February 3, 2023

This Sunday,

February 5, 2023

• 9:30 am: Blended Worship Service. Onsite and online
• 10:30 am Annual Congregational Meeting (John Bates FLC)
• 10:45 am Sunday School (Ages 3-6th Grade)
• Remember to wear your name tag so all can get acquainted
• The nursery will be staffed during this worship service
• Please sign attendance pads in the pews
• Bring a friend!

Online Worship:

The 9:30 am service can be viewed live here. Click here for Sunday's service bulletin. Click here to see previous worship services on St. Mark's YouTube Channel. Be sure to "like" the service, subscribe to the YouTube Channel, and share the post on your Facebook page so more people can hear the good news!

St. Mark's has a new Senior Pastor!

At last week's special congregational meeting, we voted overwhelmingly to call Pastor Scott Bacon to lead us at St. Mark's. He will be leading the service on March 5th. Pastor Scott and his family have already found a house here in Washington and plan to move in sometime the week of 2/26. Robin Hahn and Cindy Calvert are putting together a great St. Mark's Welcome Basket and coordinating other welcoming activities. We will be coordinating a date for Pastor Scott's formal installation with the Bishop.

Annual Meeting

Please plan to stay after worship this Sunday for our Annual Congregational Meeting. We will be voting to fill our leadership vacancies with the names put forward by our Nominating Committee and to approve our 2023 budget. We'll also recognize outgoing leaders and take questions about any items included in the printed Annual Report.

Welcome to our new Executive Director of Operations, Perry Denker!

Perry started at St. Mark’s this past Wednesday. He comes to us having most recently worked as an office administrator at the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Peoria. He brings a wealth of experience in administration, managing, and leading teams. We are grateful that he had an opportunity to meet with Pastor Scott Bacon during Pastor Scott’s visit. Feel free to stop in and introduce yourself; you can even ask him about his recent Biblical Studies on the Dead Sea Scrolls!

February Calendar of Events

Sunday, 2/5                9:30 am Worship

                                   10:30 am Annual Congregational Meeting

                                   10:30 am Sunday School (Age 3-Grade 6)

                                   10:30 am Praise Band Rehearsal

Tuesday, 2/7              6:00 pm GriefShare/Loss of Spouse Workshop

Wednesday, 2/8        10:00 am “The Way” Bible Study

Friday, 2/10                1:30 pm Youth leave for Quake, Wisconsin Dells

Sunday, 2/12              9:30 am Worship, with installation of Council members

                                   10:30 am Fellowship

                                   10:30 am Worship Team

                                   10:45 am Sunday School

Tuesday, 2/14            Hearts for the Homebound Deliveries

Sunday, 2/19       9:30 am Worship with Praise Band; 2nd Grade Bible Milestone

Wednesday, 2/22      12:00 pm and 7:00 pm Ash Wednesday Worship with Holy Communion and Imposition of Ashes for those who desire

Saturday, 2/25           9:30 am-1:30 pm Mission Opportunity at Loaves and Fishes, Peoria

Sunday, 2/26              9:30 am  First Sunday in Lent Worship, Pastor Elise Rothfusz, Director for Evangelical Mission, Central Southern Illinois Synod

                                   2:00 pm-4:00 pm  Family Bowling with Pastor Hanson

Winter Blues Getting You Down?

Pastor Kendra recommends a documentary on Netflix entitled Mission Joy: Finding Happiness in Troubled Times. Mission: JOY is a film that shares the humor and wisdom of two of the world’s most beloved icons, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. These two Nobel Peace Prize Laureates united for one final mission: to show the world how to live with JOY, even in troubled times. And they know what they are talking about. They both lived through extreme hardship and continued to live with JOY despite their circumstances. Pastor Kendra says: “Hearing the laughter of these two amazing individuals will lift your heart and lighten your spirit!”

2nd Grade Bible Distribution and Blessing

On Sunday, February 12, 2023, all 2^nd grade students, and their parents are invited to join Pastor Kendra after worship service for their own Sunday School class. Students and their parents will go through the bible and learn how to read and use the bible. The children will return the bibles to Pastor Kendra as they will receive these bibles during worship service the following weekend.

All 2^nd grade students of St. Mark’s and their parents are invited to join us for the 2^nd grade Bible Distribution and Blessing during worship on Sunday, February 19, 2023. Students and parents will be invited to come to the front of the Sanctuary at the beginning of worship to receive a Bible and a blessing. We hope you will join us as we celebrate this important milestone event.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Shannon Boynton, Director of Family & Children Ministry, at [email protected] or by calling (309)-444-4618.

