CHRIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH of GUILFORD
  • Home
    • Christ Church Livestreams
    • Parish Newsletter
    • Transition Process
    • Monthly Calendar
  • Who We Are
    • What We Believe
    • Who Belongs Here
    • Clergy & Staff
    • Church Vestry
    • Annual Meeting Minutes >
      • Christ Church By-laws
  • What We Do
    • Services & Liturgy
    • Baptisms, Weddings and Funerals
    • Children & Youth Ministry >
      • Archived Digital Sunday School
    • Music Ministry >
      • Choirs
      • Organ Music
    • Parish Ministry Committees
    • Outreach
    • Fellowship >
      • ECW/EECW
  • Visit Us
    • Contact Us
  • Stewardship and Giving

Christ Church Weekly Announcements

Fr. Harrison's Letter for June 19, 2016

6/17/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
Dear Hearts,

What a joy and privilege to share the good news: Laurie Varley has accepted our call to serve as our new Sunday School Director!  Yesterday was her first official day.  She has already spent hours with her predecessor Lisa Ste. Marie (thank you, Lisa!) and has begun planning for Vacation Bible School, August 22-26, and the next year of Sunday School.

Laurie comes to us from the First Congregational Church, UCC, of Guilford, where she and her family are members.  At First Church, Laurie has taught Sunday School, helped plan and lead their Vacation Bible School, served on their Children's Education Board, and helped initiate a mixed-ages summer Sunday morning program.  During a period of staff transitions at First Church, Laurie served as "Bridge," or interim, Coordinator for the church-wide family activities that she had previously supported as a volunteer.

Some parents and children may be acquainted with Laurie through her work as a paraprofessional at Adams Middle School.  Laurie, her husband and daughter, live in Gulford.

A native of North Carolina, Laurie served as staff youth director for a Baptist church, and was entrusted with increasing levels of leadership and responsibilities over her many years of involvement in the North Carolina Baptist Assembly.  

Laurie was looking for a "next opportunity" where she could serve God's children with her gifts for faithful creativity. So God has led her down the Green to us!  Her glowing references were convinced she would be a very good for us at Christ Church.  And I am so grateful!

I am also grateful to our Sunday School teachers who helped craft a new announcement for the position, and who knew where to post it so it was seen.  We received at least 12 serious inquiries, 10 resumes, and conducted five interviews.   I'm especially grateful to Donna Lafata and Lisa Ste. Marie for their help with this last task.

Children and parents can look forward to getting well-acquainted with Laurie at Vacation Bible School, August 22-26.  Please get those dates on your family calendar!

Now, onto a sad subject:  Orlando.  How horrible that "Orlando," now joins, "Sandy Hook," "San Bernadino," "Roseburg," "Charleston," and "Columbine" among sites of mass shootings; we have only to hear these locations, and the death of innocents comes to mind.  As it happens, I had to preach on Monday for one of my classes at Sewanee's School of Theology; the assignment specified only the inclusion of a poem we had read in class and ten-minute length.  But there was no getting around Orlando.  Jane Ferrall has kindly posted that sermon on our website with a very evocative image.  [It's the blog post immediately below this one.]

On the Episcopal Church in Connecticut's website you can find information about a Vigil that will be offered at our Cathedral in Hartford this evening, at 7 p.m. ( If you read my sermon, you'll know that if I were in Connecticut, I'd be there.)  That's the opening image (the first button) on the homepage.  The next button has a link to a joint statement from our Bishops, +Ian Douglas and +Laura Ahrens; I commend it to you.  It's hard to find any "Good News" amidst such devastating sadness; but my colleague Alex Dyer+, now interim at Old St. Andrew's in Bloomfield, recalled this observation by Craig Koester: "from an earthly perspective, evil can seem so persuasive and even unstoppable. But from a heavenly perspective – evil and darkness – rages on earth not because they are so powerful but because they know they have already lost."

Sometimes it's hard to see the light amidst the darkness, but that's a glimpse for me!

I had a nice message from +Jane Stickney; she felt warmly welcomed last Sunday!  I'm not surprised, but I am grateful.  You have a second opportunity to worship with her this Sunday, June 19. 

With love and prayers from Tennessee,
Harrison+
YFNR
p.s. Here's an announcement from Rose Robinson: Cookbook rewriting party.  Do you have good handwriting?  If so, please join Rose for a small re-writing and assembling recipes gathering on Thursday, June 23rd, at 6:30 p.m. in the Parish Hall – refreshments will be served.  

The May/June issue of  GTO: Glad Tidings Online is now available by clicking here. It includes details about parish leadership in June and July while I am on study-leave and vacation.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    We feature various authors from around our parish, commenting on topics of interest to our community.  Enjoy!  Comment if you are so moved!

    Archives

    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

We Would Love to Have Yo​u Visit Soon!
11 Park street, guilford ct 06437


Hours

Office Hours
Tues-Thurs
​10am-3pm

Telephone

203-453-2279

Email

info@christchurchguilford.org
  • Home
    • Christ Church Livestreams
    • Parish Newsletter
    • Transition Process
    • Monthly Calendar
  • Who We Are
    • What We Believe
    • Who Belongs Here
    • Clergy & Staff
    • Church Vestry
    • Annual Meeting Minutes >
      • Christ Church By-laws
  • What We Do
    • Services & Liturgy
    • Baptisms, Weddings and Funerals
    • Children & Youth Ministry >
      • Archived Digital Sunday School
    • Music Ministry >
      • Choirs
      • Organ Music
    • Parish Ministry Committees
    • Outreach
    • Fellowship >
      • ECW/EECW
  • Visit Us
    • Contact Us
  • Stewardship and Giving