The Epistle. The Celebration of Life Rev. Jody Lediard. In the Bleak Mid-Winter... Rev. Lynn Yule

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1 St. Paul s Episcopal Church Page 1 February 2017 The Epistle The Celebration of Life Rev. Jody Lediard As I write this report, we are recovering from major snowfall and most of the roads are cleared. It was good to see folks this past Sunday who were able to safely venture out. It reminds me of stories of pioneer times in the old west as people who had spent the weather hunkered down in their homes climbed out to see some sunshine and greet their neighbors. I think they must have had great expectations of spring to come, green gardens growing, children getting stronger and larger. God s world was all about them with new signs of life and light as it will be for us. I hear Punxsutawney Phil has decided to move to the Northwest where the grass grows taller and the apples taste better. He ll be talking to us on February 2 nd. I wonder if he likes wheat. Being shut-in leads to cabin fever and wishes of connecting to family and friends. I imagine it as a time of enforced rest when we can think of so many things to do and so many people to check up on. We celebrated Maxine Christensen s life recently. What a wonderful celebration it was. One gift she gave us is the gift of planning her own Celebration of Life Service. It was thoughtfully done with lots of great music and prayers that are important to her and her family. Having it preplanned removed the stress of making more decisions for the family, and they were able to listen to her message and God s message that we will be with each other again in deeper relationship with God. One of our sisters in Christ has requested we have a class on planning a Celebration of Life and so we shall. I am thinking about timing and content right now. If anyone else has thoughts along this line, please let me know within the next two weeks. Write it down for me, please. In the Bleak Mid-Winter... Rev. Lynn Yule January 2017 certainly has been bleak snow, ice, more snow, more ice. But, daylight hours are lengthening and we're moving slowly but surely toward springtime. By the time you read this, we ll have had the Annual Meeting of our congregation. We ve had reports and looking back at how 2016 was. We also looked forward, electing delegates and alternate delegates to the Diocesan Convention in October, and forming plans and goals for this year and into the future. A few years ago I wrote about UFOs and WIPs. Translated from the language of knitters and other crafter, the letters stand for Un Finished Objects and Works In Progress. There s an important difference between the terms, but it s not a difference you can discern by looking at any particular project. A half-knit sock can be either a UFO or a WIP. The difference is in the attitude and reaction of the knitter to the project. Is it still being worked on (even if very slowly)? It s a WIP. Tucked away forgotten, in a drawer, in a corner of a knitting bag, or buried under bags of yarn? UFO for sure. (continued on page 2)

2 St. Paul s Episcopal Church Page 2 February 2017 Bleak Mid-Winter... (cont d from page 1) UFOs and WIPs are found in the lives of each of us, not just knitters. Think of your new year s resolutions. What s the state of the diet, the exercise routine, all those other good intentions? Looking ahead, Lent begins March 1 st. What about the discipline(s) you will undertake for Lent? How will they fare? Do you have a spiritual UFO that needs to be upgraded to a WIP? Now is the time to evaluate and decide what you want to do, and even more importantly, why you want to do it. I ll recommend again the book, The More of Less, by Joshua Becker. (By the way, In the Bleak Mid-Winter is from the poem by that name by Christina Rossetti, set to music in our Hymnal, #112.) Emergencies, Delegates, and Services Business at the annual meeting included a reminder that the congregation needs plans for coping with emergencies (i.e., flooding and snow), election of delegates to diocesan convention, and plans for additional worship services. Convention delegates will be Dorothy Sherwin, Margie Weed, and Susan Moore. The convention is currently planned to be held in Coeur d Alene, Idaho in October. Alternates will be Brian Kady, Allan Sherwin, and Ron Weed. Plans for additional services are in the works, beginning with a Table Eucharist service on Valentine s Day. Junior Warden s Report Ron Weed The members of the Junior Warden s group are Marvin Mason, Bill Buckmiller, David Langstaff, and Ron Weed. Water in the basement came from an overflow caused by the failure of the gutters to handle two hail storms. The hail melted and overwhelmed the two wells with one sump pump. Water entered under the metal door and spread about feet in all directions. (Continued on page 4) St. Paul s Episcopal Church 1609 W. 10th Avenue Kennewick, Washington (509) stpaulskennewick@frontier.com Church Staff Rev. JoAnne Lediard, Priest-in-Charge Rev. Lynn Yule, Deacon Mary Esther Lippold, Organist Brian Kady, Sunday School Superintendent Cindy Winter, Sunday School Coordinator Kathy DeMers, Adult Education Margie Weed, Jim Carter, Youth Leaders Bill Buchmiller, St. Paul s Church Website Marji Parker, Micki Furr, The Epistle Newsletter The Bishop s Committee Susan Moore, Senior Warden& Kathy DeMers& Richard Elizai& Brian Kady& David Langstaff& Ron Weed& Johnathan Hicks, Treasurer&

