St. James' Parish Annual Christmas Caroling, December 19th

The St. James' Parish Annual Christmas Caroling will take place on Sunday, December 19th, at 2 p.m.

Please join us for a fun afternoon of neighborhood caroling. We'll be singing for some of our homebound friends as well.

Please sign up outside Amanda's office. Everyone of every age is welcome!

Lunch with Santa, December 11th

Santa will be coming to St. James' Parish on Saturday, December 11th from 12 Noon to 3 p.m.!

This will be an outreach activity, and we will be inviting less fortunate youngsters from our community to share the gift of generosity and Jesus’ loving presence.

Children ages 3 years through the 5th grade are invited to join us for lunch, games, crafts, and a visit from Santa and his helper who will hand out goody bags to the children of our Parish and gifts for the children attending from the community.

Please sign up outside of Amanda’s office and join us for lots of fun!

Salvation Army Sing-along, December 8th

Get in the spirit of Christmas with a Sing-Along! A potluck dinner will begin at 6:30 p.m. followed by the Sing-Along at 7:30 p.m. in the Church. During the Sing-Along, the toys from the shopping trip on December 5th will be presented to the Salvation Army for distribution to needy children.

Everyone of every age is invited to attend!

What does St. James' mean to you - in 25 words or less

You never get a second chance to make a first impression, and today many people's first impression of a church is the church's web site. We need your help in making a good first impression. We are looking to add brief statements from people to various pages on the stjameslothian.com - statements about what being part of the St. James' community means to you.

Please consider taking a few minutes and write a brief note describing a meaningful part of your relationship with the parish; for example:
* Why do you feel more at home or what moves you at a particular service?
* Has there been a particular Christian Ed. class that changed the way you looked at things?
* Has your involvement in a particular St. James' ministry made an impact in your life?

Please e-mail your statement to Rick Downs - stjameslothianweb@gmail.com. Quotations will not be attributed to you by name when they appear on the web site.

Young Families Ministry, Post-Thanksgiving Feast

A Thanksgiving feast Friday, November 26, at 6 p.m. in the parish hall. Please bring your favorite Thanksgiving leftover to share as we celebrate Thanksgiving with our church family. We’ll feast on turkey and all the sides, listen to Christmas carols, and decorate the St. James' Christmas tree with all the kids.

Christmas at Sea

The Women of St James’ Parish are planning to prepare shoeboxes for the Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center as we did last year. Our goal for this year is 50 boxes or more. Each box will contain new toiletries, a scarf or hat, and a small Bible. We need your help. We will provide the boxes, and plans are being made to assemble the gifts "assembly line" style with the help of the youth. Donations of toiletries (sealed), postcards of Baltimore or Annapolis, new socks, pens, notepads, playing cards will be appreciated. Monetary donations to cover the cost of the Bibles would also be appreciated. Checks should be made out to St. James' Parish with Women of St. James’ Parish - Seafarers in the memo line. Questions? E-mail Peggy Horn: plantlady04@hughes.net.

Feed the Need: Donate a Turkey!

As the Holiday Season approaches, please make a donation of cash or one or more 10-20 pound frozen turkeys for St. James' Parish Holiday Food Baskets. If you plan to donate turkeys, please sign up on the sheet in the Parish Hall and place your turkeys in the kitchen freezer before Nov. 17 and Dec. 15. The Outreach Committee will coordinate distribution of about 70 Holiday meals on Sat., Nov 20 and again on Sat. Dec. 18. Please contact Linda Rines (Linda.Rines@comcast.net) if you can help between 7 - 11 a.m. on either Saturday. Thanks for supporting St. James' Parish's help for needy families in our local community.

Education for Ministry (EfM) Alumni

EfM Alumni: How do you know when you have done your work well?

We are inviting all Education for Ministry (EfM) alumni to join this year’s EfM group for food and fellowship on Sunday evening, November 14th, when we will be discussing this question as our common lesson. Our group is asking ourselves what we are called to change and how the consequences of our actions will affect our friends, neighbors, families and the world. We want the benefit of your experience - both during EfM and after graduation, as we each choose one calling that seems most dominant in our lives right now and we each make a "journey chart."

We would love to have you join us! Please RSVP to Marjie Mack, and we’ll send you the material we’ll be using for the discussion.

Musicians Wanted for Praise Band

If you play an instrument ... drums, guitar, piano, flute, violin, etc... Don’t be shy! WE WANT YOU! St. James' is forming a Praise Band that will include any and all instruments, any and all ages...

The Praise Band will play on the first Sunday of each month during the 9:00 a.m. service - once we get it going. But first, we need YOU to help make the band, so... if you are interested, please e-mail Liz Rozenbroek -
ejr54@comcast.net or post a note on the St. James' Celebration Choir Facebook page!

Children’s Books Needed for Prison Ministry

Children's Books Needed at the medium security prison in Jessup, for daddies to read to their children and children to read to their daddies every other month. The children get to take the books home; so this is an ongoing need. Please leave gently used books in the box in foyer between buildings. For more info, contact Val Hymes - valhymes@aol.com.

The Celebration II Choir, Now Forming!

The Celebration II Choir, which includes children in grades 1 through 8, is now forming and practicing on Sundays at 11:00 in the Choir Room immediately following Church School. The children will sing each month during the Youth Service. This will be on the first Sunday of every month at the 9:00 a.m. service. Additionally, the children will prepare special music to be sung at the Christmas and Easter worship services. I look forward to working with the Celebration II Choir and hope to see all the kids participate in making a joyful noise! - Liz Rozenbroek, Director

Leadership Workshops - October 31 and November 6

Do you feel called by God to serve in a leadership position in our parish? There are many opportunities to serve! In preparation for our Annual Meeting, which will be held on January 30, 2011, we will be holding two Leadership Workshops. They will be held Sunday, October 31, from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. and Saturday, November 6, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 Noon. You can attend either one or the other. Anyone who wishes to explore a possible calling to serve either now or in the future as a Vestry Member, Committee Chair, Convention Delegate, or Officer of the Parish is invited to come to one of the workshops. Please let one of the clergy know if you plan to attend or one of the members of the Vestry who will be rotating-off at the Annual Meeting (Richard L. Downs, Jr., Calvin L. Horn III, or Brenda L. White).

Learn to Knit or Crochet - October 18

Want to learn to Knit or Crochet? Jeanie Zseltvay, Co-Chair of the Prayer Shawl Ministry, will be teaching a class on October 18, from 7 – 9 p.m. in the Parish Life Room in the Education Building. Anyone who is interested in learning the basics (and more!) of knitting and/or crocheting is welcome to sign up. There is no fee for the instruction, but you will need to bring your own yarn and knitting needles or crochet hooks. For more information and to sign up for the class, please contact Jeanie - sewgeney@aol.com. Hope to see you there!

Young Families Bible Study - October 12th

All young families/young adults are invited to our monthly bible study. Come enjoy one another’s company while strengthening your relationship with God through His Word. Bible study starts at 7 p.m. and meets at the Assistant Rectory.

Messiah Sing-Along - Sponsors Needed!

We are seeking sponsors for our annual Messiah Sing-Along on Sunday, November 28th. Our sponsors make it possible for all donations collected at that event to be added to our parish-wide Thanksgiving Offering and the Offering collected when the Salvation Army Brass comes to lead us in Christmas Carols in December. Everything that people donate at these events goes entirely to the Salvation Army for their outreach ministries. Anyone interested in becoming a sponsor should speak to our Music Director, Michael Ryan - mryansings@verizon.net.