Volume 9, Number 5
May 2017
May Brings a Farewell
and a Welcome
Happenings
Newsletter of St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, Manchester, CT
The month of May will be
an especially meaningful
one for St. Mary’s as we
say goodbye to our interim
rector and greet the permanent rector who will
lead us into the future.
The Rev. Lynne A. Grifo
became St. Mary’s interim
rector in February 2016.
Since then, she has fulfilled all of the many pastoral and administrative responsibilities of a rector
while our faith community
engaged in the lengthy
process of searching for
our new, permanent rector.
With our search completed
and a new rector called,
Lynne’s role with St.
Mary’s is complete. Her
last Sunday with us will be
May 7. On that day, we’ll
have a single service, at 9
a.m., followed by a reception to honor Lynne and
thank her for all she has
done for St. Mary’s over
the past 15 months.
The Rev. Ann Lovejoy
Johnson will assume her
position as our new rector
on Monday, May 15. On
Sunday, May 21, we will
again have a single service,
at 9 a.m., followed by a reception to formally welcome
Ann.
Please plan to come to both
services and receptions to
mark these special transitions in the life of our faith
community.
The Rev. Lynne A.
Grifo
Mark Your Calendar!
Sunday, May 7: 9 a.m. service, followed by farewell reception for the Rev. Lynne A.
Grifo,
Sunday, May 21, 9 a.m.
service, followed by welcome
reception for the Rev. Ann
Lovejoy Johnson.
The Rev. Ann Lovejoy
Johnson
A Prayer for Our Interim Rector
Gracious Father, we thank you for the gift of Lynne’s
ministry here at St. Mary’s. We offer our gratitude
and appreciation for her during our transition process. We have been richly blessed by her special gifts,
her friendship, guidance and wisdom. Lord, please
guide and walk with Lynne as she continues on to the
new phase of her Christian journey. Amen.
Inside This Issue
Volunteer for May Fair
2
Church School observes Earth Day
2
Mental Health Awareness Walk
3
Linus Project quilts for children
3
26th Annual May Fair Needs You!
By Sarah Tierinni & Valerie Huestis
Your help is needed to make St. Mary’s
26th Annual May Fair — on Saturday, May
13 — a rousing success! Please consider
volunteering! Please sign up to volunteer
by using Sign-up Genius through email,
visiting www.stmarysct.org (under upcoming events tab) or using sign-up sheets in
the narthex .
Help Needed for Set Up on May 6
This year’s Parish Wide Set Up of Neill
Hall Tag Sale will take place on Saturday,
May 6, from 10 to 11 a.m. We are seeking
volunteers to help move boxes! Typically
we do this after the services on Sunday, but
do not want to interfere with Pastor
Lynne’s farewell coffee hour. Please consider coming for that hour to help.
note whether or not they contain nuts.
Best times to deliver your baked goods
are up until 6 p.m. on Friday, May 12, or
by 8 a.m. on Saturday, May 13.
Professional Kitchen for Bakers’
Use
Dotti Cannon of BROWN SUGAR CATERING has offered her licensed kitchen
space to any May Fair bakers. We will
meet the morning of May 11 and have a
fun time of fellowship and food prep. If
you’re interested, speak with Beth Bickley.
Volunteers Needed Day of Fair!
We are seeking volunteers in the following areas on the day of the fair, May 13.
Bake for Bake Sale Table
Set-Up @ 7 a.m. – A group is needed to
set up tables outside and move books,
plants, grill and kids/sports booths.
Please consider baking some goodies for
the fair’s popular bake sale table! Cookies,
cakes, coffee cakes, muffins, pies, breads,
bars and other treats are always in demand. Please label your baked goods and
Making Sales – Please consider helping
at a booth this year! We are especially in
need of sales people at the Tag Sale in
Neill Hall and the Kids/Sports booth
outside. Even an hour can help!
Clean-Up @ 2 p.m. – A group of parishioners is needed to help the Boy
Scout Troop break down tables and repack boxes. After a long day it is helpful
to have fresh legs to help!
Attention Students!
These volunteer opportunities are great
options for students who need to complete community service hours. Please
see Valerie or Sarah to have necessary
forms filled out and signed!
