Page 1 October, 2013 After many hours of cleaning and sorting, our library is ready to be used. Thanks to the Selfcare group for cleaning, Gene Lore for hauling stuff for recycling to KAB, and Terry Christensen and Cheryl Harris for sorting books. With the help of many, St. Matthew’s now has a library ready for visitors. Fr. Coke and Suzi put the room to good use during the bishop’s visit and it was great having extra space to utilize. Through the generosity of our members, our shelves are now stocked with new books, some from personal libraries and some actually purchased. After sorting through the old books, many were taken to recycling but we kept the hard covers. A friend of Lyn Messersmith makes journals from the recycled covers. The Selfcare group will be selling these journals as a money making project for the purchase of more new books. The book on the table in the library which is to be used to mark down books that are checked out, is a sample of the journals we will be selling. An order has been placed and it is hoped that the journals will be available for Christmas gifts. As soon as we receive the books, we will begin selling them. Also, several members have started a book fund to help replenish the shelves. If you want to donate to the library, just mark your checks for the library or books. Also, the church library in Hyannis is growing!! Merle Hayward has donated two quality bookcases that provide ample space for new additions for Calvary’s library! Please take time to peruse and read some great books – both classics and new publications. We would like to include a book report in upcoming issues of the newsletter. If you would like to provide a report, let the church office know. Is there any interest in starting a St. Matthew’s book club? If you would be interested, let Suzi know. Stop by and “check out” our new libraries!! Every year at the Diocesean Annual Council, each parish reports on how much money they have raised for the Bishop’s Sower’s Fund. The money collected is used at the Bishop’s discretion to help needy people. This year for our donation to the Sower’s Fund, Mike Dietrich, Junior Warden, has arranged for stained glass crosses to be made by Val Keenan. For a suggested donation of $15.00, members can select any color of stained glass or a cross can be made from the panels in our sanctuary chandlers as those panels are being replaced. Members are asked to fill out an order blank and make a donation for each cross they order. Initials can be added to the cross for an additional $5.00, if desired. Order blanks will be available on the counter in the Narthex as well as envelopes for your donation. The crosses are 5 ½ inches tall by 4 inches wide and will have a loop suitable for hanging.
Transcript
Page 1
October, 2013
After many hours of cleaning and sorting, our library is ready to be used. Thanks to the Selfcare group for cleaning, Gene Lore for hauling stuff for recycling to KAB, and Terry
Christensen and Cheryl Harris for sorting books. With the help of many, St. Matthew’s now has a library ready for visitors. Fr. Coke and Suzi put the room to good use during the bishop’s visit and it was great having extra space to utilize. Through the generosity of our members, our shelves are now stocked with new books, some from personal libraries and some actually purchased. After sorting through the old books, many were taken to recycling but we kept the hard covers. A friend of Lyn Messersmith makes journals from the recycled covers. The Selfcare group will be selling these journals as a money making project for the purchase of more new books. The book on the table in the library which is to be used to mark down books that are checked out, is a sample of the journals we will be selling. An order has been placed and it is hoped that the journals will be available for Christmas gifts. As soon as we receive the books, we will begin selling them. Also, several members have started a book fund to help replenish the shelves. If you want to donate to the library, just mark your checks for the library or books. Also, the church library in Hyannis is growing!! Merle Hayward has donated two quality bookcases that provide ample space for new additions for Calvary’s library! Please take time to peruse and read some great books – both classics and new publications.
We would like to include a book report in upcoming issues of the newsletter. If you would like to provide a report, let the church office know. Is there any interest in starting a St. Matthew’s book club? If you would be interested, let Suzi know. Stop by and “check out” our new libraries!!
Every year at the Diocesean Annual
Council, each parish reports on how much money they have raised for the Bishop’s Sower’s Fund. The money collected is used at the Bishop’s discretion to help needy people.
This year for our donation to the Sower’s
Fund, Mike Dietrich, Junior Warden, has arranged for stained glass crosses to be made by Val Keenan. For a suggested donation of $15.00, members can select any color of stained glass or a cross can be made from the panels in our sanctuary chandlers as those panels are being replaced. Members are asked to fill out an order blank and make a donation for each cross they order. Initials can be added to the cross for an additional $5.00, if desired. Order blanks will be available on the counter in the Narthex as well as envelopes for your donation. The crosses are 5 ½ inches tall by 4 inches wide and will have a loop suitable for hanging.
Page 2
SERVICES SCHEDULE FOR ST.
