Grace Church. Our doors are always open Ridge Road Willoughby, OH

Transcription

1 Grace Church Our doors are always open Ridge Road Willoughby, OH Contents Our Current Staff... 2 Our History... 2 Grace Woods... 2 Our Worship Life... 2 Our Strengths... 3 Our Challenges... 3 Our Rector Will Be:... 3 Our Active Groups... 3 Our Outreach Activities... 4 Our Physical Assets... 4 Our 2014 Budget... 5 Our Diocese... 5 Our Community... 5 Our Community Links... 5

2 Our Current Staff Judy Stefanick, a long-time parishioner, is our Administrative Assistant. She works part-time preparing the weekly bulletin, the monthly Pace of Grace newsletter, executing payroll, and performing general office duties. Scott Arra is our parttime Organist and Choir Director working with the Rector and worship committee to plan the musical aspects of our worship. Seven Sunday school teachers develop an engaging program for our small group of children, and provides nursery coverage during services as needed. Our History Grace Church was founded in downtown Willoughby in After World War II, needing more room, we began looking for a new location. In 1958, thirty-three wooded acres, two miles south of the original church, were purchased. By 1963, our church and undercroft were erected. In the early 70 s the education wing and the rectory were added. We have always tried to be good stewards of the land we had been gifted with. Being blessed with a beautiful wooded setting and a new rector familiar with Cleveland, we opened an inner-city day camp in the 1970s. For about 15 years, we had day camp weeks for children and, later, senior citizens. Our facilities were also used for campouts, family picnics, and parish parties. The Boy Scouts have used the grounds, and are still using the Gully Brook area. Our motto became Trespassing Welcome. Our Memorial Garden was consecrated in From 1978 to 2012, Grace Day Care operated in our education wing undercroft. In July 2008, with the approval of the Diocese, parish leadership signed a 99-year lease of sixteen of our acres with the Ohio Presbyterian Retirement Services (OPRS) of which Breckenridge Village is a part. By 2015, they will finish the last of 100 independent apartments known as Grace Woods. Grace Woods In 2005, the new Executive Director of Breckenridge Village found an old letter seeking to use part of our property for their expansion. With no active ministry using the property, we were ready to explore the proposal when he raised it again. Grace Woods has given us a source of ministry, members, and income. For many years, our Rector and Breckenridge Chaplains had worked together on occasional joint services in their main campus chapel. With our new Rector, we seek to increase our services to Breckenridge and Grace Woods residents and family members by including them in our church activities and discerning ways of helping in their difficult time of life. While Breckenridge is open to people of all faiths, we have members either living there themselves, or having family members who live there. The number of church members living at Breckenridge is increasing, and other members are on the waiting list. The lease gives Grace a revenue stream that enables us to implement long-delayed capital improvements and to support a full-time Rector. Our Worship Life Our traditional worship services include two services each Sunday. The 8 AM service is a spoken Eucharist and the 10 AM is a musical Eucharist with the Grace Notes Choir and organ. Our organist and choir are open to a variety of musical styles and accompaniments. We have brass group join us at Easter and Christmas services. In addition to the hymnal, we have assembled our own Praise Book of additional hymns. Our liturgical style and practices may vary and include the following: Special events such as blessings of specific items that are meaningful to our own lives. Monthly children services where our children may serve as ushers, and acolytes. On occasion, Boy Scouts from our sponsored troops actively participate in our services. Lay Readers as well as unvested lectors participate in readings and the Prayers of the People. In the absence of a Priest, our worship leaders may lead Morning Prayer. The congregation may also participate in the readings.

3 Candlemas, Epiphany, Advent and Lenten studies, Trivium, and Christmas services are also celebrated at Grace. Wednesdays during Lent we have fellowship meals along with worship or Bible study. Services during Holy Week include Maundy Thursday services with foot washing and a 24-hour vigil, Good Friday services, Holy Saturday vigil service with candle lighting, and of course the festival of Easter Sunday with the ringing of bells in celebration of the Resurrection. Grace also occasionally offers worship services at Breckenridge Village, a neighboring senior citizen community. We are open to liturgical variations to our worship service. For example, we have had congregation gather together on the Altar for service led by our Priest, or we administer Communion to each other. The Worship Committee is actively involved with the Rector and Music Director in planning the services. Our Strengths Multi-generational congregation Strong core of volunteers Our Active Groups Caring membership: prayer chain, prayer calendar Many traditions: Holy Thursday vigil, Easter Bells, St. Francis Blessing of the Pets, When Christmas Hurts service, Greening of the Church, Brass Quartet Our Challenges Strengthening our commitment to spiritual growth and the Grace community in light of Grace Woods income Building fruitful evangelical behaviors to welcome visitors and encourage new members Our Rector Will Be: An inspirational and authentic preacher who reflects on the readings to guide us in living our faith in everyday life A steward empowering parishioners to share their talents and time with the parish and the community A compassionate pastor comfortable supporting parishioners and others through all types of life events A pastor with a sense of humor, able to listen to and keep confidences, and support our community life An inclusive leader able to work and build community with people of varying backgrounds and life experiences Worship Ministry Education Operational Building & Grounds Worship Committee Altar Guild Prayer Chain* Prayer Calendar* Christian Ed Youth Grace Foundation* Finance Committee Boy Scouts Cub Scouts Grace Notes Choir Licensed Wednesday AM Memorial Grove* AA including seasonal Eucharistic Visitor Study Group Stewardship NA high school interns Lenten Wednesday Committee Eastern Star Acolytes, Lectors, Supper and Study Monthly newsletter, Amaranth Girls Greeters and Ushers Group the PACE of Grace Prayer Chain: Prayers are submitted to the office and sent via to individuals who have agreed to include the requests in their daily intercessory prayers. Prayer Calendar: The office provides a monthly prayer calendar of all members birthdays and anniversaries. Every member at Grace is prayed for daily on a rotating basis in alphabetical order. Memorial Grove: This is an area of the set aside for memorials to those parishioners or family members who have passed away. Ashes may be scattered here, or plaques emplaced. Grace Foundation: Created in 1982, the Foundation s structure was formalized at the 2000 Annual Meeting. The Foundation s purpose is to administer and distribute funds to support parish activities, for local community outreach and in support of programs brought to their attention by parishioners.

