Don't Forget!!  There is only one service tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. that will be followed by the Annual Meeting.

At tomorrow's Annual Meeting we will be selecting members to participate in the leadership of our Parish and the Diocese.  Please make an effort to be there to participate in the work of St. John's.

Warden:
Eric Turnquest will be running unopposed in the election for Warden.  Upon a consent vote at tomorrow's meeting, Eric will serve as Junior Warden for 2020 and Senior Warden for 2021.  Thank you Eric, and congratulations.

Delegates to Convention:
The election of St. John's Representatives to Convention was also uncontested.  We are charged to elect three members in good standing to serve as our Delegates for 2020, which will include our Annual Diocesan Convention in November and the Special Convention on June 20 for electing our next Bishop.  There are three seats open and we had three individuals who chose to run.  Upon a consent vote at tomorrow's meeting Gale Michael, Sue O'Brien, and Steven Russell will serve as our 2020 Delegates to Convention.  Thank you and congratulations to the three of you.

Members of Vestry:
Tomorrow we will be charged with electing three new Members to the Vestry to serve three year terms.  We have five duly qualified members who are interested in serving St. John's in this capacity.  Each of the members who have consented to stand for election have great gifts to offer St. John's.  I am excited that we have a diversity of experiences to choose from, from our youth to our not quite as youthful, from those who have been here since birth to those who are new to St. John's this year.  Each one of you offer invaluable insight into our ministry.  Thank you for putting yourself out there.   I am including their bios for you to consider.

Candice Barrera

I left a large Episcopal church on the North Side of Chicago and went looking for a church home in the suburb where I moved with my young child.  I was hoping for some place welcoming, inviting all kinds of people to worship, a place to grow and learn.  And I found all that and more at St. John’s.  I have made life long friends, my children were confirmed, my life has been enriched in more ways than I can count.  Participating in the life of our church is my way of “paying it forward,” hoping and praying that others will find their spiritual home here at St. John’s.

Kathy Basil

I am a cradle St. John’s member.  My parents, Dick and Jodie Knuth, brought me here for baptism in 1962.  I have been at St. John’s for most of my life, with the exception of a few “off” years.  I was active in the youth groups in Jr. High and High School, and was confirmed here by Bishop Primo. My sons, Matt and Brandon were both baptized here as well.  St. John’s hasn’t changed me, per se, but is a part of me and continues to be part of my personal growth and faith journey.
I feel I am called to serve on the vestry now to participate in guiding the ongoing changes in the church and continue my own growth in Christ.

Ethan Eisenberg

Hello people of St. John’s.  My name is Ethan Eisenberg.  I have been going to this parish since 2014.  What brought me to St. John’s is the need for truth in my life.  I knew there was more to life than what was in front of me at the current time.  I knew there was more to life than must living and dying so I started searching for truth.  St. John’s has led me to the truth every time I step through the doors.  I feel the presence of the Holy Spirit dwelling inside me.  This parish along with deep scriptural study has led me to know and experience the one true and holy Lord Jesus Christ in my life.  I feel that God has called me to this ministry to help revive this parish community.  I feel that I can bring much needed young adult representation and ideas to this parish.  I feel the parish also needs a representative from the disabled community to bring forth to the Vestry issues concerning the disabled community to make our parish more welcoming and accessible to all people.  

Noboru Nakamura

I was born and raised in a Catholic family in Japan, although my parents were not actively practicing their faith.  I left home for New Jersey to attend graduate school when I was 23, but it wasn’t until after I met my future wife Sachi there in 1987, who was also from Japan and a Christian, that I seriously considered my relationship with God.  Through our marriage counseling I was led to Christ and I was baptized in December, 1989.  After moving to Homewood in 1992, Sachi and I have attended a Pentecostal church and an Evangelical megachurch for 26 years but we made a switch to St. Johns in February 2019.  This transition reflected more of the phase of our faith journey than the issues in our previous churches.  Through a series of losses (my parents, our newborn nephew, our second daughter) and health issues in the family, I lost capacity to process life and death and I felt the need to redefine my hope beyond personal salvation and to nurture my heart for the souls on the fringes of society.  The Episcopal tradition at St. Johns gave me the much needed sense of anchoring and stability — in that I am part of a bigger community praying the same prayer the world over according to the theme of Church calendar.  Here I finally felt that my personal story is connected to God’s story, which gave me a new perspective for ultimate hope and a meaning to the life I have on this earth.  In the meantime the eucharistic liturgy respects mysteries of our faith, which helped me to embrace tensions in my thought life and be ok with it.  When Father Jeremy asked either one of us to consider serving as a vestry, we balked.  We didn’t know what a vestry was.  Frankly I am still absorbing the many elements of Episcopal tradition, so I am not sure of the extent to which my contribution will be a service to the Church.  But then if this is God’s prompting, I’m sure He can use my not-so-conventional background to bring about a fresh perspective.  So I just express my willingness to be available, with no agenda whatsoever on my own.

Steven Russell

After returning from the desert (New Mexico), my partner and I began to look for a church.  We happened across St. John’s website, and made plans to attend on October 9, 2005 (I believe this is the correct date).  Having been graciously welcomed into the faith community of St. John’s, we never looked elsewhere.  I have attended St. John’s ever since that particular Sunday, and have been increasingly committed to this parish.
St. John’s has been an important part of my life.  St. John’s became my spiritual home, and has been a most helpful community in dealing with life’s trials and tribulations.  Supporting me through thick and thin, St. John’s faith community has helped me to see Christ in others.
I have previously served on the Vestry, and as a Convention Delegate, including the Convention that elected Bishop Lee.  I am ready to support my community through this service, and hope that I will receive the parish’s support in doing so.