MATTHEWS
OCTOBER 6: 10:00 AM HOLY EUCHARIST
CELEBRANT: FR. COKE MCCLURE
LEADERS: PAT ZOBEL AND KATHY WORLEY
MUSICIAN: SUE DIMMITT
ACOLYTE: JAKE MCCAFFREY
OCTOBER 13: 10:00 AM MORNING PRAYER
LEADERS: CHARLES PLANTZ AND KRISTY DIETRICH
MUSICIAN: CYNTHIA HORN
ACOLYTE: PAT ZOBEL
OCTOBER 20: 10:00 AM MORNING PRAYER
LEADERS: BILL RENO AND SUZI LORE
MUSICIAN: SUE DIMMITT
ACOLYTE: PAT ZOBEL
OCTOBER 27: 10:00 AM HOLY EUCHARIST
CELEBRANT: THE REV. COKE MCCLURE
LEADERS: KATHY WORLEY & KATHY GRAHAM
MUSICIAN: SUE DIMMITT
ACOLYTE: ANNE ADAM
BREAKFAST WITH FRIENDS OCTOBER 6
THE OUTREACH COMMITTEE WILL HOST
“BREAKFAST WITH FRIENDS” ON SUNDAY, OCTOBER 6. BREAKFAST WILL BE SERVED FROM 8:00 UNTIL 9:30 AM WITH PLENTY OF TIME TO GET TO THE MORNING SERVICE.
I have been delighted with recent events where I have witnessed exceptional leader-ship. Our local Vestries, Altar Guilds
and parish committees are impressive! It’s marvelous to witness how our parish leaders take such pride in helping shape a positive and healthy community of faith. Tamara and I continue to feel honored and blessed in having received the call to serve here as the new Rector for St. Matthew’s and Calvary Episcopal Churches.
In addition, I am so impressed with Bishop Scott and his Bishop’s staff. In the wake of their Panhandle tour, I am grateful to be part of this vital and effective Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska. We are blessed with a smart and talented younger Bishop who has a long-term commitment both to our local parishes and the wider Episcopal Church. One of the signs of his effective leadership is an excellent publication distributed by the Bishop’s staff entitled “The Episcopal Church Welcomes You!” (Copies of this two page piece focused on “Frequently Asked Questions” are displayed in our newly remodeled libraries at both churches!”)
I mention the Bishop’s brochure especially as it helps clarifying what we believe when people ask, “Are we Catholic?” Apparently, with the advent of the newly consecrated Pope Francis, the Roman Catholic Bishop of Rome, more and more people are inquiring again about what it means to be “Catholic:”
“So is the Episcopal Church Protestant or Catholic?” Both. Neither. Either. When the Church of England separated itself from Rome, it did not consider itself to be in a “Protestant” tradition. Rather, it saw itself returning to the original organization of the church, with local/national congregations organized under the (continued to Page 3)
Page 3
rule of their own bishops. In an attempt to reconcile the views of the Protestant Reformers with the tradition of the Catholic Church, the Anglican tradition became a home for both.
I hope that you will view increasingly our diocesean website (http://www.episcopal-ne.org) and keep current on important work of the Diocese of Nebraska. And I invite you also to read and discuss the profoundly positive—even transformative—newspaper and magazine stories about Pope Francis. I am greatly encouraged that the Roman Catholic Church has embraced such a humble and wise leader.
So in conclusion, I give God great thanks for raising up good and healthy leaders in our local parishes, within our Episcopal Diocese and, even now, for the new Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis.
See you at church!
Blessings, Father Coke
P.S. Don’t miss “The Blessing of the Animals” Liturgy at St. Matthew’s Church on Saturday morning, October 5th, beginning at 10: 00 a.m. in the lower parking lot. There will be a brief service blessing our “small animals” (…in future years, we may be better prepared to bless member’s cattle and horses…but not this year!)
The blessing of animals is part of our honoring St. Francis, who we commemorate as one of the Church’s great saints during the first week of October.
Fr. Coke will be away for study leave from Thursday, October 10 through Monday, October 14. His time at the Church Divinity School of the Pacific (CDSP) will coincide with Coke’s 40th High School Class Reunion.
