The Episcopal Mission of St. Andrew s by the Lake May Grains of Sand

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1 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. Acts 2 Grains of Sand My children were baptized on Pentecost, wearing a white baptism dress and red socks. I remember the red balloons, I remember the congregation and family gathered surrounding us. This year at St. Andrew s, Ruby Morris (daughter of Julia and Jonathan, sister of Lilie) will be sealed by the Holy Spirit in baptism, and marked as Christ s own forever. We will promise, as the generations before us have pledged for us, do all in our power to support her in her life in Christ. Thanks be to God! From the words of a 12th century hymn, "Heal our wounds, our strength renew; On our dryness pour thy dew," there arose the custom of walking barefoot through the dewy grass on Pentecost morning. Coming from above, like the Spirit on Pentecost, and recalling the water of baptism, this custom was thought to bestow a special blessing on those who practiced it and is a truly homely way to begin the feast. (fullhomelydivinity.org) Marta+ 1

2 Anna Alexander was the first African-American Deaconess of the Episcopal Church. She was born around 1865 on Saint Simon s Island, Georgia. Her parents, James and Daphne Alexander, were well-educated and emancipated slaves. Her father believed education was the path to a better life on the plantation, and he continued to teach Anna and her siblings in defiance of Georgia laws that forbade the education of slaves. James and Daphne Alexander instilled in their daughter a strong belief in shared and communal responsibility and the idea that change occurs in the relationships built within our communities. As a result, Anna is credited with establishing an Episcopal church and school in Pennick, Georgia. Initially it was located in an abandoned farmhouse and then in an old store where the whiskey counter was converted into an altar. Anna s mission church struggled financially, and she took up sewing, teaching, and other jobs to raise money to purchase land for a permanent church and school. She drew upon the financial support of her fellow brothers and sisters and people in the community, and they were able to build the Good Shepherd Episcopal Church and school. At a Convention for Colored Episcopalians in 1907, Bishop Nelson named Anna a deaconess. At that time it was unheard of for a woman to be recognized as a leader in the church especially an African-American woman. Anna s hard work, devotion, and dedication to the Christian formation of black communities ensured that the voices of African-American Christians were heard throughout Georgia. She felt that anger about society s treatment of women and African-Americans was a wasted emotion and believed she could change her community through education and love. Deaconess Alexander offers us an example of a life of faith rooted in a boundless love of others. 2

3 The Episcopal Mission of St. Andrew s by the Lake May 2018 Into the Land of Light and Joy Joanne Blyler, another saint among us Although I do not know the totality of Joanne s story, this is what I do know. As a young woman, she helped to start the Regional Theatre ensemble in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, with legendary theatre teacher, Alvina Krause. There she met Patricia Neal and Tony Curtiss. In Pennsylvania, she said that the life she led was a pre-cursor to Martha Stewart. She remembers lying under the cherry trees thinking of nothing, but rich in memories. Joanne will always be remembered as an incredible public health nurse. She had a degree in nursing from Yale, taught at CSS, and was a public health nurse in Bangladesh. On vacation, she and a friend traveled to Calcutta and met Mother Teresa. Mother Teresa asked what she was doing, and Joanne told her about her work in rural Bangladesh. Mother Teresa took hold of her shoulder, looked her in the eye and said, You will take care of my people, won t you. Joanne was not sure if that was a question, an imperative, or a blessing! Probably a combination of all three. Remembering and celebrating; Joanne wants an ice cream social, with all of the folks at CHUM plans are in the works for some time in the summer. CHUM connections she was board president when they hired Jim Soderberg. CHUM was about to go under, and her leadership was vital for the continued ministries of CHUM with the homeless. She set up a nursing program at the CHUM drop-in center. When she retired, she did intake at the Food Shelf. At St. Andrew s, she continued to make announcements about bringing in soaps, deodorant and other personal necessities. No one could forget about sharing with those who have little when Joanne was around! Joanne also delighted in teaching English as a second language to adults. Although she had no formal training in teaching, she was a gifted instructor, and playfully led her students to fluency. When I was with her at St. Luke s, a CNA named Emilyn came in to give her a bath. English was not her first language. Joanne commended her for her English. Emilyn smiled and her posture changed. And gently Joanne asked her about how she came to speak so well. You know a story ensued! From then on whenever I saw the Emilyn, she smiled. 3

