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The Shamrock
April 20, 2016
A WORD FROM YOUR RECTOR AND WARDENS...
The Very Rev.
Dick Game
Mike Cropper - Senior Warden
David White - Junior Warden













Dear friends,
 
We are on a trajectory that is allowing us to fulfill our mission to welcome, feed, nurture and love all God's children. You have given your treasure so generously, and because of that, our budget is strong, our ministries are growing and our future is bright.
 
Faithful friends from our past have secured our present by their generous gift of this building to us. We are now securing the future for other generations by setting money aside to support ministry here years from now. For the first time in the history of this parish, we have an endowment fund in place with a seed gift of $250,000 (half of an original unrestricted gift of $500,000). We invested the other half of that gift in our present ministries.
 
Our growth in membership and ministries in the past year is directly related to these two decisions in 2014. The addition of Mother Sarah as full-time Associate Rector and Mother Julia as quarter-time Priest Associate has empowered more and more of our congregation to live out their baptismal callings in service to the world within and outside our doors. Meanwhile, under the steady and exuberant leadership of Liz Beal Kidd, our Youth program is the envy of the diocese. And after a thorough search, our Children and Youth Ministries Renovation Team has called a new Director of Children's Ministries who will help us nurture our expanding children's program. We plan to make a formal announcement of that calling very soon.
 
The Vestry made the decision to open these four positions with eyes wide open, knowing that the funds for them would run out in a few years. But we stepped out in faith, trusting that the generosity of current and new parishioners would increase our operating budget over time. We remain steadfast in faith that God will inspire the generosity necessary for us to fulfill God's mission through St. Patrick's.
 
Our challenge at this moment in our history is funding for the period of 2017 through 2019. At present, we have $155,000 in staff expenses per year that are not funded by current giving. We have enough left in special gifts ($187,911) to fund these four positions through May of 2017. We need to increase our annual giving to the operating budget by 33% (an increase from $475,000 to $630,000).
 
This is a defining, thrilling moment for our parish, and we are excited to see how God will open our hearts in generosity and gratitude. Stay tuned for future updates, gatherings and stories of faithfulness in this season of giving back to the God the giver.
 
Gratefully,
 
The Very Rev. Dick Game, Rector
Mike Cropper, Senior Warden
David White, Junior Warden
SENIOR BANQUET THIS SATURDAY

Senior Banquet, This Saturday, 6-8 pm: This is a time for St. Patrick's to honor all Seniors in high school. Invite all family, friends, and special people! Come to remind our graduating seniors that we have loved them on this journey and will continue to love them...and that they are always welcome back.

We will be having a Mexican dinner. Tickets are $10 at the door and $5 for children 10 and under. Please give Liz a rough estimate of a head count so she can try to make sure we have enough food. GF, NF, and vegetarian options will be available. Please text Liz with your head count: 404-358-6024.

 
SPIRAL by Leigh Cooper
Be sure to visit and see all the faces of God tucked into this spiral.
"Whichever way you turn, there is the face of God"
A NOTE FROM SARAH, JULIA, AND LIZ
about Youth and Children's Ministries

For the Season of Easter, Formation for both Children and Youth will begin at 9:15 AM. Our lessons will begin promptly at 9:15, so please arrive on time so you won't miss any of the fun!
 
In the Easter Season, we are trying an experiment. In the great hope of nurturing relationships between children, parents, and the broader congregation within the Children's Formation program, we use the workshop rotation model for the six Sundays in Easter. In this experiment we will divide the kids by age into two groups and they will each explore three stories:
The Road to Emmaus: April 24
Breakfast on the Beach: May 1 & 8

Come join the fun at 9:15 each Sunday!!! The children will explore each story for two Sundays, yet in a different way each Sunday. The curriculum is designed to be very hands on for the kids, fun, and full of opportunity to wonder, explore, and play in the story. They will also experience different teams of adult leaders who are delighted to be in relationship with your children.

Click here to read the most recent Children's Ministry email newsletter.
UPCOMING EVENTS 

Korean Congregation "Grand Opening" Celebration, This Sunday at 4 pm: This celebration begins with Eucharist in the Nave. All are welcome.



Pentecost Picnic: May 24 Following the 10:30 a.m. service:  Join us in the Parish Hall Parking lot. Remember to wear your most colorful red, orange or yellow clothes. There will be a Slip 'n' Slide and more. Why not invite friends and neighbors?
 
Buy your tickets and sign up to help -find us in the Narthex after 10:30 a.m. service April 24, May 1 & 8.
 It is helpful for planning if y'all sign up ahead of time please, both to attend the picnic and to volunteer for Sunday morning set up and post-picnic clean-up.

