Thank you, Simon! *Simon, unfortunately was not available for the picture. Standing in for him is his wife, Effie Exarhopulos.

Transcription

1 December 2016 Monthly / Issue No. 10 TRANSFIGURATION GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH A Small Act of Kindness Goes A Long Way By Susan Mitchell My mother, Niki Wilson, lost a locket that she wore to church on Sunday, November 6th. It wasn t found by anyone during the week, so we thought it was gone forever. On the following Sunday, during the Stewardship Appreciation Luncheon, Simon Exarhopulos found a gold locket in the church parking lot. He didn t recognize the person in the small photo inside the locket, so he took a picture of the photo and enlarged it. He walked through the church hall asking people if they recognized the man in the photo. Fortunately, Kon Kalabokis recognized that the man was my father, and this led to the locket being returned to my mother. My mother was elated because the locket is very special to her. We are incredibly grateful for Simon s kindness and excellent detective skills. Thank you, Simon! *Simon, unfortunately was not available for the picture. Standing in for him is his wife, Effie Exarhopulos. Fr. Tom Chininis, Pastor IN THIS ISSUE PASTORAL REFLECTIONS page 2 A Christmas Thought & Parish Assembly Report PARISH COUNCIL NEWS page 3 Treasurer s Report, Parish Council Report, and Stewardship Report PARISH GROUPS page 5 Philoptochos, Youth Ministry, and Sunday School EVENTS & OUTREACH page 9 GOYA Apple Pie Baking, Advent Camp CHURCH INFORMATION page 12 How to contact the church and who to contact, Parish Council member names and contact information CALENDAR pages Regular and special services, sacraments, and church events (From left) Konstantinos Kalabokis, Niki Wilson, Effie Exarhopulos and Susan Mitchell Niki Wilson holds her once lost locket, found by Simon Exarhopulos in the church parking lot. COVER PHOTO BY: OLIVIA PAGE 1

2 DECEMBER 2016 FROM FR. TOM A Christmas Thought By Fr. Thomas Chininis This past June the Patriarchs of the Orthodox Church gathered to give witness to the unity of the faith at the Great and Holy Council held in Crete. As the Church prepares to celebrate the birth of Christ in just a few days, my thoughts this year fall upon this event in the life of the Orthodox Church, because central to the Council is the divine truth that, the Only-begotten Son of God who, through His Incarnation, through all His work on earth, through His Sacrifice on the Cross and through His Resurrection, revealed the Triune God as infinite love. (Intro of the Encyclical) The Christmas season offers us the opportunity to embrace God s infinite love through the birth of His Son and share it with our family, friends, neighbors, coworkers and strangers. Christmas is the time of the year that highlights the powerful impact of God s gift upon His creation providing us the opportunity to not only receive this gift of love, but to give it as well. We all revel in the excitement of Christmas (maybe some years more than others) that is found in the decorations and lights, family gatherings and parties, as well as gift giving and receiving. It seems as though the sparkle of the season is best seen through the eyes of a child as they anticipate Christmas Day. The greatest gift of the day is found in the birth of a child some two thousand years ago; a gift that finds its sparkle in the Star of Bethlehem, that reveals love, and that brings change and hope to all of creation. May the joy and peace of Christmas surround you and your family and may you experience His grace throughout the coming New Year. PASTORAL REPORT TO THE PARISH ASSEMBLY 11/20/16 Faithful of the Transfiguration Community, This morning I would like to take this opportunity to comment on two extraordinary events that have impacted the life of our community. The first event impacted the life of the parish when the Charter School started leasing space, and now, the School has departed. The School has been with us for the past three years. The School has left our facility and their departure has revealed to us the amount of attention that was, and still is, needed to return our facilities to their original condition. I am certain that the Parish Council will provide greater detail as to the status of the projects completed and underway. Of equal importance to renewing our facility is the renewal of our parish life. For the past years we have had to plan around the School and now we are able to more easily plan activities and events on our schedule. What is especially needed is a renewed focus on such ministries as youth, fellowship, and education. How we can, as needed, reinvigorate them or reinvent them, or recalibrate our focus on them. Equally, we need to refocus our attention on ministries that haven t been as immediately impacted, such as music, outreach, and worship. The second event was the ordination to the priesthood of Fr. Gregory Floor. Obviously this has had a tremendous impact on him and his family. It has also impacted the life of our parish in several ways. We have been blessed to have him with us on the past few Sundays. This will not always be the case. He will be doing some traveling for Hellenic College Holy Cross and for the Metropolis. His default parish for now is here and we are very thankful for that because it adds a wonderful dynamic to our worship. On the day of the ordination our community celebrated with him, and for him, having raised him up from among us. In his honor we offered a luncheon that was truly a labor of love. Many, many people were involved in the luncheon and the logistics of the day. We thank all who helped, donated, and celebrated with us. Mostly, this event affirms for us today that as a community we must continue to lift up and offer future leaders of our parish and our Church. The Transfiguration parish has an honored history of offering her own to serve the Church as clergy and members of clergy families. May God continue to bless us in this way and thus provide for the bright future of our parish, Metropolis, and Archdiocese. This is but another way to view our stewardship we offer back to God from that with which we are blessed. So we thank all who have offered their stewardship of time, talents, and treasures to our parish throughout this past year; members of the Parish Council, Philoptochos, choir, Altar, chanters, Sunday School teachers and staff, and youth ministry. We look forward to your continued support and cooperation, seeking that which is pleasing to God. PAGE 2

