Ju ne `13

Our New Sign
One of ECW’s Inreach projects this year was to
replace the deteriorating black metal sign that
was in front of the church at the bottom of the
circular driveway. The new sign is similar to the
nursery school sign that was installed a couple
of years ago. We hope everyone agrees on how
fabulous it looks!
Godspeed!
St. John’s bids a fond farewell as Barbara Fuller
relocates to North Carolina while son Bill continues
his medical studies in Brooklyn.
Inside—
Rector’s Letter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Curate’s Column . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Voyagers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
ECW Dinner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Youth Calendars . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Midnight Run . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Pentecost at Sunday School . . . 7
Open Arms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Take Teens to Church . . . . . . . . . 8
Amy Jaswal: Good News . . . . . . 8
Progressive Dinner . . . . . . . . . . . 9
ECW Trip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Sunday School Recap . . . . . . . 10
This Years Graduates . . . . . . . . . 11
…and more
Chimes by E-mail only?
Several parishioners have requested
that we send to them only the digital,
online version of Chimes. If you also
would like not to receive the paper
version, please let us know (834–2981
or [email protected]).
St. John's Church
Midnight Run’s “Special Orders” is the beneficiary of this year’s St. John’s Easter
Appeal. We have surpassed our goal of $20,000, receiving over $21,200 in donations
towards our Easter Appeal 2013. The total we have received represents 71 donor
households. Our gifts will sponsor the staffing of “Special Orders” for more than a
full year.
As a part of the Easter Appeal, St. John’s also hosted a drive for gently used men’s
conservative business attire. We have received countless dress shirts, ties, blazers,
suits, shoes. Thank you all for your generous participation.
For more information about Midnight Run and the “Special Orders” program,
please visit their website www.midnightrun.org. For additional information, please
contact the parish office (834–2981 or [email protected]).
4 Fountain Square
Larchmont, NY 10538
Phone (914) 834–2981
E-mail [email protected]
www.stjohnslarchmont.org
Easter Appeal Yields Great Results
June ’13
ChimeS
PRSRT STD
US Postage
paid
White Plains, NY
Permit No. 4304
Message to the Parish
Dear Friends,
Newsletter of
St. John’s Church
Editor/Designer
Bruce Baiter
Rector
Rev. Thomas E. Nicoll
Curate
Rev. N. Chase Danford
Priest Associate
Rev. Dorothy A. Greene
Director of Music
Dr. Paul-Martin Maki
Director of
Christian Education
Debra Quintana
Parish Administator
Laura Rawlings Parent
Parish Secretary
Joan Saunders
Sexton
Carlos Ortiz
Wardens
Cynthia Taleb
Dave Ingram
Vestry
Nelson Fitts
Sanjiv Jaswal
Victoria Maggard
Wendy McFee
Sally Noone
Dorothy Rainier
Stan Ramsay
James Sheker
Aaron Simpson
Scott Swanezy
Lucy Yocum
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| Chimes
June 2013
One of my favorite prayers in the
Book of Common Prayer is the one
offered after a baptism. In it we thank
God for having “bestowed upon these
your servants the forgiveness of sin,
and have raised them to the new life
of grace.” Then we ask God to bless
the newly baptized in certain specific
ways, pointing to what we hope their lives (and our lives)
will be about.
“Give them an inquiring and discerning heart,” we pray.
A person fully alive and in tune with God goes through
life not just in a passive mode, receiving a set of truths
and then shutting down. Her heart is open to searching
and to new discovery, to deeper insight, actively engaged
in trying to uncover new ways to receive God’s light. God
creates us to be explorers and creators of the new, not
unthinking automatons.
“Give them … the courage to will and to persevere.” To
follow Jesus and to come to share in God’s eternal life
requires that we will, at times, need to be courageous
and to exert ourselves persistently. This is not true just
in countries where Christian worship and belonging
is illegal. Even in our setting, refusing to participate in
Mission Statement:
certain destructive group behaviors, or, in the face of evil,
witnessing to what is really going on, or choosing not to
respond to nastiness by giving it back—all of these are a
part of our vision of life lived to the fullest, and all require
bravery.
