ST. THOMAS LIFELINES. Yours in Christ, Mark & Amy

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1 ST. THOMAS LIFELINES VOLUME 25, NO. 9 OCTOBER 2018 Dear St. Thomas Family, Nurturing children in the way of Christ Christian formation is an important work of the whole church. It includes content and conversation regarding God and God s church. It incorporates opportunities to practice what s been learned. And it requires support from the entire congregation. Here s a brief description of children s Christian formation at St. Thomas this year. Rather than Children s Chapel, our program targeting pre-k through 6 th grade is called Church Upstairs. Why? First, that s where we meet each Sunday. Second, being a child isn t just a matter of age; we all are children children of God. And because we re all children of God, we all belong in worship together. Somehow Children s Chapel suggests that our kids should worship separate from or worse, that they re not welcome in Adult Church. Not true! Consider Church Upstairs as a learning lab for or mirror of Church Downstairs. In Church Upstairs, we open and close with prayer; we dress the altar; we explore lectionary-based Scripture readings. However, being in a small group, in a separate space, and among peers encourages dialog about the why and how of God and God s church. What we pray, read, and do in Church Upstairs prepares our children for Church Downstairs. Preparation is just one aspect of Christian formation; practice is another. Joining the service at the Peace enables our children to experience and practice how to do church through the Eucharist. Other opportunities to practice church will be during youth-led shared worship services (Church Together). To prepare and practice for the shared All Saints service, Church Upstairs is praying the Collect for All Saints, discussing who saints are and what they do, and learning some saintly songs. Remember Christian formation involves the whole church, all of the church. We encourage you to support our children s maturation in Christ in the following ways. During worship, help our kids practice doing church invite someone else s kid to sit next to you, share a hymnal, answer a question, or just turn a blind eye to some not quite there yet behavior. Another option: consider spending a couple of Sundays in Church Upstairs you re not responsible for anything except showing up. But showing up is the first, necessary step in building relationships. And our kids are fun, bright, and enthusiastic; we ve already learned a lot about and from each other! High-schoolers, the younger ones think it so great when you teach them, play with them, or just be with them. Come on upstairs! We could really use some extra hands for a couple of upcoming craft projects, and we ll need you to help lead our 4 Church Together services this year. Thanks for contributing your portion to children s Christian formation at St Thomas we ll all be the richer for it! Yours in Christ, Mark & Amy Talking About Church Upstairs. These past few weeks, we ve talked about saints what makes a saint a saint; who saints are; and what kind of choices saints make. Ask the kids about saints I bet they d love to tell you!

2 OCTOBER 2018 ST. THOMAS LIFELINE S PAGE 2 Parish Retreat Sunday Oct. 14th at Selu Conservancy in Radford The Parish Retreat Sunday will begin with worship on the lawn, weather permitting, at 10am. We will follow the service with a potluck luncheon. Then plan to spend the rest of the afternoon with fellow St. Thomas members relaxing and exploring the grounds. KROGER COMMUINTY REWARDS Thank you Kroger shoppers! For the June 1 through August 31 shopping period, we received $240.90! Remember to renew your giving through the program to St. Thomas (EU541); you have renew every year. CHS JV FOOTBALL TEAM DINNER The Christiansburg High School JV Football team has invited St. Thomas to host their pregame meal on Thursday, Oct. 18 th. The boys have put in countless hours of weight lifting, strength training, cardio workouts, memorizing and practicing plays. The players have limited free time as they have committed themselves to God, family, school, and football. The team has worked hard this season to build and support proper body mass as well as learning about the nutritional benefits that affect how their bodies function. The Athletic department and Head Coach of Christiansburg High School created a nutritional guide to support the players healthy diets. The meal below has been created to provide the boys with fuel for optimal performance against Patrick Henry!! The Touchdown club supplies water, forks, napkins, and plates. Here s what we need to bring: JV Pasta Salad, 6 bags of oranges, and 6 large bags of frozen broccoli. If you d like to supply anything, there is a signup sheet in the parish hall. Please have your donations to St. Thomas by Tuesday, Oct. 16 th. Contact Jacquie Graham for more information. But ask the animals, and they will teach you; the birds of the air, and they will tell you; ask the plants of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you. Who among all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this? In his hand is the life of every living thing. The Blessing of the Animals Sunday, October 7 3pm in the St. Thomas Gardens Everyone is invited to bring cookies for humans and pets to share after the blessing of the animals. Lemonade will be provided by St. Thomas. Most high, omnipotent, good Lord, grant your people grace to renounce gladly the vanities of this world; that, following the way of blessed Francis, we may, for love of you, delight in your whole creation with perfectness of joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Supporting Church Upstairs We could use some tangible support for several upcoming sessions of Church Upstairs. Thanks in advance for your generosity! 1. Fabric tablecloths or runners. Rectangular, length needs to be at least 60 inches, width at least 18 inches. Red, white, green, purple, Sarum blue, and (yes) pink. Doesn t have to be solid-colored, but the liturgical color should be readily apparent. A couple of each color would be grand! We plan to use these as frontals for our altar. By 10/14, if possible, please. 2. A recent photo of yourself preferably a head-andshoulders shot; either individually or with at most 3 other people (just because of size constraints). Send a jpeg, tiff, ppt, or png file to amy.frazierdvm@gmail.com; I ll even take a real 4x6 print! We will use these in an upcoming craft project. No later than 10/14, please. FINANCIAL SNAPSHOT January 1 August 31, 2018 Total Income: $79, Total Expenses: $84, Net: ($4,992.54)

