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St. Bartholomew's
Episcopal Church
E-News
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| **REMINDER, NO MORNING SERVICE ON SUNDAY, OCTOBER 4!** | | |
Sunday, October 4 at 4:00 p.m.
Worship Service with Blessing of the Animals
Led by the Rev. Amanda Gerken-Nelson
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This Sunday St. Bart's will serve as a water stop for the Maine Marathon (please see the announcement below recruiting volunteers!) and therefore there will not be a morning service this Sunday.
We will celebrate a Blessing of the Animals at 4 p.m.
This abbreviated prayer service will include elements of our typical Sunday morning service and will focus on the wonderful bond between humans and animals. St. Francis believed that God was present in all created things, including animals! This service is celebrated in his memory and in gratitude for our kinship with God’s creation.
Animals welcome! Dogs and cats on leash (or in carrying crates) are welcome to join us for this service along with hedgehogs, guinea pigs, hamsters, ferrets, fish, or other pets that can be easily transported and won’t escape or cause harm to the other pets in attendance. Please bring animals who are OK being inside with other animals.
If you’re not comfortable bringing your pet in-person or if you have a beloved pet who has died, you’re welcome to bring a photo, collar, kerchief, toy, or other memento of your pet that can also be blessed.
Hear more from Rev. Amanda in the video below about St. Francis and why we bless the animals.
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To view bulletins for upcoming services,
and recordings and bulletins for previous services,
CLICK HERE for the Services page of our website.
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Need hearing assistance? We have earpieces that receive audio from the sound system. You can find them in charging stations in the entryway. Simply slip the earpiece over your ear, turn it on with the volume switch, and adjust volume. Please return to the charging stations when you are done.
Want to access the bulletin on your notebook/iPad/phone? Scan the QR code posted in the Sanctuary to get to the Services page of our website. Click on the link "Click here for the bulletin" toward the top of the page.
Want a copy of a sermon from this or previous Sundays? Go to the sermon page of our website HERE and click on the date of the service. If you would like a hard copy, please contact the office at 207-846-9244 and ask Katie to print you a copy.
5th Sunday of the month Offering. All cash in the offering plate, and checks so designated, will go to the Rector's Discretionary Fund on 5th Sundays.
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Marathon Water Stop Volunteers Needed
Sunday, October 4, 8:15 a.m.–11:00 a.m.
St. Bart's hosts our traditional water stop for the Maine Marathon on Sunday 10/4 from 8:15-11:00 and WE NEED VOLUNTEERS! Duties are easy, this is a way to serve our community, it's fun to watch the runners up close, and you get a lovely free t-shirt.
In past years, we have been able to assemble a crew on a fairly last-minute and ad hoc basis. But the Marathon organizers have changed their procedures and now VOLUNTEERS MUST REGISTER IN ADVANCE.
Registration is online and here are the directions to follow to become a St. Bartholomew's Church water station volunteer at the 2026 Maine Marathon Half Marathon and Relay:
Thank you for volunteering!
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Christmas Fair Preparations Begin: Home for the Holidays
Last year we introduced a new feature to the Fair — Home for the Holidays — co-chaired by Linda Perkins with assistance from Margaret Kimball and Mary Strnad. During the Christmas Fair, the upstairs conference room displays gently used items that have a holiday theme. This includes tableware, ornaments, artificial trees, garland…anything Christmas that is not stained or broken. They
depend on you (and your neighbors) to fill this room with festive items!
If you know someone who is downsizing or who loves to add new treasures each year but needs to make room for them by displacing others, please alert them! The rub is that our Fair so closely follows Thanksgiving and delving into stored Christmas items so that they can be brought to the church by December 2 is a challenge. So, join us in peeking into stored boxes of Christmas treasures early — a good rainy-day project.
We can accept donations at any time. A bin will be in the narthex so that they may be placed there for
drop-off ease! Spread the word to friends and neighbors!
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A Reminder about Email Scams
Once again this week, several St. Bart’s members have reported receiving suspicious emails that appear to come from fellow parishioners, clergy, or others they know. These kinds of scams are increasingly common, and the sender’s name or email address may look legitimate at first glance.
