Welcoming All into God's Peace Together
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The Seventh Sunday of Easter
The Sunday after Ascension Day
In Person Worship Service at Grace this Sunday, May 16th
Inside Worship - with masks, social distancing and precautions
Priest: The Rev. Louise Kalemkerian
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Grace Episcopal Church
5958 Main Street, Trumbull CT 06611
Office Phone
203-268-2809
email:
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The Rev. Louise Kalemkerian,
Priest-in-Charge at Grace
Contact Rev. Louise via the Grace Office
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The Grace Church Prayerline
Grace Church is happy to pray for you. You can submit your prayer request on line by clicking the button below or mail it to our church office at
Grace Church, 5958 Main Street, Trumbull CT 06611
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Greetings!
John 17:6-19
‘I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything you have given me is from you; for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours. All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them. And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you.
Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one. While I was with them, I protected them in your name that you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost except the one destined to be lost, so that the scripture might be fulfilled. But now I am coming to you, and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy made complete in themselves.
I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, so that they also may be sanctified in truth.
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Ascension Day, Thursday May 13th
The Collect: Almighty God, whose blessed Son our Savior Jesus Christ ascended far above all heavens that he might fill all things: Mercifully give us faith to perceive that, according to his promise, he abides with his Church on earth, even to the end of the ages; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.
Seventh Sunday of Easter
The Collect: O God, the King of glory, you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven: Do not leave us comfortless, but send us your Holy Spirit to strengthen us, and exalt us to that place where our Savior Christ has gone before; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting.
Amen.
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Sermons and Reflections
This is a sermon on "Pearls and Grit, Easter 7 (B) ." It is written by The Rev. James Liggett and is published in "Sermons that Work," on the website of the Episcopal Church in the United States. The Gospel reading for this Sunday is above and the other readings for the week may be found by clicking on the "Readings" blue button above.
Pearls and Grit, Easter 7 (B) – May 16, 2021
Everybody knows that oysters sometimes make pearls; that little tidbit has been used to illustrate many a point. But you may have heard that old truth said in a new way a while back, a way that gives it more power. It seems pearls aren’t automatic. When an oyster—who must ordinarily have an enviably calm life lying around, eating soft, pleasant food—when an oyster somehow gets a piece of grit or a bit of sand inside its shell, then one of two things will happen: either the oyster will create a pearl or it will die. The pearl, a thing of beauty and value—is the oyster’s way of staying alive after something very irritating has gotten past its shell and into its heart.
Take that little bit of marine biology as background, as we are offered a grain of sand, a bit of irritation, something small and rough that can maybe slip past our shells and give us something to work on. We—and indeed the church itself, in this and every generation—need to work on this bit of sand very carefully. It will not go away, and we will either make of it a pearl, or, in one way or another, we will die.
The grit (like the oyster’s sand) is well hidden in pleasant, soft food. The Gospel we just heard is a portion of what is called the High Priestly Prayer of Jesus. The time is “the night in which he was betrayed.” Jesus is praying for his disciples—and for us. He prays for our unity, for our joy, and for our safety and protection. Jesus says that we are not of the world, but that we should nonetheless remain in the world—for our ministry is to be in the world, and for the world.
(Sidebar—when Jesus says “world” here, He’s not talking about the created order—rocks and trees and bunnies and things like that; instead, he’s talking about human society organized as it sees best to promote its own purposes. Jesus is talking about business as usual; he is talking about the society, the culture, the various human institutions—the world in that sense—doing what it usually does.)
And Jesus says this about his disciples: that the world has hated them because they are not of the world. This hatred is to be the fate, indeed it is to be one real, distinguishing mark, of all who follow Jesus. Disciples are to stand out because they don’t really fit in.
The bit of grit for us oysters is this: When was the last time the world hated you because you belong to Jesus, and not to the world? When was the last time your faith so set you apart from business as usual that you were met with anger, ridicule, or hatred? How about a little bit of contempt? Mild dislike? How about a tiny bit of irritation? I don’t like that question, either. I don’t like it at all.
Hey, maybe Jesus was wrong; maybe, these days, we all should be of the world, and that’s the way it’s supposed to be. Maybe the Kingdom of God has arrived, and we just missed most everything about it, except for how convenient it is for us. But probably not.
