TRANSaGRAM. John of Shanghai; Synaxis of the 12 Apostles John of Shanghai and San Francisco. Synaxis of the 12 Apostles.

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1 TRANSaGRAM June 2010 Monthly / Issue No. 5 TRANSFIGURATION GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH Fr. Stephen Lawrence, Pastor John of Shanghai; Synaxis of the 12 Apostles John of Shanghai and San Francisco The Holy Hierarch John Maximovitch was born in the Kharkov region in 1896, and reposed in San Francisco in In 1921, during the Russian Civil War, his family fled to Belgrade, joining the ranks of Russian exiles in Serbia, where he later became a monk and was ordained priest. In 1934 he was made Bishop of Shanghai, where he served until the Communists came to power. Thereafter he ministered in Europe, serving as Bishop first in Paris then in Brussels, until he became Archbishop of San Francisco in Throughout his life he was revered as a strict ascetic, a devoted man of prayer, and a truly wondrous unmercenary healer of all manner of afflictions and woes. He served the Divine Liturgy daily, slept little more than an hour a day, and kept a strict fast until the evening. It is doubtful that any one man gave so much protection and comfort as he to the Russian Orthodox people in exile after the Revolution of 1917; he was an unwearying and watchful shepherd of his sheep in China, the Philippines, Europe, and America. Through his missionary labors he also brought into the Church many who had not been of this fold. Since his repose in 1966, he has been especially glorified by God through signs and miracles, and his body has remained incorrupt. Synaxis of the 12 Apostles The names of the Twelve Apostles are these: Simon, who was called Peter, and his brother Andrew, the First-called; James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John, who was also the Evangelist and Theologian; Philip, and Bartholomew (see also June 11 th ); Thomas, and Matthew the publican, who was also called Levi and was an Evangelist; James the son of Alphaeus, and Jude (also called Lebbaeus, and surnamed Thaddaeus), the brother of James, the Brother of God; Simon the Cananite ( the Zealot ), and Matthias, who was elected to fill the place of Judas the traitor (see Aug. 9 th ). In this issue Musings Fr. Stephen talks about instilling a vision about the future life of our parish according to Christ s teachings. Page 2 Church Events May 16 th General Assembly; Philoptochos Evening of Appreciation ; Spring Raffle winners. Page 4 Parish Council News Reports up to date information from the Parish Council, including the President s Report, Treasurer s Report, Stewardship, and Parish Ministries. Page 8 Church News Read all of the latest news being reported by our parish groups and committees. Page 11

2 Vision Casting by Fr. Stephen Lawrence MUSINGSMUSINGS TRANSaGRAM June One of the current buzz words in church growth is vision casting. It is a surprisingly controversial term. Some call it a dangerous heresy usurping the sovereignty of God by replacing His purposes with our vain imaginings of some preferred future. Others call it critical to a healthy Christian community citing Proverbs 29:18, Where there is no vision the people perish. Rightly understood, I believe vision casting is a healthy exercise in the life of a parish. But what is a right understanding of vision casting? Objections to the idea of vision casting come from those who see it as an unhealthy business trend which has infiltrated the church. They see it as a bunch of broken and sinful men and women however faithful and sincere they may be creating the church in their image. It is important from the outset to recognize this as a valid and sobering critique. Talking about our vision for the parish very definitely carries with it the danger of imposing our human limitations and faults onto Christ s body. So we must be cautious and attentive to this temptation and insure that we approach any strategic planning with humility and prayer while trusting in the Holy Spirit to guide our deliberations. So vision casting cannot be about replacing God s plan with our plan. Still, though, we have the question, What is vision casting? Simply put, vision casting is the process of instilling a vision of the future life of a parish in the minds of its parishioners. It is creating a strategic plan for how to go forward, how to prioritize, how to organize life in the parish. It is the process where we gather as a family and talk about what we want our life together to be, coming to a consensus and agreeing to work together toward that life. And it happens in three phases. The first is exploring Scripture and recognizing God s revelation of the life He intends for His people. It is humbly approaching the throne of our God and asking Him what His vision for the parish is; what He wants of us. This is the first and most critical element the element which guards us from our own egotism and vain pride. We cannot implement our vision for the parish; we must implement our Lord s vision for the parish. Phase two is the long and detailed discussion of how we would like Simply put, vision casting is the process of instilling a vision of the future life of a parish in the minds of its parishioners. to accomplish this vision. A mentor once told me that we do not get to decide what our mission is that s God s prerogative but we can decide how to accomplish that mission. This phase is where we decide how to organize our life together, how to prioritize, how to accomplish God s vision. Finally, the third phase is executing the vision. It is all well and good to create lofty plans and talk eloquently about a vision. But it means nothing if we do not move forward. This is why the Parish Council has established a Strategic Planning Ministry for our parish. We have begun the conversation about what our God given mission is and we have identified ministry areas in our parish life together. We are now ready to start the work of creating a Ministry Team organization in our parish. The Ministry Team approach organizes our parish life into five teams focused on each of our Biblically based missions as well as one team focused on the practical needs of any organization. Let me describe them (and maybe this won t seem so complicated): In response to our Lord s command to Love God with all your heart, mind, body, and soul, the Liturgical Team will be responsible for the worship in our parish. It will oversee ministries like the Altar Boys, Choir, and Sexton, as well as activities like decorating the Church for Feast Days. In response to our Lord s command to Love your neighbor as yourself, the Ministry Team will be responsible to service both within our parish and in our broader community. It will oversee ministries focused on homelessness, hunger, poverty, illness, and other needs. It will include visiting our shut ins as well as reaching out to the lost and suffering around us. As you can imagine, this team will work closely with Philoptochos. In response to our Lord s command to Go and make disciples of all nations, the Evangelism Team will be responsible for our public relations ministry, making Orthodoxy known and understood in our broader Lowell community. In response to our Lord s command to Baptize the nations, the Fellowship Team will oversee the building of community here in our parish. It will oversee ministries like the Events Ministry and Coffee Hour, as well as planning annual events like a Continued on page 13

