…ST. FRANCIS’ EPISCOPAL CHURCH
COMMUNIQUÉ
SEPTEMBER 2010 EDITION
Put your trust in the Lord and do good;
Dwell in the land and feed on its riches.
These words come from Psalm 37, a text that has been a
rich and favorite resource of prayer and reflection for me over the years. As we move into September, it makes me think
of the many ways of doing good we will embark on this fall at St. Francis:
· The Welcome Back Dinner on September 11th
· The Opening of Sunday School on September 12th
· The first Youth Group Meeting on September 19th
· The Fund-raising Dinner on October 23rd
· Continued Exploration of our
· New Adult Education opportunities
As with so many parts of our lives, Church gets more
active in the Fall. We give ourselves over to being busy doing good -- and that
is (mostly!) a good thing!
Yet as we move into this season of busily doing good,
I want to remind us of a needed balance that the psalm names. For most of us, the summer just past is the
time when it is easiest for us to “dwell in the land and feed on its riches” --
to relax and be nourished by the beauty of God’s creation, to be settled into
the place that God has given us to live, rather than running in 20 different
directions at once as it seems we do during the rest of the year. Feeding on the riches that God gives us
simply in dwelling, not being busy, is at its best the gift that summer offers.
But the Psalm doesn’t say “dwell in the land and feed
on its riches” only in the summer. Rather, it reminds us that we always need a
balance between dwelling and moving, between activity and rest, between doing
good and keeping Sabbath. And it just
may be that it is in the busiest seasons of our lives – like September -- that
we most need find time to dwell, to feed, to rest.
--------------------------
1 Psalm
37:3
The Psalm gives us another essential reminder: “Put
your trust in the Lord.” I sometimes
think that the level of activity in both church and culture betrays a lack of
trust in God. We act as if we believe
that if we do not do all the good the world needs, it isn’t going to get done
at all. Clearly, we have an essential
role. God has invited us into a
co-creative partnership in doing good in God’s world. But often we act as if we are solo
entrepreneurs, not junior partners with a God whom we can trust to do good
beyond what we can imagine or accomplish.
So as we carry on our active lives, seeking to do good
in God’s name, let’s not forget to put our trust in the Lord. For if we trust in God, we can do good
without feeling like quite so much depends on us alone -- and the good we do
and the joy we will know will both be richer and deeper. It all goes together:
Put your trust in the Lord and do good;
Dwell in the land and feed on its riches.
Peace,
Jack
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Evensong in the African Tradition
Please mark your calendars for an evening of inspiring
worship, "Evensong in the African Tradition" on Sunday, October 17 at
3PM at Trinity Cathedral in
The event is sponsored by the Sudan/Darfur Committee
of the Diocese of New Jersey
Title:
An African Evensong, followed by a reception featuring African dishes!
Date and Time:
Sunday, October 17 at 3:00PM at Trinity Cathedral in
Please join the people of the Diocese of New Jersey
and the Sudan/Darfur Committee of our Diocese for an African Evensong featuring
traditional African worship, music, dance, drums and other instruments, attire
and the fervent Joy and Praise of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; the African
Evensong will be followed by a marvelous reception featuring African dishes and
a visual presentation on theological education in Africa.
In addition to offering a powerful witness for the
people of Sudan and Darfur in this continued time of crisis and war, we will be
requesting a free will offering for the new Scholarship Fund of the
Sudan/Darfur Committee, to provide theological education/seminary education for
a leader for the Anglican Church of Sudan, and the power and presence of the
Christian church in the work of justice, peace and reconciliation.
Preacher: The preacher for the service will be the
Rev. Canon Martin Oguike; Canon Oguike is
the Vicar of two congregations of our Diocese:
Please join us for a remarkable and inspiring evening
of worship, education and fellowship as we provide a powerful voice of advocacy
for the people of
In faith,
Contact for event:
The Rev. Hugh E. Brown, III, D. Min.
Chair, the Sudan/Darfur Committee of the Diocese of
Rector, All Saints' Episcopal Church in
8 All
609-921-2420
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From the Deacon’s
Desk…
I cannot
believe that the end of summer has arrived!
