A Publication of the Holy Cross
The Cross
February 2018
Articles and News

Mardi Gras/Fat Tuesday Pancake “Brinner”
Dessert Dash & Dance
Tuesday, February 13th @ 5:30pm
Stuff yourself silly with a free Pancake “Brinner.”
Bring your C ash and pool your resources with family, friends, or tablemates   for the Dessert Dash! 
It’s a fundraiser to benefit Camp Huston Scholarships.
               Shake a leg to the silly songs of the Canote Brothers.  
Our Food Bank Farm featured in "Seed & Harvest" Magazine
Ash Wednesday ~ February 14
Worship Service will be at 12:00pm & 7:00pm
(No 10:00am service)

Calling All Palms
Please bring back any palms you have at home from past Palm Sunday services, and leave them in the basket in the Narthex. The palms will be burned to produce the ashes used on Ash Wednesday.
Seder Dinner Apprentices Needed~ 
You have a unique opportunity to learn from Lydia Abbott , the secret knowledge of our Holy Week Seder Dinner liturgy. It would be great to have three apprentices working with Lydia this year. We have already exported our marvelous Seder liturgy to Good Samaritan in Sammamish. There's no telling where you may worship one day, where you may bless a congregation with this special ministry. Pray about it, as a missionary.
SAVE THE DATE:
Seder will be Thursday, March 29th starting at 6:00pm. Call the office if you can help be a part of a team.
Women's Retreat
Please consider joining the fellowship at this year’s Women’s Retreat. It is a time to get to know each other better, play & laugh, reflect, listen, sing, pray, enjoy the beauty of the NW.
 
The theme “Our Faith Journey Together” will be about exploring how our faith has impacted where we've been, where we're going and the value of supporting each other and not being alone on our journeys. Specifically, four women among us have agreed to share their faith journeys and remind us that we're in this together.
The 2 night retreat is Friday evening through Sunday afternoon, April 27-29 , 2018 at beautiful Camp Huston in Gold Bar, WA. Registration will open at the end of February. Questions?? Contact either Diane Vanden Brook, 425-286-7191 or e-mail diburg@aol.com or Kim Eichner, 425-443-5464 or kim.eichner@comcast.net. 

 “Super Seniors Sniff Snoqualmie Valley’s
Dairy Air”
 Join us for a tour of the state-of-the-art Werkhoven Dairy farm, followed by a tour of their ultra-state-of-the-art methane gas biodigester that turns poo into POWER! Afterwards, we will head to any of three wonderful nearby restaurants for lunch. Dress for weather and wear boots. Remember how you thought that Cedar Grove Compost would be ridiculous, and afterwards you remarked about how interesting it was?
Thursday, February 8 ~ Depart Holy Cross 9:30am & Return 2:00pm
RSVP Melissa holmesb@msn.com  
Faith Formation