3 Services, Sacraments and Trisagia For up to date information, contact the church at Orthros: 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. Divine Liturgy: 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. June 6 th...orthros, 9:00 a.m. Divine Liturgy, 10:00 a.m. June 13 th...orthros, 9:00 a.m. Divine Liturgy, 10:00 a.m. Summer Hours Begin Baptisms None Weddings June Trisagia Andrew Betses George Betses James Betses John Betses George A. Danas George P. Danas Katherine G. Danas Stephen A. Danas Domenic Desando Marian Desando Diamando Eliopoulos Panagiotis Eliopoulos Peter Eliopoulos Rosemary Eliopoulos Evelyn Eliopoulos Georgenes Anastasios Harkoplias George Harkoplias Koula Harkoplias Soultana Kapsouris Sunday Services Orthros: 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Divine Liturgy: 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. June 20 th...orthros, 8:00 a.m. Divine Liturgy, 9:30 a.m. June 27 th...orthros, 8:00 a.m. Divine Liturgy, 9:30 a.m. May 1 st : William Arvanites and Mary Thomas; sponsor Gary Mastas Names of the deceased are read the first Sunday of each month. Please send the names to be read in advance, listing the month you would like them read. If you would like the name to be read June 24 th (Thursday)... Orthros, 8:00 a.m.; Divine Liturgy, 9:00 a.m. (Nativity of St. John the Baptist) June 29 th (Tuesday)... Orthros, 8:00 a.m.; Divine Liturgy, 9:00 a.m. (Holy Apostles Peter and Paul) Stergios Koravos Charles Loulakis Yianni Manelas Paraskevi Manolis Lorraine Martakos Martin Martakos Paul Martakos Charles Metropolis Lewis Metropolis Peter J. Mitropoulis James Mitropoulos Donald Musgrave Gus Pappas Angelo Papulis Costas Rodopoulos Bess Savoley Annie Savramis Steve Savramis Angela Selvaggio Funerals Summer Hours May 24 th : Mary Favas May her memory be eternal. Monthly Trisagia in Greek, please include the Greek spelling along with the English. If you have any questions, contact Dyanne Mitropoulis at Antonio Selvaggio Marco Selvaggio Maria Selvaggio Mary Lou Selvaggio Nickola Selvaggio Andrew Skalkeas Anastasios Sparages Eleni Tsechrintzis Evangelos Tsilikounas Steve Xifaris Additional Names Read in May Anna Gavriel Christos Gavriel Pauline Gavriel Alyce Giavis Special Services Beginning Sunday, June 20 th, and throughout the summer, Divine Liturgy will begin at 9:30 a.m. Please call or visit for current information on Sunday Services, Special Services, and important church dates and events. Sacraments CHURCHSERVICES June 2010 TRANSaGRAM 3