“Give them…a spirit to know and to love you, and the
gift of joy and wonder in all your works.” We are knowing
and loving creatures. We know ourselves and one another
in ways the other animals do not, and we are who we are
because of whom and what we love. If our hearts and
minds are fixed only on one another, we will inhabit a
world of fundamental scarcity and deprivation. If we
know and love God, as we know God in Jesus, our hearts
and can be full, and we will know our cups to be running
over. Joy and wonder at the miracle of ongoing creation
can become the framework within which we live our lives.
I offer this wise prayer, for myself and for you all, that we
may hold in our consciousness what we have been given
in our baptism, and the kind of life into which it initiates
us.
In the eternal life of Jesus Christ,
St. John's is a family called by Christ
to grow spiritually, to share our life
with others, and to make His love known
through word and deed.
St. John’s Church is a parish of
the Diocese of New York, a branch of the
Episcopal Church in the United States,
which is a member of the worldwide
Anglican Communion.
The Anglican Communion
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Most Rev. and Rt. Hon. Justin Welby
A global community of
70 million Anglicans in
64,000 congregations in
70 countries
The Episcopal Church
Presiding Bishop
The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori
A community of
2.4 million members in
113 dioceses in the Americas
and abroad
The Episcopal Diocese
of New York
Bishop of New York
The Rt. Rev. Andrew M. L. Dietsche
Assistant Bishops
The Rt. Rev. Andrew D. Smith
The Rt. Rev. Chilton R. Knudsen
Assisting Bishop
The Rt. Rev. Herbert A. Donovan
A community of 203
congregations covering
4,739 square miles, with
approximately 600 priests
and 72 deacons, and where
the Eucharist is celebrated
every week in 14 languages:
American Sign Language,
Bontoc, Chinese, Creole,
English, French, Ga, Igbo,
Japanese, Korean, Malayalan,
Spanish, Tagalog, and Tamil
Chimes
June 2013
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June Birthdays
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Marilyn Liebenguth
Alexander Ohlandt
Juliet Welcome
Noel Clapp
Rob Charron
Clarke Bailey
Diane Goodman
Cynthia Marks
James Welcome
Fiona Brown
Reese Charron
Bret Bowerman
Lynne Bully
Kelly Blumstein
Reed Hewson
David Hammarley
Robert Barber
Bill Fuller
Tate Simpson
Oliver Rayner
Bill James
Taddy Hall
Carolyn Welcome
George Matelich
Lisa LaRocca
Scott Cavanagh
Meredith Gray
Garrett Banta Jr.
Luke Ingram
Andrew Brenner
Sanjiv Jaswal
Wesley Matelich
Mason Wilson
Sonita Bennitt
Erin Garzia
Arlene Howard
Paul Kantor
Isabel Banta
Ryan Brown
Quay Watkins
Rebecca Liggins
Tucker Cavanagh
Henry Ramsay
Mary Lee Berridge
Will Albeck
Charlie Best
Elaine Viebranz
Carolyn Gallaher
Hayley Pawloff
Tess James
Marilyn Maynard
Dan Ingram
Max Vicinelli
Sue Minniti
Kovid Odouard
| Chimes
June 2013
Curate’s Column
A New Spiritual Trend: Multiple
Religious Belonging
I
recently attended a lecture at the Cathedral by a newly appointed
professor at my graduate alma mater, Virginia Theological Seminary. In it, the
professor referred to phenomena known as “Multiple Religious Participation”
and “Multiple Religious Belonging.” These labels are applicable when a person
participates in the practices of at least two different religions. Perhaps the most
common situation of this kind, which is quite familiar in our community, happens
when two people of different religions marry and decide to support one another
by participating in one another’s religious activities. Perhaps they even raise
their children in both religious traditions, a pattern chosen by the parents whose
families attend the Jewish-Christian religious education program of the local
Interfaith Community, which meets at St. John’s on Sunday afternoons. Children
from these families often later choose to identify with one religion only, but some
continue to identify with both religions of their childhood. In this case, they have
moved beyond multiple religious participation to multiple religious belonging.
They feel that they belong to two different traditions, that both traditions are their
spiritual homes.
Others, who were not raised in two different religious traditions and who
are not married to an adherent of another religion, may nevertheless discover
an affinity for the spiritual practices of another religion. It is becoming quite
common for Christians to practice Zen Buddhist meditation, for example. The
seminary professor I heard lecture is himself both a committed Christian and a
practitioner of Buddhism. Many of our parishioners practice yoga, which is often
divorced from its original Hindu religious context, but some might find that they
identify with certain aspects of Hindu spirituality.
