Radical welcome. Faithful worship. Compassionate service.
Reopening of Grace Church 

Sunday, August 2, 2020 
11 am Morning Prayer
We are preparing for the reopening of our beautiful sanctuary and look forward to seeing the faces of our friends and neighbors in person for the first time in a long time. In order to keep you safe and protected, please note the following:
 
  • To safely gather, there will be a limit of fifty persons allowed in the church for worship.
 
  • Temperatures will be taken at the door.
 
  • Please make sure to wear a mask. If you do not have one, we will provide one for you.
 
  • Gloves will also be available if you choose.
 
  • Sanitizing stations will be located at the entrances on Hicks Street and Grace Court for your convenience.
 
  • The ushers will wear masks and gloves and will disseminate the service bulletins.
 
  • The ushers will guide you to your seats. There will be social distancing.
 
  •  A collection plate will be at the back of the Church for your offering.
 
  • Communion and healing prayer will not take place at this time.
 
  • At the end of the service there will be specific receptacles for the disposal of paper masks, gloves and bulletins.
 
  • Please use all exits and social distance when leaving. 

Thank you.
 
Please email Marilyn Grant with any comments or questions.  
August 2 North Room Chat:
“What we talk about when we talk about Reconciliation”

Even though we can’t meet in the North Room yet, nothing can stop us from having a  “North Room” Chat  ! Our next  Chat  will be next Sunday, August 2,    from  10:15 to 10:45am, for those who have been looking for a little something "extra" from church on Sunday. The discussion will be led by our new Assistant to the Rector, The Rev. Chris Lee.
 
Deacon Chris will share his thoughts on “What We Talk About When We Talk About ‘Reconciliation.’” Everybody is presumably for reconciliation, especially God, but how clear are we on what it means, and what it might look like? We’ll explore these and related questions together in the Sunday’s North Room Chat.
 
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 718 624 1850
 
Join us the  first Sunday of each month at 10:15am  as we discuss spirituality and Christianity in bite-sized chunks. No need to prepare in advance. Just be open to learning something new, sharing your own life experiences, and, most importantly, growing in the Christian faith. And save the date for the next Chat on  September 6, 2020 .
Calling All GRADUATES

This past spring was bittersweet for graduates and their loved ones, who, thanks to the pandemic, had to celebrate an important milestone in their lives in ways they never would have anticipated. 

Here at Grace we would like to lift up and honor anyone who graduated from an academic program in Spring 2020, from elementary school to graduate school. If you or someone in your household is a recent graduate, please send their name, where they graduated from, where their education will continue, and a recent photo if possible, to the Rev. Chris Lee , Assistant to the Rector for Youth, Young Adult and Family Ministry. 
Two Exciting New Service Opportunities with the Red Hook Initiative!  

As part of our parish’s commitment to responding to our neighbors most impacted by COVID-19, Grace is partnering with the  Red Hook Initiative  to support their vital work around food insecurity and youth summer/virtual learning loss in the Red Hook community. Please click  here  for more information on the  Red Hook Farms Food Access Project  and the  RHI Freedom Schools Virtual Read-a-Loud Project , both starting this summer. We hope that you will participate in one or both of these exciting opportunities! Please reach out to  Amy Rowland  if you are interested in or have questions about these initiatives.  
Stopping the Spread of COVID-19
Grace Church 2nd Annual Multicultural Day:  Diversity is Community 

Join us on Sunday, October 18 at 10:00 am , as we celebrate the international diversity at Grace Church Brooklyn Heights. The event will include a festive worship - combining our 9:15 am and 11:00 am services - with lessons and prayers in various languages; a magnificent food festival, music, entertainment, country display boards, children’s activities and much more. Countries represented include: 

  1. Australia 
  2. China 
  3. Ecuador 
  4. Guyana
  5. India
  6. Iran
  7. Jamaica 
  8. Jordan 
  9. Lebanon
  10. Norway
  11. Panama
  12. Slovakia
  13. South Africa
  14. South Korea
  15. Sweden
  16. United Kingdom

For more information, please e-mail  Denise Young Farrell   or  Allison Robinson .  
COVID-19’s Racial Skew? Here’s What You Can Do!

Brooklyn’s communities of color are deeply affected by higher COVID-19 infection and mortality rates, rising unemployment and economic insecurity, and unequal education during remote learning. Grace parishioners have identified ways we can stand by our neighbors and help.

Mayor DeBlasio calls NYC food insecurity “an unprecedented crisis”. Volunteer now to fight hunger and food insecurity in Brooklyn. Click here to learn how.

More volunteer opportunities are coming. Grace would like to expand our Frederick Douglass Academy tutoring and mentoring program and launch a new initiative to help youth in nearby Red Hook. Rev. Allen Robinson is affiliated with St. John’s Hospital, located in one of Brooklyn’s worst COVID hot spots, and we are seeking opportunities for compassionate care there. Also, we are exploring ways for parishioners with professional skills to assist small business owners struggling to recover from COVID closures. We invite you to join us to work in these emerging volunteers areas and “to do instead of just pray”. If you’re interested, please click here .   
Supporting Businesses During COVID

If you would like to make donations to small businesses during COVID-19 click here.

If you would like to support neighborhood businesses in Brooklyn, click here.
Giving to Grace
 Thank you for your on-going support of Grace as we continue to worship remotely. We are happy to let you know that you may now make pledge or general offering donations by text! 

Please send a text to  73256  with the message " GraceBrooklyn ". The first time, you will be prompted to provide your name and address, including your card number. If you save that information for future use, the second offering by text will be immediate. 

If you would like to set up a recurring pledge payment on Realm, please contact  Kate Rock or  Takisha Brown for an invitation to join. 

You may also make one time pledge payments and general offering donations on line  here .
  Contemplative Outreach of New York City summer offerings

For more information on Centering Prayer events click here.
LIFT* Summer Reading Recommendations

Summer Reading for Righteousness’ Sake
 
"They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them… When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken." (Acts 2: 3-4, 6)

Through the miracle of Pentecost, the disciples reached beyond themselves to speak Jesus’ stories to the peoples of other lands in a culturally relevant way and those peoples came together to hear. Sharing stories across cultures can enable understanding, empathy, trust, and belief from the heart that we are all God’s children. Our nation needs that miracle now more than ever. This summer choose to read stories from American immigrants and people of color and open your heart to an America you may not know.  

Click on the button below for a summer reading list recommended by LIFT.
Grace Notes Announcements
To submit an announcement for Grace Notes please send all information to the Parish Office no later than 5:00 pm on Wednesday of each week. Please be aware that submissions that do not meet the deadline will be published the following week.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation!
Office Hours Update

 Due to the Cornovirus (COVID-19) , the Parish Office is no longer open at this time. However, Parish Administrator, Ms. Takisha Brown is still available to assist you remotely Monday through Friday (except for holidays) from  9:00 am to 5:00 pm. If there is anything you may need, please contact Parish Administrator, Ms. Takisha Brown preferably by  email . If you must call the office (718-624-1850), please leave a voicemail and Takisha will get back to you as soon as possible. Thank you.
Grace Church | 254 Hicks Street | Brooklyn NY 11201 
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