4 May 16 th General Assembly by Sandra Gulezian, Parish Council Secretary TRANSaGRAM June 2010 CHURCHEVENTS 4 Photos by Nick Pappas On Sunday, May 16 th, our parish held an Assembly at which Philip Eliopoulos served as moderator. Carl Maib presented the Treasurer s report and he highlighted the following: In 2009, we met our operating budget based on several key factors, including savings we experienced from changing our gas, electricity, landscaping providers; refinancing and reducing the mortgage; paying the priest s salary for only 7 months, etc. In 2010, only 68 individuals have pledged money for the Mortgage Elimination Program, which will only cover about 37% of the budget. The full treasurer s report and slide presentation will be available in the church office. In Fr. Stephen s report, he spoke about the vision for the parish and the new Strategic Planning Ministry team that will begin to meet to plan the vision for our parish. He encouraged everyone to consider how they would like to get involved by committing to a ministry team. Top: Olivia Sintros delivers the VCC report. Below: Carl Maib presents the Treasurer s report. Top: Parish Council Secretary Sandra Gulezian (left) takes minutes of the meeting; Parish Council President John Dristilaris (right) listens intently to the presentations. Micah Hirschy informed the Parish Assembly that he can no longer commit to serving as Youth Director for the parish for several reasons, including his upcoming commitment to serve at MBC (camp). He will continue to be involved in the life of the parish and would like to see us continue the Open Church concept that he started, where the church is open to the youth and their families each Sunday, during which time homework can be done, games can be played, etc. Reports were prepared and read from each of the following organizations: Sunday School Choir Philoptochos Youth Director Vacation Church Camp Below: John Dristilaris delivers the President s report. The meeting concluded after nominations for the Board of Elections and Board of Auditors. A full set of minutes will be prepared and will be available in the church office. Top: Fr. Stephen presents his report and discusses the new Strategic Planning Ministry with the gathered assembly. Below: Philoptochos President Patricia Mahoney delivers the Philoptochos report.

5 2010 Philoptochos Spring Calendar Raffle Winners by Patricia Mahoney, Philoptochos President May 1 Theodore Sarantos May 2 George Koufogazos May 3 Amber Greathead May 4 George Kostoulakos May 5 Angie Manolopoulos May 6 Melanie Pappas May 7 Melissa Troy May 8 Elaine Lazouras May 9 Kim Murphy May 10 Dr. Charles Mitsakos May 11 Sue Chiungos Philoptochos Events June 8 th : Philoptochos Board Meeting June 20 th : Graduate Sunday June 27 th : House of Hope July 4 th 7 th : National Philoptochos Biennial Convention August 5 th : Transfiguration Name Day Reception (after Vespers) August 6 th : Transfiguration Name Day Luncheon Sunday School June 13 th : Sunday School Graduation May 12 Joyce Limberopoulos May 13 Vito Selvaggio May 14 Joyce Collela May 15 Milton Nicholaides May 16 Catherine Purville May 17 Stratos Dukakis May 18 Melissa Troy May 19 Anastasia Forsley May 20 Olga Letsou May 21 Nick Contris May 22 Joyce Collela Other Church Dates June 6 th : Godparent Sunday May 23 Elaine Lazouras May 24 Olivia Philis May 25 Joan Tournas May 26 Charlotte Nigzus May 27 Dennis & Diane Casavant May 28 Chris & Marina Sintros May 29 Louis Heliotis May 30 George & Marina Balkas May 31 Joyce Limberopoulos Philoptochos congratulates all winners and thanks all parishioners and friends for their support of our philanthropic ministries. The Fall Calendar Raffle is coming with more chances to win! June 6, 13, 20: Open Church, 4:00 p.m. 7:00 p.m. June 12 th : Strategic Planning Ministry, 9:00 a.m. June 13 th : Metropolis Awards Dinner Save the Date June 20 th : Summer Hours Begin (Liturgy at 9:30 a.m.) July 19 th 25 th : Transfiguration Week at the Summer Camp June 21 st : Strategic Planning Ministry, 7:00 p.m. July 26 th 30 th : Vacation Church Camp (VCC) July 31 st : Transfiguration Feast Day Family Picnic CHURCHEVENTS Spring is here, and soon the company that does the inscriptions will be ordering bricks and getting ready for another season of activity. I am taking this opportunity to remind everyone to order commemorative bricks for that special occasion. I would like to order the bricks in groups of 25 there is plenty of room in this up-coming order. It could be late summer before another order will be sent. If you are interested in having your brick placed in the walkway this summer, see Jeanne in the church office for an order form. Parish Council Ministries Various Contributors Leave a Legacy Brick Campaign by Tom and Jaye Amick The price of the bricks is $125 for the 4x8 brick and $225 for the 8x8 brick. The Leave a Legacy brick campaign provides funds for mortgage elimination, a goal that everyone can support. I hope that everyone will support this effort to have every member family of the church represented by a brick in the front and back walkway. It is also an excellent way to commemorate births, weddings, anniversaries, and to commemorate the passing of family members or friends. Continued on page 9 June 2010 TRANSaGRAM 5

