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News from Nick
The newsletter of the
Community of St. Nicholas Episcopal Church, Elk Grove Village, Illinois
www.StNicholasEpiscopal.org
| January 30, 2013
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What an amazing weekend.
The Rodriguez Dance Theatre presented a wonderful and enjoyable performance to a full house. What an honor it is to know that our very own Lisette Rodriguez is director of this talented and exciting group. And, our Bob DeHaven is also actively engaged in this group, serving as a member of their operating board and consultant. We are, to say the least, a very diverse and gifted community!
Sunday found St. Nicholas a veritable bee-hive of activity. Liturgy was uplifting, albeit, I have to admit, my sermon was deliberately short, due only to the fact that there was to be much more talking and sharing to follow. And what lively and engaging conversation we had indeed. Our Annual Parish Meeting was, in the humble estimation of yours truly, a loving success! The degree of care and commitment demonstrated by our community toward this place, our St. Nicholas, our house of worship continues to overwhelm me. I should not be surprised; after all, such has been the consistently loving nature of this amazing group of people.
However, as was shared Sunday, we have some serious and important matters to discuss and decisions to make. There are elements of our worship space that must be addressed, some sooner than later. Our hall is only 3 years old and for the most part, is still 'new' in many ways. However, there are issues and concerns with which we are to contend. And we will do so as a community, like any family that carefully plans out any work to be done to their home.
Our future is bright. Yet, we chart our course carefully and deliberately and knowing full well that with all the successes we will celebrate, there will undoubtedly be the occasional set-back. That is the stuff life is made of and we, as a community of faith, a caring family, dear friends, one to another, will withstand whatever comes our way. Despite the winter darkness, there is an illuminating presence here at St. Nicholas. Jesus is alive and well and we celebrate Him with hearts wide open and voices raised in worship and song.
February, like the previous month will be a very busy time for us at St. Nicholas. There will be family fun, food and the serious and spiritually enriching nature of worship and celebration, especially as we begin the holy and meditative season of Lent. In order for us to know exactly what's happening now and what's on the agenda, I have included in my weekly reflection a 'mini-calendar' for all of us to be on top of things. So, without further ado...
- February 1, Chicagoland Order of Saint Luke and the Celebration of the Vigil of Candlemas will be held at St. Nicholas. Pizza, Praise and Healing will begin at 6 pm with a shared meal in the Hall with Liturgy to follow in the church. All are welcome to attend and share in this special event.
- February 9th, our 3rd Annual St. Nicholas Chili Supper. What a great time we have getting this event up and running, not to mention the great chili and prizes available! Lots of help needed for this event to be successful. This is a great "fun-raiser," for all of us, with laughs, lively conversation and some pretty darn good chili, too. We could use help soliciting gifts for the door prizes and raffles. And of course, mark your calendar for the 9th of February; bring friends and family, too. There's always room for more at our table! Come for the 4:30 service and stay for the chili supper, immediately following the service.
- February 12, Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper. At 6:30 pm, Holy Innocents Hall at St. Nicholas all are welcomed to join in the fun and Pre-Lenten celebration. The eve of Ash Wednesday traditionally finds Episcopalians gathering together, as community, preparing for Lent, and sharing in the time-treasured fare of pancakes for supper. Again, all are warmly invited!
- February 13, Ash Wednesday Liturgy. We will gather at the church at 7 pm and begin the holy season of Lent. Ashes will be distributed as we will worship in song and prayer the Liturgy for this special day.
- "Continuing a Conversation." ( Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) Sunday, February 24. After the 10 am Liturgy, we are inviting the community to gather and discuss how we can better build and strengthen St. Nicholas Church. A light luncheon will be offered.
-Manny
manny@stnicholasepiscopal.org
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Mark Your Calendar
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Saturdays - 4:30 pm
Sundays - 10:00 am
Wednesdays - 6:00 pm
Wednesday
February 6, 20 & 27
4:30 - 6:30 pm
Children's Formation
Sunday, February 3 and 17 After the 10 am Liturgy in the Vesting Room next to the parish office.
Children Gather at Sharing Table Sunday, February 10 and 24
During 10 am Worship Service Pizza, Praise and Healing at St. Nicholas. Friday, February 1 at 6pm. Chicagoland Order of Saint Luke will host a spiritual and social gathering at St. Nicholas, including healing prayers and investiture into their order of new members. All are invited to come and share in this special evening. 3rd Annual St. Nicholas Chili Supper Saturday, February 9
Following the 4:30 pm Worship Service
Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper
Tuesday, February 12
6:30 pm in Holy Innocents Hall
Bible Study February 17, after the 10am Liturgy in the Noah's Ark Room
Healing Liturgy Saturday, February 16 and Sunday, February 17. Blessings and anointing to be shared by the Revs. Tony and Fran Begonja
Varied Voices Saturday, February 16 and Sunday, February 17. Steve Raftery will proclaim the Gospel and share his reflection with us
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St. Nicholas Annual Meeting Recap
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The 2013 Annual Meeting at St. Nicholas was held after the 10:00
am liturgy with a wonderful potluck luncheon, complete with great food and lively conversations. During the liturgy, "thank you" gifts of red roses, a gift card and chocolates were presented to Pat Kalicki in appreciation for all the work she performed as Senior Warden. We all hope she enjoys her retirement.
