Wednesday 11am: Bible Study

Wednesday 4:30pm: Children’s Choir Rehearsal

Wednesday 7pm: Bible Study

Wednesday 7pm: 11:15am Choir Rehearsal

Thursday 5:30pm: Contemplative Prayer 

Thursday 7:30pm: 9am Choir Rehearsal

Thrift Shop: Monday 10am-Noon, Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-1pm

Our word of the week isn’t in The Episcopal Church glossary, so we’re using our old friend Wikipedia instead! The word is processional cross, and you can read about it here. You might also want to check out crucifer, here, though ignore the part about vestments, because that only applies to Roman Catholic crucifers.

Sunday School classes for children and adults are held on Sunday mornings from 10:30am to 11:10am. The adults class meets in the Parish Hall, and this Sunday we’ll continue our study of the Book of Daniel.

This Sunday is the Sunday of the Pentecost, or Whitsunday (pronounced Wit-Sunday); you can read more about Pentecost here. Episcopalians often wear red or white to church on Pentecost/Whitsunday, because the modern liturgical color for the day is red, but, historically, in England the liturgical color for the day was white (thus White-Sunday, or Whitsunday). You wear whatever you want on Sunday, but we’re hoping Brett will show up in his candy cane costume to cover all his bases. In medieval England, the week following Whitsunday, known as Whitsuntide, was a week off for most serfs, the majority of the population, and so it was filled with fairs and festivals to mark the beginning of summer. In our parish, we delay the beginning of the summer break one more week to the following Sunday, Trinity Sunday (see below!).

A liturgical note for you – and please, feel free to follow these practices or not, they are customs in our tradition but not required; I mention them because a parishioner recently asked me about them, and I realized that many of our parishioners who come to us from other traditions may not know about them! It is a common custom in The Episcopal Church to bow as the processional cross passes by you at the beginning and end of worship. Most people simply bow their head briefly as the crucifer walks past their pew. Another very common tradition is to turn and face the Gospel book when it is brought into the aisle for the Gospel lesson; most people turn to face the book as it goes by them, and continue to turn to face it until it stops; after the reading is finished, they continue to face the book and turn as it passes by them until they are back to the position from which they started. Some people give a simple bow of the head as the book passes, but this is less common. These customs are meant as reminders and expression of our devotion to Jesus Christ, and if they serve you well, make use of them, and if they don’t, don’t. Note though that in some congregations, turning to face the Gospel book is seen as a matter of respect, much like I would wear a head covering if I were invited to a service at a synagogue - not because I am an observant Jew, but because it would be disrespectful not to follow that practice when I am a guest in someone else’s place of worship. That isn’t the case here, but in some places it would be seen that way, and I always say that if you’re going to be disrespectful, it is best to be intentional about it instead of inadvertently being so! ~ Fr. Todd+

We missed a few graduates last week! Rachel Aspegren graduated from Vista del Lago HS and will be attending Azusa Pacific University in the fall. Marley Dooling graduates from Sacramento Waldorf School next week, and she’ll attend Duke University in the fall. Chris (CJ) LaCasse graduated from Folsom High, and is heading to Europe this fall before returning to take classes at Folsom Lake College to prepare for university in Germany. Gracie Kanigher, granddaughter of Sue Mack, graduates from Tufts University, and inspired by her internship with Elizabeth Warren, is moving to Washington DC.

The Children’s Sunday School students and teachers are invited to a party in the Annex during the Sunday School time on June 16th, the last day of the program year. We’ll have treats and games, and we hope you’ll join us! Adults, you’ll still have class, no party for you!

This year on our patronal feast day, Trinity Sunday (June 16th), Ab Malmquist will be back to take more photos – so if you want a re-do or just haven’t had your photo taken yet, this is your chance. Barbara will be at all three coffee hours that morning to help people sign up for access to the online photo directory. 

