 D. More Activities and Dates
Our calendar is on line. Click here:
Link to the Saint Stephen's June Calendar
Jump ahead to Anniversaries and Birthdays
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DON'T FIGHT! WE HAVE SHARES FOR EVERYONE!
Yes, it's that time of year again - workcamp shares go on sale soon, so be prepared!This year we have shares in exciting new colors and thrilling denominations. Be the first in your neighborhood to own some of these coveted shares, and you'll receive a prize - you'll be the first owner of some shares . . . in your neighborhood.
Remember: all proceeds from the sale of these shares helps pay for the youth group trip to workcamp this summer.
END OF YEAR PICNIC - June 14th - 11:30am
In the Episcopal church (and probably in other churches as well), our "year" ends in June. And of course, we have to celebrate. One of the ways we do that at St. Stephen's is to party! And at this time of year there is no better way to do that than with a picnic.
Plan to be a part of the fun on Sunday, June 13 immediately following the 10:15am service. We provide the hot dogs, burgers, buns, condiments and drinks. You provide your favorite salad, munchie or dessert. We'll have games for the kids and promise good fellowship and good food.
Questions: Contact Liz Varno at gvarno@nycap.rr.com or 346-5370.
Counters' Schedule
July - December 2009
Date Group Date Group
July October
5........B 4........E
12........C 11........A
19........D 18........B
26........E 25.......C
August November
2........A 1.......D
9........B 8........E
16.......C 15........A
23.......D 22........B
30.......E 29.......C
September December
6........A 6........D
13........B 13.......E
20........C 20.......A
27........D 27........B
Group A Group B Group C
Doreen May Millie Gittinger Judy Versocki
Ralph May Don Molino Diana Belardo
Joan Halstead Sondra Grady Bob Voelker
Group D Group E Substitute
Marilyn Causey Pauline Northrop Marti Spang
Denise Crates Louise Peake
Austin Spang Deborah O'Connor
Belardo....783-9730 Molino........372-7149
Causey....372-2469 Northrop.....785-9465
Crates......373-9657 O'Connor.....374-6641
Gittinger...377-0671 Peake........374-0480
Grady.......393-5803 Spang........393-2859
Halstead...346-8160 Versocki.....393-0783
May.........346-2818 Voelker.......877-0816
If you are a Counter, and you cannot count on your scheduled Sunday, please find your own substitute.
USHERS NEEDED
We're looking to expand our Ushers group for the 10:15am service. And we'd like you to pray about volunteering for this ministry. Ushering is an easy yet fulfilling way to be a good Steward, as you give back to St. Stephen's of your time.
It only involves your time during the service. No extra meetings or activities. And we'll schedule you with an experienced Usher who will show you the ropes. You can volunteer once a week, once a month or once a year. It's up to you.
Oh, and by the way, this is an "all gender" ministry - not just limited to the men!
Curious? Interested?
Contact either Norman Hoffmann (377-5851) or Barbara Wisnom (371-6187; bwisnom@nycap.rr.com)
Graduating and Beginnin Anew!
Gordon Jaquith is graduating from the University of Rochester. He'll be working as a contract negotiator at the Office of Naval Research in Arlington, VA.
Linah Rusere is graduating from Union College. After a summer internship with Bristol-Myers Squibb in NJ, she'll be entering a doctoral program in organic chemistry at Purdue University.
Nick Reed is graduating from Niskayuna HS and will attend Marymount College in Palos Verdes, CA, majoring in history. He hopes to join the Peace Corps and teach.
Ethan Brooks-McDonald is graduating from Schenectady HS and will attend Bates College in Lewiston, ME.
Tom Casale is graduating from Schenectady HS and will attend Hartwick College in Oneonta, NY.
Ben Boese is graduating from Schenectady HS and will attend Schenectady Community College.
Lea Scafidi is graduating Niskayuna HS and hopes to go to Univ. California at Santa Cruz, if she can manage scholarships etc
Laura Pratico is graduating from Niskayuna HS and will be attending Clarkson University.
Our heart felt congratulations go out to each of you!
