The Messenger

Weekly newsletter

from St. John|San Juan

November 13, 2026

SJSJ's 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Sunday worship services are in-person

and live-streamed to YouTube. Click on the logo below to view them.

From the Rector:

"Give my heart"

Dear Friends –

This week, our Worship Team met to plan for Advent and Christmas. Advent begins in just two short weeks, on Sunday, November 29. Can you believe it?

Our planning work brought Advent and Christmas tunes flooding into my head, including:

“What can I give Him, poor as I am?

If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;

If I were a wise man, I would do my part;

Yet what can I give Him: give my heart.”

These words by Christina Rossetti were set to a tune by Gustav Holst. The first achingly beautiful verse of this hymn invites us into the desolate landscape in which we hear the wind moan and feel a piercing cold that turns water to stone.

The reason we feel the aching bleakness of relentless winter in Rossetti’s poem is that Rossetti knew suffering. Though she had a happy childhood, her beloved father’s health failed when Christina was 13. At 15, Christina had a nervous breakdown, from which her mental and physical health never fully recovered.

The Rossetti family’s finances then collapsed. Christina and her mother opened a day school. When the school failed, Christina and her mother determined to live simply amid their poverty. Christina, though often ill, devoted herself to her writing and charity work. A theme running through much of Rossetti’s writing is the “inconstancy and insufficiency of any love except God’s”. Find more here (look for Rossetti biography).

In some ways, St. John | San Juan has been in bleak midwinter for a good long time. Clergy and diocesan leaders have failed you. The roof has leaked and the building has drained funds for generations. And yet, you have given your hearts to a God who loves and sustains you, and to a faithful community which has kept watch together with Jesus through some dark and perilous nights.

Now dawn is breaking, and now we are called, dear ones, to “Awake, awake to love and work!” This call, sounded by teacher, military chaplain and hymn-writer Geoffrey Anketel Studdert Kennedy, continues:

“To give and give, and give again,

What God hath given thee;

To spend thyself nor count the cost;

To serve right gloriously

The God who gave all worlds that are,

And all that are to be.”

Dear ones, I would say that I hate to ask more of you, but I feel bold in asking you to support our church financially, because the mission and ministry of St. John | San Juan has deep roots and is now flying on fresh, strong wings.

So please, give . . . and give . . . and give again. Give to our 2026 Close the Gap campaign. Make a covenant to give in our 2027 Annual Giving campaign. Together, let us continue to give our hearts, that all may know the peace and power of God’s love.

With gratitude for all you are and for all you give,

Janet+

PS – GOOD NEWS: Our 2026 “Close the Gap” campaign has raised $34,561.25 toward our goal of $60,000. Good job; keep giving!

PSPS – THANK YOU to all who gave so generously to help the San Juan family who suffered loss of their housing and belongings in the fire. They now have a new apartment, furniture, clothing, household goods, and the other assistance they need. Glory to God and MUCH gratitude to all who contributed!

 Español

#MovingChurch

Welcome to #MovingChurch

#MovingChurch is the place to look for news on our move to a new space in August 2027, including:

• Answers to your many, many questions, when we have the answers.
• Events, including tour opportunities at First United Methodist Church in Olympia, our new physical location.
• Updates on packing and moving plans.
• Timelines, calendars, etc.

You are invited to the great robe try-on

When? This Sunday, November 15, after 10:30 a.m. worship, during C.H.A.T. (Coffee Hour After Ten-thirty)

Where? Parish Hall

Why? Altar robe designers have weird sizing systems, so you can’t tell what size the robes are without trying them on. This is a fun closet clean-out activity; we have dozens of robes that haven’t been used in years.

Who? Everyone – children and adults

How? Put a robe on over your clothes . . . see how it fits . . . learn to tie a cincture (and learn what a cincture is) . . . check to ensure the robe has all snaps and ties. We’ll keep some robes and donate others.

Update: Columbarium and organ and windows and bell

The Property Stewardship Team is hard at work! In the past couple of weeks:



• A regional organ guru and caretaker came to evaluate our organ and provide information regarding moving it. SJSJ Music Director Steve O'Connor also has been researching sale, storage, and other options to gain a full picture of our options.
• A local contractor began investigating how to move the columbarium and how to lower the bell from the bell tower.
• An attorney at SJSJ is researching state and local laws regarding relocation of the columbarium.
• Stained glass companies have been contacted regarding logistics and costs of moving the stained glass windows.

