Nora Cowen, Tristan Flueck and Ben Watkins will be attending Mini Camp II from June 27-30 at the Cathedral Domain. Please keep these members of our parish in your prayers. Campers love to get mail! If you want to send a note or card, send it to:

Camper's Name
c/o Cathedral Domain
800 Highway 1746
Irvine, KY 40336

During the summer months we are offering a unique opportunity for the entire congregation to have a deeper understanding of the hymns you sing. In addition to weekly articles with descriptions of the music, we are offering congregation-wide "hymn rehearsal" on Sundays in June and July from 9:30 to 9:45 a.m. Simply turn up 30 minutes prior to the 10:00 service, find a good spot in the Nave, and you can join the choir in rehearsing the hymns for that service, punctuated by brief verbal descriptions or factoids about the music. The more you know, the more your worship experience will be enhanced. No reservations necessary; just turn up 30 minutes before the 10:00 service and prepare to be enriched by the glorious hymnody of the Church.

What:     Congregation-wide hymn practice

When:     Sundays from 9:30-9:45 a.m. (June and July)

Where:    Good Shepherd Nave

Why:       To further enrich your worship experience!

Youth programming is already gearing up for the next academic year, but it is summer and time for some summer fun! The following activities/events are for youth entering grades 6-12.  

Youth Summer Get Together

Sunday, July 8

1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at Deacon Lauren's house

RSVP to Deacon Lauren  

End of Summer/Back to School Pizza Party

Sunday, August 12

11:15 a.m.   

Bring either two drinks or a dessert to share.

Parents of Youth:  Please come to a meeting on Sunday, July 22 at 11:15 a.m. (immediately following the 10:00 a.m. service). This is a chance to express what you as parents want for youth programming at Good Shepherd, what you want to support, your expectations, wishes and dreams, and any other topic you would like to share. This meeting of the parents of youth in grades 6-12 is open to all who are interested in our youth programming. If you cannot attend but wish to share your thoughts, please either contact Deacon Lauren or call her at 859.252.1744. She can also set up an alternate time to meet with you.

There were so many curious questions about our three-stop Steiner organ last Sunday that I've decided to write a little "Organ 101" lesson to focus on this small instrument.

 Organs of this size are generally used to accompany intimate chamber music or play continuo in a Baroque orchestra (i.e., the same role as a harpsichord). The Steiner Organ Company of Louisville built this small instrument in 1970. This company eventually became the Steiner-Reck Organ Company and is no longer in existence. Other local examples of their work include Faith Lutheran Church on Tates Creek Road and Union Church in Berea.  This organ has three ranks (or rows) of pipes: an 8' stopped flute, a 4' stopped flute, and a 2' principal. The number indicates the pitch level. For instance, with an 8' rank the lowest pipe is generally 8 feet in length. With stopped pipes (a cap or stopper on top which affects the acoustical properties of the pipe), however, the sound is one octave lower than the length of the pipe. Therefore, the lowest 8' stopped flute on this instrument (the wood pipes labeled 8' Holzgedackt) is actually only 4 feet in length. The longest pipes of this rank are hidden within the instrument to economize space. The 4' stopped flute is 2 feet in length and labeled 4' Rohrflöte. In English this is often called Chimney Flute, as this is the rank of metal pipes with what appears to have a small "chimney" protruding from the tuning sleeve on top of each pipe. The 2' Principal is an open rank with the lowest pipe truly being two feet in length, and that is the rank of pipes out in front that are the most visible.

All of the pipes in the Steiner organ are "flues" meaning the tone is generated by the vibration of air over a languid and the length of the pipe column determines the pitch.  A flue pipe works like a simple whistle similar to an orchestral flute. The majority of pipes in any given organ are flue pipes. The other type of pipe is a "reed," a pipe containing a small metal reed that vibrates to generate sound, like an orchestral clarinet, oboe, or bassoon (think of a New Year's Eve party horn). Different types of reeds and different shapes of those pipes give an organ a wide range of tonal colors. Our previous Holloway organ contained three ranks of reed pipes. The new Goulding & Wood organ will have ten ranks of reed pipes ranging from the very delicate Vox Humana to the bright Festival Trumpet.