From time to time, we need to ask whether we have become so totally caught up in our culture, become so totally of the world, that we have to work hard to discover if we are different, and how we are different, and what it might look like for us to be different, and whether it’s worth the effort, and the cost, to be different.
In many ways, it was easier for the Early Church. As a generally ignored and occasionally persecuted minority in a pagan culture, a lot of things were clear; there were some potent lists. For example: Christians couldn’t attend the public games; they couldn’t hold any of several types of jobs; they couldn’t join the army; they couldn’t expose unwanted children to the elements; and so on. Their culture, “the world”, often ridiculed them or made them scapegoats, and occasionally killed them, and both sides pretty much knew why.
It’s not so easy these days. And to make it even harder, modern attempts to come up with lists of popular things Christians can’t do have usually been rather silly. In fact, we Episcopalians have been downright smug in pointing out that we aren’t like those people (you know who) who say you can’t dance or wear make-up or go to movies or whatever.
By the way, have you ever noticed that nobody ever really nails us on this? Instead of trying to establish God’s disapproval for the waltz or bingo, those people could really hit home if they responded to our self-righteous lack of lists with another question. What if they said, “O.K., have your martini and go to the dance—but before you do, tell me how your faith does affect your life; show me how it makes a difference”? That’s the grit for us oysters. The truth is, we might be glad more folks haven’t thought of that.
One way we try to get out of this pinch can cause just as much trouble. That way is saying that it’s the Church’s job to fix the world so there will be no conflicts between our faith and our culture for us to worry about. So, from time to time, we rear back and try to change everything within reach so we can be both righteous and of the world at the same time. Now, on one level, this is really, really good. We must engage the world, and we should try very hard to make things better—things like institutions, systems, people, and ourselves. We need to do this; our faith demands it. But we need to avoid getting confused about what that means. And we get confused easily.
It’s sometimes easy to forget that God will bring in the Kingdom; we won’t. And, even worse, we also find it very easy to begin supporting what we think is a good improvement in the world (for Christian reasons) but end up holding on to the improvement and forgetting the Christian part of it altogether. Of course, the best way to tell whether the cause or the Christianity is more important is by looking at how we treat people who don’t agree with our improvement.
And we get confused when we forget that the Lord doesn’t call us to be powerful or effective as the world sees power and effectiveness. The Lord calls us to be faithful—to live his life, to follow his steps. After all, of the twelve disciples, Judas was the most effective one at using both money and the powers-that-be to get what he wanted. So, trying to fix the world, while an important thing to do, isn’t really the pearl we need.
And this sermon is about grit, not pearls. We don’t have a list of rules telling us how not to be of the world, and that’s not because we think this stuff is unimportant, it’s because we know that things just aren’t list-simple. Still, and at the same time, we do know, and we must never forget, that the way we treat each other, and the way we treat our bodies, and our time, and our money, and our promises and our planet—the way we treat all of the things we call “mine”—these are and will remain very important—and our Lord and his Church have some potent things to say about them. This side of the Kingdom, the world as Jesus spoke of it, the world as business as usual, this will always, in one way or another, be the alternative to faithfulness and not the means to it.
So, how do we do this? How do we live faithfully and honestly, rationally, prudently, and with integrity, in the midst of a world that is really quite far from the Kingdom? How do we do this without being trivial, without being silly, and without minimizing either the depth of the tension between the Gospel and the world or the importance of our response? You may have some ideas already. Taking this challenge seriously amounts to some of the most important pearl-making work the church has on its agenda. It’s really the question of how we are to live.
And we need to make these pearls, or we will die. We need to look honestly at “the world”, the culture and institutions around us, and at who we are—and then pay careful attention to, and take concrete steps toward becoming, the person and the Church the Lord would have us be. We may even discover that Jesus was right, and that, in one way or another, the world will hate, or at least misunderstand, us. But the Lord continues to pray for us, we are promised all of the help we need, and these pearls come from the oddest places.
The Rev. James Liggett has recently retired as Rector of St. Nicholas’ Episcopal Church in Midland, Texas. He is a native of Kansas and a graduate of the University of Houston and the Episcopal Divinity School. He has served parishes in Kansas, Texas, and Oklahoma.
