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R E Lee Memorial Episcopal Church
Parish News
May 2017
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Sundays
Holy Eucharist
8am, 10:30 am and 5 pm
The last regular 5 pm service will conclude on May 14 for the school year.
Our Taize' Eucharist will continue monthly on the 2nd Sunday at 5 pm.
May 7, Confirmation, 10:30 am
May 7, Evening Prayer, 5 pm
May 14, Choir Sunday
At the 10:30 service we will celebrate the ministry of the choirs and our music program. Memorial gifts can be made for this special Sunday. Please contact the office if you are interested in making a memorial gift. These gifts will go to support music for special events, such as brass for Easter and other guests for special music presentations.
May 14, Taizé Eucharist, 5 pm
Music in the meditative Taizé tradition with prayers and readings from Scripture.
Christian Education for Children, Youth and Adults
Sunday School for Children and Youth, 9:30, 3rd floor
Sunday, May 21 will be the last day of Christian Education.The Sunday School year will close with teacher recognition and a picnic following the 10:30 service. Everyone is invited! Hot Dogs, hamburgers, chips, ice cream, and drinks will be provided.
Christianity and Culture, Parish Hall, 9:15
May 7 The Music of the Atomic Age Frank Settle
May 14 Art of the Spanish Civil War Picasso's "Guernica" Cecile West-Settle
May 21 TBA
May 28 and June 4 Early Archbishops of Canterbury Elizabeth Harralson
Vacation Bible School
Vacation Bible School will be held June 5 - 9, 2017. We will present "What's up Zac?": A Musical at the Crossroads of Social Justice. We will continue our outreach efforts in the community while exploring the importance of social justice and ways to make a big impact in our community and in the world. R E Lee Memorial Episcopal will partner again with Good Shepherd, Lexington Presbyterian and Trinity United Methodist Churches.Teachers and helpers are needed! Please contact Sharon if you are able to help.
Upcoming Events
Thursday, May 25, Ascension Choral Evensong, 6 pm
Please join us Thursday, May 25 at 6 pm for a service of Evensong celebrating the Feast of the Ascension.
Our One Word
, Wednesday, May 24, 5:30 - 6:30
Ladies, please join us for an hour of simple food, drink and conversation.
We will focus on one word and explore if that word has or has not been at work in our lives this week. Bring a friend!
Confirmation
We will welcome the sixth Bishop of our Diocese, The Rt. Rev. Mark A. Bourlakas, for Confirmation on May 7 at the 10:30 service.
Our Confirmands are:
Molly Hellwig, daughter of Tammi and Brant Hellwig
Alden Mastin, daughter of Jenny and Danny Mastin
Samantha Russell, daughter of Caroline and Chris Russell
Gabi Eastwood, daughter of Maria Nava and Jon Eastwood
John Thomas Loughhead, son of Connie Loughhead Carter and Robert Loughhead
Pierson Hull, son of Bethany and Robert Hull
Jack Harrison, son of Susan Harrison and Tim Harrison
Abby Lynch, daughter of Lacey and Shane Lynch
Grace Frascati, daughter of Craig and Lori Frascati
Parishioners are invited to write a note to our Confirmands encouraging them as they observe this milestone in their spiritual journey. Notes should be left at the Parish Office by Friday, May 5 . Our thanks to Melissa Cox and Susan Cross, mentors for our Confirmation class.
As ministers of the world the confirmation class is collecting non-perishable food for Lisa's House of Project Horizon. Non-perishable items include -
non-perishable milk, spaghetti pasta, spaghetti sauce, parmesan cheese, popcorn, tea bags, canned soup, dried fruit, canned fruit, hot chocolate mix, fruit snacks, juice pouches, Kool-Aid pouches, cereal boxes, nuts, cookies, trail mix, pretzels, and goldfish crackers. A bin is located outside of the Library. Thank you for helping!
ECW Coffee at Kendal, Tuesday, May 23
Each year the Episcopal Church Women of R E Lee Memorial Church honor their members who reside at Kendal. All are invited to "Coffee at Kendal" in the Restaurant from 10 am to 11 am. Please bring something to share (fruit, cookies, sandwiches).