I have a friend who has formally affiliated with three different religions. He
is an Episcopalian, a Sufi (a mystical branch of Islam), and a practitioner within
Voyagers
Voyagers, shown here
with Eliza Crocker,
collected more than
$250 in quarters in
donations to purchase an
animal through Heifer
International in the
organizaton’s efforts to end
world poverty.
Parish Register
Birth
Piper Sabina May,
daughter of
Erin and Derrick May.
the Vedanta tradition of Hinduism. He is also influenced by Zen Buddhism,
though he is not initiated into that tradition. He describes his unique religious
path as “interspirituality.” One might be tempted to criticize him for mixing and
matching elements of different religions, but he is actually careful to follow each
religious tradition he has chosen as a discrete system, separate from the others.
This is the hardest thing to do for the person who is drawn to multiple religious
belonging. Of course, the person will be influenced by each tradition in ways
that will ultimately blend into a unique spiritual path, different from any one of
the religious traditions from which it emerged. But I think each Christian, Jew,
Muslim, or Buddhist is distinctive in how she practices her religion. Additionally,
we are all influenced by systems of thought outside the formal confines of our
religions (for example, by a commitment to a certain economic philosophy), so
perhaps the person who practices interspirituality is merely more intentional
about identifying her spiritual influences.
Whatever you think about multiple religious participation and multiple
religious belonging, we could all undoubtedly use more education about other
religions. The United States is now the most religiously diverse nation in the
world. We live in an increasingly small global village, and it is a religiously
pluralistic one. Even if you are a critic of multiple religious belonging, you
can join in interfaith discussions and events. Religiously inspired violence is
all too common, and it always has been. This is, of course, shameful, for true
religion is about peace, justice, and love. As the phenomena of multiple religious
participation and multiple religious belonging continue to grow, I will be
curious to see how those who move between spiritual systems can teach us all to
understand and love one another better.
St. John’s Nursery School
Baptisms
Louisa Combe Maggard,
daughter of
Victoria and Jeff Maggard
Maya Helen Marrero,
daughter of
Meghan and Adolfo Marrero
Confirmed
William August Riordan Larkin
Matthew Joseph Okay
Nathaniel Ascutney Sheehan
Axel Jensen Steinmetz
Anthony Hix Varbaro
Received into the
Episcopal Church
Dami Ann Burckin
Deaths
Richard Brenner,
uncle of
Andy Brenner
Sunday Babysitting
Babysitting is offered for children up to
age 3 during the 10:00 am liturgy as well
as babysitting for infants. If you want
to attend the 10:00 am Sunday liturgy
but feel reluctant leaving your infant in
the regular babysitting room, we offer
a separate babysitting area especially
for infants. Please check in with the
nursery babysitting on the 2nd floor for
directions. For more information, contact
Debra Quintana, Director of Christian
Education (834–2981, ext 18 or
[email protected]).
Morning Fours watch their butterflies emerge from cocoons.
Chimes
June 2013
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ECW Dinner
The ECW invites the women of St. John’s
to a dinner on Wednesday, June 26
at the Larchmont Shore Club. We will
convene at 6:30 pm for a convivial social
hour on the club’s beautiful front lawn
overlooking Long Island Sound, one of
the best views in town.
At 7:30 pm, dinner will be served, and,
afterwards, our own Nancy Pierson
will speak to us about her long-term
involvement with the Mamaroneck
School District and her current role as
President of the School Board.
Having lived in Larchmont for
two decades, Nancy’s and husband
Frank’s three daughters all have
attended Murray Ave. Elementary
School, Hommocks Middle School, and
graduated from Mamaroneck High
School. In addition to serving on the
Board of Education for the last several
years, Nancy has been an active member
of the local PTAs, co-president of SEPTA,
the MHS PTSA and PT Council, as well as
serving on numerous committees.
We are greatly looking forward
to hearing about her experiences,
perspective on the current issues facing
the Board, and the drive which keeps her
so involved on this commendable path.
Please join us for what promises to be
a fun and informative evening. Look for
your Evite and either RSVP there or to the
parish office (834–2981, stjohns@cloud9.
net). The cost for the three course
dinner is $50 (wine included) and is
payable upon reserving to the parish
office.
—Upcoming Events—
Sunday School
Please join us for a cookout and good fellowship
at St. John’s annual Parish Picnic, Sunday, June 9
immediately following the 10:00 am liturgy. Feel
free to wear “play clothes” to church.
