Welcome & Announcements

Transcription

1 Welcome & Announcements St. Matthew s Episcopal Church 1520 Oak Rd, Snellville, GA September 10, 2017 The Fourteenth Sunday After Pentecost Our Guests of Honor at this service are our visitors. We sincerely hope you will meet the Lord in this place today, that you will assist us in exalting Him, and that you will return to worship with us soon. Please help us welcome you by giving us the opportunity to make your acquaintance. If this is your first visit with us, please fill out a Visitor Information leaflet or sign the guest book. If you are interested in becoming a member of St. Matthew s Parish, please speak to Mother Liz or one of the greeters. Newcomer classes are held several times throughout the year, and announcements can be found in the Sunday bulletin. We invite you to join us for breakfast in the parish hall each Sunday between the 8:00 and 10:30 services. Name Tags: We encourage you to wear your name tags to church events including worship each Sunday. If you need a name tag, please sign the sheet in the narthex. Be sure to print clearly. Temporary stick-on tags are available in the same location. Medical Equipment Available: For the safety of our people, our building is equipped with an AED and a wheelchair, located in the anti-narthex for your convenience. Please see an usher for assistance. A Crying Room is available in the back of the sanctuary with speakers, so you can clearly hear the service. Continental Breakfast in the courtyard at 9:00 a.m. Altar Flowers today are given to the glory of God. We welcome Brad Phillips as our guest organist today for both services. PRAYERS Please pick up your copy of Prayers For The People on the shelf in the narthex to use during your personal devotional time. Birthdays (Sept 10 16) Jane Blake, Sally Rector, Carla Ballew, Eugene Fleeman, Gail Kise, Roy Vore, Bret Hurst, Jules Wooten, Kadia Scott, Lori Bean, Ella Young Anniversaries (Sept 10-16) Debi and Michael Williamson, Melanie and Shane Thomas, Heidi and John Byron 1

2 Dear St. Matthew's, The letter below was sent out by Senior Warden Jack Denton on Wednesday. We have reproduced the letter, adding updates as we received them through Friday morning. UNDERCROFT Last Friday, 9/1, we had an emergency in the undercroft. The bathrooms in the undercroft backed up and overflowed into the kitchen areas, the classrooms, and the open area in the undercroft. The back up occurred during and after the septic tank was pumped. Luckily the septic tank service company was not far away and was able to clean up a portion of the damage, but not all of it. Since then, we have contacted our insurance company to make a claim and are in the process of getting the remainder of the cleanup completed as quickly as we can. Due to the bacterial contamination to the undercroft from the spill, our adjuster from Church Insurance has stated that we cannot use the facilities that sit immediately above the undercroft (i.e., the parish hall, library and kitchen) until the undercroft has been cleaned and sanitized. While we closed this space because the air handlers for the air conditioning were in the undercroft, the ruling by the adjuster means this space cannot be used even if the AC is off. The cleanup will hopefully begin tomorrow, but it is still very important, for everyone's safety, that we keep this area closed. We expect that the cleanup process may take a minimum of two weeks to complete. CHRISTIAN EDUCATION WING The water damage that took place in the Christian Education wing happened separately from the damage in the Undercroft. We think that running water from a toilet in the girl's restroom was the cause for the flooding. Our guess is that it ran all afternoon on Sunday and was not discovered until Monday morning. All the pre-school classrooms, the music room, the York room, the preschool office, and the vesting room all took on water. As a result, each area is currently being dried out and most of the flooring and carpet will have to be removed. The drywall in these areas will also have to be removed and dried out. Please note that the church offices, the Canterbury room, the narthex, sanctuary, and crying room are unaffected. The result of these two events is that for at least two weeks, we have limited space for the many meetings and activities that routinely take place at St. Matthew's. For that reason we are making changes to our activities schedule. 2

