Dear Friends in Christ,
This Sunday is the Last Sunday after Epiphany. That means we will be leaving behind green vestments, the Enriching Our Worship Eucharistic Prayer (at 10 a.m.), and saying Alleluia. Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday are coming up next week (see below) – hope to see you there! We have Lenten meditation booklets from Episcopal Relief and Development available for you to pick up in the Narthex. Lent is often a time when we think about taking on some particular discipline – exercise, prayer, fasting from sweets-television-credit cards-you name it, attending to habits that draw us away from God rather than closer to God. Between now and Wednesday think about what might be helpful for you this Lent, and then take that on as a discipline. Discipline is not an unbreakable rule, but a concentrated and steady way to learn something (like “disciple”). We are always learning and growing as Christians, but Lent is a particularly good time to be focusing on ways that we can grow closer to God and more like Jesus.
A few notes about things going on at All Saints’:
· The second bathroom on the main level of the Parish House is being renovated this weekend, as part of our on-going Centennial Campaign work. It will also be a handicapped-accessible, unisex bathroom. But as with any older building there are always challenges: we discovered that the sub-floor in the bathroom was seriously rotting. There had been a leaky valve in a pipe in the wall. The drain pipes also needed to be roto-rootered. Years of grease and coffee grounds and other things had clogged the drains. Thanks to Charlie Hogan, and to Bob Meyers, our contractor!
· Plans for the Gala Brunch on May 1st for the Parking Lot Challenge are underway. We’ll be asking everyone to bring finger foods – either savory or sweet. Sign-up sheets for food contributions, set up, clean up, decorating, etc. will be available in the Narthex starting next week. And make sure to put May 1st at 11:15 on your calendar as we start our Parking Lot Challenge of raising $20,000 to meet Leroy May’s match so we can fix the parking lot.
· The Marketplace is taking a rest this year, as did the Grateful Gathering. These have been a wonderful events in our parish life, but it seemed like a good time to step back from them. There will be some other fun community-wide events planned. Stay tuned!
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Scout Sunday will be celebrated on March 6th at the 10 am service. All Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts are asked to wear their uniforms to Church and participate in the Scout ceremony (the Law, Promise/Oath, and prayers). Our celebration falls between the birthdays of Robert Baden Powell (founder of Boy Scouting) on February 22 and Juliette Gordon Low (founder of Girl Scouting) on March 12. The Scouting movement is supported at All Saints’ through our active sponsorship of Boy Scout Troop 56 and Cub Pack 56, as well as by providing meeting space for numerous Girl Scout groups, including the monthly Long Hill Twp. Girl Scout leaders’ meeting.
Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper – March 8th, serving from 5:30 – 7:00 pm in the lower level of the Parish House. Pancakes, sausage, applesauce and Mardi Gras beads – come and have a last fling before Lent starts! Cost is $5 per person, maximum $20 per household, kids under age 3 are free. Sign up on the sheet in the Narthex, or RSVP to the parish office via e-mail. Also, all middle school and high school kids are needed to help set tables, put up decorations and serve the meal. If you can help please let Beth or Mother Vicki know.
Ash Wednesday services will be held on March 9th at 9:30 am and 7:30 pm. Eucharist and ashes will be available at both services. The evening service will include music. Plan to start the season of Lent in a reflective and introspective way.
Women’s Book Group will meet Wednesday, March 16th at 7:30 at Carol Berry’s, 14 Coppergate Drive, Basking Ridge. This month’s book is A Secret Kept by Tatiana de Rosnay. This is a fun group – come check us out!
Community Forum – Wednesday, March 24 & Tuesday, March 29. Who's in the Driver's Seat? Caring for Aging Parents: From Parents' and Children's Perspectives. This two-part Forum will be presented in the Parish Hall from 7:30-9:00 pm, with time for questions and discussion. On March 23 Catherine Morrisett will speak from the perspective of the parents’’ needs and feelings and on March 29 Nunzio Gubitosa will discuss the challenges and life changes facing caregivers. Both speakers are counselors at the Grace Counseling Center in Madison, N.J. All of us are touched by these important issues in some way. Invite a friend, neighbor or co-worker and come share the evening with others.
Children’s Eucharist Instruction Class – for kids in Grades 1 or 2; Monday afternoons, May 2, 9, 16 at 4 pm in the Rath House. Please speak to Mother Vicki or e-mail the Parish office to enroll your child in this class.
