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In this edition of ENews:
- Bishop Megan Visits Good Shepherd, Cloverdale
- Canon Julie Visits Trinity, Folsom
- St. Clement's, Rancho Cordova launches Bible Box
- Earth Day is Saturday, April 22
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Bishop Megan Visits Good Shepherd, Cloverdale | |
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On Sunday, April 16 – Easter II–, Bishop Megan visited, preached, and worshipped with Good Shepherd, Cloverdale.
Assisted by Priest-in-Charge, the Rev. Tim McDonald, and Deacon, the Rev. Bob Scott, Bishop Megan received five new members: Trudie Folsom, Steve Tellez, Daryl Schmidt, Mario Del’Olio and James Alexander.
Welcome to these new members, and thanks to the folks at Good Shepherd for your hospitality.
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Canon Julie Visits Trinity, Folsom | |
Left to right: Canon Julie Wakelee, Gray Pittsfield, Spencer Garrett, Karen Kielson, William Brazeale, The Rev. Anne Smith, and Tim Knight. | Last Sunday, Canon to the Ordinary Julie Wakelee visited and preached at Trinity, Folsom. She is pictered here with the altar party for the 11:15 am service. Many thanks to the folks at Trinity for their hospitality and warm welcome. | |
St. Clement's Rancho Cordova Opens Bible Box lending library | |
St. Clement's is pleased to announce that our Bible Box is open for business. In addition to Bibles in English and Spanish, it contains other spiritual writings for adults and kids. We were inspired to this form of passive evangelism by Grace Episcopal Church in Old Saybrook, Connecticut who have a similar box. It sits right in front of the church readily accessible to the many folks who walk by. A big thanks to the diocese's Congregational Development Team, whose grant financially supported our vision. | |
Top: The New Bible Box Lending Library
Bottom: A sticker on the back of each Bible reads: Is what you have read in this Bible confusing, surprising, angering, or hopeful? If you would be interested in learning more about God, Jesus, and the Bible join us Sunday mornings at 10am at 2376 Zinfandel Drive, Rancho Cordova or online at saint-elements.com
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Missioner for Church Life | |
Diocesan Evangelism Gathering on Zoom
The Missioner for Church Life invites you to participate in our first diocesan-wide Zoom gathering on evangelism. This will be an opportunity to not only share evangelism success stories from your own congregation, but to also learn more about evangelism resources from the Episcopal Church, as well as an opportunity to brainstorm evangelism ideas that you may want to try in your community.
Wednesday, May 3 | 6:00pm Zoom:https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85093512190
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Missioner for Disaster Resilience | April is Earthquake Awareness Month | |
As a diocese, we have seen and responded to the effects of an earthquake with the people of Semper Virens deanery and our churches in Humboldt County. During earthquake awareness month, we remember that all parts of our diocese are prone to earthquakes, so let’s get ready!
Earthquake Preparedness Tips:
Participate in Earthquake Warning California, sign up for:
• Government Emergency Alerts
• My Shake App
Know how to protect yourself during an earthquake
• Drop to the ground, cover your head with your arms, and hold onto your
neck until shaking stops
Develop an emergency preparedness plan
• Create a customized emergency plan for your specific needs
• Pack an emergency supply kit
• Your emergency kit should address all daily needs
Understand and mitigate hazards
• Visit myhazards.caloes.ca.gov to learn about local risks and how to
prepare your home (including securing furniture, appliances, home fuel
systems, and more)
The bishop’s response to the December Earthquake in Humboldt, as well as supporting several other responses and preparation efforts has left the Bishop’s Disaster Fund depleted; please donate now, allowing the church to continue the work of helping us all be ready before disaster strikes.
– Mark Dibelka | Missioner for Disaster Resilience
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This is a short synopsis of what happened at the most recent Board of Trustees meeting. While this is not a full report of our meeting, it does share some of the highlights of our work.
During the April Board of Trustees Meeting:
The Board heard reports from its members about Holy Week services around the diocese. Highlights included combined services for neighboring churches in Sonoma County and a joyous Easter Vigil baptism of four adults in Davis.
The Board also received an update from Lynn Zender and Jo Ann Williams on the Racial Justice Audit. During the first year, 105 surveys were distributed to diocesan leaders who were defined as members of diocesan committee members. We have currently received about 40% of those surveys back. If you are a member of a diocesan committee member and haven’t yet filled out your survey, check for an email from the Mission Institute from mid March or contact Lynn Zender (zenderlynn@gmail.com). The Board will hear a report of the surveys during the summer, and the information will be shared with the larger diocese during Convention. Next year, the survey will be sent to leaders of each congregation.
Next, the Board heard an update from the Rev. Dr. Pamela Dolan about the work of the Carbon Neutral Team from the Commission on the Environment. Our Convention in 2022 set the goal to create plans for the Diocese of Northern California to become Carbon Neutral by 2030 and set a deadline for the plans to be completed by 2024. We have formed a partnership with Interfaith Power and Light, and under the capable leadership of chair Miriam Casey, the project is underway. They hosted the first meeting with green teams from around the diocese with 60 people attending on zoom. April 29 is the date for the next meeting, and after that meeting concludes, there will be information available on the website. Teams will learn how to do an energy assessment at each parish before they start exploring their solar needs. Rev. Pamela Dolan reported that no other diocese in the Episcopal Church is working towards carbon neutrality in this way.
