The Weekly News - May 9, 2018

Greetings!

  • Youth Leader Appointed
  • No Godly Play or Godly Discoveries on Mother's Day
  • Notes from the Search Committee
  • St. Christopher's Strawberry Fest
  • St. Christopher's Crops Garden
  • Emergency Contact Information
  • Dates for Your Calendar
New Youth Leader Appointed

Please welcome Jenna Parker, who began on Monday, May 7, as the new Youth Leader for St. Christopher’s. A native of Iowa and a cradle Episcopalian, Jenna received her Bachelor of Arts in Theatre from the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls. She served until recently as Director of Children and Family Ministries at St. Catherine’s Episcopal Church in Marietta, Georgia, where she was responsible for creating and implementing engaging and developmentally appropriate programs for children and their families. She holds the Certificate in Youth and Children’s Ministry from Forma, the Network for Christian Formation for the Episcopal Church. She also holds the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Level 1 Certification. Jenna recently moved to Indianapolis with her husband, an aeronautical engineer for Rolls-Royce.

At the age of 19, Jenna served as a Deputy to General Convention from the Diocese of Iowa and was active for several years as a member of the Diocese of Iowa Youth Development Team, where she led a delegation of youth to the 2015 General Convention in Salt Lake City. She will have overall responsibility for the Sunday Youth Formation program and St. Christopher’s Youth Group, as well as supporting St. Christopher’s connections with the diocesan youth program and Waycross Camp.  

Father Stephen
Attention Parents of Children (Age 3 to Fifth Grade)

There will be no Godly Play or Godly Discoveries classes on Mother's Day, Sunday, May 13. Classes will resume on Sunday, May 20.
Notes from the Search Committee

As the Search Committee continues its work, you may be wondering what is happening. Our editing team is completing a profile that describes our parish. The financial team is working closely with the Vestry to prepare compensation information. The statistics team is finalizing data to describe the surrounding community. Our media team is developing a video highlighting our congregation and a web page of additional information to help potential candidates learn about St. Christopher's. It’s a busy time and we're making good progress in preparing to launch the search. We're excited!
St. Christopher's Annual Strawberry Fest
Volunteer Now for the Shift of Your Choice

The 13th Annual Strawberry Fest will be held on Saturday, June 9, from 12 Noon to 8:00 p.m. Our event will be held in the PNC Bank parking lot at the corner of Rangeline Road and Main Street. It will coincide with the Gallery Walk in the Carmel Arts and Design District.

You might be asking why we are promoting the Strawberry Festival now when it's more than a month away. We need to know by Memorial Day that we have sufficient volunteers in place to fill all our shifts. If you can staff a sign-up table, bake, serve ice cream, cut shortcakes, take tickets, or clean tables, please consider volunteering for a couple of hours to help make our annual community outreach event a success.

Sign up for a particular role and shift using the button below for Signup Genius or stop by the Strawberry Fest table this Sunday.
Summer Lunch Program

Please stop by the Carmel Summer Lunch Program table in the narthex on May 13 or 20 to learn more about this ministry. Learn the many different ways you can help.You can get signed up to help support the 48 kids who will be a part of St. Christopher’s community outreach site this summer. We look forward to having you join us in this vital ministry!
St. Christopher's Crops Garden
Ready for Planting

Special thanks to all of you who rolled up your sleeves, garnered your tools and took on every task planned. We now have 20 beds prepared for planting day on May 20! It was a perfect morning for our work, so that was a blessing, too!

You, too, can help with the garden! Work days are scheduled Saturdays at 9:00 a.m. and Wednesdays at 6:00 p.m. Use the Garden Crew Signup Genius form to choose your work times from Saturday, May 12, to Wednesday, August 29.
Emergency Contact Information

Years ago, at another parish, one of the parishioners went missing. She was active in the congregation, singing in the choir and participating in Bible studies. She was known and loved by many people. Then, after she had not shown up where she usually had, her absence was noticed. She hadn’t said anything about being away. Repeated calls to her home went unanswered. Where was she? And whom could we contact to find out if she was okay? A fellow choir member knew that she had an adult daughter who lived locally, but no one knew her name since she had taken her husband’s name when she’d married.

Eventually we found her, but only because she called the parish office to report that she had been hospitalized with a serious illness.  

As families scatter across the country (and around the world!), the old networks of care don’t work the way they used to. And people, especially single men and women living alone, often don’t have local support or connection.

At that other parish, we set up individual files where emergency contact information was secured, and we have begun to do that here at St. Christopher’s. If you would like the Parish Office to have information about whom to contact, I invite you to complete the attached form and send it by email or regular mail to Anita Walker, Parish Administrator. I want to make it clear that the information you choose to share will NOT be published, shared, or used unless a situation arises like the one I’ve outlined above.  

My hope is that having your emergency contact information in a private file at St. Christopher’s will give both you and those you love peace of mind. If you have any questions, please let me know.

Faithfully,
Father Stephen
Important Dates for Your Calendar

The  Save the Date page  of St. Christopher's website is updated weekly. Check this resource for new information. You also may want to review the insert in the Sunday bulletin, as it provides the schedule for the coming week. 

May 12, 10:00 a.m. | The Daughters of the King
May 14, 6:30 p.m. | St. Christopher's 4Cs
May 20, 11:30 a.m. | St. Christopher's Crops Garden Blessing and Planting
May 23, 11:30 a.m. | Young at Heart Luncheon
June 2, 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. | Pack the Cruiser (a food drive at Kroger's)
June 3 | Summer Lunch Program Begins
July 16 - 19, 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. | Vacation Bible School

Church office hours
Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to noon and 1:00 to 4:30 p.m.
The deadline for announcements, news, and articles for  The Weekly News  is Monday Noon each week. Email announcements to the church office at  awalker@stchriscarmel.org with a copy to carolyncparrott@gmail.com