Congregational News
Quick Dates
Campus Ministry Services every Sunday at 6pm
Sunday, December 4: 5pm Advent Spaghetti Dinner
Wednesday, December 14: 6:30pm Book Club at the home of Kaitlin Raver
OFFICE HOURS Dec 5-9
Due to electrical work in the building on Monday, December 5, we anticipate that the office will be CLOSED. Office hours will be made up at the end of the week. Thank you.
AWAKE/AWARE
“SERVE” will be held in the Hobson Hall kitchen, this Sunday at 10:30 am, with both AWAKE and AWARE participating. Last month we made a macaroni and cheese casserole for someone recovering from surgery. This week, we are helping a family in need. We need all hands on deck!!
Sunday, December 11-Carolyn Baginski leads ‘MAKE’, where our AWAKE and AWARE children create art in the ways that only they can….(of course, helped along by Carolyn…).
SUNDAY, December 18, at 10:30 am……the Annual AWAKE Christmas Pageant, entitled ‘A Voice from Prison’, will be presented by the children and youth of St. Stephen’s.
-NOTE; there will be a rehearsal for the Pageant on Saturday morning, December 17, from 10:00 am until noon. Breakfast will be served, and costumes will be fitted.
Please note that there will be NO AWAKE or AWARE on the Sundays of December 25 and January 1 due to the Holidays.
AWAKE/ AWARE photos from past years are on display in the sanctuary, presented by Chris Donaldson (as she has done for seven years!).
Book Club News
The December Book Club meeting will be on Wednesday, December 14, 2016 at 6:30 PM at Kaitlin Raver’s home. Kindly let Kaitlin know in advance if you plan to attend. We’ll share a potluck super followed by the book discussion. Please bring something to share (main dish, side dish, dessert, beverage). And, instead of a book, we’ll all bring a poem to share (a favorite, one that moves you, something new you’ve discovered — you decide). Everyone is welcome. In January we’ll be sharing books that we would like to read in 2017, so please start thinking about what you’d like to suggest.
Christmas Service Schedule
Christmas Eve -Holy Communion -Saturday, December 24
4:00 pm Family Friendly Service
9:00 pm Festive Eucharist with Choir and light incense
Christmas Day -Sunday, December 25
NO MORNING SERVICE
4:00 pm Christmas Day Eucharist -simple service of Holy Communion welcoming the Christ Child followed by “Encore Potluck”, bring your leftover festive goodies to share. Wassail will be provided.
Service Opportunities
NSI Donations for November/December
Now NSI is getting ready for Christmas. We’ve been asked to donate 450 boxes of potatoes, any kind. As of Sunday, Nov. 27, we’ve collected 185 boxes of potatoes. They should be at church by Sunday, December 18.
You may also adopted a child or children for Christmas gifts. The Jesse Tree under the pulpit has paper ornaments on it that tell you the name of the parent with phone number and child, gift preferences and directions. Please sign your name on the sign-up sheet next to the parent/ child that you chose. Plan to spend approximately $50 per child in purchasing gifts. The gifts need to be at church by Sunday, December 11. If you’d rather not shop, you can make a money donation. Write your check to St. Stephen’s with NSI Christmas gift on the memo line. The monetary donations need to be at church by Wednesday, Dec. 7. Shopping for those gifts will be done the next day. If you have any questions, contact Carolyn
BREAD News
A few weeks ago at the Annual Assembly, we heard an update on the “Welcome Columbus” initiative. Two years ago this was the problem addressed by BREAD, and although it is not yet completely solved, we are making progress. The challenge is to get a municipal identification card for people who don’t have a driver’s license.
We heard personal testimony from Don Brown, whose problems resulted from having a common name and insufficient identification. He was mistakenly jailed for four days when the police were looking for a different person with the same name. After losing his wallet, he was without identification and could not cash his paycheck. He found himself in a Catch-22 situation that took weeks to resolve: he needed a birth certificate to get new ID, but he needed the ID to request his birth certificate.
This effort, initiated by BREAD, is now encompassing seven different organizations that advocate for victims of domestic violence, foster children, undocumented immigrants, the homeless, and senior citizens, all of whom may have identification challenges. They will be hosting a summit in the spring with officials from New York City, where such a program is running successfully.
City council member Mike Stinziano was present at the Annual Assembly, and pledged to work with BREAD to bring this effort to fruition.
Save these dates:
Monday December 12 — Research Kick-off. 7:00 pm at First Congregational Church, 444 E. Broad St.
Monday April 3 — Rally
Monday May 1 — Nehemiah Action (This is the BIG ONE at the State Fairgrounds!)
Holiday Project Christmas Day Visit
For the past 21 years, members of St Stephen’s and our Columbus community have visited patients at the Moritz Forensic Center on Christmas Day as part of the Holiday Project. We share cookies, lead them in singing and most importantly talk with them. Don Farrow is the person who started this wonderful ministry. We will be there on Christmas Day from 12:30 pm to 3:00 pm.
If you have not joined us in the past, you will need to have a background check completed by Dec 9th. Call Maureen Fahy 614-641-4326 to set up a time to complete that background check.
If you can join us, please contact Kathy Sellers
Thank you,
Kathy
Around Town and Beyond
Refresh Your Soul Conference
Exciting news! ERS Parish Health Ministry (PHM) and Xavier University (XU) are partnering to present two days devoted to dementia care.
Refresh Your Soul 2017 – Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Overcoming the Struggles & Living Inspired: Monday, March 13, 2017 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. &
XU Dementia Care Summit: Tuesday, March 14, 2017 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Location for both events: The Cintas Center at Xavier University
For more information or to download a printable flyer to share, please visit parishhealthministry.com/rys
Reminder: If you’re mailing something to the church, especially time-sensitive materials, we recommend using the PO Box! St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, PO Box 82263
Columbus, OH 43202