Why Do You Do What You Do? Saint Mark’s In This Issue:

Saint Mark’s
Episcopal Church
Volume 53 | Number 9 | November 2013
From the Rector:
Why Do You Do What You Do?
Rev. Ricardo Avila and I were fielding questions from our youth confirmation class
and one of our wonderful young people asked the question: “Why did you want
to become a priest? Why do you do what you do?” This good question became
more interesting by the fact that it was my own 15 year old daughter, Larkin, who
asked the question!
Ricardo and I enjoyed answering. Part of my own answer included my simple
desire to do meaningful work. I shared that I had a series of spiritual experiences
as a young adult that confirmed my belief in the presence and power of a Divine
Love. Hence, I was inspired to choose a vocational path that allowed me to try to
increase other’s experience of such a love. If love was the most meaningful part
of my life why not spend my time proclaiming the blessing of such a love?
In This Issue:
Advent Eve Dinner
PAGE 3
Artful Sharing about
Peace and Justice
PAGE 2
Newcomer’s Dessert
PAGE 2
This young adult desire coincided with an increasing awareness of the suffering
in the world. The reality of humanity’s plight, plagued by such things as famine
and war, dangerous apathy and a hurtful self-interest, only made my desire to
make a difference stronger.
I know this desire is shared, as well, by all of you who are reading these words.
No matter what “we do for a living” we are all instruments of good in this world.
There is a name for acting on this desire. It is called stewardship. As a result of
our increasing awareness of God’s love we are inspired to proclaim and promote
the good, to be caretakers of each other. In the midst of thanksgiving we are all
called to give of ourselves to oppose the greed and apathy in the world with as
much compassion as we can muster.
Whether it is a message to our own children, a friend, a parishioner in need or a
stranger across the world, we are blessed to answer the question “Why do you do
what you do?” with our very lives.
Please read what other parishioner’s have to say about stewardship in this issue
of the Messenger and help us to keep up the good work.
In Christ,
Looking Ahead
November 2
All Souls Memorial Service
November 3
Stewardship Brunch
Daylight Savings
November 10
Newcomer’s Dessert
November 28
Thanksgiving Day
November 30
Advent Eve Dinner
It’s time to Fall Back!
Remember to turn your clocks back 1 hour for Sunday, November 3!
December 1
Advent Wreath Making
In Our Community
Come to the Table: Artful
Sharing About Peace and
Justice
The Newcomer’s
Dessert
Sunday, November 10
Who?
You are our special
Guests!
Beth Kawasaki will lead a 50-Minute Forum called “Come to the Table,” a time of
artful contemplation and sharing about peace and justice. There will be a bounty of beautiful art books and provocative writings to consider, in light of a few
prompts on the themes of peace and justice. Participants will then share how
and why the image or written selection they chose were meaningful to them.
The forum will close with a thanksgiving prayer emphasizing themes of peace and
justice. Beth Kawasaki, a member of St. Mark’s, earned her M.A. in theology at
Fuller Theological Seminary. She works with at-risk children in Guatemala and the
developing world. This event includes
newcomers, new visitors
to St. Marks, recent
new members and
some members of our
Membership Commission
and staff. It’s a chance to
meet others new to the
community and become
more familiar with the
ministries of St. Mark’s.
Childcare is available!!
Notes from the Music Staff
A New Organ--a Pipe Organ!--for St.
Mark’s Chapel
by Jim Welch
Since the construction of St. Mark’s Chapel in 1948, there has been a succession of
electronic organs: a Hammond in 1948; a used electronic organ from a Burlingame
church in 1952; next a Wurlitzer amplified reed organ and then a Baldwin organ.
In 1971 a new Conn organ was ordered, and it lasted until just a couple of years
ago when we replaced it with a used Allen digital organ. Six electronic organs in
65 years. When the Conn organ was put in, it came with a set of speakers with
dummy pipes on top of them. These speakers were installed in the rear gallery,
and from a distance, they looked pretty convincing—many people thought we had
a pipe organ in there, but we never did.
A few months ago I learned that a former student of mine would be selling the
pipe organ in her home up in Healdsburg. It was built by the venerable Schoenstein Company of San Francisco in 1984 and is in still in excellent condition (the
Casavant organ in the church is now 55 years old!) Pipe organs can last hundreds
of years—electronic organs, as you can see in the paragraph above, don’t seem to
last nearly as long.