3 OCTOBER 2018 ST. THOMAS LIFELINE S PAGE 3 God Willing and the People Consenting The Rt. Reverend Mark A. Bourlakas Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Southwestern Virginia will ordain Jon Alan Greene Shirley Eloise Ruedy Dick Willis To the Sacred Order of Deacons Your Prayers and Presence are requested Saturday the sixth of October Two thousand and eighteen At ten thirty in the morning At St. John s Episcopal Church 1 Mountain Avenue Roanoke, VA Everyone is invited to attend the ordination of Jon Greene. Several St. Thomas members will be participating: David Jones and the choir, Harvey Leist will be the Verger, and Mary Stuart Cosby and Fr. Mark will be presenting Jon as a candidate! Back Pack Program The collection for the backpack program has returned to Christiansburg Primary School. For September, we collected 16 fruit cups and 33 boxes of granola bars. As reported by Crystal Fentress, CPS has been sending home 60 packs per week, and CES (Christiansburg Elementary School) 50 packs per week. Thank you for your generous support of this outreach program and keep them coming! Ms. Fentress did mention the need for volunteers (8-10) to assemble the packs for the month of November. This would take place the first Wednesday in November (November 7) at The Bridge. If you would like to volunteer, please see Danielle Bland. Trex Challenge There s a new occupant in the parish hall. The Trex Challenge is under way. With the vestry s support, we are attempting to recycle a minimum of 500 pounds of plastic in a six month time frame. On average, a 30 gallon trash bag will hold 650 plastic bags and weigh 8 lbs. If the goal is met, Trex will donate a bench to St. Thomas. Look for the collection box in the parish hall, and please donate your recyclables. All plastics must be clean, dry, and free of residue. What can be recycled? Grocery bags Bread bags Dry cleaning bags Newspaper sleeves Ice bags Wood pellet bags FALL CONVOCATION & MISSION DAY The Fall Mission Day and Fall Convocation Meetings will take place on Saturday, Oct. 27th at Christ Church, Blacksburg. Our guest speaker will be Bishop Nick Baines of the Diocese of Leeds, England. He will present on missional ways to live out our common life and follow Jesus as a Diocese in the 21st Century. I m passionate about Christian engagement in the big wide world not on our own terms, but on the basis that we get stuck in wherever we can; committed to the world in all its pain and glory. Bishop Nick Baines Ziplock and other reclosable bags Produce bags Bubble Wrap Salt bags Cereal bags (cereal box liners ) ALL PLASTICS MUST BE CLEAN, DRY, AND FREE OF RESIDUE. The Fall Mission Day is open to all people from every congregation and everyone is encouraged to attend. Refreshments will be available. Lunch will be served at a cost of $12 per person. If you'd like to attend, please register in advance, so that diocesan staff can prepare for the day. If you plan on having lunch, advance registration is required. The registration form can be found at the following link: The registration deadline is October 12th.