6 An Evening of Appreciation by Cathy Economou and Patricia Mahoney TRANSaGRAM June 2010 CHURCHEVENTS On May 6 th, 26 Philoptochos ladies were honored for their more than 50 years of loyal membership to the Transfiguration Philoptochos. Fifteen honorees attended and were greeted by past presidents Susan Pappas and Olivia Sintros, who corsaged them with beautiful red silk roses. The Philoptochos Board hosted a delightful light dinner of chicken skewers, Greek salad, and pita. The program was followed with greetings from Metropolis President Philippa Condakes, who congratulated our honorees for this amazing accomplishment of 50+ years of membership, noting that they are the epitome of Philoptochos. National Board Member Christine Karavites gave a synopsis of Philoptochos history through the decades. She noted that we have 475 chapters nationwide with 27,500 sisters, and that that our goal is to engage, embrace, and involve all Orthodox women. First Vice-President Olivia Sintros began the presentations by thanking our honorees for their love, commitment, dedication, time, talent, and treasure. She then read snippets of details given to her by Helen Georges on the history of our Chapter s events; these snippets were both touching and humorous. Olivia introduced each honoree, who was presented with a Certificate of Merit from National and an icon of Philoptochos patron Saints Cosmos and Damien. Our Honorees Mary Moskovites years Photine Skandalis years Anna Tavoularis years Elizabeth Balamotis years Martha Sintros years Antonia Sintros years Evangelia Piazas years Demetria Botos years Aphrodite Tsoumas years Dyanne Mitropoulis years Polyxene Bouras years Irene Kostoulakos years Thelma Coravos years Honorees who were unable to attend received their gifts through personal visits by our Visiting Angels or by mail. Presentations were followed by our talented Toula Sparages, who encouraged our honorees to share some of their past experiences. Toula wrote a special song for the evening entitled The Work Goes On. She led us in song, and the audience thoroughly enjoyed the melody and the message. Coffee and a dessert of specially designed lemon filled cupcakes topped off the evening. In closing, Fr. Stephen offered a prayer from Sts. Cosmos and Damien, whose selflessness Philoptochos women emulate. This special evening was a unique opportunity to express our appreciation to 26 ladies for their more than 50 years of loyalty to our chapter. Over 50 women and men attended this celebration; everyone agreed that this event was an evening to remember. We extend our special thanks to the following: Programs by Melanie Pappas Pita by Eleni Stavrou Cupcakes by Elizabeth Tsioulis Skewers by Skewers The Work Goes On by Toula Sparages The Best of the Rest by the Philoptochos Board Our sincerest congratulations to all honorees! Olga Letsou years Mary Nicholaides years Joan Pappas years Frances Pappas years Elpenice Sarantos years Mary Tsoumas years Angie Rigs years Mary Alexakos years Dorothea Scondras years Elly Vainas years Ellen Trearchis years Elaine Lazouras years Vasiliki Tsichlis years 6

7 Photo Gallery of Recent Events Various Contributors Philoptochos Evening of Appreciation Photos by Melanie Pappas June 2010 TRANSaGRAM CHURCHEVENTS 7

8 President s Report by John Dristilaris, Parish Council President PARISHCOUNCIL June 2010 Editor s Note: This President s Report is a copy of the report presented at the May 16 th General Assembly. Good afternoon; Father Stephen, fellow parishioners, and fellow council members. Over the last 18 months as a council member and now President, I have been fortunate to have had the pleasure of working with 12 dedicated and committed individuals. During this councils tenure we have had the honor of being involved in the process of hiring a new priest for our parish, installing a heat and smoke detection system to help protect our beautiful church, with the assistance of the General Assembly reduced our current mortgage by $100,000, implement cost effective savings options for our utilities, and have started to develop a strategic plan with Father Stephen that will help us go successfully and progressively forward as a parish into the future. Being a person that is involved in some of this planning, it is important for me to understand, in terms of path dependency, some of the things that have happened in the past so we can try not hit some of the road blocks or pot holes others may have experienced. By looking at the past issues, I personally find it easier to process, plan and problem solve. With this being said I want to share with you the meaning of a recent discovery that has influenced this report. At some point last Fall, Spike Sintros and I happened to be in the old men s room discussing cleaning out that space for future use when we came across many of our church s beautifully painted icons. These icons had been painted in the 1920 s and had been donated to the church by different families. All of these icons, at one time, were part of the original basement Treasurer s Report by Carl Maib, Parish Council Treasurer church and had been stored, almost sinfully, in this old lavatory, collecting dust as well as other things. Upon further searching around the church, other items and icons that were such a large part of this parish s history were found buried behind walls or in cubby holes. All of these icons had been left behind for some unexplained reason and neglected. Many of these icons I remember seeing hanging or displayed in our church when I was a young boy. It made me very sad as well as angry to see some of the things that were such an important part of our faith, religious culture, and family memories, as it related to the Transfiguration and the Greek Orthodox Church, totally discarded and ignorantly discounted and stored away like clothes we have outgrown. Well, as it turns out, these discoveries were a true blessing as well as the inspiration to create a Historical Ministry. A Historical Ministry was created by the parish council, and under the direction of Spike Sintros, managed to further search every inch of the church to locate any items that may have been discarded. I am very pleased to announce that through Spike s efforts, a Hall of Icons has now been created using the renovated old hallway in the back of the [church] hall. These icons are now being reframed, cleaned and hung on the walls. No longer are they hidden in dirty corners of some old bathroom. We have been extremely lucky to have found these items, and through generous donations of money and time, been able to resurrect these icons and properly display them so they never again are defamed. Looking at this unfortunate discovery made me take a step back to think of the possible symbolism that Continued on page 14 TRANSaGRAM 8 Account Summary Account Balance Comments Altar Fund $2, Fes2val Checking $3, General Checking $57, Mortgage Elimina2on $28, Money Market Savings $133, $224, Other Activities There is plenty of exciting work and opportunity remaining for this year. If you have any questions, or are interested in helping, please contact me at treasurer@transchurch.org.

