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The northern lights glow green in the sky seen from Newcomb Hollow Beach in Wellfleet

Photo by Jeremy Storer

News From Our Wardens

Dear Parishioners,

St. Mary’s is blooming indoors and out. With the guidance of our gardens group we have seen spectacular tulips; now it’s the irises and rhododendrons. Soon the peonies will follow. With Scott, we have grown in liturgical understanding, pastoral care, envisioning our future, and building a community. And we look forward to the season ahead with Fr. Michael.

OUR WORLD UNITED HAS EXPANDED

In May we renewed our lease with Our World United. They have grown out of their incubator stage into a very successful nursery school and seek to expand their enrollment. The children have brought much joy to our campus and Sarah Allen and her crew have been excellent tenants. Their space has been expanded to include what was the parish administrator’s office. We hope to grow in our relationship with them through a variety of initiatives: pot luck suppers, garden walks, singing opportunities, and finding ways for parishioners to participate in their curriculum.

OFFICE SPACE SHIFTS

In order to accommodate OWU’s need for more space, Julie has moved her office to where Mark Lawlor’s used to be (between the St. James room and the office shared by Allison and Ann). Mark has new office space carved out of the old library (also known as the Music Room). The reception area (containing the copy machine) will be staffed by volunteers from 9-3 Monday through Friday.

STRATEGIC PLANNING

Those of you who read the vestry minutes will know that we have begun the process of envisioning St. Mary’s Church in the years ahead. We are a successful church, and a strong community, but surroundings are shifting: demographically, culturally, and with the impact of Covid. How will we respond to these changes? How will we be intentional about where we are going, and not simply be propelled by where we have been?

In the months ahead, in collaboration with Fr. Michael, we seek to build on the initiatives started with Fr. Scott. We will work with a Planning Team lead by Sally Cameron and David Nawrocki, to draw from what we have learned in our Holy Cow survey and we will listen to small groups open to all parishioners. There are big questions and difficult work involved. We will need parish wide help.

TRANSITION TEAM

Our Transition Team, cochaired by Rob Parke and Bill Babcock and supported by Arlene Antonicelli, Jane Martin and Margot Critchfield has been working on the details of insuring a smooth exit for Scott and a gentle landing for Michael. This includes planning appropriate liturgies, celebrations, logistics and paperwork. All are encouraged to attend one of Fr. Scott’s final services with us June 29th and 30th with receptions following each service. And starting mid summer, please plan to attend a Meet-and-Greet event with Fr. Michael.

RECTORY

A review of spring growth is not complete without mention of the rectory renovation. Under the direction of Peter Scarafile and Peter Wagenblass, Habitat volunteers, our own design team (Beth Hearn, Judy Knauer, Christine Wagenblass and Helen Malone), stone masons, low bid painters, cleaners, plumbers, carpenters, electricians, have worked very hard to bring the rectory into the 21st century. Many of you toured it earlier in May. Michael and Charles are very excited to move into their new home this June.

Thank you for reading all of this. And please know your input is always appreciated.

Marian Ferguson and Rob Parke



Remembering A Very Special Weekend In May

We celebrated our incredible choir, welcomed two new souls into our Communion of Saints and elected the first female Bishop of Massachusetts.

Dr. Mark Lawlor

Saint Mary's Choir

Bishop-Elect

Julia E. Whitworth

A Baptismal Celebration for Jameson and Kenrick Lucier with Father Scott

Caring for Creation by Pastor Russ

Caring for the Unborn

“The things we do and say today, we do not for ourselves.

We do this for the children, grandchildren, and those yet to come.”

(Traditional prayer of the Oceti Sacowin, Seven Council Fires)

Social scientists worry that too often we think only of ourselves. 

“There’s been an increasing recognition that over the last few decades the economy and society have become incredibly focused on the individual, to the detriment of our social fabric,” says Lily L. Tsai, the Ford Professor of Political Science at MIT.

Tsai, who is the current chair of the MIT faculty, is interested in distributive justice — allocating resources fairly across different groups of people. Typically, that might mean splitting resources between different socioeconomic groups, or between different nations. 

But in an essay in the journal Dædalus, Tsai discusses policies and institutions that consider the needs of people in the future when determining who deserves what resources. That is, they broaden our concept of a collective society to include people who haven’t been born yet and will bear the brunt of climate change in the future.

She also thinks the rate at which things change in the modern world has hurt our ability to consider the long view. “We no longer think in terms of decades and centuries the way in which we used to,” she says.

Tsai thinks getting people to care about their descendants is a problem researchers can work on, and that humans have a natural inclination to consider the future. People have a desire to be entrusted with things of importance, to leave a legacy, and for conservation. “I think many humans actually naturally conserve things that are valuable and scarce, and there’s a strange way in which society has eroded that human instinct in favor of a culture of consumption,” she says. We need to “re-imagine the kinds of practices that encourage conservation rather than consumption,” she adds.

Scenes from the Rectory Renovation Volunteer Appreciation Sock Hop

A Summer Art Gallery

The Saint Mary's Art Committee wants to welcome our new rector with an exhibit of all kinds of art made by parishioners and their families -- photos, paintings, and crafts of all kinds. Everyone is encouraged to participate. Please contact Lynne Conroy if you have any questions at all. There are also sign-up sheets in the sunroom.

Monthly Creation Care Sheet

Another member of our Creation Care Ministry, Amy Crocker has shared these monthly creation justice action ideas or reflections that corresponds with the liturgical/seasonal calendar. Click here for the June ideas.