It was almost as though this organ was made for the space in St. Mark’s Chapel.
Thanks to a generous gift, from the Kennedy family in honor of Mary Kennedy, the
organ was purchased and is in the process now of being installed by the Schoenstein Company. The chapel will also be receiving new flooring. The hope is that it
is ready to go for our annual Thanksgiving service, which will also be the 65th anniversary of that traditional service.
At last St. Mark’s Chapel will have a genuine pipe organ. Stay tuned for developments and announcement of the inaugural service and concert!
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November 2013
When? Sunday, November 10,
6:30 p.m.
Where? Home of Mego & Ted Tracy
848 Seale Ave, Palo Alto
How?
Please RSVP to Mego Tracy
at (650) 323-1447 or
mego.tracy@gmail.com
In Our Community
All Souls Memorial
Service
Saturday, November 2 at 9am
There will be a special service for the
Commemoration of All Faithful Departed on Saturday, November 2 at 9:00
a.m. Join us for a sacred tradition.
Celebrate Advent with the
Women of Saint Mark’s
Sunday, December 1
2:00 pm - 4:30 pm
chez Beth and Guy Kawasaki
Advent Wreath Making
Watch your inbox for details!
December 1st after the
10am service
Join us in making an Advent wreath
with candles to light each Sunday before Christmas and add a ritual of
bright anticipation to your traditions.
$15.00 donation covers the cost of materials. You are invited to bring greens
from your garden to share in the construction of wreaths.
Save the date! St. Mark’s Blood Drive Sunday, December 8
11:30 to 3:00
Give the gift of
life at Advent!
Historical
Thanksgiving Day
Service at St. Mark’s
Eucharist and Prayers from
the Past
We will have our traditional service on
Thanksgiving Day at 10:00 a.m. in St.
Mark’s Chapel. The first service ever at
St. Mark’s was in the chapel on Thanksgiving Day 1948. Start the day with Eucharist and traditional prayers from
our past, including prayers from the
1928 Prayer Book.
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Children and Families
Stewardship of Your Gifts and Our
Children’s Faith Formation
Children’s
Programming
Christian formation for our children on Sunday mornings (in Godly Play and The
Seasons of the Spirit) is more than a way for our children to engage with peers and
caring adults, it is the Liturgy of the Word for them. Christian formation in Godly
Play and the Seasons of the Spirit is, then, is a gift that we offer the children and
that we offer up to God. By engaging the Liturgy of the Word in story and action
during Sunday school, the children prepare to enter the larger church service and
to become part of our efforts to build up the Kingdom of God. This is very important work.
St. Nicholas Day is Dec. 8th
Over the years Saint Mark’s has enjoyed a thriving program, and as we constantly
strive to re-infuse the program with energy and love, we look to parishioners who
enjoy a connection and interest in our youth to help us build up the ranks of teachers and greeters. We have a wonderful staff of teachers, and we invite more of
you to join us.
If you enjoy children, and this stewardship season inspires you, consider sharing
that gift and joining our Godly Play or Season of the Spirit teaching/greeting staff.
Contact mary@saint-marks.com to learn more.
Godly Play Stories for November and
December (Grades PreK-3d)
Our stories in the coming months take us from the time of the Moses and the Great
Family to the prophets into a new time, Advent, where we await the coming of the
Christ Child. Our stories include:
11/3
Exile and Return
11/10
The Prophets
11/17
Jonah the Backwards Prophet
11/24
Craft Day
12/3
Advent 1
12/10
Advent 2
12/17
Advent 3
12/22
Advent 4
Join the parish for this fun tradition
of an all-ages soup-supper followed by
decorating the sanctuary in preparation for Christmas.
Christmas is coming!
This year’s all new Christmas pageant is
written and directed by Debbie Clark.
Casting is open to preschool children
through high school aged youth. Note
these dates and check in with Debbie
Clark at dixiedebsue@yahoo.com for
more information or to assist.
