From The Rector

Dear Parishioners and Friends,

Advent is once again upon us, that season in which we hear competing voices telling us simultaneously to “slow down,” and “hurry up!” There is a tension that we manage this time of year between the sacred and secular, pulling us in different directions. Both have their benefits.

It is certainly good to be with family and friends once again after two Christmas seasons marked by false starts and isolation. Indeed, Pete and I are thrilled to reboot our annual Rectory Christmas Open House this year after a two year hiatus. It is just one of many long-standing traditions making their reappearance. We have been busily preparing the rectory for a full house this Christmas, as most of my family will be with us.

It is also good to participate in your church’s life of prayer and worship as a way of preparing the "inner castle" to welcome the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. In a world torn by strife, still reeling from the global ripple effects of the pandemic, I hope and pray that one of the lessons we learn as a society and a Church is that we really do need one another and that the Church is a critical part of our wellbeing.

Advent is the start of the new year in the Church, and with that in mind, I encourage you to “prepare the way of the Lord,” and make the most of the wonderful opportunities for worship, learning, and fellowship that we offer during this season.



Blessings,

Fr Rick

Outreach Update

Following the 37 Thanksgiving Basket deliveries to Tuxedo residents, we reached out to our neighbors in Rockland County.

Dennis Trotter and I went shopping at BJ's and spent $500 of your donations to augment the daily brown bag handouts to homeless men and women who come to receive their breakfast and lunch at Helping Hands in Spring Valley. Currently there are around 60 people every weekday. We delivered to the Helping Hands kitchen foods hard to come by and very expensive from the food bank. The car was stacked to the hilt with bags of oranges, apples, bananas; containers of turkey, ham and cheese; coffee; large cartons of eggs; bottled water; and with plenty of chocolate chip cookies to round it off!

Anna Kobelka, who is the director of Helping Hands, is now in need of men's Winter coats and flannel shirts. Sizes medium and large.

If you can donate coats or shirts please bring them to St Mary's and leave them in the chapel through the white door to the right of the building. Thank you! They'll be very much appreciated.

Carryou, Randfontein, South Africa

As a result of donations given to St Mary's specifically for Carryou, we transferred money into their account with directions on how it was to be used. Food parcels to families,funds to help make their child day care/ preschool viable and money to pay the meagre wages of caregivers, as funding for these valuable members of the team had been halted temporarily by the government.

The photos show the Moremi and Tivani families. The mother is preparing a chicken to eat that she had found dead on the roadside and Malucky Tivani is inside the shack shared by his mother and three brothers. The black bag holds the food with large bags of the staple rice and mealie meal, tinned fish, vegetable oil,paraffin, toiletries etc.The third photo is staff at Carryou preparing the food parcels for delivery.

Thank you everyone for your donations. Sue Heywood Outreach Chair

I'd like to give thanks to the following people for helping to attempt to get my Christmas play, Players on the Steps on the boards:

Sue Heywood and Barbara McKechnie for agreeing to do producing duties, Sheldon Eldridge for chording an original song and organizing the musical score. Calvin deMond was going to assist with technical aspects of the show.

Also, Larry Bull, Paola Tocci, Kimberly Breiland, Tally Love, Mary Rose Stevens, Roy McKechnie, Dennis Trotter, and Donald Carlough made up a good part of the cast. Many thanks to Aoife Geoghegan for her help with the scripts. We still needed to cast four more parts, though and couldn't keep going without them.

There were many exciting moments in rehearsal, and I thank the actors for making my words come alive on the page. We'll try again some other time.

If anyone brought their script to church with them, please give it to Sue Heywood.  Believe me, I thought of all of you at grace on Thanksgiving and am grateful for all your efforts.  Maureen Love

The 1967 Tuxedo Park Edition Jeep that was auctioned off at our benefit dinner in October of 2021 is once again available and in need of a good home. It was recently serviced by NJV Auto in Sloatsburg and is in running condition. It will need new tires and replacement of some of the wiring. In overall very good condition with low original miles, it is a real stunner! Contact Fr. Rick for more information.

The Sunday school year has once again begun here at St. Mary's. Please contact the office at 845-351-5122 or via email at [email protected] for more information.

Prayers of the Community

Parishioners we are praying for:

Barbara Beauregard

Bert Lucarelli

Bill Steinmann

Webb Turner

Kirby Warren

Friends and family members we are praying for:

Bishop Andrew St. John

Charles de Casteja, longtime Tuxedo Park resident 

Jolene Matthews, daughter of Gillian Ballard

Rob McQuilkin, longtime Tuxedo Park resident

Carmen Murphy, close friend of Ann Ho-Powers

Bob Myers, husband of Marie-Claude Wrenn

Allan Moli Ochieng, son of Elizabeth Ochieng

Linette Opiyo, friend Elizabeth Ochieng

Brendan Pascarella, relative of Gillian Ballard

Richard J. Schineller, friend of Inger Grüterich

and former resident of Tuxedo

Nicholas Triantafillou, Grandson of Bill Steinmann

Roxana & Mario Mora, friends of Roy & Barbara McKechnie

Prayer requests may be made at

(845) 351-5122 or [email protected].

Volunteers are needed for the Sloatsburg Food Pantry located in All Souls Community Church, 81 Washington Ave, Suffern, NY 10901

Help is needed on the following dates:

• November 9th - Distribution
• November 16th - Distribution
• November 22nd - Distribution
• November 23rd - Distribution
• November 30th - Distribution

Please Contact St. Mary's [email protected] (845) 351-5122 or The Sloatsburg Food Pantry [email protected] (201) 394-0627 if you can help on any of the above dates. New volunteers click here to fill out your application form.

If you or someone you know is in need of food, please sign up for an appointment using this link. 

Boy Scout Holiday Wreath Sale

Help support our local Scout Troop 2146 by purchasing a beautiful holiday wreath or greenery. Click here to order. Be sure to enter fundraising code TR2146NY001 and the names of our scouts, Tate or Alexander.

The Tuxedo UFSD annual toy drive is under way! Every holiday season, George F. Baker High School partners with local businesses to collect new toys, games, and gift cards for those in need. After the items are collected, GFB staff, faculty and students sort the toys, bag them, and deliver them (with wrapping paper) to our local families.

Donation boxes will be located at the following businesses until Friday, December 16.

Jessies Bagels

Tuxedo Park Library

Dottie Audrey's Bakery/Kitchen

The Pizza Pit

Spring Street Deli North

Hudson Valley Wine Cellar

Town of Tuxedo Town Hall

Kaufer Chiropractic Office

Bentley's Deli

Mike's Barber Shop

Please consider donating. This wonderful community effort makes many children happy!