This is a great event for meeting new friends, renewing acquaintances and
having fun! There will be games for the children and plenty of good food (no
need to bring your own picnic basket!). We hope to see you there!
Midnight Run
S
t. John’s is preparing for our next Midnight Run. Midnight Run is a
program in which volunteers bring food, clothing, toiletries, blankets and
compassionate conversation to homeless persons on the streets of New York
City. Our next run is scheduled for Friday evening, June 14.
Help needed now:
We need your help to gather all of the items that we will be giving out on our
run. Please clean out your closets and put the following items in the bins outside
the parish office:
• new or gently used clean jeans
• new or gently used men’s sneakers
• gently used clean jackets, men’s or unisex styles
• gently used clean or new men’s t-shirts, especially sizes medium, large and
x-large, blue and black plain shirts especially popular
• gently used clean sweatshirts or sweaters, men’s or unisex
• toiletries - toothpaste, razors, small shaving creams are needed.
Most of the homeless persons being served are men, so please do not donate
dress clothes, baby clothes, or items for children and women.
Help needed shopping for supplies:
If you would like to help with shopping for food and other supplies in
advance of the Midnight Run, please contact Christina Battalia Maggard
([email protected] or 914–714–3078).
Help needed Friday, June 14:
•
June 2
Family Liturgy: St. Cecilia’s
Choir performs
•
June 9
Final Day of Sunday
School and Parish Picnic
•
Confirmation Class
Jun. 2
Jun. 9
6
St. John’s Parish Picnic
Sunday, June 9
following the 10:00 am liturgy
5:30–6:30 pm, Sunday
parish office
5:30–6:30 pm, Sunday
parish office
| Chimes
June 2013
•
•
•
Preparing and delivering complete bagged lunches to St John’s (4
volunteers)
Preparing hot soup: Families, youth and adults are invited to help prepare
the soup and coffee in the undercroft on the evening of the run.
Sorting clothing: Adults and youth are invited to help sort and size our
donated clothing in the undercroft.
Making the run to NYC: This is a meaningful experience, and a good
opportunity for parents and teens/pre-teens to do an activity together.
Cleaning up in undercroft: A volunteer or two to help clean up on Saturday
morning is greatly appreciated.
Pick-up Friday morning and/or return Saturday morning of the Midnight
Run van in Dobbs Ferry, or contact Paul Schwendener ([email protected]
or 833–1762).
Pentecost, Sunday School Style
O
Pentecost parade
John and Cole Patterson
nly in the Bible do you find stories of fires that
don’t harm or burn like the non burning burning
bush or the tongues of fire atop the apostles’ heads
on Pentecost. Not to be outdone by the apostles, all of the
St. John’s Sunday School students celebrated Pentecost by
having flames erupt out of the tops of their heads. Okay,
so it wasn’t as dramatic as the apostles but it was very
meaningful. After discovering the lesson about the Holy
Spirit’s flamboyant and fiery effect, the children created
construction paper headbands with red, orange and yellow
Open Arms Men’s Shelter
O
pen Arms Shelter in White Plains provides a full
range of services for homeless men, 24 hours a day,
7 days a week, every day of the year. They shelter
and feed 50 to 65 men each night and also provide intensive
drug and alcohol addiction treatment, a GED educational
training program, and job and housing assistance. St.
John’s makes and delivers a complete meal on the second
Tuesday of each month for these men. Staffed completely by
volunteers, we communicate by e-mail for cooking as well
as delivery instructions.
Summer is traditionally a difficult time for our
volunteers, as many people go away. Unfortunately, hunger
and homelessness does not take a vacation. If you or your
children would like to contribute, even on a one-off basis
this summer, we could really use the help. It is not a large
time commitment, and contributions to the meal can be
made ahead of time and frozen in the church freezer. You
do not have to participate every month- only when you
have time to do so. Please e-mail Dianna Aprile (daprile@
riverstonellc.com) to find out more about this outreach
Pentecost cupcakes
tongues of fire. When it came time to enter the liturgy,
the children, more than 30 total, paraded into the church
delighting parishioners. As it is considered the birthday of
the church and the coming of the Holy Spirit, red balloons
decorated the entrances.
Our middle school students, the Voyagers, also celebrated
Pentecost by examining the deeper meaning of the Holy
Spirit not only on that first Pentecost but in all of our lives
today. They capped off the evening with Pentecost cupcakes.
opportunity or to sign up to be on the email distribution
list.