Offering Envelopes

We are deeply sorry that 2023 Offering Envelopes have not yet arrived. We are calling the company every week and keep getting pushed back. So, in the meantime, if you give by check, simply use one of the envelopes at church to give your offering or mail to the church office. You may also use the QR codes in the buzz or text

February WHIP Donations:

Canned Soup

WHIP is in need of canned soup. Donations may be left in Beckwith Hall and in the boxes inside St. Mark's East Entrance vestibule (the glass doors facing Main Street). Please note that expired items cannot be accepted by WHIP.

Seeking donations for the Church Mouse

Are you looking for somewhere to donate clothes, coats, shoes, toys, kitchen supplies, etc.? Please consider the Church Mouse, located at 600 W. Main St. in Peoria. Donations are accepted Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Question? Please call (309) 673-2363. Proceeds from Church Mouse sales are split between Lutheran Social Services of IL and Lutheran Hillside Village. There is a time for everything and a season for every activity…a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away…Ecclesiastes 3:1,6   

WELCA Board

St. Mark’s Women of the ELCA Board is looking for a Member at Large. You do not need to be a member of a WELCA circle in order to serve on the Board. This member will coordinate two projects during the year – Rachel’s Day (collection of baby items in April) and Lutheran Social Services of Illinois (LSSI) Christmas gifts for area children in need. You will have help to organize and complete these projects. Please contact the Church office at 309-444-4618 if you are interested or have questions. Thank you for prayerfully considering this important role!

For our February Mission outing, we will be heading to Peoria to serve at the Loaves & Fish program at the First United Methodist Church. This program has been serving the Peoria area since 1994. Each Saturday, the Loaves & Fish program provides a free meal, medical clinic, and food pantry service to people in need. An Alive worship service is a part of this program as well where those receiving assistance are told of the love that Jesus has for them.

For more information about the Loaves & Fish program, please visit their website http://fumcpeoria.org/loaves-and-fish.

Members from St. Mark's will be participating in this outing on Saturday, February 25, 2023 from 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Lunch is provided to volunteers. Volunteers must be age 16 and over. If you would like to volunteer, please sign up directly on the Loaves & Fish website https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0b4dafae2da1f58-peoria2#/. Also, please call, text, or email Cindy Shuckford so we can coordinate ride sharing and such.

If you have any questions, please contact Cindy at 309-431-9229 or [email protected].

Sunday, February 5

• 9:30 am: Blended Worship
• 10:30 am: Annual Congregational Meeting (John Bates FLC)
• 10:30 am: Sunday School (Ages 3-6th Grade)
• 10:30 am: Praise Band Rehearsal

Monday, February 6

• 9:30 am: Staff Meeting

Tuesday, February 7

• 4:30 pm: Worship Planning Meeting
• 6:00 pm: Grief Share

Wednesday, February 8

• 10:00 am: The Way Bible Study
• 6:30 pm: Confirmation and Cross Trainers

Saturday, February 10

• 1:00 pm: Youth Leave for Quake in Wisconsin Dells

Sunday, February 12

• 9:30 am: Blended Worship
• 10:30 am: Fellowship Hour
• 10:45 am: Sunday School

Monday, February 13

• 9:30 am: Staff Meeting

Tuesday, February 14

• 8:30 am: Northern Conference Pastors' Gathering
• 8:30 am: Piece and Comfort Quilters

Wednesday, February 15

• 10:00 am: The Way Bible Study
• 6:30 pm: Confirmation and Cross Trainers

Thursday, February 16

• 1:30 pm: Powell Memorial

Giving Thanks

Your gifts, tithes, and offerings support the Member Care ministry of St. Mark’s—the ministry of our Parish Nurse, Mary Hills, Visitation Pastor, Pastor Dick Hanson, and their teams of co-workers in the gospel. People are visited in the hospital, brought communion in their homes, transported to appointments, and receive special birthday phone calls. Thank you for your lives of generosity!

Prayer Requests

Need yourself or someone else lifted up in prayer? Please email prayer requests to the church office. Confidential prayer requests can be emailed to Pastor Hanson or Pastor Nolde.

St. Mark's Staffing Needs

Perhaps you or someone you know is looking for a new opportunity and possess the skills needed for one of our open positions. There are both ministry staff and childcare/preschool positions available. The following are areas of need:

• Contemporary Music Director (link)