P.O. Box 548, Colorado Springs, CO 80901
www.graceepiscopalcolosprings.org
grace.episcopal.church@gmail.com
719/328-1125
Book of Common Prayer page 100
| Sunday, January 13 | Adult Education (Go Tell It on the Mountain) | 11:30 am |
| Choral Eucharist at FCC | 12:45 pm | |
| Fr. Paul Lautenschlager, Homilist | ||
| Children's Sunday School | 1:30 pm | |
| Youth Group | 2:15 pm | |
| Tuesday, January 15 | Holy Communion | 10:00 am |
| Father Michael's Bible Study | 10:40 am | |
| Brown Bag Lunch at FCC | 12:00 pm | |
| Grace Notes Handbell Choir | 7:15 pm | |
| Wednesday, January 16 | St. Nicholas Choir Rehearsal | 4:30 pm |
| St. Cecilia Choir Rehearsal | 5:30 pm | |
| Taylor and St. Stephen's Choirs Rehearsal | 7:00 pm | |
| Thursday, January 17 | Healing Service | 12:00 pm |
| Friday, January 18 | Grace Bibliophiles | 10:00 am |
| Saturday, January 19 | Annual Meeting and Potluck | 5:00 pm |
| Sunday, January 20 | Adult Education | 11:30 am |
| High School Youth Group | 11:30 am | |
| Choral Eucharist at FCC | 12:45 pm | |
| Children's Sunday School | 1:30 pm | |
| Middle School Youth Group | 2:15 pm | |
| Chamber Orchestra of the Springs | 3:00 pm |
To see this in a printable calendar layout, click here.
The vestry would like to encourage every member of the parish to attend the annual meeting. If you are able to provide a ride to another parishioner, or if you would to arrange for a ride that evening, please email or call Kathy Coffey at 459-5980.
Personal statements from the Nominees:
I was raised in a Christian home, being baptized and confirmed in the Presbyterian Church we attended. In 1971, I married my wonderful wife, Leigh, who is a cradle Episcopalian. Since that time, I have considered the Episcopal Church to be my home. I officially joined the Episcopal Church in 1993.
I served on the Vestry in Bremerton WA in 1985 for one year, until I was transferred. I have been involved at Grace Church since 1990, when we moved to Colorado Springs. Leigh and I served as medical support for a Youth Group trip to Lake Powell. I have been an usher since coming to Grace Church and I am currently managing the usher list. From 1999 to 2002, I was on the Steering committee for the Diocesan Men’s Conference and had the responsibility of Treasurer. I am a member of the Saturday morning Men’s Bible Study Group.
I am a pediatrician, having served 23 years on active duty in two branches of service (Navy and Army), retiring in 1993. I am currently in private practice in a three physician Pediatric group, where I also keep track of our practice statistics. I am chairman of the Memorial Children’s Hospital Credentials Committee at Memorial Hospital and Chairman of the School Health Committee for the El Paso County Medical Society. I have served as President of the Colorado Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics from 2003 to 2005, and I am a current board member.
In many ways, Grace Episcopal Church is a new church. It is a phoenix rising from the ashes of the old. We can make the new church into anything we want. I would like to share my ideas as a member of the vestry.
The vestry has three roles. First is to collect and monitor the money needed to run the church. Second is to maintain any church property. Third is to support Father Michael with the church programs.
I would like to see the vestry develop a master plan for the parish, which drives our programs and in turn our budget needs.
I have been a member of Grace Episcopal since 1994, and have been active as an usher, chalice bearer and lector. I grew up in Colorado Springs and graduated from high school here. As an attorney practicing family law for thirty-one years, I am a member of the El Paso County Family Law Council and am knowledgeable about court activities in which the church is presently embroiled.
As a vestry member, I would work to represent the lay members of the congregation, encouraging questions about how the church is run and activities impacting them. It is the responsibilitly of vestry members to pay attention to detail, ask hard questions, present a balanced point of view, provide new perspectives, be creative to overcome obstacles and commit to rebuilding our parish.
I have concerns about the direction the church needs to go pending the outcome of the legal action with Donald Armstrong. I also believe the timing of our service is an issue that should be addressed, and would work to move to the morning hours.
With my wife, Sharon, I have two children and two grandchildren.
I have been an Episcopalian since I was 8 years old, when I somehow talked my parents into dropping me off at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Denver on their way to the Methodist Church. We were all confirmed in the same class at St. Thomas when I was 9. I joined Grace Episcopal Church when I was a student at Colorado College. We joined Grace again in 1991. Over the years at Grace I have belonged to the Evangelism Board where I help Fr. Desmond Goonesekera set up the Grace Area Groups. The Rev. Linda Seracuse did a Eucharist at Colorado College that I assisted with for several years. If Linda was not there I would do Morning Prayer. Linda and I both attended that service as students at CC. I have headed up the wonderful Grace volunteers at the Acacia Hotel for 10 years. I was the lead mentor mom for the MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group at Grace Tejon for 5 years. I am continuing in that role this year with the combined group of mother’s (and one dad) from Grace and First Christian Church. They bring great joy to my life! I have been humbled to serve as a Chalice Bearer for most of the last 16 years. I am on the Worship Committee, St. Theresa’s Guild and Women of Grace. In the past I have served on the Outreach Committee and as a Colorado Episcopal Diocese convention delegate.
My desire to serve on the vestry comes from my love for the people of our parish and my desire to see God’s will for us all as it unfolds. It is still my belief that we can continue as an Episcopal Church like the one I grew up in, where everyone was welcome regardless of whether they were conservative, liberal, or moderate. I think that having a loving church requires Unity, not Uniformity.