3 DECEMBER 2016 PARISH COUNCIL NEWS President s Report by Christian Zouzas, Parish Council President On behalf on the parish council, we wish you and your family a Blessed and Holy Merry Christmas καλά Χριστούγεννα Treasurer s Report by Dean Proyous, Parish Council Treasurer ACCOUNT SUMMARY (AS OF NOVEMBER 1, 2016) Account Balance Altar Fund $2, Building Maintenance $13, Endowment Fund $8, General Checking $13, Kitchen & Hall Fund $245, Money Market Savings $200, Outreach Center $11, Rental Account (restricted) $108, Special Events Checking $62, Youth Ministr y $6, Account Totals: $672, If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. I will be happy to answer any questions you may have. PAGE 3

4 DECEMBER 2016 PARISH COUNCIL NEWS Stewardship Report by Olivia Sintros, Stewardship Reporter "As the Father has sent me, so I send you" John 20:21 Our grateful thanks to all our stewards who have completed their Stewardship offering for And another thanks to those who have already responded to Stewardship TRIVIA QUESTION: At the end of Divine Liturgy each Sunday Fr. Tom asks the parishioners to turn to page 362 in the liturgy book. What do we find on page 362? The answer can be found on page 8 of this issue of the Trans-a-Gram. Parish Council Report by Amanda Apostolou, Parish Council Secretary PARISH ASSEMBLY NOTES The Parish Assembly was held on November 6th. Below are a few items that were discussed: Melanie Pappas delivered a report on the Clergy-Laity Congress she attended with Fr. Tom in July. The theme for the conference was You are the Voice of Christ in a Changing World. The assembly voted to paint the domes of the church light blue with a donation received from the Danas family, which will cover the cost 100%. The budget was proposed and agreed upon by the assembly. Two fundraisers, a Grecian Festival in the summer and a Golf Outing in the fall, are expected to bridge a gap between expected stewardship and expected expenses. Fr. Tom thanked Christian Zouzas for all his work with the Lowell Collegiate Charter School. In his words, God always knows when to put the right person in the right spot at the right time. PARISH COUNCIL ELECTIONS The following parishioners submitted their names for nomination to the Parish Council for the January December 2018 term: Amanda Apostolou Pat Mahoney Costas Tsioulis Marc Gulezian Olivia Sintros The 6th nominee will be decided by the newly elected council in January.. PAGE 4