3 St. Paul s Episcopal Church Page 3 February 2017 Quilt Winner Announced The St. Paul s Aunt Ida s Sewing Circle had made a beautiful king-sized quilt to be used as a prize for a fund-raiser. They have been selling tickets for a chance to win the quilt. At the Annual Meeting on January 29, 2017, the drawing was held. Summer Kady picked out a ticket and the winner was announced. Gail Cox of Kennewick won the lovely quilt and came by to pick up her prize. Gail is a friend of our parishioner, Janet Stewart. Gail had come to one of St. Paul s Bazaars and bought one of the first tickets sold. Congratulations to Gail, and thanks to everyone who made the fundraiser a success. Ongoing Needs (Still Going On!) We need regular reminders of of the need for the things (and people) required to make big things happen. The budget is tight. Here again is the list. Altar flower memorials. The Altar Guild also needs money for candle oil and other supplies. Toilet paper (regular size rolls) Copy paper: Paper seems to vanish as if on wings. Stamps People to count money after church (see Bob Andrews) Ushers (this is not a hard job) (see Dorothy Sherwin) Coffee hour hosts/hostesses. You don t necessarily need to do any work. This can be a team effort. Somebody can bring food while somebody else arranges it, someone else can set up, and still another person can clean up. A sign up sheet is on the Fireside Room door. If we are to have coffee and things to munch, to go with greetings and conversation, and the greetings and conversation are an important part of our fellowship, we all need to share in bringing goodies. Contributions for the food bank. Volunteers to help with Sunday School one Sunday each month.