Christmas Pageant
Rehearsal Schedule
November 24
(11:30-12:30) Pageant Information
Session
December 8
(11:30-1:30) All Cast Rehearsal
Thanks to each of you for helping shape the faith lives of our children.:
Don Bennett, Joanie Bigwood, Shin Mee Chang, Abi Domine, Kate Dreher, Kristin Good, Mary Greene, Diane Guinta, Valerie Sabbag, Ruben Stob, Mary Beth
Train, Joanna Weichert.
The Messenger
Greening of the Church
Dec. 22nd 5:30 p.m.
December 1
(12:00-2:00) Principals Rehearsal
In a month where we pause to give thanks for all we have, one of the great blessings we have at Saint Mark’s is our dedicated Godly Play and Seasons of the Spirit
Teachers and greeters.
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Learn about the history and meaning
of Saint Nicholas and the larger church,
particularly the Church in Jerusalem.
November 2013
December 15
(12:00-2:00) All Cast Rehearsal
December 22
(3:00-5:30) Dress Rehearsal
December 24
(3:30 Arrival) Pageant
Youth Group
Nov. 8 and 9th
Disneyland Youth Group Trip! Nov. 10
Bagels and Bibles
Giving deep thought to theology and hamming it up!
Nov. 17
Ice skating 5-7 p.m.
Nov. 24
Bagels and Bibles
Dec 6
Candle-lit nighttime walk
at the Grace Cathedral
Labyrinth, in SF!
Dec. 8
Each Sunday night in youth group we gather to play, talk,
and think about interesting issues for our youth and the
church. Youth group is open to middle school and high
school aged youth.
Sunday night Youth Group
5-7 High School, 6-8 Middle School. Dinner included!
Contact mary@saint-marks.com to find out more.
Bagels and Bibles
Dec. 15
Youth Group Christmas Party
Dec. 22
Greening of the Church in
place of regular youth group
(5:30 start time)
Our fabulous youth group leaders: Roxanne, Melissa, Janet, Isabella, and David!
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Feature
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Feature
Last year when I preached the lay stewardship sermon I admitted to having
been more or less clueless as to how to
go about determining how much to pledge every year. Apparently the sermon struck a chord with people, and I learned
that I had not been alone in my discomfort with the reckoning part of pledging. But at some point I determined that invoking spiritual presence would provide needed help. Rather
than approaching pledging from a purely financial approach,
sandwiched with prayer, I try to be mindful and spiritual. And
although I am the only person in my family who is presently involved with St. Mark’s, I have envisioned how the process would
work well with others. Begin by setting aside a little time to be
I’m ashamed to say, when I was asked
to write a bit about stewardship, I had
to take some time to find out exactly what “stewardship” meant. Speaking to different people,
and searching online, what I found was that stewardship
means different things, to different people. So, here is my
take, and what it means to me: When I was in Kindergarten,
my parents decided to send me to The Philips Brooks school;
where my grandmother, Betty Noeller, was the secretary.
PBS was, at the time, an Episcopal Elementary school. We attended chapel twice a week, put on Christmas pageants, and
mainly, learned to be good, caring people. The school’s motto was simply “Be Kind.” It’s a lesson I learned at 5 years old,
cont on pg 10
cont on pg 10
I came to Saint Mark’s after a decade in
the desert. I grew up a reformed Presbyterian in Tennessee and led a rich spiritual life from the age of eight years old. But I internalized the
message of sin too deeply and missed the joy that reputedly
springs from ever greater awareness of God’s mercy. In college
I stopped attending church altogether and stopped praying. As
I explored life outside the corner I grew up in, the God I knew
became increasingly incompatible but God Himself wouldn’t
leave me alone. In 2008, I found myself under a tree in Central Park, aware that I believed in Christianity but unable to
reconcile the God I knew with the rest of my value system.
cont on pg 11
Has someone ever asked you a really hard question to answer? Like, what
is the meaning of life, or why were you
born in the situation you were born in? Do you know that sinking feeling that you feel because you don’t have a definite answer to their question?
I was in Salt Lake City recently on a trip
for work and was involved in an interesting dinner conversation. When I visit the
teams in Utah it is quite common to end up at dinner with half
the group being members of the Church of Latter Day Saints.
The other half of the table usually consists of non church going
people and on this particular evening I was sitting in between
both groups. Waiting for dessert, the conversation moved to
the subject of pledging financial support to your church.
