What's Happening - Ministry & Music News

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Ministry Descriptions

For a complete listing of all the ministries at The Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit click on this link, ECOHS Ministries & Contacts. Here you will find a description of all our ministries along with contact information. If you see anything that needs updating, please contact Janice Davis at janiceid@comcast.net.

Foyer News

Many, many thanks to Hally and Dan Krogh for hosting our Foyer Summer Party -- it was a Grand Slam Gathering! About 50 parishioners came to our fun, baseball-themed evening and enjoyed visiting with old and new ECOHS friends and dining on delicious hotdogs just like at the ballpark. Everyone was to come dressed to show spirit for their favorite baseball team, and the Atlanta Braves was, overwhelmingly, the most represented team at the event. This fun June event marks the end of the Spring Foyer groups and it’s now time to sign up to participate in Fall groups to be formed soon.

What is Foyer? Foyer is an adult, social ministry, and the name comes from the French word for "foyer" which means "hearth or fireside," suggesting small groups relaxed and open to one another. New groups are formed at random every 6 months from those who sign up to be a part of Foyer. Foyer dinner groups consist of usually eight people (singles and couples), and each group meets in the homes of its members once a month during a 6-month period for a simple meal and relaxed conversation. The time commitment is limited to sharing usually 4 meals with members of your group. The focus of Foyer is on hospitality, rather than entertainment. The gatherings are devoted to getting to know each other and having fun together. Foyers groups are very flexible and typically follow a few simple guidelines when they gather. In the Foyer setting, many new friends are made of those who may have been just names or faces in the congregation. The Foyer Ministry also hosts two fun gatherings for all adult parishioners during the year, a holiday gathering in December and a summer gathering as was just held in June.

We hope you will join the fun and consider being a part of this ministry. If you would like to participate in a Fall Foyer group, please sign up on the sheet posted on the Parish Hall door.

For more information, please contact Janice McClelland, 770-889-0631 or jpmcclelland@bellsouth.net, or Gloria Szokoly, 770-886-0661 or gszokoly@bellsouth.net.

A Note from Pastoral Support...

How Prayer Lists Work

At Holy Spirit, we have several types of prayer lists. It is felt clarification is needed to define how they work and what we do with all those names of dear ones who are listed in Prayers of the People on Sundays and prayer requests throughout the week.

I) Names listed in the Sunday Bulletin, Prayers of the People or Urgent Prayer List:

Folks listed in the bulletin on Sundays usually get there through the church office, filling out the form in the bulletin, informing Fr. Keith or sent directly to Nancy Greene for the Intercessory Prayer List. Names will be said in church for one month unless the office is notified or the Pastoral Support Ministry has had personal knowledge of the situation. After that time, the contact person may be contacted or the person may be removed from the "said" prayer list and continued on the Intercessory Prayer List for ongoing prayer.

II) Intercessory Prayer List:

People go on the Intercessors List when they go on the church/bulletin list. Intercessors pray daily for concerns and needs of everyone on the list, whether they are in the bulletin or not. Once a month at the Pastoral Support Ministry meeting, the names and conditions of those persons are reviewed, follow up is attempted and decisions are made regarding continuing to carry them on the prayer list of the Intercessors. That decision is never made lightly or arbitrarily and great care is taken to discern outcome for those on the list. Some people have been on the Intercessors List for 5 years or more because we have gotten regular updates on their status. For those people whom we do not know yet have been on the list for 4 or more months, the decision may be made to remove them unless we are notified.

III) Immediate Prayer Needs:

Occasionally, an emergency may arise when prayer of an immediate nature is needed. The office or Father Keith may be notified and Beth Jones, Pastoral Support chair, or Nancy Greene, Intercessors chair, may be notified by phone or email. At that point an email is sent immediately to all members of Pastoral Support and Intercessors and the team begins praying and continues until notified that the crisis is passed. Then, the one prayed for is placed on the "said" prayer list as well as remaining on Intercessors. The point is everyone associated with church prayer who knows the situation begins praying as soon as they know. Please know that we understand how hard it is to pray for oneself and family in time of crisis. That is why we are here, to offer those prayers that can't be expressed otherwise and for you to know you are not alone in the prayers of your heart.

