JUNE In This Issue vestry retreat 2 vestry highlights 3 mission & ministry 3 ecw scholarships 4 june events 6 From the Rector In this month s newsletter you will find a flyer from your Vestry that lays out some goals we have set for ourselves as a result of our 2014 Vestry Retreat. We had an incredibly productive discussion over three days in February and we wanted to share with you what came out of our work together. We will pursue these goals while keeping in mind our Three-year Strategic Plan already in progress. With so many important elements to our plan, however, we wanted to revisit our main priorities to help direct our resources. Our initiatives are not new ideas, nor are they exclusionary of other elements of our common life that are already successful and ongoing (worship, music, the new youth missioner position, etc.). Instead they are foundational initiatives as we look to the next chapter of life and Ministry at Christ Church. These initiatives are largely centered on equipping the saints, including persons of all ages. We have already begun focused work on the four areas since our retreat. We are forming a working group to address evangelism and newcomers ministries. This group will begin implementing plans as soon as this month. I am working with Ed and Lynne Turner to evaluate our Sunday School programs, and when Becky Rowell joins our staff part time this summer, one of her tasks will be to help coordinate our adult education efforts. We are reinvigorating the Communications Task Force, will soon have our new website up and have already begun updating signs out front of Christ Church. We
Christ Church Clergy Tom Purdy Rector Leigh Hall Associate Rector Assisting Clergy Joel T. Keys Ray Worthington Bob Brown (UMC) Deacons Becky Rowell Jan Saltzgaber James D. Wethern Christ Church Staff Harrison Branch Sexton and Assistant Cemetery Superintendent Oscar B. Covington, Jr. Cemetery Superintendent Stan Kyker Financial Administrator Dale Pierson Registrar and Database Administrator Glenn Queener Parish Administrator Kathleen Turner Organist and Choirmaster Shannon Vaughan Lead Nursery Attendant/ Office Assistant Office Hours The office is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Mailing Address 6329 Frederica Road St. Simons Island, GA 31522 Office: 912-638-8683 www.ccfssi.org From the Rector (continued) also invited a Program Director from the Episcopal Church Foundation to meet with the Vestry, Finance Committee, and Investment Committee last month, where we learned about best practices for endowment management and policies. The work to create such policy at Christ Church is about to begin in earnest. Your Vestry is putting a lot of prayer and thought into their ministry of leadership in this congregation, as we build on our strong past, and we want to keep you up to date. Remember that all of our meetings are open to guests, so as we move ahead, should you want to know more than you can read in meeting highlights or minutes, feel free to join us. Please know we welcome your gifts if you are particularly excited about one of these initiatives and would like to be involved. Christ Church is a wonderful parish full of excitement and energy for the work of the gospel. Thank you for your continued faithful support of our mission and ministry. Tom+ From the Rector and Senior Warden Dear Christ Church, Enclosed you will find a document from your Vestry that lays out some goals we have set for ourselves as a result of our recent Vestry Retreat. We had an incredibly productive discussion over three days in February and we wanted to share with you what came out of our work together. We will pursue these goals while keeping in mind our Three-year Strategic Plan already in progress. With so many important elements to our plan, however, we wanted to revisit our main priorities to help direct our resources. Our initiatives are not new ideas, nor are they exclusionary of other elements of our common life that are already successful and ongoing (worship, music, the new youth missioner position, etc.). Instead they are foundational initiatives as we look to the next chapter of life and Ministry at Christ Church. These initiatives are largely centered on equipping the saints, including persons of all ages. Please know we welcome your gifts if you are particularly excited about one of these initiatives and would like to be involved. Christ Church is a wonderful parish full of excitement and energy for the work of the gospel. Thank you for your continued faithful support of our mission and ministry. In the Peace of Christ, Tom Purdy Clif Jones 1 where faith...