I hope that this has been a time of rest and relaxation for you and that
you found some time to ‘get away’ for
refreshment.
But the lazy
days of getting up later on Sun. morning, of not having to prepare for school
or Sunday school, are ending. But this
rest gets us ready to meet new challenges starting in Sept.
For some,
summer has been a busy time at St. Francis.
The vestry and the youth group have been busy preparing for many
exciting things. Also getting in gear is
the COME! Group (Committee on Membership Evangelism – and soon I hope that
everyone will simply know what it IS).
They have been meeting and preparing to reach out to new people coming
through our doors.
The new name
is just the beginning – currently in the works are also brochures and other
informational literature and studying how best to welcome the stranger by
reading and discussing “Fireweed
Evangelism” by Elizabeth Geitz.
The Welcome
Back dinner, described by Nancy Dunham elsewhere in the Communiqué is just one
effort, and we hope that all those who are new to St. Francis in the past year
will be our guests for this dinner. The
team has come up with a dynamite theme which should be a lot of fun, and it
will be designed with plenty of opportunity for all to get to know each other
better.
We do,
however, need to remember that welcoming is not just for those who have
volunteered to work on this committee.
To be successful, all at St. Francis need to be aware of the new faces
in our midst, and there are more and more.
We all need to put out the welcome mat, and be aware of what we each do
(or don’t do) on Sun. morning to be a welcoming presence. Do we “greet each other in the Lord’s name”
at the peace… (and we do that WELL!) — then skedaddle out the door after the
service — or go to talk to a friend in a private little group — or …?? What do you do at the end of the service,
before chatting with someone you don’t know?
There is a
need for people to stop and to not only offer an invitation to coffee, but to
provide an escort to Milbank Hall; to give a simple, “Hi, my name is…” I know, it may be embarrassing to discover
that a person isn’t ‘new’, but we may have simply not met someone because he or
she goes to the ‘other’ service, or has been away for a long time. But if you don’t know them, they probably
don’t know you either. Chat. Get to know them. Or if at coffee, do you make an effort to
introduce yourself? And then introduce
them to someone? Do we sit at the table
and talk to our friends, or do we mingle with all?
Let us give a
great “Wel-COME! to St. Francis!”.
We may be entertaining an angel unawares.
May God be with as you go forth
in the Lord’s name.
Dcn. Marge
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Choir Notes
I’m hoping you’re having
a restful summer!
I will see you for
your 1st Wednesday rehearsal on September 15th at 7:30
PM.
Anyone that likes to
sing is invited to join us – we have some exciting music this season.
Organist/Musical
Director
Elma Adams
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Stewardship
2011
The
end of summer will soon be here! I think
we can all agree that this summer has certainly been HOT! I hope you had the opportunity to enjoy God’s
creations, as well as get some rest from the busy schedules we all seem to have
during the year. Remember, however, that
God does not take a vacation and our work here at St. Francis does continue
even through the summer months. As you
can see in this Communiqué, Father Zamboni, the Wardens, Vestry and several
Committees have been very active this summer working on plans for the coming
year. Being a teacher I normally start
the year in September rather than on the traditional calendar year. We seem to do this here at St. Francis as
well, because several of us are away on vacation for some of the time during
the summer months.
Many of you have recently received your third quarter
statements for your faith giving. I hope
that those of you, like me, who were a little behind, will be able to get your
pledges up to date. This is the time of
year when we start thinking about Stewardship and renewing our thoughts
regarding Time, Talents and Treasures and how we can faithfully use each of
them. We invite you to make St. Francis
Church your spiritual home and to
begin thinking about how you can serve our Lord through the
Church. We must continue to pray and
celebrate our
relationship with God.
This year we will be using the stewardship theme
“Strengthening
Our Roots.” Let’s all work
together to love
and serve God here at St. Francis’ Church.
Remember to ask,
“Can
I help?”