IV) Personal Prayer List:

Your Personal Prayer List (or PPL as Pastoral Support affectionately calls it) is your part in the prayerful process. Folks can come off and go back on the various "official" prayer lists as their needs change, but personally, we can continue to hold all up all of those we love who are going through times of trial or in gratitude for blessings of healing and new life.

The primary thing to know is that your loved ones and concerns are being lifted up even though you may not be aware of it. We just ask that you help us by participating with us in the timely additions and removals of those from the lists.

If you have any questions, contact Beth Jones at 770-887-5705 or Bethbarryj@hotmail.com. Thanks!

Building and Grounds

For many years we have operated without a formal Building and Grounds Committee (B&GC). However, once the Vestry decided to focus on improvements to the existing facilities in 2011 it became apparent that a formal Committee would be helpful to assist the congregation in examining various projects and their costs. Until this time parishioners have tackled the projects that did not require professional assistance such as the heating and air conditioning systems. This has worked well with many of the Men’s Breakfast Group offering their time individually or in group activities after breakfasts. A Rapid Response system was also established involving a limited number of men who are notified of any mechanical problem in need of immediate attention. If they can’t handle the situation, a service company is called. This, fortunately for our budget, is not often needed.

The new committee consists of Bert Printz as current chair, Jim Foster, Fiona Norris and Ro Woodhead. All are actively involved in many aspects of the parish life and have a good understanding of the buildings and needs. Initially they will work to improve the Talent Pool from which assistance can be drawn for the diverse projects that are continually being added to the ECHOS’ Honey Do List. Some of the less complicated projects will be examined by the committee to determine likely costs and the best way of accomplishing the task. For each major system of the church (HVAC, Electrical, Plumbing, etc.) the limited institutional memory will be expanded so as to improve our budget estimates for maintaining the facilities.

Workgroups are Coming....

At the May meeting of the Vestry, numerous projects were evaluated for funding in 2011. Two were deemed of highest priority for reasons of safety and overall appearances of the facilities. These are new floor coverings and improved parking for the handicapped. Neither project is simple to evaluate. Each brings forth almost as many widely differing views as the number of parishioners being questioned.
To ensure that the projects are thoroughly evaluated and all alternatives considered, working groups will be formed to study each project and bring recommendations to the Vestry. Sub groups may be established to look at the flooring issues since coverings in the Nave, Parish Hall, vestibules, stairs, and classrooms are to be evaluated and each area has many possibilities to consider.
Look for meeting dates to be announced so that all interested persons can be involved.

Holy Spirit Red Door Festival - October 23rd...

In April a Honey Do list was passed out at the Men’s Breakfast. It contained a number of one-time tasks that could be undertaken by individuals as well as topics for which someone was needed to take overall responsibility. The response was fantastic. Nine projects have been completed by individuals and the following responsibilities have been accepted:
Keeping front steps and covered entrance areas swept clean of debris (Kirk Wintersteen)
Changing Signage in front in accordance with seasons (Roy Perdue)
Quarterly changing of 11 filters on the HVAC units (Tom Gibson)
Monthly edging/blowing of walkways (Jim Foster)
Activating Nave/Parish Hall/classroom camera/video for Sunday Services (Herb Linsley)
Acquiring estimates to repair the awning outside Father Keith’s office (Jay Franklin)
Modifications to the trailer mounted smoker (Nick Woodhead)
A Big Thank You to all who have provided assistance with the many tasks that keep cropping up. This has worked so well that the Building and Grounds Committee intends to maintain an ongoing list of things that need attention. It will be published every now and then but is always available for the asking. If there are things that you notice in need fixing please bring them to the committee’s attention so they may be addressed. We can use all the help offered. An up to date list of needs appears in this issue of the Dove.

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