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January 13, 2016
The e-pistle
Your Weekly News Update from St. Stephen's
Join Our Mailing List
In This Issue
Invest 2 Sunday
Sunday School resumes
Annual Meeting Jan. 17
Candidates for Vestry
Art Show
Be a "Patron of the Arts"
Baptisms last Sunday
Youth group goes ice-skating
Ladies of the Closet
Message from our treasurer
Altar Guild
Calling all ministry chairs
EpiscoParrot
Event Calendar
Service Times
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To The People of St. Stephen's




Dear Friends, 
 
Happy New Year!

Though the church's year began on the first Sunday of Advent and our program year began in September, we also celebrate the new year at the beginning of January.  And when the new year comes around many of us wrestle with the question "what is/are my new year's resolution/s?".

I was recently with a group of friends in which one woman encouraged us not to think about resolutions, but rather about outcomes.  "Saying 'I need to get more exercise,' for example is a great way to not keep a resolution," she said. "On the other hand, envisioning an outcome, for example 'I will weigh what I weighed at my college graduation" is an outcome.  And then we'll take the necessary steps to achieve that envisioned outcome -- which of course will involve exercise, but "exercise" is not an end in itself, merely a step toward our desired outcome.

During the next few months, St. Stephen's will be engaged in the work of envisioning a desired outcome for our parish community for the next five years.  We will ask ourselves, "If God had God's way with St. Stephen's, what would we look like in five years?"  We will envision outcomes and then put in place the steps we will need to take to achieve them.

That, in a nutshell, is what the process of "strategic planning" is all about.  And that is the process we will undertake during the first part of 2016 -- asking ourselves, "If God had God's way with St. Stephen's, what would we look like in 2021, and what do we need to do to get there?"

You will be hearing much more about this in the days and weeks ahead.  You will be invited to provide input to help shape our Visioning Day (mark your calendars for April 9th) as well as to participate directly on that day.  

Stay tuned!
 
In Christ's Love, 
 
Pastor Willie   
 
Invest 2 series continues Sunday
"Jesus Fatwah" led by Pastor Willie

Love Your (Muslim) Neighbor.  Join Pastor Willie and 17 Islamic and Christian scholars for a fact-based video program about what Muslims believe, how they live out their faith, and how we can actively build relationships across lines of faith. The 17 scholars will be on the video; Pastor Willie will facilitate in person.

The series will run through February 7 and is being held in the Parish Center.
 
Sunday School and Youth Group classes have resumed
Full schedule available

Godly Play Sunday School classes for children (ages 3 through 5th grade) and youth group meetings in the Hingston Youth Cottage have resumed last Sunday, and are ongoing on Sundays at 9:30 a.m.   If you would like an e-mail copy of the full semester's schedule, contact Rev. Jo-Ann at jmurphy@sseds.org.
 
Annual Meeting this Sunday, January 17
Right after the 10:30 a.m. service

Please come to the Great Hall for coffee right after the 10:30 a.m. Mass on Sunday, and join in our annual business meeting.  We will hear reports from the treasurer, senior warden and others, and all pledging parishioners will elect new Vestry members.

Meet our candidates for Vestry
A slate of candidates follows

Russell Corbett is our verger and a choir
member who also chairs the Nepenthe Garden Committee, co-chairs the AIDS Ministry, and is our wedding coordinator.  During his 13 years at St. Stephen's, he has been on our Vestry and part of the Nehemiah Project, and on the Flower Committee.  He volunteers yearly in the kitchen at our Art Show, overseeing the Sunday night artists' dinner.  He served three terms on the Vestry of his former Parish.  He is standing for a one-year term on St. Stephen's vestry. 

Jorge del Valle and his wife, Kara del Valle, and two children, Mia and Luke, have been attending St. Stephens for approximately 10 years. Mia and Luke were baptized at St. Stephens and this past December Jorge and Kara were received into the Episcopal church. Jorge is a lector, has been a doorkeeper during Sunday school and this year is also teaching Sunday school. Jorge del Valle has been a real estate attorney for over 20 years and is currently General Counsel to a real estate investment and management company.  Jorge's hobbies include suffering with his Miami Dolphins and warm hugs.

