May 20, 2014Volume 4, Number 38
In This Issue
Diocesan Office Update
Community Update
Bishop's Visitation
Youth Presence
ECW Annual Meeting
Daughters of the King
Trinity, Cochran
Atonement, Augusta
St. Patrick's, Albany
School Year End
Summer Camp
Having a Blast!
Social Media Connections
Web Links
 
 
 


This Sunday's Lections:
Sixth Sunday of Easter 
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Georgia Interfaith Power & Light
Energy Audits Save Churches Money 

Every congregation is seeking to trim costs where possible and an inexpensive energy audit is proving itself a valuable tool in reducing costs for churches. Georgia Interfaith Power & Light is a non-profit founded in 2003 and incorporated in 2009 to engage communities of faith in stewardship of creation. GIPL offers Power Wise, a program to help congregations and their members reduce their use of energy and incorporate Creation Care into the entire life of the congregation. A $100 to $300 fee (depending on the number of members of the church) is all it costs to get the audit which has been proven to earn itself back quickly in energy savings. Additionally, churches may be awarded grants or find other support through the program to make cost-cutting changes. For example, GIPL awarded a grant to St. Paul's Augusta in 2011 to help fund several of the measures identified in their Energy Audit Report. The church received $7,750 to install blown-in insulation in the sanctuary attic, which has an estimated annual energy savings of $1,918.

  

Savannah Churches Schedule an Audit Now 

GIPL will be conducting an audit of Diocesan House, our two-story, brick office at 611 East Bay Street which has housed the bishop and staff since 1958. One other church will be doing an audit at the same time. Contact Libby Thoni at the diocesan office ([email protected] or 912-236-4279) to coordinate for any Savannah area church to have an audit at the same time. Churches in other areas may contact GIPL directly through their website www.gipl.org

 

Free Creation Wise Program
Creation Wise is a free program that includes five separate guides for your congregation: Power Wise, Water Wise, Dirt Wise , Buy Wise and Waste Wise. Each of these programs includes educational, worship, practical and theological resources so that churches will be able to embrace sustainability across the life of their congregation. This program last year and this certification program is helping communities of faith cut their carbon footprint, use less energy, conserve water, waste less and make sustainable choices across the life of their congregation. Download the guides above to get started.
Diocesan Office Update   

Bishop Benhase is on retreat this week. 

 

Bishop Benhase will make his visitations this Sunday to St. John & St. Mark's, Albany in the morning, and Good Shepherd, Thomasville, in the afternoon. 

 

Canon Logue will preside and preach this Sunday for the first Eucharist of the summer season for Worship on the Water, a liturgy of Christ Church, Cordele, on the dock at the state park on Lake Blackshear.

 

Our Missioner for Youth, Elizabeth Burns, and Honey Creek Executive Director, Dade Brantley, will speak on Wednesday evening at Trinity, Statesboro, on our Camp and Conference Center, the Summer Camp program, and Youth Programs of the Diocese.

 

Elizabeth Burns and our Program Manager, Rudy Reyes, will be at Honey Creek this Friday and Saturday as participants in the Church Development Institute.

 

Diocesan House will be closed Monday May 26 in observance of Memorial Day. 

 

Convocational Confirmation in Eastertide 
Savannah | May 29th | St. Francis' of the Islands | Savannah | 7 p.m.  
Community Update

The Rev. Helen White has resigned as the Vicar of All Saints, Tybee Island. Her last Sunday will be June 22. Canon Logue will be working with the vestry and congregation on next steps in their transition.
  
The Rev. Joye Cantrell completed her work as Interim Rector of Christ Church, Valdosta, this past Sunday, May 18. She has retired from full-time ministry with the conclusion of this call. Christ Church's next Rector, the Rev. Dr. Dave Johnson, begins work on June 29.
Bishop's Visitation
  
St. Andrew's, Douglas 

Bishop Benhase, The Rev. Stephen Norris, and the confirmands at St. Andrew's, Douglas.
  
Grace, Waycross
 Bishop Benhase, The Rev. Kit Brinson and the confirmands at Grace, Waycross.
  
St. Paul's, Jesup

Bishop Benhase is pictured above with the Rev. Dee Shaffer, Deacon Marty Meuschke, the confirmands and those reaffirming their faith. Below are photos of a reaffirmation and the St. Paul's choir singing an anthem.
 
Youth Presence
Meetings Upcoming in Savannah and Augusta
The first session as a part of bringing Youth Presence to the Diocese of Georgia took place at St. Anne's, Tifton, this past weekend (pictured here and below). Congregations there worked on a unique vision for youth ministry in their given context. Teams attending the Tifton workshop left saying they were inspired and also by the end of the meeting each team had a vision statement, program goals, and a plan of action. Al Armstrong, a lay leader at St. Patrick's Albany said of this first workshop, "Youth Presence Ministries took this monumental task and broke it down into something doable and practical." 
  
Leslie Dellenbarger of St. John's Bainbridge said that she felt inspired by the session, adding that "Youth Presence feels doable now. Less daunting than before the workshop." For each congregation the program goals and plan will vary depending on the church and its community. This same visioning session, will be repeated May 30-31 in Augusta and finally June 6-7 in Savannah. There is still time for any congregation in the Diocese to put together a team for either of these workshops, but time is running out to register. If you are interested, contact our Missioner for Youth, Elizabeth Burns, at [email protected]
  
About Youth Presence
 It is the belief of Youth Presence Ministry that Youth Ministry is different in every place and possible in every place. The programs offered will focuses on the local congregation and their unique setting, circumstances, challenges and hopes for the future. This model also fosters church growth by the presence and interface of young people in their midst. For more information, click here for a PDF: Youth Ministries Overview

About the Workshops
All Congregations wishing to participate must send at least six participants to the workshops. The workshops will be held Friday from 6-9 and Saturday from 8:30-3:30. These participants should be people who are passionate about creating a youth presence in your church community. They don't have to be the adult youth leaders. At the vision workshop, they will be given skill to help find these people. Participants must commit to coming to the training sessions and, most importantly, working to implement the vision plan in the congregation.


