Stewardship Update - Two Phases
Last month I talked about the timetable for our Annual Giving Program. This month I want to hi-light some of the changes from what we have done in the past. For starters, we have now separated the Treasure part of stewardship from the Time & Talent part. We now have a two-phased stewardship campaign with a pledge drive that will happen in the spring of 2009 (after Easter, before Pentecost) that will focus just on donations of Time & Talent. Meanwhile, the brochure and pledge card that you received this fall is focused only on the Treasure part of giving for 2009. All of this is aimed at developing more of a year-round stewardship program at Holy Spirit.
You should have also received a letter from me that addressed the concept of proportional giving and giving out of gratitude for what you have been given. Giving from abundance...not scarcity. The letter asked that you return a fair share for the common good of this Christian community so that we can together move ahead with the mission of our Church. Without your annual gift our Vestry can't develop and implement plans for moving beyond Survival Mode and call a new full time Rector.
Our theme really is a response to the question we ask ourselves: "what are we going to do?"...
"When Christians give, good things happen!"
Our annual Giving Sunday is October 5th. Please prayerfully consider your pledge for 2009 and either bring your pledge card to church or mail it to arrive by then.
Jay Franklin, Stewardship Ministry Chair
Pastoral Support
The next Pastoral Support meeting will be held on SEPTEMBER 18, Thursday, at 9:30 a.m. in the parish hall. Anyone interested in prayer and support for parishoners in need is welcome. Please note--This is a change of date.
Thanks,
Beth Jones
Outreach Corner:
Pig Roast
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Outreach is in the Heart and Soul of Holy Spirit. We have a wonderful and long tradition of supporting the needs of our community. In many ways, the Episcopal Church of Holy Spirit is known for its Outreach activities, from The Pantry, which serves over 100 families monthly by providing non-food items, to luncheons at The Place, dinners at Thanksgiving and Christmas, the Angel Tree, book bags, and, of course, all the knitting for the Northside Hospital premies.
We are embarking on our biggest fund raising event to support Outreach: The Pig Roast!
This year we have made some changes. First, the date will be Saturday, October 25 from 12 noon to 3 pm. We planned it early so you can still watch the game (UGA vs. LSU) and be able to buy enough barbecued pig for all your guests!
This year we would like to invite your friends and neighbors to come and share a meal with us. We are asking your help to pre-sell tickets for this great event so we can plan our pig order. The tickets are $10.00 per person. We have an ambitious goal this year of $3,000 or better and we need everyone's help to achieve this.
Tickets will be available for sale or pick up by September 27th at the church service and during the week at the church office.
We will also need help with cooking, side dishes (baked beans, coleslaw, and brownies), set up, and clean-up. If you like cooking, please contact Julie or Chris Wilson. Other contacts are Cheryl Howell, Brian Lewis, or Carmen Smith.
We are excited to have the continuing help of the Men's Group.
Sign up sheet is in the fellowship hall.
Remember to wear something comfortable and bring your friends! -Carmen Smith, Outreach Ministry Chairperson
COAT Drive
Thank you to all of you who have donated their clean, gently-used coats for the Outreach Coat Drive. We will continue to collect coats until October 26th. Donation box is in the Parish Hall. Questions? Call Lexie Jennings. 770-889-8597
Inreach Ministry
The Inreach ministry is the perfect opportunity for all of us to reach inside ourselves and give a gift from within to a fellow ECOHS member in need. From time to time we all need a helping hand: whether it is a meal for a family that has been blessed with a newborn, someone recovering from surgery, a small repair for an elderly or single person, a ride for someone who doesn't have transportation, etc... Whatever the need we would like to be there to help and make things easier.
If you are interested in this ministry, please contact Christina Brislin at atlantahawkins@yahoo.com; include contact information and what areas you would like to help in. Also contact Christina if you are in need of help or know of someone who is.
DISCERNMENT COMMITTEE
Your Discernment Committee continues to move Forward in Faith. We submitted the Parish Profile to the Diocese and got a good reply. There are two minor wording changes to make, and they would like to see a few better pictures. If you have any pictures of church events, please let Carol Franklin or myself know. It is now time to give the profile to the vestry for their comments. With these steps done, we will publish the profile and can then start the interview process.
Greg Plank
Men's Breakfast
We had 18 men of the parish at the September breakfast and enjoyed some great fellowship. The next Men's Breakfast will be on Saturday, October 11th at 8:30AM in the parish hall. A sign-up sheet is posted on the Parish Hall Door.
ECOHS Men's Group
Music Ministry
The music ministry wants YOU!
If you like to sing, we would like for you to sing with us.
v Adult Choir – Wednesday Evening 7:30 – 9:00 – beginning Sept. 3rd
Sunday Morning 10:00 – warm-up for service
v Children’s Choir – Wednesday Afternoon 4:45 – 5:30 - beginning Sept. 10th
Please come and join us and lend your voice to the glory of God through music.
Speak with Jeff Daniel at church after the 10:45 service on Sunday or email him at ecohsmusic@bellsouth.net
Episcopal Church Women ECW
Did you ever ask God what you could do to make a difference? Linda Walker, a parishioner here at Holy Spirit, did. Her answer was to help the children from her home country of Ghana. The long term goal is to help build a children's hospital. The immediate goal is to feed them a meal on Christmas day. She presented this information at the ECW meeting in September. The members present decided that this was a great cause and we would like to give it support so a portion of the funds that are raised at our annual auction will be donated to this project.
Our auction is on the second Tuesday in November so please plan to attend or give an item to be auctioned. We are also collecting clothes to be shipped in late October for Linda to help distribute when she goes to help prepare the Christmas meal. We would be greatly appreciative of anything you could donate. Look for the boxes in the parish hall.
Also, there is a new recycling center located in the kitchen.
Please recycle bottles, cans and cardboard to help us reduce our footprint on the environment. The plastic recyclables can be placed in the large blue painted trash can next to the bins.
Our next meeting will be Tuesday, October 21 at 7:00 in the parish hall. Hope to see you there.
-Carol Franklin
In Stitches...
Thanks so much to the ‘phantom' In Stitches creators! Blankets and hats mysteriously appear under our notice board in the Parish Hall and we don't know who to thank...?! (We would love to know who you are - please just put your name on your donation so that we can acknowledge your wonderful handiwork).
Just an FYI for this silent group of crafters - we are looking for two sizes in blankets made out of soft baby yarn.
The smaller ones, 14" x 14" go to the NICU at Northside Hospital. Anne Moroz, our contact there, has requested sets including blanket and hat, if possible. If you only wish to do the blanket, please attach a small ball of the yarn so that In Stitches can either crochet or knit a matching hat. We hear via Anne that these sets are so enthusiastically received by the parents.
The larger blankets go to the Newborns in Need group that service all of the hospitals in the North Georgia area from Grady to Habersham County. The size for these is at least 18" x 18" i.e. these blankets are not only going to preemie babies but to larger full-term babies where there is financial need in the family. Again, soft baby washable yarn is requested. These blankets tend to go out without hats.
Newborns in Need also have several sewing projects (simple and a bit more complex) that need to be done. If anyone is able to help with this part of the project, please do contact Ro Woodhead at 770-889-2692.
Lastly, please do come and join us on Wednesday mornings 9 - 11, if you can. We welcome beginners and seasoned crocheters and knitters.
