We had a great week at Christian Arts Camp! Thank you to Alison Seiner Brown for making this happen – along with Meg McGrath, and our teen helpers. On Sunday at the 10 am service members of the cast will sing two of the songs from the musical as part of our worship, and the scenery will be on display.
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STEWARDSHIP
Rummage Drop-off will begin Sunday, August 3 in the Parish Hall. What do we take? Good, useful, fairly clean items that you can no longer use: furniture, house wares, linens, electronics, garden/lawn tools, toys, children’s books, holiday items, small appliances, boutique items, etc. We don’t take tube TVs, tires, broken items, large appliances, shoes, clothes or hardcover books for grown-ups.
What help do we need? Here’s our top ten list:
1) Set up tables in Parish Hall on 8/2 to receive rummage
2) Price and sort (in air-conditioned comfort!)
3) Kid wrangler on day of sale
4) Clean up after sale – lots of help needed!
5) Deliver left-over rummage to other charities
6) Selling – 3 shifts: 9-11 am; 11 am-1 pm; 1-3 pm.
7) Bake Sale – bakers and sellers
8) Food table staff (hot dogs, coffee, chili, etc.)
9) Publicity, including hosting a Sale sign on your lawn
10) New this year - Chili “cook off” to sell at the food table!
Sign-up poster for volunteers is in the Narthex.
If you have questions please speak with Kimberly Celeste or Charlotte Davis. And be sure to put the sale date, Sept. 20, on your calendar!
Please remember as you travel or have a lazy Sunday at home or at the Shore that it is very helpful to have everyone’s pledge contributions remain current. If you are not going to be at worship you can always put your check in the mail, or drop it off to the parish office. Thank you!
Our Parish House is getting a new coat of paint this summer, to match the stucco on the new entryway. The Church Road and parking lot sides are finished. The Long Hill Road side will be worked on later in August. Take a look!
During the month of August work will be done on the Church Undercroft and the side entrance of the Church, due to leaking and flooding we had this past winter and spring. The work will be done by the Church Restoration Group, funded by Church Insurance. The plan calls for plaster, paint, replacing the red carpet with a stair runner, taking up the green asbestos tile floor and replacing it with new vinyl tile. The side roof has already been repaired with new flashing and a rubber membrane. The asbestos abatement will begin July 28. While the work is being done there will be no access to the Undercroft. We’ll keep you posted about how we will work around this project, but we are very grateful that Church Insurance for funding this work.
HELPING HANDS
Summer Community Blood Drive, Sunday, July 27 in the Parish Hall from 11am-3pm. In the summer months, blood supplies are typically very low. Give blood & the gift of life, just as God has given you new life! We also need some people to offer hospitality to our donors, and bakers to provide some post-donation snacks. Sign-up on the sheet in the Narthex to donate and/or volunteer to help. Invite your neighbors, too!
Food for Friends – Please remember to buy non-perishable foods to donate to the food barrel when you shop for yourself and your family. Thanks!
WORSHIP
Summer Choir “Try It” - Next Sunday, July 27, all singers are invited to sing in a special summer choir. You do not need to be a regular member of the choir to sing this day. We'll meet at 9:00am on that Sunday morning to learn an anthem that we will sing in worship the same day. No long term commitment or previous choral experience is needed! If you like to sing, please come join us! For more information, contact Alison Siener Brown.
Junior Choir Open House - August 28, 5:00-6:30 pm. For boys and girls grade 2 and older. Does your child love to sing? Would you like him or her to learn the basics of music, make friends, be part of a supportive community and have fun? Come and learn more about our Junior Choir and have a chance to try it out – and bring a friend! For more info contact Alison Siener Brown
COMMUNITY HOSPITALITY
Little Explorers - During the month of July we are pleased to be hosting this Pre-K summer program for Long Hill Township Recreation. This is the sixth year the program has been here – a great partnership between All Saints’ and Long Hill Township.
Musik Garten Music Classes - This fall All Saints’ will become the host site for music classes for children from babies up to 8 years old – singing games and musical play all the way up to pre-piano/instrument classes on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings and Thursday afternoons. The classes are offered in partnership with the community organization Music in the Somerset Hills, and are taught by our own Alison Siener Brown. For more information or registration speak to Alison or go to http://musicsh.org/musikgarten/.
FORMATION
Wednesday Bible Study Group, 10:15-11:30 am in the Rath House. The last meeting of the summer is 7/16: The Parables of Jesus. We’ll read and discuss some of the stories that Jesus used for teaching, and they way they apply to our lives today. Newcomers to Bible reading are welcomed and encouraged. We’ll provide you with a Bible if you need one. Come and try us out! Questions? Speak to Mother Vicki.
Small Saints Arts Workshop, August 28, for Kids age 4-8; 9 am-12 noon. Music, crafts, snacks and games; $5 per family. A fun way to spend a summer morning before school starts! There’s a flyer on the table in the Narthex.
Women’s Book Group meets this Wednesday, July 16 at 7:30 pm in the Rath House. The book for discussion will be The Invention of Wings, by Sue Monk Kidd. Come for a fun evening of friendship and discussion.
PARISH CALENDAR THIS WEEK
Wed 7/16 Bible Study 10:15 am, Rath House
Women’s Book Group 7:30 pm, Rath House
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“If we are Jesus’ followers, if we have taken on his yoke, then we need to do our best to speak and act in ways that reflect that we are all made in the image of God, regardless of age or race or ethnicity or legal status or anything else that may seem to separate us from one another.
We need to remember and affirm the full humanity of others, especially when we disagree with them or when we are fearful that something is being taken away from us or that we cannot stop change that is taking place around us….
In the midst of making hard decisions about complex and difficult situations, we can never lose sight of the value of another human being, and part of our job as Christians is to say this clearly and plainly whenever it is called for, especially in situations that are tense and emotions are running high.
That is not liberal or conservative, it is not Republican or Democratic, it is not politically correct; it is Christian, and God expects us to do no less.” ~ from my sermon July 6, 2014
Blessings,
Vicki+