Richey Woodzell
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ADOPT A SPOT
MAKE ST. STEPHEN'S SARKLE UPDATE
Below are the areas that still need to be adopted:
> the Parish Hall extension (needs a good sweeping weekly; dusting every
couple of weeks)
> the Nave of the Church (needs general straightening and pick up; carpet
needs vacuuming; window sills need periodic dusting)
> Garner Ave Entrance & Stairs (need sweeping every couple of weeks;
mopping about once a month, depending on weather)
> the Narthex & stairs at the main entrance (needs sweeping every couple of
weeks; dusting every couple of weeks; mopping about once a month weather
depending; throwing away dead flowers)
> Girls & Boys bathrooms downstairs
> Community Room, downstairs (vacuuming, sweeping the floor, some dusting)
> Parish Hall (sweeping weekly, especially after Coffee Hour; mopping once a
month or so; general pick up)
> Downstairs Hallway (sweeping at least weekly; mopping every couple of
weeks, depending on the weather)
> Choir Room (vacuuming, general straightening)
> Kitchen (sweeping after Coffee Hour each week; mopping about once a month;
Coffee Hour host/hostesses do thorough clean up each Sunday)
> Parish Office (vacuum weekly; clean bathroom about every other week; keep
floor in work room clean)
QUESTIONS:
Barbara Wisnom - 371-6187; bwisnom@nycap.rr.com
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 May Edition of The Power of Partnerships and Friends of Episcopal Relief & Development Web Series
The current hostilities in Sri Lanka between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have intensified the scale of the humanitarian crisis in the country. Reports continue of death and injury to civilians trapped in the main conflict zone in the northeast of the country while the humanitarian resources other areas are being strained by the high number of people fleeing the hostilities.
As a result of the fighting, local infrastructure and communication systems have been destroyed. Initial reports indicate an urgent need for basic items to assist Internally Displaced People (IDP), which number at least 230,000 according to the United Nations Refugee Agency.
Episcopal Relief & Development is partnering with the Diocese of Colombo in response to the IDP emergency. Both entities are providing shelter, bedding, food, water and medical assistance to displaced people in camps and a hospital. Episcopal Relief & Development will strengthen its response as the situation unfolds.
"Our local partners are continuing to provide invaluable relief services in very difficult circumstances as the humanitarian crisis deepens in the conflict-affected regions," said Nagulan Nesiah, Episcopal Relief & Development Program Officer for Asia. "We are moved by the commitment and stand in solidarity with their efforts."
To make a contribution to help people worldwide, please donate to Episcopal Relief & Development online at www.er-d.org , or call 1-800-334-7626, ext. 5129. Gifts can be mailed to: Episcopal Relief & Development, PO Box 7058, Merrifield, VA 22116-7058.
Book Review by Allison de Kanel
Tokens of Trust: An Introduction to Christian Belief,by Rowan Williams
This year's Sunday evening Lenten Study was based on Marianne H. Mick's Book, Loving the Questions, which explores the Nicene Creed, the history of its development, how it was understood in its original context, and how we are to understand it today.
The discussion was lively. As the weeks went on, it seemed to me that there were at least two different approaches to the Nicene Creed: one that was analytical and logical, and another that was more meditative and poetic. I would summarize the first approach as wondering, "how much of the Creed can I say without crossing my fingers behind my back?" and the second approach as wondering, "God is big, I'm not, it's a mystery, so why couldn't this be true?" Full disclosure here: I fall into the second set.
The experience of this study inspired me to go back and reread Tokens of Trust, a book on Christian belief by Rowan Williams. Dr. Williams is the current archbishop of Canterbury, and his speeches and his writings can be rather dense. But this book is based on a series of talks presented in Canterbury Cathedral during Holy Week, 2005, so the content is fairly accessible.
Dr. Williams' book fits neither of the two approaches I described above. He uses the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed to structure his book, discussing God, creation, Jesus, and so on, but his approach considers the very word "belief" as meaning something other than pure intellectual assent. He points out that the words "I believe in one God" might remind us of questions like "Do you believe in ghosts?" or UFO's, or the Loch Ness monster, but that isn't what they originally meant or should mean to us. The meaning is closer to what I mean when I say I believe in my husband. I have confidence in him. I trust him. For Dr. Williams, the Creed is "a series of statements about where I find the anchorage of my life, where I find solid ground, home."
Dr. Williams discusses why we might consider God trustworthy before he even approaches the question, is any of this is actually true? Does God exist? He admits that he doesn't have the decisive argument to prove the existence of God: instead, he points to the examples of believing people who are themselves trustworthy. Indeed, as his discussion proceeds, he makes the point that Jesus himself "is supremely the one who makes God credible, trustworthy."
The book is enriched throughout by a carefully selected series of illustrations: some works of art by the Welsh artist David Jones, and various other photographs that support the text. The images are striking.
Rather than quoting half the book, I encourage you to read it. A copy has been donated to the church library.
