THE GREETER
April 2016
FROM THE RECTOR
Happy Easter! The season of Lent is finally over, the birds are chirping, the flowers are beginning to bloom and the trees are budding. After a long winter, Easter, which generally falls during springtime, is a reminder that death does not have the final word. In Jesus, we have resurrection and new life. Christmas and Easter are both similar in that many people regard them as single days rather than a season. Easter Day is just the beginning of the season called Eastertide. And so, Easter Day may have passed, but the season of Easter continues until the Day of Pentecost, which this year falls on May 15th. With this in mind, keep your ears and eyes open to the continuing revelation of Jesus’s resurrection. Look around you and within you. See Jesus anew. He is alive and his work continues!
Switching subjects, I want to give the parish an update on our continuing search for an assistant rector. You may recall from previous communications that we are collaboratively working with All Saints church, which is also looking for an assistant. Earlier in March we brought out a couple to interview and to show them the city of Omaha. The interviews went well and on Maundy Thursday, the rector of All Saints, Marisa, and I called the couple and have officially offered them the positions at our parishes. They have been completely honest with us during this process and let us know that they have one more interview to complete in another city, which they feel obligated to keep. After they interview there, they will be in a position to let us know whether or not they will accept our offer. At this point, there is nothing we can do but to pray for them and to wait. I should know something by the end of the first week of April. Should the offer be accepted, I will be able to share more details about who they are, their respective backgrounds, and who would be the assistant at St. Andrew’s.
Fr. John
MINISTRY NEWS
OMAHA GIVES
Omaha’s fourth annual 24-hour charitable giving challenge is set for Friday, May 25. St. Andrew’s has been approved as a participant. If you give to St. Andrew’s through this link on Non-profits, and search for St. Andrew’s on May 25, your donation (or payment of your pledge) will go further as additional funds will be added to every donation given this day. You can even schedule your gift to be given ahead of time to ensure you don’t forget on May 25
ALTAR GUILD REMINDERS AND THANK YOUS
The next Altar Guild meetings willbe held onWednesday, April 6and onMay 4, at9:30in the chapel followed by the meeting in the conference room. At the May meeting, we will sign up for altar duty through mid-September so please bring your calendars with you.
The Altar Guild shares coffee duty with the Nearly New Shop onApril 24,June 5,August 7.
Thanks to St. Andrew’s “wine angels.”Due to their generosity, St. Andrew’s is supplied with all of its communion wine.
Thanks to Altar Guild members and "Friends of the Altar Guild" for your work during the season of Lent and especially during Holy Week .
FRIENDS OF THE CHOIR
The Friends of the Choir is a new organization at St. Andrews that was formed this year. It is dedicated to supporting the growth and development of the Adult Choir and related musical needs in the traditional worship service at St. Andrews Episcopal Church.
Music is an important means of forming and expressing faith in the liturgy. It is an attempt to adorn the liturgy with beauty, to make living the Christian life more attractive, to give us a brief foretaste of the heavenly beauty that we will experience at the end of the ages. In his book Living Beauty, Alejandro Garcia-Rivera says, “A liturgy given not so much for the sake of the Church but for the sake of the world must attract the world to what is lifted up. In other words, it must be something of great Beauty.” We seek to embody this approach in all that we do, with the goal of enhancing the beauty of our liturgy and of our lives.
Current projects that need support include:
(1) Commissioning a new anthem from noted American choral composer René Clausen in memory of our dear friend and chorister Ingrid Van Blerk
(2) Raising support for our annual “Lessons and Carols” service
(3) Purchasing anthems for the choir to sing on Sunday mornings
(4) Raising support for our annual choir retreat at the St. Benedict Center in Schuyler
(5) Hiring a trumpeter-in-residence to play at seven significant liturgies throughout the year
Your tax deductible donation will help the Friends support these ongoing programmatic needs.
Please consider becoming a friend of the choir today by sending a check to St. Andrews with your donation for the Friends of the Choir organization noted in the subject line.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact Michael Bauer, organist/choirmaster at St. Andrews:
402-541-3080.
EASTER SEASON CHOIR
A Special Opportunity for You to Consider
The adult choir will be singing at the 10:30 service from Easter day through May 22nd (Trinity Sunday). For anyone who would like to sing for a limited time with the choir, this might be a good opportunity to join us. We hold rehearsals on Thursday evenings from 7:30-9:00 and Sunday mornings at 9:00. If you are a former choir member who would like to experience singing again for a sort time or a high school student who wants to find out what singing is all about, feel free to simply come to any of our rehearsals. If you are a new member or someone who has gone to St. Andrews for many years and always wanted to try singing, consider joining with us for this one season with no further commitment required.
