Uppdate for September 17, 2009

First of all I want you all to know how proud and pleased I was with the Bishop's visit last Sunday. Everything from the music to the liturgy to the lunch and meeting that followed were indicative of the Bishop's observation in his weekly email that "St. Luke's is an amazing place and this church is so active in their community and so alive within it's walls.". Thanks again to all who worked so hard to make Greg's time with us such a blessing.

The chapel is open now, and any time you need a place for prayer, you are warmly invited to enjoy this sacred space. We held our Tuesday and Wednesday morning services in the chapel this week and it was wonderful to be in a more intimate environment than the larger church provides. We have now adjusted the heating and air conditioning system to lower settings in order to save on our annual $9,000 electrical bill. We are however keeping the heat at a level that will not harm the piano and keep it in tune.

The window frames for the chapel should be installed the first week of October and we can look forward to a quieter area when all the stained glass is in place.

As you know, we now have a induction loop hearing system for those of you who have hearing aids with a "T" coil setting, this should help you hear better. We also have a new microphone and that should help as well.

Music live was great on Tuesday. Kate Dean and the other members of the Port Angeles String Quartet put on a beautiful concert and the kitchen crew made a terrific lunch. Armond Emond is going to make a wonderful Head Chef, and I can tell by looking at his menu for the year that the food will be a big hit.

I have scheduled an Episcopal 101 Class to begin on the 19th of October at 10:00 in the morning and run for 6 weeks (I've got to figure out a better name for that class) for all who are new to St. Luke's or who haven't taken the class yet.

We are having a meeting for Christian Education on Monday at 10:00. Anyone who would like to join us is welcome.

See you on Sunday,

Fr. Bob+

Weekly Blog for May 21

Greetings,

Patricia and I had a great trip last weekend to St. Peter's in Seaview. The weather was terrific; the kind of sunny calm days that you rarely experience along the cosat. We had the chance to contribute to the local economy and stayed in a lovley cottage in Long Beach. Our meeting with the congregation went well. They have a very nice church facility which they share with other congregations, a very dedicated group and a strong desire to grow. We had the opportunity to share with them some of the lessons we have learned in ministery to a "mature" community, both here and at St. Matthew's in San Andreas and our thoughts seemed to be well received. I hope and pray that they were encouraged.

I understand that Maggie preached a great sermon on Sunday and I am grateful to her and many others for the chance to reach out to another community in the Diocese.

Tuesday we had another great Music Live with Lunch. I always enjoy Denny Secord, his group, and the music they play. It takes me right back to the songs my mom taught me as a child. Next year, Armand Emond will be leading the kitchen crew, and I want to thank Kara for all the hard work and great food over the last few years.

The Vestry met on Tuesday and the minutes of the meeting will be in the next Bellringer. We decided to make some rearrangements downstairs to accomodate the Sunday School and various storage needs.

The Building Committee met on Wednesday to approve the electrical fixtures for the new chapel. We are also considering various options for flooring in the Vesting Room.

I saw Sally Britton today, she is back from heart surgery in Seattle and will be in Sequim Rehabilitation for the next few days. She looks good and is recovering nicely while the kids are staying with Len.

Hope you have a great Memorial Day weekend. Please remember those who have, are, and will make the ultimate sacrafice for our freedom.

Fr. Bob+

Weekly Blog for May 7

First of all, I want to thank Christine and David Hill and all the people work worked in the booth for the Irrigation Festival. We sold 140 jar cakes (the best seller was the "Rector's Rum Cake"). The remaining cakes will be on sale after church on Sundays. You all did a great job under very adverse weather conditions and you represented us well.

Work continues on the new chapel/vesting room as roof trusses are completed and the framing is put in place. The building committee has chosen oak doors and terazzo stone for the flooring. We are in the process of looking at electrical fixtures, and will need to make those decisions soon. Right now the progress seems slow because each board and pannel have to be measured and cut before they are installed.

As you know, we are looking for a new bell choir director, organist and choir director. The personnel committee is looking for interested musicians and will be contacting any prospective candidates. Thanks to Tracy Williams, Peter Loeb, Carolyn Braun and Bill Yandelll for working on this.

We are also looking for another nursery worker, and have several names that we will contact to make sure that there is ongoing care for the little ones.

Yesterday, several of us attended the Celebration of a New Ministry service at St. Andrew's. Gail is very pleased to be here and we welcome this new addition to our regional clergy family.
The service was well attended, and I was pleased to see folks from our congregation support the church in Port Angeles.

Monday we had another great meeting of the men's spirituality group. I really enjoy our time together and the rich conversation we share. It is one of the highlights of each month for me.

This week Sequim Arts has an art show in the parish hall. Each year the work seems to get better and better. Be sure to stop by and enjoy the abundance of talent in our community.





Next Monday at 2:00 PM, Patricia and I will present pictures of our missionary trip to Belize. Please come and join us.





God Bless, I'll see you Sunday,





Bob+

Weekly Blog for April 16

I want to thank all of you who worked so hard last week to make Holy Week and Easter such a special time. There is so much that goes into these services that enable them to go smoothly. From the altar guild, to the lectors, to the choir, organist, assisting clergy and ushers, St. Luke's is blessed to have many people who are dedicated to our worship. I particularly want to thank Peter Rasiwell whose coordination and direction are a real gift to us all.

