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Apalachicola, Florida
December 5, 2025
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I'm on vacation; yes, your priest is on vacation. Somewhere in the mountains, I am with three friends I’ve had for now 40 years. We have played music together that entire time, with breaks for growing children, life changes, and such. One is an artist; one is a musician; one works sales; and the last one is a priest. We are all so different, and yet, amazingly, it works.
On the way to the mountains, I have stopped to visit my mother and oldest brother. I am writing this reflection from their home tucked away in a cove of Bluff Park, AL. The middle brother also stopped by for dinner, and we all had a long and wonderful visit together. We (my family of origin, along with my three older sisters) have been together further than my recollection. That same family of origin instilled in me the virtue of gazing upon all sides of an issue. As a group, my family is just like yours: myriad views on religion, politics, and everything else is available. We are all so different, and yet, amazingly, it works.
All this visiting has me recalling your trips surrounding Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the new year. Many of you will travel or will receive visitors. Some desperately wish for both but won’t get either one. This is a time of great comfort but also stress. Might we use that time of stress to actually turn around and say to ourselves, What is this really about? Is it about what I have or don’t have? Help me, Lord; comfort, comfort your people, God. Perhaps we can remember those we visit and who stop by for a spell are all so very different, and yet, amazingly, it works.
All this reflecting brings me inexorably back to Trinity, each of you being a part of this beloved community. We have people from all walks of life sitting in the pews each week. Most are returning, but some are new (hint: welcome everyone!). The same people you might not cross the street to speak to are suddenly embracing you and wishing peace from two pews over. I like to think we at Trinity pass the time by passing the peace; in our worship, in our ministries, and in 99% of the time not spent at church.
We are all so very different at Trinity. But I don’t look from the pulpit and
see male or female, blue or red, gay or straight, at least not in the way
the world once trained me to do. I just see people of God, unique manifestations of the God who loved me enough to bring you
into my life, and loved you enough to bring me into yours.
I am perpetually grateful for that truth.
Let’s figure out what it means for us in our life together.
You Are Forgiven, So Live Like It,
Stephen +
| | Trinity Annual Meeting December 14 | | |
Please plan on attending Trinity’s annual meeting immediately after the December 14 service. We will meet in Benedict Hall. Those members physically present will make the quorum, which is needed to vote to accept the annual report as well as selecting two new vestry members and approving the 2026 budget. Sorry, we confirmed the bylaws do not allow for proxy voting.
There are four candidates eligible for two vestry slots. The candidates are Mike Barber, Aglaia Dolan, Ellen Loyd, and Tom Edwards. All four are willing to be nominated; thank each when you see them. For time consideration, we opted to simply include their scanned form for your review.
You can see the nominations here.
| | Service for Ron Harris Saturday, December 13. Our dear brother in Christ Ron Harris died October 25. The family invites Trinity to a celebration of his life on Saturday, December 13 at 11 am in the church. He will be interred in Phase II of the Trinity Memorial Garden at a later date. You can read his obituary here. May Ron’s soul, and the souls of all the departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. | |
Poinsettias at Trinity
You can participate in Trinity's lovely Christmas tradition of dedicating poinsettias for church. Download the order form here, or pick one up in church this Sunday or in the office next week.
Please complete the form with your dedication in memory of, in gratitude for, or in honor of family members or special friends. Return forms and payment to the office by December 14, 2025.
| | | Episcopal Church Women Survey | | |
Since 1871, the National Episcopal Church Women, ECW, have championed women’s rights and the Christian foundation of God and family. They are a ministry of the Episcopal Church and celebrate that Episcopalians believe in a loving, liberating, and life-giving God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
In the past Trinity had an active ECW. Your Parish Life committee wants to determine if there is interest in re-establishing the group. There will be surveys in the church bulletins this Sunday for women to complete. Please drop yours off in the offering plate or give to Dee Crusoe or Karen Kessel.
To complete and submit your survey electronically, just click the link below:
Episcopal Church Women Survey
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We Are in Hot Water!
At least that is what everyone is saying who has used Benedict Hall since early November when a new Rinnai instant water heater was installed along with new fencing along the alley to protect this equipment and the propane tank. This is one example of a concerted push the past two years to address all needs that lapsed into deferred maintenance. In this case, the old water heater was 21 years old and was working at half-capacity.
All the plumbing providing hot water has been fixed, including hot water in the bathrooms. Trinity is grateful for its Junior Warden, Kerry Petty, who has supervised these types of projects from beginning to end. When you see her, thank Kerry. As several people reading these words can attest, it is a difficult and often thankless job.
| | The new Rinnai tankless water heater and existing propane tank, now protected from vehicular damage with the addition of fencing along the alley behind Benedict Hall. | | Holiday Treasures at Penny's Worth | | In the countdown to Christmas, there's still time to shop Penny's Worth for holiday gifts, decor, and tableware. Stop in soon for the best selections! | | |
The shop, a community service of Trinity Episcopal Church, is open Tuesdays & Saturdays, 10 am - 3 pm through Saturday, December 20.
