Church School Returns Sept. 10

We want our kids to be part of the Bishop's Visit as well! We'll gather for Church School, preschool to 6th grade, at 9:30am on Sunday, September 10, 2023, and will learn together what a bishop is and why we have them in the Episcopal Church. Fall registration and our full Church School curriculum will begin the following week on September 17. Please feel free to contact Sharon Mcglaughlin if you have any questions at sharon.mcglaughlin1692@gmail.com.

Bishop's Visitation, September 10 - Update

We are delighted to announce that on Sunday, September 10, The Rt. Reverend Eugene T. Sutton, the Bishop of Maryland, and the Rev. Canon Carrie Schofield-Broadbent, the Diocese of Maryland's Bishop-Elect, will be joining us for worship. We will be holding a combined 10am service at St. James' Church for this visit - no 8am service at St. Mark's this day! We will also have a reception and meet-and-greet following the service with both our Bishop and our Bishop-Elect. This will be the last Sunday before Canon Schofield-Broadbent's consecration at the National Cathedral, and it will be a great honor for St. James' to host her and Bishop Sutton.

SCAN Volunteers Needed

The SCAN food pantry, located at St. James' Parish, is looking for a volunteer to serve on the 4th Thursday of each month. You would be working with two other volunteers, providing food to our community in need. Please contact scan.volcord@gmail.com if you are available to help.

Carpool to Bishop-elect Carrie's Consecration

Beginning August 13, we'll have a sign-up sheet at church where you can express your interest in carpooling to Bishop-Elect Carrie's consecration at the National Cathedral on September 16. Please sign up there, or if you're unable to be at church for the next couple of Sundays, please contact our Senior Warden Edlu Thom-Harper at edlu.th@comcast.net — we need to gauge interest now, so we can determine whether we'll be carpooling in our vehicles, or whether we should hire a bus! Thanks for your help.

Bishop's Visitation, September 10

We are delighted to announce that on Sunday, September 10, The Rt. Reverend Eugene T. Sutton, the Bishop of Maryland, and the Rev. Canon Carrie Schofield-Broadbent, the Diocese of Maryland's Bishop-Elect, will be joining us for worship. This will be the last Sunday before Canon Schofield-Broadbent's consecration at the National Cathedral, and it will be a great honor for St. James' to host her and Bishop Sutton. More details to follow!

Reading Camp Report

Reading Camp for 2023 was a great success. We helped thirty-three young students gain confidence as readers and writers, and had a lot of fun in the process! We couldn't have done it without the support of so many at St. James' and our surrounding community. Thanks especially to all who volunteered their time, all who donated to fund the program, and all who sustained us with your prayers. We're grateful for your participation in this important ministry!

Reading Camp South County 2023, July 31 - August 4

  

Reading Camp, lead by Paula Davis, will take place July 31 - August 4. We are expecting 30 children who will visit honey bees and learn about working in unity. We thank all who have volunteered to make this year's camp a success. If you are able to donate anything to this worthwhile cause, please make your check out to St. James' Parish and give it to Janet Bruce in the church office. If you have questions please contact Paula Davis at pkay621@aol.com.

Musical Coffee Hour, June 18

The choir is thrilled to announce that our first “Musical Coffee Hour” will take place this Sunday, June 18, directly after worship in Ticknor Hall! The format will be a normal coffee hour... but with music provided by the choir! We will sing a song to open and close our time together with time for requests in between! Come ready to sing along and submit your favorite songs for us to sing from the Renew hymnal. Please consider attending and participating in this event to support our music ministries here at St. James'.

Required Training - Safeguarding God's Children

The course "Safeguarding God's Children" is a required course for all Vestry Members/Officers, Staff Members, Reading Camp volunteers, Adults who work with youth, and Church School teachers who have not taken it in the last three years. The class takes place on Sunday, July 9 in the afternoon via zoom. If you last took the class in 2020 or before, you will need to take it again this year in order to continue serving. Please contact the church office if you will be taking the course. Thanks for your service and for helping to keep our children safe!

