Announcements Archive
One of the four major topics discussed at the Vestry retreat was regarding a priest for St Joseph’s. The Vestry decided that we have enough money to pursue a local candidate who would not require the expenses of moving, or upgrades to the rectory and the cost of someone living in the rectory. They began by having discussions with some of the supply priests whom we have gotten to know during the past year. Steve Petty’s announcement last Sunday was the decision made after having those discussions, and being agreed upon unanimously by the Vestry.
A Note from Steve Petty
To Our St. Joseph’s Friends:
I was very happy to make the following announcement in church Sunday. After several months, conversations, and budget reviews, the Vestry has offered a part-time rector position to Paige Buchholz. She has accepted the position, and Bishop Young has given his approval. We have had an unusual opportunity to get to know and fall in love with Paige over the past 11 months. As you know she has served as supply priest many times during that period, and lots of our parishioners have formed a real bond with her. This will make a tremendous difference when we begin our shared ministry with Paige on March 4 because we are already so well acquainted with each other. It was a joyful occasion when the announcement was made in today’s 10:30 service. When Paige entered the parish hall after church, she was greeted by a hall full of parishioners wearing festive head bands and wishing her well while the St. Joseph’s Kazoo Ensemble played an appropriately celebratory song. We will share more about Paige’s schedule and duties when the Vestry and Paige complete their work on these things.
Further info on all the four topics discussed at the Vestry retreat may be found on the Vestry bulletin board in the Parish Hall
Church Growth – As of today, 15 copies of Five Practices of a Fruitful Congregation by Robert Schnase have been ordered from Amazon, we will be discussing this book in Forum, and possibly an evening session for discussion too. This is one step we are taking as a church body to examine where we might change or refresh the things we do and the ways we think about growing our congregation. To order the paperback for 12.00 call Bev at 654-4461
Internal & External Communications – One of the most compelling messages from the parish in October was that communication needs to be enhanced and expanded at St. Joseph’s. A communications plan was presented to the Vestry by Bev Jones. It includes a plan for internal communications to become more thorough, consistent, and accurate. Bev will be the hub of those communication efforts and will ensure consistency of information among all those who participate in communicating important information to the parish. Nikolette Edge will be in charge of transmitting information from the Vestry to Bev after each meeting. Internal information will include the weekly e-mail, bulletin, bulletin boards, web site information for members, and prayer chain. The plan also includes improved external communication by making better use of St. Joseph’s web site information for non-members, Facebook page, The Mountain Press, and church sign. We are looking for someone who will volunteer to manage the church sign on a weekly basis. We are also looking for those with writing skills who might be willing to write an occasional article or editorial for the Mountain Press. Let us know if you are interested in either task. See the Vestry bulletin board for more details about communications.
Outreach Partner – At the annual meeting in December, the parish voted for their favorite non-profit organizations from a list of 10 nominations. The purpose was to ultimately develop a special partnership with one of those organizations. The top four were Family Resource Center, Ft. Sanders Nursing Home, Mountain Hope Clinic, and Sevier County Food Ministry. The nursing home was later removed from the list by Linda Devereoux who works there and believes that their needs are not a good fit with St. Joseph’s at this time. Interviews were held with the remaining three organizations to obtain more information to share with the parish. At the retreat, the Vestry reviewed that information and talked about how we will proceed. As it turned out, the task was more difficult than expected. All three organizations have very important purposes in our community, do excellent work, and have a diverse range of financial and volunteer needs. Because of this, we were not able to reach a consensus about how to proceed. The Outreach Committee (Ed Trenholm, Anne Krachtovil, Jim Rugh) will continue to think about this issue and bring a recommendation back to the Vestry at its February meeting. See the Vestry bulletin board for more information about this discussion
The beginning pieces of the new communication team will center around the Message Center bulletin board. The bulletin board just inside the Parish hallway door is now titled Message Center There we will post info about our communication team, our most current directory information, where you can check and correct your mailing address, phone numbers, emails, birthdays. The Vestry bulletin board will still be in the Parish Hall with minutes and reports to share.The other part of our new communication effort is “St. Joseph’s News & Reminders”
This is the name of our new weekly e-mail sent out by Bev Jones every Monday. If you have not gotten the first five newsletters and want to receive them via e-mail, please do the following:
1. Check your spam folder to make sure they are not being blocked.
2. Add StJosephSevierville@yahoogroups.com to your contact list to ensure your computer allows these e-mails into your inbox.
3. Check the Message Center bulletin board inside the parish hall door to make sure we have your current e-mail address. Write the correct one there if we don’t.
If you cannot receive this information by e-mail or prefer not to, please do the following:
1. Mark through your e-mail address on the “Message Center” bulletin board so we don’t make the mistake of thinking you are receiving it.
2. Pick up a paper copy of St. Joseph News and Reminders email in the back of the nave the following Sunday, OR give your name to Anne Kratochvil so she can mail you a copy on Wednesday each week.
Supply priest schedule continues as follows: Rev Bob Beasley returns to officiate Feb 12, then Paige will be back Feb 19 and 26, also remember Father Rizner will officiate at Ash Weds service at noon.
Delegates to the Diocesan convention on February 10-11 are Jim Rugh, Rick Brown, and Nikolette Edge. Alternates are Jeanne Tredup, Lisa Gibson, and Steve Petty.
DID YOU KNOW? We only owe a little over $ 1,450.00 on that fantastic organ???
Here are some upcoming fun festivities that can help erase that number down to a big old “0.”
