Mars Hill Proclaimer
St. Paul's Episcopal Church August Newsletter 2022
|
|
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
August tends to be a quiet month at St. Paul's, with many of us taking well-deserved time away for vacation. At the same time, though, we're getting ready for the return of NIU students. Marilyn and Cliff Cleland have persevered with the Church Path ministry, most recently posting "A Summer Day," a poem by Mary Oliver. We're looking forward to something new being posted for the student's return.
Along with the NIU student's return, we'll be welcoming Pastor Mack Patrick and the ministry of Grace Place to St. Paul's. Their building on campus is no longer suitable to meet in, so they will be meeting on Wednesday evenings to share a meal and discussion in our Parish Hall. If you run into them, please say "Hi" and make them welcome.
Also underway are plans for our Bishop-Elect's Consecration as the Thirteenth Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago. It will take place on Saturday, September 17th. This is the third time a date has been set for +Paula's installation as Diocesan Bishop and we are all hoping and praying that "third time's the charm," as they say! We are going to have a "Watch Party" with snacks and lunch offered in our Parish Hall that day, and we hope everyone will come and join in the celebration. That weekend we will also be celebrating "kick off" Sunday, as we kick things off for the new academic year and rejoice in the return of St. Paul's Choir.
Meanwhile, our Capital Campaign has just taken off and our Strategic Planning Committee is working on a long-term strategy aimed at church growth and renewal. We've engaged the wise services of Tim O'Brien, PhD, Program Director, the Academy of Church Leadership at North Park University in Chicago to advise us. Look for us to be holding Town Hall meetings and to be asking questions of you all so that what we do fits with your own intentions and prayers for our parish.
Now, with all of that said, I guess August isn't so quiet after all!
Yours in Christ,
Barbara+
|
|
August, 2022
Here it is already August and the beginning of the next school year. DeKalb will be full of NIU students again. In past conversations with members of St Paul’s I know that supporting the NIU Community is important and with us returning to pre pandemic activities I have asked the Vestry for suggestions as to what we can do. Please feel free to express your ideas as well.
Growth can only come when one is willing to stretch oneself and try new and challenging experiences. I have been put in this situation numerous times. I am going through such a situation right now and I am relying on my relationship with God, my Faith and prayer to get through these challenges/obstacles. By the grace of God this will allow me to grow and begin new jobs which will have stretched my potential.
This is exactly where we are at St. Paul’s at a time where growth needs to happen for us to be able to continue to exist as an extension of God’s hands, feet, ears, and heart here on earth. I have not met one member of St. Paul’s who is not interested in being there for the community and so the good news is that we are on the same page about what we want to do. Now therefore is our opportunity to STRETCH ourselves so we can GROW. Will it be uncomfortable? Possibly, but we can say without a doubt if we don’t, we won’t thrive and survive.
The good news is that we do have a couple of things on our fall agenda that begin to demonstrate our will and desire to grow. Grace Place will come to St. Paul’s effective August 31, 2022. This is a fantastic opportunity for us to be there for the students of NIU. What a wonderful opportunity to feed students, get to know them and show them brotherly and sisterly Godly love.
Also, we are getting close to starting our help with the BASICS program expansion. Early childcare support is VITAL to our future and to giving these kids a fighting chance. The statistics on how many DeKalb area families need help is frightening. One of the reasons for optimism is the dedication of the DeKalb Regional Office of Education (ROE) to addressing these shortfalls. However, they cannot do it alone. We are literally neighbors to a section of town that desperately needs help in addressing early childcare needs. If anyone is interested in finding out more about the program here is the information about two virtual opportunities to learn about BASICS.
"We are providing two opportunities to try and accommodate as many schedules as possible. This gathering would be appropriate for anyone in your organization who can share The Basics with families, so please pass along the invite to whomever fits the bill 😊. At this time, we are hosting the virtual meetings on Tuesday, August 30th 6:00-7:00 and Wednesday, September 7th 12:00-1:00. Choose whichever is most convenient for you. You do not have to commit to a time just yet- we will send a formal calendar invite when the time gets closer. This email is to just inform you in the hopes it’s far enough in advance we can get on your calendar!"
Thank you all for your faith and faithfulness to being members at St. Paul’s. Looking forward to seeing how these and possibly other programs will help us to grow in faith and in our ability to be there for our community.