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Transition and Worship Update
Worship Info for this Sunday in RED Below
The Grace Vestry had virtual meetings with Bishop Laura Ahrens, for the purpose of discussing the future of Grace Church. Bishop Ahrens advised the Vestry that due to the our financial situation, Grace is not considered able to search for a new priest. We need to consider other options. This decision was made by our Diocese in part because the larger percentage of our operating income comes from users of our facilities and not from parishioner contributions. It must be stressed that Grace parishioners are very generous and consistent in their pledging and contributions; there are just not enough of us to provide a larger percentage of operating income. Although our finances have been in the black for several months, this is in large part due to the fact that we were not paying a priest for many months.
The options presented to the Vestry were:
Explore joining with another parish in the area, most likely selling the Grace property, and transferring proceeds from assets (amount available for transfer to be determined by our Diocese) to the other parish and merge into the other parish. This option is not limited to Trumbull churches; parishes in surrounding towns are also an option. Of course, this is entirely dependent upon another church's willingness to work with Grace to accomplish this. The hope with this option is that the joining of two churches will bring new opportunities for worship and new resources for community service. It is expected that the assets of Grace are highly valued and Grace will be able to provide significant financial assets to a partner church. This option requires a commitment by most of our parishioners to agree to go to the partner church as a group. If this option is selected, Grace is responsible for arranging the sale of the Grace property and assets and handling the closing of the facilities.
The other option is that Grace close and our parishioners then choose to go to whatever church they wish to attend. Some of us could very well go the to same church but there is no requirement for that. In this case, our Diocese arranges the sale and closing of Grace and all Grace assets from the sale are transferred to our Diocese.
Our senior warden, Fiona asks that we all give this some thought and explore area churches. Churches that have Zoom services or virtual services linked on Facebook welcome participation by guests. Some area churches are also without priests and are also in transition. Keep in mind that you may also view past services at various neighboring parishes on-line, usually on the parish's Facebook page. Fiona asked that we virtually visit with St. Peter's Monroe, Trinity Nichols, Christ Church Trumbull in Tashua, St. Timothy's, Fairfield and Christ Church, Easton and we have done so.
During the most recent virtual meeting with Bishop Ahrens, the Grace Vestry was advised that the next steps in the process are survey and appraisal of all the Grace property. If you are able to assist with the survey and recording of items in the many rooms and areas of the Grace property, please speak with Fiona.
In the meantime, we continue to investigate and consider our options; the most likely and preferred (by Grace parishioners) option is merging with another parish in the area. During conversations with the various parishes, the idea of merger was enthusiastically entertained by the neighboring parishes. Grace has options to consider and, if merger is chosen and agreed to, the time frame will most likely be in 2022. This will be further discussed at the Grace Annual Meeting this spring, date to be advised.
Grace will have services in the church 2 times per month with The Rev. Louise presiding. Grace Service time is 11:00 a.m. On other Sundays, Grace will join neighboring churches via Facebook or ZOOM or have morning prayer via ZOOM, to be advised in advance.
From Fiona:
Our in-person service this Sunday, May 16th at Grace Church with The Reverend Louise Kalemkerian is at 11:00 a.m. The service is also available via ZOOM. Sign-on follows.
Peace.
Topic: Grace Sunday Service May 16, 2021
Time: May 16, 2021 11:00 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
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Meeting ID: 891 8349 9823
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Peace be with you all,
Fiona Varker
Senior Warden
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To Parishioners and Friends of Grace
Stewardship in 2021
Please mail your pledges and contributions to Grace Church, 5958 Main Street, Trumbull, CT 06611. Non-pledge contributions are gratefully accepted and you may also request envelopes if you want to send a periodic contribution but not pledge.
If you prefer to pay via PayPal, the link is on the Grace Website. Additional donations to Grace may also be made via the Grace Website or by check.
Your pledges and contributions are being processed, recorded and deposited and are much appreciated. The bills still roll in and Grace needs to stay current with our salaries and services!
Thank you.
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Grace is the Cereal Church
Cereal and other food items are needed for the Bridgeport Food Pantries. If you want to bring milk for donation, please look for the no refrigeration required, shelf stable milk in the supermarket juice/beverage aisle or the coffee aisle. Either shelf stable almond milk or dairy milk is appreciated.
