Weekly News & Updates

June 4, 2026

Sunday, June 7:

8:00am Holy Eucharist Rite I- outdoor in our pavilion

No adult forum or children's formation/Sunday School this week

10:00am Holy Eucharist Rite II (indoors)

Livestream of 10:00 service

10am Service Bulletin

Monday, June 8:

10:30am Good Grief Group

Wednesday, June 10:

7:30am- Holy Eucharist (bagels and coffee after)
6:00-9:00pm: St. James the Less Free Clinic

Parish Updates

Such a sweet Spirit in the air as we wrapped up our program year. The Children's Choir, Parish Choir, Hand bell Choir and Acolytes were acknowledged and appreciated for all the ways the make our worship together so special.

We also had a wonderful time together at the church picnic. The food was delicious, but the connection and conversation was even better! Thank you to all our volunteers that made this happen. We appreciate you all very much!

The St James the Less Youth Group made 300 bags of edible treats to put in the backpacks that members of our parish pack every week. Each treat bag came with a handwritten note of encouragement and cheer. It was a great way to celebrate the end of the school year. Thank you to all the thoughtful young people in our church family who participated in this activity!

8am Service in the Pavilion through June 28

Our 8:00 a.m. worship service will be outdoors in the church pavilion through June 28. There is something special about worshiping surrounded by God’s creation—feeling the morning breeze and hearing the birds join our praise. We invite you to experience this fresh, intimate atmosphere as we move our early service from the sanctuary to the pavilion for the summer months, as long as the temperature agrees.

Sending Care to Our Volunteers

Let’s express our gratitude to the STJL Youth and Adults who are donating a week of their summer vacation to Tri-cities Work Camp, where they will help fix up houses in disadvantaged neighborhoods. Campers LOVE to receive mail and care packages throughout this week, June 7-13. If we can get these in the mail now then they will arrive in plenty of time to make their experience more special and enriching next week!

Participant Name*

WORKCAMP 2026

P.O. Box 1761

Petersburg, VA 23805

STJL Youth:

*Adel Truit

*Samara John

Adult Chaperones:

*Peter Moberg (his second year as an adult chaperone)

*Claire (Purmasir) Gilbertson (her 6^th time at Tri Cities Workcamp, and second year as an adult chaperone) and Karl Gilbertson

Thanks!

Your STJL Youth Leaders

Calling for cat food donations

The Noah's Ark Pet Food Pantry began serving families in need for the first time on May 27, 2026 during the SJTL Free Clinic. We sent food home to eight households, where it will feed a total of 13 cats and seven dogs. One couple even inquired about making a donation!

In addition to the 113.5 pounds of pet food that members of the SJTL parish have generously contributed, we have received donations of cat food and dog food from Fin & Feather, Tractor Supply and Yokozuna Sushi totaling $1,229 in value. God is good. Please be sure to frequent those establishments and thank them for their support.

The demand for cat food took us by surprise. We will need your help replenishing our supplies. As you have already been doing so graciously, please continue to support our work by dropping gifts of both dry and canned cat food in the bin on Sunday morning or anytime during the week. Thank you!

Women's Book Club-Why should the men have all the fun? If you are interested in joining a women's book club, please let us know! If there is interest, we can decide when we'll meet, how often, where, and what we will read. So many books to choose from, so much fun to read and discuss! If you have questions please reach out to: Beth Harrison, Michele Murphy, or Jenny Bruce

Summer Schedule- July 5-August 9th we will be observing a summer schedule of combining our two services into one service (indoors), at 9am. This will allow our 8 o’clockers and 10 o’clockers a chance to see one another and give our volunteers a well- deserved break.

Everyone: Join us on Sunday, June 7^th from 2-6 pm for a special event with the Randolph-Macon College's Chaplain's Office. We'll explore the theme of Birds in the Bible, learning about ancient birds in the Holy Land and about birds that live in our area today. Each participant will make their own birdhouse to take home. We'll enjoy snacks & games together too! While this is a youth event, all congregants are welcome and wanted, even if you aren't in middle or high school.

This summer we will have multiple opportunities to gather as families and youth. Mark your calendars and look for more information coming soon!

Parish Retreat

Join us for our Parish Retreat at Shrine Mont the weekend of October 16–18! Located in the beautiful mountains of Orkney Springs, this family-friendly weekend is a wonderful opportunity to enjoy fresh air, mountain vistas, good food, worship, fellowship, adult program, children’s activities, and time to deepen friendships while making new ones.

The retreat cost includes lodging and all meals beginning with dinner on Friday evening and ending with lunch on Sunday. Pricing is: Adults (18+) $155, Teens (13–18) $70, Children (4–12) $55, and Toddlers (0–3) are free. Financial assistance is available through our Chenery Fund, which can offset up to 50% of your total cost.

Please plan to join us this fall! We ask that all sign-ups be completed by August 15.

Hanover Churches Network

The mission of the Hanover Churches Network (HCN) is to coordinate the responses of local churches to social needs in Hanover County, VA. HCN fosters collaboration to better steward resources, addressing food and housing instability through a shared database, monthly meetings, and partnership initiatives, aiming to connect churches and community organizations. Click below to see the most recent updates.

Click here to read the lastest news

HCN Resouce Guide

Prayers

Lord God, encourage us to faithfulness, righteousness, and compassion for all God’s children. We lift up Sean, our Presiding Bishop, Mark, Gail & Bud, our Bishops, and John, our Priest in Charge. May they be strengthened and encouraged as they work with us to proclaim your Good News in this world. We pray for Donald, our President, Abigail, our Governor, and Steve, our Mayor, and all our elected officials. Guide them to lead us to the common good.

We pray for members of our community, friends and loved ones who are ill, especially, Gus, Erin, Meghann, Haden, Hilda, the Smith family, Mary Lou, Alicia, Steve, Margaret, Patty, Jennifer, Susan, Mike, Melissa, Amy, Martin, Cara, Sharon, Winnie, Michael, Addison, Pam, Julie, Ray, Kelly, Jack, Dale, Mark, Laura, Michael, Paul, & George.

We pray for the poor, the sick, the hungry, the oppressed, and those in prison. We ask your prayers for those serving in the diplomatic corps, the military, and as missionaries: Larson, Greg, Matthew, James, Ellie, Andrew, Katherine and Duke.

We pray for those who have died, especially Heather Grande, Cleve Collins, Dearing Gardner, Erik Klauss, & Judy Sledd. We ask your prayers for those who grieve their missing loved ones. Praise God for those in every generation in whom Christ has been honored.