St. George's Crossroads August-September 2010
September and October Calendar
***September 5 Return to regular Church Worship Schedule 8 AM and 10 AM.
September 11 Safe Church Training 9 AM to 3 PM includes complimentary refreshments and lunch. Sign up on the Ministry Board. (see article)
September 12th Open House for Sunday School at 9:30 AM followed by Eucharist at 10 AM with Blessing of Children and Youth their Families and Teachers.
September 12 Parish Picnic - Sign up on the Ministry Board.
September 13 Book Study at 6:30 PM Parish Office and will follow every Monday through October 18 (see article)
September 18 Bean Supper last one of the year
September 23 after 1 PM - Clothing Sale set up Thursday
September 24 and 25 Clothing Sale
September 26 Rev. Mary Ann Hoy Ministry to Persons with memory Loss (see article)
September 28 Vestry Meeting 6:45 PM Parish Office
October 11 Monday Flu Shots at St. G's 1:30-4:30PM
October 20 Facing Death and Finding Spiritual Hope 5:30 PM at Crossroads Methodist Church starts with Supper and will follow through November 17. (see article)
October 22 & 23 Diocesan Convention
October 26 Vestry Meeting 6:45 PM Parish Office
October 31 Gratitude Sunday
November 14 Annual Meeting part 1 one service at 9 AM
Looking Ahead
Women's Weekend Retreat January 14-16 at Notre Dame Spiritual Center
St. George’s Men’s Group has been meeting monthly on the third Saturday of the month since May of this year and we number about 10 men who have gathered for breakfast at the Black Bear Café in Springvale. (Can the Ladies’ Guild top that!) After a good breakfast, we talk about how the group can serve the parish; we targeted work projects as well as made recommendations to the Vestry for improvements. With the help of Dick Watson, Lester Cail and others the shed has been moved away from the parish hall building for safety reasons. Four men volunteered twice at the Mainers Game food court and a donation will go to outreach. The parish porch has received a new fresh coat of bright paint thanks to Dick. We’ve talked about organizing a Work Day to target needed areas around the parish plant such as doing repairs around the parish office windows but the BIG push is the August Bean Supper. The men have taken the task of organizing and serving the August Bean Supper and we call upon all the men in the parish to join us as we want to share the fun. Join the Men’s Group on August 21st at 8 am at the Parish Hall as we set up for the Bean Supper that evening and/or join us at 5:30 pm to begin serving those delicious beans, salads and desserts. More hands make for light work. Let’s give the parish women a break as they have worked so hard and let the men serve this month’s Bean Supper. To all the Men…to arms…rally to the cause, let’s show the women that we can do it. Join in the fun!
Parish Picnic September 12 following the 10 AM Eucharist. Hamburg, Hotdogs, rolls and lemonade provided. Please bring something to share, i.e.: salad, dessert, fruit etc.
Next deadline for Nov/Dec Crossroads is October 15th Crossroads
Love, Compassion and Care in Action
One of my favorite verses in the bible is from Micah 6:8 "He has told you, O mortal what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God."(NRSV translation.) Eugene Peterson in The Message a contemporary language of this same verse reads "But God's already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women. It's quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, And don't take yourself too seriously-take God seriously."
Micah was warning the people of his time that God was not pleased with them for only taking care of themselves and not tending to the needs of others and he gave them the formula for returning to God. We also need reminders now and again to prioritize what we really think is important. Our life together at St. George's centers on the Eucharist and Jesus Christ and from there we move into action spreading that love and gratitude. We continue to answer the call to practice love, kindness, and compassion and we know we can not leave the work to others. It's a community commitment.
This newsletter arrives as August is almost over and we look to returning to our regular schedule of 8AM ad 10 AM services. Soon our children and youth will be back in school and Sunday School will be starting another year with a new curriculum and more parental involvement. Adult formation programs are plentiful this fall and our outreach efforts continue. The teen coffee house, Gathering Grounds, met all summer except for the last three weeks in August and we are gearing up for our Supper Club for at risk 3rd graders from the Emerson School. On any given day one can drive by St. George's and something is happening. We are not just a "Sunday Church" but one that practices Christian ministry and hospitality all week. We have received a grant of $3500 from the Diocese of Maine to assist us in our growing ministry with at risk youth and teens and working collaboratively with the schools and many other social agencies, police, and businesses we are caring for the next generation. Justice as Micah speaks of is all about social justice reaching out to those in need not as a hand out but a hand up and it is from these persons that we grow in our awareness of God's love and mercy.
Soon a new person will join us in ministry assisting us with these outreach efforts with the youth and the vestry will be asking the parish to fund a very part time position in 2011. So please join in by using the gifts that God has given you so that others may experience the gift of God's love, compassion and mercy. Bless you all for your commitment to the Good News that we are beloved of God and called to serve God's people. Love, Susan+
OUTREACH from January - August 2010
Living into the message of Micah
*Haiti Relief - $1500+
*Honduran Buckets to feed children $663 with our youth packing the buckets
*UTO Ingathering $200+
*Bean Suppers May $452 and June $510.20 profits $962.20 sent to Food Pantry
*UU Corner Cupboard $500
*Dementia / Alzheimer's Project for Diocesan Ministry $1000 (St. George's is to be one of the sites for this new ministry)
*Salvation Army $1000 to coordinate electrical, fuel and housing needs in the Sanford area.
*Collection of school supplies for needy children
*Rector's Discretionary fund allocated over $2000+ to help people in need
A little bit adds up!!!
