids) to the beach and let them clown around. Clown around with them. Go to a ball game and ignore the score. Find a waterfall you've never seen before. Smile a lot. Summer affords us time enough for that.
 
So it's time for summer. Let us celebrate this summer, and the gift of time it brings, as good stewards of God's gifts.


Hello, Trinity!
The Rev. Becky McDaniel
It is with gratitude and excitement that I introduce myself to you all!  I am a lifelong Episcopalian and Virginian, having grown up in Christ Episcopal Church in Blacksburg and attended Episcopal High School in Alexandria.  I studied English and Religion at the University of Virginia and earned a Masters in Secondary Education at Vanderbilt University.  
 
I have always been fascinated by the many ways that people respond to God, and therefore I am drawn to interfaith work and comparative theology.  Since 2003 I have been teaching yoga and since 2012 I have worked as a yoga therapist for individuals with Autism and anxiety.  I have owned two yoga studios, one in Williamsburg and one in Blacksburg.  My yoga studies brought me to the overlap between Hindu philosophy and the Christian mystical tradition, and my favorite theologians are Raimon Panikkar and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin.  
 
I have also apprenticed with Rev. Cynthia Bourgeault, who offers Wisdom Schools in the contemplative Christian tradition and in the lineage of Father Thomas Keating.  
 
In addition to preaching and pastoral care, I look forward to offering my knowledge of yoga, Centering Prayer, New Monasticism, and ecological spirituality.  
 
I am excited to meet all of you at Trinity Staunton!


Gambling
Ted Jordan
It turns out that I have become quite the gambler. Who knew? And this despite the fact that I don't play cards, shoot dice, participate in roulette, slot machines or any other such casino based activity. In fact I have never bought a lottery ticket not even a dollar scratch off one. When the mega jackpot reached half a billion and more last year the thought never occurred to me to buy a ticket. That's not the way I gamble, but believe me I am a big gambler.

I reached this conclusion recently when we were in the midst of preparing to expand our family vineyard by a factor of four to about six and a half acres. As planting drew near the bills were rolling in and the unforeseen expenses seemed to escalate with each passing day. Having been at this for the better part of a decade and with two boys "in the business" I sort of knew what was involved. But as you can imagine there is a big difference in planting 500 vines and planting 7800. The things that in the past might have increased the cost by 50 or 100 dollars now were mounting into the thousands.

As the time to put the vines into the ground drew close I noticed that the weather had changed. Whereas we had a wet and mild winter which had made the ground perfect to dig in, the weeks before planting turned cool windy and very dry severely hardening the top several inches of soil through which we were going to have to dig manually in order to put the rootstock in to the ground. That would likely increase the planting costs and would likely require irrigation which had not seemed even remotely likely just a month before. All of our careful planning and research and scheduling of the past year seemed grossly inadequate. The whole endeavor seemed like more of a game of chance than a business model. I felt like I had become a very big gambler.

None of this was a complete surprise to me. When I worked on a dairy farm many years ago the owner would sometimes mutter "Why would I ever want to go to Las Vegas? Every day is a gamble for a farmer." He was right of course. Farming is an odd sort of business where someone else sets the price that you pay for things and someone else sets the price that you will be paid for your products. A good year means it is likely a good year for everyone else and thus the price you get is low. A bad year is just that, a bad year and getting a good price is only helpful if your crops are productive which of course they aren't in a bad year. You are at the mercy of the market and you have no control whatsoever of your business environment (the weather). That's the way it works in agriculture and growing grapes as idyllic as it might seem is just agriculture. So this big venture into vineyard expansion was looking more and more like a gamble.

But then I guess you could say that about just about everything in life. You wake up each day with people to see, things to do and place to go. But there is no guarantee that any of it will go the way you think it should. You plan out your day to your best advantage and when you get ready to leave you find that your battery is dead. Plans need to change already. This is not to say that there is no use in planning things but simply to admit that there are always things out of your control that can alter even the best laid plans.

So where does one's religious beliefs enter into this big gamble that we call life? Personally I try to avoid praying for specific outcomes to specific situations/problems. I mean if your battery is dead and you pray that somehow it will be miraculously fixed it seems like you are treating God as a big slot machine that you are always hoping will pay off for you.  Maybe you think that God will get you a raise or talk some sense into someone that you are disagreeing with but somehow I have my doubts that He operates that way.

My approach to all the uncertainties of life is to ask for strength to handle whatever comes up, for wisdom to discern what the right response is to any situation, not just the best for me but the best for all involved and for the grace to recognize and accept the errors that I am bound to make. Somehow I think that God will be more responsive to humble and unselfish requests and will provide you with the knowledge that you need if you are willing to admit that you don't know it all already

So I will continue to plunge headlong into all the gambles that life seems to offer. I'll try to do the best that I can in all of them and not hesitate to pray for help when I need it. And I will hope to be wise enough to see when help is on its way and be smart enough to let that help actually help me. We all take chances whatever we try and do unless we don't do anything at all. It can at times be very daunting and seem like a big gamble. But there is help to be had if we just ask for it.