The choir is a wonderful community of people who support one another, laugh, pray, and enjoy the process of creating beauty for our worship services. We hope that some of you might take advantage of this offer. No musical skills are required. We will teach you how to sing and help you to learn more about music as you have fun and serve the parish and God through your efforts. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Michael Bauer, organist/choirmaster at St. Andrews at or 402-541-3080.
DIAPER SHOWER
Our Annual Diaper Shower will be held in Engle Hall,Saturdayafternoon onApril 23rdfrom 2-4pm. We ask that you bring a bag or box of disposable diapers. In the past this has been a festive and fun party with desserts and savories and a great way to welcome our newest members that are here and yet to come. Questions? Call Sarah402-660-7649
JOIN THE FUN CLUB
Join the St. Andrew's Fun Club for a unique gathering in April:
APRIL 15, 2016
"Celebrating being over 55"
Garden Cafe in the Rockbrook Center
5:30 p.m.Appetizers and Beverages
6:30 p.m.Entertainer Mary Maxwell (Omaha's own funny lady)
Space is limited, so you need to buy a ticket ($5 for one or $8 for two) They will be available the next two Sundays or you can RSVP to Loree MacNeill at
VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL
Save the date. Vacation Bible School and Marketplace 29 AD will be held at St. Andrew’s Sunday, June 12-Tuesday, June 14. Supper is at 5:30 with programming from 6:00pm-8:00pm each evening. Please register with Sarah at or 402-660-7649. Cost is $15 per child with a maximum of $30 per family. We hope you join us for the fun and educational event.
CAMP CANTERBURY
Registration will be open for Camp Canterbury beginning May 1. Camp is for youth all across the diocese entering 4th-12th grade. Camp Canterbury is located at Camp Calvin Crest near Fremont, NE. and will be held July 18-22. More information can be found at campcanterbury.episcopal-ne.org.
A WORD TO THE CHURCH
The House of Bishops of The Episcopal Church, meeting in retreat, unanimously approved the following Word To The Church.
Holy Week 2016
"We reject the idolatrous notion that we can ensure the safety of some by sacrificing the hopes of others.”
On Good Friday the ruling political forces of the day tortured and executed an innocent man. They sacrificed the weak and the blameless to protect their own status and power. On the third day Jesus was raised from the dead, revealing not only their injustice but also unmasking the lie that might makes right.
In a country still living under the shadow of the lynching tree, we are troubled by the violent forces being released by this season’s political rhetoric. Americans are turning against their neighbors, particularly those on the margins of society. They seek to secure their own safety and security at the expense of others. There is legitimate reason to fear where this rhetoric and the actions arising from it might take us.
In this moment, we resemble God’s children wandering in the wilderness. We, like they, are struggling to find our way. They turned from following God and worshiped a golden calf constructed from their own wealth. The current rhetoric is leading us to construct a modern false idol out of power and privilege. We reject the idolatrous notion that we can ensure the safety of some by sacrificing the hopes of others. No matter where we fall on the political spectrum, we must respect the dignity of every human being and we must seek the common good above all else.
We call for prayer for our country that a spirit of reconciliation will prevail and we will not betray our true selves.
The Episcopal Church House of Bishops met in retreat March 11 – 15 at Camp Allen Conference Center in Navasota, TX.
OUTREACH NEWS
YOUTH EMERGENCY SERVICES (YES)
During the entire month of April, we will have a collection of summer clothing for Youth Emergency Services. Clothing is needed for teens, young adults, infants & preschool children. Clothing can be placed in the black bins in Engle Hall.
Monetary donations are also very welcome & greatly appreciated. Checks may be written to St. Andrew’s with YES noted on the memo line. Cash donations should also be designated for YES.
Thank you for your help.
DEAN FRICKE FOOD PANTRY
Due to a rise in the cost of food and a substantial decrease in the monetary donations the pantry has received this year, the Dean Fricke Food Pantry needs your help to provide food for the poor and needy. The non-perishable food items that each church collects for the pantry is only a small portion of what is needed for this mission. The majority of the food we use to fill our sacks comes from the Food Bank for the Heartland. If food is collected and donated to the Food Bank of the Heartland, it can be purchased by us at 16 cents a pound. For example, a can of Progresso soup at a retail store could cost between $1.00 and $1.50. That same can could be purchased through the Food Bank of the Heartland for 16 cents. By making a financial donation to the Dean Fricke Food Pantry, it can purchase up to 5 times the amount of food.
