THE EPISTLE:

January 29, 2026

Election of the next Bishop of Alabama is

THIS Saturday, January 31!

Please join the entire diocese THIS WEEKEND in praying for the upcoming election of the 13th Bishop for the Diocese of Alabama. You can still view and hear the statements from each of our candidates, the Rev. Candice Frazer and the Very Rev. Richard Lawson, HERE, and you can still watch the "Meet the Bishop Candidate" Q&A that occurred at St. Luke's, Birmingham on January 3 by clicking HERE (...fast-forward to the timestamp 18:00 for the beginning of the event). 

The election is THIS SATURDAY, January 31, and our new bishop will be seated in a special Consecration Eucharist later this year in June. Please pray for Richard and Candice, our candidates, and for our electorate, especially our St. Thomas delegates, alternates, and clergy, Laura Beth Bestor, Belinda Greenaway, Maggie Hall, Zach House, Wyn Patterson, Brian Tipton, Kathy Heim, Paul Heim, Fr. Donavan, and Mtr. Katie.

Almighty God, giver of every good gift: Look graciously on your Church, and so guide the minds of those who shall choose a Bishop for The Diocese of Alabama, that we may receive a faithful pastor who will preach the Gospel, care for your people, equip us for ministry, and lead us forth in fulfillment of the Great Commission; 

through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

Join Fr. Donavan, Mtr. Katie, & Deacon Dave for a special Clergy Forum THIS SUNDAY, February 1!

This Sunday during the Christian Formation hour, beginning at 9:30 a.m., in the Parish Hall, Fr. Donavan, Mtr. Katie, and Dcn. Dave will be at the podium to introduce and lead a discussion on the newly elected Bishop of Alabama! They will also invite any members of the St. Thomas Bishop's Election Delegation who are present to share their own stories of the election process at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham, as well. So grab your breakfast and get ready for a special Clergy Forum discussion on the election of the new Bishop of Alabama this Sunday morning, beginning at 9:30 a.m.!

Join us for Sunday Supper

THIS SUNDAY, February 1

6 PM in the Parish Hall

We are excited for another Sunday Supper THIS SUNDAY, February 1, after the 5 p.m. Holy Eucharist. The "Come as You Are" Holy Eucharist features joyful hymns from the Alleluia III hymnal, casual sermons preached from the floor, and special gospel music chosen by our pianist and organist, Sam Wright.

MANNA HOUSE ALERT!

DoK Collecting Winter Clothes Donations

The people who depend on Manna House for clothing are in urgent need in this unseasonally cold weather. If you can, please bring coats, gloves, sweatshirts, long sleeve T shirts, socks and shoes to the drop off bin in Information Hall.  Place all donations in the bin in Information Hall starting February 1-February 8.

Order BBQ NOW for your Valentine's Weekend Feast and help support FirstStop!

The St. Thomas BBQ Bandits will be out cooking their famous BBQ on Valentine's Weekend, February 14-15, in support of FirstStop and their important work to help the homeless in Huntsville and Madison County! The BBQ Store website is already open and ready for your orders, so click HERE now to put your orders in! The pick up date for your Valentine's BBQ order will be is Saturday Feb 14 from 12-2 p.m. and Sunday Feb 15 from 2-4 p.m. Please note the time change on Sunday pickups due to our Parish Meeting. 

IF YOU LOVE DEMOCRACY, RUN FOR DELEGATE! NOMINATIONS ARE OPEN NOW!



At the St. Thomas annual parish meeting on February 15, 2026, we will be electing parish delegates to Diocesan Convention for 2027 (two thousand twenty-SEVEN)! 

Diocesan Convention is the legislative body of the Diocese of Alabama, which meets in early February every year. Each year, St. Thomas elects lay members to represent us as delegates and alternate delegates. The dates and location for Diocesan Convention 2027 will be announced the first weekend of February 2026.

If you are a member of St. Thomas and you love democracy, this is a great opportunity to participate in the leadership of our diocese! If you are interested in running for delegate at our annual meeting, please submit your name to the parish office NOW by clicking HERE!