Episcopal Church Women
Annual Meeting at Honey Creek a Success
Women from ECW groups around the Diocese gathered this past weekend at our camp and conference center for the ECW Annual Meeting. At right, on Friday evening the Province IV ECW President Barbara Owens (pictured here) inspired the group with a talk on prayer. Saturday included a business meeting and a closing Eucharist where Bishop Benhase consecrated chalices and patens given to Honey Creek for use in the chapel by the ECW of the Diocese of Georgia. They were made by a Valdosta artist, Walter Hobbs. Many more photos of the event are found in the online album here: Diocese of Georgia ECW Photos
   
Next year's ECW annual meeting will be hosted by the Savannah Convocation and will meet April 24-25, 2015.
 
   
  
 

The Revs. William Lea and Adrianna Shaw are presented with the new charter for the Daughters of the King at St. Philip's Hinesville on Sunday May 18. Mary Dawson, President of the Diocese of Georgia Daughters of the King presents the charter as DOK members Edna Brown, Randye Williams, and JoAnne Coefield stand by.


Daughters of the King
A Sisterhood of Prayer, Service and Evangelism

The Order of the Daughters of the King (DOK) is a spiritual sisterhood of women dedicated to a life of Prayer, Service and Evangelism. Members of the DOK, both lay and ordained, are women who have made a commitment to Jesus as our Savior, and to follow Him as Lord of their lives. In the midst of their daily lives, Daughters find community and spiritual support in local chapters of three or more women. Chapters are formed in churches and are under the oversight of their congregation's clergy. While the group is primarily women who are communicants of the Episcopal Church, today our membership includes women in the Anglican, Episcopal, Lutheran (ELCA) and Roman Catholic churches. Roughly 25,000 women are members of the Daughters of the King in the US and an additional 5,000 are international Daughters in eighteen countries. Click here to read more.

 

 The Very Rev. William Willoughby prays for the members of the Daughters of the King at St. Paul the Apostle Savannah.

Trinity, Cochran
11th Annual Bible Reading Marathon

Members of Trinity, Cochran, participated in the 11th Annual Bible Reading Marathon held on the steps of the Bleckley County Courthouse in Cochran. The Bible Reading Marathon is sponsored by the Cochran/Bleckley Ministerial Alliance in conjunction with the National Day of Prayer that is observed May 1.  Readings will take place daily during the marathon from 6 am until midnight with the exception of Sunday when readings are conducted from 2 pm until midnight. Volunteers take turns reading Bible passages from the steps of the Bleckley County Courthouse until the entire work has been finished. As a participating church, Trinity is given a time slot and passages to read and then selects members to fill in their time period reading portions of scripture as assigned. The group from Trinity Episcopal is pictured above on the courthouse steps.

Atonement, Augusta
Serving at the Master's Table 

Last Saturday, May 10th, several youth and Adults from the Church of the Atonement, served the needy at the Master's Table in downtown Augusta. L-R in group  photo are Michalea Fickling, Pam Brinson, Malik Rosette-Jones, Alice James, Keon Brinson, Michael Fickling, Teresa Gaskins, Nancy Belangia and Joyce Reid. Not shown is Nanette Hayes. This is an annual joint outreach of the youth and women of the church.

 
St. Patrick's, Albany
Organist Loretta Travers Retires after more than 25 Years
The congregation of St. Patrick's, Albany, recently hosted a celebration in honor of organist Loretta Travers. After more than a quarter century of service to the congregation, Travers is retiring, moving on to bolder adventures, and to spend more time with her two sons, Theo (with whom she is pictured here) and Malcolm. Travers received her formal training at The Julliard School in New York.  
  
During the lunch held in her honor, many parishioners spoke and recounted memories of how Loretta had led in music as well as in worship. For some at St. Patrick's, she was the first memory of sacred music, for others she was a music/piano/voice teacher, and for others a friend and confidant. St. Patrick's Rector, the Rev. Jay Weldon, said, "Her music and her friendship will be in St. Patrick's hearts and memories forever." 
At Holy Comforter, Martinez, youth minister Hughes McGlone hands out gifts to their high school graduates in the Sunday liturgy.
   
Photos of the School Year's End Around the Diocese 

The congregation gathers around and lays on hands as the Rev. Lonnie Lacy prays for the high school graduates at St. Anne's, Tifton.

  
Kids at Christ Church, Frederica, enjoy the Sundae Celebration on the final Sunday School session of the school year.


The kiddie pool at St. Paul's, Augusta's End-of-the-Year Celebration.
  
Christ Church Valdosta's high school graduates.
  

Students at Middle Georgia State College collected canned goods for Trinity, Cochran's Food Closet. Pictured above at the church's Food Closet Chairman, and Dr. Brooke Miller, the MGSC professor whose spring semester classes donated 446 canned goods to Trinity's program. 

It's good to start connecting them to Honey Creek as early as possible...

Having a Blast   

 

       

This past Syunday, Holy Comforter, Martinez, celebrated the end of the school year with the BLAST (Bible Learning Action Station) kids who also had a blast on the water slide.

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Sincerely,                                       
            
Diocesan Staff                             
The Episcopal Diocese of Georgia