In love,
Lucinda
Senior Warden
|
|
WEEKLY DEVOTIONS AND
OCCASIONS TO CONNECT
|
MONDAYS
Gardening, 8:00 AM-9:30 AM
THURSDAYS
Gardening, 8:00 AM-9:30 AM
SUNDAYS
Liturgy of the Word and Table
8:00 AM in Sanctuary (Rite I, no music)
10:30 AM
In Sanctuary and on Zoom (with music)
Coffee Hour following
"Pop-Up Choir" on Third Sundays in the Summer (08/21)
"Evening of Taize" returns the first Friday of October
|
|
|
|
TREASURER'S REPORT
JULY 17, 2022
I thought I would start this report with a small anecdote. Yesterday afternoon I came over to the church to do some weeding in the front garden beds. But, as I pulled up there was a guy sitting on the front steps, enjoying the shade on a fine summer day. He was experiencing God’s peace, which I think is one of the important things our church does for the neighborhood. So, not wanting to interrupt his calm, I drove off. The weeds can wait for later.
As of July 12, our Heartland Bank checking account balance stood at $73,227.68. In June I took $45,000 from the Endowment Fund. So far in 2022 we have taken $110,000 from the Endowment Fund, which is approximately 5% of the fund’s value. We are only in July, and there is no doubt we will need to take more before the end of the year.
We spent $24,690 from our General fund in June, and we took in $4270 from pledges and regular contributions. We also took in $392 from the revolving and pass-through funds, and spent $661. We have spent 52% of our budgeted figures so far this year; we are 50% of the way through the year.
As of June 27, the Endowment fund is valued at $2,000,023.51 and the Capital Fund at Edward Jones is $31,445.91. Our Apache stock was worth $212.50 on February 22. The Endowment Fund has been significantly affected by recent negative events in the stock market.
I have verified that the Quickbooks file kept by Sheila at AMWTA, the Heartland Bank statement for June, and my records are all in harmony with each other.
Pat Brown and I met with Bill Cummings and Roy Mason concerning our audit. We were able to answer most of the required questions without difficulty. Some audit work remains; we have another meeting scheduled for July 14.
I have called Realm, the company that keeps our deposit records, and removed the unused Accounting module from our account. This should save us $30-40 every month. It’s a small thing, but we do need to save money when we can.
I have verified that we are no longer having an automatic renewal of our contracts with Network Solutions, the company that hosts our email and used to host our website.
There are a couple of sick trees on our grounds that need to be discussed. Specifically, the ash tree in the rectory backyard has been treated for emerald ash borer for several years. It is a beautiful tree and a significant asset for the rectory. Mother Barbara and Lynne have volunteered to pay for treatment after this year (about $200/year). I think the church should pay for this instead of them: the rectory is church property and we should pay to maintain it.
Respectfully submitted,
Rick Johns, Treasurer
|
|
Come and sing a joyful song!
Join us this August for our final summer impromptu, volunteer, pop-up choir, on Sunday, August 7th and again on Sunday, August 21st for the 10:30 AM service. Coffee at 9:30 AM and Rehearsal at 9:45 AM. Open to all ages, parishioners and friends from our greater community (NIU, DeKalb, Sycamore)!
|
|
|
|
Lorraine Langer
Hannah Buckle
Assistant Director of Music/Pianist
Kathleen Johnson
Pipe Organist
|
|
|
Streaming Ministries
Enhancing the Quality of In-Person and On-Line Worship Services
|
|
Streaming offers us the opportunity to share moments with our parishioners as well as family and friends from the greater community. In addition to our weekly worship services, we are able to stream the Celebration of Life services. This month, one of our very own, Rosemarie Ostberg’s Celebration of Life service will be streamed live on Saturday, August 13th, 11:00 AM.
|
|
Our new streaming ministries sound and video system continues to enhance our:
- Intelligibility of spoken and sung worship in-person and on-line;
- Ability to stream live via YouTube in tandem with Zoom to our Parishioners and community; and
-
Ability to offer an Assisted Listening System (ALS) "Listen EVERYWHERE" to enhance their ability to hear the service more clearly.
Zoom is available for coffee hour, for the parishioners zooming in from home after the service on Sundays to join in fellowship and essentially any meeting (book group, vestry, staff, etc).
Streaming Ministers:
Peg Newby, Gretchen Schlabach, Katt Scott, Hannah Buckle, Lorraine Langer
|
|
YouTube and Zoom Links are below for easy access! |
|
We are in midsummer now, and all of the gardens at St Paul's are bursting with life!
Each time I enter the garden at church, I take a few moments to experience the joy I feel while admiring each bed. Small seeds we planted just weeks ago are now yielding vegetables!
Helping to tend the gardens at St Paul's has brought a lot of happiness and sense of purpose to my life!
I am not a life-long lover of gardens. As a child, the only wonder I experienced in our family garden was wondering how long I'd have to pull weeds. I could not understand my mother's joy as she filled her basket with our seemingly endless harvest of tomatoes. Why do all that work, I wondered, when you could just buy it at the store?
