eGraceNotes
News for and about Grace Episcopal Church October 6, 2006

In This Issue ...

Our Values

Grace Calls the Rev. John Bower as Interim Vicar

Fr. David Howard to be Honored Sunday

Every Member Canvass Campaign Announces 40/40 Goal

Grace Applies for Assistance from Diocesan Commission on Congregational Life

Laura Chace Honored By Historical Society

Thanks to Those Who Called

St. Phillip's Move to be Celebrated

Pastoral care program offered

Thanks to Funke's Greenhouses

Wheelbarrow Needed

Electing Our New Bishop

Articles in progress ...

Grace Church from Above


 

Our Values

Grace Church

Treat every person as a child of God.

Continually grow and awaken to the presence of God in our lives.

Be always guided by honesty and integrity.

We are nourished by people of every cultural background, honoring everyone's age, race, economic situation, gender, disability, sexual orientation, family configuration and religious approach.

Serve God by sharing with those in need and working actively for social justice.

Visit the Grace Church web site here ...


 
  • Grace Calls the Rev. John Bower as Interim Vicar
  • At a Special Meeting on Wednesday, October 4, the Mission Council (aka Vestry) called The Rev. John Bower by unanimous vote to serve as interim part- time Vicar at Grace Church. His first Sunday with Grace will be Ocober 15.

    This will mean an increase in clergy presence and leadership not afforded by the Sunday supply arrangement we have had for most of the year.

    Father Bower, 69, impressed the Council by his open and frank discussion and his spirit-filled approach. His philosophy is to facilitate healing and to raise up leaders in the parish. He feels you do this by “letting go in order to receive---to make space in our lives for grace.”

    Father Bower has served several parishes throughout the Midwest both large and small. He has served mainly in the Cincinnati area, to which he returned in retirement. He served 11 years as chaplain at the Convent of the Transfiguration in Glendale; his most recent interim was 4 years at St. Simon of Cyrene in Lincoln Heights.

    Still trying to achieve “retirement,” he will serve a relatively short-term interim period at Grace while a permanent Vicar is sought.

    See minutes of special Mission Council Meeting here ...
  • Fr. David Howard to be Honored Sunday
  • Fr. David Howard

    There will be a potluck to honor Fr. Howard next Sunday, Oct. 8, following the 10:00am service. This will be his last Sunday with us.

    Entree and bread have already been prepared. Please bring a salad or dessert or beverage.

  • Every Member Canvass Campaign Announces 40/40 Goal
  • The campaign goals for the 2006 Every Member Canvass are 40 pledging families and $40,000. Here is the timeline for the Every member Canvass.

    • Week of October 1: Announce timeline to congregation at October 1 service. Receive a pledge from all members of the Mission Council and from all canvassers for this drive. Letter and pledge card mailed to all members.
    • Week of October 8: At the October 8 service, announce total of pledges made and amount pledged by Mission Council and canvassers. Push for all pledges to be made during this week. Canvassers follow-up on anything that their conversation with their assigned members may require.
    • Week of October 15: At the October 15 service, announce total pledges made. Canvassers will meet to discuss what they have learned, to follow up on any remaining and unfinished calls, evaluate success of the canvass drive, determine what more needs to be done, if anything, and make recommendations for improvements for the following year’s drive.
    • Week of October 22: At the October 22 service, announce end of successful campaign.

    It all depends upon you!

  • Grace Applies for Assistance from Diocesan Commission on Congregational Life
  • Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow!

    That was the feeling of the three Grace Church parishioners traveling home from Procter Center on September 23. They had met with members of the Diocesan Committee on Congregational Life and Bishop Kenneth L. Price to present and answer questions about our application for funding.

    While there is no answer at this writing as to the amount of funds we will receive, all of us agreed that telling our story and receiving ideas and advice from committee members and members of other congregations was a spirit-filled experience. It is also one that continues to excite us and fill us with hope for the future.

    During our presentation, we were told several times that our application was the most professional they had ever received. This is in very large part due to the hard work, competency and leadership of Jim Edgy, our Parish Administrator. Without Jim's vision, tenacity and experience in the area of grantsmanship, it is likely we would still be at square one in program planning and implementation and applications for funding.

    In addition to the various funds presently being requested for clergy, programming and capital improvements to building and grounds, Grace Church recently received word that it has been granted $50,000 over two years from the Procter Fund for Lifelong Christian Formation. This money will be used for Christian education leadership, materials, audio and visual equipment, and to develop and publicize alternative worship services at times other than Sunday mornings.

    Let us all praise God, indeed, and commit our time, money and prayers to the renewal of Grace Church and its mission.

    Article contributed by Mary McLain and Grace Staples.

    Thanks are due to Grace Staples and Mary McLain who took a Saturday to represent Grace Church before the Commission on Congregational Life at the Procter Conference Center and so ably told why Grace Church deserves Diocesan support.

    See highlights of the grant application, outlining Grace's recent history and future prospects here ...
  • Laura Chace Honored By Historical Society
  • Laura Chace

    Congratulations to Laura Chace who was honored for her 35 years of service as Librarian of the Cincinnati Historical Society before a crowd of about 150 on September 26.

    Laura was raised from birth in Grace Episcopal Church. She served more than 50 years here as a layperson (including Junior and Senior Warden) and later as a Deacon before being transferred to Christ Church, Glendale, by Bishop Thompson.