5 DECEMBER 2016 PARISH GROUPS Philoptochos Society Report by Ellen Dobi, Philoptochos Society President Philoptochos has been very busy preparing for the Holiday Season. Our outreach ministries and fundraising activities provide support to our church, local community, the metropolis and even the nation. Grateful thanks to our members and parishioners who support our efforts to provide a brighter Holiday to those in need. November Meeting: We held our general membership meeting on Nov 12th. Through the support and generosity of our parishioners we were able to honor our National commitments to the Ecumenical Patriarchate ministries, the National Sisterhood of Presbyteres Benevolent Fund, UNICEF and the General Medical Fund, our Metropolis commitment to the Saint Methodios Faith and Heritage Center and a local donation to the Manolis Foundation with donations totaling $2250 collectively. OUTREACH & FUNDRAISERS Fall Calendar Raffle: Raffle winners will be listed in our next issue. Christmas Card: Watch your mail for a beautiful card with our church families Christmas greetings. Thank you to all who participated and to our coordinator, Corrine Dubay. Visiting Angels: The Council of Churches celebrated a Liturgy at D'Youville Manor where some of our parishioners reside on Saturday, December 10th at 10:00 AM. A small reception was given afterwards and residents received a small gift. Visits were made to parishioners at other area nursing homes. One parishioner called her cousin saying she was so appreciative of the gift - it made her day. Visits any time of year mean so much. Please contact Christine Faneros at or the church office to offer your time to visit. Literacy Program: We are collecting books throughout the year and kindly ask for donations of new or gently used books to support and promote literacy in a local elementary school. Collection bins are located in the upper and lower lobbies of the church. House of Hope: Thank you to those who offered at the last meeting to serve meals. We need servers for March 23rd. Please contact Cindy at cerios3@hotmail.com or to offer your time and find out more. Adopt a Family: Philoptochos coordinated with Community Teamwork of Lowell to help brighten the Christmas season for a total of about 75 individuals. Many thanks to Susan Mitchell and her group of GOYAns who coordinated this outreach event. Thank you to all of the generous people who participated. Annual Benefit Tea: Our 63rd Tea took place on Sunday, December 4th at the Indian Ridge Country Club in Andover, MA. Our chairlady, Sandra Gulezian, and her committee planned an extra special event to celebrate the holiday season. Thank you to all who helped celebrate this very special and momentous occasion.an article and pictures covering the event will be included in the next Trans-a-Gram. UPCOMING EVENTS Membership Drive: In January, we will be renewing memberships and also sending invitations to all ladies of our parish to join our group. Please consider offering your time and talents in the spirit of sisterhood, camaraderie and philanthropy. May one of your New Year resolutions include joining the Transfiguration Philoptochos! continued on next page PAGE 5

6 DECEMBER 2016 continued from previous page Vasilopita and Family Dinner: Our traditional Gold Coin celebration and Family Dinner will be held on Sunday, January 15th. We started collecting names on Sunday, December 11th. Please see Pat Mahoney or Soula Spaziani to order a piece. You can also contact Soula at soulaspaziani3@gmail.com or (978) The donation is $20.00 per piece. This wonderful tradition will be combined with our Family Dinner. Lunch will be served immediately following Liturgy on January 15th and Vasilopita pieces with the gold coin will be distributed during this time. The proceeds of this event are earmarked for St. Basil s Academy, one of our national commitments. Next Meeting: Our next general membership meeting will be our Heart Healthy Brunch on Saturday morning, February. 4th at 10:00 AM. A Final Word: On behalf of the Transfiguration Philoptochos, we wish you and your families a blessed and joyful Holiday Season! Thank you to all who helped with setting up, breaking down and supporting our Craft Fair on October 29 th. We especially appreciate all of the hard work Connie, Clara and Freda Gkolias put into it. PHOTO BY ELLEN DOBI Vendors at the Annual Holiday Craft Fair held on October 29th. From the Loft By Chuck Karayianis Interim Choir Director It's warm in the choir loft. Warm hearts and mellow voices singing God's praises and helping our Transfiguration family experience the wonder and joy of the Divine Liturgy. As we lead up to Christmas, our services, hymns and carols help us prepare for the miraculous and joyous Nativity of Christ. "For Unto Us a Child Is Born" and the "Hallelujah Chorus" from Handel's "Messiah" are two of the most magnificent choral arrangements we know. We won't be singing them this year but we will offer more familiar tunes as Christmas approaches. During this season of thanks and of giving let's remember to thank God for giving us all things "good and profitable" in our lives. Thank you to the members of our choir and remember, all parishioners have an open invitation to join us every Sunday. Peace, good health and happiness to all and hopefully I'll see you in church. PAGE 6