October 8 at 6 PM it’s a Chicken and Dumplin’ Dinner cooked up by our very own Bob Cantrell. The cost is $10 per person for all the fixins’. There will be a Cobbler Throw Down ( that is where you whip up your best cobbler and throw it down on the table for everyone to try, not where you throw it on the floor!). Everyone is invited to enter their best cobbler dish into the “throw down” to see who makes the best cobbler ever. Our diners will vote on the best cobbler, and a prize awarded to the best!
All proceeds from this event go to the Organ Fund!
October 30 at 6 PM is a regular old Sunday Night Out.(not a fund raising event as previously planned) Bring a covered dish, as is the tradition, and a friend and come have dinner with us. No cost. Everyone is welcome at the table
Have you ever been to a Sunday Nite Out?
Just what is it you might wonder, well it’s a good time to get together and get to know our church family. The last Sunday of every month, we gather and bring food to share and beverages of your choice if you have special preferences. The coffee pot will be on for sure. We eat and laugh and enjoy each other’s company. Recipes get swapped, old stories get told, and laughter and merriment abound. So if you are new to our group or curious about St. Joseph’s, this is a casual atmosphere, where you can meet and greet, and get to know everyone a bit better.
We hope you’ll join us soon for Sunday Nite Out!
Kitty Manscill
Calling all women, females, misses, goddesses, crones, and you gal!
St. Joseph’s is hosting our Second Anual Ladies Day Out, Saturday, June 4th, 10 AM until 1PM.
The Shoebox., a book by Patsy Clairmont is the central theme for this year’s event
Four speakers: Beth Connatser, Susan Fulbright, Anne Kratochvil, and Beverly Gwinn Jones.will bring us their thoughts on chapters from the book which deals with the fruit of the spirit in the fun framework of shoes, fashion, and many other relatable aspects of life.
And what goes better with shoes than purses! Yes as a bonus, we will have a purse exchange. So now is the time to share that purse which no longer goes with anything you have but might just be what one of the other ladies really needs.
We ask that you bring is a salad or dessert to share. The beverages and bread will be furnished.
I’m so excited to hear our speakers twists on this book, and I look forward to seeing everyonel there.
Questions? Contact. Linda Devereoux
…and guys don’t get jealous we have something coming up just for you very soon!
WHAT ABOUT STEWARDSHIP?
Have you ever thought about last names? About 800 years ago people only had first names. They needed a way to keep all the different Toms, Dicks, and Harrys straight; so it was decided that everyone should have a last name. Some people took their fathers’ names, and thus we have Johnsons, Thompsons, Jacksons. Others chose the places where they lived , and so there are people named Moore, Woods, or Lee. Still others chose their occupations for their last names; so we have Bakers, Farmers, and even Smiths. If Jesus had been a young lad at that time, his last name probably would have been Carpenter.
Each duke, baron, or large land holder had an employee who served as a steward. This person took care of the estate and saw that things were operating well. Some of these people chose the name Steward, Stewart, or Stuart for their surnames. From this occupation came the word stewardship which really means TO TAKE CARE OF.
When people first began flying, flight attendants were called Stewardesses, but now these jobs are held by both males and females, and the title is Flight Attendant. There are still people with jobs as Union or Shop Stewards and Wine Stewards. Some environmental volunteer groups call themselves Stewards.
You have all heard Rob ask who in our congregation are Saints or Angels, and we have realized we all are. We all are something else too. We are STEWARDS, and as such, are called to take care of things – ourselves, our families, our church, our country, our planet.
Kitty Manscill
Stewardship Chair
WHAT ABOUT STEWARDSHIP
When Rob first came, he asked who of us were Saints, and we found out that we all are. Later he asked who were Angels.
Angels are messengers from God. You are an Angel when you smile at a stranger in the grocery store. That smile, perhaps unbeknownst to you, is a message from God, a message of hope and the acknowledgment of the humanity of the individual
who receives the smile.
Now let’s ask ourselves who are Stewards. We all can be.
We are Stewards when we bring our aluminum cans and put them in Ray Gray’s basket in the Parish Hall. This keeps the cans
out of the land fill; so we are stewards of the environment. The money Ray collects for the cans goes to help children who need
the services of the Shriners’ Hospital, and the Shriners are Angels for the messages of hope they send to both parents and children who ride in the van to the hospital. And Ray is both a good steward and an angel.
Think of ways you can be a good steward.
Kitty Manscill
Stewardship Chair
“Thanks to all the St. Joseph’s family, our community friends, and our new out-of-state friends for making Fr. Rob and Russ’ retirement celebration such a success. The entire weekend was a well deserved celebration of ministry for Fr. Rob and Russ. It was also a special time of joy, laughter, and community for those of us at St. Joseph’s. It reminded me just how lucky we are to be among the people of God and to have so many reasons in our lives for celebration. We will miss you Fr. Rob and Russ, but we wish you a wonderful journey throughout your retirement!”
-Your Vestry
“Father Rob and I have been so excited about our confirmation class since September. The four teens in our class – Alexis, Brittany, Cody, and Marley are wonderfully bright, creative, curious, and engaging. We have been blessed. They studied, took notes, discussed, wrote papers and participated in several Advent services. Each student also chose an adult mentor whose relationship with them will hopfeully grow throughout their adult journeys. God bless all four of them.”
-Liz Petty
The confirmation service will be held at St. Paul Episcopal Church in Seymour on Sunday, March 20 at 10:30 AM. Please join us for this celebration! Regular services will still be held at our church, St. Joseph the Carpenter, at their regular times.