Elaine Patania
Stewardship, Chairperson
=====================================================================================================================
Birthdays & Anniversaries in September
Happy Birthday to:
Joyce Tereman –
9/1
Barbara
Chernichowski – 9/1
Heather Nunes –
9/13
Norma Tucker –
9/13
Karen Williams
– 9/18
Cheryle Wilson
– 9/18
Calvin King,
Jr. – 9/20
Nicholas Neal –
9/20
Waring Webb –
9/20
Brian Morris –
9/25
Casey Torzewski
– 9/25
Danielle
Dessino – 9/29
Anniversary of Confirmation
Marian White – 9/1
Anniversary of Baptism
Allison Autin –
9/1
Phillip Heiney
– 9/1
Neil Donnelly –
9/3
Kyle Morris –
9/4
Connor Dunham –
9/4
Joyce Tereman –
9/13
Everette
Pfeiffer – 9/21
Carl King –
9/23
Tracie Toke –
9/28
Wedding Anniversaries
Francis & Princess
Thomas – 9/9
Phillip &
Claudia Tauriello – 9/13
Gary &
Michelle Neal – 9/18
Vin & Pam
Maiolo – 9/27
*****************************************************************************************************************************************************************
9 AM Acolytes
- Vito Pelliccia, Kelsey Pelliccia
Lectors - Elaine Patania, Amy Myzie
Chalice - Elaine Patania, Tiffany O’Sullivan
Ushers - Arthur McConney, Barbara O’Neill
Greeter - Barbara O’Neill
Counters - Pam Maiolo, Waring Webb
Altar Guild - Geri Peters, Karen Williams, Barbara
Dalto
Sunday, Sept. 12th
8 AM Lector
- A/S Benjamin
Chalice - Norma Tucker
Usher - Carroll Wilson
10 AM Acolytes - Nancy
Crowther, Evelyn McNelis, Amanda Telesco
Lectors - Lisa Webb, Pam Maiolo
Chalice - Lisa Webb, Princess Thomas
Ushers - Pam Maiolo, Waring Webb
Greeter - Audrey Johansen
Counters - Elaine Patania, Nancy Dunham
Altar Guild - Audrey Johansen, Norma O’Sullivan, Sharon
Benjamin, Natalie Edwards
Sunday, Sept. 19th
8 AM Lector
- Amy Myzie
Chalice - Paul Sinckler
Usher - Ed Myzie
10 AM Acolytes - Vito
Pelliccia, Jonathan Parmalee, Ashley Beam
Lectors - Princess Thomas, Leslie Oliver
Chalice - Norma Tucker, Elaine Patania
Ushers - Leslie Oliver, Cordell Trotman
Greeter - Leslie Oliver
Counters - Tiffany O’Sullivan, Leslie Oliver
Altar Guild - Barbara O’Neill, Norma Trimmer, Muriel
Wilson
Sunday, Sept. 26th
8 AM Lector
- A/S Benjamin
Chalice - Norma Tucker
Usher - Carroll Wilson
10 AM Acolytes - Kelsey
Pelliccia, Cecil Baker, Nancy Crowther
Lectors - Nancy Dunham, Norma Tucker
Chalice - Tiffany O’Sullivan, Lisa Webb
Ushers - Elaine & Tom Patania
Greeter - Audrey Johansen
Counters - Audrey McConney, Mary Pfeiffer
Altar Guild - Leslie Oliver, Pam Maiolo, Cordell
Trotman
========================================================================================
Rev. Mpho
Tutu to Speak at
September 8, 2010
An Episcopal priest and an
experienced preacher, teacher, and retreat facilitator, Rev. Tutu, is the
founder and executive director of the Tutu Institute for Prayer &
Pilgrimage, located in
Rev. Tutu earned her Master of
Divinity degree from Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, Mass., and began
her ordained ministry at historic Christ Church in Alexandria, Va. Rev. Tutu is
the Chairperson Emeritus of the Board of the Global AIDS Alliance, the
Chairperson of the Board of Advisors of the 911 Unity Walk, and a trustee of
Angola University.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Thank You to…
· Rachel for her continued
assistance in the Nursery
· The painting crew - Amy,
Pam & Geri
· Barbara Dalto for cleaning & preparing the classrooms for
September
· All those who stepped up
& provided hospitality after Sunday Service
· Vin for power washing
the front sign & around the building
· Edith Phelps and Lisa
Webb for their time & work setting up the choir room & music
· Cynthia Pelliccia for
the wonderful picnic!