My husband Bruce and I budget to give
back. Each year, when the Stewardship
letter arrives at our house, we set aside
time to reflect on the alignment of our
money to giving back, and, together, we fill out the Stewardship form and sign it.
cont on pg 11
cont on pg 11
That is how I felt when I was asked what St. Marks means to
me. What St. Marks means to me cannot be captured in a word
or a phrase or a paragraph. I honestly don’t know if it can be
expressed in all of the words in the world. If I had to describe
it to you, I would have to think. A lot.
cont on pg 11
We believe that faith communities are there to help us help
one another and support each and every one of us in connecting with God. Our participation and acceptance in every other
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Outreach & Associate Rector Message
St. Mark’s Advent Giving Tree-2013
Advent is approaching and the Outreach Alliance is pleased to announce this year’s
recipients of the upcoming annual Advent Giving Tree:
Local recipients:
Next Door Solutions to Domestic Violence
California Community Partners for Youth (CCPY)
International recipient:
Episcopal Relief and Development
Next Door seeks to “end domestic violence in the moment and for all time,” providing free services to victims of domestic violence including victim advocacy,
shelter & housing, support groups, and children & youth programs.
California Community Partners for Youth (CCPY) provides mentoring, tutoring
and after-school support programs at for high-risk teens and their families so that
the teens stay in school and achieve academic and long term personal success.
Episcopal Relief and Development works in over 40 countries around the world
supporting unique local long-term initiatives that address poverty, hunger, disease, economic development, and disaster response.
There will also be volunteer service opportunities. Stay tuned for more information about these offerings.
Play the Song, O Lord, and I Shall Dance
Reflections on the Parish Retreat by the Rev. Salying Wong
As my husband, Shannon, and I were driving away from the
Bishop’s Ranch following the Parish Retreat, we reflected
on the tripudium dance the congregation practiced as part
of the liturgy. (We learned about this dance from our guest
speaker Tom Poynor, and we thought we’d give it a go.)
Shannon is a professional dancer and has taught dance for
a long time. He is always interested in how we learn body
movement. One of the things he encounters with non-dancers is that they are generally unfamiliar with the experience
that dance is most easily learned in a group. The single body
learns by faltering and adjusting to the rhythm of the larger
body. There is a grace and mercy in the group that can carry
the individual better than when alone.
I remember the first class I took from Shannon in Modern
Dance. I had lots of questions and wanted him to count out
all the steps. He encouraged me to follow everyone else,
and now, I see that what I really wanted was to prevent any
“mistakes”. But learning to dance inherently involves twists
and turns ungainly done so that the body’s intelligence is
taken to another boundary.
In spiritual terms, in my own life, I call this obedience—I submit myself to the twists and turns of faith to be a part of a
great unfolding. Obedience inherently involves not knowing
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November 2013
and allowing a working greater than our own to be our own.
And when we are there, when we submit, it is the beginning
of freedom. And then the dance begins. Then we will sing
and dance with Metchild of Magedeburg:
I cannot dance, Lord, unless you lead me.
If you want me to leap with abandon,
You must intone the song.
Then I shall leap into love,
From love into knowledge,
From knowledge into enjoyment,
And from enjoyment beyond all human sensations.
There I want to remain, yet want also to circle higher still.
Community
Stop and Take
a Breath at the
Women’s Retreat
The Women’s Commission has been
working on plans for our 2014 Women’s Retreat. The theme of the retreat
will be: Contemplative Practices - Finding Ways to See God and Be Seen. Rev.
Salying will offer a menu of spiritual
practices that will help us deepen our
relationship with God and those around
us. We are excited to discover a new
retreat center in Petaluma which is
reasonably priced, and includes meals.
Mark your calendars so that you do not
miss this wonderful, spiritual weekend.
Date: March 21-23, 2014. To reserve
your spot, please make out your deposit check of $100 to St. Mark’s, memo:
Women’s Retreat, and leave it in LeeAnne’s box in the office.
Contemplative Day Retreat
Saturday, Nov. 23rd, 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
As we await a sacred period of waiting, I invite you to consider whether and how
you’re preparing yourself, by which I mean taking care of yourself, maybe even
practicing unconditional love and acceptance of yourself. For me, that means giving myself space to just be in the place of “stillness” that Mary Oliver describes
in her poem “Today.” By shutting out the busy world for a short time, maybe we
can feel God’s presence within us, around us, in each other—the truth that we are
each wonderfully made in God’s love and that notions to the contrary are distortion, noise, distraction
Would you like to explore contemplative prayer with me and some of your St.
