We the people of Saint Stephen's in-the Field

Seek to know Christ, to share Christ, and to serve Christ,

recognizing his presence in all people, and reaching out in love 

to each other and to the world around us.

From the Rector

Dear friends, 

As many of you know, I love to sing, especially in a choir.  So, I was pleased to be able to sing with the choir at the Martin Luther King, Jr Interfaith Service last Sunday at St. Mary’s in Gilroy.  Music is one of those things that crosses all kinds of borders, especially when it comes to singing!

People of different faiths can also cross boundaries and embrace our desire for a more peaceful, loving world.  It was a blessing to hear different leaders come up to speak about the kind of peace that Martin Luther King, Jr spoke of as a leader of the civil rights movement.  He insisted that the nonviolence was the only approach to free the oppressed.  In 1963 he said, "I have consistently preached that nonviolence demands that the means we use must be as pure as the ends we seek.”

I’m convinced that Jesus would agree with Dr. King!  After George Floyd was killed nearly three years ago, the momentum behind civil rights for black people was strong.  How might we join people of different faiths, to keep that momentum going and advocate for justice?  

May we all follow the path of our Lord Jesus, who came in peace to preach and be the love that set all people free from sin and oppression 

Blessing and peace,

 Karen+

Worship This Sunday:

Sunday, Jan 22nd, 10:00am – Holy Eucharist at St. Stephen's

LIVE STREAM WORSHIP SERVICE

BULLETIN

  St. Stephen’s church doors will be open every Sunday for worship. In-person services will continue to alternate with St. John’s but the live-stream from services at St. John’s will be projected at St. Stephen’s. Come to St. Stephen’s every Sunday!

COFFEE HOUR SIGN-UP SHEET

While I was away . . .

Thank you to our Sr. Warden, Janet, for ‘holding down the fort’ in my absence.

Thank you to Janet and Susan for leading the Epiphany pot luck, leading prayers, and making Star Words available!  Thanks to Susan for playing piano too!

Thank you to Andy for stepping in at the last minute to play piano when Suzanne was not able to attend last week!

Thank you all for welcoming The Rev. John Buenz who presided the Holy Eucharist and gave a great sermon for the New Year.

Thank you to Janet for managing the live-stream while Jill was away.

As they say, it takes a village and we’re a wonderful village!

Annual Meeting this Sunday, Jan 21st, after the service.

Please plan to attend to hear about all that we’ve done in this last year to serve God and our community.  The 2023 budget will also be presented and the Sr. Warden will be announced. A link to the report and zoom meeting will be sent out tomorrow.  Look for it in your email and be sure to open it!

Your votes and voices are essential to the life of St. Stephen’s!

Vestry opportunities

If you would like to serve on the Vestry for 2023, and would like more information about what that entails, please contact Rev. Karen, Janet Thorsrud, or any member of the current vestry.  There is a once a month zoom meeting and involves being active in the church. The most important requirement is that you love St. Stephen’s and care about our ministry! 

We also need Diocesan Delegates for the convention in November! Being a delegate keeps you informed about what will be presented at the convention and casting a vote on behalf of St. Stephen’s!

It’s a once a year commitment and a fun event!

Nominations will be taken from the floor in case you still need to pray about it and ask questions.  

Donations for people impacted by the severe weather:

Santa Marie Urban Ministry (SMUM) takes food, clothing, essential items like toiletries, new underwear, etc. . . year round.   

Compassion Center in the South Valley is in need of:

-men’s boxer briefs

-women’s underwear 

-women’s and men’s socks

-travel size shampoo

-plastic grocery bags (can be used by must be clean and not torn).

You can leave your donations at St. Stephen’s (Tues. or Thurs. morning) and someone from St. John’s will deliver them to Compassion Center.

Mana Bags for Santa Maria Urban Ministry

St. John and St. Stephen’s will collaborate to put together 100 Mana bags to be distributed by Santa Maria.

We will get together at my home on March 6th for a pot luck while we put the bags together.

If you can’t join us but want to help, you can buy an Amazon gift card to purchase items you would like to donate. Have the items delivered to my address: 198 Giddings Ct, San Jose, Ca, 95139

If you order an Amazon gift card from me the church gets a percentage and I can order the cards and have them in less than 30 minutes. Make the checks out to St. Stephen’s.

Click here to order from Amazon

If you want to purchase items other than using Amazon, we need: 

Socks

Beanies

Emergency blankets

Chapstick

Razors 

Deodorant

Whatever you can donate will help.

Mark your calendars . . .

-Sunday, Jan 22 – Annual Meeting after the service.

-Tues, Feb 21 - Shrove Tuesday Pancake supper at St. John’s.

-Wed, Feb 22 – Ash Wednesday Evening Service at Advent Lutheran Church in Morgan Hill.

- Ashes to go at St. Stephen’s11:00am-3:00pm

-Mon, Mar 6 – - Assembling Manna Bags at Janet’s house. 

More to come.

Poem from the Garden

The wildflowers in

whites and creams and pale,

pale blues have begun

to spring from the seeds

we planted 4 weeks 

ago in freshly

delivered compost, 

dark behind the old

railway ties. They’ll be

growing up for spring 

and summer bloomings,

and reseed readily 

at their roots, ready

to greet us next year.

— Jessica Dickinson Goodman 

“Some days you will be the light for others. And some days you will need some light from them.  As long as there is light, there is hope, and there is a way.”    -Jennifer Gayle

Kudos to :

-Our Vestry.

-Jane, for working hard and fast to put together the Annual Meeting Report for Sunday. 

-The Van der Molen Family for opening up the church every other Sunday when the service is at St. John’s.

-Susan and Janet for cleaning up the cabinets across from the kitchen.

 Take a look at the transformation when you come to church Sunday!

Contact Information for Rev. Karen.

Please use this new number to contact Rev. Karen for calls or texts:

(669)270-7479