 Jack Geist has been a member of St. Stephen's for over 60 years. He was one of the original members of the boy's choir and also sang in the men's choir. He was a student at St. Stephen's Episcopal Day School the first year it opened in Agnes Johnson's fourth grade class. He was the first recipient of the Rodney Nordt acolyte award.
 
Jack has served on the vestry 4 times, once as Junior Warden, and on the school board twice. He is currently a member of the national and diocesan Recovery Ministries and serves as Master of Ceremonies and Thurifer on Sunday mornings. He has been honored by the Diocese of Southeast Florida as an outstanding church member.
 
Jack and his wife Judy were married at St. Stephen's, and Judy served as the school cafeteria administrator for 20 years. Jack works at the Addiction Treatment and Recovery Center at South Miami Hospital where he has worked for the past 15 years.

Lynette McGuinness has been a member of the St. Stephen's Community since 2000.  She previously served on the St. Stephen's Vestry as Junior Warden from 2011-2013 and was co-chair of the Stewardship committee in 2014.  She is also a lector, chalice bearer, usher, counter and bread baker.  Lynette is a partner in the law firm of Krinzman, Huss & Lubetsky, LLP, and has been a commercial litigator specializing in real estate law for the past 26 years.  Lynette has two children: Connor, a college freshman, and Camryn, a 10th grader.  Camryn was baptized at St. Stephen's on Easter, 2012.

Carmela McIntire and her family joined St. Stephen's 21 years ago. She has served on the Day School Board, has volunteered regularly at the Art Show, and participated in the Day School Visioning Day in fall 2015. For the last 14 years, she has been a member of the choir. Carmela recently retired from the English Department at Florida International University, where she taught for 34 years.

Gary Sullivan recently retired from Towers Watson, a consulting firm, where he was marketing director for the risk and financial services segment.  He and his wife, Carley, have been members of St. Stephen's since moving to Coconut Grove from Chicago in 2013.  He serves as lector at the 8 a.m. Mass and is a lay Eucharistic minister.  He is standing for a one-year term on St. Stephen's vestry.

A native Virginian, Gary has a journalism degree from Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond.  After working for newspapers in Virginia, Ohio and Colorado, he moved into the marketing profession in New York and Chicago with senior positions at Aon, Swiss Re and Towers Watson.  His personal interests include biking, sailing and "poking around" Miami and South Florida.

Gary and Carley were received into the Episcopal Church at St. James' Church in New York, where Carley's great-grandfather, Cornelius Bishop Smith, had served as rector.  An Episcopalian by choice, he was drawn to the Church by its dedication to social justice and the Anglican balance of scripture, reason and tradition.   

Carley is an assistant teacher at St. Stephen's Episcopal Day School.  The Sullivans have two daughters, Courtney and Pepperrell.
   
Volunteer for our 28th annual Art Show 
Valentine's Day and Presidents' Day weekend!

The most fun you will have and the biggest weekend for our church, community and fundraising efforts is coming! Please save the date for next month, Valentines Day & President's day weekend, February 13-15th, for a 4-hour or more shift full of fun, hard work and a big return. Volunteering at the show annually helps St. Stephens raise near $50,000 in one weekend and is run entirely by you - our parishioners, your friends and family. We need your time, energy and enthusiasm please. To sign up go to

We're using VolunteerSpot to organize the St. Stephen's Art Show for 2016.
 
Here's how it works in 3 easy steps:
 
1) Click this link to see our Sign-Up on VolunteerSpot: http://vols.pt/4s5hNK
2) Review the options listed and choose the spot(s) you like.
3) Sign up! It's Easy - you will NOT need to register an account or keep a password on VolunteerSpot.
 
Note: VolunteerSpot does not share your email address with anyone. If you prefer not to use your email address, please contact me and I can sign you up manually.

Be a 2016 Patron of the Arts
Another way to get involved with the Art Show

Last year our show magazine received an strong advertisement support, and we thank you and your local merchants for your sponsorships and artwork. This year we have added more space for each "Patron of the Arts" and additionally a space for love notes and messages during the Valentines Day Weekend.

Prices are from $25 (for a brief note) to $1500 for a full centerfold ad. Please contact Daisy, daisy@sseds.org, to help spread the love.  Here are opportunities to take advantage of almost 50,000 people who can see your business and your corner store's ad, and to support the arts.
 