NEW: Sneak Peak for Volunteers!
This year on the Friday before the fair
(May 12) from 5 to 7 p.m. we are holding
a sneak peek and early shopping at the
Tag Sale portion of the May Fair. We
will have a cashier on hand and any
worker is welcome to stop by and get the
early bargains! It is our small way of
saying “thank you” for your support and
hard work.
Church School
Observes Earth
Day
On Sunday, April 23, St. Mary’s Youth
Group and Church School took part in an
Earth Day Clean-Up Project.
The young people participated in pulling
weeds, trimming shrubs, raking and
planting in the gardens in front of the
Williams Building, the building housing
the parish office.
Page 2
Happenings
Show Support During Mental Health
Awareness Month
By Deacon Emeritus Karen Fedorchak
May is Mental Health Awareness Month,
and once again St. Mary’s will have a
Virtual Walk Team to support the NAMICT (National Alliance on Mental Illness
Connecticut Chapter) Walk 2017.
NAMI’s goals are to educate, support and
advocate for the mentally ill.
The walk will be held in Bushnell Park on
May 20 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Donations
from the walk will help support programs for the mentally ill, their families,
relatives and the public.
Donations Invited
On May 21 at the 9 a.m. service, St.
Mary’s will have a Collection Sunday. All
cash and checks designated for the
NAMI Walk will go to NAMI-CT. Donations can also be sent/delivered to the
church office throughout May.
Make checks payable to: NAMI CT
WALK 2017. On the advice line of the
check, write: For St. Mary’s Church
Team, Manchester.
“Pack up Your Sorrows: A Story of Illness,
Hope & Transformation” on Saturday, May
13, at 7 p.m. at Center Congregational
Church. The film, about living well with
mental illness, includes conversations with
authors, neuroscientists, advocates and
teachers. It features singer and songwriter
Meg Hutchinson, who will be present and
answer questions. A reception will follow.
Admission is $10. To reserve your tickets,
call Center Congregational at
860.647.9941.
Questions? Call Deacon Emeritus Karen
Fedorchak at 860.649.5659.
May 13 Film Screening
NAMI Manchester and Center Congregational Church are raising funds for
the walk by presenting a film titled
Quilts for Comfort:
St. Mary’s Hosts Linus Project
By Donna Indomenico
All of us remember Charlie Brown and
his friends, especially little Linus carrying
his security blanket around with him.
That is the premise behind the Linus Project coordinated by Jane Perrin last
month at St. Mary's. Women from our
parish and local communities came to-
gether to work on colorful, cheerful
quilts for children at Connecticut Children's Medical Center and for other
children who need comfort, such as
those affected by natural disasters.
You can view the 62 quilts in Anderson Hall.
It was day of shared fellowship and
wonderful accomplishment. The
Linus Project is
scheduled once a
year and is held at
our church. You
might enjoy participating next spring.
From left, Jane Perrin, Eileen Christensen and
Roberta Howing participated in the Linus Project.
At left, putting finishing touches on Linus Project quilts, are (L-R) Donna
Indomenico, Rita Brown, Jane Perrin, Elaine Reynolds, Miriam Gustow,
Ruth McElraevy and Pat Hancock.
Volume 9, Number 5
Page 3
Visitors are always welcome!
Worship Schedule
St. Mary’s
Episcopal Church
41 Park Street
Manchester, CT 06040
Phone: 860-649-4583
E-mail: [email protected]
God cooks;
we share the feast!
Sundays
7:30 a.m. Holy Eucharist*
8:40 a.m. Adult Forum
9:45 Godly Play and Church School
10 a.m. Holy Eucharist*
11:30 a.m. Rite 13/J2A
Tuesdays
7:00 p.m. Evening Prayer
Wednesdays
10 a.m. Holy Eucharist and Healing Prayer
*Please note exceptions: On May 7 and 21,
there will be ONLY ONE SERVICE, at 9
a.m., for special parish celebrations.
Easter 2017
Photos courtesy of Andrea Burr
Parish Register Updates
Burials:
Brent Lee Cunningham, 4/8/17
Baptism:
Enzo Reece Kwame Sintim (son of Barbara Adu-Baffour
and John Sintim), 4/16/17