This edition of The Epistle, the official newsletter of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, ushers us into a new program year. As we continue to float through the dynamic waves of a new normal—spurred by both COVID protocols and our exciting campus building project—the clergy, vestry, and leaders of St. Andrew's are creating vital programming that offers all who enter our grounds, whether virtually or physically, a place for everything from sacred solace to community. We hope, as you read through this newsletter, that you too will find your place at St. Andrew's.
—Paula Fitzgibbons, Communications Director—
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Guided by Our Core Values |
As you discern where your place is at St. Andrew's, consider the core values identified by our Strategic Planning Team a few years back. They include:
- We are an open and welcoming community
- We love and serve our neighbors together
- We care for each other as family
- We joyfully live out our faith grounded in the Gospel
- We celebrate the journey
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You are Part of Us:
A Greeting from the Rector
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"Whether you attend church in your living room or in our pews, you are part of us! When you’re comfortable participating in-person, we’ll be happy to see your face (at least your eyes, since we’re still wearing facemasks)! As we’ve said before, although some of us are worshipping inside the Nave, that building isn’t the church. We are the church." Read more from Mother Brenda.
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Faith in Action with
Rev. Richard
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"Faith in Action takes on three issues we believe will produce tangible results for our vulnerable neighbors. We focus on Affordable Housing, Community Education and Outreach, and Neighborhood Services, through separate working groups." Read more about Faith in Action here.
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We're thrilled that the Rev. Hannah Wilder will join us every other week from August-December as an ongoing guest preacher. We are just as excited to welcome Richard Spooner aboard as our new Part-Time Administrative Assistant/Bookkeeper. Learn more about Hannah and Richard here.
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Mutual Ministry Review Update |
In February of this year, incoming and outgoing vestry members, key staff, and several lay ministry leaders participated in a Mutual Ministry Review facilitated by Allan Dorsey. The group discussed a range of topics, including: Achievements & Celebrations, Disappointments & Setbacks, Vestry and Lay Leadership, and Rector and Staff Leadership. Here are a couple of quotes from our conversations:
- “Our leaders have kept us alive and connected. It would have been easy to lose touch and fall apart. They have given us a reason to persevere and stay connected.”
- “We underwent significant transitions unrelated to the pandemic in the loss of Father Richard being full-time, Gillian and Tammy leaving. The transition has seemed seamless, and Alison has done a tremendous job taking the reins and excelling at responsibilities that are and even are not in her job description.”
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Welcome to our New
Vestry Member!
August '21-January '22
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Due to the Vestry vacancy left by Kara Lewandowski's move back East, Jennifer Rohr has been appointed to fill the position until our next election in January. Jen has been an active member of St. Andrew's for several years and brings the perspective of parents with busy kids to the table. |
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Worship at St. Andrew's
by Pat Moran
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Youth Connections
by Constance Mithelman
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"I can’t tell you enough how important our summer service trips are for our community to unplug from the grind of school, work, and sports. It provides us a unique opportunity to connect with God, ourselves, and one another, away from all the distractions and things that get in our way." Read more about Youth Ministry at St. Andrew's here.
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Education Notes from
Erin O'Brien
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"The children love to hear our sacred stories, and they are fully capable of entering into them and connecting them to their own lives. Even adults are still figuring out these narratives. The stories and wonderings build the foundation of what will be a lifelong spiritual journey." Read more from our Director of Christian Education.
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Music Notes from
Virginia Sublett
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Specific plans for St Andrew's Adult Choir are still to be announced, but we'll return to singing in person. If you are interested in joining us, please contact Virginia Sublett. We will rehearse before the 10 am service and stay to sing. Virginia will add you to her notification list for further updates.
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The Pajama Project
Needs Your Help
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The Pajama Project, a non-denominational project that originated at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, needs your help to fund supplies for their 25th year of sewing and distributing pajamas to our Food Pantry clients and many others this holiday season. To date, they've distributed over 16,000 pairs of pajamas! Please check our website for details.
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Coffee Hour Connections
by Leslie Hernandez
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This summer has brought the opportunity once again to share coffee, tea, and fellowship after the 10 am service. Parishioners have been enjoying the warm mornings on the church steps and under the shade canopies, reconnecting socially as well as networking regarding church ministry involvements. We expect 2021 and 2022 to continue to require simplified coffee hour events, but we nevertheless look forward to hosting modified versions of traditions such as: Post-Thanksgiving Potluck, Mardi Gras celebration, Cardiff Kook Annual Run celebration with VG’s doughnuts, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day (donuts for Dads). Join us! |
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