7 DECEMBER Christmas Flowers Order your Poinsettias Make this Christmas Season extra special! Reserve a Poinsettia to be placed in the church in memory of or for the health of a loved one. Make your donation of $20.00 per plant payable to: Transfiguration Church Please detach and return this form to: Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church 25 Father John Sarantos Way Lowell, MA Your Name: Your Telephone #: In Memory of: For the Health of: Number of plants: Amount enclosed: $ PAGE 7

8 DECEMBER 2016 PARISH GROUPS (CONTINUED) Dear parents, Sunday School News by Connie Gkolias, Sunday School Director We hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving holiday. Now we are looking forward to the best holiday of the year, the birth of our Lord. Our children are working very hard on their performance to bring to you on Sunday, December 18. Please make every effort to join us on this day and then we will celebrate Jesus birthday with a cake. Please try to join us at 9:30am so our kids don t miss anything, especially Father Tom s sermon. There is no Sunday school December 25 and January 1 A blessed Merry Christmas to everyone! Dates to remember: December 18 ~ Christmas Pageant February 5 ~ Annual Brunch Stewardship By Olivia Sintros TRIVIA ANSWER The Stewardship Prayer can be found on page 362 of the liturgy book. Lord, Jesus Christ, our God, accept our offering as You accepted the gifts of Your people throughout the ages. We offer these gifts to your glory, for the support of the ministries of Your holy Church, for the alleviation of suffering and hunger, and for the proclamation of Your Gospel to the whole world. Grant us your blessings, Lord our Savior, that we may always be faithful stewards, continuing to share the gifts you have given us, by the power of Your grace, mercy and love. May Your name be glorified forever. Amen Merry Christmas to all as we offer our gifts to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank You JAMES MONOXELOS NORTHEAST VISIT OUR E MAIL: jmonoxelos@neref.com PHONE: x15 FAX: SHAWSHEEN ST., TEWKSBURY, MA Mama s Italian Restaurant 1140 Lakeview Avenue Tel: (978) Dracut, MA Fax: (978) When you re hungry, come to Mama s! PAGE 8

9 CHURCH EVENTS AND OUTREACH GOYA Lead Ministries DECEMBER 2016 PHOTOS BY MELANIE PAPPAS UPCOMING EVENTS January 8: Meeting January 27: Lock-in Apple Pie Baking Adopt-a-Family PAGE 9

10 DECEMBER 2016 CHURCH EVENTS AND OUTREACH Advent Camp 2016 WHAT S INSIDE YOUR GIFT? PAGE 10

11 DECEMBER House Blessings ΑΓΙΑΣΜΟΙ One of the wonderful traditions of the Orthodox Church as we welcome the new year and celebrate the feast of Epiphany is to have our homes and businesses blessed asking that our Lord bless us and all our endeavors in the new year. Again this year, in addition to having our houses blessed, Fr. Tom is provided the opportunity to spend time with, and get to know better, the faithful of the Transfiguration family. Please complete the form below and return it to the parish office by January 19. Fr. Tom will then contact you to schedule a visit during the month of January. Please send the form below to the Church Office no later than Thursday, January 19th ZIP CODE: NAME: ADDRESS: CITY: HOME PHONE: CELL PHONE: Are you available during the weekdays? Yes No D e c e m b e r 27 t h PAGE 11