In March, we had volunteers Paolo Vicinelli, Janet
O’Connell, Gretchen Massey, Carolyn Welcome, Elizabeth
Vardell, and Dianna Aprile who prepared chili and
cornbread, while Kathleen Gallaher, Martha Sundin and
Robin Ingram prepared desserts. Nancy Pierson delivered
the meal to Open Arms.
In April, our meal of baked ziti and salad was prepared
by Gretchen Massey, Dianna Aprile, Carolyn Welcome,
Robin Ingram, and Janet O’Connell. Kathleen Gallaher,
Paolo Vicinelli and Carleen Kizer made desserts, and Nancy
Pierson made the delivery.
In May, Carolyn Welcome, Robin Ingram, Elizabeth
Vardell, Carleen Kizer, Tom Constabile and Janet O’Connell
prepared the meal of meatloaf. Nancy Pierson delivered the
meal, and desserts were prepared by Martha Sundin, Pat
Melrose, Carolyn Welcome, Amy Jaswal, Robin Ingram,
Carole Woods and Nancy Pierson.
Many thanks to all of these dedicated volunteers!
Chimes
June 2013
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7
Good News
Eight year old Daisy Burckin decided by
herself that she wanted to grow her hair
down to the middle of her back. When
she felt it was long enough, she went to
Gisele’s Hair Salon on Apr. 10 and had
her hair cut into a bob, and generously
donated 8 inches of hair to Pantene’s
Beautiful Lengths program which makes
wigs for cancer patients. She did this
without any hoopla nor expecting any
recognition, which is exactly what she
deserves for being so thoughtful.
Axel Steinmetz won fifth place in a
recent regionals indoor rock climbing
competition. Axel, a Mamaroneck High
School freshman, is now eligible to
compete in upcoming divisional meets
to be held in June in Watertown, MA.
Best of luck to him!
On May 9, Jmel Wilson completed
her fourth and final unit of Clinical
Pastoral Education at Stamford
Hospital, where she trained under the
supervision of Rabbinic Pastor David
Daniel Klipper. Jmel will be working
part-time as a chaplain at Stamford
Hospital. Congratulations, Jmel, on your
wonderful graduation!
One of Bruce Baiter’s photographs will
be included in the Silvermine School of
Art’s annual juried student exhibition in
New Canaan from June 9 to July 20.
If you have good news about a family
member or friend at St. John’s you would
like to share in the next issue of Chimes,
please email the details to Amy Jaswal
([email protected]).
8
| Chimes
June 2013
Note from the Curate: This is a wonderful, non-judgmental
piece from Sojourners about the importance of spiritual
community for teenagers and for all of us.
Why I Made My Teenager
Go to Church
“We are leaving for church in 10 minutes,” I said, summoning my most
authoritative voice before the lifeless lump under the covers.
My seven-year old Annie Sky watched the tense exchange between me and my
14-year old daughter Maya, who made periodic moans from the top bunk. With
furrowed brow, my first grader sat on the couch, as if observing a tiebreaker at
Wimbledon with no clear victor in sight.
For a moment, I wondered why I had drawn the line in the Sabbath sand,
announcing earlier in the week that Maya would have to go to church that
Sunday morning after an all-day trip to Dollywood with the middle school band.
Somehow I didn’t want Dolly Parton’s amusement park to sabotage our family
time in church. (The logic seemed rational at the time).
When Maya lifted the covers, I glimpsed the circles under her eyes and
sunburn on her skin. But I repeated my command, with an undertone of panic,
since I wasn’t sure if I could uphold the ultimatum.
When she finally got into the car, I breathed deeply and turned to our family
balm, the tonic of 104.3 FM with its top 40 songs that we sing in unison. As the
drama settled, I realized one reason why I made my teenager go to church: I want
my daughters to know that we can recover from yelling at each other (which we
had) and disagreeing. We can move on, and a quiet, sacred space is a good place
to start.
In the pew at All Souls Episcopal Church, Maya leaned her head onto my
shoulder, either in penitence or fatigue. “You can close your eyes in church,” I
whispered. “It looks like you’re praying.” I made her come to church because I
want my daughter to know that sometimes you have to show up, even when you
are exhausted.
When I opened the bulletin, I realized that Sunday was the “Senior High
Service,” that day when a high school senior from the church gives the sermon.