A few important reminders:
- Never share passwords, verification codes, account information or other sensitive information by email. St. Bart’s clergy and staff will never email you asking for passwords or codes, money, gift cards, or other personal or financial assistance.
- If you receive an email that seems unusual or suspicious, don’t reply, click links or open attachments. Instead, contact the person who supposedly sent it using a phone number or email address you already know to be theirs — not the contact information provided in the suspicious message.
When in doubt, you can also contact the sender directly, or the church office. If something about an email feels off, it’s always worth checking before responding.
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St. Bart's Climate Action Committee
Reflection by Sukie Curtis
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“It is a magnificent thing to be alive in a moment that matters so much.”

I’m sure I’m not the only person who was moved by the Rev. Allen Ewing-Merrill’s sermon on Sunday morning, September 27. The above words are part of a quotation he shared with us from the book, All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis, edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Katharine K. Wilkinson. (If you missed it, you can read it or watch it here.)
What a huge and powerful reframing of this time and situation in which we find ourselves, witnessing and being impacted by so many interlocking global challenges—ecological, political, humanitarian, and more—that feel immense and overwhelming because they ARE immense. As both Allen and the authors of All We Can Save remind us, “in some ways, we, humans, were not designed for a crisis this
massive and all-encompassing. In other ways, we were made for this moment.” (AWCS, p.373. italics mine)
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Winter coat and boot drive kick-off for St Elizabeth’s Essentials Pantry
October is winter coat drive month for St Elizabeth’s Essentials Pantry
Time to clean out your winter clothing closet for donations to our Outreach partner St Elizabeth’s Essentials Pantry. Goodwill is also a terrific place to get winter coats and boots, with special sales every week.
Please bring in winter coats for the month of October (We’ll be asking for winter boots for the month of November.) Large sizes for both men and women are especially needed. There are two bins for St Elizabeth’s in the porch area. You can also give them to Harriet Davis. If you would rather write a check to support this effort, make it out to St Elizabeth’s Essentials Pantry and leave it in the plate, the office or give it to Harriet.
Reach out to our St E’s representative Harriet Davis if you have questions.
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Yarmouth Community Garden's Harvest Dinner
Thursday, October 23, 5:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m.
Yarmouth Community Garden’s 23rd Annual Harvest Dinner and Silent Auction and Raffle will be Thursday 23 October from 5-7pm at Yarmouth High School. This farm-to-table pasta dinner features marinara and pesto made with ingredients grown right here in Yarmouth. The meal includes bread, salad, delicious apple crisp made with local apples, and ice cream. Gluten-free and vegetarian options available. Dine in or take away. Yarmouth Community Garden donated 4,000 pounds of locally grown produce to neighbors in need.
Order tickets in advance online through Yarmouth Community Services, by calling YCS at 846-2406, or pay at the door with cash/check/card.
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Save the Dates - Trans Faith & Justice Weekend
Friday Oct 23 - Panel Discussion "Living Both: Trans Journeys of Faith" at the Equality Community Center in Portland. 6:30 pm. A panel discussion with trans/non-binary Mainers representing different faith traditions and reflecting on the intersection of their trans and spiritual/religious identities.
Saturday Oct 24 - Workshop "The Spiritual Work of Trans Liberation" with Zr. Alex Kapitan of Transforming Hearts Collective. Hosted at Allen Avenue Unitarian Universalist Church in Portland. Timing TBA and registration link forthcoming (but plan on about 5-5.5 hrs). Lunch will be included and we are hoping to offer childcare as well. We will have a limited number of travel scholarships available, too, for folks who could use support traveling to Portland from farther away.
Events sponsored by Pink Haven ME and the Unitarian Universalist Funding Program
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Sign-ups & Resources for Volunteers
To learn more about opportunities to volunteer in the community through St. Bart's (St. Elizabeth's, Friendship House, etc.), go to the COMMUNITY OUTREACH page on our website.
To volunteer for a Sunday Coffee Hour, CLICK HERE.
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