Please consider making a financial donation today. This is a vital ministry here in Omaha. Most churches will have donation envelopes available but if not, please send your donation to the address below.
The Dean Fricke Memorial Episcopal Food Pantry
Trinity Cathedral
113 North 18th Street
Omaha, NE 68102
POP TABS FOR RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE
We are collecting the aluminum tabs from aluminum cans again. Please save these, bring them with you to church, and place them in the jar that will soon be in Engle Hall. These will be donated to the Ronald McDonald House in memory of Lou Gates.
BY REQUEST FUNDRAISER
SAVE THE DATE! The 4th Annual “By Request Only” Fundraiser for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society and St. Andrew’s outreach ministry will be on Friday, September 16th at Lauritzen Gardens. Please mark your calendars and make plans to join us for a fun evening of music and dancing. Last year’s event raised double the amount from the previous year, and over half of the folks in attendance were from the wider Omaha community. They outnumbered the attendance from our own church. Very exciting and proof positive we are gaining steam year-by-year! Save the date - and let’s make 2016 the best year yet!
ST MONICA’S GUILD THANKS YOU
The Ladies of St. Monica's Guild would like to extend a big thank you to the St. Andrew's community for your continued support of our Welcome Bag project. Thanks to your generosity, we were able to deliver 25 new Welcome Bags to the St. Monica's Home in Lincoln. These women are so grateful for your support and these bags, which provide them with basic hygiene items. Many of these women arrive at the St. Monica's Home for substance abuse treatment with only the clothes on their backs, and the comfort of having these basic needs met is such a blessing. Because of the people of St. Andrew's, St. Monica's home has been able to help a total of 239 women with the gift of one of these bags.
We will continue our project into the future, and have begun collecting items for a delivery in June. We are accepting donations of new bath towels and washcloths, full size suave or similar shampoo, conditioner, body wash, body lotion, and deodorant.We alsoincludetoothbrushes, toothpaste, razors, feminine products, and journals in the handmade bags. Any donations can be brought to a St. Monica's meeting or left in the bin outside the office. Thank you again for your incredible generosity!
GREETINGS FROM THE FINANCIAL OFFICE
Here at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church there are many things to be grateful for and the generosity of the many people involved in so many different ways is certainly near the top of the list. Generosity of spirit, time, talents, and financial gifts.
The problem is that last one leaves us very vulnerable in many ways. I think we are exceedingly fortunate that nothing obvious has occurred to any of the financial contributions that have been given to St. Andrews to fulfill the church’s various missions, but that doesn’t mean we don’t need to take precautions.
I came across an article that I would like to share some of for your consideration. It is titled “4 Tips to Prevent Fraud at Faith-Based Organizations.”
The biggest problem that churches face is skimming – when money disappears before it ever gets logged into the books. It is the counting and depositing process where fraud can occur most easily.
Fortunately St. Andrew’s has very reasonable and thoughtful cash handling policies in place that are for the protection of all those who handle – or -- donate cash or checks to the church. I share these with you as a reminder for those times you find yourself in charge of handling donations.
It all boils down to one simple statement: ENSURE THAT AT LEAST TWO PEOPLE ARE WITH THE MONEY AT ALL TIMES. While this sounds like common sense, it has to be followed without exception if it is going to work. The control is not effective if one person takes the money from the collection plate to a place of counting or the safe after worship. It is not effective if one person goes to copy the checks or ask a question of the Financial Administrator and leaves the other person with the cash. It is not effective if one person takes the money to the bank before leaving an accounting of the cash and checks for a third person to record in the books. All of this is why we require two signatures on the Usher count sheets and the Weekly deposit count sheets.
Please do not take this as an admonishment to those who handle money in the many different programs here at St. Andrew’s. I have the greatest respect for all of you in the St. Andrew’s community and the gifts you bring to this Church. I just want you to understand why we have the policies concerning counting money that we do and to ask that you carefully follow them.
Peace,
Ginny Winsor
Financial Administrator
If you would like a full copy of the article mention above, please contact me at or 402-391-1950.
FROM THE DESK
Celebrating the Resurrection at Easter and through Eastertide is also a great reminder that Easter and Spring are a time of rejoice, renewal and rejuvenation. Sometimes this manifests itself in looking at ways to improve ourselves, our lifestyles, and make changes. The big change coming for me this Spring is that I am moving into a new house. This will lead to some spring cleaning as I decide what I do and do not need to pack and unpack, and where it will live in the new home. It also leads me to think and consider what is and isn’t important to me and living a fulfilling life. It is a good time to get rid of not only the physical junk, but also the things that may be weighing you down emotionally. I wish all of you a rejuvenating spring.