With her long brown hair and sincere gaze, Miranda Nolin walked to the pulpit
after the Gospel reading and told us that when she reads the Nicene Creed, our
profession of faith, she often doesn’t believe any of the words she says. (Well, she
got our attention). But she repeats the Nicene Creed each week: “Because [reciting
the words is] an act of community, a binding tradition: they have value.”
From the pulpit, Miranda assured us that traditions “allow us to have faith, to
show up, to be present when we don’t know what to believe. I might be able to
write a creed that said exactly the right words, what I believed in that moment,
but it would probably be outdated by the next week. Instead I come to church.”
Baptized and confirmed last year, Miranda shared that she comes to church
with her family because she is welcomed as a questioner in a community where
no one hesitates to reveal their doubts. She comes because of the community, the
Holy Spirit. “Most of you are here, I’d guess, because you believe this component
of the human experience is important and because it is something that is hard to
access alone,” she said.
By this point in the sermon, I felt tears welling up in my eyes and spilling down
my cheeks. I looked across the church and saw other adults wiping tears from their
faces. I made Maya come to church because I want her to know that she can question
and feel vulnerable and cry – and she doesn’t always have to do that all alone.
In her essay, “Why I make Sam go to church,” Anne Lamott writes: “The main
reason is that I want to give him what I found in the world, which is to say a
path and a little light to see by.” I want Maya to know that those people working
to confront poverty, inequality, and environmental injustice in our church
are vulnerable souls, but they are acting for the greater good in spite of their
questions. I want her to know that church is not a social club, but she has to take
actions to ensure it is a foundation of justice for all.
In this age when the “spiritual but not religious” seem to have more relevance
than churchgoers, it’s easy to wonder why church attendance matters at all. But I
believe that we need common spaces, more grounded than the corner Starbucks,
to discern right actions in a world faced with crises like climate change and stark
economic disparities.
Our teenagers and our children must shape these sacred spaces where we can
grapple with our questions but act in faith through practices of forgiveness, feeding,
hospitality, and care of creation. As Diana Butler Bass notes, “Right now, the church
does not need to convert the world. The world needs to convert the church.”
To that end, after making Maya go to church, I took my daughters to an
interfaith creation care vigil that night in downtown Asheville, N.C. (By that
point, I had nothing to lose). When we arrived, one of the volunteers gave Maya
a basket of candles, which she helped to distribute to the 250 people gathered for
the vigil.
That evening, a film crew was documenting the vigil for a Showtime movie,
produced by legendary filmmaker James Cameron. As she passed out candles at
dusk, the videographers followed Maya with their cameras and asked her, “Do you
know why you are here?”
“I’m not really sure,” she said, laughing. “I’m just the candle person.”
I made Maya go to church because we may not know why we are here, but we
can pass along a little light to others on the journey. And maybe that’s what we
need to create a little heaven on earth.
Mallory McDuff, Ph.D., teaches environmental education at Warren Wilson
College in North Carolina. She is the author of Sacred Acts: How Churches are
Working to Protect Earth’s Climate and Natural Saints.
Progressive Dinner
On Saturday, Apr. 20 over seventy St.
John’s parishioners gathered at Lisa
Young’s beautiful apartment for the first
stop in the progressive dinner. We left
our cars at the railroad station parking lot
and then were directed to the apartment
building by Mateo Santamaria and Ben
Martin. Eliza Croker and Mimi Macintyre
were in the lobby to greet people as
they arrived and to show them the way
to the elevator. In Lisa’s apartment, Buff
Kizer, Ryan O’Connell, Greg Miller, David
Hechler, Greg Hall and Matt Hart took
turns bar tending. Julia Rodbell, Greta
Massey and Heather Gardiner greeted
people and passed hors d’ouevres.
At Lisa’s we received our house
assignments, and after a pleasant social
hour, we “progressed” onward for dinner.
The dinner hosts were Carrie and Colin
McGranahan, Miriam and Tony Harwood,
Francine Della Badia, Mary and Tom
Nicoll, Mary Lee Berridge, Jackie and Jean
Plumez, and Ellen and George Dalton.
Dinner was the same at every house:
Chicken Marbella with rice, roasted
asparagus, salad and key lime pie. The
meal was prepared by Janet O’Connell
with the assistance of Mouse Liebenguth,
Ann Kantor, Perry Meigs, Amy Jaswal,
and Diane Goodman. Diane also made
the pies, and Ryan O’Connell chose the
wines. Everyone agreed that the meal
was delicious, and the evening was a
huge success.
