Trinity Bells, June 2008 My Dear Trinitarians,

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1 Trinity Bells, June 2008 My Dear Trinitarians, In this issue we are once again asking you to consider one or more of the following job opportunities in the life of the parish. Please review the list below and give prayerful consideration to taking on a new ministry: Ushers: Greet people at the door and give out the bulletins and other materials. Answer questions and provide directions. Ask people to bring the bread and the wine to the altar at communion (and explain the procedure). Count the congregation. Take up the collection. Invite children and others to ring the bells at the end of the service. Pick up bulletins and other items at the end of the service. Ushers need to get to church about 15 min. early and stay for 10 min. or so after the service. Altar Guild: Serve one weekend a month. On Saturday, do about 30 minutes of light cleaning and set up. Arrive at 10:00 (or 8:00) to set up for service. May also assist with washing and ironing of linens used for services. Training provided. This is a ministry where the need for new volunteers is especially great! Speak to Margo or Maryellen Hansen if interested. Children s Ministries: People to read stories and play with the littlest kids during the sermon are needed. People to assist the older kids with projects are needed. A person to assist with coordination is needed. Speak to Margo if you are interested. Readers: Read two or more lessons at a service. No license or special training is required. Readers look up the lessons in advance of the service and check on pronunciation of names and other difficult words. Readers serve once a month or less. Please speak to Margo or Sheila Platt if you are interested. Chalice bearers: Serve the chalice at communion. This requires a license from the bishop and attendance at a workshop held at Mercer. We really need people for this position! Please speak to Margo or Sheila Platt if you are interested. Lay Eucharistic Ministers: Same responsibilities as the Chalice bearer, but a broader license is given. Please speak to Margo or Sheila Platt. Choir or Handbells: Newcomers always welcome! If any adults or children are interested, please speak to Martha! Counters: On Mondays spend about 30 minutes to an hour at church counting the collection from the previous Sunday, recording the information and taking the deposit to the bank. Counters serve once a month to every six weeks although because of need some of our older folks are serving once every three weeks and often Joan is winding up doing it because no one is available). While not in the same category as the other positions, it is still extremely important to the church! Please speak to Margo or Joan if interested. All of these ministries are not only important, but generations of people have found them deeply and spiritually rewarding. If you want to participate in any of these and can t make a full commitment, we will happily schedule you less frequently. Have a wonderful summer everyone! Hope to see you in church! Please try to make Trinity s Mid-Summer s Eve BBQ on Thurs., August 7- details to follow soon. In Christ,

2 SPOTLIGHT ON WENDY CSOKA The vivid artistry in watercolors and acrylics by painter Wendy Csoka, lifelong resident of Sea Cliff and daughter of former parishioners Henry and Marguerite Hollman, is highlighted in a new book entitled Everything is Asleep Until It Wakes Up: The Art of Wendy Csoka. Her husband, Frank Csoka, assistant professor in the communication design department at FIT, took a sabbatical to write it. The book is a stunning collection of Wendy s artwork, with text in an interview format that captures her passion for painting. The couple is currently giving talks at libraries throughout Long Island to share the design and documentation process for the book. Congratulations to them both! FARMER DON? Yep, that s Don Kavanagh showing off produce at the Sea Cliff Farmers Market. He started this market which runs on Saturdays in downtown Sea Cliff featuring fresh produce from the East End of Long Island. Don personally picks up the produce each week. Hours are 8 am- 2 pm every Saturday through November. Check it out! IN GOOD COMPANY KUDOS TO MICHAEL HANSEN Congratulations are in order for Michael Hansen who has just graduated from SUNY Maritime College and has been commissioned as an Ensign in the Naval Reserve! Way to go! Sheila and John Platt at the annual meeting of Tribes Hill, a musicians collective based in Westchester. John was inducted as a lifetime honorary member for his work in promoting regional musicians. There's only one other honorary lifetime member - Pete Seeger- one of John s favorite musicians! Congratulations John!