October Birthdays & Anniversaries
Calvary
2 – Jerry & Cheryl Merrihew
10 – Kendra Ash
26 – Julie Hansen
28 – Hunter Cover
29 – Jim & Sharon Applegarth
29 – Steve Clarke
ST. MATTHEW’S 3 – Cheryl Harris
3 – Steve Mracek
3 – Bill & Sandi Reno
6 – Vicki Dickenson
7 – Ole Anderson
9 – Cathe McCaffrey
11 – Elaine Hall
11 – Scott Bates
14 – Elizabeth Mittlestadt
18 – Charlotte Moravek
18 – Rob Hermann
20 – Dale Borg
24 – Jane Bowhay
28 – Gregg & Cathe McCaffrey
31 – Kathy Graham
31 – John & Anne Adam
NEW PICTURE DIRECTORY
FOR CALVARY AND ST. MATTHEWS
The Vestries of both St. Matthew’s
and Calvary have approved the printing
of a Lifetouch Church Directory. Plans are
being made for the photographs to be
taken November 12th in Hyannis and
November 13th and 14th in Alliance. The
first committee meeting will be held on
Wednesday, October 9 at 6:30 pm. If you
would like to help with this project, please
let Fr. Coke or the church office know. The
photographs will be available before
Christmas
Page 4
NOTES FROM DEACON
CHERYL
~~This month’s Backpack need is snacks. Individually wrapped crackers, peanuts, cookies, etc. ~~St. Matthew’s has several ways of reaching out to share news with the community, friends, people looking for a church and to our own parish. We have Facebook which is administered by Holly Westemeier. Holly takes pictures of events happening at St. Matt’s and adds information when I get it to her or when she sees a need. Many people look at this page that carries information from St. Matthew’s and Calvary.
The other important venue for information is our webpage. This can be accessed by Googling St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, Alliance NE or through the Diocese of NE website. During our search for a new rector it was clear that we needed to have an up-to-date website. Morgan Wimmer put in hours of work to make this happen. (Thank you very much, Morgan!) Fr. Coke said that was definitely one of the places he checked out when considering Alliance as a place to come. Once the search was over, it seemed easy to forget keeping the page up to date. Morgan was working full time and no one else thought to check into helping her. When the bishop and his staff were here recently, Kate Baxley met with Melba Dickenson, Micki Weinman, and me to talk about what we could do to make this an exciting and vital part of our church. Melba, Micki, Terry Christensen and I met this last week to discuss how we could update the page without all the responsibility falling on one person. There are things that need to be deleted, re-written and added. Micki agreed
to be the contact person. We are asking anyone who is in charge of an event or is the head of a group to write a short report or article describing the activity and take pictures. We want people to know what’s going on in our church. That goes for all of the Bible studies, discussion groups, Prayer Group, SelfCare, Outreach (Breakfast with Friends is coming up) or someone who sees something that they think is fun and/or interesting and takes a picture.
If you don’t like to take pictures or write articles, appoint someone in your group to do it. Send the information to Micki and once we get the technical part of the webpage the way we want it, it will be updated maybe once a month or at least once a quarter. Morgan has said she would still like to be involved and has offered to put the material on the website. If this is a cooperative effort, it shouldn’t be a great burden to anyone. Thanks to those who are willing to get together to plan and implement the changes and thanks to all of you who will help to keep it up. Look for exciting things to be happening! Cheryl P.S. Send your pictures and information to: [email protected] and all pictures need to be in jpeg format.
~~Thank You to our wonderful congregation for the warm welcome you gave to Bishop Barker, Beth & Kate when they visited Calvary. We had a great day of workshops & fellowship! ~~Plans are underway for our Annual Hunter’s Harvest Supper to be held on Friday, November 15th. Turkey, dressing, roast beef potatoes, and all the trimmings will be served. Joy Boyer will once again be calling to line up food. All kitchen help is greatly appreciated & welcome. ~~Consecration Sunday will be held at Calvary on Sunday, December 1st at 4:00 pm. The congregation is encouraged to wear their favorite T-shirts on that day. More information will be sent in November.
Thank You! Many thanks to all who made our Service in the Park on August 25th a remarkable success as we share thanks and glory to God for our celebration of Christ unit!! Special thanks to Brother Don Mink and Pastor Linda Abold of the Indian Mission Church of God (also Brother Don for his beautiful and heart-felt message), to Pastor Tim Stadem of St. John’s Lutheran, Father Coke McClure and Deacon Cheryl Harris of St. Matthew’s, and Jeanie Sedivy of the Alliance Methodist Church; to the Worship Committee for planning and coordinating; to our marvelous musicians (Jim Weinman with banjo Cynthia Horn with keyboard, Pastor Tim with guitar, Rayann Tolstedt with guitar, and Kevin Wilkinson with bass guitar) and a great group of singers from all the churches; to Tim and Shannon Garwood for drinks and coolers; to Earl and Patricia Jones for preparing the large roasters of meat and baked beans; to all who worshipped with us, shared their culinary talents in our potluck extravaganza and enjoyed fellowship with us! God Bless and we’ll look forward to gathering together again in 2014!!