On Sunday February   4 th , over 100 million Americans will watch the Super Bowl . On that day, our youth will hold soup pots at church doors soliciting your donation of $1. Please support this effort by dropping your dollar in the soup pot on February  4 th . All donations will go to Redmond United Methodist Church for their Open Kitchen feeding program. Thanks for pitching in!
Holy Communion Class begins March 4
This class is open to all students in grade 3 and above. The class will take place during the regular Sunday school hour and is jam packed with information and projects to build a layer of understanding of all the elements of our Holy Eucharist service. The class culminates on Mother’s Day with the students assisting Fr. Jim as celebrants of Holy Eucharist.   Click here for complete schedule .
Middle School Youth Curriculum
Youth ramp up their study of The Deathly Hallows, To Die Is Gain: Good and Evil in the World of Harry Potter, which includes mighty comparisons to Jesus’ life, death and resurrection will begin in January.
High School Youth Curriculum
Youth will wrap up their studies on Diversity soon and begin Nikki Gumbel’s Alpha Course in January.
Drop-In is every Wednesday evening for conversations, movies, music and fun. 
Middle School put their Faith into Action!
Congregations for Homeless.
The Middle School Youth had a great turnout last Tuesday. The kids made meatloaf, baked potatoes, string beans, and salad here at Holy Cross and transported it to Redmond United Methodist Church. We could not have done it without Sara Carroll’s leadership and mad organizational skills.
Book Club~
Tuesday, February 20 @ 7:00pm ~ Holy Cross
NOTE: We are meeting the 3rd Tuesday due to Mardi Gras…and we are again meeting at church! The Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles is a transporting novel about a man who is ordered to spend the rest of his life inside a luxury hotel. 
In 1922, Count Alexander Rostov is deemed an unrepentant aristocrat by a Bolshevik tribunal, and is sentenced to house arrest in the Metropol, a grand hotel across the street from the Kremlin. Rostov, an indomitable man of erudition and wit, has never worked a day in his life, and must now live in an attic room while some of the most tumultuous decades in Russian history are unfolding outside the hotel’s doors. Unexpectedly, his reduced circumstances provide him entry into a much larger world of emotional discovery.
Brimming with humor, a glittering cast of characters, and one beautifully rendered scene after another, this singular novel casts a spell as it relates the count’s endeavor to gain a deeper understanding of what it means to be a man of purpose. It’s a great read.  Come for discussion, dessert and fellowship. RSVP to Dianne Commo. We hope to see you on February 20th! Tina Paul
KAIROS IS COMING TO HOLY CROSS!
Kairos Prison Ministry International, Inc. is a Christian faith-based ministry serving the spiritual needs of incarcerated men, women, youth, and their families.
On April 19-22 , Kairos will be hosting our 62nd 4-day retreat weekend at the Washington State Reformatory (WSR) in Monroe. The retreat is closely modeled after Cursillo, but with a special focus on the unique needs of prisoners.
 
Holy Cross will be hosting our weekend Base Camp and team training sessions leading up to the weekend retreat. A team of 30+ volunteers, including four from Holy Cross, will meet for meals and team faith formation here at Base Camp before departing for the prison (lunch on Thursday, breakfasts on Friday and Saturday).
On Saturday February 24, March 17 and April 14 Holy Cross will host team formation and training sessions, where we develop the fellowship that will minster to the inside participants. 
Curious about Kairos? Contact Lin Lindsey (cglindsey5@gmail.com, 206-979-1314) or Jerry Whalen (jcwhalen@outlook.com, 425-736-8141). Got some kitchen skills? Contact Susan Lindsey (lindsey5@cablespeed.com, 425-985-6411) to volunteer to help with Base Camp cooking.
Our heartfelt thanks to the Holy Cross family for supporting Kairos!
    Women's A.M. Bible Study
Come join us on Tuesday mornings starting @ 9:30am.
Questions: Contact Pam Stanton-Wyman -  pamstwy@gmail.com
GIVE BLOOD——IT’S MEANT TO CIRCULATE!
  Redmond Interfaith Blood Drives Celebrates its 10th year! Join hands with donors from across Redmond to meet our communities need for 900 units of blood/ day!  WHEN:  Tuesday, Feb 27 ~ TIME:  1-7PM (tech break from 3-4pm)
WHERE:  REDMOND PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH (across from junior high school on 166th)  10020 166th AVE NE, REDMOND, WA 98052 -  redmondpres.org for directions.
Make an appointment by contacting Tina Paul, Blood@HolyCrossRedmond.org
While each of our donations is just “a drop in the bucket”…this is a bucket where every drop counts in saving lives!
Thanks for your generosity in giving over the whole 10 years!    Tina Paul
Next Green Elephant Plant Swap ~ March 3 @ 10am
Rain or shine, gardeners gather to exchange and share plants, seeds, cuttings and gardenalia with all. Swappers are free to come and go as they please. Most of the deals are sealed by 11:30 am. Arrive at 10 am for the best selection. 
Many gardeners generously share plants from the abundance of their gardens. There is always a pile of plants free for the sharing at the swap. What if I have nothing to trade? Cookies and chocolate work like money.
May We Pray For You?
Contact Karen Smith to be placed on the Holy Cross Prayer Chain.