Dragon Tales E-News
July 11, 2018
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(410) 974-0200 Office (443) 837-5463 Emergency Pastoral
www.st-margarets.org info@st-margarets.org @SMCAnnapolis
Sunday Services at 7:30, 9:00, and 11:15 a.m.
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It has been a very emotional time for many of us here in Annapolis over the past couple of weeks. The senseless deaths of five members of the
Capital
family left us rather in shock, I think. The darkness of the world has invaded our own sacred space. I was reminded, though, to revisit the first chapter of the Gospel of John: “What came into being through Him was life, and the life was the light of the world. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness could not overcome it.” The love shared by, and with Gerald, John, Wendi, Rebecca and Rob will live on. They will be remembered by the many whose lives they touched. This is the light of love. “...
and the darkness could not overcome it.”
On another note, our recent “
RENEW!”
Vacation Bible School was a big success! We hosted almost 60 children! A big thank-you to all the many teens and adults who made it happen! (And truth-be-told, we had as much fun as the children did!) The children learned about care for God’s creation, care for their communities and care for themselves. They learned about growing God’s seed of love in their lives. AND, their mission was to collect loose change so we could purchase 100 trees from Episcopal Relief and Development to help other communities. Well, they collected over $250! We will be ordering from ER&D soon, and we’ll send a letter to the children letting them know how much their love spread to others. It was a very rewarding week for all involved. Thanks be to God!!
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Murder for Two Tomorrow
We have over 30 people (ages 55 and better) scheduled to enjoy nearby Infinity Theatre's summer production of
Murder for Two tomorrow afternoon! For all who are attending, please check your email inbox for ticket information.
Jim and Judith MacGregor would like to invite the attendees to the Infinity Theatre performance over to their home at 201 Nomini Dr, Arnold, MD 21012, after the performance for refreshments, appetizers and desserts.
RSVPs go to
jamacgregor101@gmail.com
, For questions, call Judy MacGregor 410 991 9115. You can still
purchase tickets from Infinity
, and if you cannot attend you are welcome to join them after the performance (4:45pm), - just let them know so they can plan. Your friends attending with you are also very welcome.
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The General Convention of the Episcopal Church, has been meeting this past week. The governing body of The Episcopal Church meets every three years. It is a bicameral legislature that includes the House of Deputies and the House of Bishops, composed of deputies and bishops from each diocese. During its triennial meeting deputies and bishops consider a wide range of important matters facing the Church. In the interim between triennial meetings, various committees, commissions, agencies, boards and task forces created by the General Convention meet to implement the decisions and carry on the work of the General Convention.
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Episcopal Night at Camden Yards
Last call for tickets to the Episcopal Night at Camden Yards on Friday, July 27 at 7:05 p.m. Episcopalians across the Diocese are encouraged to sit with other parishioners and enjoy a night of Orioles baseball. Maybe God will be on their side that evening against the Tampa Bay Rays!
All orders are due TODAY. Payments can be made by check to "St. Margaret's Church" with "Orioles" in the memo line and place in Sunday's offering plate or online by credit card
HERE.
If we don't have more orders, we might have to cancel and return any current purchases.
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Light House Pantry – July Food Drive
Each July St. Margaret's is responsible for a drive to stock the Light House Food Pantry, which provides our neighbors in need with non-perishable goods such as low sugar canned fruits & vegetables; dried products such as mashed potatoes, pasta, rice, cereal; soup, spaghetti sauce, peanut butter, dry milk, and tuna fish; and personal care items such as small soaps, shampoo, toothpaste, etc. (not “junk foods” such as chips & cookies). We hope everyone at St. Margaret’s will contribute at least one bag of items between now and the end of July. There are bags, kindly provided by Giant supermarket and a list of especially needed items in the narthex. Please place donations in the container in the narthex (sanctuary is always open). Thanks to all who continue to donate throughout the year.
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Help New Americans - Teach Citizenship
After a fruitful first semester of teaching citizenship classes at
Center of Help
in Annapolis
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two new volunteers are needed to join the team in September. You'll teach once a month (as part of a team with comprehensive curriculum) to a small group of adult students who are preparing for their citizenship tests.
No teaching experience or foreign language knowledge is needed and you'll discover that investing time in new American citizens is a meaningful and rewarding experience!
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Political Forum at St. Margaret's on Homelessness - July 24
On Tuesday, July 24th, from 5:00-7:30 pm. in the Formation Building, St. Margaret's will host a political forum on the topic of affordable housing in Anne Arundel County sponsored in cooperation with the Coalition for Affordable Housing. Parishioners are cordially invited to attend and to invite friends and neighbors. Light snacks will be provided.
Affordable, quality housing units for low and moderate income population and the homeless are severely limited in Anne Arundel County. Currently, the County Housing Commission has over 4,600 families on its waiting list for public housing and almost 6,000 for rent assistance. The waiting lists are now closed because the Commission cannot meet the existing need with existing resources.
