Congratulations to our Confirmands!
St. Paul’s North Andover, St. James’ Groveland, and St. Paul’s Newburyport
Confirmands from St. Paul’s NA were: MacKenzie Driscoll, Will Ferguson, Carly Fraser, Alex MacNally, Haley MacNally, and Dana Swartz.
The next vestry meeting is on May 15th. In between vestry meetings, feel free to contact any member of the vestry with any concerns. (see list at the end of this newsletter.)
The Property Committee
A GIGANTIC THANK YOU, to our kind parishioners, for your generous donations with our Outreach Endeavors. Be it time, talent or treasure, your support always comes through! Our Birthday in a Box was greatly appreciated by the children of Manos Felices~Happy Hands at Hancock, a small gesture for us but an enormous gift to them, and the fantastic folks at Cor Unum always appreciate our monthly service to their phenomenal Meal Center.
Thank You for an ‘Undie’-precented successful UNDIE SUNDAY drive!
The Undie Sunday drive this year was an ‘Undie’-niable success! Thanks so much to everyone who donated cases of diapers, packages of underwear, socks, and more. The collection will be distributed by Communities Together to approximately 10 social service agencies which serve local needy families.
Leary Family helping at church yard clean up
photo by Leslie Kalafarski
In the Arms of God and Women
June Overnight Retreat Registration Open
June 3 through June 4, 2016
Adelynrood Retreat and Conference Center
Byfield, MA
We are excited to announce that enrollment is open for the summer Martha and Mary Retreat to be held on June 3 and June 4 at Adelynrood Retreat and Conference Center in Byfield, MA.
The title of our In the Arms of God and Women Retreat is “You’ve Been Heard.” The Retreat will include information from Dr. Brene’ Brown, a highly revered and thoroughly enjoyable researcher and author of “The Gifts of Imperfection.”
You are welcome to check in as early as 3:00 pm on Friday to settle in, walk the labyrinth and enjoy the grounds. We will meet for dinner at 6:00 pm and the retreat will begin at 7:00 pm Friday night, June 3.
As you know, we pass on only the actual costs for the Retreat. This year Adelynrood has increased costs for the rooms, dinner, and lunch by 20% (they have generously excused the price increase for us for the last two years). The cost for the retreat is $150 which includes a private room with hall bath, three meals and a book.
You can reserve your room now with a $50 deposit made out to Julia Steer, 56 River Road, Merrimac, MA. We are limiting enrollment to 20 even though we are in the large conference room in the parlor. Reserve soon as we expect the Retreat to fill quickly.
For more information, call Julia at 978 346-1116 or Louise at 978 388-8473. We are looking forward gratefully to being with our friends In the Arms of God and Women.
Click here for more information: jsteer45@comcat.net
Dear Friends,
Planning is well underway for the St. Paul’s Mission Trip to The Pilgrimage, Washington, DC, August 11-14, 2016.
“The Pilgrimage has made room and welcomed groups committed to exploring the connection between faith and urban poverty since 1973. Each year they welcome over 1,500 companions to the streets of Washington, DC to learn the stories and names of the homeless and poor and work to help young people and adults connect their faith and belief systems with social awareness and action.”
We understand many of you would like, but are unable to join us. There are, however, many ways for you to participate in this Ministry and make this journey with us.
Those of us traveling to Washington are ready and willing to give of our time and talent and could use your gifts of treasure to help “lighten the load” of our mission. The following sponsorship opportunities are available to members of the St. Paul’s family to ensure that this effort is successful. There is no contribution too big or too small for our journey, all donations are greatly appreciated.
Chariot Chums: helping to offset the cost of the
rental of two vans
Fuel Friends: gasoline gift cards to fuel the vans
Produce Pals: funds to provide our food while in
Washington
Please contact Cheryl Means, Outreach Committee Chair, to arrange for your donation; threemeans@aol.com or 978-387-6170.
An extra 300 pounds doesn’t sound healthy…
but with your help it can be!
Outreach Food Drive
May-June
2016
Food in our local shelters is in greater demand during the summer months as children who often get free meals and snacks in school, are on their annual break. As you shop for your family’s meals, please consider picking up an extra item or two from the list below each week and bring it to church with you. There is a large container in the Narthex to deposit your donation. Get the “weight update” every week during announcements!
***********
Boxed cereal, rice, beans (especially Goya pink and pigeon beans), shelf stable milk and
Infant formula (especially yellow label Enfamil)
Woman’s Book Group
The next meeting of the Women’s Book Group will be on Thursday, May 12th at 7pm in the French Memorial. The book selection is Isaac’s Storm: a Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History by Erik Larson. The book is available through the Merrimack Valley Library Consortium in print and audio formats. It is also available through Kindle and Audible.
Book description:
This book is 323 pages
September 8, 1900, began innocently in the seaside town of Galveston, Texas. Even Isaac Cline, resident meteorologist for the U.S. Weather Bureau failed to grasp the true meaning of the strange deep-sea swells and peculiar winds that greeted the city that morning. Mere hours later, Galveston found itself submerged in a monster hurricane that completely destroyed the town and killed over six thousand people in what remains the greatest natural disaster in American history–and Isaac Cline found himself the victim of a devastating personal tragedy. Riveting, powerful, and unbearably suspenseful, Isaac’s Storm is the story of what can happen when human arrogance meets the great uncontrollable force of nature.
At the April 14th meeting we had a spirited discussion of The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins.
Please remember: This is our last meeting for this ‘book year’. At our May meeting we will finalize the list of suggestions for the book group’s 2016-2017 year. Please bring your suggestions (or email them to Tracy at tvw1954@yahoo.com )
From the Archives
