Ash Wednesday Services
Holy Communion and the Imposition of Ashes
February 26, 2020
8:00am, 12:10pm, 5:00pm (Chapel Taizé service), & 7:00pm
Burning of Palms for Ash Wednesday – Palms from the prior year’s Palm Sunday are burned to make the ashes for Ash Wednesday. We will burn palms Sunday, February 23rd, in the Columbarium at 9:15am, between the 8am and 10:30am services. Please remember to bring in your palms.
This Sunday is the 4th Sunday of the month, and the recipient of the 4th Sunday Offering will be the Interfaith Cot Shelter. Located in downtown Northampton, the Interfaith Shelter is an emergency shelter for homeless adults providing warm beds and hot meals from November through April. Members of Grace have been volunteering at the shelter for over 20 years. A SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR COT SHELTER VOLUNTEERS. Grace volunteers create and serve meals on the second Thursday of each month from November through April. Our volunteers can speak to the joy that comes from serving such welcoming and appreciative guests. As the program coordinator, I wish to thank all those who have participated this year and in years past and encourage any others interested in joining to please email me. Thank you for any gift you can give to support this important mission. – Steve McKelvey.
Food for Coffee hour: An enjoyable part of our Sundays is the coffee hour after a worship service. The Coffee Hour Ministry relies on donations of food items for this special social time. If you can donate crackers, cookies, or other baked items, it would be very much appreciated. Also, vegetable and fruit plates are welcome. Coffee Hour volunteers will prepare coffee and tea and set the table with food donations.
Contemplative Prayer Group is meeting on Mondays at 5:00 to 6:00 pm in the Parker Room. Please contact Michael Erard or 413- 563-3676 (cell)
Potluck with Lucio Perez: 5:30 pm on Monday, February 24 at First Church Amherst. Please bring food to share that does not require heating up at church and plan to participate in clean up! Many hands make for light work! For more information please contact Karen Levine.
The Grace Church Stewardship campaign for 2020 To date 167 pledges have come in totaling $462,852.00. To those who have pledged God Bless, to those who have yet to pledge please pray and pledge so our Vestry can budget for 2020. If you need a pledge card, they are available as you enter the church or you can contact the office (413) 256-6754 or Tom Dougherty at (413) 563-7321.
Sustain Earth by Using Climate Solutions – Today’s tip is a general one: the solutions to climate change come with huge extra benefits that reach far beyond just addressing climate change. They save money, improve our health, lower energy costs, create more jobs, allow local control and local benefits, improve our local economy, foster global stability, and create a safer, more equitable world. Learn more at sustainislandhome.org. Courtesy of Greening Grace.
SAVE THE DATE
20s and 30s Bookmill Afternoon – Sat., Feb. 29th Local young adults are warmly invited to be part of Grace Church’s monthly gatherings, which are meant to give space both for social connection and spiritual conversation. This month, we’ll be going together to the Bookmill in Montague, followed with time at the Lady Killigrew Café. We will leave from Grace at 1:30 p.m.; people are also welcome to meet us at the Bookmill at 2 p.m. Please let Megan know if you need or can offer a ride.
Lent Series: Signs of Life – 5-Week Series on Wednesdays, Starting Mar. 4th
Over five Wednesdays in Lent, we will gather together to explore some of the signs and symbols at the heart of Christian worship as well as life itself. Over our sessions, we will explore light, water, food, shelter, and community, seeing how they connect to our personal spirituality as well as our worship together. This five-week series uses a curriculum created by the Society of St. John the Evangelist, an Episcopal religious order located in Cambridge, and Virginia Theological Seminary. Gatherings will be held March 4th, March 11th, March 18th, March 25th, and April 1st at 7 p.m.
Daylight Savings Reminder! The clocks need to be moved forward one hour March 8th!
The Garden Ministry will meet Saturday, March 14, at 10 a.m. in the Connector. We will plan for a spring plant sale, a spring clean-up day and how to maintain the gardens over the summer. Newcomers are welcome. Call Sherry Wilson at 256-6955 with any questions.
High schoolers can now register for this summer’s Episcopal Youth Event! Anyone currently in grades 9-12 is invited to join the Western Mass. group attending this summer’s Episcopal Youth Event. We’ll travel to University of Maryland, College Park and stay there for three days of worship, speakers, and workshops alongside Episcopal teenagers from around the country. Departure date July 7th and return July 11th. For more information on EYE: https://events.episcopalchurch.org/eye/ or contact Megan who will be one of the chaperones.
Will you join us? Help plan the next steps in the ongoing work of Grace Church with St. Matthew’s School in Bayonnais, Haiti. Whether you see yourself as a part of the committee that meets monthly or as someone who would work on specific short-term projects, we promise conversations and working sessions that are efficient, interesting, and fun! Suzannah Fabing, John Stifler, Bonnie Vigeland, or any other member of the committee will be delighted to talk with you about how you can make a difference in this ministry.