News & Notes 1/7/10
Happy New Year, My Friends,
May the newness of the year be reflective of the “new creature” that you are becoming in Christ - filled with faith, hope and love. And in this new year, may our gracious God bless St. John’s Church as never before, and use us as faithful witnesses of justice and mercy, reconciliation and peace - here in Dover and the surrounding towns as well as beyond our parish!!
You’ve probably read or heard about the upcoming census. The Census Bureau is actively seeking part-time, flexible-hours workers to help in the census. You must have a Social Security number, two forms of identification and pass a test. Upcoming tests are Jan. 14 at 4 PM at the Rollinsford Public Library; and Jan. 19 at 2 PM at the Dover Public Library; Jan. 20, at 10 AM at the Liberty North Fire Station; and Jan. 23 at 10 AM at the Dover Public Library. You can register by calling the Local Census Office in Portsmouth at 570-5120 or simply show up at a test. If you have questions you can contact Bruce McAdam at 742-1881.
From our United Methodist camp in Meredith, we get this next announcement:
WILD WANAKEE WOMEN — for Women 18 years of age and older:
Need that break from the family and job? Need to be rejuvenated? Come be a Wild Wanakee Woman and enjoy a different side of Wanakee! Be a couch potato without guilt or get out in the snow with your cross country skis or snow shoes. Enjoy wintery Wanakee with a cup of cocoa, a friend and a blazing fire. Hike in the woods or down to the water. No matter what the weather, you will enjoy the company of other women and grow in faith and friendship. Jan 29-31; Cost: $75; Leader: Lynne Lemay. Register by calling 603-279-7950.
Our week at church began with a flurry of activity. On Monday Kenny Gallant and Lenny Colongione installed four or five programmable thermostats - to save energy. These were donated by an anonymous donor. (Thank you to Lenny, Kenny and our anonymous friend!) And folks from Urban Tree Service came to cut down the dead tree that was “hanging over” our Bell Shed. The Trustees were concerned that if it fell, it would damage the shed and/or the end of Hartford Hall. The “counting crew” was here to make the final 2009 deposit as well as the first deposit for 2010. And it seems something else was happening, but I’m forgetting what it was. Busy, busy, busy!!
Our next Red Cross Blood Drive will take place in Hartford Hall tomorrow, January 8th, from 1 till 6 PM. Our coordinator, Jinny Scott, would love to have folks provide food/snacks/treats for this wonderful event. And of course, the Red Cross would love to have all of us donate blood. Please come anytime during the drive.
On Saturday, our Worship Committee will de-deck the halls of the church. The Advent and Christmas decorations will come down and be stored. They could use a small army of helpers. If you’re available, please come. The festivities begin at 9:30 AM, and will end when the job is done! I’m guessing that will be sometime between 11 and 11:30 AM - but if the “small army” actually materialized, then it would happen allot sooner!! Please - even if you’ve never helped out like this before - if you’re free, come give a hand!!
Sunday will be a full day around these parts. In worship, we’ll have our Sacred Dancers sharing a dance created by Janet Warfield - depicting “The Life of Christ”. The dancers are excited to share this piece with our congregation. As I mentioned in last week’s “News & Notes,” we’ll be blessing a couple Prayer Shawls as well. Then right after the second service, the Church Council members - and any others who wish to participate - will create the program calendar for 2010 for our congregation. This is a wonderful tool for planning for all the committees of the church. While it probably won’t make the “Top Ten Most Exciting Events of 2010″, we DO have a good time each year with this task, and would love to have you join us. Bring a sandwich to munch on as we work.
Our new Music Directors, Jeff and Steve, are holding a special Workshop/Rehearsal for the choir this Sunday, from 1:30 till 6:30 or 7 PM. It’s going to help create a foundation for the music that we’ll be singing for next few months; build on the ensemble sound that Barb Johnson has helped our choir create; and provide a time of fellowship and meal together. I think - if ever you were considering joining the choir - this might be a terrific time to do that. Give Steve or Jeff a call to talk about it.
Next Tuesday, January 12th, we have the privilege of putting a meal on for some of our neighbors - at the Dover Friendly Kitchen. Prep work begins at 4 PM - the meal begins at 5 PM - everything is usually cleaned up and we’re out the door by 7 PM - all at St. Thomas Episcopal Church. Desserts are a much-needed item. If you can bake a cake or cookies or squares or whatever, please do so, and bring them to St. John’s by 3 PM on Tuesday. Thanks.
“The Dream Lives On”
A Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration
featuring Rev. Jeffrey L. Brown,
Executive Director of the
Gang Mediation Initiative of the Boston Ten Point Coalition
as well as the Dover High School Chorus
and the Dover Interfaith Choir
Sunday, January 17th at 7 PM
First Parish Congregational Church, UCC
218 Central Avenue, Dover
http://www.firstparishchurchdover.org/ * 603-742-5664
Continuing the recent practice of sharing bad puns:
Did you know that a short fortune-teller who escapes from prison is a small medium at large? But the man who survives mustard gas and pepper spray becomes is a seasoned veteran. A backward poet writes inverse. We all know that in democracy it’s your vote that counts. But in feudalism it’s your count that votes! And finally, when cannibals eat a missionary, they get a taste of religion.
I think that’s all the news that’s fit to print, and some that isn’t! See you in church on Sunday! Peace, Mark