Pictures are from Convention 2025.

Creation Care Committee

Tree Planting Project



After consulting with utilities, and the landscape and management teams, Marc Byers, the City Arborist, has finally come up with a proposed planting plan for our project. He will now look into sourcing the required trees which will be harvested and then transported to their delivery site. We hope that soon we will know what trees will be planted and when that event will happen. Thank you all again for your generosity, and also your patience as we wait for City wheels to slowly turn. If you have questions, please contact Belinda Greenaway by clicking HERE or Brett Byford by clicking HERE.

Image below is proposed planting area. The red dots indicate trees.

UPCOMING

Mark your calendars: St. Thomas' Annual Meeting is almost here, Mardi Gras Sunday, February 15!

The St. Thomas Annual Parish Meeting is scheduled for Sunday, February 15. Your Vestry voted to change the Annual Parish Meeting from January to February each year for several reasons. This change allows more time to wrap-up our stewardship drive and ensure our annual budget is as up-to-date as possible for presentation to the parish. For this year, in particular, moving our Parish Meeting to February also allows for a report on both the election of the 13th Bishop of Alabama and the 195th Convention of the diocese. Moving our annual meetings to February after our Diocesan Convention, also makes it possible for St. Thomas to elect delegates for the next year's convention at the same time that we elect our new Vestry members.

Finally, because February 15 this year will be the final Sunday of Epiphany, also referred to as Mardi Gras Sunday, this year's Annual Meeting will be held AFTER the 10:30am Eucharist to incorporate a special Mardi Gras style lunch into our Annual Meeting reports and presentations! Watch the Epistle for more information in the coming weeks!

Thank you to our St. Thomas Vestry for all their hard work over the past year and a special THANK YOU to our four off-going Vestry members (Grace Casey, Kathie Clayton, David Hattaway, and Richard Williams) who agreed to continue for one additional month in 2026 to allow for this Annual Meeting/Vestry Election alteration. All future elected members of the Parish Vestry will begin their three-year term immediately following the February Annual Parish Meeting and will finish their term at the February meeting three years later.

*Childcare is available during Parish meeting*

Laissez les bon temps rouler! 

Shrove Tuesday Celebration on February 17!

Join us in the Parish Hall on Tuesday, February 17, from 5:30-7p.m., for our annual Shrove Tuesday Celebration! 

Feast on pancakes, gumbo, and bread pudding prepared by the St. Thomas Youth and Fellowship Committee, while the Kiddie Krewe present their parade through the Parish Hall before we move outside to bury the Alleluias for the season of Lent! The evening will conclude with the Burning of the Palms to create the ashes for Ash Wednesday the next morning. 



Invite your friends and don't miss this evening as we prepare for the Holy Season of Lent.

A Message from our New Chair of L&NO, Travis Lee: First Meeting coming February 23rd!

All of us at St. Thomas agree that we are saved by faith and not by good works, and that good works are the way we show the world our faith. In the spirit of this belief, and as the new Chairman of the Local and National Outreach Committee, I would like to invite any and all to join the committee. We are revamping many things about the LNOC in an effort to allow as many people who would like to be involved in church outreach to join. 

     We will be having meetings once a quarter, and each meeting will have a theme. The dates and themes are as follows:

February 23 - Food Ministries

May 25 - Construction Ministries

August 24 - School Ministries

November 2- Holiday Ministries

Each meeting will begin around 6 pm. and will end no later than 7:15 pm! Each meeting will feature representatives speaking about ministries at St. Thomas that are currently ongoing or that the church is wanting to start. During the meetings you will not only learn about different outreach opportunities, but also learn about ways to become involved with each ministry presented. Also, you will get the chance to be involved in voting on the distribution of moneys raised by St. Thomas for our own ministries, and for ministries outside St. Thomas. Lastly, each meeting will be held in Conference Room 1. We hope you will join us for this important ministry here at St. Thomas!

ONGOING

Volunteers Needed for

Refreshments after 10:30 AM Eucharist



We’re running low on volunteers!