*****************************************************************************************************************************************************************
Newcomers
The Newcomers committee met after
church on 8/8. The new name of COME! (Committee on Membership
Evangelism!) was adopted. Thanks to Barbara O’Neill and Leslie Oliver for
“Come-ing” up with it.
We are currently reading and
discussing Fireweed Evangelism by Elizabeth Geitz.
Members are working on putting
together new material for a welcome packet for visitors, marketing, outreach,
etc.
The Welcome Back Dinner will be held
on Saturday, September 11th at 6:00 PM in Milbank Hall. This year we
will have a jungle theme. Invites went out in the mail and sign-up sheets are
in the narthex.
===========================================================================================================
|
September 2010 |
||||||
|
Sunday |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
Saturday |
|
29 9 AM – Holy Eucharist with Nursery |
30 Grace’s Kitchen |
31 |
1 7:30 PM – A.A. |
2 |
3 7:30 PM – Country Dancing |
4 |
|
5 9 AM – Holy Eucharist with Nursery |
6 |
7 |
8 7:30 PM – A.A. |
9 |
10 7:30 PM – Country Dancing |
11 6 PM - Welcome Back Dinner sponsored by COME! |
|
12 8 AM – Holy Eucharist 10 AM – Choral Eucharist, Sunday
School & Nursery |
13 |
14 |
15 Noon – Book Group 7:30 PM – A.A. 7:30 PM – Choir |
16 |
17 7:30 PM – Country Dancing |
18 |
|
19 8 AM – Holy Eucharist 10 AM – Choral Eucharist, Sunday School & Nursery |
20 |
21 7 PM - Vestry |
22 Noon – Book Group 7:30 PM – A.A. 7:30 PM – Choir |
23 |
24 7:30 PM – Country Dancing |
25 |
|
26 8 AM – Holy Eucharist 10 AM – Choral Eucharist, Sunday School & Nursery |
27 Grace’s Kitchen |
28 |
29 Noon – Book Group 7:30 PM – A.A. 7:30 PM – Choir |
30 |
1 7:30 PM – Country
Dancing |
2 |
=================================================================================================================================
OUTREACH
Grace's Kitchen - dates for the
remainder of 2010 are Sept. 27th, Nov. 29th & Dec. 27th. Please check
your calendars and see if you can help prepare & serve lunch at this soup
kitchen at Grace Episcopal Church in
FISH- a schedule of
suggested giving is included in this newsletter. Remember that these are only
suggestions and you may donate any non
perishable food product at anytime.
Eyeglasses - a collection bucket is on the back
table in the Narthex. Regular or sunglasses - prescription or not - child or
adult, all are accepted. Our collection is then forward to the local
Lions Club for their eyeglass recycling program.
2010/2011
JULY
Peanut
Butter/Jelly |
AUGUST
School
supplies |
SEPTEMBER
Cereal Cold/Hot |
OCTOBER
Milk powdered
or Parmalat
box |
NOVEMBER
Canned
Vegetables |
DECEMBER
Your
choice |
JANUARY
Pasta/sauce |
FEBRUARY
baby
food/supplies |
MARCH
Juice |
APRIL
Paper
goods Napkins/paper
towels Toilet
paper |
MAY
canned/jarred
fruit |
JUNE
Your
choice |
·
The
suggestions for each month are just suggestions for donation. You may give any food or personal product at
anytime.
·
Please
remember to check expiration dates on the food that you donate. All products
with expired dates will be discarded.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR DONATION
********************************************************************************
September
is …
· Healthy Aging Month
(healthyaging.net)
· National Cholesterol
Education Month - when did you have your cholesterol levels checked??
· Positive Thinking Day –
Sept 13th. It's all in your attitude. Enjoy!!
********************************************************************************
Websites of
Interest
www.stfrancisdunellen.org (our own)
www.newjersey.anglican.org (Diocesan)
www.episcopalchurch.org (National)
www.er-d.org (Episcopal Relief & Development)
www.freerice.com (a word program that donates rice to the hungry)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
COME!