Notes from the Senior Warden
Lee Beam, Senior Warden
Thank YOU!
 
As I write this it is mid-May, although it feels like late winter with the cool temps and high winds.  But the grass is green from the recent rains, trees are budding and spring is here!  At Trinity, our program year is winding down as we wrap up the Youth Christian Education programs and take a break for summer.  Yesterday was Youth Sunday at the 11:00 service, and wasn't it great?  A big thank you and congratulations to all the youth who participated, as greeters, ushers, flag bearers, musicians, choristers, lectors and preachers. Thank you also to the teachers and parents who assisted with the planning of this wonderful service.
 
I want to offer a heartfelt "thank-you" to all of the volunteers who assist with the programming and mission of Trinity.  Many of you we see each week, busily assisting with Sunday services.  We wouldn't have the quality of worship that we do without the efficiency of the Altar Teams, assistance at the Altar by the Lay Eucharistic Ministers, volunteers who serve as Lectors and Prayer leaders, and work by the ushers, choir and musicians!  Serving behind the scenes (until yesterday) include all the teachers in the Youth Christian Education program.  Then there are those who lead Bible Study, Novel Theology, and other adult educational offerings.
 
Let's not forget those who volunteer throughout the week in the office:  answering phones, folding bulletins, sending mail to shut-ins, and assisting with the newsletter mailings.  Or those who serve on committees, such as Worship, Christian Education, Finance, Outreach, Stewardship, Hospitality, Membership, Property and others!  Or those who volunteer with Noon Lunch, who serve as volunteer guides for those visiting the church, and many others whom I have missed (sorry!)  And let's not forget our wonderful staff, who also works tirelessly in their service.  Thank you all for your dedicated service to Trinity!
 
Summer brings a period of relaxation in our church:  there's one less service each week, Sunday school is on break, there are no choir rehearsals during the week, and it seems like we can just take a deep breath and relax.  But behind the scenes, there are volunteers and staff still working, making sure everything gets done and planning for the fall.  Enjoy these next three months; take time for yourself.  Read a good book.  Sit under a tree and enjoy the sounds of nature.  Take a walk in the woods or go fishing in a stream.  Soak up all the beauty that God has given us.  Come share in the relaxed feeling of summer Church.  And prepare to immerse yourself in the life of Trinity Episcopal Church again this fall.


Vestry Highlights
At its regular meeting of May 16, the Vestry
  • Approved the financial reports for April, 2016, showing the parish to be in good financial health
  • Approved a proposal to install new cabinets, countertops, and appliances in the kitchen
  • Reviewed a resolution to add a new seat to the Vestry, to be filled by random selection from the parish, rather than by election by ballot. This would open the Vestry experience to persons who might have significant gifts to offer, but who might not usually be considered "electable" from the parish at large. The resolution will be considered over the summer, and voted on at the August meeting. For more information, ask any Vestry member! 


Formation Happenings
Shirley Ruedy, Christian Formation Assistant
Sunday School and Youth
What a tremendous ending to the Sunday School Year! Hope you didn't miss the Youth Sunday Service.  Our talented young people provided the readings, sermon, prayers of the people, and music. (The delightful sermon by Molly Diment and Nora Oechslin has been posted on the Trinity web page. )Trinity also hosted guests from the Boys Home for the day. A luncheon was held to honor and thank our dedicated, hard-working teachers and leaders:  Caroline Sheridan, Darlene Green, Krissy Jordan, Julie Jones, Liza Lawson, Brooke and Rick Cason, Mary Schwaner, Wendy Diment, Pete Hickman, Sascha Wallace, Richard Tankard, Erik Boody, Susanna Larner, Wally Edwards, Graham and Leslie Tate, and Joe Fiechtl.
 
"Helping Hands" Day Camp Needs Volunteers
A consortium of churches, including Trinity, will again sponsor this popular day camp for rising Kindergarten through rising fifth graders from August 1st through August 5th at First Presbyterian Church. PLEASE CONSIDER VOLUNTEERING (for an hour or two or more) to help with music, crafts, cooking, recreation, or service projects. Rising sixth through twelve grade youth can sign up to be counselors. This is a great opportunity for Trinity to be "missional," reaching out to the community, which will include the underprivileged.

Applications are available from the church office or via email at formation@trinityepiscopal.org .  The fee (for lunches and a t-shirt) is ten dollars and is due with the application. (Scholarships are available.) The deadline for signing up is July 15th and space is limited. For more information call 886-0704 or email helpinghandsstaunton@gmail.com or formation@trinitystaunton.org . You can also visit the camp's Facebook page.