During the current period of some in-person worship and "Church in Deployment" (Sundays with no worship services at Grace), please continue to drop off your contributions and they will be delivered to the Food Pantries. Thank you!
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The Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., is the seat of the presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church. Photo: Episcopal News Service
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Episcopal bishops will mark anniversary of George Floyd’s murder with May 25 virtual memorial service
By Egan Millard
Posted 5/13/2021
[Episcopal News Service] A group of bishops, including Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, will hold a virtual memorial service to mark the first anniversary of the murder of George Floyd on May 25. The multi-diocesan effort will include prerecorded liturgy, messages and music, including a prayer of lament filmed in George Floyd Square in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where then-police officer Derek Chauvin killed Floyd by kneeling on his neck for over 9 minutes on May 25, 2020.
Curry will offer a reflection during the service, which will be led by Minnesota Bishop Craig Loya, Missouri Bishop Deon Johnson, Michigan Bishop Bonnie Perry, Indianapolis Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows, Washington Bishop Mariann Budde and Colorado Bishop Kym Lucas. The service will air at 8 p.m. Eastern time on the Facebook pages of those dioceses, as well as the pages of other dioceses and seminaries that are participating by submitting videos of prayers or meditations that will be incorporated into the service.
To read the rest of this article, click on the blue button below.
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Local News
From the Trumbull Patch
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Connecticut Expands Coronavirus Vaccination to 12-15 Year-Olds
Parents of roughly 170,000 CT residents between 12 and 15 can now sign their children up for an appointment, or visit a walk-in clinic.
CONNECTICUT — The state has expanded its coronavirus vaccine rollout to include residents in Connecticut between the ages of 12 to 15 at all clinics in the state that are offering that vaccine.
The expansion of Connecticut's vaccine program follows on the heels of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to recommending the vaccine for this age group Wednesday afternoon.
Parents and legal guardians of roughly 170,000 Connecticut residents between the ages of 12 to 15 can now sign their children up for an appointment or visit one of the many clinics that are accepting walk-up patients.
To read the rest of the article, click the blue button below.
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Coronavirus: Will CT Be Back To Normal By Summer?
CT COVID-19 positivity & hospitalizations are low, and those 45 and above may have herd immunity. Is it time to take the masks off indoors?
CONNECTICUT — The seven-day coronavirus positivity rate is under 2 percent and the hospitalizations are as low as they have been in nearly seven months. Those and other upward-trending metrics had Gov. Ned Lamont predicting the state would be "back to normal by summer" during a news conference Monday.
So far, 71 percent of everyone in Connecticut over the age of 18 has received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. In the 45 and older age tier, 80 percent of residents have been jabbed at least once, and 92 percent of those 65 and older have been vaccinated. On Monday the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tapped Connecticut as the top state for eligible population that is fully vaccinated. Lamont said the number of people aged 45 and above who were vaccinated placed that group "very close to herd immunity."
Pressed on whether all the good coronavirus news might mean a relaxation of the restrictions on the wearing of masks indoors, Lamont cautioned that, "We still have a significant number of our younger people who are not vaccinated."
"So we are going to have to think seriously about indoor masking a little while longer, at least for that cohort," he said.
"Those people, aged 45 and above, represent 97 percent of the deaths we have had in Connecticut from COVID-19," state Chief Operating Officer Josh Geballe said. "That gives us a very firm foundation upon which to move forward with additional relaxation of business restrictions as we'll be doing next week."
To read the rest of the article, click the blue button below.
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Local News From the Trumbull/Monroe/Easton/Redding Daily Voice
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COVID-19: Pfizer, Moderna Release Clinical Trial Results On Response Against Virus Variants
Both Pfizer and Moderna - two of the three COVID-19 vaccines approved for distribution in the US - have seen promising results in combating variants of the virus in recent studies.
This week, both pharmaceutical companies released results of clinical trials that show the vaccines are effective in combating COVID-19 variants, including the prominent strains from South Africa and Brazil.
Moderna has been testing a 50-microgram dose of its vaccine in previously vaccinated people, which found the booster dose increased neutralizing antibody responses against the original virus as well as the variants.
