Grace Episcopal Church  
In This Issue
Birthdays

Connect with Grace!

Grace Church
 
Join us on 
Watch us on 
 
See us on 
Follow us on 
 

Sunday Services 
 
8:00 AM
Celebrant:  The Rev. Noah H. Evans
Preacher: Mia Benjamin, Life Together intern
LEM: June Pietrantoni
Altar Guild:
June Pietrantoni 
 
10:00 AM
Celebrant: 
The Rev. Noah H. Evans
Preacher:  Mia Benjamin, Life Together intern
Minister of Music:
Ruth Roper 
LEM I: 
Rochenet Joseph
LEM II: Mia Benjamin
Genita Johnson
 Lector II *:
Margaret Smist
Acolytes:
Timmy Lwanga, Brianna Nwachukwu and C.J. Nwachukwu
Ushers:
Butch Edgecomb and Stephanie Ettinger de Cuba
Altar Guild
Adele Travisano and Marie Glynn
Healing Ministers: Brenda Pearson, Rev. Maggie Arnold and Cindy Scott
Vestry Person of the Day:
Kathy Mumma
Nursery workers: Catherine Woodbury and Jaeda Hamel
Counters:
Jill Capuccio and Bryan Spence
Coffee Hour:  
Steve Duggan, coffee 
 
*click on link to prepare for this week's readings
Birthdays

Carol Schlesinger (6/12); Jane Bozovic, Karen Smith and Bryan Spence (6/13); Brian Branson and Brianna Nwachukwu (6/14); Frank Hazel, Amanda Klasen, Emmy Llewellyn, Kathy Mumma, Chenine Peloquin and June Sbuttoni (6/17) and Charles Bowers, (6/18).

If we do not have your birthday, please contact the church office at 781-396-7215 or office@gracemedford.org  

Welcome.
Please join us at
 Grace Church!
We celebrate the Eucharist on Sunday at 8:00 AM and 10:00 AM.  Sunday is our last day of Sunday School classes until September.  During the summer, please join us for Children's Homilies. Nursery care is available during the 10:00 AM service. 
Church Away from Church Summer Fun
Take Jesus with you on your travels this summer! Last year we watched on Facebook as #flatGrace journeyed with parishioners from London to Maine and many points in between. In 2016, #flatJesus (carrying His own #flatGrace) is ready to go! Take a photo of #flatJesus wherever you find yourself this summer, from your backyard barbecue to Timbuktu, and share it with us on Facebook or send us a paper copy for our bulletin board in the Parish Hall. Make sure to bring along your  Summer Church Attendance card with you to every church service you attend in July and August--completed cards can be entered into a raffle for a prize at the end of the summer! Download #flatJesus and instructions and join us for summer fun.
"Breaking the Fast" Community Iftar Dinner Tonight
Join the Medford Human Rights Commission, the Medford Interfaith Clergy Association, and the Mystic Valley NAACP for a Community Iftar Dinner this June 9! "Iftar" is the traditional communal breaking of the fast at sunset during "Ramadan," the Muslim holy month of fasting and spiritual contemplation from June 6-July 5. We will gather at City Hall on Thursday, June 9th at 7:00pm for prayer and dinner in support of our Muslim neighbors and the interfaith communities of Medford.
Outreach Corner 
The next opportunity to help at St. Luke's Community Dining in Chelsea is June 25.  Please contact Lisa Carson with any questions or to volunteer to help.

Food is needed for the food pantries that Grace Episcopal Church supports.  The item for June 12 is tuna.  The items for June 19 are rice or cereal.
Children and Youth Education Programs
Join us this week for the last classes of our Sunday School year! We'll celebrate the conclusion of our program by looking at some "famous last words" of the Bible...

Parent information session for Christian Education 2016-17: 
join us after the 10 am service on June 26 for a presentation on next year's Sunday School and Wednesdays at Grace programs. There will be a chance to ask questions, look at course materials, and register for classes. We'll also be showing a short mock-u-mentary of the raising of Lazarus, filmed by the middle school youth group this year. Don't miss it!
Barbara C. Harris Summer Camp

Grace Church is a stop on the chartered bus route to camp all summer, and we need volunteers to supervise the camper drop-offs (on Sunday afternoons) and pick-ups (Friday afternoons) from the last weekend in June through the last weekend in July. Are you interested? Contact Rev. Maggie at maggie@gracemedford.org.

Barbara C. Harris Camp & Conference Center Summer Camp is right around the corner! Noah will be a camp chaplain and at Camp, Sunday, June 26th - Friday, July 1st. Sign up for that week, or any week of the summer!  Talk to Noah or Maggie about scholarships.  More information at BCHCenter.org 
Other Announcements

Healthy Returns @ Grace
Parental Caregivers Support Group
We will use the book The 36 hour day: a Family Guide to Caring for People who have Alzheimer Disease, Related Dementias and Memory Loss by N. Mace and P Rabins as a third party reference. We will meet on Tuesday nights from 7:30-8:30pm in the Common Room at Grace Church. The next meeting is June 14. For more information, email Day Farenga at dyf4@comcast.net or Hallie Lee at hallies.lee@gmail.com.

Hiking in the Fells
As part of Grace Church's new health initiative, Catherine Smith will lead hikes in the Fells after the services on June 26, July 24 and August 28.  Bring a lunch, water, and sneakers!  The hikes will start at Medford High School.  Each will consist of two 1-hour loops, so you can walk one or both loops.  Bring a friend!