At its February retreat, the Vestry of Christ Church discerned ways that we could improve the health and faithfulness of our congregation in the immediate years to come. As a result of our work we have identified four specific areas that we want to invest our resources (time, talent, and treasure) in over the next few years: Evangelism and Newcomer ministries with an attention to the spiritual needs of people in every stage of life Faith formation and spiritual growth for all ages, building on the strength of our Anglican traditions Healthy and effective communication to and from members of the congregation and the community Good stewardship of our Endowment funds, including written policies to protect them and an intentional invitation to new gifts Evangelism and Newcomers Ministries There is a need to create space for people of all ages who are not already here; people from all walks and stages of life can be nurtured in and through our Anglican traditions. With open doors and open arms we will be a place of inclusivity where all can feel welcome and experience a Christ-centered community. Faith Formation and Spiritual Growth Christ Church s first and deepest calling is to be a community of prayer, sacrament, study, and service. Building on our Anglican heritage, we will foster a community that encourages persons of all ages in daily prayer, scripture, sacrament, and regular common (communal) worship, so that they can go about in the world, seeking and serving Christ in all persons. Communication As Christ Church lives into its identity as a community of welcome and formation, we will pay special attention to our message and our processes for listening. We will create opportunities for members of our community to communicate with and get to know one another. Good communication processes are vital to Christ Church as it manages change over the long-term. Stewardship of Endowment Funds We have been blessed by those who have left resources to the church to further its mission. We will create policy around our endowment funds to clarify what resources are available in support of our mission and ministry. This process will build trust and foster transparency around parish finances, while protecting and growing our endowment resources over time as we continue to pursue balanced budgets. Policy will include a conservative and appropriate spending policy based upon meeting our missional goals. We will support the Endowment fund with a planned giving society, inviting to make gifts that support the parish in perpetuity....takes root. 2
Vestry Highlights At its regular meeting on May 20th the Vestry: Voted to form a task force consisting of the Rector, the Wardens, the Treasurer and four others to be selected from the parish who have experience in these matters to draft formal written policies regarding our endowment funds. A timetable for accomplishing the task was discussed extensively to assure ample opportunity for all who are interested to be informed about the process and provide input. Discussed a request to provide $5000 in seed funding for a proposed senior center on St. Simons and agreed to refer it to the Mission & Outreach committee for review. Approved a recommendation by the Finance Committee to upgrade the Church s financial system to ACS on Demand which is a cloud based system that provides for access by multiple computers as well as mobile devices and features a secured online Parish Directory accessible by parishioners. The additional expense this year for set-up and monthly license fees is $2500. Learned that a number of applications for the Youth Missioner position have been received and the search committee hopes to have their top pick in for an interview soon. Were informed that our request for approval for a crossing signal in front of the church has not made much progress with the county administration. Learned that the ECW has finalized the list of beneficiaries for $50,000 in charitable donations this year. Passed a resolution formally thanking the ECW and congratulating them for the outstanding job of fundraising this year. Respectfully Submitted, Roy Te Turner Clerk of the Vestry Vestry Members Henry Ansley 2015 Cindy Atwood 2016 Edward Bland 2017 Jody Bradford 2016 David Boland, Jr. Warden 2015 Mark Davis 2017 Mission and Ministry Clif Jones, Sr. Warden 2015 Leigh Lane 2015 Dale Pierson 2016 Sandy Rice 2017 Beth Smith 2017 Will Varn 2016 by Susan Shipman Christ Church s Mission and Ministry Fund supports Union Memorial Cemetery at a level of $600 annually to assist with the perpetual care and upkeep of this sacred resting place. Paul Salter has served as Christ Church s liaison to Union Memorial Cemetery Committee for many years. The cemetery is not known to many Islanders. Located off the county right of way and Georgia Power service road behind Hamilton Landing, the cemetery is accessed off Demere Road, at the turn to Frederica Academy and Georgia Power s St. Simons Office and sub-station. Union Memorial Cemetery is locally referred to as Stranger s Cemetery. During the time of the lumber mills on St. Simons, it became the last resting place for African - Americans who were not born in the community and had no family ties on the Island. The cemetery is maintained by four African-American churches on the Island - St. Paul Baptist, Emanuel Baptist, St. Luke s Methodist, and the First African Baptist Churches. Many of the family names on the plaque of those baptized at St. Ignatius Chapel, from 1870-1970, can be found on the headstones in Union Memorial Cemetery. It is a very serene final resting ground of many African-Americans who have had ties to St. Ignatius and St. Simons for many years. 3 where faith...