Allison
Wedding Anniversaries and Birthdays
Birthdays:
Bill Frank........... 6/1
Robert Manor..... 6/1
Chloe Tonneau... 6/2
Robert Voelker.... 6/2
David Caruso...... 6/4
June Hatlee........ 6/5
Ellen Ormsbee..... 6/5
Barbara Adams.... 6/7
Joseph Beardsley. 6/10
JP Murphy-Nolan.. 6/11
Phoebe Redmond.. 6/12
Charlie Mertz....... 6/13
Bonita Bailey....... 6/14
Stephen Gray...... 6/14
Madeline Olberg.... 6/14
Carsten Renken.... 6/14
Diana Belardo....... 6/12
Josephine Jones.... 6/18
Karen Smith......... 6/18
Meghan Bauer....... 6/18
Al Lowe............... 6/20
Benjamin Claus...... 6/22
Donald Humphrey... 6/22
Britta Kilbourn....... 6/22
Joseph Tonneau.... 6/22
Chris Murphy......... 6/23
Darcy Pratt........... 6/25
Ann Walraven........ 6/25
Salvatore Belardo... 6/27
Jack Luczka.......... 6/27
Laura Davis........... 6/30
Alyssa Koreman...... 6/30
Charles Trawick...... 6/30
Scott Moss............ 6/30
Patrick Trant........... 7/1
Hoagy Walker........... 7/1
Carrie Trant ............ 7/2
J. Keith Nelson......... 7/3
Everett Schierenbeck. 7/8
Mary Davis.............. 7/9
Joan Moss............... 7/9
Marian Sevinsky........ 7/9
Dawn Tonneau.......... 7/9
Doreen May............. 7/10
Judith Versocki ......... 7/10
Gillian Woodcock........ 7/12
James McDonald......... 7/13
William Smith.............. 7/15
Andrea Worthington..... 7/15
Michael Bishop............ 7/16
Gaye Mertz................ 7/16
Austin Spang.............. 7/16
Jean Versocki............. 7/17
Larry Levine............... 7/19
Jean Hadley................ 7/21
Christopher Jones........ 7/21
Oto Jones.................. 7/25
George Woodzell.......... 7/25
Garret Pierce.............. 7/26
Ryan Huneau............. 7/28
Connor Wolff............. 7/29
Molly Ormsbee............ 7/31
Jeanette Claus............. 8/1
Brody Riordan.............. 8/1
Kieran Templeton.......... 8/1
Cindy Reedy.................. 8/5
Jean Greenspan............. 8/5
Peter Sombor................. 8/5
Robert Chapman............. 8/6
Pauline Holmes............... 8/6
Sydney Bailey................. 8/7
Suzanne Taylor............... 8/7
Julia Smith.................... 8/14
John Goldthwaite............ 8/15
Daniel Emaelaf................ 8/16
Ganon Riordan................. 8/16
Mildred Santer................. 8/18
Polly Mathews................. 8/18
Brandon Anthony.............. 8/19
Angela Strong.................. 8/19
Stacy DeBritz................... 8/20
Emily Mertz...................... 8/20
David Dare....................... 8/22
Melinda Renken................. 8/23
Daniel Koch...................... 8/24
Alannah Mykoo.................. 8/24
Richey Woodzell................. 8/26
Cadence Brennan............... 8/27
Madeline Denofio................ 8/28
Glenn Kaler........................ 8/29
Wendy Koreman.................. 8/29
Mary Whitney..................... 8/30
Anniversaries:
Lucy Clark & Stephen Sombor.... 6/1
Diana & Salvatore Belardo........ 6/12
Patricia & Christopher Jones...... 6/12
Diane & K.Scott Kilbourn........... 6/15
Ann & A. Emile Walraven........... 6/15
Janet & William Schlansker........ 6/19
Michael & Stacy DeBritz........... 6/20
Mildred & Clark Gittinger........... 6/20
Dawn & Glenn Kaler................. 6/20
Linda & Belachew Emaelaf......... 6/22
Susan & Jack Feyrer................ 6/22
Marti & Austin Spang............... 6/22
Wendy & Gene Koreman............ 6/26
Tracy & Jim Ormsbee................ 6/26
Pat & Bob Hagen..................... 6/28
Amy & Scott Soulé.................... 7/5
Shirley & Robert Voelker............ 7/10
Gaye & Charlie Mertz................ 7/16
Carolyn & Richard Morin............ 7/19
Julie & Brian Bailey.................... 7/21
Marilyn & James Dare................ 7/28
Lorie & David Kelley.................. 7/30
Dawn & Benoit Tonneau.............. 8/1
Susie & Tim Olsen...................... 8/2
Chris Murphy & Kelly Nolan.......... 8/3
Jean & Owen Greenspan............. 8/5
Cindy & Wayne Reedy................ 8/6
Mary & Eber Davis..................... 8/9
Karen & William Smith................. 8/9
Marilyn & Donald Humphrey........ 8/13
Polly & Richard Mathews............ 8/18
Mary & Ronald Michelson............ 8/25
Deborah & Charles Trawick......... 8/25
Joanne & Bill Frank.................... 8/26
Suzanne & David Taylor............. 8/28
Kathy & Tom Miller.................... 8/31 |
Dear Friends,
