The Parish Salutes our Nation
For many of us, the Independence Day weekend began in Church. On Sunday we honored our nation liturgically with the singing of many of our national hymns, praying for our nation and its leaders and the men and women serving our country, and celebrating the freedoms we enjoy in this great land of ours. Our altar was adorned with flags of special significance: each had been flown over Iraq or Afghanistan by a battalion who has received care packages from our wonderful "Support Our Troops" ministry. The altar was a visible sign of how that ministry has grown, and how many men and women serving our country have benefited from our care packages and prayers.
Cissy Singleton and Nuala Kurokawa, who have been so instrumental in initiating and maintaining the “Support Our Troops” ministry, then hosted the congregation to a special coffee hour complete with an American flag sheet cake in celebration of the 35th troop care package event, which was dedicated to the memory of Dave Shelton.
Our parish celebration of the Fourth of July continued with:
ST. GREGORY’S PRESCHOOL ON PARADE
On Monday, July 4th, St. Gregory’s parishioners, preschool families, and board members represented the preschool in the Deerfield Family Days parade. We distributed candy and approximately 900 items imprinted with the preschool logo including mini Frisbees, safety plugs, key tags, and informational flyers to the cheerful crowd. THANK YOU to AJ, Art and Caroline Bielski, Alex and Dani Gascoigne, Erika, Jaden, Laila and Lukas Hernandez, Kristin and Michael Hill, Diane Jones, Tanya Lukas, Susan Lowman, Catherine Martin, Maggie Nodland, Meredith Potter, Dylan and Mary Rich, Jean Schwarz, and Sybil and Lyle Ten Eyck for walking the parade route with us. It was a great day for a parade! A special thank you to Art Bielski for driving his light blue vintage Cadillac convertible along the parade route and to Shirley and Bob Traettino for stopping by with hot dogs! Thank you all for your continued support of the preschool and we look forward to next year’s parade. LoriLee Bielski and Ida Butler.
(pictured left to right, our youngest walkers: Laila, Jaden, Lukas, and AJ)
In Our prayers this week, let us remember: Carolyn Harnach, Beth Lindell, Keenan Bratton, Ernest Shalita, Flo Foltz, Reuben Jawetz, Ed Karaba, Ron Falbe, Kathy Christenson, Judy McCann, Joel Burrows, and Alexandra. Pray also for North Team's Journey of Hope, remembering especially Ethan Collins; peace in Iraq, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, the Sudan, the Middle East; for our companion parish, Santa Grégoire, Tolagnaro, Madagascar, and its leaders: Rev. Donne and Evangelist Tomboasy; and the Men and women serving in the armed forces and their families: especially: Ryan Redig, Timothy Welton, Ray Creevy, Cary Clark, Mike Demmon, Ilan Kedar, Sarah Shirley, Jason Greenman, Jamie Hayes, Robert Steere, Eric Cloe, Robb Dunlap, Greg Hirsch, Jamie Mitchell, Brian Adamson, Hunter Levine, Chad Field, Carl Best, Bob Morrissette, Doug Columbus.
Father Jim Swarthout accepts new call
Fr. Jim Swarthout, one time assisting priest here at St. Gregory’s who began our preschool and has been serving has rector of St. Paul’s, McHenry where he initiated the now famous “diaper bank” has accepted a new call to become Executive Director of Samaritan Counseling of Illinois in Barrington. This position co-ordinates and networks parishes from various faith based communities in need of support and professional counseling services along with coordinating a staff of psychologists and social workers in support of this ministry. Bishop Lee has also asked Fr. Swarthout to be a part of one of the parishes in Barrington which is to be named later. Our prayers and congratulations to Fr. Jim.
Diocese of Chicago begins process of Restructuring its life and Ministry
Recognizing the many changes that continue to take place in our Church and in the world, the Rt. Rev. Jeffrey Lee, Bishop of Chicago, began to work over a year ago with two different management consultants – one from the Church and one from the business world – to examine diocesan life and ministry. In particular he began to examine with the consultants how the diocesan structure itself was impacting the way that mission and ministry were functioning. Several weeks ago, the Bishop announced some of the changes that had been recommended to him. Gone are many of the familiar faces and voices that have represented the diocese to so many of us over the years. In their place will be a new four-person executive team (which includes the Bishop). In order to keep clergy and lay persons in the diocese informed as the new restructuring unfolds, the Bishop has begun to send out weekly updates. Several weeks ago, the Bishop wrote that “restructuring the diocesan office is only a means to the end of our most important work: to grow the church, form the faithful, and change the world.” In his most recent communication, the Bishop writes about a a conversation he had with someone who is an expert in organizational development who talked about the fact that the Church was not was not involved in selling a building or a program or a church. It was not even really raising money. The expert noted, “you’re raising enthusiasm.” The Bishop reported, “I like the word enthusiasm. It comes of course from a couple of Greek words that mean to be inspired by God. That’s my prayer for all of us.”
To learn more about what is happening in the restructuring process, I invite you to visit the Diocesan website at http://www.episcopalchicago.org . In particular, you might be interested in noting the qualifications for the new executive team members: Director of Operations, Director of Ministries, and Director of Net-Working. Lay persons are particularly encouraged to apply!!
This week's newsletter was composed and published by the vicar, The Rev. Meredith Potter
Comments