From the Episcopal Church Women Your Christ Church ECW is excited to announce another very successful year of cookbook sales and Tour of Homes proceeds. The proceeds are used to fund our gifts to local, regional and worldwide charities benefiting those among us most in need. Our grant committee has identified those organizations which will receive gifts this month. This list includes the Homeowner Designated gifts of $1000. each as well. The 2014 grant recipients are: Alzheimer s of Glynn/Brunswick, Inc. Boys and Girls Club of Southeast Georgia CASA Glynn, Inc. Children in Action (CIA) Sports Club Christ Church Altar Guild Christ Church Backpack Buddies Christ Church ECW Scholarship Fund Coastal Symphony of Georgia Coastal Youth Symphony Communities in Schools of Glynn County Glynn County Mozart Society Gold Challenge, Inc. dba Golden Isles Community Sailing Golden Isles Live, Inc. Habitat for Humanity of Glynn County, Georgia, Inc. Honey Creek Camp and Conference Center Hospice of the Golden Isles Humane Society of South Coastal Georgia, Inc. Island Concert Association, Inc. Kamp PHUN Our Journey, Inc. Perry Park Neighborhood Clinic, Inc. Red Cross Safe Harbor Children s Center Southeastern Convocation of the Diocese of Georgia St. Andrew s Episcopal Church St. Simons Civinette Club STAR Foundation, Inc. The Community Messiah Chorus The Dylan Brown Foundation The Gathering Place The Glynn Community Crisis Center, Inc. Very Special Arts Vi Fluentis Children s Choir A total of $50,000. has been gifted to 33 different charities. A great big THANK YOU to all who have worked so hard all year in so many different ways to make this possible. Have a wonderful summer! Jane Watson, ECW President...takes root. 4
From the Treasurer The 4 months to April 30, 2014 showed a Surplus of Income over Expenditure of $5,000 compared to the Budget of $66,000. The variation was due to certain income inconsistencies, and the calendarization of the annual budget by months, an exercise that was based on last year actuals. Line item variations were examined by the Finance Committee. An upgrade to the Church s ACS computer system (called Access ACS on Demand ) was considered and approved. The initial set-up cost and monthly service fee for remainder of this year is expected to be approximately $2,500. The system is cloud based and will permit (with adequate controls) remote access to personal and financial information, by clergy, staff and church members. Some changes were made in the Fixed Assets Inventory Project and good progress has since been made. Bonney Shuman competently leads the team with enthusiastic support from David Boland, Harrison Branch, and Peg McBride. As of now, contents of Christ Church, St. Ignatius and the Parish House have been physically inventoried. Work on documenting these, inputting them in computer, bar coding, valuation, etc. will follow. Work has begun to consider and create formalized Endowment Policies for Christ Church. A well represented task force will soon begin work on a wide and comprehensive range of issues such as the categorization of designated and other funds; laying down spending rules; compliance and disposition of bequeathed funds; improved controls for preservation of Capital, etc. Professional guidance will be sought as necessary and embodied in the Policy being formulated. Meanwhile funds on hand remain gainfully invested and controlled. Blessings. Godfrey Join us for Vacation Bible School 2014 Upcoming Events June 1 - Parish Picnic 3-4:30 p.m. - Live Poets Society 8-11 a.m. - Baptism 9-13 - 9 a.m. - VBS 12-6 p.m. - Finance Committee Meeting 16-20 - 9 a.m. - Creative Arts Camp 17-5:45 p.m. - Vestry Meeting 23-27 - 9 a.m. - Creative Arts Camp The Excitement is Building! Mark your calendar for June 9-13! 9 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. We will learn about serving Family, Friends, Neighbors, our Community and Jesus. Remember to register your children online 5 where faith... at ccfssi.org
Where is Parishioner X? (And what do I do about it?) Christ Church is a big and complex parish. Because we have so many people spread out over so many services and two campuses, we don t always get to see everyone each time we come to church or to an event. From time to time we may notice that someone is missing, and we wonder why. Similarly, we may see someone s name on a prayer list and wonder what s going on in their life. Parish staff will often get questions like, Where is Jane Doe? I haven t seen her for a while?, or I saw Bob s name on the prayer list; what s wrong with him? These are fine questions. Sometimes the staff may have an answer, and because this is a big and complex parish they may not know the answer either! In reality, no one person is able to keep track of all of our many members from week to week, or even know the latest information on each person on our prayer list. If we notice that we haven t seen someone for some time, or see their name on the prayer list, the best thing we can do is to pick up the phone and call them. We may not want to be invasive, however, more often than not a person will be grateful that someone noticed and took the time to call. Even if a person is on the prayer list, they have allowed their name to be public, which brings an assumption that people might ask why. Those who do not want to be bothered don t put their name on the prayer list. If you realize you haven t seen someone or heard the latest about them, a call need not be forceful at all. Simply calling to check in is enough. Admitting that you haven t seen them recently and wanted to say hello is powerful and effective. We are a part of a Christian community where we are all, our brother s keeper. We are the Body of Christ and we build each other up in love. We have not hired out the care for one another to our clergy or to a few volunteers; it is the responsibility of each of us. No small group can manage a parish full of relationships, but as a body we can make sure that no one falls through the cracks. Check in with one another. Care for one another. Love one another. Who are you missing? Who s on your mind? Call them today and let them know you re thinking of them. Christ Church Creative Arts Camp Join Miss Kathleen and her team for: Fun music Acting Drawing Painting Games New Friends Rising First Graders and Older - $150 per session Two Sessions to Choose From June 16-20 or June 23-27 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Christ Church, Frederica 6329 Frederica Road St. Simons Island, GA 912-638-8683 ccfssi.org...takes root. 6