It is hoped that proposals including logistics, costs, and timelines will be available at the Annual Parish Meeting on Sunday, January 24.

Preaching exchange

The Preaching Exchange on Sunday, November 8, for our shared “GOOD PLANS” Annual Giving Covenant Campaign was a great success. Energy and participation was high at SJSJ and FUMCO. The Adult Forum between services at SJSJ had the highest attendance of the year. Thanks, Pastor Heather and Father Jaime for a great discussion about the similarities and differences between Methodism and Episcopalianism!

If you missed Pastor Heather’s sermon at SJSJ, see the livestream available through our parish website here.



If you would like to hear Rev. Janet’s sermon at FUMCO, it’s available through their parish website at fumcoly.org. 

SJSJ Annual giving covenant campaign for 2027 operating funds

Theme: Good Plans

Theme verse: “For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, plans to give you a future with hope.” – Jeremiah 29:11 (NRSV)

Theme and campaign materials created by Pastor Heather Sparkman and Pastor Alexa Eisenbarth of FUMCO

Dates: through Sunday, November 22

Questions for #MovingChurch? Contact Rev. Janet at janet@stjohnoly.org or Mindy Chambers at mindy@orcalink.com. If we have the answer, we will share it with you. If we do not yet have the answer, we will add your question to the list of questions to be answered as we move forward. 

Weekly calendar

Saturday, November 14

9 a.m, Men's Group, Chapel

1 p.m. Memorial service for Meredith Blundell, followed by reception

Sunday November 15

8 a.m. Holy Eucharist

9:30 a.m. Adult Forum, Parish Hall

10:30 a.m. Holy Eucharist, FUMCO Pastor Heather Sparkman preaching, Sunday School | nursery | childcare available

6 p.m. Spanish service, nursery | childcare available

Monday November 16

10 a.m. Monday Morning Crafters, Parish Hall

6 p.m. Capital City AA, Parish Hall



Tuesday November 17

6 p.m. Nar-Anon, Guild Room

Wednesday November 18

7 a.m. Morning Prayer via Zoom (link below)

Noon. Messenger deadline

6 p.m. Buddhist meditation

6 p.m. Oasis, contemporary sung worship service

6:30 p.m. Choir practice

Thursday November 19

Noon to 1 p.m., Centering prayer group, Guild Room

6 p.m. Capital City AA Group, Parish Hall

6 p.m. Capital Al Anon Family Group, Sanctuary

Saturday November 20

9 a.m. Men's Group, Chapel

7 p.m. Trans Day of Remembrance, Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd, 1601 North St. S.E. Olympia

Annual Thanksgiving dinner

Join St. John | San Juan friends and family for Thanksgiving dinner Thursday, November 26, beginning at 1:30 p.m., hosted by Rev. Janet, Chuck Moore, and friends.

Please sign up in the Parish Hall or or RSVP by phone, (360) 352-8527 or email anna@stjohnsoly.org

Christmas Faire coming up

Donations needed!

Save the date! On December 5, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., the SJSJ Christmas Faire will feature hand-crafted gifts and tasty treats, all made locally, with love!

We welcome hundreds of people from the community to this event each year, and you can help make it a success.

Bakers and candy-makers, our Faire bake sale needs donations as well. Cookies, candy, festive breads and other holiday treats are needed. Small quantities (six cookies rather than a dozen; one or two cupcakes, rather than a whole cake, etc.) attractively wrapped seem to sell the best. Please label any items that include nuts. Gluten-free items also are most-welcome. A signup sheet will be available in the Parish Hall soon!

Items can be dropped off at the church on December 4 from noon until 4 p.m. and between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m. the day of the sale. Contact Kathryn Ness at krness16@comcast.net or Lin Hampton at hampton.lin48@gmail.com if you have questions about the bake sale.

Set-up for the Faire begins at noon Friday, December 4, and a few hands are needed until about 3 p.m. to make quick work of that.

Vicki Focke, at theodorefocke@comcast.net, is available to answer other questions about the Faire. 

Four things from the kitchen!