Save these dates…
May 1 – Gala Coffee Hour/Brunch Kickoff for Parking Lot Challenge
May 5 – Fish and Chips (Argyle of Kearny), public fund-raiser for parking lot
Late May/Early June – Car Wash, public fund-raiser for parking lot
June 4 – Beth’s diaconal ordination, 10 am
June 27-July 1…Christian Arts Camp
for children age 4-Grade 4; 9 am-12 noon.
July 11-15…Summer Saints Musical Theater
for kids Grades 5-9; 9 am-2 pm.
+ + + + + + + + +
The following was found in “The Big Book of Scout Worship Services”, by Pete Metzloff for his Woodbadge project. Woodbadge is a Boy Scout training program for adults. These words can just as easily apply to Girl Scout leaders, Sunday School teachers, youth group advisors, and any adult Christians who care about the children in their church or at home.
A Scout Leader’s Wish
Deep reflection on my role causes me to pause. Can I remember? Can I be the leader I want to be?
Let me exhibit the qualities of those who I have admired, and shun the qualities of those I did not.
Let me create a safe haven for all who come to our troop.
Let me be as respectful of others and their ideas as I was when I saw an American Flag being ceremoniously retired by flame.
Let me have the humility to seek help from those more knowledgeable than I.
Let me remember, that in a Scout’s eyes, what I do speaks louder than what I say.
Let me have the patience to let the Scouts lead, fail and succeed.
Let me have the grace to praise the Scouts for the troop’s successes and accept the blame for its failures.
Let me have the perception and caring to seek out the troubled youth, the homesick camper, and the lonely Scout.
Let me have the creativity to help provide fun, spirit and knowledge.
Let me have the attentiveness to listen and respond completely,
Let me have enough time for deep reflection.
Let me have the necessary qualities and skill to instill the true meaning of the Scout Law, Oath, Motto, and Slogan.
Let me remember, but not be burdened by, the responsibilities of my position.
And please, Oh Lord, help me to watch over the Scouts under my care.
Blessings,
Vicki McGrath+
This Sunday is the Last Sunday after Epiphany. That means we will be leaving behind green vestments, the Enriching Our Worship Eucharistic Prayer (at 10 a.m.), and saying Alleluia. Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday are coming up next week (see below) – hope to see you there! We have Lenten meditation booklets from Episcopal Relief and Development available for you to pick up in the Narthex. Lent is often a time when we think about taking on some particular discipline – exercise, prayer, fasting from sweets-television-credit cards-you name it, attending to habits that draw us away from God rather than closer to God. Between now and Wednesday think about what might be helpful for you this Lent, and then take that on as a discipline. Discipline is not an unbreakable rule, but a concentrated and steady way to learn something (like “disciple”). We are always learning and growing as Christians, but Lent is a particularly good time to be focusing on ways that we can grow closer to God and more like Jesus.
A few notes about things going on at All Saints’:
· The second bathroom on the main level of the Parish House is being renovated this weekend, as part of our on-going Centennial Campaign work. It will also be a handicapped-accessible, unisex bathroom. But as with any older building there are always challenges: we discovered that the sub-floor in the bathroom was seriously rotting. There had been a leaky valve in a pipe in the wall. The drain pipes also needed to be roto-rootered. Years of grease and coffee grounds and other things had clogged the drains. Thanks to Charlie Hogan, and to Bob Meyers, our contractor!
· Plans for the Gala Brunch on May 1st for the Parking Lot Challenge are underway. We’ll be asking everyone to bring finger foods – either savory or sweet. Sign-up sheets for food contributions, set up, clean up, decorating, etc. will be available in the Narthex starting next week. And make sure to put May 1st at 11:15 on your calendar as we start our Parking Lot Challenge of raising $20,000 to meet Leroy May’s match so we can fix the parking lot.
· The Marketplace is taking a rest this year, as did the Grateful Gathering. These have been a wonderful events in our parish life, but it seemed like a good time to step back from them. There will be some other fun community-wide events planned. Stay tuned!
