All Saints Episcopal Church Bayside
The Ramsay Report
Monday, December 14, 2020
It's hard to believe that the third Sunday in Advent has come and gone, with one service at 10 a.m. both in-person and online.
During the service, Senior Warden Judy Batashoff and Sunday School Director Susan Byrne recognized Father Byrne's 25th anniversary of his ordination. The vestry has promised to mark this occasion as soon as we can return to our "abnormal normal," hopefully sometime in 2021. The Sunday School children presented Father Byrne with an icon of Saint Nicholas.
Father also offered thanks to Mark Sullivan (Diana Gilday’s uncle) for building a much-needed new platform for our outdoor crèche and to Marc Palmieri for his help in setting up the crèche. The display is a witness to all who pass by that Jesus is the point of Christmas and that All Saints is open despite the pandemic!
If you missed yesterday's service, never fear, you can just click here. You also can view/download the bulletin here.
A gentle (and firm) reminder.... those that plan on attending in-person Sunday services, you must pre-register by calling the church office (718-229-5631) by the Friday before. Please do not text, e-mail, or call Fr. Byrne’s mobile phone. For it to work, we have to have one centralized method of tracking attendance. We were right up against Diocesan regulations this morning, which mandates a maximum of 25 people in the service.
If your circumstances permit, please continue to keep your pledges up to date. You may do so by mail or online. There is a new and streamlined online giving system. Simply click the donate button on the website or click here.
Every Member Canvass
This week the vestry will meet on Wednesday evening to prepare the preliminary budget for 2021. This is based, in part, on the pledge cards that are returned.
As we've mentioned, due to the peculiarities of 2020, the EMC is understated this year, but is no less important. You should have received in the mail for your 2021 pledge card. If you can please return it as soon as possible it will help the vestry with the budget task ahead. Thank you to those who have already sent them in.
Church School Highlights
The first of two Christmas themed Sunday school programs is available on the web site. Be sure to check it out.
Sunday school director Susan Byrne said Teddy (AKA Cecil B. DeMille) is close to wrapping production on "The Christmas Pageant The Movie." It will premiere at the 5:00 p.m. service on Christmas Eve.
There are discussions about a Sunday school Christmas Party via Zoom. Stay tuned for details.
100+ Years of Blessings
We are blessed to have more than a century’s worth of memorial gifts. Today’s highlight is a very practical one: the 215th Street door to the office wing of the church. It was given in 1968 by Loretta Holecek in loving memory of her husband, Joseph and her son, Richard.
Finally, we will keep asking until someone sends Father Byrne an email.... Would you like to become All Saints official historian? If yes, please email Father Byrne at rector@allsaintsbayside.org.
Liturgical Gifts
The altar flowers are given Shane Abdelnour to the glory of God and in loving memory of Irma Sommer and Peter Abdelnour, and by the Altar Guild in celebration of Fr. Byrne’s 25th ordination anniversary.
The Sanctuary Lamp and the bread and wine of the Eucharist are given by Sally Bergmeyer to the glory of God and in loving memory Joseph Peter Bergmeyer and William Johnson.
There is availability for liturgical gifts. Please email requests to Rector@allsaintsepiscopalbayside.org or call the parish office.
This Week at All Saints
Daily
Mornings
Online Advent Calendar with Father Byrne
www.allsaintsepiscopalbayside.org
Sunday, December 20, 2020
9:15 a.m.
Church School Online
10:00 a.m.
In-person* and Online Holy Eucharist
* (RESERVATION REQUIRED; TOTAL CAPACITY 21 PERSONS)
You should have received an invitation to contribute to Christmas flower memorials. Please return your Christmas flower memorial envelope as soon as possible. The deadline for inclusion in the Christmas bulletin is Thursday, December 17th. Extra envelopes are available in the narthex.
NOTE: Reservations are REQUIRED to attend in-person services. Space is very limited. To reserve a spot, call the parish office at 718-229-5631.