We need a few more individuals or families to help provide Sunday refreshments after the 10:30 a.m. service. Providing homemade or store-bought sweet treats gives us the chance to linger, visit, and enjoy time together after worship. If you’re willing to help, please sign up on the poster in Information Hall. Instructions can be found in the manila envelope beneath the sign-up sheet. Thank you for supporting this meaningful and vital part of our parish life!

Compline Online

Mondays at 8 PM

with Dcn. Jeannie

Looking for a new prayer opportunity and a way to center yourself in prayer each week? Every Monday at 8 p.m., you’re invited to join Dcn. Jeannie online for Compline. Compline is a brief evening prayer service and a peaceful way to set your week with intention and to end your day with a sense of completion and stillness.

The service lasts just 15 minutes and can be accessed on St. Thomas’ Facebook page. You simply need a Book of Common Prayer (BCP) and to turn to pg. 127.

It will be LIVE every Monday at 8 PM.

Please contact jrann228@gmail.com or the front office for more information.

Morning Prayer at St. Thomas St. Anne's Chapel in Hiers Hall

Thursdays 7 AM

Every Thursday morning, join us for Morning Prayer in St. Anne’s Chapel at the end of Hiers Hall. Simply enter Hiers Hall and follow the hallway all the way to the end. There will be signs directing you. As we seek to expand our options for praying together during the week, we hope to see our early birds and any brave night owls at this service of prayer and Scripture. You don't have to know how to read Morning Prayer; we'll teach you!

Pray the Rosary

Every Other Friday

12:05 PM

Join us to Pray the Rosary every other Friday at 12:05 pm in the Nave of the church. Each prayer session lasts around half an hour and includes the reading of each scripture passage for the five decades of either the Joyful, Sorrowful, Glorious, or Luminous Mysteries of the Holy Rosary. If you’ve never prayed the Rosary before, we always have Rosary beads available and written directions to help you fully participate in this meaningful, scriptural, and contemplative prayer practice.

Mark your calendars for these dates: February 6, February 20, March 6, March 20

Do you have questions about the Bible? Have you wondered about what everything in the Book of Common Prayer means? Come to Youth Sunday School to try and answer those questions and more! 7-12th graders meet during formation time in the Youth Room at 9:30 a.m. every Sunday to talk about Covenants in the Bible!

7-12th Graders! Weekly EYC (Episcopal Youth Community) continues! EYC meets Sunday evenings from 6-8 p.m. Got Questions? Contact our Youth Minister, Ethan Evans, HEREfor more information.

Children's Sunday School Sundays from 9:30 a.m.-10:15 a.m.! Join us in Hiers Hall as we share a year of faith, love, and fun! 

Godly Play class for Pre-K through 1st graders is led by Renee' Redfield in Hiers 4. 

Storymakers for 2nd and 3rd graders is led by Carey McIntyre in Hiers 6. 

Thou Art class for 4th through 6th graders led by Laura Beth Bestor in Hiers 2.  

Our nursery is open from 7:45 a.m.-12 p.m. on Sundays for our Pre-K and under children. We have our Play'n'Worship curriculum available for those in the nursery to enjoy on Sunday mornings. Contact our Children's Ministry Coordinator via email at children@stthomashuntsville.org.

Treble Choir

The Treble Choir sings approximately once a month at the 10:30 a.m. worship service and our special services this year will include Lessons and Carols and Christmas Eve. All children in 2nd-8th Grades are invited to join! Bring a friend!

The Treble Choir schedule is available HERE and is posted on the bulletin board leading to Hiers Hall, the choir bulletin board in Hudson Hall, and the St. Thomas Website. Rehearsals are Sunday afternoons 3:30 – 4:15 p.m. Please email Miss Kathy at music@stthomashuntsville.org for details!

Join the St. Thomas Adult Choir



You don't have to be a kid to sing!

Click HERE to see and hear the St. Thomas choir practicing.

"The Pizza Before the (not-so-terrible) Storm": Everybody's Pub Theology at Pappo's Pizza on Thursday, January 22nd!

Phone: 256.880.0247

Email: StThomas@stthomashuntsville.org