Blood Drive -- July 2nd
There will be an American Red Cross blood drive at Grace Church on July 2nd from 10AM-3PM in Wiles Hall. If you donate blood, or know anyone who does, please make an appointment by calling  the American Red Cross at 1-800-RED-CROSS, or just show up that day!  If you're squeamish about blood or needles, we can still use your help! Please contact Kris Plausky at kris.plausky@gmail.com.

YLA (Youth Leadership Academy) Fundraiser
Paint Afternoon for Elizabeth and Catherine Woodbury's YLA mission trip to Arizona and Mexico.  Come and paint with Cheryl Woodbury and have some fun with others from the church.  The fundraiser will take place on June 11 at 5 p.m.  Light refreshments will be served.  The cost is $40 and all supplies and refreshments are included.  Contact Cheryl Woodbury for more information woodburyc@comcast.net.

Community Life and Fellowship Meeting
David and Hallie Lee will host a Community Life & Fellowship Committee lunch on Sunday, June 12 after the 10AM Service and Coffee Hour at their home. The lunch will be from noon to 2 PM. Mia Benjamin will attend.  Contact Hallie for the address at hallies.lee@gmail.com. 

Join Episcopal City Mission for a Night of Witness, Worship and Celebration - 5:30 pm, June 14, 2016 @ The Cathedral - Join us in honoring the work of social justice leaders this year and welcoming our new Executive Director, The Rev. Arrington Chambliss. The Rev. Mariama White-Hammond organizer, activist, minister at Bethel AME, and formerly Executive Director of Project HIP-HOP, will be our preacher. SCHEDULE: 5:30 pm Grantee Gallery and Refreshments; 6:30 pm Service of Witness; 8:00 pm Reception with Robust Appetizers. Please register to attend this free event:  www.EpiscopalCityMission.org.

Title: A Passion for Dance! The Iconic Isadora
Duncan and Medford's Margherita Sargent
Join the community in a celebration of Isadora Duncan (1877-1927), the mother of modern dance, and Margherita Sargent (1883-1964), her sister-in-law, from West Medford. Margherita, an accomplished actress, not only appreciated Isadora's trailblazing abilities but also understood the dancer's complex personality. These two free spirits shared a timeless bond.
Presented by Dee Morris, historian, with performances by Dicki Johnson Macy and the Guardians of Isadora Dancers
Thursday, June 16, 2016 (part of Circle the Square)
FREE   7pm
The Chevalier Theatre
30 Forest Street.
Sponsored by: Medford Arts Council, the Medford Public Library, the Chevalier Theatre and Andrew RE/MAX Realty.  For more info: Dee Morris  

Women's Book Club
The Women's Book Club meets every third Thursday, but does not meet in August.  Here are the upcoming book selections.
June 16 - The Danish Girl by David Ebershoff
July 21 - How to Be Good by Nick Hornby
Sept 15 - The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith. 
For more information, email Genita Johnson at  pawleyslegacy@verizon.net. 

Also, the Medford Public Library is applying for a construction grant and is looking for your vision for the library over the next 10 years.  Click here to take their survey or visit the Medford Public Library's website to learn more.

Youth Leadership Academy Project
A YLA "YO Tea" will be held on Saturday, June 18 at 3 p.m.  This is an afternoon tea for teens and 65+ adults to get together to share, learn and converse.  Catherine and Elizabeth Woodbury are running this tea for their YLA project for the church.  There is no cost to attend.  Please see any of the Woodbury's for more details.  There will be a sign-up sheet in Wiles Hall.

Join us for a Kitchen Clean Up
There will be a parish kitchen clean-up day on Sunday, June 26, after the 10AM service. Come and help us purge the 10,000 salt packets! We'll renew our kitchen as a clean and sacred space for hospitality and fellowship, and have a good time, too!

Summer Service Schedule Begins 
July 3rd!
On Sunday, July 3rd until Sunday, August 28th we will be on our summer service schedule with one service at 9:00AM. This will be a chance for worshipers from the 8, 10 and 5 congregations to be together, and also allows us to beat the summer heat! Weather permitting; we will worship on the front lawn on Sunday, July 3rd to kick-off the summer service season!

Parish Prayer List
We will be removing all names from the Parish Prayer list on July 3rd.  If you have names you would like to remain on the list, please contact Carol in the Parish Office at office@gracemedford.org or call the church office at 781-396-7215.
 
Grace Women's Lunch
The Women of Grace Church meet for lunch, year-round, at John Brewer's Tavern in Malden on the first Wednesday of every month, at noon.  Please join us - no prior sign-up required.

Dining With Grace returns this Summer!
The popular Dining with Grace returns this summer with parishioners opening their homes for summer picnics in July and August.    Scheduled picnics will be listed on the back wall near the parish office - sign up and your host/hostess will tell you what to bring to this pot-luck picnic!  If you are interested in hosting a picnic, please let Margaret Smist or Cheryl Woodbury know when and where!
 
We have two picnics scheduled so far:
Margaret Smist and Bill Smalley's home on Saturday, July 31.   This picnic is in Marblehead and they own two dogs.
 
Barbara and Dan Kennedy's home in West Medford on Saturday August 13 at 3pm.   They can host up to 30 people.