I see the vestry here running the parish with unquestionable integrity, honesty and ethics. I want to see total transparency in finances. I see the responsibility of the vestry to grow the parish and to bring more young families into the church. They are the future of our parish family. As we all know, it is extremely important for all members of the vestry to ask questions if there is anything, legal or otherwise, they do not fully understand.
I would love to see our parish do much more outreach! Opening our hearts, and investing our time and energy to help others is one of God’s main missions for us. Since we have moved to FCC we have had three times the number of volunteers that we need each time we serve meals at the Acacia, thanks to our outstanding youth group! We have so many parishioners who want to help; we need to find a way to channel that energy.
Here is a little about my background: Fred and I have been married for almost 48 years. Our daughter, Pam, and her family live in Denver. We have two grandchildren, Logan 11, and Harley Rose, 3. They are the light of our lives.
For the last 31 years I have been president of our two small companies, Porter Data Systems, Inc. and Porter Leasing Company, Inc. I have run the business end managing the accounting, marketing and contracts while Fred has done all the engineering, consulting, computer and electronic design and teaching. Some of our clients have been the Eastman Kodak Company, Planter’s Peanuts, Gates Rubber Co., Exxon and Lockheed Martin.
In the community I have served on committees for the local Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, was Chairman of the Red Cross at Edwards AFB, CA, a volunteer Red Cross dental technician, President of the Officer’s Wives’ Club. During the Vietnam War I headed up the POW/MIA support group at Wright-Patterson AFB, OH. I was also president of the Rona Village Homeowner’s Association.
I have been a member of Grace and St. Stephen's Episcopal Church since 1994, and am a life-long Episcopalian. Currently, I sing in the St. Stephen's choir and serve as a lector. Since our departure from Tejon Street, I have also served as editor of the weekly Tidings and a member of the Communications Committee. Previously, I have served as a youth member of the vestry in the parish where I grew up, and as a member of St. Mary's Cathedral in Memphis was elected to the Cathedral Chapter. In 2003, I was nominated from the floor by Robert McJimsey, Phil Webster and Lisa Noll to be a candidate for the Grace Episcopal vestry.
Rebecca and I have three children, Sarah, Andrew and Margaret, who are active as choristers and acolytes. In the community, I am active on numerous School District 11 committees, including the Executive District Accountability committee, and am secretary on the Palmer High School Building Accountability Committee. I have worked as an engineer and manager for FedEx systems development in a variety of positions for twenty-three years, and am currently a project manager for a portion of the FedEx.com website.
Grace Church means many things to all of us. My vision of Grace encompasses the traditional music program, an active, outward-looking congregation, and youth programs that support our children as they develop in their faith. While the restoration of our property is important, I believe that who we are and what we do in the community is more important than where we are. The strength of Grace Church is our breadth of ages, experiences and viewpoints. It is the responsibility of the vestry to tap that strength to build our internal programs and to reach out into the community.
I am so delighted to be able to address you by way of this wonderful format created by our congregation, called Tidings. I am especially delighted to be able to tell you about all the wonderful things that God is doing in our midst. And I can assure you, it's not just about the numbers… Although, frankly, Deacon Sally and I are always a little bit surprised and delighted to see so many people still making their way to First Christian in spite of the inconvenient hour of 12:45 pm and virtually no parking. We thank you so much for your commitment--smiling faces, cheerful dispositions, and heart warming greetings fill our nave, and make our work as your clergy an absolute joy.
Speaking of clergy, some of you have no doubt noticed a new face sitting in sacred space. His name is Father John Pahls and he has joined us as an assistant priest, part-time. His role will be to celebrate the Holy Eucharist on Tuesday mornings at 10:00 am, teach my Bible study on Tuesday mornings in my absence, do some occasional preaching and celebrating on Sunday mornings, and serve as our liturgical resident expert. Father John has actually been with us for a long time. Some of you may remember that he was a regular attendee at our 8:00 am services when we met on Tejon Street; and he occasionally substituted for me during our weekday masses. In fact, Fr. John's mother was a longtime member of our Altar Guild. With the retirement of Father Roy Soper, Father John is a welcomed addition to our clerical staff.
I want to end my brief article by thanking a number of individuals who have done such an outstanding job of giving of their time, talent, and treasure: First, Deacon Sally continues to amaze me with her love for pastoral ministry, coupled with her unbelievable servant’s heart. Also, Marti Lindberg—who, as our new parish administrator, keeps our ship afloat, with her meticulous attention to detail and calm demeanor. A special thank you to Bill Marbaker and David Watts, without whom our finances would be in complete disarray. And a very special thanks to our education team--Ed Brown, Helen Hazelton, and Jim Hinkle. You guys are truly amazing! Of course, I could mention so many other names-- which I will try to do in future articles. Suffice it to say, we as a parish are enormously blessed by an incredible cadre of volunteers.
In closing, I want to thank you, Grace and St Stephen’s Episcopal Church, for allowing me to be your servant-in-charge during this difficult time. May 2008 be a wonderful year for all of us desiring to grow up into Him who is the head, Jesus Christ. To this end, may He receive all the honor, the glory, and the praise.
The Rev. Paul Lautenschlager, our regional missioner, will be our guest homilist on January 13, 2008. He has been a parish priest for 34 years. Prior to his arrival at St. Michael's Church in March, 2001, he served as rector of churches in Illinois, Missouri and Pennsylvania. He also served as Regional Missioner in 2003 and 2004. In December, 2006, he accepted a second appointment as Missioner by Bishop O'Neill. He is married to Nancy and they have four grown children and three grandchildren.
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