12 DECEMBER 2016 CHURCH INFORMATION CHURCH Secretary: Tiffany Margardo Address: 25 Father John Sarantos Way, Lowell, MA Telephone: Fax: Office Hours: Secretary: Mon. Fri., 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Priest: Tuesday Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., or by appointment WEBSITE FACEBOOK CLERGY Rev. Father Thomas Chininis Telephone: FrTom@transchurch.org Rev. Deacon John Vaporis Telephone: DeaconJohn@transchurch.org PHILOPTOCHOS Ellen Dobi Telephone: ekdobi@verizon.net CHOIR Chuck Karayianis Telephone: cwkabk@gmail.com Is Your Information Correct? SUNDAY SCHOOL Connie Gkolias connie@garston.com Corrine Dubay corrinedubay@gmail.com BOOKSTORE Joan Tsoukalas joantsoukalas@gmail.com Virginia Kimball virginiakimball@comcast.net WEBSITE Melanie Pappas Telephone: melanie.pappas@gmail.com TRANS A GRAM Amanda Apostolou Telephone: su_lou22@me.com To update your name, salutation, phone number, address, or , please call the office, we are happy to help.thank you! 2016 Parish Council Members PRESIDENT Christian Zouzas Home: Cell: zouzas@aol.com VICE PRESIDENT Costa Tsioulis Cell: costasusa@hotmail.com TREASURER Dean Proyous Home: Cell: goldengreek1@comcast.net SECRETARY Amanda Apostolou Cell: su_lou22@me.com ASSISTANT TREASURER Nick Kouloungis Home: koulclan@comcast.net William (Bill) Arvanites Home: Cell: arvanites.willy@gmail.com James Demetri Home: Cell: jdemetri56@hotmail.com Konstantinos (Kon) Kalabokis Home: kkalabokis@gmail.com Melanie Pappas Cell: melanie.pappas@gmail.com Jim Piazas Home: Cell: jpiazas@comcast.net Olivia Sintros Home: Cell: osintros@comcast.net John Thibault Cell: johncthibault@comcast.net Enterprise Bank is proud to support the organizations that strengthen our communities. Member FDIC 22 Convenient branch locations, including: LOWELL 222 Merrimack Street EnterpriseBanking.com PAGE 12

13 DECEMBER 2016 Dracut Funeral Home Proudly serving the Greek Community in Dracut and Greater Lowell for 25 years 2159 Lakeview Avenue Dracut, MA Mark P. Gacek (978) Owner/Director CHRISTOPOULOS CMI MULDOON AUTO - HOME - BUSINESS INSURANCE AGENCY, INC. Providing excellent service for over 40 years 8 CHELMSFORD ST. CHELMSFORD, MA TOM CHRISTOPOULOS TEL: CELL: FAX: tom@muldooninsurance.com Robin Ley TOP DONUT 700 Aiken St. Lowell, MA Tel. (978) Store Hours Open 7 days a week 5 a.m. 9 p.m. Realtor Soula.Spaziani@NEmoves.com! Established in 1930 M. R. Laurin & Son Funeral Home Funeral Directors Louis M. Fazio, III M. Richard Laurin Scott Laurin Pre Need Counseling Handicap Accessible Ample Parking 295 Pawtucket Street, Lowell, Massachusetts ! PAGE 13

14 DECEMBER 2016 Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church Lowell, MA December 2016 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Orthros 8:30am Monthly Trisagion Philoptochos Charity Tea 2pm Orthros 8:30am Parish Elections Parish Council Meeting noon GOYA meeting Orthros 8:30am Sunday School Christmas Pageant Christmas Day Orthros 8:30am St. Nicholas Liturgy 10 D Youville Bible Study 10am Center 10am Family Fun Night 6:30pm LTLC dinner St. Spyridon House of Hope Liturgy 9:30 am Dinner Tuesday Morning Ladies 9:30 am Bible Study 10am Center 10am Tuesday Bible Study Morning Ladies 10am 9:30 am Christmas Eve Orthros 8:45am Center 10am Great Vespers 6:30pm Reception following Tuesday Morning Ladies 9:30 am Community Kitchen 11:30am Center 10am New Year s Eve Fellow of the Academy of General Dentistry Smile with confidence! Evan Coravos General and Aesthetic Dentistry 75 Arcand Drive Lowell, MA Office Hours: Days, Evenings, and Saturdays James F. O Donnell & Sons FUNERAL DIRECTORS since 1884 Serving members of the Lowell and Greek community for over 120 years 276 Pawtucket Street Lowell, Massachusetts (978) PAGE 14

