September, 2024
The Good News
FROM THE RECTOR
Two years ago, your vestry took a day-long retreat to talk about what we
wanted and needed to do to uphold our Trinity Church and its ministry. We made a
list, and got started on it, with the help of many of you. This past June, we met
again and reviewed the list. Turns out, we had actually accomplished quite a bit of
what we set out to do! Many thanks and kudos to our vestry and numerous other
folks in the church who have helped us to meet our goals. If you’d like to look over
that list and our accomplishments, you’ll find it at the end of this newsletter.
You will note that there are still things to be done. We’re a very small parish,
and it really does take all hands to do our ministry in this town and this diocese.
You’ll be hearing about several opportunities for you to kick in and help in the
coming months, and everyone can take part. Take a look at the list – perhaps
there’s something that really appeals to you and your own peculiar set of skills?
And it’s not just helping – you can also attend events, like the Silent Movie
Night, Women’s Group, or Adult Education (starting in October). Just your being
there makes any event so much better!
The church does have a lot to offer. Please consider taking part in any
number of ways this fall. Support your parish with your time and talent, because
they are both a big part of what makes YOU a treasure!
Sarah+
THIS MONTH, THE RECTOR IS THANKFUL FOR...
Penny, Andrew, Vivian and Cole, who worked together with Tina Arsenault
to tidy and “edit” the cherub room a bit. Looking much more organized!
Erika Wiley, who helped me stock the shelves in the yellow room with
Sunday School materials, and Ken Arsenault and Emeka Ofuokwu, who
moved that huge shelf from the blue room to its current location
Donna Enman, for coming to Women’s Group in August to tell us about
Rockland Holiday Magic. Stay tuned, parish – this will be one of your
opportunities in a couple of months!
Kathy Crockett, for being such a great godmother to Vance.
BLESSING OF THE BACKPACKS
Simply everyone is doing it! On Sunday, September 8th, students, teachers, and anyone else who carries a backpack is encouraged to bring them to church to be blessed for the new school year. Get the year off to a good start!
SILENT MOVIE NIGHT RETURNS!
Popcorn will be popped, drinks will be poured, and an entertaining evening will be had by all who come to our next Silent Movie night on Saturday, September 21st! This time, we’ll be watching the Buster Keaton classic, “The Navigator”, as well as a short silent film to whet our appetite. Please mark your calendars for this fun, free event, and don’t forget to invite a friend or three!
WOMEN'S GROUP
All of the women of the parish are invited to gather on the last Monday of every
month for Women’s Group. Our next meeting will be on Monday, September 30th,
beginning at 7PM. Dues are only $1 per month! Please join this wonderful,
welcoming group!
LOOKING WAY AHEAD - CRAFT FAIR!
Our terrific Holiday Craft Fair will be offered on Saturday, December 7th. Speak to
Pam Chester if you would like to help out, or if you or someone you know would
like to rent a table for the event. Always a good time with a raffle and beautiful
crafts, for giving or keeping!
THE HAUNTED HALLWAY IS COMING SOON!
This year, we’re going to offer our Haunted Hallway early, in conjunction with the
Rockland Fall Festival, which falls on Saturday, October 5th. We’ll need help
setting up and breaking down, as well as help doing the actual haunting! It would
be great to have a few people working the Fall Festival as well, so that we can
point people our way (we have had a neat sign made as well). Candy donations
will also be appreciated, so we can give everyone a “handful” after they go
through! Interested? Speak to Tina or Sarah, and be alert for updates!
THE CONSECRATION OF OUR NEW BISHOP
Everyone is invited, either in person or in a local watch party, to take part in the
Consecration of our new Bishop, the Rev’d Julia E. Whitworth, 17th Bishop of the
Diocese of Massachusetts. The event will be held at Trinity Church in Copley
Square on Saturday, October 19th, beginning at 11AM (seating begins at 10am). The
Seating of the Bishop will be held on Sunday, October 20th at 5PM at the Cathedral
Church of St. Paul. If you are interested in attending the Consecration, please
reserve your seat as soon as possible! Use the link below:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ordination-consecration-of-the-17th-bishop-of-the-
diocese-of-ma-tickets-923907651657?aff=oddtdtcreator
WATCH PARTY VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Speaking of local watch parties, it looks like Trinity Church will be an official
Watch Party location for the diocese and the deanery! Details are being hammered
out, but we will need someone to support the AV, and a few people to oversee
snacks for during and after the ceremony. We will have a budget, so if you like
catering events, consider this a great way that you can help Trinity and the
community welcome our new Bishop Diocesan! Speak to Rev’d Sarah before she
has to start stalking people.
THE SEATING OF THE NEW BISHOP
Well, you didn’t think she was just going to stand there all the time, did you? The
official Seating of the Bishop will be offered as an Evensong service on Sunday,
October 20th, beginning at 5PM at the Cathedral Church of St. John in Boston, and
followed by a reception. If you’d like to attend, it’s suggested that you rsvp for the
event using this link:
https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=vH2X8Ya4wUivFAgjWXOitpwycqxQdFJMrW1eYN9DINRUMkFKNk1SVVdYNE5MSzZTSUlXWTlYTDhSSy4u
VESTRY RETREAT - WHAT WE'VE DONE; WHAT WANTS DOING
What we’ve accomplished:
- Re-started the Women’s Group
- Event board in the parish hall
- Bathroom sign in the Narthex/hall
- Souper Bowl Sunday
- Silent Movie night
- Rockland Fall Festival
- Improved signage for Holiday Stroll/ Nativities
- Revive the Circle of Prayer on Facebook
- had a table at Rockland Day in the summer
- Sarah and Erika tidied the yellow and blue rooms and began to move
the Sunday School stuff there; Carla and Sarah and whoever else will continue to
work on this
What we say we still want to do:
- Better maintenance of the website (note: Charlie Morse did huge work when
the site was co-opted and needed to be rebuilt – major kudos!)
- Put out a Welcome/sign in book at events.
- Put out a box to donate or take greeting cards
- Community Christmas Carol walk (maybe with other churches?)
- Game or Trivia night
- History night (Abington historical society offer may take care of that)
- Men’s Group
- Post the priest history somewhere
- Better outreach to the Deaf community
- Create “beautification committee”
- Sell/donate lots of extra stuff we don’t need
- Mini-Revive session on prayer
- Follow up with lapsed members