4 OCTOBER 2018 ST. THOMAS LIFELINE S PAGE 4 Area of 7 Servers for OCTOBER 14 PARISH RETREAT AT SELU Acolytes: Server, Crucifer S: Casey Graham C: Cameron Graham S: Akan Ndem C: Sara Stauffer S: Macaela Richmeier C: Bridget Miller Altar Guild Kathy Pollard Lynn Straub Kathy Pollard Lynn Straub Lora Beeken Judy Koland Lora Beeken Judy Koland Announcements Jeff Pasciak Val Tweedie Joanne Stauffer Ann Alexander Chalice Bearer Danielle Bland Carol Cummings Val Tweedie Rebecca Mays Cleaning Crews Mary Stuart Cosby Irma Pillsbury Shirley Sparrow Farrell Doss David Jones Betty & Bill Kennan Jennifer & Mark Miller Coffee Hour Rebecca Mays Bonnie Smas Lynn Straub Stella Okoronkwo Rachel Morgante- Richmeier Lay Reader Joel Hagen Rebecca Mays Mark Priest Amy Frazier Nursery Sara Stauffer Kelly Stalvey Dara Ndem Uche Okoronkwo Natalie Miller Marie Painter Ushers Jeff Pasciak Gwynn Polidoro Sarah Farmer Scott Farmer Mark Miller Seth Richmeier Bev & Greg Moulse Birthdays 1 Robert Gibson 12 Paul Stalvey 16 Natalie Miller 20 Fr. Mark Frazier 21 Akan Ndem 22 Amy Frazier 29 Hayden Bathgate 31 Graham Swinfen Anniversaries 4 Bev & Greg Moulse 8 Michael & Susan Bathgate 15 Bob & Joanne Stauffer 22 Jim Chamberlain & Cindy Ptak CONCESSION STAND It s our last hurrah! We will be manning the concession stand at the Virginia Tech home football game one last time on Thursday, Oct. 25 th, at 7:30pm. We need 16 people to fill two shifts to man the booth that evening. The first shift is 4:30-9:30 and the second shift is Please only sign up for one shift! If we have a full stand, we can make as much as $1000 for the evening! The signup sheet is on our website. For more information, contact Cindy Ptak. St. Thomas People Thank you Cleaning Crew members! Our church shines each week with your hard work and dedication! Do you have news to share? We d love to hear from you weddings, births, graduations, new jobs, moving, etc. FALL YOUTH EVENT Youth in grades 9-12 Nov At Phoebe Needles Early Bird Registration ends 10/21! Go to the Diocesan Youth website (youth.dioswva.org) for more information and to register. The first Sunday of every month is designated as FOOD BANK SUNDAY. In September, 36 food items were delivered to MCEAP. The next Food Bank Sunday is October 7th.

5 OCTOBER 2018 ST. THOMAS LIFELINE S PAGE 5 OCTOBER 2018 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Rev. Mark s Office Hours Thursdays 4:30 6: Ordination of Jon Greene 10:30 am St. John s, Roanoke 7 The 20th Sunday after Pentecost Hospitality & Food Bank Sunday 10am Holy Eucharist 10am Church Upstairs 11:15am Fellowship & Refreshments 3pm Blessing of the Animals pm NA 13 10am Choir Rehearsal 14 The 21stSunday after Pentecost PARISH RETREAT SUNDAY Selu Conservancy Worship 10am :15 Daughters of the King 19 7pm NA 20 10am Choir Rehearsal 21 The 22nd Sunday after Pentecost Loose Plate Offering~Rector s Discretionary 10am Holy Rail 10am Church Upstairs 11:15am Coffee Hour 11:30am Adult Forum 12pm Vestry pm NA 27 10am Choir Rehearsal Fall Convocation & Diocesan Fall Mission Day Christ Church, Blacksburg 28 The 23rd Sunday after Pentecost 10 am Holy Eucharist 10am Church Upstairs 11:15am Coffee Hour 11:30am Adult Forum

6 ST. THOMAS LIFELINE S St. Thomas Episcopal Church 103 East Main St. Christiansburg, VA mysthomasoffice@yahoo.com