Worship Times
Sundays, 8 & 10 am
Nursery available at 9:45
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Coffee Hour fellowship follows both services;
join us for treats, and conversation
Children's Worship, 10:00 am (Preschool -2nd grade) Sunday School, 11:00 am |
Clergy & Staff
Rev. Barbara Bishop, Deacon
Amy Noe, Parish Administrator
Sandra Molyneux, Organist and Choir Director
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Parish Vestry
(term expires)
Marge Smith, Warden
(1/19)
Cate Williams, Warden
(1/18)
Peter Becker, Treasurer
Judy Tracy, Clerk of the Vestry
Members:
(1/18) Michael Choquette, Mark Cornelissen, Dan McLauglin
(1/19) John Amrein, Peter Carroll, Jerry Kolarczyk
(1/20) Tracy Higgins, Judy Thornton, Sally Van Vranken
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Monthly Events
The next CRYSTAL LAKE FOOD PANTRY volunteer opportunity is Friday, February 24. Contact Chris Bednaroski if you can help. Shift times are 9:30-Noon, and Noon-2:30.
A LABYRINTH WALK is held on the second Saturday of every month, from 10:30 a.m. to Noon, in the Great Hall. All are welcome. The next walk is Saturday, February 11.
CENTERING PRAYER meets the first and third Tuesday of every month, at 7:30 p.m. in the Great Hall. Contact Rev. Fran with any questions, or for more information.
TAIZE is an ecumenical, meditative common prayer, incorporating song, chant, scripture readings, and silence. People of ALL faith traditions are welcome this monthly candlelight service. The next service will be held at the First Congregational Church of Crystal Lake, 461 Pierson St., on Tuesday, February 28, at 7:00 pm.
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We Pray For
Gladys, Sean, Peter, Mark, Matthew, Kay, Meg, Nancy, Maggie, Irene, Dn. Lucy, Shirley, Bryant, Nicci, Bryan, John, Tom, Glenice, Daphne, Dn. Barb, Karen, Thelma, Ann, Galen, Betsy, Bob, Harry, Marion, Don, Madeleine, Jo, Raven, Bill, Jerry,
Brian,
Sarah,
Carol, Glenn
, Judie
Those Who Have Died
Pat Chard
Raul, father-in-law of Andrew Hoelzel
Wendy, daughter-in-law of Mike & Tracy Higgins
Betty, mother of Jennifer Kolarczyk
Those Who Mourn
Andrew & Eve Hoelzel and the family of Raul;
Mike & Tracy Higgins,
Billy and Will Higgins, and the family of Wendy;
Lyn and the family of Pat Chard;
The
Kolarczyk family, and the family Betty, especially
O.C.,
Chuck, and
Liz
Those Serving in the
Armed Forces
Jeremy, Zack, Ryan, Terry, Scott,
Dan, Corey, Nicholas, Tyler, Ross
Birthdays
2.24 Marge Hess
Janet Stiff
2.25 Grace Baker
Hannah Stiff
3.1 Amy Wimmer
Roseann Gilbertson
Anniversaries
None this week
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From the Rector
Dear Friends and Parishioners of St. Mary's,
I want to take this opportunity to all of you who have been involved with our community meal and all those who attended and brought friends and neighbors. Our February meal was a big success. We served 69 meals and covered all our costs with the free-will donations. We had a boat load of volunteers, which included 18 students from Crystal Lake Central High School. Our next meal is happening on March 18, from 5:00-7:00 p.m. As soon as we find out the menu we will post it.
This Wednesday March 1, we are entering the sacred season of Lent. On Ash Wednesday Christians around the world will mark themselves with a smudge of dirt in the shape of a cross. We will enter into a season that draws us to the cross and calls us to prepare for the resurrection of Christ. The season of Lent is a time to take a look at our lives and to see where we have strayed from living into all that God beckons us to become. It is as season marked by repentance, service, and fasting. It is a season to strip away all the trappings of this life and to begin to open ourselves up to the full mystery of Christ's death and resurrection. Sadly for some it has become a 40 day period to feel bad about oneself, and it is has also been reduced to a time of giving up candy bars, and we often miss the true promise of the season. Lent is a season which invites us to embrace fully our dependence on God so that we may enter into the glory that God intended for us. Let us enter these mysteries with hope and expectation. Please join us for Ash Wednesday services. Let us mark ourselves with the smudge that brings life.
Blessing the Dust - A Blessing for Ash Wednesday
by Jan Richardson
All those days you felt like dust, like dirt, as if all you had to do was turn your face to the wind and be scattered to the four corners or swept away by the smallest breath as insubstantial.