3 DON T JUST DO SOMETHING, SIT THERE! By Mike Little, Ministry of Money Co-Director Martha was distracted with much serving. Luke 10:40 (ESV) One summer during college I was invited by a friend to work with his father s construction company. I warned his father that I knew very little about construction, but he assured me that I would catch on quickly. After the first week or so he was not so sure. Mr. Tucker was a generous and kind man, an honest man; but he was not a patient man. Whenever he was on the job site, no matter what I was doing (or thought I was ding) he would look at me and shout, Mike, don t just sit there, do something! It didn t take long for me to realize my future was not in the construction business. In the Luke passage (Luke 10:38-42) Jesus flips Mr. Tucker s advice on its head. Martha is upset with her sister Mary for just hanging out with Jesus instead of working with her in the kitchen. Jesus, sensing that Martha s demand for help was coming from an anxious spirit, says to her, Martha, Martha, you are distracted with much serving. In truth, he tells Martha, Don t just do something, sit there. I don t think Jesus is suggesting that we never do for our neighbors. What I get from this story is that our doing needs to come from our being. Servant acts, even if they are really good and sacrificial acts, are limited in their healing, eternal value unless they grow out of a transformed, inner being; unless they emerge out of our depths where God abides. Jesus described this kind of intimacy with God as the relationship between the vine and the branches. He didn t think it was just a good idea to stay connected to the vine, to God. He said apart from that intimate relationship, that deep connection, you can do nothing. God calls us to discover that which is deepest within us, that which is most true within us, that which is gift within us. Then, and only then, can we really connect with the pain of the world. Our world will be blessed by our loving presence, not by our desperate attempts to fix it. God s presence through us breaks into the lives of others to give hope. Any real good that we do will be because we are the bearers of that presence, and because we grow to recognize that presence in everyone we see. Reprinted by permission from the Ministry of Money June 2008 Newsletter. MAKING A BEQUEST TO TRINITY Why not prayerfully consider making a bequest to Trinity in your will? The Rector or either Warden would be happy to discuss this with you, and it is a wonderful way to remain an active influence in this wonderful parish whether you live far or near, and whether in this life or the life to come. One way to do this is to make Trinity the residual or contingent beneficiary in your will and that is a great option to consider. Other possibilities that may not require making or changing your will include making the parish a beneficiary on a life insurance policy (or policies) or the beneficiary on a bank account or IRA. You might also consider a bequest of real estate or of a specific amount. Such bequests and gifts make an enormous difference in the life of the parish. Stocks & Bonds can also be donated. If you own appreciated stocks or bonds that you have held for more than one year, making a gift to Trinity of some or all of those shares could benefit you and our Church. By donating appreciated stocks or bonds, you avoid paying the capital gains tax (15% long term rate) and receive a tax deduction for the full market price of the shares. Congress passed this legislation with the intention of increasing charitable contributions. If you are able to make a gift of any kind to Trinity, please call the church office for more information ( ).

4 OLIVIA NOELLE CHOWDHURY S BAPTISM- APRIL 6, 2008 (Granddaughter of Rebecca & Nabil Raoof) NAZAR AND TEJAL S WEDDING - MAY 3, 2008 (Son of Rebecca & Nabil Raoof)

5 PLATTS HOST DOUBT DISCUSSION TAG SALE TRIUMPH May 17, 2008 A couple dozen Trinity parishioners and friends gathered at the home of Sheila and John Platt on April 13 to discuss the Pulitzer prize-winning play Doubt, which Sheila had just performed with Arena Players. Two other cast members also took part: Tom Evans, who played Father Flynn, and Melissa Scott, who played Mrs. Muller. For an hour and a half there was a lively discussion of the questions the play raised: Was the priest guilty or not? Was Sister Aloysius right to pursue her suspicions of wrongdoing with no concrete proof? How far should you go to protect a child? What role does doubt play in the faith of a believer? Is it ever right to do wrong for the sake of the general good? For the actors, it was a rare opportunity to talk at length with audience members about playing such challenging roles in such a well-crafted play. And for everyone, it was a chance to enjoy one of Long Island s best: a Trinity Pot Luck Supper! Trinity's Tag Sale proved to be a big success with hundreds of items being sold to hundreds of buyers which resulted in thousands of dollars being added to Outreach for Community Service projects. The total was over $2,000. We were able to donate the leftovers to the North Shore Inn in Glen Cove, Central Nassau Guidance Council in Hicksville, St. Christopher's in Sea Cliff, Big Brothers of LI, and Women's Domestic Violence Agency. Many thanks to all who donated, picked up for others, helped set up, sell and pack up. Special thanks to Ruth Fick, Ann Mingorance, and Laura Kavanagh for everything they did. It would be great for someone to step up and offer to cochair the next sale as all my gathered knowledge needs to be passed on. This is always a most worthwhile effort on many levels. Barbara Holzkamp