9 Parish Council Report by Sandra Gulezian, Parish Council Secretary The Parish Council met on Monday, May 10 th ; the following are highlights from that meeting: The Clergy Laity conference is being held in Atlanta from July 4 th 7 th. John is unable to attend, as are several others. Olivia is available and willing to represent our Parish, so she will be attending the Clergy Laity conference in Atlanta. There was a motion to change the start of Divine Liturgy to 9:30 a.m. beginning on June 20 th and continuing for the summer. The motion passed. The Parish Council will consider changing the start time of Divine Liturgy to 9:30 year round and discuss this at a future meeting. Transfiguration Pastry Booth at Lowell Folk Festival July 23, 24 and 25 Booth Location: Dutton Street Dance Stage Booth Hours: Friday, July 23 rd, 6:00 p.m. 10:30 p.m. Saturday, July 24 th, 12 noon 10:30 p.m. Sunday, July 25 th, 12 noon 5:30 p.m. Plans are underway for our church s first year as participants at the Lowell Folk Festival. This event draws thousands; it is hoped our pastries will be a sell out. The LFF is very pleased to have us and welcomes the Transfiguration Church in this year s folk festival. I attended the first of four city meetings and learned many of the restrictions and regulations (strictly enforced) that all participants must follow. One of these is the use of biodegradable products. July is quickly approaching. There is much to be done. We are in need of many volunteers to work the booths, help in set up, clean up, delivery, inventory and many other areas. Please consider volunteering a few hours of your time. Your church needs you. Please contact Susan Pappas, Sandra Gulezian or Fr. Stephen will be attending MBC camp the week of July 19 th. Many families will be sending their children to camp this year. If you or your child is interested, please see Fr. Stephen or visit Fr. Stephen will be reaching out to parishioners to begin a Strategic Vision Ministry. He will be selecting dates and meetings every two weeks in the coming months. If you are interested, please let him know. We discussed final plans for the Parish Assembly scheduled for May 16 th. Carl, Tom and others on the Finance Ministry team have been meeting to prepare reports. Parish Council Ministries (continued from page 5) Fundraising/Events Ministry by Angela Hastings Mary Piper for scheduling. The City of Lowell requires that a list of all volunteer names working the booths be submitted by the end of May. We have revised the kinds of pastry we will be selling to the public. They are koulouria, loukoumades, baklava and diples. Koulouria baking is needed, as well as more volunteers in the loukoumades committee. We will be outsourcing the baklava and diples. Anyone interested in donatig towards the purchasing of baklava, please contact Angela Hastings. One sheet of baklava is $80, and a half sheet is $40. Our next LFF meeting is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 15 th, at the church. We hope to see you! On another note, our Fall Golf Tournament has been rescheduled to the Fall of Our first meeting for this event will take place in November of this year. Other events we are considering are a family picnic on July 31 st, and a Gold Rush/Social in the Fall. For 2011, we are considering a Mardi Gras Dance, Church Festival, Lowell Folk Festival, Family Picnic, and Golf Tournament. In the meantime, if you have any ideas for some great events for the church, please let me know. Continued on page 13 June 2010 TRANSaGRAM PARISHCOUNCIL 9