Mark’s friends (or soon-to-be-friends) on the journey? It will be at the beautiful
Jikoji Zen Retreat Center located at 12100 Skyline Blvd, Los Gatos. Spiritual retreat guide Marie Brook will lead us. The proposed agenda is below.
Cost: Suggested (not required) donation to Jikoji Zen Retreat Center of $15 per
person and an additional donation of any amount that you’d like to offer to Marie
for guiding us. If you don’t yet know Marie, I hope that you will feel (as I do) that
she is a beacon of light, walking the talk that makes us know that we are safe,
loved and welcome “into the temple,” no matter what. You may also join us for
only part of the day if that works better for you.
Peace, Carrie LeRoy, Chair, Contemplative Prayer,
cmleroy1@gmail.com, (650) 630-4379
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Feature
mined for profit. I love that we mourn together as well as celebrate together and
that we do our best to welcome people at
any stage on their lives’ journey.
Stewardship Brunch
Sunday, November 3
One Eucharist at 10:00 a.m. followed by our Annual Stewardship Brunch!
(NO 8:00 am service) Plan to join as one community in the church on this
day as we kick off our 2014 Stewardship hopes with worship, followed by
food and fellowship. Please bring the stewardship information you will
have received in the mail.
I now find that stewardship season is an
opportunity to recognize the many blessings that abound in this community. It
is a good time to talk with our families,
teach our children and remind ourselves
about our responsibility to mindfully
contribute time, talent and treasure to
a place and community that sustains us
and helps us sustain others.
Pledge Dedication
Sunday, November 10
Bring your pledge card to the church on this day and turn it in during
our worship services to signify the inherent relationship between our spiritual worship and our personal stewardship.
Pledge Season Ends
Sunday, December 2
Pledge cards will be available at all services and can be completed
and placed in the offering plates.
Follow Up Calling
December
The Vestry will call to encourage timely support from parishioners who
have not yet returned pledge cards.
Stewardship Articles cont’ from page 7
Margalynne Armstrong
quiet, thoughtful and grateful. Think of
that which brings you grace and peace.
If you have family members who attend
St. Mark engage them (including children
and teens) in a conversation about what
both God and St. Mark’s mean to each of
you. It may be surprising or disconcerting, but checking in about church is an
opportunity to have an important discussion about the ebb and flow of faith in
our lives. When you have a sense of what
is important to you about St. Mark’s,
move to imagining what could make St.
Mark’s even better. Would it be more
community outreach, more opportunities
for spiritual growth, less _______ (fill in
the blank)? Then, in this mode of appre-
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November 2013
ciation, determine what each of you can
contribute to sustain St. Mark’s, enable
its growth and to express your gratitude.
When I contemplate St. Mark’s and its role
in my life, I am grateful for our community,
the time I spend with young people and
adults, people who are willing to take time
from the complexity of their lives to give
thanks and recognize the divine in everyday life. I love the generosity of our community in its support for Hotel de Zink, the
giving trees and the youth missions and our
prayers for the worried and wounded, as
well as for other worshippers around the
world. I love Christmas Eve services and
Easter Vigil and how the holy chaos they
often display reinvests meaning into to holidays that elsewhere are secularized and
Janet Owen
and take with me every day of my life.
It is something I strive to show everyone, and (hopefully!) model for my two
young sons. It is a simple message, but
also a very powerful one. It reminds me
of the old saying that came about years
ago “What Would Jesus Do?”. In my
eyes, “being kind” can’t get any more
Christ-like. Two years ago, my marriage
ended abruptly in divorce, and I was
left with the excruciating pain of processing that, while trying to learn how
to be a single mother. My family has attended St. Marks on and off for years (I
was baptized here as an infant!) and after one particularly challenging weekend, I got in my car, drove down Cowper to Colorado Ave, and found myself
sitting in the back row of the 10am service. At the time I felt as though going to church was a ‘last resort’ to help
restore my emotional sanity. However,
what I found was not a ‘last resort’ situation, but a caring, KIND community,
that has become a huge part of the
lives of myself and Cameron and Cooper. The boys enjoy their time in Godly play, and I am thrilled to be working with our amazing youth group. This
summer I was lucky enough to go on
the mission trip to New Orleans; a truly
once in a lifetime experience. In short,
I’m still not exactly sure what stewardship means--to me, it means being
kind, helping others, giving of yourself,
and striving to be closer to God.