6 PROPERTY & GROUNDS Do the big projects really come to fruition? Absolutely! By the time you read this, Margo s home will be newly air conditioned! That s one in the bucket. If we can get a contractor to respond to the request for quotes, we will rehab the master bathroom soon also. Reconditioning the stained glass has suffered some contract renegotiation resulting in some delays scheduling the project. It is still in our minds that the work will be completed this year. Mike has obtained a good bid to relocate the bell from the narthex. This will reduce the strain on the floor in that corner of the church and begin the preparation for reconstructing the floor. That project is crawling along. In fact, the project manager will be in the crawl space next week making a final assessment of our needs. He will be helping us obtain the bids that will be the basis of our fundraising efforts. We have retained an engineer to plan and size a new natural gas heating system. Statistics comparing gas to oil are to be included in the report. The design work will be completed in July and permit us to bid the job and negotiate with Keyspan for subsidized equipment. Lastly, the garden is progressing well. Mike Evans is delivering beautiful topsoil. Two of 6 frames have been filled and planted. Two more frames are awaiting green thumbs. FAITH WOLF HAS MOVED Faith Wolf, a long-time parishioner of Trinity Church, has recently moved from her home in Glen Head to a nursing home. If you d like to write her a card or letter, please send it to: Grace Plaza of Great Neck, 15 St. Andrews Place, Great Neck, NY NEW SCHEDULE OF SERVICES We will continue to have two services (8:30 & 10:30) up until and including June 29. Beginning July 6 th through Labor Day Weekend there will be ONE SERVICE AT 9:30 AM, followed as usual by an informal coffee hour in the breezeway. Beginning the weekend after Labor Day, there will be ONE SERVICE AT 10:00 AM each week and an 8:00 AM SERVICE THE FIRST SUNDAY OF EVERY MONTH. This new schedule will continue throughout the upcoming year. Margo, the Wardens, Vestry and others will continue to look for other ways to reach potential newcomers and address the needs of our current parishioners. Please feel free to share your thoughts, ideas or concerns with Margo or anyone on the Vestry. Rennie Archibald BURNING BOOKS The next meeting will be held on Wed June 25, 7:30 PM at the home of Jean and Bob Henning, 105 Harbor Lane, Roslyn Harbor to discuss Rachel Carson's Silent Spring. Any and all are welcome - even if you have not read the book! Call Jean at if you have any questions. Laura Kavanagh, Mike Callahan, Don Krug and Don Kavanagh ringing the bells on Trinity Sunday.

7 THE GREAT CONTEMPORARY ETHICAL DEBATES: A JEWISH-CHRISTIAN DIALOGUE MUSICAL NOTES Enjoy two special Trinity events in the same week - feel like you are vacationing at home! MON., AUGUST 4, 7:30 PM SONGS FOR A SUMMER EVENING Ariann Forella and Mike Fries, who grace Trinity with their beautiful singing every Sunday, will be sharing an evening of beautiful song on Mon. August 4 th at Trinity. These two talented young singers, accompanied by Martha Regelmann at the piano, are offering an hour of lovely solos and duets. With selections drawn from beloved musical theater, operatic favorites, and sublime art songs, this music is designed to delight and inspire. This program, the kick-off for a series of future concerts at various locations, is our gift to Trinity and will be recorded for promotional purposes. THURS., AUG. 7, 5:30 PM TRINITY S MID-SUMMER S EVE BBQ (aka Trinity s Parish Picnic) On June 10 and June 17 Rev. Margaret Peckham Clark and Rabbi Michael A. White spoke at Temple Sinai and Trinity Church respectively about the ethical decision-making process facing Christians and Jews alike. On June 10 the topics included beginning-of-life issues, such as when does life begin and abortion, among others. On June 17 end-oflife issues were discussed, including extending life through heroic measures and others. It was a well attended, thought-provoking program with numerous questions from the audience. In fact, many asked if we could continue the dialogue with similar programs in the future! Thanks to all who attended this informative program, and a special thanks to Rabbi White and Margo, whose friendship made this endeavor possible. Please join us later in the week on Thurs., August 7 th for a summer BBQ on Trinity s grounds (watch for details to come). In addition to a sumptuous feast and good company, there will be informal singing of popular standards Mark your calendar and nourish your body and soul at Trinity in early August! Martha, Ariann and Mike NEEDED FOR AFGHANISTAN Michael Rodriguez informs they are switching Forward Operating Bases (FOB) and there will be a great need for baby wipes, reading material (Reader s Digest, comics, magazines and paper backs, as well as novels) white socks and black nylon dress socks (they are cooler then the military issued green socks). If you can donate any of these items, please see Karl Hansen.