To rent a two-bedroom apartment in Anne Arundel County, a family needs to earn an annual income of $56,440, which for a single income producer means an hourly wage of over $27.00. A minimum wage worker would need to work 107 hours each week to afford a two bedroom apartment. More than half of our low and moderate income households are paying more for housing than they can afford.
Several jurisdictions in Maryland are experimenting with strategies to meet these concerns. We will discuss these strategies and allow candidates running for County Council and County Executive to share their views and options for providing more affordable housing.
There is limited seating. Please contact Harry Caldwell at hbcaldwell@comcast.net at your earliest convenience if you wish to attend.
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The Anne Arundel County Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF) Sponsoring Committee is a strictly non-partisan "organization of organizations" made up of 20 member and friend organizations working together to build community power so that people's voices are represented, and solutions presented, at the places where decisions are made. The organization builds power by forming deep relationships within organizations and our communities, never acting "for" anyone, but always with. They do not endorse candidates or work with or for any political parties.
Many local churches have been involved and St. Margaret's has been invited to join in. THURSDAY, JULY 12, 7-8:30pm at Asbury United Methodist Church, 87 West St. in Annapolis.
FREE PARKING in Whitmore Garage from 6:15pm until 9:15pm
Parking Validation provided - FREE CHILDCARE PROVIDED
Please plan to arrive at least 20 minutes early.
Over the past three months, the group has heard the stories of over 2,100 people from communities across Anne Arundel County.
The problem areas identified are:
AFFORDABLE HOUSING - SAFE AND EFFECTIVE SCHOOLS - EFFICIENT AND USEFUL PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION - MEANINGFUL AND GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT - FREEDOM FROM ADDICTION - JUST AND FAIR IMMIGRATION POLICIES
all underpinned by systematic racism, sexism, and xenophobia which groups can dismantle together.
At the meeting, Research Action Teams related to these and other problem areas will work together and with others directly affected to identify specific issues and develop solutions that can be brought to the tables of power in our communities with people impacted by the problem.
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Foyers Forming for Next Year
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Are you interested in joining the St. Margaret’s Foyers social groups? If you participated last year you do not do anything as, you will receive a phone call or e-mail from one of the committee members in which you will be asked your interest.
If you did not participate last year but want to meet other parishioners in a social setting, please contact one of the Planning Committee members
when groups are formed in August. The purpose of this activity is to facilitate strong relationships within our church.
Foyers Planning Committee--
VeraTorrence
Lesal Kilcrease
Web Chamberlin
KarenEngelke
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St. Margarets Missions Comm. members are leading a group to Tanzania on March 7-20, 2019. The all-inclusive trip will include a safari visiting the most beautiful spots of the Serengeti and a three-day visit to the Dageno Girls Center.
Dageno has been a St. Margaret’s grant recipient since 2014 but this is the first time we’ve visited in person.
The itinerary has been planned and will be led by Teri Priebe of King George Travel—a very experienced TZ tour operator.
A $500 deposit secures your space now. Space is limited--
three rooms left (six spots, double occupancy
).
For more information, go to our website at
st-margarets.org and click on the Missions tab at the top.
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Camp Allen Coming NEXT MONTH
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St. Margaret’s will once again hold the half-day Camp Allen summer program on August 6-10 for the families of the Allen Apartments in the Parole area of Annapolis. Volunteers are needed. Sign up on Sundays during coffee hour or contact coordinator Sarah Hyde at 410-562-9904 or by e-mail at
smhyde@aol.com
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Swimsuits Needed!
Camp Allen is in need of girls’ and boys’ swimsuits, in all sizes (the campers are ages 5-12). If your children have suits in good condition that they have outgrown, please consider donating them. New and used suits, beach towels, and swim goggles will be happily accepted. Leave the items in the church office for pickup.
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Third Sunday Band
working on a NEW CD
The Third Sunday Band has begun working in the studio to record and produce a new CD which will be released in time for the 2018 Christmas season.
Recording and producing music is not an inexpensive proposition. To raise money needed to finish the project, the Band is hoping that many of you will consider pre-purchasing the CD, buying extras for friends and family or consider a donation to our project.
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Fall Classes Forming Now
Education for Ministry (EfM) is enrolling new participants to begin classes in September. Classes are held at St. Margaret's on Wednesday mornings from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m. from September through May.
EfM is a four-year course of study that reviews Christian scripture, history, and theology and teaches a method to apply our Christian tradition to the experiences of our lives.The cost is $375 per year. Scholarships are available. Contact Karen Engelke at karenengelke@aol.com or Jim Hall at jhhall1942@verizon.net for more information.
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Office Notes
As the summer vacation season continues, our regular office volunteers and staff are taking vacations. As a result, phone calls may not be answered right away,
Email may be the fastest source of communication and is encouraged if possible.
Staff will be able to collect voice mail phone messages throughout the day as long as they are not on vacation.
As a reminder, pastoral
emergency
calls can be made at 443-837-5463.
Office Emails
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Deadlines
Deadline for Dragon Tales -- Monday afternoon
Deadline for Sunday Announcements -- Wednesday morning
Church Office is closed on Fridays though August 31, 2018.
Quick Links
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