Parish Announcements
Anne Grizzle Ordination
God willing, Anne Grizzle will be ordained into the transitional diaconate on Friday, May 12 at 6 pm. The ordination will take place at R E Lee Memorial Episcopal Church with a reception afterwards in the Parish Hall.
Remember the Blue Box - 2017 UTO Spring Ingathering - May 21
From a recent Richmond Times-Dispatch "Faith and Values" article submitted by a high school freshman arises a plug for the spiritual and missional discipline of the United Thank Offering.
Joshua DuPuis, of Glen Allen, VA, writes fluently of a life-changing discovery he experienced in seventh grade when his teacher read a short story to her class about another teacher who had reminded his students to be thankful for everything, including the service of their teachers, peers, coaches and other role models. After class, Joshua tried the story's advice on his teacher with a simple thank you. "Her face lit up with glee," he writes, "and I felt a sense of pleasure inside that I could tell she felt, too."
Since the rewarding revelation that thankfulness makes others happy, Joshua says he had endeavored to follow the rule of expressing thanks for every service and kindness offered him. Moreover, he introduces his faith: "If we were to take this deed up a level and thank God for everything He does for us, how big of a smile could we put on His face ... and how much more could He do in our lives?"
Twice a year the UTO Ingathering gives us in the Episcopal Church an opportunity to "make God smile." For 127 years this tradition for mission continues every day as we offer prayers of thanksgiving and mark them with coins (or bills) in our Blue Box kept at home. For us the spiritual discipline of thankfulness and giving is integral to our faith. Every cent of our thankful offerings helps fund UTO grants for God's mission worldwide. And, as we've learned from the recent past, sometimes those blessings come back home to us.
"It's a task so small," says Joshua. "The phrase thank you is more than two words. It is a phrase used to make God smile, for whenever used, someone benefits." Amen, Joshua.
Always in thanksgiving,
Julia Littlefield, parish UTO coordinator
Altar Flowers
If you wish to make a donation in honor/memoriam of a loved one, please sign up on the Flower Chart on the wall on the bridge.
Lanford Mission Emergency Fund
Many, many thanks to all who contributed to the Lanford Mission Emergency Fund over Easter. Your
generous donations totaled $2,655.00. Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas offerings are the major funding source for the work of the MEF. This
vital RE Lee Outreach Ministry supports those in need in the Rockbridge area community. Thank you again!
Gail Dickerson, Administrator, on behalf of the Christian Outreach Committee
Outreach Opportunities
Two urgent needs for volunteers in our community!
The Community Closet at Christ Church Needs Volunteers
The Community Closet at Christ Episcopal Church (CC@CC) in Buena Vista is a young ministry has been so successful that many more hands are needed to help. They need volunteers for the month of May and beyond. Workers are needed on Wednesdays from 9:30 to12:00 unbagging, sorting, displaying, or storing donated items. (They are not accepting men's and women's clothing until July because they are overloaded and do not have storage place) The CC@CC are in desperate need of towels, sheets, blankets, pots and pans, toasters, microwaves, mixers, cooking utensils and general kitchen items. There is also a great need for summer baby boy clothes sizes 6, 12, and 18 months. The CC@CC accepts monetary donations which they use to purchase new socks and underwear, and storage bins in which to display or store items. You may leave donations at our church.
The CC@CC is open every Saturday morning from 9:00 til 12:00. Volunteers are needed to greet "shoppers" (everything is actually free), help them find needed items, bag the selected items and generally managing the closet. Children must stay with their parents, and volunteers bag the selected items. The goal of CC@CC is to help those who are truly in need, and they help up to 60 people a week.
RARA Food Pantry Needs Drivers
The RARA Food Pantry has a need for drivers for our Tuesday afternoon food order pickup from the main food bank in Verona. RARA has a standing appointment at the food bank at 1:30 pm. A driver would need to leave the RARA headquarters at about 12:30 pm to arrive in Verona on time. The staff at Verona will handle loading the truck and the driver can usually be sure of being back by 2:30. It is roughly a 2 hour commitment. A new driver is trained with an experienced driver before they are able to drive alone.
