Parishioners and friends of St. Michael's,

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Children's chapel will take a hiatus in July

Godly Play and Youth classes are taking a break for the summer - we still start up again after Labor Day.

Contemplative Prayer - The SMAA Contemplative Prayer Group invites you to participate in our weekly contemplative prayer service.  We meet in the Sanctuary from 7-8 pm every Monday evening.

Adult Formation

Dear Friends,

This summer has been quite momentous in the life of our nation, our church, and our parish! I have missed terribly being with you as these events have unfolded, and am eager to get back to Albuquerque to move forward from our good beginning in June, with the "wind in our sails."

Just to keep everyone up to date: Karla is steadily recovering from her injury, and meanwhile we are making good progress on preparing our move to New Mexico. The truck is to arrive the last week of July, and we plan to be on the road west the last day of the month, to arrive in Albuquerque the first week of August.

My heartfelt thanks go to all of you for your prayers and concern, and especially to the parish staff and lay leadership who have been so helpful and supportive during this unexpectedly complicated season of transition. St. Michael's has truly demonstrated what a resilient and caring community it is, and it will indeed be a blessing to be back among you shortly!

Faithfully yours,

Fr. Joe 

Albuquerque Public Schools will start the 2015-2016 school year on August 13 and we will give back-to-school supplies to people at the food pantry.  We need any of the following: #2 pencils, crayons (24-count), white glue, scissors, pink erasers, spiral notebooks, wide-lined paper, glue sticks, water-based markers, and inexpensive backpacks. We will collect supplies again on July 26, and on August 2.  We will continue to distribute supplies on July 28, and August 4.  If anything is left, we will make a final distribution on August 11.

Come one, come all to the 3rd Annual Mercado!

Come see what talents we have at St. Michael's; Margaret's new book, Steve's  sparkling jewelry, Sue Ellen's blessed icons, Valsala's  new pottery, John's fabulous soaps, embroidered napkins and table cloths, and Icons; Susan and Linda's stunning quilts, Steve, Bill and Elsa's glorious photographs, Jan and Grace's latest paintings, and many more.  Shop for that special someone's gift,...or your own!  It's not too early to think Christmas.  Mercado is July 26, between the 9 AM and 11:15 services in the pavilion and under the portal.  20% of all proceeds go to the building fund.

The next NW Deanery meeting will be Saturday, July 25th at the Cathedral. We will start to gather at 9:30 and the meeting will begin at 10. We should be done by 3 pm if not before. 
The 2016 diocesan budget will be presented at this meeting and we will also have a presentation of the St. John's Bible, as well as an opportunity to visit with some of the General Convention Deputies. 
Also, on Saturday, Aug. 1, 2015 the Cathedral will be hosting a time for conversations on General Convention from 10 am till shortly after lunch. Deputies will be there and a presentation made on the happenings of General Convention. This event and another down south at St. Andrews in Las Cruces on Aug. 15th will be open to everyone, so please share the news. 
The agenda and past minutes can be found on our website: www.nwdeanery.org

People do not need to RSVP to attend the meeting but they DO need to RSVP for lunch.  Contact either to Cindy at the Cathedral or Diane Butler at St Thomas.

The "Coffee and Conversation" hour between the 9:00 and 11:15 services is in need of a few more volunteers for making and cleaning up the coffee. Volunteers take a Sunday about every six weeks, working during that hour with one or two other people.  If you'd like to volunteer, or if you have
questions, please contact Chris Alvarez at 505-660-4707 or [email protected].  Thanks!

Caring for Caregivers will meet on Thursday, July 30th, at 11:00 in the Parish Office conference room.  Caring for our loved ones through serious illness or later stages of life is both sacred and daunting.  Please join us for a brief respite of companionship and support for the journey.  If you have any questions or interest, please contact Denise Clauss at 697-7294.

Sunday, August 2nd, will have a sign up to provide food for St. Martin's breakfast on August 9th. Because the kitchen is closed for renovations, we will be in need of cash donations to purchase burritos (and no casseroles will be needed). Our other foods like cookies, fruit, hard boiled eggs and beverages will be served as usual. So if possible, please put a few bucks in our collection basket on August 2nd. We will be presenting our "Ministry Sunday" information about St. Martin's and the Dismas House ministries on August 2nd, so you can find out more about these outreach services to the needy.