Baptisms last Sunday
We welcome three newly baptized children 



Welcome to Lucas Moran, shown with his parents (Liz and Julio Moran) and godparents (Daniel Ledo, Paige Giusfredi, and Joe Kim) in the lower picture above.  Welcome also to Lucia and Mateo Arguello-Pareto, twin children of Cathy Pareto and Karla Arguello, shown in the top picture with their family.
Youth Group ice-skating adventure
Article Subtitle

On Sunday, January 31, our youth groups will be going to Kendall Ice Skating Rink for an ice-skating adventure. They will leave the church at 1 p.m. and return to the church at around 4:30 p.m.  For more information please contact Rev. Jo-Ann at jmurphy@sseds.org.
 
Ladies of the closet have needs
Your gently used clothing is requested      

It is the new year.  Maybe your New Year's resolution is to clean out your closet?   If so, please remember two worthy potential recipients for your gently used clothing.

If the garments are utilitarian, the Ladies of the Closet will be glad to have them for our visitors at the monthly Community Brunch.

Should you no longer need any more up-scale items, the This 'n That Shop on Commodore Plaza in Coconut Grove is a great institution.   This shop is run by Plymouth Congregational Church, who also support the St. Stephen's AIDS Outreach Ministry.

A message from our treasurer
Please help us plan!

Happy New Year to the St Stephens family!  I am requesting your assistance as we wind up the final budget for 2016. Specifically, I am asking those parishioners who have not pledged for your help. 

If you have pledged in the past and are just a victim of procrastination this year, please pledge now!  If you have never pledged and are sitting on the fence, please pledge now!  If you have no idea what a pledge is or just have general questions about the process, please call Pastor Willie at the office (305-448-2601) and she will be happy explain it to you.  If you need a pledge card, please call Gladys at the Church Office.  Or you can actually pledge online at the church website, sseccg.org, click Support, then Pledge and follow the prompts.  You can even set it up on a credit card or as a direct debit from your bank account every month. It's that easy.  

It would be such a big help to the Finance Committee and to the Vestry, since it's very difficult to come up with a balanced budget when we don't know how much to expect in pledge payments from our parishioners.  Thank you very much for your assistance. 
 
Dominic Lamberti, Treasurer

Looking for a quiet, rewarding way to get involved? 
The Altar Guild needs you!

As you sit in church and marvel at our beautiful music and the dignity with which we conduct the liturgy here at St. Stephen's, we're sure you have also noticed how beautiful our altar is -- the polished silver, gleaming brass candlesticks, lovely linens. Maybe you wonder "who does this?"

The answer is:  it could be you!  Our altar guild is made up of four teams, each of whom take one Saturday a month to set up for the next day's mass.  Over the years close friendships have been formed among this dedicated group of people and many report that working in the church in the quiet of the day gives them time to be still and experience God's presence in a very different way than on Sunday mornings.

If you would like to learn more about serving on the altar guild, contact Pastor Willie here.
Calling all ministry chairs
If you have not gotten your reports to Gladys . . .

She will not now be able to print and collate them for our annual meeting.  Please do not submit them now.  However, we would still like to know the state of your ministry and any relevant data (i.e. how many meals served, how many people involved, how much money spent, etc.).

You can print and collate these reports yourself, if you are able, and distribute them at the annual meeting.  This would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!   

EpiscoParrot
Delusions of grandeur

   
EpiscoParrot tweets @episcoparrot
Upcoming Events
Don't Forget These Dates     

reminder
Sunday, January 17 - "Jesus Fatwah" Invest 2 at 9:30 a.m.

- Annual Meeting in the Great Hall right after the 10:30 a.m. Mass

Sunday, January 24 - Meeting of the ECW in the Parish Center right after the 10:30 a.m. Mass

Sunday, January 31 - Youth Group ice skating adventure at 1 p.m.

February 13 - 15 - St. Stephen's Art Show

Saturday, February 20 - Trivia Night at St. Thomas Episcopal Church

At St. Stephen's All Are Welcome 
 
Sundays 
Spoken Mass without music at 8 a.m.
  Sung Mass with music at 10:30 a.m.,
with child care for children under three


Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8 to 4.