10 The Road Ahead by Fr. Stephen Lawrence STEWARDSHIPCORNER TRANSaGRAM June I began this column with the hope of describing the profound spiritual discipline of Stewardship. My intent was to get away from the persistent idea that stewardship was just a fancy church term for membership dues. I pray that you have all found this a rewarding reflection and that it has encouraged you to reconsider what Stewardship means in your life. There is no more personal measure of our commitments than where we choose to spend our money. I pray you take seriously our Christ s teaching and His gentle commands and warnings, For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Over the course of the past year our average Stewardship pledge has increased nearly 20%. I want to thank all of you for your careful consideration of Stewardship as part of an authentic Greek Orthodox Christian lifestyle. We have come far in just one year, but we still have quite a distance to go. We must continually refine our thoughts and deeds so that they ever more closely conform to our Christ s expectations. As we celebrate this success let us not ignore the challenges ahead. Our Transfiguration Stewardship Ministry will continue to encourage and recommend weekly, proportional giving. If you have not yet tried this Biblical standard of giving, feel free to contact me with any questions or for guidance in how to slowly and gently adopt this practice. We all need to challenge ourselves to faithfully and sacrificially make our offerings to support God s work Stewardship Report by Olivia Sintros, Stewardship Reporter It s time now for us to consider the critical importance of being engaged in some We are most grateful to those 304 stewards who have chosen to complete a pledge card, have contributed a weekly offering, have sent an annual contribution, or in some way are contributing to our parish ministries, and we thank them for their faithful stewardship. Our church treasurer will be using Servant Keeper, our new tracking system, to send faithful stewards a personal contribution statement as of April 30, We are also sensitive to the economic struggles that some families are facing and urge you to speak with Fr. Stephen if need be. If your lack of completing a pledge card is an oversight, won t you please complete ministry of the Church. here in Lowell. We have many more rungs to ascend before our Stewardship is an accurate reflection of our parish family s love and devotion to our God. We are still supporting less than 50% of our operating costs through Stewardship; but I know the day is coming when our Stewardship meets not only our operating costs but also supports a broad and comprehensive collection of vital and dynamic ministries. And each of you plays a vital role in attaining this milestone. Having said all of that, this will be the last Stewardship Corner column that I write. I want to avoid the danger of over talking the issue until it just becomes background noise. Also, hopefully all of you now have a sense of how Stewardship of Treasure plays a vital role in our spiritual lives. But our Treasure is only a small portion of the gifts God has entrusted us. As we come to the end of this Ecclesiastical year and look forward to the next I would like to emphasize our Stewardship of Time and Talents. Look for a volunteer recruitment campaign in the Fall. It s time now for us to consider the critical importance of being engaged in some ministry of the Church. It s not enough just to be a member of the Transfiguration; now I want us to talk about what it takes to be a participant in the life of the Transfiguration parish family. I invite you to take this journey with me and the members of your parish family. Let s find out what we can all do together. your pledge card today; or if you have misplaced your 2010 card, please call the church office and we will send one to you immediately. Again, we thank those of you who have submitted their 2010 pledge cards and are contributing accordingly. We encourage those who have not yet pledged to do so as soon as they are able. Information as of 4/30/10 Participating stewards to date: Total pledged:... $129,552 Received to date:... $89,555 Budgeted goal:... $135,000

11 Philoptochos Society by Patricia Mahoney, Philoptochos President Membership: Thank you to the 159 members who have submitted their Philoptochos stewardship for Thirty two members have not as yet submitted their cards. Please do so as soon as possible. Since September 2009, we have welcomed 18 new members; five have dearly departed. If you have any questions about your membership or would like to join, please contact Jill Laganas or Pat Mahoney at Literacy Project: Thanks to the generosity of our parishioners and friends, over 1,500 children s books have been donated and will be distributed to the children of the Murkland School along with a book bag. This will take place before school ends in June. Shoes for Orphan Souls: We will be continuing our collection of new children s shoes, socks, and shoelaces throughout the month of June. You can drop off your donations in the Philoptochos room any time or in the bins in the upper and lower lobby. In the past, we have sent over 75 pairs of shoes and 125 pairs of socks. Let s try to beat those numbers. Shoes for Orphan Souls, a ministry of Buckner International, has distributed more than 1.5 million pairs of new shoes and socks to at risk children in the United States and to orphans in 55 countries around the world. Your help would be greatly appreciated. Scholarship/Graduate Sunday: Scholarships will be awarded on Sunday, June 20 th, after Divine Liturgy, to qualifying high school students who plan to attend college next year. Students who are completing college, graduate or advanced degree work will also be recognized for their achievements. Father s Day: This year, once again, Connie, Freda, and Clara Gkolias will be distributing carnations to all the fathers, grandfathers and godfathers of the church in celebration of Father s Day on June 20 th. May Meeting: Our May 6 th meeting was our last general meeting for the Ecclesiastical year. The business meeting was somewhat abbreviated to provide time for our Evening of Appreciation. We voted to donate to the following national commitments: 75 th Anniversary Founders Fund $100; Support a Mission Priest $600; Orthodox Christian Fellowship $100. To our Metropolis commitment Philoxenia House, we voted $2,000. In addition, we voted to support two camper ships to the St. Methodios Faith & Retreat Center, at a donation of $475 each. On May 6 th, we also held a special Evening of Appreciation program, honoring 26 ladies who have been members of Philoptochos for more than 50 years. (Editor s Note: Please see page 6 for the full article.) Summer Work: Even though May marks the end of our year of meetings and events, the work of Philoptochos never ends. We will be collecting items for local charities we support the needs of the people never end. Anyone able to contribute canned goods, cereal, spaghetti, personal hygiene items, diapers, coloring books, crayons, or puzzle books, please drop them off in the Philoptochos room, and we will see to it that they are delivered. Name Day: Please remember the Church s Name Day on August 6 th. We will need help with a reception after Evening Vespers on August 5 th and with the luncheon on August 6 th. It is never too early to volunteer your services. National Philoptochos Biennial Convention: I will be representing our Philoptochos chapter in Atlanta,GA, on July 4 th 7 th. It is an honor and privilege to represent our organization. I look forward to sharing my experience in the September edition of the Trans-a- Gram. Calendar of Events June 8 th : Philoptochos Board Meeting June 20 th : Scholarship/Graduate Sunday June 27 th : House of Hope July 4 th 7 th : National Philoptochos Biennial Convention July 23 rd 25 th : Lowell Folk Festival August 5 th 6 th : Transfiguration Name Day A Special Note... As I near the end of my first year as president, I wish to thank all members of our chapter whose confidence, support, and love have helped to make the Transfiguration Philoptochos an organization of which to be proud. We are strengthening our sisterhood and reaching out to those in need. A special thanks to my Board, to my advisor and past president Susan Pappas, and to Fr. Stephen for their dedication and loyalty to me and to the mission of Philoptochos. I look forward to leading our chapter as we continue to do His work with grace and humility. With grateful thanks, Pat CHURCHNEWS June 2010 TRANSaGRAM 11