Pfizer has also been testing booster shots, though the high protection rate of the vaccine against the original strain may prove that a third shot is unnecessary, according to some experts.
Side effects of both were similar to those experienced by people who received their second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, which include fatigue, joint pain, headaches, muscle, and joint pain.
Preliminary results of the trials will be published online, but have not yet been peer-reviewed.
“As we seek to defeat the ongoing pandemic, we remain committed to being proactive as the virus evolves,” Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said in a statement. “We are encouraged by these new data, which reinforce our confidence that our booster strategy should be protective against these newly detected variants.
“The strong and rapid boost in titers to levels above primary vaccination also clearly demonstrates the ability of mRNA-1273 to induce immune memory.”
According to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), projections show that COVID-19 cases could surge through the beginning of summer due to the various variants, before a sharp decline in July as more Americans get vaccinated.
“We are seeing that our current vaccines are protecting against the contaminant variants circulating in the country,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said this week. “Simply put, the sooner we get more and more people vaccinated, the sooner we will all get back to normal.”
CDC Advisory Panel Endorses Use Of Pfizer Vaccine In Children 12 And Up
A panel of experts advising the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) voted to move forward with the approval process for the use of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine among children between the ages of 12 and 15.
To read the rest of the Daily Voice Article, click the blue button below.
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COVID-19: Moderna Will Double Size Of Vaccine Manufacturing Space
With the goal of producing billions of COVID-19 vaccine doses by the end of 2022, Moderna announced that it will be expanding its production facility, located in New England.
The biotechnology company, which is currently one of three companies that have been granted emergency use authorization to produce COVID-19 vaccines in the United States (along with Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson), announced that it will be doubling the size of the Moderna Technology Center in Norwood, Massachusetts.
According to the company, the expansion includes an increase of the company’s production and lab space from approximately 300,000-square-feet to approximately 650,000-square-feet through a renovation of existing space and the acquisition of a 240,000-square-foot building located on the same campus for expansion of its commercial and clinical activities.
The expansion will support a 50 percent increase in the company’s COVID-19 vaccine, which Moderna says will happen in late 2021 and early 2022.
To read the rest of the article, click the blue button below.
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AA Meetings at Grace
Updated Information for Spring 2021, click blue button below
AA groups have resumed meetings at Grace. Instead of meeting in the Lewis Hall Meeting Room for now, groups are meeting in the larger Undercroft Parish Hall. For now this space allows for socially distanced meetings. The space was cleaned and AA will provide cleaning going forward. One restroom will be used by AA and the other will be closed during meetings. For details on available meetings, and restarting meeting, please go to grace-eye-opener.org
or click the button.
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We've joined the Confidant Health platform to expand access to critical services
Hi there,
We held a special session announcing that C.A.R.E.S. has aligned with a new, innovative company called Confidant Health.
The Confidant Health founders recognized the need for a shift in the way substance use and mental health care is delivered. Their unique approach combines clinical best practices that are shown to support individuals entering recovery and those that help families heal. Confidant’s proprietary app-based care delivery system is accessible where and when people need it.
Aligning C.A.R.E.S. with Confidant Health has allowed us to enhance and expand our services to best meet the needs of all of our participants and their families. We will now offer the Confidant Cares Family & Friend Support Group virtually on Monday nights at C.A.R.E.S. usual time, while also making Confidant’s array of service options immediately available to our members that need information, education, coaching, clinical treatment, and continued recovery support for mental health and substance use disorders.
If you have any questions about this process, please do not hesitate to reach out to me.
Thank you for your ongoing support of C.A.R.E.S. and I hope you join us in our new, improved format as we continue to grow and provide education, resources and hope for the individuals, families, and communities we serve.
With warmest regards,
Donna
C.A.R.E.S.
VIRTUAL HOPE & SUPPORT GROUP
MONDAYS
7:00 - 9:00 PM
* All meetings are free of charge
Please contact us using the info below for assistance of any kind.
855-406-0246
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Caroline House Spring Outdoor Brunch
Caroline House Mission:
To enable women and children to reach the fullness of their potential
through education in English language and life skills
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To make a contribution to the CCGB Virtual Food Drive, click the blue button below.
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Register for our Spring Fling Virtual Event "Be Our Guest"!