    The standing room only event in the Cincinnati Dining Room of the Cincinnati Museum Center was a gala celebration and tribute to her important work and associations since being called to the position of Head Librarian in 1971. Many persons whose names are familiar to all Cincinnatians were present to honor this modest, hard-working, fun-loving, and very competent and gifted woman. Speakers, in both loving and humorous ways, emphasized the impact she had made on the Cincinnati Historical Society and on them, personally, in the years she had labored there.

    Gifts to Laura included a unique Ruthven print of the Cincinnati Museum Center and the establishment by friends and colleagues of a $10,000 library acquisition fund in her name.

    One of the many ways that Grace Church benefited from her passion for history and her church was the very interesting and comprehensive illustrated booklet on its history that she produced in 1966 on the occasion of the Grace Church centennial. (It was used just in recent months as a resource for the “church profile” section of one of our major grant applications.)

    Still a resident of College Hill, Laura will not be resting on her laurels in retirement. She is already hard at work on a committee to host the June international meeting of the Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries. Along similar lines, she has also been engaged to work on the historic records at Spring Grove Cemetery. And, of course, she will continue in her leadership of mission opportunities as Deacon at Christ Church, Glendale. Finally, just for fun, she is taking one class to learn to play renaissance music on the recorder, and another to study a play inside out from script reading to directing!

    Contributed by Grace Staples.

  • Thanks to Those Who Called
  • A big thank you to the ten people who agreed to call each of our absent members. As one said, "I really didn't want to do it, but I'm so glad I did!"

    People re-connected with people they hadn't seen for awhile. We heard about needs of which we had not been aware and everyone learned a lot at both ends of the phone line. Moreover, we are delighted to see some of our old friends back in the pews.

    Our heartfelt thanks to Jo Carroll, Susan Dewbrey, Phillis Dietz, Judy Handy, Anne Henneberg, Elizabeth Kelly, Greta Kappes, Wanda Miller, Florence Poyer and Grace Staples.

    If you know of someone whom we should contact, please call the office at 513-541-2415.

  • St. Phillip's Move to be Celebrated
  • The service to celebrate the move of St. Philip’s, Northside, to the Churches Active in Northside building and the dedication of the new food pantry at CAIN is on Wednesday, Oct. 11, at 5:00pm, beginning at St. Philip’s church building. Everyone is invited.

  • Pastoral care program offered
  • The Department of Pastoral Care at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center will offer a day- long program on "When Bad Things Happen to Children: Pastoral Responses for Difficult Times."

    The program will take place on Oct. 24 from 8:30am to 3:30pm. The program fee is $25, which includes conference materials and lunch.

    For more information please contact Bill Scrivener ( bill.scrivener@cchmc.org or 513-636-4377). To register, call Ms. Barbara Holmes at 513-636-7720.

  • Thanks to Funke's Greenhouses
  • Funke's Greenhouses

    Funke’s Greenhouses on Gray Road has agreed to give us a minimum of a 50% discount on all plants that we purchase from them and a lesser but still significant discount on things like fertilizer, mulch, peat moss.

    Recently, we had a donor who contributed money for four Crepe Myrtle plants. Because of this discount, we were able to purchase six. In talking with Bob LePere at Funke's, we learned that his father attended Grace Church and sang in the choir for many years.

    So if you need supplies, please patronize Funke’s and tell them that you appreciate their support of Grace Church.

    See more about Funke's here ...
  • Wheelbarrow Needed
  • Grace Church needs a wheel barrow. If you have one you are not using and would donate it, please call the office at 513-541-2415.

  • Electing Our New Bishop
  • On November 11, clergy and lay delegates will elect the ninth bishop of our diocese. The nominees are

    • the Rev. Thomas E. Breidenthal, dean of religious life and of the chapel, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ;
    • the Rev. Robert G. Certain, rector, St. Margaret's Episcopal Church, Palm Desert, CA;
    • the Rev. Susan E. Goff, rector, St. Christopher's Episcopal Church, Springfield, VA;
    • the Rev. Canon George Hill, rector, St. Barnabas, Montgomery, OH;
    • the Rev. John F. Koepke III, rector, St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Dayton, OH;
    • the Rev. James B. Lemler, director of mission, The Episcopal Church, New York City, NY;
    • and the Rt. Rev. Kenneth L. Price Jr., bishop with ecclesiastical authority, Diocese of Southern Ohio.

    You will find the complete biographies and other information about each of the nominees at www.episcopal-dso.org, as well as details about the election process and the 132nd diocesan convention, which will be held in Portsmouth November 10-11.

    If you have questions for the candidates, you may submit them to the Rev. Stephen Smith at revd.up@ameritech.net for consideration by a moderator to ask at the nominee forums.

  • Articles in progress ...
  • In a future issue, we'll have some nice pictures of and information about the big work day last Saturday, during which many folks put in many energetic hours sprucing up the landscaping around the church. We'll also have pictures and information about the going-away reception held a few weeks back for Karla and Bill Vogt.

    Stay tuned ...

  • Grace Church from Above
  • Finally, for your viewing enjoyment, here's an interesting view of Grace, from Microsoft Live Local. To see more of our surroundings, click on the picture or the link below.

    Grace on Microsoft Live Local ...
    Grace Church Phone: 513-541-2415