The RARA Food Pantry also need substitutes for their partner pickups to Kroger and Food Lion. These pick-ups happen every day except Sunday. The pick up consists of driving to Kroger and Food Lion in either the pantry truck or the volunteer's own vehicle and can happen anytime between 10 and 2 Monday through Friday and before 9:45 on Saturday. If you are interested in this ministry please call the RARA office (540-463-6943), or Dick Reese, the Food Pantry manager (330-933-1508)
From the Music Director
Up coming musical events at R. E. Lee
We have several exciting events coming up in the musical life of our parish! Sunday, May 14th will be our second annual Choir Sunday. At this service, we will highlight the musical contribution that the Adult and Junior choirs make to our worships services and a special offering will be taken up to support our music program. On Thursday, May 25th at 6 PM, the choir will offer our last Evensong before our trip to Wells Cathedral this summer. Finally, on Sunday, May 28th the Junior Choir at
R. E. Lee will be joined by Choristers from Trinity Church in Staunton to lead our entire worship service. I'm so thankful for the parish's strong commitment to music and hope that these events bless all who are in attendance. Soli Deo gloria!
Youth
Calling all 9th through 12th graders!!
Happening #10 has been scheduled to take place the weekend of May 12-14th, 2017. This springs Happening will be hosted by R.E. Lee Memorial Episcopal Church in Lexington, Virginia.
HAPPENING is a weekend presented by teenagers and adults for teenagers and adults. The weekend is spent in a relaxed, fun, informal, loving environment sharing your faith in a Christian atmosphere. Our own Caroline Webster will act as "rector" and will lead the weekend with the help of clergy and a staff of mostly young people. The weekend is open to youth in grades 9, 10, 11, and 12.
This event is also open to young adults and adults.
HAPPENING encourages participants to relate the foundations and message of the Christian faith to their world. A HAPPENING weekend is just a beginning. The idea is to get closer to God during the three-day program and continue to grow in the Christian way of life.
HAPPENING encourages participation in the local parish.
The format of the weekend includes talks and discussions on the basic elements of Christian life and its application to daily living. The sacraments of the church also play an integral part throughout the weekend. This weekend is sponsored by the Episcopal Church and we will be celebrating some of the sacraments according to the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer. We encourage people to live fuller Christian lives in their respective denominations. Need more information? See
Happening#10
Save the Date
June 4, Pentecost and Youth Sunday
On the Calendar
DEO - Discipling Each Other
Monday's at 9 am and Thursdays at 7:30 pm.
For more information contact
Doug and
Libby Cumming.
Men's Prayer Breakfast
The men of our parish meet for breakfast and prayer at 7 am each Tuesday.
Education for Ministry
The EfM class meets each Tuesday from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm in the Library of the Parish Hall. A new class will form in September. Contact
James Keane or
Don Ellis for more information.
Junior Choir Practice
Wednesdays, 3:45 to 4:45
Godly Play
Wednesday, 3:45 to 4:30
High School Youth Breakfast & Devotion
Thursdays, 7 to 8 am
Grades 9-12 welcome!
Bring a friend!
Kendal Bible Study with the Rector Thursdays, 10:00am followed by Holy Eucharist at 11.
Parish Choir Practice
Thursday, 7:00 - 9:00 pm
May Parish Birthdays
1 Christi Crittenden
2 Elizabeth Harralson
4 Jeanne Eichelberger
7 Rob Apgar
8 Steve Grist
Kate Holston
River Hull
10 Joe Crittenden
11 Rabena Afful
12 Anne Hershbell
13 Caroline Russell
Gordon Woodcock
15 Jenny Mastin
16 Elaine Price
Ginny Price
17 John Dickerson
Phil Peters
18 Emily Hellwig
20 Joan Crawford
Foster Pickett
22 Bill Connelly
Garrett Frascati
31 Ellie Mastin
Jenner Smith
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The church gate was adorned with a lovely Easter arrangement that beckoned all to enter the Easter celebration!
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Calender of Events
click here to view calendar
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The Rt. Rev. Mark A. Bourlakas, Bishop
Members of the Vestry
Merce Brooke, Susan Cross,
Doug Cumming, Lynn Dent,
Keith Gibson, Anne Hansen,
Catherine Harcus, Susan Lawrence,
Buster Lewis, Grigg Mullen,
Woody Sadler (Sr. Warden),
Don Whittington (Jr. Warden),
Daniel Wubah
Mo Littlefield, Clerk
Joe Simcoe, Treasurer
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