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What’s Up in August – A Message from the Wardens
Dear St. Luke’s Family,
Here we are at yet another turning point! We have celebrated Fr. Jarrett’s time with us,
said our farewells, and now, turn our attention to September. As we await Fr. John’s
arrival, we look forward to welcoming some new faces to our altar to preside over our
worship, preach the Gospel, and gather us in prayer. The response to our call for supply
clergy (outlined below) has been heartening, promising us a variety of voices to guide
us throughout the month. Continue to check our newsletters each week for a brief
biography and picture of each officiant.
August 3 – Fr. Anthony C. Dinoto presiding & preaching (see bio and picture later in this issue); Pastor Jonathon Malone assisting
August 10 – The Rev. David A. Boyd presiding and preaching
August 17 – The Rev. Dr. Maggi Dawn presiding; Pastor Jonathan Malone preaching
August 24 – The Rev. Catherine Boyd presiding and preaching
August 31 (one service only at 9am) – The Rev. Virginia Buckles presiding and preaching
As for pastoral care needs, Pastor Malone is on call throughout August as his schedule
allows. He and the Pastoral Care Committee will work together to meet your needs.
Please contact the Parish Office or the Wardens to assure your concerns are
appropriately served. As always, your vestry is available to you for comments, ideas, or
discussion regarding other items and generally what’s up at St. Luke’s.
Our new rector, Fr. John Fountain, will be at the altar on September 7, when we enter
this last stage of our transition. In preparation, our Adult Faith Formation team has come
up with a wonderful project to allow us to reflect on who we are and what we love about
St. Luke’s. The Grapevine of Gratitude is described in a separate announcement later in
this newsletter, and we invite you to join us in lifting up the breadth and fullness of
talents, gifts, and blessings we enjoy as a community.
In the next few weeks, Fr. John and his family will be moving to Rhode Island. Our
Transition Team: Deb Lukens, Dale Stretz, Neal McNamara, and Victoria Strang, has
been busy preparing a welcome treat for the family and working on ideas to introduce
them to the St. Luke’s community. Primarily, the family needs to settle in, so we ask for
your prayers for them as they acclimate to Rhode Island, their East Greenwich
neighborhood, and Rhode Island ‘speak’!
In closing, we want to thank our beloved Transition Prayer Team: Nance Arnold, Paul
Brooks, Joseph Gomes, Katie Gressle, Judy Horton, Stephanie Leite, and Victoria
Strang. Since February 2024, they have met to create prayers for each phase of this
rector transition journey, and we have thrived on the messages conveyed. Joy and
possibility inspired our stewardship campaign, trust in God’s perfect provision guided
our search process, and the call to welcome change with grace will be our standard as
we lift this final prayer over the coming weeks…
Gracious God, we are grateful to you for guiding us through our search
process and give thanks for our Vestry and Search Team whose faith-filled
work led us to our new rector.
We are excited to welcome Fr. John and his family into our church
community and ask for your continued blessing through this next phase of
transition.
Open our hearts to welcome change with grace. We stand together in
hope as we anticipate the future with joy and possibility.
All this we ask, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen
Yours in Christ,
Deborah & Shareen
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