+ + + + + + + + +
Scout Sunday will be celebrated on March 6th at the 10 am service. All Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts are asked to wear their uniforms to Church and participate in the Scout ceremony (the Law, Promise/Oath, and prayers). Our celebration falls between the birthdays of Robert Baden Powell (founder of Boy Scouting) on February 22 and Juliette Gordon Low (founder of Girl Scouting) on March 12. The Scouting movement is supported at All Saints’ through our active sponsorship of Boy Scout Troop 56 and Cub Pack 56, as well as by providing meeting space for numerous Girl Scout groups, including the monthly Long Hill Twp. Girl Scout leaders’ meeting.
Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper – March 8th, serving from 5:30 – 7:00 pm in the lower level of the Parish House. Pancakes, sausage, applesauce and Mardi Gras beads – come and have a last fling before Lent starts! Cost is $5 per person, maximum $20 per household, kids under age 3 are free. Sign up on the sheet in the Narthex, or RSVP to the parish office via e-mail. Also, all middle school and high school kids are needed to help set tables, put up decorations and serve the meal. If you can help please let Beth or Mother Vicki know.
Ash Wednesday services will be held on March 9th at 9:30 am and 7:30 pm. Eucharist and ashes will be available at both services. The evening service will include music. Plan to start the season of Lent in a reflective and introspective way.
Women’s Book Group will meet Wednesday, March 16th at 7:30 at Carol Berry’s, 14 Coppergate Drive, Basking Ridge. This month’s book is A Secret Kept by Tatiana de Rosnay. This is a fun group – come check us out!
Community Forum – Wednesday, March 24 & Tuesday, March 29. Who's in the Driver's Seat? Caring for Aging Parents: From Parents' and Children's Perspectives. This two-part Forum will be presented in the Parish Hall from 7:30-9:00 pm, with time for questions and discussion. On March 23 Catherine Morrisett will speak from the perspective of the parents’’ needs and feelings and on March 29 Nunzio Gubitosa will discuss the challenges and life changes facing caregivers. Both speakers are counselors at the Grace Counseling Center in Madison, N.J. All of us are touched by these important issues in some way. Invite a friend, neighbor or co-worker and come share the evening with others.
Children’s Eucharist Instruction Class – for kids in Grades 1 or 2; Monday afternoons, May 2, 9, 16 at 4 pm in the Rath House. Please speak to Mother Vicki or e-mail the Parish office to enroll your child in this class.
Save these dates…
May 1 – Gala Coffee Hour/Brunch Kickoff for Parking Lot Challenge
May 5 – Fish and Chips (Argyle of Kearny), public fund-raiser for parking lot
Late May/Early June – Car Wash, public fund-raiser for parking lot
June 4 – Beth’s diaconal ordination, 10 am
June 27-July 1…Christian Arts Camp
for children age 4-Grade 4; 9 am-12 noon.
July 11-15…Summer Saints Musical Theater
for kids Grades 5-9; 9 am-2 pm.
+ + + + + + + + +
The following was found in “The Big Book of Scout Worship Services”, by Pete Metzloff for his Woodbadge project. Woodbadge is a Boy Scout training program for adults. These words can just as easily apply to Girl Scout leaders, Sunday School teachers, youth group advisors, and any adult Christians who care about the children in their church or at home.
A Scout Leader’s Wish
Deep reflection on my role causes me to pause. Can I remember? Can I be the leader I want to be?
Let me exhibit the qualities of those who I have admired, and shun the qualities of those I did not.
Let me create a safe haven for all who come to our troop.
Let me be as respectful of others and their ideas as I was when I saw an American Flag being ceremoniously retired by flame.
Let me have the humility to seek help from those more knowledgeable than I.
Let me remember, that in a Scout’s eyes, what I do speaks louder than what I say.
Let me have the patience to let the Scouts lead, fail and succeed.
Let me have the grace to praise the Scouts for the troop’s successes and accept the blame for its failures.
Let me have the perception and caring to seek out the troubled youth, the homesick camper, and the lonely Scout.
Let me have the creativity to help provide fun, spirit and knowledge.
Let me have the attentiveness to listen and respond completely,
Let me have enough time for deep reflection.
Let me have the necessary qualities and skill to instill the true meaning of the Scout Law, Oath, Motto, and Slogan.
Let me remember, but not be burdened by, the responsibilities of my position.
And please, Oh Lord, help me to watch over the Scouts under my care.
Blessings,
Vicki McGrath+
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