Up Close and Classical:

Clarinet Quintets

of Brahms & Mozart

Our next Music at Four concert will take place

Sunday, September 21 at 4pm. Up Close and Classical & Music at Four unite to present a program of Clarinet Quintets. Clarinetist Peter Nevin joins some of the finest string players in Los Angeles and brings us music by Johannes Brahms and W. A. Mozart.

A free-will offering will be received during the concert.

Join us for a reception following the concert in the Parish Hall.

View the 2025 Music at Four schedule HERE.

Blessing of the Animals:  

We will have our annual Blessing of the Animals on Saturday, October 4th at 10:00 AM. The brief service will include several prayers attributed to St. Francis followed by individual blessings of all animals present. For the comfort and safety of all concerned, human and non-human guests alike, we do ask that a few ground rules be honored. Please restrain all animals. They should be on leashes (if appropriate) or in carriers. And please clean up any messes your pet makes. If you are not able to, or are uncomfortable bringing your pet, or if your pet is uncomfortable coming out, you can bring a picture of your pet or one of your pet’s favorite toys, which we will bless instead.

Pet Food and Sundries Outreach Project:  

In the creation story of Genesis, God's care and love extend to all creatures. The love we share with a pet can draw us more deeply into the wonder of our common relationship to our Creator. In the weeks leading up to the Feast of St. Francis, beginning September 7 we are collecting donations for the Long Beach Animal Shelter. The list of their needs will be found in our church publications, flyers and in the Bulletin at most services. This collection will end with the Blessing of the Animals here at St. Gregory's. Monetary donations can be placed in the offering plate or sent in through the usual methods. Please join us in this much appreciated collection, and bring your beloved pets to the Blessing of the Animals in October.

Thank you from the Outreach Committee.

Lend a Hand:  

Like any older building, St. Gregory’s constantly needs maintenance and touching up. Fred Cornett has made up a list of things to do in the near future: Cleaning and arranging the janitor’s closet and the storage areas, cleaning the trash cans, etc. Many hands make light work, and most of the jobs won’t take much time if two or three people join in. There is a signup sheet in the narthex, and Fred is always available for consultation or questions: (562) 308-6955. Thanks, Fred, for getting the projects going! 

Sunday School Returns: 

The first Sunday School class of the year will be on September 7 at 9:30 AM in the Sunday School Room in the Parish Hall. This will be for all children ages 5-18 with their parents on this first day. We will discuss the breakdown of classes, curriculum, calendar, and procedures. We look forward to seeing you there!

Episcopal Relief & Development Responding to Deadly Texas Hill Country Flooding:

Episcopal Relief & Development is helping local diocesan partners in Texas provide support to those impacted by the catastrophic July 4-5 Texas Hill Country flooding, which killed over 100 people, with many more still missing.

“This disaster is still unfolding. We will learn much more in the days and weeks ahead,” said the Very Rev. David Read, Bishop of West Texas and the Very Rev. Angela Cortiñas, Bishop Suffragan of West Texas, in a joint statement released on July 5. “The recovery of the Hunt, Ingram, Comfort and Kerrville communities will not happen overnight. It will take time to catalog the loss of homes, businesses, livelihoods, and lives, and the best ways we can tangibly be part of healing, hope and recovery.” 

Episcopal Relief & Development is working with longstanding local partners in the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas to help people most in need. Working through trusted relationships, Episcopal Relief & Development is helping partners to offer their financial resources, physical property and spiritual support in places where it is most useful after a disaster of this scale. If you’d like to help, please follow this link: https://www.dwtx.org

Altar Flower Donations:

Need a wonderful way to honor or remember a loved one or friend? Make a flower donation. There is a flower donation chart located on the Narthex wall that you can use to sign up for special dates to donate altar flowers. Simply fill out a donation form attached to the bottom of the chart and return the form to the Parish Office. Payment for flowers can be made by check or online at this link. Make sure you specify your donation is for Altar Flowers. The Altar Guild thanks you.

Episcopal News Updates: 

The Diocese provides weekly email updates to help you keep informed about what’s happening all over our six-county diocese. If you want to receive the Episcopal News, visit https://diocesela.org/episcopal-news/contact/ and enter your email address in the box provided.

Feed My Lambs & Food Bank Needs:

THANK YOU for your generosity and your donations

Here’s the latest news on our parish feeding programs. 

• Feed My Lambs
• Homemade cookies can be dropped of any time. Please put your homemade cookies in Ziploc Bags and label them with the date and "FML" (this way we know they are for Feed My Lambs and not other purposes).
• Please do not bring hardboiled eggs. Due to issues with eggs, we now have a dedicated team responsible for providing hardboiled eggs.
• Volunteers – If you are interested in helping out Feed My Lambs, contact Tamera Benedict at (tlbenedict4@gmail.com, 562.301.6800).
• Food Bank The Food Bank relies on your financial support and appreciates all donations of
• funds or non-perishable food items. We also can use more volunteers at:
• bagging and distribution the THIRD WEDNESDAY of each month from 8:30 to 11:00 AM
• any other time you may have available and could assist with assembling our bags (e.g. on Sunday before or after service, or any time the office is open for access)

Please contact Kevin in the Parish Office (info@stgregoryschurch.com, 562.420.1311) or Bill Eldon (billeldon@gmail.com, 562.234.9920) for more information about the Food Bank.

Your continued support of our feeding ministries, through product and monetary contributions, is greatly appreciated!

Gratitude for Your Support of the Parish:

We continue to be humbled and so incredibly grateful for your generosity in supporting our parish and its ministries! While you may not be able to drop your donation in a real offering plate, there are still ways you can make sure your donation gets to the parish:

• You can mail your check to the parish office.
• Make donations through our online payment account, accessible through the parish website at http://stgregoryschurch.com/4721-2/.
• Scan the QR code found in the Sunday bulletin.

And again, THANK YOU for your continued support!

Online Parish Directory:

Our online parish directory is at https://www.instantchurchdirectory.com/. This is a secure site and can be accessed using the email address you had published in the parish directory. You can also download the "Instant Church Directory" on your smart phone. Versions are available for Android, iPhone, iPad, and Kindle.

One Body & One Spirit Annual Appeal:

The Diocese has established an ongoing campaign focused on raising funds to assist congregations, schools, affiliated institutions, and their communities who are faced with unprecedented challenges. We are invited to prayerfully consider making a donation to help others in our Diocese who may have unmet needs. More information is available at https://diocesela.org/annual-appeal/. 

Forward Day By Day:

For those who use the "Forward Day by Day" booklet for personal devotions and need the newest edition mailed, please contact Kevin: (562) 420-1311 or info@stgregoryschurch.com   

In Case of Emergency...Notify Your Priest! 

In the event of a hospital stay, illness, death in the family, or other pastoral emergency, please call Father Michael on his cell phone (909-373-6478). And PLEASE, no excuses about not wanting to bother us. That’s why we are here – for YOU!

St. Gregory's Food Bank:

Our monthly Food Bank distribution takes place the third Wednesday of every month. This ministry helps us help our neighbors by providing a supplemental source of groceries. We CANNOT do this without your generosity. CLICK HERE for more information.

This month we served 68 people!