Fr. Manny's remarks during the meeting gave the congregation a review of the highlights of 2012 and a vision of where St. Nicholas is headed in 2013. The major highlight of 2012 was the merger of St. Bede's with St. Nicholas. One of the primary issues for 2013 is the establishing a St. Nicholas Building Committee to prioritize infra-structure projects at St. Nick's to keep our facilities safe and secure. If anyone is interested in being on the committee, please let Fr. Manny or the wardens know. An initial meeting of the Building Committee and our Bishop and Trustee representative is scheduled for Tuesday night, February 11th at 6:45 pm.
 Bob Kalicki and Penny Mandziara were elected as new members of the Bishop's Committee. Jessica Tamaski was elected Junior Warden and I was elected the new Senior Warden. Lapel pins were blessed and presented to both wardens, who, in time, will present the pins to their successors. The meeting ended just as the snow and sleet was arriving. Holy Innocents Hall was quickly cleaned and hopefully everyone got home before the roads became too bad.
As a reminder, if there are particular matters anyone may have brought to the attention of the Bishop's Committee, you can talk with either Fr. Manny, Jessica or myself. Also, please know that the Bishop's Committee represents the entire Community of St. Nicholas: we encourage and invite any and all community members to talk with any committee representative to offer suggestions, advice or concerns.
-Steve Raftery
Senior Warden
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Order of Saint Luke Vigil of Candlemas at St. Nicholas on February 1, 2013 at 6 pm
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CHICAGOLAND ORDER OF SAINT LUKE
VIGIL OF CANDLEMAS
Pizza, Praise & Healing
Friday February 1st, 2013
Pizza Supper 6 PM
Praise/Worship, Eucharist and Healing 7 PM
at
St. Nicholas Episcopal Church
1072 Ridge Avenue
Elk Grove Village, IL 60007
(about 5 minutes south of the junction of I-90 Tollway and Arlington Heights Road)
Presiding: The Very Rev. Tony Begonja & The Rev. Fran Begonja
Area Co-Directors for IL & MO, Region 4, The Int'l Order of St. Luke the Physician
BRING your own candles to be blessed.
LEARN about the Order of Saint Luke
and about HEALING MINISTRY.
RVSP if you will be coming for Pizza.
For more information, email or call:
tbegonja@earthlink.net 847.463.0146
fbegonja@earthlink.net 847.494.9060
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3rd Annual St. Nicholas Chili Supper with Raffles, February 9, 2013, after 4:30 Liturgy
|  Ready, set...CHILI. St. Nicholas' Third Annual Chili Supper is all set. Saturday, February 9th, immediately following the 4:30 Liturgy. Come one...come all! Bring family and friends, haul in the neighbors and anyone who likes a good bowl of chili!
And, don't forget all the door prizes and raffle prizes available to the holder of that lucky ticket. You gotta' play to win! So, come on out, join us in our worship and then stay, enjoy some chili and fixings and maybe, just maybe, go home with a prize...not to mention a tummy full of good, homemade chili. A sign up sheet will be posted to secure volunteers to help with the evening's activities. All are welcome. Let's make this a big success as well as a great time out with family, friends and the community of St. Nicholas!
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Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper at St. Nicholas, February 12, 2013 at 6:30 pm
|  There is nothing as comforting as a good breakfast...for dinner! To help usher in the holy season of Lent and celebrate a most time-honored Episcopal/Anglican tradition, St. Nicholas will host a Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper on February 12, 2013 at 6:30 pm in Holy Innocents Hall. All are invited to come and share in a simple, though filling supper of home-made pancakes. And, in order for this tradition to be done properly...we are seeking the assistance of a few of the men in the community, who will prepare the breakfast and serve the community. A sign up sheet will be posted. Please, come on out for a fun and filling evening of food and friendly conversation.
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"Continuing a Conversation," Sunday, February 24, 2013 after the 10 am Liturgy with a Light Lunch
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"And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ - to the glory and praise of God."
-Philippians 1:9-11
Sunday, February 24 - Continuing a Conversation
Where is St. Nicholas going? What will our community be like in three years? Will we be a few steps closer to realizing our vision? If we do not change anything, will the future be any different than the past?
