St. Mary’s is now following the CDC guidelines for Phase 5 in the State of Illinois, which is a full reopening, lifting all previous COVID restrictions. This includes worship services, coffee hour, and all groups, gatherings and meetings held on the grounds of St. Mary’s, indoors and outdoors. The CDC has recommended thatunvaccinated adults and children wear masks for their own protection. Please know that any person who wishes to wear a mask or needs to wear a mask for any reason will be respected. The Vestry and I are aware that some people feel more comfortable with a mask, which is understandable. We will have masks available at the back of the church. The Diocese of Chicago has given us permission to lift the COVID restrictions and the Vestry and I concurred after discussion and approval at our last vestry meeting. I am happy to announce we can now sing in the church. I am grateful to our humming members, most especially the members of the choir who have hummed in harmony.
Effective immediately:
The CDC recommends that unvaccinated children and adults wear masks for their own protection.
All person who need to wear a mask or wish to do so will be respected.
The CDC recommends frequent use of hand sanitizer; therefore hand sanitizer will continue to be made available.
The Diocese of Chicago is requiring us to refrain from the common cup, therefore we will continue to use the pre-sealed communion cups.
Vaccinated persons are not required to wear a mask.
Space limitations in worship and other gatherings and distancing have been lifted indoors and outdoors.
Coffee hours with food and receptions can resume.
Singing can resume for the congregation, choir members, and all singers leading the congregation.
This Sunday June 27th please join us for our 8:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. in-person worship services. Gail Head is playing the organ and we are all invited to sing. This Sunday you may also join us on Zoom for Morning Prayer at 9:00 a.m. There will be no coffee hour this Sunday because of our Blood Donation Drive.
Please note that this is our final Sunday on Zoom with Morning Prayer forthe summer. Starting in October we will provide some options for worship on Zoom, so please stay tuned over the summer for this information.
On Sunday July 4th we will have ONE in-person worship service at 9:00 a.m. only, followed by coffee hour in the Great Hall.
Just a reminder that this Sunday from 10:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. we will host a community blood drive with Versiti Blood Bank of Illinois, in the Great Hall. You can make an online appointment and walk-ins are also welcome. There is a serious shortage of blood in Illinois at all our hospitals so I hope you will consider making a donation, and invite friends and family to stop in make a donation.
I will see you all on Sunday,
Rev. Fran+
Blood Drive
Sunday, June 27
Great Hall
10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Make your appointment online to donate blood! Your donations are urgently needed, and it’s an easy way to support our local communities. More details are available on the flyers posted throughout the church, or you may contact the parish office. Make your appointment today! Thank you for your support.
Worship for Sunday, June 27
8:00 a.m. in-person Eucharist
9:00 a.m.Zoom Morning Prayer. To participate by phone only: 312-626-6799; phone meeting ID: 826 0737 1151. Click here to view the same service slides that Zoom video participants see.
10:30 a.m. in-person Eucharist
Service for Gladys Dockery
A service celebrating the life of Gladys Dockery will be held this Saturday June 26, at 11:00 a.m., with burial in the churchyard following the service. This service will be live-streamed on our YouTube Channel, as many of Gladys’ family live in England. You may watch the service live, or watch it later, as it is recorded and available at any time.
Prayer Vigil This Monday
Rev. Fran will hold a special prayer vigil for Steve Buenning here at St. Mary’s on Monday, June 28, at 6:30 p.m. Steve is a former parishioner and longtime friend of many. Please join us in prayer as we pray for Steve’s healing, and ask for strength and comfort for his wife Betty, daughter Amy, and all their family. Steve is in critical condition at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Washington DC. He had hoped to get a lung transplant but is now battling a lung infection. Your presence and prayers are requested. At the service there will be an opportunity to pray for all parishioners, family members, and friends in need of healing, and Rev. Fran will offer anointing for anyone who wishes healing prayers for themselves.
For the Good of the City
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
There is a quote from the Book of Jerimiah that I would like to share with you; it is “but seek the welfare of the city…and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.” I imagine that I probably heard this quote at some time when I was growing up, but it didn’t really mean much to me until I encountered it again as part of an Anglican Ethics class. In this class we were discussing the role of the church in society and in particular how the church must truly be invested in the “good of the city” rather than its own prestige and privilege. Or, more simply put, how the gifts of the church do not exist for its own use, but are to be used for the good of the whole community.
Over the past year with the pandemic and the contentious political season I have been thinking a lot about community and St. Mary’s place in it. What can we do for the “good of the city”? This got me thinking. We have been blessed with this beautiful property, the buildings and the land. Which most of the time they remain empty. What if we offered these gifts up so that they could be used by others?
So, beginning in March we did just that. St. Mary’s partnered with the Community Foundation to contact McHenry County’s not-for-profits to find out the needs of the community.
Our announcement read: Rooted in the early Christian understanding of Charity, we believe that it is through simple acts done together that the whole community is strengthened. It is through these shared experiences, when we agree to speak the same language and to listen to each other that the best of our community is realized.
St. Mary’s “For the Good of the City” ministryseeks to support organizations within McHenry County, Illinois that promote an integrated community. The focus of this ministry will be to support McHenry County’s not-for-profit organizations, regardless of their economic situation, by providing the following: office space, meeting & dining space and other amenities as identified.