Christmas Eve, Thursday, December 24, 2020
5:00 p.m. Christmas Pageant and Holy Communion (In-person and online)
10:30 p.m. Carols and Preludes (In-person and online)
11:00 p.m. Festival Holy Eucharist (In-person and online)
Christmas Day, Friday, December 25, 2020
10:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist, Rite I with Carols (In-person and online)
Christmas I Sunday, December 27, 2020
10 am. Holy Eucharist, Rite II (In-person and online)
New 21st Century Memorial/Thank Offering Giving Program
Good news! We keep getting closer to our $4,000 fundraising goal. Thank you to those who have already pledged support. No one could have imagined how important holding online worship would be in 2020. But we have done it and one of the lessons of the great separation is that online evangelism is here to stay. While we know this is a terrible time to ask for donations, we are asking anyway! Any and all donations -- large and small -- will get us to our goal. You can send a check or make a donation through the web site. Please be sure to note that it is for the Tech Fund.
Return to In-person Services
In addition to the earlier reminder, one other thing the Bishop is asking of all of us is to be aware of the "hot zones" and if you are living in one of those orange or red zones to refrain from coming to church. To see the latest status of your location, visit this website: https://covidhotspotlookup.health.ny.gov/#/home.
We are doing everything correctly here, and will remain in live/online mode as long as possible. Thank you for caring for each other by hanging in with the restrictions.
NEWS FROM AROUND THE PARISH
Thank you to everyone who helped make this year's weeklong, online 78th Annual Holly Bazaar possible.
Also, for the rest of the month, our All Saints Shop (https://shop.spreadshirt.com/all-saints-bayside/)
will continue to sell our new Christmas-themed merchandise.
St. John's Episcopal Hospital Toy Drive
This year's drive for new and unwrapped toys for children ages 6 months to 12 years will be through wish lists on Amazon and at Target. The shipping/drop off location is: St. John's Episcopal Hospital, 377 Oak Street, Ste. 209, Garden City, NY, 11530. ATTN: Nancy Leghart. Deadline for receipt of packages is TODAY, Monday, December 14th. For more information, please click here for the flyer.
The Bottom of the Barrel
...is not something we want to see. As your circumstances permit, please continue to bring food for the food pantry. Food insecurity is a growing concern for many people right now. Mother Karen (the new rector at Grace) shared with the Deanery clergy that demand at the food pantry is way up. All Saints has been a generous supplier, and hope we can continue to be.
We are now accepting submissions for acts for the December Major Tom’s Coffee House which will air at 8pm on SUNDAY December 27th.
All videos can be uploaded to this link: https://driveuploader.com/upload/Tzpo99W1Qb/
Videos are due by 11pm on Tuesday December 22nd. This is a day earlier in the week than normal due to the Christmas holiday.
We will also be performing a singalong, similar to “Sweet Caroline” and “Stand By Me” from the June and July Coffee Houses.
As always, just a couple of reminders about filming.
- Please film your set in its entirety if you can. This will help it feel more live and in person.
- Please do not reuse footage from the last coffee house, we want these to be unique as a normal coffee house performance would be.
- film where there is light in front of your face, (I suggest using a desk lamp or two and have it face you).
- clean the space around you (keep an eye out for stray guitar cases that might be hiding in the background of the shot)
- Try not to film in noisy areas (ex: a running air conditioner), as these will take away from your sound quality
- Lastly and probably most importantly be sure to film horizontally (Think of the way your TV is oriented, longways not tall ways).
If you need help filming there are some very limited spots available for filming in person with Teddy at the church. He would need any of those requests in by the beginning of the week.
The Ramsay Report is also looking for breaking news! Have updates or information to share with the congregation, please email it to Stephanie.tonnesen@gmail.com. Please put Ramsay Report News in the subject line. Thanks!
Have a wonderful week!
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