WELCOME BACK
DINNER
Saturday, September 11th at
6:00pm.
COME! to the Jungle!
Join us for a roaring
good time at the Welcome Back Potluck Dinner in Milbank Hall. Great food and
fun ice breakers. What type of animal do
you think Father Jack is? Safari & animal print attire is encouraged.
Sign-up
sheet in the narthex or RSVP to Nancy Dunham.
Sponsored by COME! (Committee on Member
Evangelism!).
*********************************************************************************************************************
Gifts in Memory of Nellie Reid
After we learned of Nellie Reid’s death this past
January, an opportunity was offered for St. Francis’ parishioners to make
memorial gifts in her memory. In addition to those contributions, the parish received
a very generous gift from Nellie’s son Robert in memory of his mother.
Those gifts are now being put to use in ways that we
all will soon see:
· The brass vases that hold our Altar flowers are having
a much-needed refinishing.
· The choir will soon appear in brand new robes.
A less visible, but still important, addition to our
worship is a new Gospel text that will be inserted in the beautiful brass cover
we see on the Altar each Sunday. The new
text will contain all of the Gospels assigned to be read on Sundays by the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) which is
now the official lectionary of the Episcopal Church.
Those who knew Nellie have said that since worship and
music were so dear to her heart, she would be very pleased with these uses of
the gifts in her memory. We give thanks
to God for the gift she was to so many in this parish, and give thanks also to
all who made contributions to St. Francis in her memory.
================================================================================================================================
YOUTH GROUP
Did you hear the rumor?
Yes, it's true! St. Francis is getting a Youth Group and we need you! The youth group is for teens in grades 7-12
and will be facilitated by Nancy Dunham and Paul Sinckler. We plan to meet on
the first and third Sunday of each month. Meetings will be a time to socialize,
have fun, and learn more about God's role in our life and the world today.
We'll meet in the Undercroft for our first event, Pizza, Pictionary, and Prayer
on Sunday, Sept. 19th from 12-1:30. See you there!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Sunday School
Our Sunday School rooms are clean,
equipped and ready to go on September 12 promptly at 10 AM.
Our big news is that Waring Webb
has offered to teach our 3 thru 5 year olds. He's going to need some help
and we are looking for some people to step up to assist him occasionally or be
there for the children at those times when he is not able to do so. If
you can help us out, contact Waring, Fr. Jack, or myself.
Our big event in October on Sunday
the 3rd will be our annual session in the church kitchen with all youngsters working together
to make goodies. We are hoping that, as is usually the case, a few adults
will be drawn to this event and help us out. Just getting all those hands
washed can be daunting.
We have been collecting donations
for an animal shelter in the jar on our children's altar. We have well
over $100.00 so far. We hope to present these in church on the day our
animals are blessed by Fr. Jack. But we need help deciding to which
shelter we will send our donations. There are so many shelters in the
area, and all need help. If you know of a shelter that does good
work, please submit the name and address in the can placed in the narthex for
that purpose and we will have a drawing on the Sunday of the Blessing of the
Animals.
Please feel free to visit us at any
time.
Barbara Dalto
*********************************************************************************************************************
Book Group
The group will meet on Wednesday, September 15 at noon in Milbank
Hall. Some choose to bring bag lunches. Our first selection will be
Nicholas Sparks' "A Bend In the Road", a love story, to be followed
by Marjorie Holmes' "Two From Galilee", yet another love story.
Our group is relaxed and informal. We take our time discussing a book in
small increments and we laugh often. Join us any Wednesday, even if you
have not read the book. We'd love to have you with us.
Barbara Dalto
Craft Group
Our group will begin meeting on
Wednesday, October 20th, in Milbank Hall, immediately following Book
Group. This year our offerings, to be sold in the Narthex during
December, will be beaded bracelets with significant church colors and symbols,
chocolate goodies, and the ever popular dish towel angels. Join us.
One does not have to be an accomplished crafter to help produce our wares.
Barbara Dalto
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