We found out quickly that there is a real need in McHenry County for office and meeting space and I am very happy to report that we have been working over the last several months with two not-for-profits.
The first is the Raue Center, which was a bit of a surprise to us. But looking at the beautiful five acres of land, they thought St. Mary’s lawn would be the perfect place to hold acoustic concerts and Shakespeare in the park. We worked the Raue Center and the Diocese of Chicago to pull together a space use agreement that covers everything from port-a-potties to permitting to liability insurance. The space use agreement with the Raue Center has been signed and we just got news this Wednesday that the City of Crystal Lake has approved all permits.
So beginning the weekend of July 24th and running through mid-September, St. Mary’s will be hosting weekly events with the Raue on Saturday nights. I am very excited to partner with the Raue Center as we help build community and to be part of that social miracle that can happen when strangers becomes neighbors and neighbors becomes friends.
The next not-for-profit to approach us was Celebrate Reentry. They are a startup not-for-profit with a real need for meeting and office space. Celebrate Reentry is a Christian organization that seeks to assist our brothers and sisters as they reenter community after spending time in the prison system. As they told us, Christian churches do a pretty good job with prison ministries but when someone leaves prison there is often no one there for them. They will offer mentorship, a place to pray together and fellowship. Right now, due to budget constraints, they try to do all of their ministry work meeting at a McDonalds. As you can imagine this is a very difficult thing to do. We are presently working out the space use agreement with them, but we hope to be sharing one of the rooms in the old education wing with them sometime this summer. This is a real opportunity to partner with this organization and to make the redemptive power of Christ known to people who need to hear that message the most.
We have a new opportunity for mission and ministry. And on behalf of myself, Reverend Fran and St. Mary’s vestry we hope that you will join us when the Raue is here and that you will support this new ministry for the “Good of the City.”
Please feel free to email or call either myself, Reverend Fran or Doug Murphy. We would be happy to discuss the details of this new ministry with you.
God’s Peace,
Deacon Mike
Coffee Hour Hosting Returns!
We are happy to announce that now that COVID restrictions have been lifted we can resume our normal coffee hour routines! Several of you who have previously been hosts have expressed an interest in hosting again. We are reaching out to you, and to others who may be interested in this ministry.
Hosts are responsible for setting up coffee, providing a snack, which can be as simple as a coffee cake (supplies and other snacks will always be provided by the church, and cleaning up. Newcomers will be given instructions and help the first time. Opportunities are available for both Sunday services.
Weekly coffee hours are opportunities for us to enjoy fellowship and provide a welcoming place for newcomers. They exist because of the generosity of those who consider this their particular ministry. If you are interested please contact the church office, or send an email to Eileen Flynn, who will be putting together a schedule for the next few months, beginning with July 11.
Thank you for your consideration!
Farewell to the
Massoud Family
Last Sunday St. Mary’s bid a fond farewell to the Massoud Family. Rev. Fran provide a blessing for these parishioners as they prepare to move to Dallas TX in a few weeks. Rev. Fran thanked them for their ministries here, and gave Maya her acolyte cross for her years of service at our 10:00 a.m. worship service. The Massoud’s have been at St. Mary’s since 2013. May God Bless them in this next chapter of their lives!
Food Pantry Information
Volunteers are needed for the next St. Mary’s date at the Food Pantry on Wednesday, June 30. Shifts times are 8:30 to 10:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., or 12:30 –2:30 p.m. If you’d love to help please contactCate Williams.
Paper Please: Donations of paper goods are always needed at the Crystal Lake Food Pantry. The pantry is not able to buy paper goods through the food bank, and clients are not able to use their SNAP benefits to purchase any paper goods such as toilet paper, Kleenex, paper towels, and napkins. Bring them to the church any time, and your Board members will get them over to the pantry. Paper goods are items that are lightweight, easy to carry and low cost that can be donated and will be appreciated by the clients. Thanks!!
Co-Wardens Steve Brooks (1/22), and Mike Higgins (1/23)
Treasurer, Cate Williams
Heather Robert, Lorraine Taylor (1/22)
Cheri Dudek, Dorothy Nyberg (1/23)
Stacy Cook, Doug Murphy (1/24)
We Pray For
Parishioners: Dn. Mike, John, Kristi, Ann, John, El, Roseann, Cindy, Betsy, Matthew, Glenice, and Shirley.
Family/Friends: Leo, father of Terry Choquette; former parishioner, Steve Buenning; Carelin, friend of Jane Helmboldt; Carmen, mother of Lorraine Taylor; Dawn, step-sister of Heather Robert; Billy, brother of Catherine Carroll; Betty; Jean; Don; Russ, missionary in Chile; Bishop-elect Paula Clark; Millie; Marilyn and Tom; Madeline; Tarsha; John; Danny; Pamela; Millie; Susan; Ted, Jeff, Tom, Nicholas (infant) and his family; Mark, Chris, Sarah, Douglas, Mark, Andi, Greg, Wayne, Scott, Sue, Sarah, Dave, Brynn, Neil and Des, Kyle, Rick, Sylvia, Jess, Joanne, Kay, Brian, Sarah.
