The A-Blast of News and Events from the
Church of the Annunciation
The First Sunday in Lent:
February 21, 2021
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The livestream for Sunday's liturgy may be found by clicking here.
Information for accessing the livestream without registering for Facebook may be found by clicking here.
For a pdf copy of the bulletin for Sunday, February 21, click here.
With in-person attendance at church falling into a predictable pattern, we are going to suspend the Google Forms sign-up process. If you are not regularly attending church in person and would like to do so, please call the church office at 941-778-1638 or send an email.
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Dear People of Annunciation,
There are many things I miss due to the pandemic. One in particular is our Lenten program. We have come together through the years on Wednesday evenings to hold the Stations of the Cross, a soup supper, and a teaching program. Many of you have found grand ways to create a simple soup supper! Though we will be unable to gather as is our custom, I do want to adapt our portions of our Lenten program to the times.
As the pandemic erupted last year, we recorded the Stations of the Cross. We have an archived recording which I will post on our Facebook page on Fridays during the season. I will also record an evening devotional and teaching video that I will post on our Facebook page at 5 p.m. starting next Wednesday.
On Ash Wednesday, the Book of Common Prayer charges the priest who is presiding at the liturgy to call the people of God to the observance of a holy Lent. This is followed by a number of disciplines associated with the season. I am going to spend some time breaking apart these disciplines and how we may live them out. Once posted, the videos will be accessible for viewing at your convenience. Here is a guide to our virtual Lenten program:
February 24: Why Lent?
March 3: Self-examination and repentance
March 10: Prayer
March 17: Fasting and self-denial
March 24: Reading and meditating on God’s holy Word
I invite you to join me online for this virtual Lenten program.
Christ’s peace,
Matthew+
P.S.: As a follow up to my note in last week’s Annunciator, the results of my Covid test were negative. To my knowledge, no one else at the meeting on February 5 has received a positive diagnosis.
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Note: The new State of Florida vaccination registration website is not being utilized in Manatee or Sarasota Counties. To register for the standby pool in Manatee County, follow the directions above. For those who are receiving a first vaccination, you will need to provide proof of Florida residency. For our part-time Northern Lights who maintain residency in another state, you will be eligible to receive the vaccine if you provide two of the following:
- A deed, mortgage, monthly mortgage statement, mortgage payment booklet or residential rental or lease agreement.
- One proof of residential address from the seasonal resident’s parent, step-parent, legal guardian or other person with whom the seasonal resident resides and a statement from the person with whom the seasonal resident resides stating that the seasonal resident does reside with him or her.
- A utility hookup or work order dated within 60 days before registration in the medical use registry.
- A utility bill, not more than 2 months old.
- Mail from a financial institution, including checking, savings, or investment account statements, not more than 2 months old.
- Mail from a federal, state, county, or municipal government agency, not more than 2 months old.
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For those who do not have a printer, we have copies of the Florida Department of Health Vaccine Screening and Consent Form on the information table of Lowe Hall. |
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Memorial Garden and Walkway Project Update
We have made great progress with the Welcome Walkway Project and the St. Dorothea fountain and pond! A HUGE THANK YOU for all the support we received for these projects, as they wouldn’t have been possible without it.
Last week we completed the replacement of the pump for the pond and we now have a working fountain and cascade. We would like to offer our SINCERE THANKS to those past members and their families who left a bequest for the Memorial Garden. That is the source of funding for the pump replacement and restoration of the fountain and cascade in the Memorial Garden. On recommendation from the pump manufacturer we will operate the pump for 8 hours each day - from 8 am to noon and from 4 to 8 pm. We have a new timer for the pump so we can adjust the flow as the need arises. I hope you have a chance to come by and enjoy it.
We received sponsorship for 77 bricks out of our goal of 100 and on Monday, we received the engraved bricks for the walkway! They are stored in the garage awaiting the start of the construction. We have hired a company to install the bricks and to replace the deteriorating plywood ramps with concrete ramps. Work should start in the next few weeks and we hope to have it all completed by Easter.
THANK YOU to everyone who sponsored engraved bricks for the Welcome Walkway Project. We’d also like to THANK the Garden Angels for all their work in the past several weeks cleaning the built up muck from the pond and cleaning the stones in and around the pond, with SPECIAL THANKS to Sparkie Strickland, Liz Vallez, Carol Carter, Mary Louise Sayles and Leigh Brattain. After many years there was quite a collection of muck that we were able to remove. THANK YOU, Nancy and Darryl Dowty, for doing a great job cleaning the bird bath in the garden; Carol Carter, for keeping an eye on it to make sure the birds have clean water; and Thom Tenny, who has been vigilant in keeping an eye on the garden and the pond for many years.
Judy Bennett
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An information packet was sent out to those on the electoral roll who are currently not attending in-person services. It includes a ballot for eligible voters with instructions on how to return it to the church. The packet also includes login credentials for the Annual Meeting, a directory, and along with a small cross to keep with you as part of a tactile Lenten devotion.
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The Annunciation Monday Book Group is reading Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others by Barbara Brown Taylor.
The Book Group is still being conducted it in a hybrid format. We meet at 1pm and have two options: a physically-distanced in-person gathering in Lowe Hall and also one to join via Zoom:
Call office for Zoom ID and passcode.
If you need a book mailed, please contact Fran Miller at 312.315.6212.
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The Diocese of Southwest Florida has provided a Zoom license for each parish in the diocese to continue its ministries digitally. You can use Zoom with your computer (video and audio), tablet (video and audio), smartphone (video and audio), or landline phone (audio only). If you are having trouble with the audio on your device, you can logon with your device for video and use your landline phone for audio. The ID numbers vary from 9 to 11 digits. They are not phone numbers. To dial in, scroll down to the end of the list for the phone numbers. For instructions on using Zoom, click here. |
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Join us for our virtual coffee hour and check-in on Zoom on Sundays at 1:05 p.m.
Call office for Zoom ID and passcode.
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The Monday Book Group will meet in a hybrid format from Lowe Hall and on Zoom.
Call office for Zoom ID and passcode.
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The best way to join a Zoom meeting is with a computer with a web-camera, smartphone, or tablet. This will allow you to see and hear everyone in the meeting. You can also join audio-only via telephone. (If you are having problems with your computer audio, you can login with your computer for video and dial-in for audio). Here are phone numbers to join via telephone:
United States: +1 301 715 8592
Canada: +1 647 374 4685
Once you have dialed in, you will be asked to key in the Meeting ID and Password.
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Sunday, February 21, 2021
Holy Eucharist for the First Sunday in Lent at the Memorial Garden altar at 8:00 a.m.
Holy Eucharist for the First Sunday in Lent from the Nave (live-streamed) at 9:30 a.m.
Holy Eucharist for the First Sunday in Lent at the Memorial Garden altar at 10:45 a.m.
Thursday, February 25, 2021
Holy Eucharist. Thursday in the 1st Week of Lent from the Nave (live-streamed) at 9:30 a.m.
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Note: There will be no Thursday service on March 4. (This is a change from previous announcements.) |
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