Now, I'm a grateful gardener, and the garden has taught me many things.
Last summer, I received a pepper from Kris that was so delicious, I aspired to grow seedlings. I received endless, supportive advice from teammates. 18 healthy pepper plants later, I learned to have more faith in my abilities!
I discovered Nature's will to thrive when I transplanted some large sunflowers. Each suffered such terrible transplant shock, I despaired that any would pull through. My teammates counseled patience. To my great surprise and joy, each one recovered and one quickly bloomed!
Now all of the gardens are in full splendor. Mary's raised flower beds are blooming, and the rose bushes in Durning Memorial Garden look beautiful. The pollinator gardens are indeed attracting pollinators. And the vegetable garden has yielded many harvests which have been received by our community with smiles and gratitude.
One day in July, we picked container after container of raspberries, only stopping because of the rain!
I have not failed to notice that the watering the gardens love best are provided by God through rain, even when it comes with thunder and lightning!
If you are looking for a spiritual connection, why not walk the church path and stop to admire each of the gardens as well? Help yourself to produce in the vegetable and raspberry gardens. I hope you find your visit as joyous as I do.
The Green Team meets on Mondays and Thursdays around 8 am. Please join us, even if it is only once!
Jo Plenger-Schulz
|
|
Kris Borre, while searching to squash the squash beetles, found a few little potatoes that volunteered this year. |
|
Brad Smith readies produce to take to the food pantries we support. |
|
Long time member Rosemarie Ostberg passed away in California where she was living near her daughter, Cindy. It was her hope to have a service at St. Paul's in DeKalb, and the date planned will be Saturday, August 13, at 11:00 AM. Please wear bright colors to the service - it was Rosemarie's wish! A reception in the Parish Hall will follow.
The service will also be streamed on Zoom and YouTube. Here is a link to her Legacy.com obituary.
|
|
|
|
Kids Hope USA will be looking for volunteers again this fall. We will meet with children for an hour a week at Lincoln Elementary School. Check with Lucinda Brunner with questions and for information. |
|
|
|
BISHOP-ELECT PAULA CLARK INSTALLATION |
The day the Diocese of Chicago has long awaited has now been set.
Presiding Bishop Michael Curry has set September 17 as the day he will ordain and consecrate the Rev. Paula E. Clark as the Thirteenth Bishop of Chicago. The service will take place at the Westin Chicago Lombard in Lombard, Illinois.
“Bishop-elect Paula E. Clark of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago, in collaboration with diocesan leadership, has worked through tremendous challenges over the past year, and I am pleased to announce that I will serve as her chief consecrator in a liturgy now scheduled for September 17, 2022,” Curry wrote in a statement issued earlier today.
“I am overjoyed that God has brought us to this day!” Bishop-elect Clark said. “On September 17, we will make a new beginning together, and I could not be more excited to discover where the Holy Spirit will lead us in our ministry.”
The hotel, where the diocese held its annual diocesan conventions for more than a decade before the pandemic forced them online, is familiar to many people in the diocese. Holding the service there will allow more people to attend than a service held in any of the diocese’s church buildings, said the Rev. Courtney Reid, director of operations on the bishop’s staff.
Following Presiding Bishop Michael Curry's protocol for the service, a number of bishops, churchwide leaders, and ecumenical partners are invited to attend, along with elected and appointed leaders of our diocese, and Bishop-elect Paula's family, friends, and colleagues.
In addition to those required attendees, the Standing Committee has allocated eight tickets to each congregation. Congregations have been asked to determine and register their list of guests by August 15.
Then, beginning August 17, an additional pool of tickets will be offered by "lottery" to anyone who would like to attend. Look for more lottery information coming via email and social media in August.
For those who are unable to attend in person, the Ordination and Consecration Service will be livestreamed and local watch parties are being planned across the diocese. If you and your congregation are interested in hosting a watch party, please contact Jihan Murray-Smith for more information.
|
|
The Rector's
Discretionary Fund Collection
Donations allow us to assist people in need
in our community.
Remember that donations can be mailed at any time.
|
|
August Birthdays and Anniversaries |
|
|
|
Birthdays
8/11 Katt Crawford-Scott
8/19 Barbara Wilson+
8/29 John Novak
Anniversaries
8/3 Rick and Freyja Johns
8/15 Steve and Jane DeGolier
8/15 George and Robin Taylor
8/25 Roy and Nanette Mason
8/30 Brad and Rebecca Smith
|
|
St. Paul's Episcopal Church Contact Information |
|
|
|
900 Normal Rd., DeKalb, IL 60115
Parish Office: (815) 756-4888
The Rev. Barbara A.T Wilson, Rector
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