8 HONORING ETHEL URSPRUNG AND DON KRUG On Friday, June 13, 2008 Trinity parishioners honored Ethel Ursprung and Don Krug for their many years of devoted service to Trinity Church. All were treated to an elegant affair at the lovely home of Dawn and Ted Weill with much merry making and enthusiastic singing of popular broadway tunes, with Don at the piano! It was a beautiful summer evening with good friends, delectable foods and warm feelings of appreciation for these two pillars of the church. Ethel and Don were each presented with a stained glass window which symbolized not only our gratitude for their combined efforts throughout the years, but also a reminder of the beautiful stained glass windows for which Trinity is famous. Thank you, Dawn and Ted, for opening your home to us all and allowing us to share in the celebration with Ethel and Don!

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11 INTRODUCTION TO PILGRIMAGE Pursuit of the quiet mind is the primary goal for mystics of all faiths. Shutting down the incessant noise generated by our environment and our own minds; searching for the don t know emptiness place lets us let God be fully present. It s a good place to be. I suspect Jesus ability to be there all the time is what made Jesus the Christ. He could walk through a noisy, demanding crowd so at one with God that a terribly diseased woman could, on faith alone, touch his garment and be healed. No magic wand, no laying on of hands. All the intention in that miracle resided in her faith and his unity. Beautiful. There are many paths to that place. Various and assorted meditations are practiced by all faiths. The Sufis dance. Some Christians sat on pillars all their lives. Others lost themselves in service. And, some go on pilgrimages, walking pilgrimages. There is a long history of walking pilgrimage in Christianity. Pilgrims walk to Jerusalem, Fatima, and more famously, Santiago de Campostelo in northwestern Spain. Manuel and Ann Mingorance and I have made pilgrimages to Santiago. Our experiences were spiritually rewarding. Walking with a goal, but with few needs or concerns, seems to provide opportunities to empty the mind and open yourself to God, to nature, and to the shrines previous pilgrims have established along the route. The reasons people go walkabout are varied. Ann, Manuel and I each had our own. We met people with all sorts of other reasons, some spiritual, some athletic, some financial. I met a man walking to Fatima who had, after a God experience, simply quit his job and started out. He had no resources, slept in churches and was going to Fatima to pray for peace for all of us. It was a moving encounter. Ann and Manuel and I would like to open a discussion about a group pilgrimage with interested parties. We have videos and maps and guide books to show you. We can give you some idea of the physical and financial requirements (very limited) and perhaps begin to organize a pilgrimage. A pilgrimage can be of any length. Some people backpack and stay in hostels. Others have their belongings sent ahead by van and walk. There are hotels and B and B s offering nicer arrangements than hostels do. The options are quite varied and should open the pilgrimage experience to people of all ages and health conditions. We invite interested parties of all ages and physical states to meet after church on July 13th to begin a discussion of the possibilities. Rennie Archibald Save the Date! FRI., AUGUST 3 RD 5:30 PM. Trinity s Mid-Summer s Eve BBQ Details to follow at later date Save the Date! THURSDAY, AUGUST 7th 5:30 PM Trinity s Mid-Summer s Eve BBQ Details to follow soon TRINITY TRANSITIONS Welcome to the Body of Christ... Olivia Noelle Chowdhury Those Whom God Has Joined Together Nazar and Tejal Raoof Rest Eternal Grant Unto Them... Anthony P. Joseponis Hazel Fields

12 The Mission Statement of Trinity Episcopal Church Trinity Church is a community where all are welcome. We seek to love God, to learn and practice Jesus' teachings, and to answer the call of those in need. Sunday Services 8:30 and 10:30 AM Holy Eucharist The Rev. Margaret A. Peckham Clark, Rector (516) Joan Murphy, Administrative Assistant Martha Regelmann, Organist and Choir Director Michael Callahan, Sexton Wardens Rob Alexander Barbara Holzkamp Warden Emeritus Jim Hebron Vestry Maryellen Hansen Brigitte McConnell Roger Gerber Ruth Fick Michael Rodriguez Dawn Weill Ruth Hinrichs Donald Kavanagh Ariann Forella Trinity Episcopal Church 1579 Northern Boulevard Roslyn, NY Please see new Sunday Service Schedule inside!