Book Note
 Sam Portaro's wide-ranging and thought-provoking Transforming Vocation is one volume in a series entitled Transformations: The Episcopal Church in the 21st Century. Portaro sets out to discuss what he calls "vocational discernment, not only within the institutional church, but also more broadly in all aspects of [our] lives." Portaro asks tough questions of the reader, beginning with "Why am I here?" Answering this question involves thorough examination of our commitments, our daily work, and "the shape and meaning of our lives." A tall order, but Portaro provides so much scriptural foundation and so many ideas for transformation of vocation that the reader easily follows his lead to open up new thinking about how "we are spending our lives."  He expands the meaning of "vocation" from "call and response, or order and obedience" to a "divine letting go" or "letting be." God creates in Genesis with the phrase "Let there be . . . ." In the same way, God frees us to be creative -- to discover who we are and the nature of our call through intimate relationship with a loving God. He emphasizes that vocational discernment is lifelong, changing as we move from milestone to milestone, life stage to life stage.
Portaro also urges the institutional church in this new age to examine its understanding of vocation.  It's not just for clergy. If the church is to grow its congregations and become more missional, it needs members sure of their calling to minister and energized to pursue their ministries. Portaro has lots of suggestions.



Choir Camp 2016
Gen Bolena, Organist & Choirmaster
Join us for Choir Camp at Trinity 2016 : "Once in Royal David's City." Camp is for children in risings grades 2 - 6 and will be held July 25-29 from 9 a.m. - 12:30. We will sing, ring choir chimes, dance, make some beautiful crafts and do a service project. $50 per child; $35 for siblings. Registration link is available on our website. Please contact Organist/Choirmaster Gen Bolena for more information at music@trinitystaunton.org.


 
 


What's Up, Who's Up at Noon Lunch? A Daily Routine... Sometimes!
Bob Boyle, Noon Lunch Committee
They are quite a group. Some up, some down, some plodding through the day and some there grabbing a bite to eat before going to work on the first day in a long time.
 
Things get going after a guest's blustery blessing ends with "and dear Lord, thank you for this place where we can eat at."
 
The line starts and there is the cross country cyclist with bike, who, for the second year in a row, stops in for 2 days of lunch. Tomorrow, he is off to New Mexico.
 
Further back in the line is a nice looking, well clad young man in his early 20s with a North Face back pack.  The usual question to ask such a newcomer is "How did you get to be here in Staunton?" He responds matter-of-factly..."I was with my folks driving from Connecticut to our summer home in Florida.  We stopped at a rest area on Interstate and when I came back to the car, it was gone and my back pack was on the curb.  Got a ride here and went to a mission last night." Asked if he wants to tell the rest of the story, he blushes and says "thanks for lunch, sir. I am going to hopefully get going to Florida tomorrow."
 
The regulars shuffle in, 40 or so needy folks, all having stories but no one is in distress today. They grab a tray of baked chicken and broccoli and head to a familiar seat. They had hot dogs with mac and cheese with the usual Kroger birthday cake the day before.
 
A newcomer approaches "check in," quiet, hesitant, soft spoken middle aged and yes, she is really embarrassed and humbled to be where she stood.  She gives her name, a PO Box number for her street address and won't give up her birthday. She moves to the serving door and slides to an empty table until the room crowds her with close company. She eats her meal with the Queen's knife, fork, spoon, and napkin etiquette.  She repeats this new routine for several days.  She becomes passively receptive to conversation more each encounter. She now is staying later to talk a little and slowly but cautiously begins a hard process for her, to self-disclose how she got here. This educated, seemingly a fish out of water, had her life in emotional disarray. She followed her child here for treatment, left a residence, had to give up a good job and was now told that she could have no contact with her daughter as she tries to comply with the terms of her strict "therapeutic plan." She was devastated, confused, out of personal resources and now had to abandon a loved one for who knows how long. She found residence in a supplemented apartment and started scouring for employment in her trained field of massage therapy. She also was able to pursue her artistic abilities.  A part-time job appeared in her field locally and she jumped on it as the weeks turned into months at her safe harbor, Noon Lunch at Trinity. She became social with a few guests, and remained courteous, gentle and sincerely appreciative of visiting daily what she called "the lunchroom."
 
So often, the positive spikes in life disappear for many and they truly need a boost.
 
Ms. P, the guest whom I speak of, showed up one day smiling and well- groomed for her announcement:  "I have my own place with a lease; my job occupies my day; I am back to art and I want to give back!!"  Back upright, she arranged for a showing of her prints for sale at the Staunton Library...and now, doesn't need the program in McCracken Hall at noon. (See one of her drawings below.)
 
She has donated all of the several hundred dollars from her art sales directly to the Noon Lunch Program.  She is truly now on solid ground and is returning the favor so others can benefit.
 