This virtual event will be held on TUESDAY, MAY 25th at 7:00 PM!!!
Until COVID is well behind us, we continue to put safety first, and our Spring Fling will be via zoom, with a virtual auction, where people will bid on ways to support our work. (You can also donate at any time on our DONATE page and select VIRTUAL SPRING FLING!)
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St. Pauly's Clothing shed at
GRACE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
is open!
The clothing donation shed at Grace Episcopal Church, 5958 Main Street, Trumbull, CT, is open to the public.
If you are not familiar with the clothing donation shed, it’s designed to give community members a uniquely clean, convenient, and well-cared-for option to donate their used clothing to. St. Pauly Textile Inc., the company that has provided the shed, partners with businesses and various organizations to distribute donated items both here in the U.S. and worldwide, where they are ultimately re-worn by people who need them. Grace Church funding for donated clothing, and additionally has the option to use donations to serve community needs.
With over 1,300 clothing drop-off sheds in place, St. Pauly Textile Inc. collects over 90,000 pounds of clothing every day and estimates that this clothing ends up in 44 different countries (including the U.S.) yearly. In 2019, the company was able to help keep over 20 million articles of clothing out of landfills, which clothed an estimated 2.5 million people worldwide. The company was founded in 1996 and is an A+ rated member of the Better Business Bureau.
Accepted items: clothing, shoes, belts, purses, blankets, sheets, curtains, pillowcases, and stuffed animals. NO FURNITURE OF ANY SIZE. NO TOYS. NO CARRIAGES. NO CAR SEATS. NO CRIBS. NO APPLIANCES. NO GLASS ITEMS. DONATION MUST FIT INTO THE SLOT IN THE FRONT OF THE SHED. DO NOT LEAVE ANY ITEMS OUTSIDE THE SHED.
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A word from the brothers of the Society of Saint John the Evangelist
Ascension Day is a wonderful celebration of hope. A day to lift up our hearts, to rejoice – the Lord is King. And maybe an occasion to pledge that in the days ahead we will endeavor to be purveyors of hope – that we will so live our lives and so pray our lives, that others will know the hope to which we have been called. That however difficult or daunting our journey may be, we will continually lift up our eyes, and look to the glory.
-Br. Geoffrey Tristram
-Br. James Koester, Society of Saint John the Evangelist
For more information on the Society of Saint John the Evangelist, please visit their web site at: http://ssje.org/ or click the button below.
SSJE is a monastic community of The Episcopal Church & The Anglican Church of Canada
Brother, Give Us A Word is a daily devotion
The Society of Saint John the Evangelist is an independent, 501(c) (3) non-profit tax exempt U.S. corporation.
© 2015 The Society of Saint John the Evangelist, All Rights Reserved
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The Episcopal Church in Connecticut
Participating in God's Mission
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Friday, May 28, 2021 7:00 PM
Virtual Poetry and Social Justice Dialogue Event hosted by Cathedral Poet-In-Residence Dr. Lindsay Rockwell
Christ Church Cathedral‘s Virtual Poetry Night is a space where art intersects with spirituality and social justice. This year, our Cathedral is partnering with our ECCT's Racial, Healing, Justice, and Reconciliation Ministry Network (RHJR) to host a series of events to address topics as racial justice, reparations, creation care, and so much more!
On May 28, our Poet-In-Residence and host of the series , Dr. Lindsay Rockwell, will feature a special guest, Poet Gregory Pardlo, winner of the 2015 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry. Joining them are poets Joyce Ashuntantang and Spencer Reece.
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Fifth Sundays Across ECCT:
May 30, 2021 at 10 a.m.
Join us on ECCT's YouTube Channel and Facebook Page
Link to ECCT website and Facebook page with blue buttons below.
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Camp Washington - Life changing events for adults and children
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Fri, May 21, 2021 4:00 PM EST
“An Embodied Spring” Women’s Retreat Weekend
Camp Washington Camp and Retreat Center, Lakeside/Morris
Welcome to a joyful sister weekend filled with nourishment and rest for your “COVID-tired” body, mind and spirit. Three inspiring sessions, five beautiful, nutrient rich meals with vegetarian options, including Sunday Brunch. All rooms are single with shared baths, following state COVID safety guidelines. Learn more and register online.