Questions? Contact facilitators:Elaine Judge: l_judge@bellsouth.net or Alison Forbes : forbes@millquayuk.com



Family Summer Camp: Please save the date for our upcoming Family Summer Camp:
     Who: Rising K through rising 5th graders and their parents
     When: July 25-28, 5:30-8:00 PM
 
Stephen Ministry: Changes can be difficult, especially when they are unexpected. Stephen Ministers are trained to help people learn to cope with unwelcome changes in their lives for as long as they are needed. If youhave experienced great changes or know someone who has, learn more about Stephen Ministry by contacting Fr. Dick at (770) 455-6523 or Anne Duncan at (770) 454-9053, annebduncan@gmail.com. Everything you tell a Stephen Minister is kept absolutely confidential.
LOOKING AHEAD

Saturday, April 23, 9:30 am - 3 pm Quiet Day: As We Age 
Saturday, April 23, 6-8 pm Senior Banquet 
Sunday, April 24, 4 pm Korean Congregation Grand Opening Celebration 
Saturday, April 30, 7 pm Chalice, Cheese, and Hafiz 
Tuesdays, May 3, June  7   
Pub Theology & Trivia, Dunwoody Tavern   
 
Sunday, May 15 Pentecost, Picnic Following 10:30 service 
July 25-28 Family Summer Camp 
WEEKLY EVENTS

 
Join Mother Julia:  
Mondays at Noon- Meditative Basics Class (open to beginner and long time practitioner alike)  
Fridays at Noon - Restorative Yoga

Cost: Great spring yoga deal - $120 unlimited classes through June OR $60 unlimited classes once a week through June. Otherwise $10 per class. Please speak with Julia if this cost is a hardship, so that scholarship can be joyfully arranged.  
SUNDAY MORNING CHRISTIAN FORMATION

Children 
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd - meet at 9:15 a.m.
   
Youth 
Journey to Adulthood classes meet at 9:00 a.m. in their classrooms
Rite 13 - grades 6-7
J2A - grades 8-9
YEA - grades 10-12

Adult Christian Formation - Sundays at 9:15 a.m.
  • The Faith Club: Join Mother Julia and Anne Duncan in reading the book The Faith Club  and explore aspects of the three Abrahamic religions through the eyes of three friends who banded together to write a children's book in the aftermath of 9/11. These three mothers, a Muslim, a Christian, and a Jew, seek to explain the tragic events, each in light of her own faith. Meet in Room 1.
     
  • Acts 21 - 28 - Charles Boyanton, Room 8
    In his Gospel, Luke recounts the fulfillment of God's Word in the person of Christ the Messiah. In Acts, he describes how the Holy Spirit continues to fulfill Christ's mission to the world through His church.
  • Dreams: Listening to God with Brenda Marquis and Kendra Yates in the Library.
  • Doing Art Looking Up with Diane Rankin and Nancy Dusenberry in the Art Lab.
WONDERFUL WEDNESDAYS  
 
DINNER TOGETHER
Between 6:00 and 6:50, we share food and fellowship. Vegetarian and gluten-free options are always available. Diners are asked to contribute $7 ($5 for children) to cover food costs. Please call the church office to make your dinner reservation.
Free childcare is available by reservation. Contact the church office by the Monday before.

APRIL 6 - MAY 11, 7:00 - 8:00 (unless otherwise noted)

JUST TO BE IS HOLY - Join us Wednesday evenings in Easter for a simple contemplative offering of quiet and taize style music, to last about forty minutes. April 6 - May 11. Meet us in the candlelit chapel to be refreshed and renewed, to rest, and to be in the embrace of God.



EVERY WEDNESDAY -
5:00 - 6:00  
BIBLE ART JOURNALING -Diane Rankin - Art Lab: Meet with us on Wednesdays to have a visual conversation with God. Scripture from Sunday's lectionary will be discussed and illuminated.
 
ROTATING OFFERNGS
April 20, and 27: JUST MERCY with Father Dick and Mother Sarah:  For more than half a century, the Episcopal Church has opposed the Death Penalty. Still, state sanctioned execution remains a regular form of punishment in the Georgia. Our state ranks fifth highest in the US in total executions with 1,010. How do we, a people who follow a Savior who was executed by the State, understand the death penalty today? How do we reconcile justice and mercy, forgiveness and anger? We will explore these questions, reading together Bryan Stevenson's Just Mercy. Reading the book is strongly encouraged, but not required.

May 4: HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE DAY: View the story of Irena Sendler, who led a group of Polish Catholic women in Warsaw in saving the lives of over 2,500 Jewish children. Join in praying that genocide may cease. 

May 11: CELEBRATION!!!
Click here to read brochure.
OUTREACH
Malachis web logo 
Malachi's is open each Wednesday - lunch at 11:30 a.m. Free grocery shopping from 1 -3 p.m.
Click here to learn more.
St. Patrick's Episcopal Church | StPat.net | 770.455.6523 
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