Feature
Stewardship Articles cont’ from page 7
David Ray
I was parched. I began wandering into
churches in New York – Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Episcopalian,
nondenominational – but a sense of unfamiliarity remained and a headstrong desire to avoid the increep of groupthink
orthodoxy kept me at arms length from
each of the communities I visited. I was
a square peg surrounded by round holes.
Until Saint Mark’s. My first Sunday was
Community Fair 2012, and I was struck
by the poetic beauty of the liturgy,
the way in which the words hung in
the air, without dogma, speaking
for themselves. I was floored by the
community gathering at the Eucharist
table. I discovered a broad umbrella
sheltering people with a wide variety
of beliefs, united by a love for humanity
and the ancient rituals of Christianity
and realized, “There is space here,
enough for me to find God.” So I
kept coming, fed by the Eucharist,
ministered to by the warm invitation
of the community, enlightened by the
wisdom of our priests. Over the year,
peace and joy have sprung from a fresh
understanding of God’s universal love
and quiet methods of establishing His
kingdom here on Earth. Being given so
much, I am now grateful to give back
my time, talents and tithes to help
build this oasis and carry its water to
the broader community.
Maggie Schmit
And so I did spend a lot of time thinking about what St. Marks is to me. What
does it mean? What have I gained from
my 10 years at St. Marks and my 5 years
at Youth Group?
And I think I have an answer that I can
tell you. St. Marks is home. St. Marks is
a safe house, a sanctuary, and a home
for me. I have friends and family there.
It has been a comfort for me when I’ve
needed it and even when I haven’t needed it. It is my second home.
That doesn’t mean it’s not without fault.
There are improvements that need to be
made, things that could be changed. But,
in essence, it is my other home, it is my
happy place.
I wish I could tell you more. I really do.
But I’ve never been a master of words,
and it would take Shakespeare to take
my scrambled thoughts about St. Marks
and turn them into something worth reading. But I’ll leave you with a thought; St.
Marks is special to me. I’m glad that my
parents dragged me through years of Sunday School and made me become part of
St. Marks. Because, now, I can’t imagine
life without it.
Greg Snodgrass
One of the non church goers expressed
amazement that the LDS members were
committed to tithing a significant portion
of their incomes. Most of the LDS guys
at the table were in modest jobs with
growing families but they were passionate that significant pledging was a crucial
part of their community. They viewed it
as their responsibility and a major part in
supporting the foundation and growth of
the church. They simply presented it as
part of the deal in their faith community.
Naturally the non church goers at the table found this all astounding and wanted
to know where the money went and all
the other details. I found the whole conversation pretty fascinating (and entertaining) and it led me to thinking through
my process when considering my pledge
each year.
Foremost to me, whether pledging money or time, it is a personal process. I love
supporting our clergy specifically…Matt
and Salying are a real blessing for us. I
want to make sure they are fairly compensated for all their work and that they
have the right resources in their ministering. I want to make sure the staff
that support them are happy as well. I
also want to support the work our commissions do…Outreach, Children, Teens,
Buildings & Grounds are some examples
that are all run by volunteers who need
financial support to get things done. I
also want to support the complete maintenance of our physical plant…we are
lucky to have such a beautiful building
to worship in. In the end it all adds up
to supporting a community that we are
lucky to have been part of for the last
14 years. I want to make sure our small
community here in Palo Alto endures
and remains a special place for generations to come. That is why I thoughtfully
pledge each year to St Marks.
Mary Beth Train
institution -- work, school, and non-profit organizations -- are based on what we
do, what we accomplish, our age and our
place in society. However, God accepts
us for who we are, and in St. Mark’s, we
work together to live that out.
Bruce and I are so grateful to be a part of
the St. Mark’s community, and it is our joy
to help support it, both with our money
and with our time. Although Bruce is unable to participate in visible parish activities and very rarely attends a church service, still he supports St. Mark’s and my involvement, which seems to nourish us both
in ways that I can’t’ easily describe.