4 St. Paul s Episcopal Church Page 4 February 2017 Valentine Candy Making Susan Moore Valentine s Day comes but once a year. It s the time for lace, red hearts, chubby little cupids, cooing doves and Will you be mine? But we all know what is really special about this holiday: CHOCOLATE! After the February 12 th service, there COULD be a get together to make some wonderful chocolate treats for those you love or maybe just like. We can make chocolate cookies, heart-shaped brownies, heart shaped cakes. But if you want this to happen, you must let us know! Call the office at and leave a message, or Susan Moore at Or simply sign up on the sheet in the Narthex. Hope to see you then. Valentine Fabricación del Caramelo Día de San Valentín viene una vez al año. Es el momento para que encaje, corazones rojos, amorcillos regordetes, palomas arrullan y Usted será el mío? Pero todos sabemos lo que es realmente especial sobre este día de fiesta: EL CHOCOLATE! Después del servicio 12 de febrero, podría haber un encuentro maravilloso juntos para hacer algunas golosinas de chocolate para sus seres queridos o tal vez sólo quiera. Podemos hacer galletas de chocolate, brownies, tortas en forma de corazón en forma de corazón. Pero si usted quiere que esto suceda, debe hacernos saber! Llamar a la oficina al y dejar un mensaje, o Susan Moore en O simplemente inscribirse en la hoja en el Narthex. Esperamos verte a continuación. Junior Warden s Report Continued from Page 1 A service company removed the water and dried the carpets. New cove base carpet was purchased and taken/removed so another 150 feet completed the repair. Chapel: Bill replaced the lock, rekeyed it, and got it working. Lights: Marvin and Ron replaced several lights in the sanctuary and the flood lights in the choir area. Bill also removed the florescent lights that were utilizing a lone plug in the furnace room. Ron affixed warning signs to the furnace room and the janitors closet upstairs (moved the janitor s materials to the front door closet to remove the chance of fire in the janitor s closet). All these actions were done to meet the fire marshal s inspection criteria. Snow: The winter weather caused much need of snow removal. These were expensive as they entailed front and back areas, with deicing costing in the range of $ per plowing. The pastor asked for something more inexpensive so we were able to hire a young entrepreneur for 100 dollars to get it done by Sunday morning, but his operation had battery and electrical problems so he had time to do just the front. Later a Bobcat plowed all around the church for about 300 dollars and scrapped it to the pavement. Tree: The falling of a large tree limb lead finally to removal of the whole tree. Joseph, Dave, and and Ron removed the limb and cut it up. Dave found a cutter to take the rest of the tree down and scrape the trunk down to ground level. People that deserve commendation are Bill Buckmiller, Dave Langstaff, and Marvin Mason. Thanks Junior Warden team--let s keep our team together again this year.

5 St. Paul s Episcopal Church Page 5 February 2017 February Birthdays February Anniversaries 2 Felix Elizai 4 Ted Moore 5 Betty Corbitt 6 Peggy Palmer 15 Dan Deane 18 Bhradde Collins Louise Pallis Richard Elizai 22 Godfrey Elizai March 2016 EPISTLE Article Deadline: Thursday, February 23, p.m. Talk over your ideas with Marji Parker. 17 Harland & Lidia Lippold Send your ideas or articles to: mwparker@owt.com Meetings and Other Important Gatherings Planning Committee: Thursday, February 9 th, 6:30 p.m. (FSR) Altar Guild: Saturday, February 11 th, 10 a.m. (FSR) Valentine Candy Making: Sunday, February 12 th, following the morning service. Bishop s Committee: February 12 th Retreat, 3 p.m. Valentine s Day: Tuesday, February 14 th, Table Eucharist and Potluck Dinner, 6:30 p.m. (FSR) Sewing Circle: Saturday, February 18 th, 11 a.m. (FSR) Outreach Committee: Tuesday, February 21 st, 5:30 p.m. (FSR) Shrove Tuesday Potluck Supper: February 28 th, 6:30 p.m. (FSR) Choir: Practices are each Wednesday when the choir is expected to sing the following Sunday. Crafts: Anyone interested in knitting or other crafts in the company of others is welcome on Thursdays at 11 a.m. (FSR). Men s Group: Every Saturday, 9 a.m., Denny s. Youth Group: Meets on Sundays after church. Introduce yourself to somebody you don t know!

6 St. Paul s Episcopal Church Page 6 February 2017 St. Valentine? A Real Person? Yes. Maybe even more than one. He/they is considered the patron saint of love, young people, and happy marriages. Some also considered him a patron saint of bee keepers, greetings, plague, and travelers. Wikipedia says there were numerous Christian martyrs named Valentine. Until 1969, the Catholic church recognized eleven Valentine s Days. At least one was a priest in Rome who assisted martyrs in the persecutions under Claudius II. One legend says that while he was waiting his execution, he restored sight to the jailor s blind daughter. Another legend says that he sent a note to the jailor s daughter signing it from your Valentine. The Valentine who was a roman priest, the one about whom the most is known, was executed on February 14 th in about the year 270, a martyr for refusing to give up his Christian faith. Legend has it that Pope Julius I built a church in his memory. Efforts to locate information about the origin and works of Valentine(s) indicate that everything about him/them are mysteries.