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Thursday, 01 March 2012 15:40 |
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United Thank Offering (UTO) is a ministry of the Episcopal Church for the mission of the whole church. Through United Thank Offering, men, women, and children nurture the habit of giving daily thanks to God. These prayers of thanksgiving start when we recognize and name our many daily blessings. Those who participate in UTO discover that thankfulness leads to generosity. During this season of Lent, the people of Christ Church, Montpelier, are invited to participate in generous giving to the ministry of the UTO. Giving boxes are now available in the Parish Hall on the Communications Table. Please pick up a box and donate your spare change daily as a Lenten offering for all you’ve been given. An ingathering of these boxes will take place later this Lent. If you have questions on this program, please see Jean Peterson or contact her at: 802-685-2282 |
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Foyer Groups -- Want to Join One? |
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Foyer groups are small groups of church community members who share a simple meal together once a month for four months in order to get to know one another and to strengthen community. If you are interested in either helping to set up these groups, or in becoming a member of a foyer group, please contact Susan Reid after church, or via phone 802 229 1403 or email
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. We hope to get enough interested Foyer participants to begin setting up groups after the first of the year. Everyone is welcome.
So, what exactly are Foyer Groups?
Foyers are formed every 4 months, with at least 4 to 5 couples (8 to 10 people) or a mixture of couples and singles Participants change to a different Foyer group every 4 months in order to get to know different parishioners.
Foyers is a French word meaning "hearthside" implying the warmth of a close, small group of friends sharing a common love and concern for each other…in displaying an image of warmth and comfort.
Foyer Groups are a fun and easy way for parishioners to gather together on a regular but informal basis for purely social reasons…to enjoy one another’s company, to strengthen bonds of community, to meet new members and just to get to know other people who share a common interest in the Christ Church community, but with whom we might not otherwise interact. They provide a means to develop new friendships and deepen old ones and are a way to make our parish feel more connected and warmer.
Foyers are pot lucks, held at a group member's home once a month within each group on a rotational basis. Each couple, (or person, if single) gets an opportunity to host the event. Everyone is welcome to participate.
There is no agenda or plan, just casual fellowship and a refreshing meal. Groups are made up of singles, couples, young people, retired people, etc. In other words, Foyers are made up of a cross section of the parish. Out of the meetings, friendships develop among people who might not have any other opportunity to meet and get to know each other. Newcomers are especially invited to join one of the groups at any time.
Each small group of eight to ten people meets once every month for 4 months, in the home of one of the members of the group. Generally, the host provides the main course while the other members fill in the rest of the meal such as appetizers, salad, dessert, etc. Some groups have enjoyed gathering for a picnic lunch during good weather or even meeting at a local restaurant. The main focus is social.
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One of the exciting things happening at Christ Church is the increased involvement of young people in the services. During Advent, our candle-lighting prayers at the start have featured a youngster lighting the candle(s). Zach did it on Advent 1, Aine lit two candles last Sunday, and Charlotte handled three, including the pink candle today.
Rev. Paul has started to enlist and train young acolytes. Aine has helped out twice and today she processed, held the Gospel book during the reading, elevated one of the chalices during the invitation, and added a wonderful element of youth participation to the whole service. More young people will be involved during the fourth Sunday of each month and of course, will present the Christmas pageant, next Sunday, Advent 4.
If you have or know of a child who might want to participate, please contact the Priest-in-Partnership. |
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Written by Sara Baker
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"You know, that child doesn’t belong only to those who raise him, because one day that child will be educated, and then he will belong to the whole country, in fact, to the whole world! And his job will be to help others! So that is why he is called ‘everyone’s child’ - he belongs to all of us, even America."
-Fr. Thomas, Principal, Lanet Umoja Primary School, Kenya
In February of 2012, I will embark on a journey to Kenya, with a small group of teachers and community members, to make connections between schools in Kenya and our elementary school in Moretown. We will travel with a group called Everyone’s Child. My participation in this trip is a direct result of prayer and meditation with our very own Christ Church Sudan Communion group and we see it as a natural extension of the Communion that we share with Sudan. As God would have it, I will be based in Nakuru, which is where I hope to visit with a Sudanese woman, Rhoda Yar, who some of us from the Sudan Communion have been supporting in her education at the Methodist University in Kenya. It is a wonderful thing to imagine being able to hold her in person, as I have in prayer for the past few years! Her plan is to go back to South Sudan to help in the continued recovery efforts. Another connection to Christ Church is that Beth Ann Maier (pediatrician and long time member of Christ Church) went with Everyone’s Child on a medical mission a couple of years ago.
But back to Everyone’s Child… I became aware of this group when Sister Ruth Young, of the Church of the Crucified One, came to my classroom several years ago and did a slideshow about her recent travels to Kenya. Everyone’s Child, is a non-profit, non-denominational group that was created as a result of her experiences and the quote above sums up the heart’s work of Everyone’s child. Their mission is to “educate where there are no schools, to care where there is a great need and to connect where there is isolation”. Toward that end, Everyone’s Child has built 5 primary schools in Kenya and we will be visiting these schools, bringing penpal letters, art, school supplies and a sense of connection to Moretown, Vermont – a place where children, just like themselves, have struggled with natural disaster (Moretown was hard hit by TS Irene) and who want the same things that they do – to play safely, to have friends and to learn all they can about this great big fascinating world we share. Through the activities and songs that we share with the students at these schools, it is our hope that they will see that though there are differences in how we live and what we look like, that our hearts and minds are very much the same.
I plan to update my Christ Church family regularly and would appreciate your prayers as I prepare for this adventure. Since prayer and communion with the Sudan Communion have been so powerful to me in this journey, I would like to extend that net, if you will, and ask if you might be interested in joining the Sudan Communion group for the four weeks preceding my trip – to pray for and with me, and for our brothers and sisters in the Sudan? I am not sure what this would look like or when we would meet, but I have the sense that I am supposed to be asking, so do with it what you will. I will also let folks know about donating school supplies or other items (if you are inclined to donate dollars that is fine too) but for now, I have the strong sense that what is needed most is prayer. Please consider joining me in mid to late January to prepare – if you are interested in more details or have questions, please email me at
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More information about Everyone’s Child can be found at: http://www.kidsinkenya.org/
In gratitude and anticipation,
Sara Baker (the blonde one) |
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