Did you not know what the Holy One can do with dust? This is the day we freely say we are scorched. This is the hour we are marked by what has made it through the burning. This is the moment we ask for the blessing that lives within the ancient ashes, that makes its home inside the soil of this sacred earth.
So let us be marked not for sorrow, and let us be marked not for shame. Let us be marked not for false humility or for thinking we are less than we are, but for claiming what God can do within the dust, within the dirt, within the stuff of which the world is made, and the stars that blaze in our bones and the galaxies that spiral inside the smudge we bear.
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Pat Chard Memorial Service
A reminder that the memorial service for parishioner, Pat Chard, will be tomorrow morning (Friday) at 11:00 a.m. at St. Mary's. A luncheon will be held in the Great Hall immediately following the service.
UPDATE: In the death notices email that was sent out a few days ago, we did not have the obituary link for Mike and Tracy Higgins' daughter-in-law, Wendy Koontz. That has now been posted and can be found here. Wendy's memorial service will be held in Omaha NE this Saturday. * Please keep the Chard, Higgins, Kolarczyk, and Hoelzel families in your prayers this week, as they mourn the loss of family members.
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Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper
On
February 28
,
St. Mary's
will observe
Shrove Tuesday
with the annual Pancake Supper, put on by the men of the parish.
Shrove Tuesday is the day
before
Ash Wednesday, which marks the
beginning of the Season of Lent.
Traditionally, the eating of cakes, pancakes, pastries, and foods made with sugar, fat, and eggs, is considered a last feast before the ritual fasting associated with Lent.
The Pancake Supper
will be chaired
again
this year by
Mike Higgins,
and we thank him for volunteering to guide this annual event. The meal will begin at 5:30 p.m. and continue until 7:00 p.m. in the Great Hall
.
Cost will be
very reasonable: $4.00 for adults; $2.00 for children 6-12;
or $10.00 per family. C
hildren 5 or under eat at no charge
.
As usual, tickets are purchased at the door. Along with delicious pancakes, sausage and applesauce will be served, along with an assortment of beverages.
We encourage all
parishioners, family, and friends
to stop by for a great meal and
wonderful fellowship!
MEN: If you have not already done so, please email the parish office or Mike Higgins, and let them know if you'd like to work the early (3-6 pm) or late (5:30-8:30 pm) shift.
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ASH WEDNESDAY SERVICES
Ashes-to-Go
6:00-8:00 a.m. at the downtown Crystal Lake Metra station
Ash Wednesday Services 12:00 Noon - said service with imposition of ashes 7:30 p.m. - sung service led by choir, with the imposition of ashes |
5-Week Lenten Soup Supper, & Study
The Passion: A Cantata of Jesus' Death
Beginning Thursday, March 9 ~ 6:30-8:15 p.m.
Marcus Hummon, a Grammy award winning singer/songwriter, has created a cantata of the last days of Jesus, based on the narratives of the Gospels. Each week we will hear a scripture passage and the musical piece he has written for that passage. There is an also an accompanying book, written by Marcus, and his wife, Becca Stevens. Becca is an Episcopal priest, a 2016 CNN Hero Award winner, and the founder of Thistle Farms/Magdalene, one of the most successful Social Enterprises in the US. In the book, Marcus and Becca offer the musical history of each piece, as well as reflections on its theological significance. We will use the CD and book together in our discussions each week.
If you wish to participate please sign up so that we will have enough books
. We are asking for a donation of $5 to help defray the cost. (If you prefer a digital copy, it is available on Amazon.com, or Cokesbury.com.)
In addition,
please sign up to bring soup, salad, or bread to one or more of our evenings
.
Invite a friend!
Questions? Speak with Rev. Fran.
Sign-up sheets are located on the display in the Great Hall.
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A Musical Treat for Seniors
The Prairie Ridge High School Spring Musical is
A Tale of Two Cities
.
There will be a
free senior citizen performance
on
Thursday, March 2, at 1:30 p.m.
Following the performance, you are invited to mingle with students at a dessert and coffee gathering.
As this performance occurs during the school day, parking will be limited at the school. A shuttle bus will be running to the high school from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, starting at 12:00 Noon. (The church is located on Walk-Up Rd, across from Veteran's Acres Park.) The bus will make return trips back to the church following the show, and continuing throughout dessert time until everyone has been accommodated.
The ticket hotline is now open.
Please call before Noon on February 28, to RSVP for the performance.
The number is 815-893-5888.
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Crystal Lake Food Pantry
Reminder: Volunteers are needed for the next St. Mary's date at the Food Pantry, tomorrow,
Friday, February 24
. Shifts are 9:30 am to Noon, or Noon to 2:30 pm. Contact Chris Bednaroski at 815-444-9122 if you can help out!
Crystal Lake Food Pantry
42 East Street
Crystal Lake, IL 60014
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