4 Our Outreach Activities Grace and Grace parishioners are engaged in a number of outreach groups within the community. Willoughby Food Bank: Food is collected at Grace and eventually transported to the Willoughby Food Bank located in the local United Methodist Church. Hope Chest: Services Lake County families in need by providing clothing, shoes, housewares and linens. We collect gently used clothing to be taken periodically to their location in Painesville. Relay for Life (America Cancer Society): Our church team (Walk with Grace) participates with other teams in the community to raise money for cancer research. Relay for Life recognizes those living with cancer, the survivors and ones who have passed on. Grace church sponsors a chili/soup cook-off, rummage sale, luminaria, and a flower sale. There is a 24-hour rally at a local high school that is open to the public: music, food, walking the track and contests. The rally has a Luminaria ceremony remembering those have passed and honoring the survivors. Project Hope: This homeless shelter for men, women, and families in our community that gives help in finding housing, jobs and other needs. We collect paper goods and personal items and at Christmas we have tree for gloves, mittens, scarves and personal items for gifts. Hannah s House: This organization helps young women in crisis during their pregnancy by offering a place to stay, education, and counseling. We collect money for them in baby bottles. Dresses for Haiti: We make dresses from pillowcases for girls and collect tops and bottoms for boys. We also make diapers from flannel sheets. NEMAC (North East Mission Area Council): Grace Church is active in NEMAC, along with the eleven other nearby churches, and in their inter-church outreach projects, called Holy Cross Days. Prior to Holy Cross Day, our churches collected nonperishable food items for the hungry, supplies for area schools whose budgets were lean, and children's books. On Holy Cross Day, the public was invited to bring their donations. While dropping off their donations, we offered them the use of an industrial shredder for any paperwork they needed to securely dispose of and healing prayers or blessings from priests for those who wished them. Our Physical Assets Attractive church building in good repair including recently updated roofs, updated windows, updated parking lots, and new landscaping. The building has ample classroom and public spaces both indoors and out to support programs and parish activities. A 2400 square foot rectory with five bedrooms, 2.5 bathes, and a two car attached garage. The rectory s deck was replaced in May As of June 2014, renovation of the kitchen and bathrooms is underway. Figure 3. Rectory front view. Figure 1. Front view showing main church and education wing Figure 2. Back view showing both wings and playground Figure 4. Back of rectory show brand new deck

5 Our 2014 Budget Income Plate Offerings 2,000 Pledges 70,000 Contributions 9,090 All Other 1,200 Transfer from Grace Woods 44,500 Altar Guild Income 2,100 Total Income 120,700 Expenses Search Team 2,500 Worship and Music 2,220 Altar Guild 3,000 Adult Ed 250 Youth Ed 750 Outreach 500 Pastoral Care 100 Evangelism 1,500 Fellowship 425 Stewardship 500 Buildings & Grounds 15,000 Utilities 13,000 Memorial Grove 600 Office Ops and Supplies 9,300 Advertising 750 Vestry 500 Diocesan Dues 16,800 Property Tax/Ins 9,000 Discretionary Fund 1,500 Payroll Taxes 14,000 Admin Asst 14,000 Supply Clergy 18,000 Music Director 10,000 Total 120,695 Our Diocese Grace Church is located 20 miles (30-40 minute drive) east of the Diocese of Ohio offices in downtown Cleveland. The Diocese covers 100 parishes in a 48-county area of the northern half of Ohio and is blessed with a beautiful cathedral reminiscent of the National Cathedral. The Rt. Rev. Mark Hollingsworth has served as our bishop since For more information, see the diocesan website at Our Community The area was first settled in the 1750 s and went through various names until 1935 when it became the town of Willoughby, named after a doctor who started a medical college, the predecessor of Case Western University. Willoughby is 20 miles east of Cleveland, with its northern border on the shoreline of Lake Erie. Our public square features a beautifully landscaped park for all seasons. The downtown area has been listed in the National Register of Historical Places. An outdoor farmers market is held May through October off public square and on December 1 st, thousands of lights transform the area into a winter wonderland. The median household income is over $49,000. The Willoughby-Eastlake School system is ranked excellent by the state and is a frequent winner of the State Academic Decathalon. Seven city and 48 county parks support activities including trout fishing, hiking, and crosscountry skiing. Our Community Links Diocese of Ohio: City of Willoughby: willoughbyohio.com Willoughby-Eastlake School District: weschools.org Lake County: s