Annual Parish Picnic, June 4th

     Our Parish Picnic will be held on Sunday, June 4 following the 10:00am service. Please come and celebrate with your church family as we mark the completion of another school year and enjoy the beginning of the summer season. Lunch will include Italian sausages, generously donated by the Encore Sausage Company, as well as hamburgers and other picnic fare.
     Please bring a side dish or dessert to be shared with the Parish, if you are able! Food will be served from the Ticknor Parish Hall, and everyone is encouraged to bring lawn chairs as well as corn hole or other games so that we can enjoy the outdoors and have some friendly competition. Please join us and bring a friend!

Celebrating Our Graduates, June 4th

On Sunday, June 4 at the 10:00am service, we will be honoring graduating seniors from High School, college, and trade schools. Any parent that has a student graduating, please notify Sharon McGlaughlin at sharon.mcglaughlin1692@gmail.com. We will also acknowledge the teachers who served our youth and are now retired. Please join us.

Pentecost Sunday - Church Birthday Party!

Our Pentecost celebration on Sunday, May 28 will include the reading of the Pentecost Story for children. At the conclusion of the service, the children will lead us to Ticknor Hall for a birthday party. Cake, ice cream, and beverages will be served. There will be a special pinata for the children. Please wear red and join us for this special celebration of the formation of the Christian Church. For further information contact Sharon McGlaughlin. Please join us! There will be no Church School on Pentecost Sunday, but please bring your children for this special party

Coffee Hour Volunteers Needed!

     Please consider contributing a simple food item for our weekly Coffee Hour after our 10:00 am Sunday worship service. Just leave it on the counter in the kitchen, and please be sure to put your name on any dish you’d like returned (and remember to pick it up!).
     We also need volunteers to host each week by setting the food items out on a table, making the coffee, and cleaning up after everyone has enjoyed the fellowship. The sign-up sheet is on the bulletin board outside of the Parish Office, or you can call the Parish Office at 410-867-2838 and ask to have your name(s) added to the list for a specific date.
     Thank you for enabling our fellowship to continue by providing your participation and support!

Stain Glass Window Update

One of the altar windows is almost completed and the second altar window is about ¼ completed. The bottom panel of the Lily window is completed. They are looking to install all three in June.

St. James' Parish Spring Dinner, May 20

     The St. James' Parish Spring Dinner will be held on Saturday, May 20 from 1:00PM until 5:00PM. This year we are happy to announce crabcakes will be returning to the menu along with two types of ham, cheesy potatoes, country green beans, coleslaw, and rolls. Because of the high price of blue crabs these days, the individual meal cost will be $30.00. As always, it takes the whole Parish to make this dinner a success. We need volunteers to help with preparation, set-up, table service, and clean-up.
     We are also seeking donations from Parishioners to help offset the cost of the event. This can be a simple donation to the Women of St. James’ or a sponsorship of a particular part of the meal such as the cost of the ham, rolls, or crab. An alternative donation could be sponsoring tickets for our neighbors in need to enjoy this special meal. We plan to give up to 60 tickets to the people who seek help from our Community Assistance Program or SCAN food bank.
     We greatly appreciate the Parish’ participation in this important community fellowship event and look forward to working with you and seeing you there. Please contact Lillie Barrett at garylillie502@gmail.com or Edlu Thom at edlu.th@comcast.net, if you have any questions.

Parish Life and Outreach Coordinators

We are looking for anyone who might be interested in serving as coordinators for our Parish Life and Outreach ministry areas. To be clear: we are NOT looking for someone to head up every social or community service event that we do here at St. James', or to commit to a meeting every month! Instead, we're looking for people to serve as the "communications hub" for each of these ministry areas. For Parish Life, what that might look like is: coming up with ideas for new social events that will enrich our parish life; helping to identify a "project coordinator" for each event, so it's not just the same people doing the work for every event; and communicating with clergy, Vestry, and people involved in our parish life ministries to make sure we're all on the same page. For Outreach, we're similarly looking for someone to help us dream big about how we can serve the needy and vulnerable in our local communities. Reach out to Fr. Joe or Edlu if you feel the Holy Spirit pulling you towards one of these ministries!

Messy Church Success & Messy Church Returns!

     In March we were blessed with another successful Messy Church! In attendance were 23 adults and 21 kids. This gathering was the first exposure of church for a few of the children. It was a resounding success shown in their excitement.
     Messy Church is happening again Sunday, April 23 at 4:00 pm. There will be singing, laughing, stories, crafts, and communion—all helping the kids learn the stories and symbols of our faith. It will be loud, it will be silly—and it will be a wonderful way for our kids to begin exploring their spirituality. Invite a friend!