3 PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THE FOLLOWING CHANGES, AND CONTACT THE CHURCH OFFICE IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR ACTIVITIES: THE PRESCHOOL has relocated to Oak Road Lutheran Church, just down the road near the corner of Oak Road and Five Forks Trickum. They will be able to use the Lutheran Church for the duration of the repairs on the Sunday school wing. WEDNESDAY WITH THE WORD will begin as soon as we have been cleared to use the Parish Hall and the Library. NON-CHURCH GROUPS that need the parish hall or undercroft (i.e. AA, Boy Scouts) will relocate their meetings for one month. WEDNESDAY Handbell and choir practice will take place in the sanctuary. WEDNESDAY Cherub practice can take place in either the sanctuary or the Canterbury room. WEDNESDAY DIVE bible study will take place in either the Canterbury Room or the crying room - Sally will notify the youth and their parents via separate . THURSDAY KNIT, PURL AND PRAY can opt to meet in the Canterbury room SATURDAY'S Café Theology will tentatively start on September 23, providing the clean up is complete SATURDAY'S Active Shooter Training with Snellville Police Department has been moved to October 7. SUNDAY SCHOOL AND NURSERY will not be available until we have cleared space for it to take place. We will offer family-style services so that all children can be in church. SUNDAY NIGHT YOUTH GROUP will meet in the sanctuary starting Sept 10th BREAKFAST will be limited since we cannot use the kitchen but there are several groups committed to finding a way to make this happen so stay tuned! For OTHER GROUPS OR MEETINGS not mentioned here, please check with your vestry liaison regarding anything scheduled during this period. We realize the inconvenience this will cause for our parish and we humbly apologize. We will update you as progress is made and keep you apprised of the situation until we return to normal operations. God's Peace, Jack Denton Senior Warden 3

4 ACOLYTES: Please enter the Old Narthex (red doors to the left after you come up the front steps) to get robed. Please do not enter through the Parish Hall. HURRICANE AND FLOOD RELIEF Please note that we support John s request for donations, but will hold off for several weeks until we have space available to store the donations until they can be transported to a collection point. We are collecting food, water, cleaning supplies, baby food, pet supplies, new shoes, and diapers for distribution to areas hit by recent hurricanes and flooding. We will no longer be collecting clothing at this time. Please place items in the boxes along the wall in the parish hall. Monetary donations can be made out to St. Matthew s and tagged for Houston Relief Fund, or can be made to the Episcopal Relief Fund (ERD). All of these items will be accumulated and delivery will be coordinated with the Episcopal Relief of the Diocese of Atlanta to reach those in need. For questions please contact John Eberhart CAFÉ THEOLOGY DELAYED UNTIL SEPTEMBER 23 Due to the recent floods in both the undercroft and the pre-school, we are delaying the start of this fall s Café Theology group until Saturday, September 23. We will be starting our series with C.S. Lewis Mere Christianity. Those who wish to participate need to buy the book, or obtain it from the library, or perhaps dust off your old copy. Please read Book I: Right and Wrong as a Clue to the meaning of the Universe. We will discuss the reading in class. Since September 23 was to be our second meeting and we were going to have a general discussion about C.S. Lewis this Saturday, we will still meet the schedule in the syllabus. I look forward to seeing everyone on the 23rd. INTERESTED IN BECOMING AN ACOLYTE? Our Acolytes are always welcoming new members. We would like to invite anyone ages third- through twelfth grade who would like to be a member to come and join us. If you are interested or would like to see what this worship group is all about, come and join us during an information and training session after either the 8 a.m. or 10:30 a.m. service on Sept. 17. For more information contact Jay Jones, dockjones@gmail.com,

5 In the Courtyard IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR! THE LUNCH BUNCH YEAR! You are invited to join other St. Matthewites Thursday September 14, Noon Happy China Restaurant Oak and River Roads across River Road from Eagle's Landing What can you expect? Good food, lively conversation and a chance to get to know other people who attend St. Matthew's. Come casual. Come hungry. This event is made up of men and women who enjoy getting together, on the second Thursday of each month from September to May. GUYS NIGHT OUT TRIVIA Wednesday, September 20 at 7:00 p.m. McCray s Tavern, 100 N. Perry St, Lawrenceville GA Third Wednesday of every month Come hang out and join the fun! All men of the parish are invited to attend. Please call or Levi Livermont at by noon on Wednesday if you plan to attend. 5

6 St. Matthew s Annual Car Show Needs YOU! Saturday, October 14 9:00 a.m. 3:00 p.m. Rain or Shine Followed by Family Movie Night on the Green at Dusk There are many ways to help! We will need volunteers on the day of the show, sponsors for trophies and t-shirts, raffle items, silent auction items, arts and crafts vendors for our vendor area and cars, cars, cars!! Contact Jack Denton at katvisual@bellsouth.net You can also be a sponsor for the show. Sponsorship levels start at $200 and go up to $750 and beyond. We are looking forward to a very successful show this year, not only in raising money for a very worthy cause (A Place of Seven Springs), but for a great fellowship event again. So please consider helping in any way you can to make this one of our best years yet. Adult Sunday School Classes Confirmation/Inquirer's Class--Sep 10-Oct 29th (9 weeks on Sundays), 9:00 a.m., Library--All interested in being confirmed, received or reaffirmed in the Episcopal Church should attend the Confirmation Class (or anyone who wants a refresher on the Episcopal faith...all are welcome). Topics include the basic tenets of Christianity, history of the Episcopal church, the prayer book and sacraments, especially Confirmation. To ensure plenty of time for each topic, this class will start promptly at 9:00 am in the Library, regardless of when the 8:00 am service gets out. Bagels and coffee will be available in the Library during class. Diocesan Confirmation/ Reaffirmation/Reception will be AT ST. MATTHEW S on Nov 5th, because we are having our Bishop s visit that day!! Other Adult Classes start on September 10th! Check e-letter for details. 6