Thanks Ms. P. for what you did for us.  Glad we could do for you.
 
Serving at Noon Lunch is a real ground-level ministry.  Join us by volunteering your time. It can pay off in so many ways.



United Thank Offering
Novel Theology
Novel Theology meets throughout the year on the 4th Tuesday of the month at 7pm in the Foster Room. Everyone and anyone is invited to attend. The only rule is you must read the book for that month. Come and bring your friends and acquaintances. We have lively discussions.
 
June 28-The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy.  Pat Conroy has created a huge, brash thunderstorm of a novel, stinging with honesty and resounding with drama. Spanning forty years, this is the story of turbulent Tom Wingo, his gifted and troubled twin sister Savannah, and their struggle to triumph over the dark and tragic legacy of the extraordinary family into which they were born. Led by Karen Martin.
 
July 26-Rings of Saturn by W.G. Sebald.  "Ostensibly a record of a journey on foot through coastal East Anglia," as Robert McCrum in the London Observer noted, The Rings of Saturn "is also a brilliantly allusive study of England's imperial past and the nature of decline and fall, of loss and decay. . . . The Rings of Saturn is exhilaratingly, you might say hypnotically, readable. . . . It is hard to imagine a stranger or more compelling work." The Rings of Saturn - with its curious archive of photographs - chronicles a tour across epochs as well as countryside.  Led by Carrie Tucker.

Congratulations to Our Graduates
Congratulations to Our High School Graduates
  • Katy Laser, Riverheads, will attend Elon University.
Congratulations to our Higher Education Graduates
  • Brodie Chittum, Bachelor of Arts with honors in History from Washington and Lee University.
  • Shannon Jordan, Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Minnesota.
Congratulations to our students that have received special awards & grants
Kathleen Ellen ("Ellie") Frazier has received a Fulbright U.S. Student Program Grant in Anthropology to go to Sierra Leone for the 2016-2017 academic year. The grant is awarded by the U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. Frazier will be based at Timap for Justice - Sierra Leone's largest legal aid organization - as part of a project to research how the Ebola outbreak impacted the ways in which people use legal aid services. The aim of this research is to help inform how the legal system can support long-term social and economic recovery.


Thank You from Stop Hunger Now
Rod Brooks, President and CEO of Stop Hunger Now
Thank you for your gift of $1,982.80 received on April 8th. You play a crucial role in our ability to distribute food and other life-changing aid to people around the world who suffer from hunger, and we are truly grateful. With your help, we have shipped more than 200 million meals to schools, orphanages, vocational training programs, medical centers and other community development programs around the world. Please accept our sincere appreciation for sharing in our vision of a world without hunger.
Teddy Bear Seamstresses Wanted
Darlene Green
Teddy Bear Seamstresses Wanted: If any of you enjoy sewing and are looking for a volunteer opportunity that doesn't require leaving home - there is an opportunity for making stuffed bears for a program at Hospice of the Piedmont. Bears are made for children who have had a loved one die. They are sewn according to a pattern using fabric from favorite clothing of their loved one. A training workshop is offered to demonstrate how to make the bears and materials are provided.  Please contact Darlene Green if you are interested, 885-7585 or bd2green@gmail.com. She would be able to drop off fabric and pick up completed bears at the church. A simpler project also needs volunteers - sewing soft, flannel blankets for children to give to their loved ones while in hospice or as a memory blanket for the family.



Directory Updates
Address Update
Pat Clark
569 Hilltop Drive
Staunton, VA 24401
 
Email Update
Eleanor Bird: eleanorb0429@gmail.com


Calendar
If you open the following link, you will see our Trinity Church calendar. You may wish to bookmark this page as it will automatically update with any changes.
Birthdays
1
Jennifer Campfield
Evie Stisser
 
2
Elizabeth Baxley
Yulia Buchanan
James Dungan
 
3
Gray Ferguson
 
6
George Redden
 
8
Beate Harnad
Erika Peterson
 
10
Price Kathryn Parkhurst
 
11
Susan Frank
Judy Mosedale
Susan Read
Shirley Ruedy
 
12
Harri Wallace
 
13
Jane Walsh
 
14
Sara Hollberg
Simon Willard
 
15
Theresa Jackson
Nora Oechslin
Karen Tate
 
16
Molly Brown
Beverly Frank
 
17
Willson Baxley
Carter Douglass
 
18
Don Fowler
Jeanne Klein
Rosalie Mahler
Tricia Opie
 
19
Janet Ferguson
 
21
Dudley Mayson Jr.
Heidi Smoot
 
24
Clair Bell
Owen Edwards
Ivan Einselen
Joan Wray
 
25
Jim Cramer
Emily Laser
 
26
Jeannie Lee
 
28
Sally James
 
29
Caitlin Bugas
Kelley Flanders