4 She had a gift of healing prayer at St. Andrew s. And that never left her. Over and over, I watched as people would come in to visit, and go away with a blessing. And yet she would say how blessed she was. She was thankful for the medical care, and for the plasma that she had been receiving. Joanne thought of those, many of whom were homeless, who had given plasma for her. And when she decided that there would be no more interventions, she was at peace. And truly was the director of her final days. Joanne contributed to our community in so many ways including as a lector and chalice bearer. She took these two positions very seriously, never missing when she was scheduled to serve. Joanne had two children, Justine and Noel. I suspect that she raised her children as she was raised and as she lived. You don t raise your children for yourself, you raise them for other people. While I had not met Noel, I did get a chance to talk with Justine, and I could hear her mother s voice in hers. Thanks be to God for the life and loving witness of Joanne Blyler. Amen. Marta+ Reader s Choice Book Club May 4 The May meeting of the book club will take place on Friday, May 4. We will meet at the Lyric, at noon, to eat lunch and listen to the books our members are reading. The Wind and the Drum, written by Minnesota native Katharine Johnson, has been chosen as the 2018 One Book Northland community read! Maybe someone will report on it. Come to the book club and find out. For more information please contact Sandy Carlson at saezc3@gmail.com. Episcopalians from across Northeast Minnesota come to St. Andrew s! Some even travel up from the Cities... On Saturday, May 5, beginning at 8:30, the people of NE Mission Area will be meeting here at St Andrew s along with Bishop Brian Prior. There will be video! There will be 4

5 lunch and chocolate! There will be a joyful time of gathering, listening, and celebrating the Spirit at work in our communities. 1:30 pm Eucharist and confirmation (all invited) Mary Anderson has graciously volunteered to server and clean-up for the lunch, but would surely welcome additional help. Let Mary or Ginny Berger know if you are able to help. St. Andrew s Birthday Party May 19 St. Andrew's will once again celebrate the birthdays of those member who are 75 or better in 2018! The event will be held on Saturday, May 19 from 1 to 3 pm. Yummy cakes and great music will be part of the party. Family, friends and interested persons are all welcome. The list of eligible attendees include: Ellie Alspach Dick Braun JoAnn Carmack Bob Carmack Angie Cieluch Gary Glass Helen Hanten Paul Hanten Donna Larson Donn Larson Jean Laundergan J Laundergan Susan Nelson Charlie Nelson Mary Ellen Owens Bob Owens Fern Penick Jan Peterson Bruce Potter Arlene Renken Bette Swanson Gladys Nelson If your name is missing please let Ginny or Sandy know. Check out the sign-up sheets on the entry table to help make this event a success. We hope to see you all there! Grubby Sunday May 20 When: After the Sunday Service Chores that need to be done: See the list on page 6. 5

6 Indoors: 1. Wash windows 2. Clean cupboards in the kitchen 3. Tidy up the Sunday School closet 4. Sort the closet with folding doors Outdoors: 1. Raking 2. Spray Round Up on poison ivy and weeds 3. Move Pin cherry trees from the foundation by neighbors What to bring: your favorite rakes and tools to do outside work. Dress for the occasion. Submitted by Ellie Alspach Ladies Night Out May 24 We will meet for dinner on Thursday, May 24 at 6 pm at Zeitgeist Arts Cafe, 222 East Superior Street. If you would like to join us please contact Elena at or eknezevich@hotmail.com. Will You Put Mike s Mind At Ease? June 8 and 9 I am going to be real honest with our church family, my phone works. I have not received any calls from anyone wanting to jump into the brat sale BBQing. Please consider giving me a call and put my mind at ease. This is a huge money maker for our children and other projects we decide to help out with. Tim White will not be able to help cook this year and he usually does both days. I will be there both days to keep everything on a somewhat even madness. If you can be there to help brown brats, please let me know ASAP. Thanks. Mike Oliver,

7 And From Marta This is a glorious day for being outside and meeting our neighbors! Let our fabulous leadership team of Ken Oliver - Mike Oliver - Brian Lundberg know if you can join us. Our annual Brat Sale funds YOUTH programs, both at St Andrew s and in the community. Last year we sent youth to camps, and paid for HEADSTART transportation for children at Steve O Neill. April Bishop s Committee Meeting Summary On this snowy afternoon, the Bishop s Committee reflected on John 10:1-11, relating it to our own lives. Minutes from the March meeting were unavailable, and finances were in order. Discussion of the calendar led to discussion of the brat sale, which is coming up soon although it is hard to believe with the blizzard outside today. Karen will coordinate the brat sale this year. Liz will look into the feasibility of getting a Sam s Club card for the church, and will look at how we make purchases overall to see if we can streamline the system. Our old chairs have been donated to the Duluth Rowing Club, although they will lend them back to us if needed for an event. With the now empty closet, Liz will evaluate the storage needs throughout the church and develop a plan to utilize this newly opened space. The parking arrangements are being worked on, and Karen will follow up with Mary Anderson and Marta. Dave provided an update on landscaping, letting us know that Mary was working with Saline to choose materials for the walkways and walls. Work will begin if and when it stops snowing in Duluth. The Bishop s Committee approved Dave to work with Service Electric to develop a plan for outside lighting. Finally, Liz investigated the possibility of writing a grant to the Sheltering Arms Foundation in partnership with Life House, but was told that the grants are only for congregation work, not for working with community partners. 7