St. John | San Juan has a lot of tablecloths! White, pink, purple, blue, 90", 120", big, small, round, and rectangular! And lots of toppers for holiday accents. They add a festive and elegant touch to our church celebrations. But they do get dirty, and we greatly appreciate anyone who can take five or six home for laundering! Six large tablecloths fit well into a standard washer, add detergent, and wash on cold in a quick cycle. And they dry in about 15 minutes on a low setting. When folding the large white ones, please fold them to hang long on a coat hanger. You can then hang them in the coat closet in the lobby, Round on the right and long on the left! This makes it much easier to find the ones you need later. Smaller ones are kept in the storeroom across from the kitchen.

The tale of the disappearing forks! Our metal fork supply is down to 65 pieces, significantly fewer than the hundreds of knives and spoons we have. This makes it challenging to use a full set of silverware for our events and not rely on single-use plastic ware, which gets quickly tossed in the garbage and adds to landfill problems. If you know where there is a secret stash of our forks or have inadvertently taken some home, please help us get those forks back in the Parish Hall drawer! We know that "the dish ran away with the spoon", but there are no nursery rhymes to guide us on where the forks might be! 😊

First aid and safety items: There are new first aid kits in the kitchen, kept in the lower cabinet to the left of the sink. We also have food thermometers and sleeves in the drawer to the right of the stove, along with the potholders. Please use these to check the temperature of foods you are preparing on the stove top or in ovens. When storing cooked leftovers, please put them into the low profile 4" rectangular pans on top of the oven so they cool properly. Cover with plastic wrap. Label and date.

Happy refrigerator! Thank you to all for helping to keep the refrigerator clean and free of old/expired foods. Remember we will toss any food older than a week or not labeled with names and dates.

Staff transition: Farewell Jonathen, welcome back Dan

This week, we had to say farewell to Jonathen, the young man who has served as our sexton for more than 18 months. It broke my heart to see him go, but change was needed, for Jonathen and for SJSJ.

If you would like to thank Jonathen for his work and bless him on his way, cards and notes will be collected in the basket on the ushers’ table in the back of the sanctuary on Sunday and on the counter in the office during the week.

e are delighted to welcome back Dan Kapsner, who will serve as our sexton until we move from 20^th Avenue and Capitol Way next summer. During Jonathen’s time with us, Dan remained available to share building wisdom and continued to serve as volunteer liaison with the AA groups. Now, you’ll see Dan around a little more. Hooray! Thanks, Dan, for all you have done – and continue to do – for SJSJ and the partners who share our building! 

Parish Library has freebies; taking donations for Christmas Faire

In preparation for our move, the SJSJ library is offering "'free for the taking" items on the cart and magazine rack in the Parish Hall. 

Also, the library ministry now is limiting donations to books published in the past five years that have had a wide readership. 

For the SJS Christmas Faire on December 5, the library is accepting recently published children's books either new or in great condition and will have holiday ornaments for sale (donations of these also welcome). You can drop items off in the SJSJ library.

Contact Kathy Deviny, kathiedeviny@outlook.com with questions.

Outreach news

Thurston County Food Project 2026:

Bring your green bags December 6

We will collect and bless our green bags on Sunday, December 6, 2026, the last regular collection this year.

Let's make it our biggest ever!

If you have not picked up a green bag, plenty are available near the usher's table where you enter the sanctuary.

When you return them on December 6 (please do not bring to the church before then!!!), place the bags at the altar before the 8 or 10:30 a.m. service, where they will be blessed!

Staple always needed are peanut butter, canned chicken, canned protein, individual fruit cups, individual oatmeal cups. Thank you in advance for your generosity.

Outreach Ministry Team

Musical notes

Concert series:

Next up, Seattle ProMusica



Celebrate the winter solstice with soul-warming music from Canada, Mexico, and the United States with Seattle Pro Musica’s “The Year's Midnight,” performed at St. John | San Juan Episcopal Church in Olympia on November 22.

Featured composers are Reena Esmail, Morten Lauridsen, Sarah Quartel, Caroline Shaw, David Garcia Saldana, Tomás Pascual and David MacIntyre.



For more than 50 years, this choral group has been bringing the power of voices joined in harmony to enrich the lives of its audiences, singers, and the community at large.



The concert begins at 3 p.m. and tickets will be in high demand!  Admission is by donation (suggested $20, no one turned away), and tickets go quickly! You may reserve them by using the concerts tab on the SJSJ website, or pay at the door.