Green Clynk bags for deposit of cans and bottles help our outreach projects. Just take a green bag, found on the piano in church, fill with deposit bottles and cans form your home and bring to Hannafords. St. G's will get reimbursed for your donation. Just in three months we have collected close to $80.
Sunday School - Children ages 4 through 6th grade. Weaving God's Promises - a new curriculum that blends the Bible and the story of salvation with Episcopal traditions and application to our lives. More information will be sent to families by September 1st.
Adult Faith Formation Options for the Fall
Safe Church Training
September 11, 9 AM to 3 PM includes complimentary refreshments and lunch. Sign up on the Ministry Board. This training will include healthy practices concerning the safety of ministry with adults, protection of children and youth, and protection of elders from abuse. Required for all persons who are employees, vestry members or anticipate being a vestry members in the future, volunteers for our Teen Coffee House, Supper Club, Youth Ministry, Mentors, Sunday School Teachers, Eucharistic Visitors, Pastoral Care Visitors etc. and those who want to take this course at this time. Sign up on the Ministry Board.
Book Study - Every Monday 6:45 to 8 PM September 13 through October 18. We will be reading and discussing The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. This book will enable participants to appreciate the spiritual traditions of another culture while applying its teachings to our Christian spiritual lives. The Four Agreements are "1. Be impeccable with your word - speak with integrity. 2. Don't take anything personally - nothing others do is because of you. 3. Don't make assumptions -find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want and 4. Always do your best - Your best is going to change form moment to moment, it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick." Please sign up by September 5th so books may be ordered.
Pastoral Care and Support for people suffering with memory loss, Alzheimer's and their families and friends
More than 38,000 people in Maine are estimated to have Alzheimer’s Disease and related disorders. An additional 49,000 Mainers are caregivers. More than 7 out of 10 people with Alzheimer’s Disease live at home, where almost 75% of their care is provided by family and friends. As these statistics rise, ministry to persons with memory loss and to their caregivers has become increasingly more important.
The Diocese has invited St. George’s to be the first parish in Maine to participate in a new program designed to provide pastoral care to persons, caregivers and families whose lives are affected by memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease. The program will also educate the congregation and community on ways to include and support persons with dementia in the life and liturgy of the church and will provide a place and a way in which all of us can voice our own fear of memory loss;
The Rev. Mary Ann Hoy is the director of the program. She will be our guest celebrant and preacher Sunday, Sept. 26, and will meet with members of our Health Ministry following the 10 a.m. service. Anyone interested in learning more about the program, and perhaps volunteering to help get it started at St. George’s, is invited to be in touch with Rev. Susan.
Facing Death and Finding Spiritual Hope
This will be a series of workshops offered through Southern Maine Hospice and sponsored by churches in the Sanford -Springvale area on Wednesdays October 20, 27 Nov. 3, 10 and 17. We will meet at the Crossroads Methodist Church at 5:30 PM and share a supper of soups and bread. Take the time to learn more about what we and our loved ones will all face at some point and how we can care for ourselves and those we love. Sign up sheets are on the ministry board
1. The Spiritual World of the Dying (rituals, traditions, afterlife beliefs, spiritual growth at End of Life)
2. Decision Making (Advance Directives, Living wills, Power of Attorney, Do Not Resuscitate)
3. How We Die (Basic physiology, disease process, physical care for the dying)
4. Personal Death Awareness
5. Arrangements (Memorial services, funerals, burial options, cost, laws)
Stewardship of Buildings and Grounds.
The new floor has been installed in the Parish Hall and Kitchen. Thank you to Chris Hill and his staff from The Finished Edge for their fine work. And a special thank you to Chris who donated many hours, at no charge, to complete this project. The painting of the enclosed porch hall is progressing thanks to several men who helped prime and to our sexton Bill who is doing the finishing coats. Before too long the new energy efficient lamps will be hung welcoming all into a bright and homey place. Also, thanks to Steve Courcy, Lester Cail and Richard Watson for grass mowing and carpentry jobs. Just like our homes we have to maintain and keep up our parish home and we are blessed with so many named and unnamed that make this maintenance possible.
Health Ministry News
Dragons in Motion update: We wish to thank all of your whom have participated in the initial 12 week walking program. Many of you have shown great progress to date with meeting your goals. Congratulations !! Now that you have gotten into the swing of walking, and toned up those leg muscles……. You are cordially invited to join us on Part two of our walking program. Come join us on our spiritual journey to the Holy land. This will be a 16 week program, and we will be walking to Bethlehem-Watch our progress on the Map, which will be posted in the back of the church. Record your miles, and submit weekly, we will have index cards and a drop box in the back of the church with the map showing our progress. Miles: 5473 from St. George's to holy city of Bethlehem. Start Date: 9.6. 2010, End Date: 12.24.2010 Additional details will be available soon!!
Are Your Immunizations Up To Date?
Sometimes we become careless about watching out for our own health and keeping our immunizations current. Often we focus on just the needs of children forgetting that serious infections can occur in adults too. The CDC “strongly encourages older adults to be immunized against flu, pneumonia, tetanus, diphtheria, and chicken pox as well as measles, mumps and rubella.” (April, 2007) Always consult your health care provider for medical advice regarding immunizations needed especially if you have a compromised immune system, chronic disease(s), or will be traveling outside the U.S. In fact, if you are planning to travel outside the U.S., contact the local health department or your physician at least 4 to 6 weeks in advance of the planned travel dates to review immunization requirements. A handout is available from the Health Ministry with more information pertaining to this topic.