2023 Reading Camp - We Need Your Support

Can you help support Reading Camp? It’s time to think about reading camp for this summer. It costs about $200 per child and we plan to have 30 kids. If you are able to donate to this worthwhile cause please talk to Janet Bruce in the office, or contact Paula Davis at pkay621@aol.com.

Easter Vigil, April 8th

Join us for the holiest and most important worship service of the year - you don't want to miss it. The service will be located at Christ Church, West River, 220 Owensville, Rd. West River, Saturday, April 8 at 8:00pm. Last year Christ Church joined us for our combined Easter Vigil and this year we return the favor!

Maundy Thursday Vigil

This year during Holy Week, we'll be bringing to St. James' a tradition common at many Episcopal Churches: a Maundy Thursday prayer vigil, through the night. When Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane, his disciples couldn't stay awake for him even one hour. Out of this moment of Scripture, the custom developed of keeping a "Holy Hour" of prayer in a garden-like setting with the consecrated wafers, the Body of Christ, between our Maundy Thursday service and the noon Good Friday service. We'll have slots for signing up every hour, all through the night and morning. Be praying about whether you're being called to spend part of your Holy Week in this special devotion!

Stations of the Cross

Our Stations of the Cross are again up along the road in the New Cemetery. We'll be using these as a congregation during Holy Week, but please know they're available for private devotional use (and handicap-accessible!) throughout the season of Lent!

Hand Painted Easter Eggs To Benefit Community Assistance

Once again, Barbara Howard's beautiful hand painted wooden Easter Eggs will be on sale beginning Sunday, March 12th. Proceeds from these beautiful eggs, which are offered for only $10 each, support the St. James' Parish Community Assistance Program. Through your generous support, we hope to top last year’s contribution! For additional information, please contact Barbara Howard at kbhoward@comcast.net.

Parish Clean-Up, Saturday, March 4

In advance of the Bishop Candidate Meet-and-Greet, we're having a parish clean-up day! Saturday at 1:00PM we'll be sprucing the place up - cleaning cobwebs out of the corners, getting dried leaves out of the outdoor stairs, and so on. Let's show the diocese our best face!

Lenten Study, March 1

On Wednesday, March 1, we begin our Lenten Study, Walking the Path of Contemplative Prayer. We begin at 6:30PM with a simple soup dinner. We’ll see you there!

Caregivers Support Group, February 25

The Caregivers support group will meet via Zoom on Saturday, February 25, at 8:30. We will have a guest speaker. If you or anyone you know who could benefit from our group, please join us. The Zoom link will be sent out closer to the date. If you have questions or concerns, please contact Deacon Michelle at michellesdoran@gmail.com.

Ash Wednesday Services, February 22nd

Ash Wednesday services with imposition of ashes will take place at St. James’ Church at noon and 7:00PM Wednesday February 22nd. Our 7:00PM service will include special music from guest singer Judy Yannini.

NEW!! Nursery Program During the 10AM Sunday Service!

We are starting a Nursery Program for newborns to three-year-olds during the St. James' Church 10 a.m. worship service. The Volunteers, working with the Nursery Coordinator, will ensure the nursery is a secure, nurturing environment where each child will see, hear, and feel the love of Jesus Christ and where parents can feel confident their child will receive the highest quality of care and ministry. For information, or to volunteer, please contact Kelly at krosenberry@alanmaloufmd.com.

"Messy Church" Children's Worship! February 19th at 4PM

     Have you ever felt like it's just too hard to get your little kids up for church on Sunday morning? Have you worried that they might get, uh, "boisterous" at an inopportune moment? Well, this is the service for you!
     We'll gather in the Ticknor Parish Hall at 4PM for a high-energy, raucous worship service directed directly at our children. They'll be allowed to wiggle as much as they need, and will be invited to learn and engage with the stories of Scripture and with our worship in an age-appropriate way. Our kids have rich spiritual lives: this is a chance for them to explore their own relationships with God. We hope to see you there!

The St. James' Parish Amazing Grays Valentine's Day Luncheon!