7 A Note from Mother Liz+ This past week has been very challenging for St. Matthew s Church and for the preschool. A flood in the preschool caused significant damage to the flooring and the walls and necessitated moving the preschool off site for at least six weeks. A separate flood in the undercroft caused major bacterial contamination requiring special cleaning and sanitation. Almost everything, including, carpets, furniture and cabinets, will have to be thrown out. Our Parish Administrator, Charmaine, has been out almost all week with an ear and throat infection. And, at my home, a broken pipe under the house caused complete flooding of the crawl space. The water to the house had to be shut off and PJ and I have been the guests of Hilton since Monday. Whew! As you can imagine, a lot to deal with! And now, there is the possibility of Irma showing up with tropical storm force winds. And yet, I can still smile, and even laugh at the absurdity of it all. And that is because YOU the people of St. Matthew s have come forward to help. Susan Carson and Sally Ulrey have been on campus all week, getting things moved; notifying different groups about our situation; helping with the packing; getting service bulletins done so that we can have worship on Sunday and they have done it all with a smile. The wardens, members of Buildings & Grounds, and others have been working with the clean up crews sent by Church Insurance. The hand bell and sanctuary choirs could not use the music room, but shared space in the sanctuary so that rehearsals could take place. Others have helped to pack the preschool and Sunday school materials, while Nancy Drury and her team worked to creatively figure out how to offer some kind of breakfast on Sunday. Some have helped relocate needed items from the flood areas to other parts of the parish. Others have been gracious in cancelling and rescheduling activities while space on campus is limited. Even with all the difficulties, there were moments of grace because of YOU. Thank you for being who you are and for living into our motto: It s the People! It truly is!! With appreciation and gratitude, Liz+ 7

8 VPOD: EMs Oscar De Leon/Cindi Bateman 8:00 Sylvia Campbell, Peggy Harrison, Noreen Richardson 10:30 Lynne Ulmer, Waylee George, Jack Denton Lectors 10:30 Maxine Stutes, Cathy Chapman Verger: 8:00 Sam Harrison 10:30 John Williamson Ushers: 8:00 Nancy Piechowiak, Phil Morgan 10:30 Anita and Bob Genung Acolytes: 8:00 ** Mara DiGiovanni, *Morgan Paulding, Blair Rector, Anna Couch 10:30 **Stacey Colinger, Becky Barringer, David Camden, *Iris Camden, Alex Bean, Zoey Bean Greeters: 8:00 Persis Bristol, Jimmy Piechowiak, Mark and Mary Jane Gordon 10:30 Steve and Nancy Charron, Caroline Tyler, Minnette Brown Altar Guild: Flower Guild: SERVING TODAY Diane Croft-Doane, Nancy Piechowiak, Mutty Dixon, Vicki Conway, Beth Still, Mary Vore Stacey Colinger Nursery: NO Nursery This Week Due to Flood Damage THIS WEEK AT ST. MATTHEW S (schedule is tentative) Sunday, September 10: 8:00 am Holy Eucharist Rite II 9:00 am Continental Breakfast 9:00 am Confirmation Class 9:30 am No Sunday School 10:30 am No Junior Worship 10:30 am Holy Eucharist Rite II 12:00 pm Nursery Meeting 12:30 pm EfM 6:00 pm Youth Group Monday, September 11: 7:30 pm Epiphany Choir Practice Tuesday, September 12: 10:00 am Staff Meeting 6:00 pm NO Centering Prayer Wednesday, September 13: 10:00 am Healing Eucharist 5:30 pm Handbell Choir Rehearsal 6:00 pm DIVE Bible Study 6:30 pm Cherub Choir Practice 7:00 pm Sanctuary Choir Practice Thursday, September 14: 12:00 pm Lunch Bunch Saturday, September 16 8:00 am Brotherhood 9:00 am Altar Guild 10:00 am Flower Guild Communion Bread: Terri & Jessie Hurst **M.O.M.S *Senior Acolyte Tel: Fax: admin@stmatthewssnellville.org