Finally, the Board of Trustees heard a report from Kati Braak, the Director of Operations for the diocese. The Diocese received a potential gross amount of $151,000 in Employee Retention Credit. In addition, Kati reported that we recently had a site visit from staff members of Episcopal Relief and Development (ERD). The Diocese of Northern California is considered a high-risk diocese due to the sheer number of fires and earthquakes we have here and we have partnered with ERD to fund our Missioner for Disaster Resilience position. ERD staff visited to learn more about our Disaster Resilience work since we are considered to be on the cutting edge of disaster response for The Episcopal Church.
– Margie Harrison-Smith, Vice Chair
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Commission for the Environment | |
Next Saturday is Earth Day! We encourage all parishes to participate and Celebrate! | |
Kick Off your Earth Day 2023 Celebration | |
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The Church of the Incarnation and the Commission for the Environment are excited to invite you to a screening of the documentary film The Ants & the Grasshopper on Wednesday, April 19 at 6:00pm
The film will be screened in-person at The Church of the Incarnation in Santa Rosa, and simultaneously broadcast over Zoom. We hope you'll watch with us!
Please RSVP for the in-person event to bob.wohlsen@gmail.com
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Interfaith Power and Light Webinar Scheduled for
Saturday, April 29
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The Commission on the Environment and Interfaith Power and Light (IPL) are hosting a webinar on April 29 at 1 pm.
During this one-hour webinar, participants will be introduced to the IPL Cool Congregation carbon calculator specifically designed for churches. They will receive instruction on the gathering of church energy-use data and entry of the data into the calculator.
Each church will have its own webpage for making entries and making an initial calculation about the church’s carbon footprint. Over time, as congregations make changes to decrease their carbon footprint, the webpage and calculator will be updated to follow the progress of the churches toward carbon neutrality.
Registration is required for this webinar.
Here is a link to register in advance for this meeting:
https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZArd-6sqzMpHNV3cjhYCOsrEiM8Uvygur5g
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
The webinar will be recorded and available the week after the event. To ensure that you receive the recording, please register for the webinar.
For more information, contact Miriam Casey at ednccoe@gmail.com.
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Deadline for 2023 Creation Care grants is May 1, 2023 | |
Up to 12 Episcopal projects will be awarded grants—ranging from $8,000 to $25,000 each—for work related to climate change resiliency, church efforts to reach net carbon neutrality by 2030, environmental degradation, and the inequitable and systemic impacts of environmental racism. The grant process is overseen by the church’s Task Force on Creation Care and Environmental Racism in partnership with the Office of Creation Care. | |
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The Rev. Dr. Pamela Dolan to lead workshop on Contemplative Gardening | |
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Grounding our Bodies, Grounding our Souls:
Spirituality in the Garden
This workshop will combine hands-on work in the garden and contemplative practices, with the goal of enjoying a day of embodied spirituality. No prior experience of gardening or contemplation is required. A growing body of scientific evidence is teaching us that time spent “digging in the dirt” has profound positive impacts on our health.
The day will begin with a reflection on the nature of contemplative gardening and what it means to become grounded in a place. The morning will be spent doing hands-on work in the garden at Table Farm in Sacramento. All ability and skill levels are welcome! This will be followed by a brown-bag lunch and then our afternoon session will be based on a series of reflections from the book Contemplative Gardening, along with time to journal and pray individually. We’ll end the day with group sharing and go home renewed, refreshed, and maybe even eager to spend more time in the garden and with God.
Contemplative Gardening Workshop
Saturday, April 29 | 12:00-2:00 pm
Table Farm at 23rd Street & Anita Avenue | Sacramento
Cost: $35
Scholarships available - contact the Bread of Life Office
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ECS Announces beginning of 2023-2024 Annual Grant Cycle
Information about grant opportunities can be found here: www.norcalecs.org.
Request for Proposals (RFPs) are due to the Grants Chair by May 1, 2023.
The Request for Proposals document can also be found on the ECS website.
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2023 Women’s Retreat: Being Embodied Beings
May 19-21 | Mercy Center, Auburn
NOTE: WE HAVE REACHED FULL CAPACITY FOR FULL-TIME RETREATANTS.
Please contact Susan Hotchkiss if you wish to be put on the waiting list.
Sponsored by Trinity Episcopal Cathedral and Diocesan Partners in Ministries of Health.
$40.00 for Saturday attendance which includes lunch.
Scholarships are available.
Click here to Register
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Job Opportunities in The Diocese | |
Saint Luke’s | Auburn is seeking a part-time Parish Mission Coordinator to assist the Clergy, Vestry and parishioners in the mission and management of the church. Read the Position Description Here. | |
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Your copy should address 3 key questions: Who am I writing for? (Audience) Why should they care? (Benefit) What do I want them to do here? (Call-to-Action)
Create a great offer by adding words like "free" "personalized" "complimentary" or "customized." A sense of urgency often helps readers take an action, so think about inserting phrases like "for a limited time only" or "only 7 remaining"!
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Clergy Openings in The Diocese | |
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Trinity Episcopal Church | Folsom seeks a full-time Interim Rector. Trinity Folsom is an open and inclusive parish that cherishes traditional liturgy and classical Anglican music. We are Jesus-centered with fidelity to the Book of Common Prayer while maintaining inclusivity in our ministries. We anticipate this being a roughly 12-month position, ideally beginning late spring 2023.
Click here to read the full description.
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The ENews is published weekly on Tuesdays.
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The Episcopal Diocese of Northern California
Making Disciples, Raising Up Saints & Transforming Communities for Christ
www.norcalepiscopal.org
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