8 Under new business, Gary Glass and Nancy Olson have generously donated an electronic piano to St. Andrew s, which will replace the old piano we currently use. Elena is very excited! Tom will find a volunteer or two and connect with Gary to arrange for the transfer. Karen will work with Ian at Duluth Screen Printing to develop a couple of possible T-shirt designs to bring to the Bishop s Committee for approval. We will sell the T-shirts at cost, and make a few extras that we can give as gifts or to have on hand for sale. Dave proposed two new programs for St. Andrew s, which were enthusiastically approved by the Bishop s Committee. The first is Nourishment and Knowledge in which we will invite people with expertise about aspects of Park Point (such as geological history, birds, beach astronomy, St. Andrew s stained-glass windows, and the list goes on!) and combine the talk with food, advertising the events across Duluth. Dave will head up the effort, with 4 speakers this year, but he will need assistance organizing the food. The second is Give a Teen a Lift program to raise money for transportation costs faced by homeless teens living at Life House. See the article in this newsletter for more information. Submitted by Karen Nichols, Senior Warden Give a Teen a Lift Volunteer(s) Needed! Homeless teens at Life House are facing significant challenges in their lives, and transportation is critical in assisting them to deal with these challenges. These teens need transportation to get to where they need to go, to connect with others, to go to work or school, to find a meal or a place to sleep. St. Andrew s is looking for volunteer(s) to head up the new, Give a Teen a Lift program. The program aims to raise transportation funds for teens at Life House. Existing fundraising efforts such as the Brat Sale may be able to direct funds to this project, but new fundraising events will help to make this program that serves our neighbors more effective. Other ideas include trying to find match funding for any money raised by St. Andrew s, and bringing a representative from Life House to church to discuss the importance of this project. Please talk to Karen Nichols if you are interested in leading this effort. Submitted by Karen Nichols, Senior Warden 8

9 St. Andrew s Landscaping Project Spring has sprung and landscaping has begun! We are very excited to improve our front yard to be more welcoming to the community. This project has been made possible by some very generous memorial gifts. We would like to give everyone in the congregation an opportunity to be part of this welcoming project. There is a Landscape Tree in the Mission Hall with donation tags. If you would like to contribute to the new plantings that will be a part of the project, simply take a tag and write on the back your name and the amount you would like to donate. Tags and donations may be given to Mary Anderson or Dave Johnson. Submitted by Mary Anderson Jim Barott Looking For Housing I have been living in the Duluth area for two years and have recently joined the wonderful fellowship of St. Andrew s by the Lake. I work for the Superior National Forest in West Duluth and I have been living temporarily in Rice Lake. My children are grown, it's just myself, I'm flexible and looking into options for housing. One or two bedroom living quarters preferably with garage space for my car and a place to store my canoe would suffice. Thank you. Jim Barott, barott@gmail.com, Thank You For The Prayers! Rebecca Thomsen is now back at home. She says to thank everyone at St. Andrew s for their prayers and thoughts. There is something very real and solid about those prayers, and I appreciate them very much. There is so much to be thankful for. 9

10 2802 Minnesota Avenue, Duluth, MN Vicar: The Rev. Marta T. Maddy C: H: Office: Editor: Sandra Carlson C: Suggestions and comments are welcomed. A people on the Way to knowing, loving, and serving God and neighbor! We are on Facebook and the Web. standrewsbythelake.org Calendar: May 4 Reader s Choice Book Club at the Lyric, noon 5 NNEMA gathering at St. Andrew s with Bishop Prior, 8:30 registration, 1:30 Eucharist and Confirmation 5/6 Sat/Sun Eucharist, Easter 6, 5 pm and 9:45 am 12/13 Sat/Sun Eucharist, Easter 7, 5 pm and 9:45 am CHUM Sandwiches, Brian Lundberg preaching 19 Birthday Party for those 75 and Better, 1 pm 19/20 Sat/Sun Eucharist, 5 pm and 9:45 am, Pentecost, baptism, BC Meeting, Grubby Sunday, 24 Ladies Night Out, Zeitgeist Arts Cafe, 6 pm 26/27 Sat/Sun Eucharist, 5 pm and 9:45 am, Trinity June 2/3 Sat/Sun Eucharist, 5 pm and 9:45 am 8/9 Brat Sale at the Rummage Sale The Deadline for the June Grains of Sand Articles is Friday, May