Dear Friends in Christ,

Welcome to the summer! After 10 feet of snow, I think we've earned some time of rest in the    warm summer sun. As I hope you already know, we are now on our summer worship schedule, which means we gather on Saturday at 5pm and Sunday at 9am. We will continue with this weekend schedule through Labor Day weekend. We continue to worship on Wednesday evenings at 7pm, but we gather at the labyrinth (behind St. Clare House) for Compline, followed by S'mores cooked over a fire pit...bring your lawn chairs if you have them!

The summer is for relaxing, but not only relaxing - as the picture shows, the days at the church have been filled with some important work. The spaces of our buildings that experienced damage during the winter are being torn down and closely inspected. The pictures show that the demolition work on St. Clare House, the library, and the narthex is almost done. The offices and storage room off of Fellowship Hall will be done soon. Once this work is complete (hopefully in a couple of weeks), we will begin the work of putting everything back together! In a few weeks we will also begin the process of removing our current furnace and complete the installation of a new, energy efficient system. There are additional, smaller projects in the works as well...stop by and I will give you the grand tour!

As the warmth of summer continues to relax your body and spirits, may you have fun in the sun, travel safe, and keep your brothers and sisters of St. Francis in your prayers.

Yours in Christ,

Pat 

Summer hours for the Administrator's office will be Tuesday through Thursday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. during the months of July and August.

PLEASE NOTE  The Sign-up Table and Mission Table have been relocated to Fellowship Hall until the water damage clean-up is completed.  

CALLING ALL GARDENERS: "LAY WEEDERS" NEEDED" Do you love to garden? Do you have some free time this summer that you need to fill? St. Francis needs you! If you are willing to help out maintaining the garden beds and labyrinth area at the church and St. Clare House (weeding, pruning, and performing general maintenance items), please contact Karen Safstrom (karen.safstrom@gmail.com) or sign up on the sign-up sheet in the fellowship hall for a week or two of assisting us in the upkeep of our grounds. 

This month Pat is reading The Road to Character by David Brooks. I have long appreciated David Brooks' ability to speak the truth plainly, presenting his opinions on matters while maintaining a sense of moderation and honesty. In this new book, Brooks presents the lives of some of history's most inspirational people and explores the topics of leadership, morality, and ethics; and how these lives highlight how we might live our lives directed toward more than just ourselves. Can be purchased from Amazon and Barnes and Noble in hardcover or Kindle and Nook formats. Pat's thoughts as he reads the book can be found at his blog at Padre Ryder's Journal.

This month Karen is reading 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess by Jen Hatmaker. This is the story of how Jen Hatmaker took 7 months, identified 7 areas of excess, and made 7 choices to fight back against materialism and greed in her life. As someone who is always working on the same issues in my own life I couldn't resist picking it up at a stewardship conference this spring. Can be purchased from Amazon and Barnes and Noble in paperback or Kindle and Nook formats. Karen's thoughts as she reads the book can be found at St. Francis Holden Book Blog and are usually posted by the end of the day on Monday. Her planned reading schedule is Week of July 6: Introduction & Month 1, Week of July 13: Months 2 & 3, Week of July 20: Months 4 & 5, and Week of July 27: Months 6 & 7 & Conclusion. 

As of 7/2 we have our goal of $25,000. Money received beyond our goal will be maintained as a restricted Building Improvement Fund. Thank you for your generous support! 

Congratulations to Robin Carlo on her appointment to serve as Missioner for Spiritual Formation for the Diocese of Western Mass.  Read the Bishop's announcement here.

"Authentic" is how the Right Rev. Douglas Fisher, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts, describes the Right Rev. Michael Curry.

Read the article here.

St. Francis is now a registered non-profit organization on SmileAmazon.com   By following this link and signing in using your Amazon sign-in you can support St. Francis when you shop. A great way to support St. Francis!!  

We will plan an updated Pictorial Directory for the fall.  If your family picture is not in this directory please send us a picture to include in the fall directory.  Summer is a great time to get a family picture.  Please email it to stfran@verizon.net along with any updated info.

Church School Newsletters: Family Connections

Youth Group: Schedule

Sermon Archives: Sermons

Senior's Birthdays:  Birthday list

Calendar: Monthly calendar