Editor's Note: Rebekah Rode is taking some much-deserved vacation. Your fearless diocesan intern, Paul Flynn, is pinch-hitting. Please be in touch if you discover any broken links or errors. Remember Rebekah and her family in your prayers. We give thanks for the important work she does for our Parish.

Sunday Worship

Sunday, August 7th

8:00 AM

In Person Worship

10:15 AM

In Person & Livestream Worship

We hope you can join us this Sunday!

Thank you for supporting the life and ministries of The Church of the Good Shepherd.

CGS Mask Guidance

Masks are optional during the worship service and in the PLC for those who are fully vaccinated and boosted.  Children’s Ministry events (including Sunday School and Children’s Chapel) will continue to require masks for both adults and children.

Coffee/Lemonade Fellowship

Please join us following the 10:15 a.m. Sunday worship service for coffee, food, and fellowship. If you are interested in volunteering to provide small bites, please sign up HERE. 

Parish Life

Vestry Transitions Update

At a special meeting on July 31st, the Vestry unanimously voted to elect George Habel and Peg Dorer to serve on the Vestry. George will be filling a term of 1.5 years (previously held by Martin Taylor) and Peg will be filling a term of 2.5 years (previously held by David Baggett). We are delighted to have George and Peg joining the Vestry as we move towards the beginning of the 2022-2023 program year at Good Shepherd.

Esther Hall recently resigned from the Vestry. We are enormously grateful for all the gifts Esther has shared since she was elected to fill Jamey Bass's term, particularly in the areas of Lay Leadership Development and Stewardship. Esther will continue to chair the Stewardship Committee, a role in which she has demonstrated both creativity and commitment since 2021.

If you are interested in serving on the Vestry, nominations will be open through August 17th. For more information about this important ministry, please be in touch.

Rally Day 2022

Rally Day 2022 is coming soon! This year, we will Rally Everyone back to church on Sunday, September 11th from 11:30 to 1:00pm in the parking lot behind the church. Children and grown-ups, young and old, please plan on joining us for food, fellowship, and fun this Rally Day! Special offerings include: burgers, hotdogs, popcorn, cotton candy, bouncy house, face painting, meet the Sunday School teachers, and much more! It's a great time to invite folks you know to church. What can you do to help make this a successful event?

• Signup to help make this carnival grand SIGN UP HERE. Specific needs:
• A photographer to staff a photo booth
• Folks to help keep the kids safe around the bouncy house
• Cooks & helpers
• Make a donation toward our bigger (and more expensive) Rally Day. 
• Just send your check to the church c/o David Baggett with "Rally Day" written in the memo line. Church of the Good Shepherd, 121 Hillsborough St., Raleigh, NC 27603

Our church is stronger when we are all involved! Anna Howard, your Senior Warden, is asking for your help. Please contact the church office with any questions: 919-831-2000.

Summer Slump 

Summer presents a challenge to our year-round Stewardship effort. A decline in weekly attendance may lead to a dip in giving. When you can't attend worship service there are ways you can still financially support our church from your phone, computer, or tablet. In order to create a recurring digital donation from our donorbox webpage:

• Click the link HERE.
• Automate your giving by clicking "Weekly" or "Monthly" from our donorbox webpage (see photo below). An account will be set up, so you can edit anytime.
• Then select donation amount you would like to automate.
• Select where you would like the offering to go from the dropdown menu.
• Please contact the church office with any questions: 919-831-2000.

Children & Families

Playground Meet Up

Children and Families Ministries will host a meet up at the playground at Sassafras Playground at Laurel Hills Park on Saturday, August 6th at 10:00am. We hope to see you there. Please feel free to bring your friends! 

Sign Up As A Children’s Ministry Volunteer

Kids and families have always been central to the ministry of CGS, and as we prepare for the start of the program year in September, we are looking for caring adults and youth to help lead our youngest disciples in the way of Christ. Interested in learning more? Contact Andrew Phillips. 

Youth

Acolytes Training

Acolyte training will occur for all new and returning acolytes on Sunday August 14th, 21st and

28th in the church sanctuary starting at 9:00 AM. An additional training session will occur on

Sunday September 18th at 9:00 AM. All new acolytes will be required to attend at least two training sessions and all returning acolytes will need to attend at least one training session. For more information, or if additional times or dates are required, please contact David Stroud. 

Adults

August Adult Formation: "Woke: Why are pronouns so important to some people in your life?"

Please join us Sundays in August at 9:00am in the Ennis Parlor for the new adult formation offering. "Woke" has become a mantle for some and an accusation by others. What does it mean? Why is it such a big deal? To even begin to answer these questions, we have to know the vocabulary. This adult forum seeks to collect and present in a coherent way what the vocabulary of Woke is, starting with what the word "woke" means.

We will be talking about sexual identification, sexual expression, gender identity, gender expression, race, and more generally, how our society is talking (or not) about difficult subjects. But, don't be surprised if your middle schoolers know more about "they/them," those who are gender queer, the pansexual, and the polyamorous in our midst than we can cover in a month.

August 7:  What does "woke" mean, and identification of basic pronouns

August 14:  Sexual identification and sexual expression: what do all those letters in LGBTQIA+ really mean

August 21:  Gender identification and gender expression: Didn't God create them male and female?

August 28:  Black Lives Matter and Critical Race Theory

Mental Health Resources + Hotline

The diocesan children, youth and families ministries department has also created a series of video resources, available through the diocesan Vimeo channel, to assist parents in supporting their children's mental health and avoiding caregiver fatigue. The Collective Trauma/Collective Resilience collection addresses the collective trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic, though the conversation is relevant to any trauma-inducing situation. The Mental Health Resources collection addresses anxiety, grief and stress in different age groups.

Also, people experiencing a mental health crisis or witnessing a friend or family member in need of mental health support can dial 9-8-8 to reach the newly launched national Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Modeled after 911, the new 988 number connects callers to a trained mental health professional in a network of more than 200 local crisis call centers around the country. Currently, almost 90% of people who call get the help they need over the phone. For those who require additional intervention, a crisis counselor will work to connect them with local resources.

Diocesan Dismantling Racism Offering

“Dismantling Racism: Reclaiming Our Baptismal Promise” is an interactive workshop designed to deepen spiritual commitment to dismantling racism. Through presentations, prayer, story sharing, videos and small group discussion, participants explore how the sin of racism impacts all lives. The next offering in 2022 will be: 

• September 23, 5-8 p.m., and September 24, 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m., via Zoom. Register.
• October 14, 5-8 p.m., and October 15, 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Register.
• November 11, 5-8 p.m., and November 12, 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m., via Zoom. Register.

Prayers Of The People

 Please see your parish email for Prayers of the People.

Any additions or deletions to the Prayers of the People, please email the pastoral care coordinator by noon on Mondays.

This Week:

6th - Children & Families Playground Meetup, 10:00am

Coming Up:

14th - Acolyte Training

21st - Acolyte Training

28th - Acolyte Training

September:

11th - Rally Day

Submissions - Please see notice at the top of this email.

Announcement or photos to share with the CGS family are welcome! Please email Rebekah Rode by Sunday evening. Announcements may be edited for content and space.

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