15 DECEMBER 2016 Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church Lowell, MA January 2017 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday New Year s Day St. Basil Orthros 9:15a Liturgy 10a Center 11am Epiphany Eve Vesperal Liturgy 6:00pm Agiasmos following Epiphany Liturgy 9:30am Agiasmos following St. John Liturgy 9:30am Orthros 8:30am Monthly Trisagion Parish Council Oath of Office Orthros 8:30am Vasilopita Cutting and Luncheon Tuesday Morning Ladies 9:30 am Bible Study 10am Center 11am Family Fun Night 6:30pm LTLC dinner Tuesday Morning Ladies 9:30 am St. Athanasios Liturgy 9:30am Center 10am Orthros 8:30am Orthros 8:30am Tuesday Bible Study House of Hope Morning Ladies 10am Dinner 9:30 am Community Center 10am Kitchen 11:30am Three Hierarchs Tuesday Morning Ladies 9:30 am Bible Study 10am Center 10am Fellow of the Academy of General Dentistry Smile with confidence! Evan Coravos General and Aesthetic Dentistry 75 Arcand Drive Lowell, MA Office Hours: Days, Evenings, and Saturdays James F. O Donnell & Sons FUNERAL DIRECTORS since 1884 Serving members of the Lowell and Greek community for over 120 years 276 Pawtucket Street Lowell, Massachusetts (978) PAGE 15

16 DECEMBER 2016 SERVICES, SACRAMENTS, AND CALENDAR OF EVENTS Services SUNDAY SERVICES Orthros: 8:30 a.m. Divine Liturgy: 9:30 a.m. Monthly Trisagion Dec 4, following Liturgy Please Note: Since Christmas falls on Sunday this year, the liturgical schedule will vary slightly from previous years. There will be Liturgy on Christmas Eve morning at which time, having properly prepared, you can receive Holy Communion. This is an opportune time to bring our children. On Christmas Eve night we celebrate Great Vespers, and therefore, no Holy Communion is offered. On Sunday, Christmas morning services start a half hour later: Orthros 9 am and Divine Liturgy 10 am. Sacraments BAPTISMS December 11: Amelia, daughter of Christopher and Sara Dobi. Sponsors Katherine Dobi and Thomas Considine. CHRISMATIONS No Chrismations this month Calendar of Events VACATION CHURCH CAMP (VCC) February 25: Lenten Camp 9:30 am - 2:00 pm April 14: Holy Friday Retreat 9:30 am - 2:00 pm YOUTH MINISTRY December 9: Gingerbread Family Night 6:30 pm December 11: GOYA meeting January 9: Family Night 6:30 pm January 8: GOYA meeting SUNDAY SCHOOL December 4, 11, 18: Regular classes December 18: Christmas Pageant following services December 25: No classes CHOIR Rehearsals as announced Special Services Dec 6... Feast of St Nicholas Orthoros 8:30 am Liturgy 9:30 am Dec Feast of St. Spyridon Liturgy 9:30 am Dec Christmas Eve Orthros 8:30 am Liturgy 9:30 am Dec Christmas Eve Great Vespers 6:30 pm (no Eucharist) Dec Christmas Day Orthros 8:30 am Liturgy 9:30 am Nov Feast of St. Stephen Liturgy 9:30 am WEDDING & MARRIAGE BLESSINGS November 6: Christopher and Alexis (Liakos) Hanaburgh. Sponsor Savas Avadsidis FUNERALS: MAY THEIR MEMORY BE ETERNAL November 24: Peter Kokas BIBLE STUDY AND RELIGIOUS EDUCATION Wednesday November 7, 14, & 21: 10:00 am PHILOPTOCHOS November 12: General Meeting 9:30 am OTHER CHURCH ACTIVITIES December 1, 15, 22 & 29: Ladies Group Meeting 9:30 am December 7, 214, 21 & 28: Outreach Center 10:00 am - 2:00 pm OUTREACH AND SPECIAL EVENTS December 4: Philoptochos Charitable Tea 2:00 pm December 10: Divine Liturgy at D Youville 10:00 am December 10: LTLC (Shelter Dinner) Dinner December 11: Parish Elections December 15: House of Hope December 27: Community Kitchen 11:30 am Stewardship Giving Online Weekly, Monthly, or One-Time Go to ParishPay.com to enroll or call the Parish Office PAGE 16