You don’t need to wait until then, though. If you have an iPhone or iPad, you’ll find step-by-step instructions here. If you have an Android or Kindle, click here. And to access the directory on your computer, you can find instructions here.

If you run into any problems and can’t get in, call the church office or e-mail Barbara and she’ll be happy to help you!

Registration for our 2019 Vacation Bible School (July 22-26, 9am-noon) is filling up quickly – we have almost 40 kids registered, and only have a few more spaces available, so register your child today!

Online registration for children entering grades K-5 is available here.

We are always looking for volunteers to help out – we need a lot of help with so many kids. We have volunteer opportunities for adults and for middle and high schoolers. The volunteer form lists many of the different ways you can support VBS: being a small group leader to shepherd groups of children as they rotate through daily activities, leading or assisting at a station such as crafts or games, bringing snacks, donating supplies, etc. Or let us know you are flexible and we will DEFINITELY find a role for you! We will also have nursery care available for the parents of young children who would like to volunteer to help with VBS. If you’re interested in volunteering for VBS, sign up here. 

For more information or questions about VBS, contact Karen Van Winkle or Fr. Charlie.

If you have an old bicycle, spare parts, helmets, locks, or bike tools that you no longer need and would like to donate, please bring them to the Parish Hall on Saturday, June 22nd, from 9am-2pm, when we will be hosting host a bike drive with Opening Doors. Opening Doors is a Sacramento-based agency that supports human trafficking survivors, immigrants, and newly-arrived refugees. The bikes will be restored by the workshop at Folsom Prison, and then given to refugees who need transportation to job interviews and trainings. We hosted a similar drive the year before last and collected over 80 bikes (and a unicycle!) for our neighbors in need. If yourself or your friends decide to donate, Opening Doors will be able to supply you with a receipt for a tax-deductible donation. If you have any questions, call the church office or e-mail Fr. Charlie. And spread the word to friends and neighbors who might have a spare bike or parts/equipment that they’d like to give to a good cause!

The vestry met on May 28th, and the main item on our agenda was discussion about moving forward with a capital campaign. The vestry, along with Father Todd, have debated at length about running the campaign on our own vs. getting help from an outside firm. Given the scale of our project, we’ve decided it would be prudent to have professional help in planning and running the capital campaign. Father Todd received proposals from several firms and presented them to the vestry, and at his recommendation we’ve voted to work with James D. Klote & Associates, a Virginia firm that has directed successful campaigns for many Episcopal churches. Look for more exciting news later this summer as we finally start the process! ~ Shannon Dillon, Senior Warden

The ECW Sip & Shop last Sunday was a fantastic success – over 70 women attended and enjoyed good food, good drinks, and good company. Stay tuned for more info on our new ECW and our next event!

Tom Kempster, former Trinity Folsom parishioner and husband of former staff member the Rev’d Patricia Kempster, died on June 4th in South Carolina. Pray for the soul of Tom, and for his family as they grieve. If you would like to send Pat a card, her address is 5130 Wescott Blvd, Summerville SC 29485.

For those of you whose workplaces use Benevity, Barbara has gotten us approved to receive donations! Contact Barbara for more info on using Benevity at trinity Folsom.

If you have a request to add to the parish prayer list, e-mail prayers@trinityfolsom.org. Prayer request will be kept confidential within the intercessory prayer group. If you’re interested in joining this prayer group, e-mail Fr. Charlie. 

Each Sunday, the flowers behind the altar are given to the glory of God, and in memory of the dead, or in thanksgiving for living loved ones, for answered prayers, or for life events like births, graduations, weddings, and anniversaries. The suggested donation is $50. If you’re wondering what happens to the flowers, they don’t go to waste! After the Sunday evening service, they are divided into smaller bouquets and taken to parishioners, and to non-parishioners in local nursing homes. You can donate altar flowers on the website.

Trinity Episcopal Church

 801 Figueroa Street

Folsom, CA 95630

(916) 985-2495 ~ www.trinityfolsom.org