Creating a strategic plan is an important step in the future of our community. We want to encourage everyone to contribute their thoughts. Please join us on Sunday, February 24 after the 10 AM service as we renew our journey of discernment. We will outline our approach for making a three to five year plan and discuss the ways in which all can participate
Renewing our Ministry - A Plan for St. Nicholas
Nearly two years ago, as the community of St. Nicholas conducted its search for a new permanent Vicar, (Manny) we conducted small group discussions and completed a Church Assessment Tool (CAT) Survey. These discussions became "the beginning of a conversation" concerning our mission, our gifts and our needs as a congregation in ways which helped us to identify and confirm Manny as our permanent Vicar.
Continuing the Conversation
We have been well blessed in these two years. Manny's installation as Vicar was a gift to all of us; we have been joined by our new members from the congregation of St. Bede's; and joined by others who have found their way here along independent paths, and have found our community to be a welcoming and meaningful presence in their lives.
Enriched by Manny's leadership and new energy, The Bishops Committee has determined that this is an appropriate time to "continue the conversation," to embrace the collective needs and gifts of our new members and, along with Manny's gifts and leadership, build a vision to renew and fulfill our mission as a congregation of faith in this community.
Making a Plan Begins with Listening
The process of planning sounds daunting to many but it needn't be. There is great consort among many of us at St. Nicholas on what we do well, and where we would like to grow in our ministry to each other and the community in which we live. As one member of the committee said recently," much of what we need to do is simply to write down what we already know." That is true! Yet with new voices and new leadership, this is also an important time to actively listen- to strive to discern and embrace the gifts and needs of our community today, and to envision where our energies and our faith may lead us.
-Bob DeHaven
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| Pledging to St. Nicholas | If you would like to submit a pledge of financial support to St. Nicholas in 2013, and have not already done so, please click here for the form to use to show your intentions for 2013. Every pledge matters. Thank you for your prayerful consideration!
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| Prayer Requests |
Repose of the soul of Rose Marie Neuhart, a life long friend of Nancy Allan. May she rest in the full peace of Christ.
Repose of the soul of Todd Hubbard, a friend of Douglas': Todd, age 47, died rather unexpectedly after a brief illness. May Todd rest in the loving arms of our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus the Christ.
Richard Nordberg, father of Penny Mandziara, who is encountering some serious health complications: pray for his recovery and well being and for patience, understanding and acceptance to all who love and care for Richard.
Shannon, a dancer with the Rodriguez Dance Theatre: Shannon was hit by a car on January 7th and has been in a coma since. Pray for her recovery and for her parents and all who love and care for Shannon.
Repose of the soul of Sarah May Stiles Reid, mother of Thelma Malecek, grandmother of Ron and Laura Malecek: we pray the Good Lord welcome our sister into paradise where she may rest in the full and lasting peace of Christ.
Bernie, youngest son of our Eunice, who continues to encounter serious health matters while recovering from major surgery.
Ken, the brother of our Mary Beth Jarvis who suffered a stroke on Christmas Eve. Ken is currently in critical condition, having lost sight in his left eye and motion on his left side. Pray for Ken, his recovery and his well being and pray for his family and friends for strength and support. Linda Buzard, choral director of St. John the Divine in Urbana and a friend of Bob DeHaven, is battling breast cancer: pray for full recovery and sound health. Peter Barlow, son of Bill and Kathy Barlow: for his safety and the safety of all our military men and women overseas. Marcia Kizior, sister of Bob DeHaven, who is in poor health. Pamela Joy DeHaven, in thanksgiving for recovery and continued remission. Hope Smith, whose cancer has reappeared: for strength, peace and guidance. Ethel (Corkey) Stratton, the mother of Hal Stratton Eunice Dohra
Richard and Mary Gans
Carrie Loos
For those in transition: those searching for work, those who are moving and those encountering changes in life. |
| Shout Outs |
Our thanks to:
EVERYONE who made the Annual Parish Meeting such a wonderful success. The food was fantastic. Conversation was lively, open and honest. The commitment to St. Nicholas and our future was heart-warming and encouraging. And even the weather held up until we were completed with our work! God bless each and every one who made our gathering time very well spent...together!
All who support the efforts of St. Nicholas and the "extensions" of our community: for those who attended and supported the dance performance of the Rodriguez Dance Theatre last weekend.
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| Readings for This Weekend's Liturgies | |
Click here for the readings appointed for Saturday, February 2 / Sunday, February 3
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| Worship With Us | |
Saturdays - 4:30 pm
Sundays - 10:00 am
Wednesdays - 6:00 pm ( September to May )
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-News from Nick Archive-
Miss an issue of News from Nick? Need to refer to an earlier issue? No problem--issues are archived and available at any time at this link.
News from Nick is published by St. Nicholas Episcopal Church, Elk Grove Village, Illinois each Wednesday.
Please submit copy to Douglas by clicking here.
Deadline is Tuesday at noon.
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St. Nicholas Episcopal Church
1072 Ridge Avenue
Elk Grove Village, Illinois 60007
847-439-2067
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When we say, "All are welcome,"
we mean it! Come, see for yourself!
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