     Come celebrate Valentine’s Day with the Amazing Grays! We will gather for lunch on Tuesday, February 14th at 11:30AM in the Ticknor Parish Hall. Come and enjoy good food and good fellowship. Please call the church office to sign up so we know how many to prepare for. We’re looking forward to seeing everyone!
     We continue to serve as Resource for those seniors who are at home and need a little extra help or encouragement. We are grateful for all those who have joined us in this meaningful ministry. If you (or a senior you know) are in need of a little help, please contact us! We can always use more volunteers to make phone calls, send cards, run errands, or provide technical help for accessing worship services. For additional information, please contact Michelle Doran+ at michellesdoran@gmail.com.

Souper Bowl Sunday - February 12th

     On Sunday, February 12th, millions of Americans will tune in to the Super Bowl football game. There will be parties with abundant food, friendship and fellowship. At the same time, there will be other people worrying about staying warm or finding shelter and a warm meal. Please join young people around the country as they demonstrate God's love by loving their neighbors through the Souper Bowl of Caring.
     St. James’ Parish Youth will be standing at the doors after the 10AM service collecting monetary donations to purchase food for the SCAN food pantry. Please support their efforts - Thank you!

Worship and Annual Meeting, January 29th

     St. James' will be having one combined service on Sunday, January 29 at St. James' at 10:00am (no service at St. Mark's) after which will follow our Annual Parish Meeting and Celebration.
     We will conduct the meeting in the Sanctuary followed by a potluck luncheon in Ticknor Hall. Please plan to come to ratify the nomination of the Vestry Candidates, Deborah Tolliver, Earl Buffaloe, and D. Court Garretson. We will be discussing the Parish accomplishments in 2022 and presenting the budget for 2023.

St. James' Caregivers, January 28th

The first meeting of the St. James' Caregivers group will be held on Saturday, January 28 at 8:30 am. We will meet via Zoom (the link was included in the weekly update email). Anyone in need of support is invited. If you have any questions, please email Deacon Michelle at michellesdoran@gmail.com.

Adult Forum, Sundays Following 10AM Worship Service

Join us in the Parish Library for the Adult Forum after worship and coffee hour on Sunday Mornings. This will look different in different weeks: sometimes, we will have a guest speaker; sometimes, it will be a reception or event; sometimes, it will be a short class or book study that stretches over a few weeks; sometimes, it will be a Bible study on that Sunday's lectionary texts. Regardless of what we're doing, it will be a wonderful opportunity for us to gather together, to spend time together, and to grow in our faith together.

Stain Glass Window Update

The first window is completed and will be reinstalled the week of January 23rd. At that time, they will remove the 2 windows at the altar (St. James and St. Paul) but they will not return until after Easter.

Wafer Making, January 12

Wafer making will be held in the kitchen on Thursday, January 12, 2023, at 9:00 am. New wafers for the New Year 2023! All are welcome to come and help in this ministry. Please contact Kim Parker at manydogs@verizon.net for more information.

Prayer Shawl Ministry Resumes! January 11th

    Join us Wednesday, January 11, 2023, from 6-8 p.m. in the Library for lots of fun and fellowship as we restart this wonderful ministry! Both experienced and beginners are welcome!
    Regular weekly meetings will be held in the new year on Wednesdays from 6-8 p.m. in the Library beginning on January 11th. Everyone is welcome to enjoy fellowship as you knit or crochet these shawls covered in your love and prayers.
    Please do not be intimidated if you think you cannot knit or crochet! Just join us, and we will be happy to help you learn the basics – and then we can then move on to more intricate patterns if anyone chooses to. We will have very easy patterns to follow, and several shawls as examples for you to look over. The supplies you will need are very few... just knitting needles or crochet hooks and three skeins of yarn in the color of your choice. The size of the needles/hooks will determine the size of shawl you want to make. The normal size to begin with knitting needles would be a "9" and crochet hook would be a "J." The yarn type is really up to you. A good choice to begin with is Lion Brand Homespun (it is a little chunky and hides any little errors). And, the most important advice we can give you is for you to give yourself permission to make errors, because we all do!
    For more information about the meetings, or if you would like a shawl (for yourself or to give to someone else), please contact Jeanie at jeanielescallett@gmail.com.