Jmel Wilson rehearses the St. Cecelia Choir.
Chimes
June 2013
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9
Sunday School’s
Record‑Breaking Year
By Debra Quintana, Director of Christian Education
Record attendance
Perry Meigs
10
| Chimes
June 2013
We celebrate the 2012–13 school year at St. John’s Episcopal Sunday School by
reaching and surpassing attendance goals and flourishing.
The year began with our annual backpack blessings to kick off the school
year for parents and students. From then on, the school year propelled into ten
months of fun and inspiration.
Families unloaded pumpkins for the pumpkin patch fundraiser sale, and
later in the fall, students learned prayers of thanksgiving (and that the word
“Eucharist” means “thanksgiving”). Children shone as the brightest stars in
the production of our Christmas pageant, mingled with the three wise men
on Epiphany, created Valentines for US soldiers in Afghanistan, reveled with
masks and pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, collected enough money during Lent
to buy dozens of ducks through Heifer International, learned that each of us
shines as a “light in world” in a special Easter morning event, paraded in a fiery
procession wearing construction paper head pieces representing Pentecost
tongues of fire and so much more.
Setting new attendance records, fourth and fifth graders learned Bible basics
along with meaning and importance of these spiritual teachings.
Voyagers also set new enrollment records, attracted by the invigorating
teaching style of Linda Banta. At the final class, the 6th, 7th and 8th graders
marked the goal of collecting enough quarters to purchase a large animal, to
help reduce world poverty, through the Heifer International Fund. The students
collected quarters in a special donation cylinder that soon was overflowing.
St. John’s Junior Choir also grew to its largest numbers in a decade and filled
the church with its joyous song on Family Liturgy Sundays.
A group of bright and clever middle and high school students served as
Class Angels on Sunday mornings assisting parents in the younger classes. Two
specially selected high school students helped launch our new Class Buddies
program to assist special needs learners in our Sunday morning classes.
Our St. John’s Episcopal Sunday School facebook page gains momentum
as a connection for all parishioners to be up to date with happenings, photos,
videos and more.
Each of these successes arises from the desire, enthusiasm and partnership
of parents, vestry members, clergy and office staff. Thanks to everyone who has
volunteered by teaching, brought drinks and food to our celebrations, shuttled
children to and from Sunday School, read my emails, (especially those who
responded to my emails), assisted in our special undercroft teaching events,
and spread the word of our religious education program. Enjoy a relaxing,
peaceful and warm summer.
Congratulations to
Our 2013 Graduates
High School
Jack Bogan
Harper Simpson
Teddy Bellis will graduate from Mamaroneck
High School and will attend Cornell
University in Ithaca, NY.
Evangeline Clapp will graduate from the
Ursuline School and will attend Dickinson
College in Carlisle, PA.
Charlotte Clapp will graduate from Hackley
School and will attend the University of St.
Andrews in Fife, Scotland.
Margaret Dunne will graduate from the
Convent of the Sacred Heart and will attend
Georgetown University in Washington DC.
Eleanor Fanto will graduate from Rye
Country Day School and will attend
Georgetown University, Washington, DC.
Peter Kizer will graduate from Mamaroneck
High School and will attend the University
of Tampa.
Eliza McCurdy will graduate from Rye
Country Day School and will attend
Georgetown University in Washington DC.
Michaela Sanford Roberts will graduate
from Mamaroneck High School and will
attend the College of William and Mary in
Williamsburg, VA.
College and University
Jeremy Burr will graduate from New York
University.
Evelyn Fitts
Tate Simpson
Charlotte Gardiner will graduate from
Middlebury College.
Abigail E. Hall will graduate with a BA from
Trinity College, Hartford, CT.
Luke Ingram will graduate from Lehigh
University with a BA in Theater. He will be a
graduate assistant at the University of Iowa
beginning in September pursuing a MFA in
Theatrical Lighting and Scenic Design.
Rebecca Liggins will graduate from William
Smith College.
Kevin O’Connell will graduate from Williams
College.
Yuni Sameshima will graduate from Colgate
University.
Katie Schnur will graduate from the
University of Chicago with a Masters’s in
Social Work.
Chimes
June 2013
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