For children and families

Growing in Love:

Nurturing family faith

Our children and families program "Growing in Love" program welcomes you to:

• A children's moment at the beginning of the 10:30 a.m. worship service.
• Faith development activities in the Kid Center during the 10:30 a.m. service.
• Take-home resources to use at home.

Follow the signs to the Kid Center to learn more and find registration forms. 

Weekday worship services

Wednesday Morning Prayer



Celebrate Morning Prayer at the 7 a.m. Wednesday service, November 18.

The service will be a liturgy for the Transgender Day of Remembrance, an annual observance on November 20 that honors the memory of the transgender people whose lives were lost in acts of anti-transgender violence.

All are welcome to these inclusive language liturgies, an excellent opportunity for spiritual connection with God and with other spiritual seekers in the middle of your week. Join by clicking the button below.

Oasis: candlelight, music and reflection

Need to breathe at the end of your busy day? Maybe take some time to clear your mind, your concerns, and recharge and reinvigorate so that you may do good work in the world, enveloped in peace.

Then try Oasis, a service of candlelight, music and reflection.

For 30 minutes each Wednesday, beginning at 6 p.m. in the sanctuary at St. John | San Juan, leave the hectic world behind you for a half hour of meditation, music and prayer in a service in which all senses are engaged in the practice of worship relevant to the end of the workday and the beginning of evening rest.

In the community

Transgender Day of Remembrance:

Honoring trans lives lost

You are invited to join in solidarity for the worldwide annual Transgender Day of Remembrance vigil on Friday, November 20 at 7 p.m. in the sanctuary of the Good Shepherd Olympia, 1601 North St. S.E., Olympia, to pause, reflect, and honor the lives, names, and legacies of transgender individuals taken by anti-transgender violence and hate.

Coming up

• Friday, November 20, Trans Day of Remembrance, 7-9 p.m., Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd, 1601 North St. S.E., Olympia
• Sunday, November 22, Seattle Pro Musica in concert, 3 p.m., SJSJ sanctuary
• Thursday, November 26, Thanksgiving dinner at SJSJ, 1:30 p.m., hosted by Rev. Janet, Chuck Moore, and friends. Please sign up in the Parish Hall or or RSVP by phone, (360) 352-8527 or email anna@stjohnsoly.org

• Saturday, December 5, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m,. Christmas Faire featuring arts, crafts and home-made goodies for sale, Parish Hall
• Sunday, December 6, 10:30 a.m. worship, special visitor and treats for kids
• Sunday, December 13, 6 p.m. Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe celebration

Links

Do you want to know more about the ministries, worship and programs at St. John | San Juan? Click the button below.

Are you looking for information about the SJSJ library and the latest books and news about religion and spirituality? Click the buttons below.

Are you interested in news about the Diocese of Olympia, which organizes Episcopal congregations in Western Washington to do their best work? Click the button below.

Do you need food, housing or other resources? Find information by clicking the button below.

Prayer and Connection

If you or a loved one would like to be added to the prayer list, or to report an illness, hospitalization, surgical procedure or death, please contact the office, (360) 352-8527 or anna@stjohnsoly.org, to leave a message, leave your prayer on the yellow card in the pews, or, in an emergency, contact clergy:

Rev. Janet by text or phone

at (360) 358-2041

Rev. Jaime by text or phone

at (360) 606-4285

View the current prayer list here.

Names appear on the prayer list for three weeks. If you wish to continue prayers for someone, please contact the office by phone or email.

Clergy and staff

Rev. Dr. Janet C. Waggoner, Rector | janet@stjohnsoly.org

Rev. Jaime Case, Associate Priest | jaime@stjohnsoly.org

Rev. Gen Grewell, Deacon | gen@stjohnsoly.org

Steve O'Connor, Director of Music | steve@stjohnsoly.org

Anna Okrasinski-Maddox, Parish Administrator | anna@stjohnsoly.org

Your financial support of St. John | San Juan is welcome at any time. You can make a pledge, donate to specific SJSJ ministries, make a donation for concert tickets and more by clicking on the button above.

Photo Preferences and Privacy

From time to time, photos may be taken at worship, coffee hour, and parish events for the church's use on the church website and social media. If you prefer that your photo not be taken, please inform an usher, who will then inform the photographer.

(360) 352-8527 • www.stjohnsoly.org

Office Hours

Tuesday though Friday

10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

(360) 352-8527

Messages left after 2 p.m. Friday will be picked up

when the office opens on Tuesday