Click the blue button below to register
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Spring 2021
Dear Friends of Camp Washington,
It goes without saying, 2020 will undoubtedly be remembered as a year unlike any other in our lifetime. As 2020 began, Camp Washington was buzzing with excitement and energy as new programs and adventures were being planned for the continued exploration of discipleship on our beautiful campus. In early March we knew something was wrong, and by mid-March we had closed the doors for what we thought might be a few weeks of quarantine at home. As the reality of the pandemic began to set-in we were faced with the challenges of canceling all retreat and conference business, the outdoor education program that typically fills our campus was canceled, and eventually the governor decided to cancel all residential summer camps.
During this time of uncertainty, our staff cared for our lonely campus, designed and offered a virtual camp experience for our campers and families, we checked on neighbors with a phone call, we sent notes and offered food and clothing to those in our neighborhood who needed a little help to get through the week. For over 100 years, Camp Washington has been a place of hope and hospitality- a place where people connect with God in unexpected ways and places. So, we simply did what we do best- and with your generosity, were able to do the work God was calling us to do. Thanks Be to God!
As we settle into the rhythm of this new year, we remain hopeful for the future. We have begun welcoming smaller groups back to campus for program and retreat. We are moving forward to offer our campers and families a compact summer program. We are pursuing new partnerships for outdoor education for the fall of 2021. We have completed extensive maintenance projects around our 300-acre campus, and we are breaking ground on new structures and projects to enhance our programs. All of this is possible thanks to your belief in this ministry and your continued generous, faithful support. Thank you!
Hope to see you on campus soon.
Faithfully,
Bart Geissinger- Executive Director
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Welcome back home to Camp Washington!
Summer Camp 2021 will be a “different” kind of summer for us all- and- we are getting pretty good at being flexible.
As we continue to live with COVID-19, we also learn more as we try-on new things and listen to the science and guidance of experts.
The safety and well-being of our campers and staff is the #1 priority as we design plans and programs for this summer. We have shortened the number of sessions available, and have reduced our registration capacity, allowing us to create more space in the cabins and common areas. Campers will travel in cabin pods with established protocols for each pod.
We are following the guidance of the American Camp Association (ACA), the Center for Disease Control (CDC), Episcopal Camps & Conference Centers (ECCC), and the State of CT to determine the layers of protection Camp Washington will need to implement this to insure the safest summer possible. Some activities will look and feel different, some will be new, and some may simply not be possible this summer. However, we believe that creating a summer camp experience for our families is perhaps more important this summer than ever before.
In the coming months, we will share our new guidelines with you once you have registered, and will ask you to take an active role with your camper in understanding your responsibilities in making this summer successful. Many rules, policies and protocols will be different- one thing will not change: the opportunity for your camper to come home to Camp Washington to have fun, reconnect with friends, staff, and our creator in the beauty of this amazing campus.
We are here to answer your questions, and look forward to welcoming you back home this summer to Camp Washington!
Summer Camp 2021 Schedule
MINI Camp, ages 5-10 : July 7-9, 2021 : $295
MINI Day Camp, ages 5-10 : July 7-9, 2021 : $150
Children's Camp 1, ages 7-12 : July 11-16, 2021 : $595
Children's Camp 2 (2 week), ages 7-12 : July 25 - August 6, 2021 : $1,350
Teen Camp 1, ages 12-16 : July 18-23, 2021 : $595
Teen Camp 2 (2 week), ages 12-16 : July 25 - August 6, 2021 : $1,350
Summer Camp 2021 Employment Opportunities at Camp Washington
As we re-gather as a community this summer at Camp Washington, we are looking to build a team of energetic, fun, creative, spirit-filled people who are excited to welcome our campers back home to Camp! Join us for the best summer job you will ever have: long days, warm nights, memories to last a lifetime.
We are looking for: Program Directors in Arts & Crafts, Sports, Performing Arts, Wilderness and Waterfront, as well as Cabin Staff and more. Check out all the opportunities online.
People of all races, colors, beliefs, genders, national origins, experiences, and abilities are encouraged to apply.
For Information on Camp Washington, See ECCT website for details or www.campwashington.org.
Camp Washington
(860) 567- 9623
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