12 Parish Committee Reports Various Contributors CHURCHNEWS Sunday School by Connie Gkolias, Sunday School Director The Sunday School children and staff would like to wish Father Stephen, all our Fathers, Grandfathers, Uncles and Godfathers a Happy Fathers Day. To all children June 6 th is Godparent Sunday. Please invite your Godparents to come to Church and Sunday School with you on that day. June 13 th is Sunday School Graduation after the Divine Liturgy. We congratulate all our Sunday School Students. As we begin our summer vacation and activities, let s all remember that just because we are on vacation from Sunday school, we are not on vacation from church. This is our time to attend church with our families, enjoy the entire service together, and then go downstairs for refreshments. If you are on vacation, you can visit a different church, and when Sunday School resumes in September, you can tell all your classmates and teachers all about your new experience at a different church. On behalf of the Sunday School Department, we want to wish everyone a safe and happy summer. Dates to Remember Sunday, June 13 th : Sunday School Graduation Coffee Hour by Susan Pappas, Coffee Hour Coordinator May 16 th : Sponsored by the family of Stylianos Tsouprakos and by the family of Paul (Apostolakos) Lakos. May their memory be eternal. TRANSaGRAM June Orthodox Marketplace Free Bookstore Program The Orthodox Marketplace serves as a single source for books, icons, educational material, music, DVDs published by Archdiocesan departments and other Orthodox Christian distributors. They have partnered with the Department of Internet Ministries to create a customized online bookstore for each parish in the Archdiocese for FREE. Our parish s customized online store is available right now and is filled with the hundreds of products currently available through the Orthodox Marketplace. Sunday Epistle and Gospel Readings 6/6/2010 Matins: Mark 16:1 8 Epistle: St. Paul s Letter to the Romans 2:10 16 Gospel: Matthew 4: /13/2010 Matins: Mark 16:9 20 Epistle: St. Paul s Letter to the Romans 5:1 10 Gospel: Matthew 6:22 33 Not only is the service free, but our parish will even receive a 10% commission on any sales made through the online store. The free online bookstore program is yet another service from the Department of Internet Ministries that supports each parish in its ministry. To enter the website, go to: It s that easy. Once you use this link, your online bookstore is available 24/7 to serve your needs as an online visitor. 6/20/2010 Matins: Luke 24:1 12 Epistle: St. Paul s Letter to the Romans 6:18 23 Gospel: Matthew 8:5 13 6/27/2010 Matins: Luke 24:13 35 Epistle: St. Paul s Letter to the Romans 10:1 10 Gospel: Matthew 8:28 34; 9:1

13 Parish Council Reports (continued from page 9) Website by Melanie Pappas Podcasts Now Available Online! Visit and click on the new Media Room icon to listen to the latest sermons, Gospel lessons and Bible Study discussions. New recordings will be added each week, so be sure to visit often and to take advantage of these valuable resources. Enhance your understanding of the Orthodox faith at any time by accessing the MP3 files from your personal computer, MP3 player or smartphone! CHURCHNEWS Musings (continued from page 2) Transfiguration Family Gathering and Picnic. This will also include vibrant ministries to preserve and proclaim our Hellenic heritage like Greek dancing and Greek classes. In response to our Lord s command to Teach them to obey everything I have commanded you, the Discipleship Team will be responsible for the religious education and spiritual enrichment of our parish. It will oversee such critical ministries as Sunday School, Youth Programs, Bible Study and other programs. Finally the Parish Administration Team will oversee the finances, IT, legal, staffing, and other necessary details of institutional life. Please look over these Teams and ask yourself where your interests and your talents lie. Your parish needs your help and your input. In the coming months we will have Focus Group meetings to solicit input as well as recruiting volunteers to help in this exciting work. Think about how you can participate, and please seriously consider joining the Strategic Planning Ministry. There are exciting days ahead! Fr. Stephen June 2010 On May 23 rd, Presbytera Kelley Lawrence was joined by two visiting (and expecting) Presbyteras during Divine Liturgy. They chatted during coffee hour, with each other and with family and friends. Left to right: Presbytera Kelley Lawrence, holding son Zac; Presbytera Stephanie (Pappas) Gill; Presbytera Gloria (Ziagos) Costarakis. Photo by Cathy Koufogazos TRANSaGRAM 13