This week work continued on the construction, and both the chapel and vesting area have been framed and windows placed on the west end.

Wednesday afternoon I met with the liturgical planning group and we talked about the Earth Day service which is scheduled for April 26. In addition to the service itself, there will be a slide show of local photos in the parish hall during the coffee time.

I want to encourage you to sign up for the "Changing the Dream" conferenceon Saturday, April 25th at the Methodist Church. This will be an opportunity to look at planning, conservation and development in different ways and I am sure that it will be well worth the time and energy that has gone into it's planning.

Next week I will be at the Clergy Conference from Monday through Wednesday. If you have a pastoral need while I am away, please call Diane in the office or Jayne Gott.

I'll see you on Sunday.

Bob+

Weekly Blog for March 2

This week progress continued on the building with the pouring of the concrete stem walls. This will form the basis for the concrete floor for the new additions. Next week the floors should be poured and then we will begin to see work on the actual structure itself. This week I met with the building committee and they will make decisions regarding floor covering, door styles and electrical fixtures.

Maggie did a great job leading us in our discussion last night and I want to thank her, John, and Robert for their leadership during this Lenten series. I also want to thank the Layreaders, John, and Margaret who led the evening prayer services. The more we did the service, the more I liked it and the more I enjoyed the music. Finally, thank you to all who brought soups or bread; my only regret was that there were so many soups and so little time....

This week the copier was fixed (just in time for the Holy Week bulletins) and we are getting ready for Holy Week. Sunday at the 10:00 service we will begin with the procession and, if the weather is good we will start in the park; if it is not we will be in the parish hall. The procession will be led by a bagpiper as we proceed around the church.

Please make sure you purchase tickets for the Maundy Thursday supper so we know how much food to buy. The dinner will be part of the service and Thursday night we will hold the Vigil in the church. There is a sign up list for various hours in the parish hall as well.

I hope you all received your Bellringer in the mail this week. The on line version is also available on the website at http://www.stlukesparish.net/.

See you Sunday.

Bob+

This week construction began on the chapel/vesting area. Digging is almost complete for the foundation and tomorrow the footings should be poured. This will be followed by two concrete pours next week for the sheer walls and then the floor. In the mean time, the windows in the narthex are covered so that they are not broken and can be reused in the new areas.

The temporary road is now in and you can access the property from Fir Street.

On Monday we had our monthly extended pastoral care meeting and I am very grateful for the hard work and dedication of those who make up our Helping Hands ministry. There is always a list of people who are recovering from illness and are in need of their ministry. If you would like to join this group, we are looking for new members, we will team you with someone who has experience, and you can learn from other folks who have been doing this for some time.

Tuesday we had a meeting of the Altar Guild and talked about Holy Week and Easter. These women do a great job of caring for the church and preparing for our worship. I am so happy to have them involved in this work, particularly because of their care and dedication.

Tuesday afternoon there was a Taize service in the church. The music was wonderful, and it is a real blessing to me to be able to join in the worship as a participant rather than as a leader. The quiet and meditation of this experience make it an opportunity for renewal and contemplation that ministers to people both inside and outside our parish family.

Tomorrow I have an article in the Peninsula Daily News. I wrote about Lent and how people respond to this season in different ways.

Wednesday night Robert Gates did a great job of leading us in our discussion. His many years of ministry in the church and his appreciation of different faith traditions were evident in his sharing and the questions he gave us led to very active discussion groups. Thanks, Robert.

On the 16th and 17th of May I have been asked to speak with the people of St. Peter's in Seaview regarding their congregation. Joan Anthony, the Canon for Congregational Development spoke with me about their situation and wants me to share with them our experience here in Sequim. They are a very small church ( about 25 people on Sunday), and are struggling with how to grow in a retirement community. I will meet with them on Saturday and celebrate the Eucharist the next day. Maggie will celebrate and preach at St. Luke's in my absence.

St. Luke's is preparing the lunch this Saturday for the Light Lunch program and if you are interested in this ministry, please call Kara or come to the parish hall by 11:00.

God Bless, I'll see you Sunday,

Bob+

Weekly Blog

The power's back on! This weeek the electrical transformer was moved and everything has ben reconnected. It is so nice to have heat and light. Tuesday the curb was cut for the new temporary road fro Fir Street, as as soon as the gravel is down, we can drive on it. Today we received the building permit for the narthex expansion and construction should start soon on the project.

Thanks to Jim Selby and Dick Neal for all their work in supervising these projects.

Tuesday was another fine Music Live with Lunch, a great concert by students from Sequim High and a delicious lunch. Thanks to Ray, Carolyn, and the kitchen crew for all their hard work.

Wednesday night we went over to Trinity Methodist Church for a combined soup supper and John Maxwell did an excellent job in leading our discussion. Their welcome was a wonderful expression of kindness and hospitality.

I am almost finished with he Great Emergence and am continuing to reflect on her ideas and analysis of where the churh has been and where it is going.

Wednesday night we were dispatched to a fire in Discovery Bay with two fatalities. It is always so difficult to watch the suffering of others who have lost loved ones. Sometimes I am reminded of how fragile life is and how quicikly it can change.