I’ve been a member of St. Mark’s since
1976. For much of that time, I was involved in business and program leadership. Though I don’t do that now, I very
much feel a part of this community. I
dread writing, and I anticipated writing this statement with the usual dread.
However, as I’ve been writing this, I’m
surprised by a feeling of joy. It’s wonderful to write of my appreciation for the
St. Mark’s community and of the terrific
work that Matt, Salying, Mary, Ricardo,
Elyce, and Katie do and the wonderful,
respectful way they do it.
As you read this, you know that your
Stewardship letter is coming, and that if
you don’t fill it out before the end of the
year, you will receive a phone call from
a Vestry member. I hope you will think
about your being in the St. Mark’s community and how that is different from
the other places where you are, and then
find yourself filling out your form with
thanksgiving and joy.
November 2013
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St. Mark’s Episcopal Church
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Sunday Schedule
RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED
8:00 a.m. The Holy Eucharist (St. Mark’s Chapel)
9:00 a.m. Adult Education Hour (Kennedy Room)
10:00 a.m. Choral Eucharist (Church)
Children’s Programs
6:00 p.m. Youth Group (Parish Hall)
Church Office Telephone (650) 326-3800
Fax: (650) 326-2186
email: info@saint-marks.com
Church Staff
Rector: The Rev. Matthew McDermott
Associate Rector: The Rev. Salying Wong
Director of Children, Teen & Family Ministries: Mary Greene
Deacon: The Rev. Richard Peterson (Emeritus)
Assisting Clergy: The Rev. Ricardo Avila, The Rev. Dr Rebecca
Lyman
Music Director: Rebecca Maggi
Church Organist: James Welch
Office Adminstrators: Elyce Smith, Katie Yates
Business Administrator: LeeAnne McDermott
Treasurer: Maureen Kennedy
Saint Mark’s Calendar
Ongoing Events
Sunday
8:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist (St. Mark’s Chapel)
9:50-11:30 a.m. Infant Care and Toddlers (Parish Hall, east side)
9:00 a.m. Adult Education Hour (Kennedy Room)
10:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist w/Music (Church)
Godly Play Preschool (Parish Hall, east side)
& SOS
Kindergarten & First grades (Parish Hall, west side)
Second & Third grades (Parish Hall, west side)
Fourth & Fifth grades (Church-wing classroom)
5:00 p.m. High School Youth Group (Parish Hall, Youth Room)
6:00 p.m. Middle School Youth Group (Parish Hall, Youth Room)
Monday
1:00 p.m. Centering Prayer and Meditation (Kennedy Room)
Tuesday
7:30 p.m. Compline (St. Nicholas Chapel)
Wednesday
8:30 a.m. Centering Prayer and Meditation (Kennedy Room)
12:15 p.m. Holy Eucharist with Healing Rite (St. Mark’s Chapel)
Thursday
7:30 p.m. Choir Rehearsal (Church)
Friday
8:30 a.m. Centering Prayer and Meditation (Kennedy Room)
St. Mark’s website: www.saint-marks.com
Special Events
Saturday, November 2
9:00am
All Souls Memorial Service
Sunday, November 3 Daylight Savings Ends
10am
Stewardship Service & Brunch (NO 8 am Service)
Friday, November 8 – Saturday, November 9
Youth Group Disneyland Trip
Sunday, November 10Pledge Dedication
10:00 am Youth Group Bagels & Bibles (Youth Room)
11:30 am Forum: “Come to the Table” (Kennedy Room)
6:30 pm
Newcomer’s Dessert (Tracy home)
Sunday, November 17
11:30 am Acolyte Training (Church)
Saturday, November 23
10:00 am Contemplative Day Retreat (Jikoji Retreat Center)
Sunday, November 24
10:00 am Youth Group Bagels & Bibles (Youth Room)
11:30 am Christmas Pageant Information Session
Thursday, November 28 (office closed Thurs 11/28 – Fri 11/29)
10:00 am Thanksgiving Day Service (Chapel)
Saturday, November 30
6:15 pm
Advent Eve Dinner (Parish Hall)
Sunday, December 1
11:30 am Advent Wreath Making (Parish Hall)
2:00 pm
Women’s Advent Tea (Kawasaki home)