AnnualMeetingInformation - St. Andrew's Episcopal Church

Ministry Reports for 2011

Rector’s Report 2011

Dear Friends at St. Andrew’s,

It was over 3 ½ years ago that you called me to do God’s work with you in this place! Sometimes it seems much shorter and sometimes it seems like I have been here for a long, long time! This past year has been another one full of ministry here at St. Andrew’s and out in the community.

In July, after a lengthy, thoughtful and prayerful period of discernment the vestry called me to be your Rector and I accepted. With this call came a reduction in my work time from 2/3 time to ½ time. This did not happen without a great deal of struggle with finances. The reduction was made in an effort to come closer to spending what we have and not relying so heavily on our endowed income. The vestry continues to work towards an appropriate use of those funds.

The reduction in my time has caused changes in our worship as I am now present to lead worship on the first three Sundays of the month only. We have needed to expand the group of worship leaders and those who give us a “report from the field.” This is an opportunity for others to learn to take on leadership roles and I welcome anyone else who would like to speak with me about this ministry.

Worship always happens on Sunday here, whether it is a Eucharist or Morning Prayer. We also continue to offer our way of worship with the residents at the St. Johnsbury Rehabilitation Center every other month. During 2011 we shared a new way of worshiping with others in the community as we pushed back the chairs and set up a labyrinth in our sanctuary. This was organized with the help of Elisa Luccozzi, the assistant pastor at North Church. Quite a few people participated and we hope to do this again this coming Lent. Worship also happened in a very different way one Sunday in October when we welcomed the Pink Saints of Paul, a group of teen-aged rock musicians from St. Paul’s White River Junction. I thought it was great fun and so good for all of us to realize that there is more than one way to worship God.

St. Andrew’s again hosted the World Day of Prayer worship service which was organized by Betty Maynard and quite well attended. In February we welcomed a seminarian from Episcopal Divinity School as a guest preacher. We baptized three new members – Amber, Javin and Grace- at a wonderful service in May during the bishop’s visitation.

Our sanctuary with its excellent acoustics was also the place for three violin concerts over the summer and a violin and piano concert in November. The November concert was a fund-raiser for the Help Fund which assists people with fuel for the winter. St. Andrew’s donated the space and the heat! In the summer we also hosted another artistic event – the exhibit by the Episcopal Church and the Visual Arts – a Reverence for Trees. The church was alive with three different art exhibits by Vermont Episcopalians.

We continue to serve our community with our monthly free suppers, now called Everyone Eats! Numbers continue to fluctuate according to the weather, but the guests who come always leave well fed and full of conversation with each other and the members of this church. Under the direction of Laurie Speicher a number of new cooks have come forward and the soup has always been delicious. Are there any new cooks out there?

Your generosity continues to amaze me. This parish gave time, money, labor and furnishings to the Freeway Relay as the diocese of Vermont worked to help those devastated by Tropical Storm Irene. We packed lunches, brought in clothing and space heaters, transported things to the next stop on the relay, loaded trucks at Lyndon State College with donated Carhartt clothing and prayed for those people whose lives were changed in a day. Your generosity with the discretionary fund has been nothing short of spectacular. This money is given to parishioners and community members who find themselves in a difficult situation mostly in needing fuel, electric bills or sometimes groceries. You have given almost $5000.00 this year! Except during the summer, the money goes out almost as fast as it comes in due to the increasing needs because of the economy. I cannot tell you how much good you have done – thank you and God bless you for your generosity, for doing what Jesus tells us to do – take care of the needy ones.

This year brings an end to Diane Montague’s tenure as senior warden. She has been with me the whole 3 ½ years and I will greatly miss her energy and enthusiasm for moving ahead with God’s work for us. Susan Ohlidal will also be leaving the vestry after serving one year. Susan leaves us because she is pursuing ordination and is now a postulant for Holy Orders! She is not leaving St. Andrew’s however and will be called upon to help us out from time to time. I also wish to thank Sarah Maynard for her service on the vestry and for filling in as bookkeeper during 2011 while welcoming Nene Riley as our new bookkeeper. I am thankful for the continuity of Jocelyn Burrell and Dennis Keon who remain on the vestry.

It has been my pleasure to serve as your Rector this year. With God’s help we will continue to do good work both within St. Andrew’s Church and out in the greater community.

God’s blessings to you,

Jean

The Rev. Jean MacDonald