After a holiday break, Penny's Worth will re-open on Tuesday, January 6.
| | The (Special) Double Portion Angel Tree | | |
As Father Stephen announced on Sunday, November 30, a unique situation has developed to enable our community to assist a key demographic of our area that has been adversely impacted in 2025. We are accepting financial donations for this program through the end of the annual meeting; any checks may include “Double Portion Angel Tree” or “Special Angel Tree” in the memo. If you wish for a cash donation to go directly to this, please designate this at the time of donation.
The money will go directly to purchasing one nice Christmas present for the children and teens of the families affected, with any remaining funds used to create a longer-term source of assistance for this at-risk community. Contact Father Stephen directly via email, phone, or text if you wish to know more.
| | Diocesan Cycle of Prayer. For churches and ministries: on December 7, pray for St. James, Port St. Joe and St. John, Wewahitchka, FL; and on December 14, pray for St. James, Eufala, AL. For prisons: on December 7, pray for the prisoners, families, and staff of the Calhoun County Jail, Blountstown, FL; and on December 14, pray for the prisoners, families, and staff of the Wakulla Correctional Institution in Crawfordville, FL. | | |
The TRINITY TEN, a ten-point questinnaire that provides a light-hearted,
yet sincere, profile of Trinity parishioners, is designed for us to get
to know each other a little better. Your responses, along with a
photograph, will appear regularly in the Bay View.
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Tara Carter is from Fairfax, Alabama, one of four textile mill villages that incorporated in 1980 to form the city of Valley. Her dad worked for West Point Pepperell, and her mom taught first grade. With a church, a school, a Girl Scout hut, and a recreation center with tennis courts and a softball field all within walking distance, it was an idyllic place to grow up—something she didn’t fully appreciate until later in life.
While at Auburn University, Tara eventually found her way to the history department and went on to complete a master’s degree in history with an emphasis in historic preservation. She spent 19 years working at Alabama’s state historic preservation office in Montgomery. In 2008, she returned to Auburn and served as communications specialist for the College of Veterinary Medicine until her retirement in 2013.
For several years, Tara has been involved in some capacity with the Tour of Homes. She was honored to serve on Trinity’s Rector Search Committee, which culminated in Stephen becoming our priest. More recently, she joined the Flower Guild, and occasionally helps Penny’s Worth by distributing overflow items.
Greatest Influence on Your Life:
When I was a freshman in college majoring in art, I tried the Cabbage Soup Diet for a week. At the same time, I had an assignment that involved cutting 2”x2” pieces of foamcore with an X-Acto knife. By Friday, my fingers were covered in bandages, and I couldn’t stop crying. My roommates called my mother, who left her classroom in the hands of a substitute and came to get me. She promised to find me a “good psychiatrist.” (To make matters worse, I had just read The Bell Jar.)
That night we had steak and potatoes for dinner, and by the next morning I was fine. Later, we discovered I have issues with low blood sugar, but on Monday when I returned to school, I switched majors—my bloodied fingers were more than Mom could bear! A freshman fad diet ended up changing the course of my life.
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How Would Someone Else Describe You: As a lover of animals
One Thing People Might Be Surprised to Know About You:
Jason and I married when I was 52—my first time—at the Church of St. Mary the Virgin in Times Square on July 7, 2015 – 07/07 at 7 p.m. My cousin and her husband (who moved to NYC after graduation in 1976), Jason’s sons, and a college friend were our witnesses. Amazingly, my bridal bouquet my friend carried on the train from Philly matched the altar flowers perfectly.
Favorite Part of Living Here: Our lively band of friends who have become like family. Nowhere else have I lived where I keep a dress-up box in the attic!
Dogs or Cats: Dogs and indoor cats.
Bacon or Broccoli: Broccoli.
Coleslaw – Vinegar or Mayo:
Mayo.
One Thing You Are Good At:
Finding “treasures” in junk shops.
One Thing You’d Rather Not Do:
Empty the dishwasher.
What Drew You to Trinity:
The friendliness of the parishioners. Jason and I immediately felt comfortable and welcomed.
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Watch our Sunday sermons online:
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| | | COMMUNITY EVENTS OF INTEREST | |
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Your Bay View: Trinity's bi-weekly e-newsletter, the Bay View, reaches members and friends every other Friday, sharing news and inspiration for and about our parish. Please send information and announcements, as well as photographs, to info@trinityapalachicola.org or call the church office at 850-653-9550. The deadline for submission is noon on Wednesday of each publication week. (next deadline - December 17)
-- Kay Carson, Editor
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Worship Service at 10:30 am Sunday
Morning Prayer at 8:15 am Wednesday
Compline at 8 pm Wednesday - Facebook Live
Church address: 79 6th Street, Apalachicola, Florida 32320
Office address: 76 5th Street, Apalachicola, Florida 32320
Mailing address: PO Box 667, Apalachicola, Florida 32329
Phone number: (850) 653-9550
Email: info@trinityapalachicola.org
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