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FIELDNOTES
The Monthly Newsletter of
St. Francis-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
689 Sugartown Road, Malvern, PA 19355
The Rev. Kevin Dellaria, Rector
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Our Vision:
We aspire to be a growing community, worshiping together, celebrating our diversity & lay ministries, and offering God's healing love to all people.
Our Mission:
We seek to foster spiritual growth & renewal while spreading God's message of love, healing and peace.
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Fr. Kevin is on a well deserved vacation and his article will return with the September issue of Fieldnotes.
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Phase 2 Renovations Update
We are pleased to share that Vestry has approved the proposal engaging architecture firm Bernardon to lead the design of our Phase 2 renovations. If you recall from our last report, Bernardon was the firm that led our 2005 expansion.
In August, Bernardon will begin the "Discovery" phase of our project which is an assessment of the current state of our facilities, including an inspection by engineers on structure, electrical, and HVAC. A key next step is also to select our construction manager. The Warfel Company, who we also utilized in 2005, has been contacted to confirm if they are interested in working with us again.
As of June 30 our YTD pledge receipts are $62,240 which is 36% of what is expected in 2020. We do recognize some will make their contributions toward the end of the year especially in this challenging environment.
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Fellowship 
During this time when we're unable to gather for Fellowship events with our parish family, we hope that you staying connected, either virtually or in person, with close family and friends. We look forward to gathering together once again, as soon as we can do it safely.
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 Virtual Coffee Hour
There will be no virtual coffee hour during August and will return, as needed, in September.
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Worship Warm-up 
There will be no Worship Warm-up on August 2, 9, and 16. Worship Warm-up will return on Sunday, August 23.
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Anti-Racism Discipleship - Discussions
Our intial anti-racism discipleship and discussion groups have begun Please see the schedule below. Space is still available in each of these groups. Follow the link below to reserve your spot.
The Zoom link will be emailed to you.
Blessings,
Fr. Kevin+
Session Schedule
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Date
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Time
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Location
| | Monday, August 3 | 7 to 8 PM | Virtual | | Thursday, August 6 | 10 to 11 AM | Virtual |
To reserve your spot via Sign-Up Genius, click HERE.
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 Garden News!
Harvesting this year is different in that we harvest all produce into plastic bags supplied by The Chester County Food Bank. At present we are still taking all our product once a week to the Church of the Good Samaritan in Paoli as the West Chester Food Cupboard is on very limited hours.
On Tuesday, July 22, we harvested the following:
- 15 bags of green beans
- 9 bags of collard greens
- 5 bags of cucumbers
- 5 bags of banana and jalapeno peppers.
We harvest and bag, and then place everything in the church refrigerators overnight and take to Good Samaritan on Wednesday mornings. They run a once a week distribution to about 60 families.
Mahala J Renkey
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Wednesday, July 29, Mary Wong, Lynd Meyer and I harvested the following family size bags of produce from our six raised beds. Food packaging has been supplied by the Chester County Food Bank.
- 15 bags of green beans
- 10 bags of collard greens
- 10 bags of peppers - banana and jalapeno
- 3 bags of cucumbers
- 17 bags of basil
- 17 bags of parsley
The collection of fresh produce changed this year with the impact of COVID 19. We have been harvesting and taking food once a week to the Church of the Good Samaritan in Paoli. They distribute once a week. We matched our time to harvest to their schedule. This week we took to the West Chester Food Cupboard once again as Good Samaritan is closed this week for food distribution.
In previous years we have taken all our produce and dried goods to The West Chester Food Cupboard which was closed for awhile. The Food Cupboard is open again and can accept donations Monday to Friday from 8:30 am to 11:30 am Monday to Friday. Please consider taking donations from your own gardens to The West Chester Food Cupboard.
Mahala J Renkey
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 Holy Eucharist & SignUpGenius
We've had good turnout and great feedback with our outside Eucharists. Attendees have reported feeling very safe in the outdoor environment with the protocols and procedures we have in place. Thank you to everyone who has helped make this happen! We are using SignUpGenius to register people for the Outside Eucharist. Please remember that the total limit for gathering is 20, including clergy, and only sign-up for one of the services in a week so other people will have a chance to attend. Please remember that you are to wear your masks, practice social distancing (6 ft. between you another person) and use hand sanitizer. Masks will be provided if you don't have one and hand sanitizer will be available. Ushers will direct you where you are to sit when you get to the church courtyard. In case of inclement weather, Holy Eucharist will be cancelled. A separate email will be sent with the dates and links to sign-up each week. We hope to see you and share in the Eucharist. |
"Virtual" Bible Study
Lectionary Bible Study meets on Wednesdays mornings at 10:00 to pray and discuss the readings for the following Sunday. Anyone may attend. Currently, the Bible Study is meeting remotely, using the parish GoToMeeting account. Watch for an email on Monday of Tuesday of each week with login information.
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Remote Giving
St. Francis continues to function during the pandemic, offering livestream worship, conference call meetings, online Bible studies and (physically distant) pastoral care. We continue to meet our financial commitments to our staff, our property and service providers, and the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania. Keeping our parish connected and building our community however we can is a top priority. However, we also know that, during this crisis, many are facing unexpected financial challenges.
If you can continue your pledge or regular giving during this period, it is much appreciated. If financial constraints make giving or maintaining your pledge a hardship for you or your family, that is completely understandable.
For giving, personal checks and online bank transactions are still accepted. Also, for your convenience, an online giving option is now on the front page of our website (stfrancisfields.org). Just look for the "Give" button toward the bottom of the page.
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Circle of Friends 
Circle of Friends is a pastoral ministry of card-writing and encouragement that meets every 1st Wednesday
of each month. All supplies are provided. Anyone is invited to participate. During this period of physical distancing, "The Circle" is meeting remotely, preparing notes from the safety of home. Thank you to everyone who shares in this ministry.
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Here is contact information for the West Chester Food Cupboard:
431 S. Bolmar St., West Chester, PA 19382
610-344-3175
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 Altar Flowers
Did you know that you can dedicate the Sunday Altar Flowers in honor of a friend or family member, in remembrance of a loved one, or for some other special recognition? Altar Flower dedications are just $50.00, and helps provide a fresh arrangement each week. The form for dedicating Altar Flowers can be found on our parish website at: https://stfrancisfields.com/wp-content/uploads/Altar-Flowers-Dedication-form.jpg
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New Email Address!
The parish office at St. Francis-in-the-Fields now has a new email address. Please start using this email when contacting the church office. The old one will be phased out.
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 Fieldnotes Deadline - September
The deadline for the September Fieldnotes is Monday, August 17, 2020!.
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Calendar 
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