14 President s Report (continued from page 8) CHURCHNEWS these discarded icons may have represented as it pertains to our church and how we, as parish, had forgotten the importance our roots, the importance of what those icons represented, and most importantly, how much love and understanding it took individually and collectively to establish the parish here, at our beloved Transfiguration Church. There is no doubt in my mind that there were arguments and disagreements, some heated, while building our historic path especially considering and knowing the passion of Greeks. Whether it was deciding to leave the Holy Trinity Church, the construction of the basement church in this very room, expanding upward and building the church as it exists today, or adding the addition which was completed some seven years or so ago disagreements and arguments happened I personally know this to be true because I heard the stories growing up from my grandfather and my uncles about the years past and I certainly was personally able to witness and experience the same exhibition of passion when it came to this latest, modern day building addition. So, what is my message with this story? My message is this: we must never lose focus on the real meaning and importance of why we come to church. Why was it so hard for me to see these icons discarded? It was hard for me to see these icons discarded because it was like we forgot that we need to put Christ in the forefront in our lives and not discard him in some old bathroom. It was also hard to believe that our children would never understand or be exposed to the beautiful history of our faith, through these icons; like we have been blessed with, if they were so insensitively discarded in some closet or back room. When these icons, which represent the beautiful story of Christ, were put away and hidden in the dark, away from all to focus on and see, then it would only makes sense that the only focus left for people is to argue about the insignificance of some differences of opinions as it related to some meaningless construction constituted of cement, bricks, and paint. In closing, it is here, at this General Assembly, that I ask all of you, as your parish president, to help us continue to go forward. By setting an example for others and joining up and coming ministries at the church, involving your children in Sunday School, Hope/Joy, and GOYA, and with the giving of your generous time and talents, we will no doubt succeed in our mission and will be able to leave a better legacy to our children, one that they won t find hidden in some dark closet. Thank you. Contact Information TRANSaGRAM June Church Secretary: Jeanne Brady Address: Father John Sarantos Way, Lowell, MA Telephone: Fax: Church e mail: transfig@hotmail.com Web page: Office hours: Secretary: Mon. Fri., 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Priest: Mon. Thurs., 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., or by appointment Priest Father Stephen Lawrence Telephone: E mail: frstephen@transchurch.org Trans a Gram Editor: Catherine Koufogazos Telephone: E mail: cmkouf@verizon.net Web Site Webmaster: Melanie Pappas Telephone: E mail: webmaster@transchurch.org Parish Council Members President John Dristilaris H: C: jdristilaris@yahoo.com Vice President Christian Zouzas H: C: zouzas@aol.com Treasurer Carl Maib H: C: carl@maib.us Assistant Treasurer Tom Amick H: C: jtamick@verizon.net Secretary Sandra Gulezian H: C: msgulezian@comcast.net George Bertos H: C: ljsclean@comcast.net Corrine Dubay H: C: ccdubay@charter.net Angela Hastings H: C: angjefhastings@verizon.net Konstantinos Kalabokis H: C: kkalabokis@gmail.com Nick Pappas H: C: npappas05@comcast.net Mary Piper H: mary.dukakis@comcast.net Olivia Sintros H: C: osintros@comcast.net

15 Thank You For Your Support For advertising information, contact Nick Pappas at or Dracut Funeral Home 2159 Lakeview Avenue, Dracut, MA (978) Mark Gacek Director 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 John W. Crane 276 Pawtucket Street Lowell, Massachusetts (978) Morse Bayliss Funeral Home 122 Princeton Boulevard, Lowell, MA James F. O Donnell, Jr. LARGE enough to Serve All, but Small Enough to Care Privately Owned Pre Need Inquiries Welcomed Walter F. Bayliss, Jr. AD SPACE AVAILABLE Contact Nick Pappas npappas05@comcast.net June 2010 TRANSaGRAM SPONSORSHIPPAGE 15

16 Thank You For Your Support For advertising information, contact Nick Pappas at or SPONSORSHIPPAGE BLUE ANGUS CAFÉ 34 Broadway Road (Route 113) Dracut, MA Bridge Street Suite #22B Dracut, MA Tel: Fax: Web: George A. Malliaros Attorney at Law Trial Practice General Practice AD SPACE AVAILABLE Contact Nick Pappas June TRANSaGRAM 16