Pastoral Care Column

Summer is upon us and with all the rain this spring, it should be a particularly buggy summer. This month your Pastoral Care team is sharing an article on those awful, icky, nasty ticks. Click here for some helpful information on managing this very prevalent threat on Cape Cod.

Aging Gracefully By Pastor Russ

“Since death alone is certain, and the time of death uncertain, what should I do?” So goes an ancient Tibetan meditation, intended to use our mortality as a clarifying force of guidance in how we live our lives. A modern-day take on this question was at the heart of a wonderful project by artist and curator Susan O’Malley, who asked a hundred ordinary people between the ages of seven and eighty-eight what advice their 80-year-old selves would give to their present-day selves.

Just as the answers — some profound, some playful, all disarmingly sincere — began appearing across the San Francisco Bay Area in O’Malley’s public art installations, an unforgiving testament to the very premise of the project struck: One winter Wednesday, 38-year-old O’Malley fell unconscious and died a week before she was due to deliver the twin girls with whom she was pregnant; despite the emergency C-section, the babies also perished.

The shock of the tragedy reverberated across the Bay Area and beyond as O’Malley, a centripetal force of the local creative community, was grieved by her husband Tim and her extended family of friends. It also rendered her project, now published as Advice from My 80-Year-Old Self: Real Words of Wisdom from People Ages 7 to 88 (public library), a powerful and bittersweet piece of legacy, lending each of the responses the sudden immediacy of perspective and poignancy. O’Malley wrote in the introduction:

“It’s easy to forget how wise we can be. We resist our internal wisdom due to any number of reasons, such as fear, fatigue, or inconvenience. We race through our hyperactive lives, so busy with the details of day-to-day living that we end up feeling disconnected from ourselves and each other. But what’s great about the 80-year-old self is that no matter how frantic we get, she is always readily available to us. She is present within each of us, reminding us we can be the best version of ourselves, not through some colossal effort at personal reinvention, but simply by slowing down. We just have to take a moment to pay attention and listen.”



                                                                    With thanks to The Marginalian by Maria Popova

Statement from The Rev. Julia E. Whitworth, bishop-elect of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts

May 18, 2024

Beloved of God in the Diocese of Massachusetts–

It is a tremendous honor to have been elected your 17th bishop. I am profoundly grateful and humbled that your clergy and lay representatives have placed such trust in me, to lead you and your amazing diocese.

The Diocese of Massachusetts has a long, proud history: centuries of nurturing spiritual vitality, leadership and prophetic witness for the whole Episcopal Church. Together we will build on that legacy by walking joyfully into your next chapter—proclaiming the Gospel, making disciples, strengthening our worshiping communities with imagination and courage, and working together for a more just and loving world.

I have adored my years as a priest in the dioceses of Connecticut, New York and Indianapolis. To now have the opportunity to serve as bishop in God’s church in Massachusetts is a sacred responsibility that I will strive to uphold with compassion, humility and faithfulness. And so much gratitude! For you, for your ongoing witness to the resurrecting power of Jesus Christ and for the future ahead of us.

God bless you, DioMass! I can’t wait to be with you, very soon.

More information about each nominee can be found at:

 www.diomass.org/bishop-search/bishop-nominees.

Lutheran and Episcopalian Friends

We continue to build our collaboration and friendship with the First Lutheran Church in West Barnstable.

Our next Friends Meeting is scheduled for June 4 at 6:00 PM in the Saint James Room at Saint Mary's. All are welcome to attend.

You are also invited to participate in the following regular meetings at First Lutheran Church:

• Tuesdays - Silent Meditation Group meets at 12pm 
• Wednesday Nights - Sacred Journey (Via Sacre) Worship Service. Potluck Supper at 6:00 PM and Worship at 7:00 PM

Learn more about everything that is happening at First Lutheran Church by visiting their website.

Coming Events

Movie Theology Series

We hope you will consider joining us for our final film in the MovieTheology Series, Death at A Funeral on June 9. Please click here to read a summary of this wonderful film.

Garden Work Day!

We have a LOT of weeding and planting to do. All hands are welcome! Please consider joining us on Saturday, June 8 at 9:00 AM. Snacks and drinks will be provided. We are working hard to get our cutting garden, kitchen garden and Daffodil meadow in good shape for the summer. As always, ALL are warmly welcomed! Any questions at all? Please contact Allison.

Blessing of the Seeds:

Spring has finally sprung (we hope) and we'd like to celebrate by blessing your seeds and plants! We'll have a couple of prayers and blessings on the patio after the 10:00 AM service and before the coffee hour on June 9. Come one, come all, bring your seeds and seedlings. Let's laud the goddesses/gods/patron saints of all growing things and connect with seeds and soil. Let all God's people say Amen!

Amy Crocker

1891 Society News

Learn all the necessary components of having a complete estate plan for you, your loved ones and the resources available to you. This informal session will be led by Kathey Parcels, CPA and Linda Gadkowski, a fee-only Certified Financial Planner ®. Handouts will be provided. We look forward to seeing you. Please let Julie at admin@stmarys-church.org know if you plan to attend.

Thursday, June 13 at 4 pm in the church Library

Sunday, August 18 at 11:15 am in the church Library

Sunday, September 8 at 11:30 am in Walden Hall

Save The Dates

As we live into the transition time of Father Scott leaving us and Rev. Michael and Charles arriving the calendar will be busy. Here are just a few dates to mark on your calendar.

Father Scott's Last Weekend:

Will be June 29 and 30 and we will have special celebrations following each of the three services that weekend. Please join us in thanking Father Scott for the tremendous gifts of his time with our church community. More details will be coming.

July 4th Parade:

This year in lieu of a float we would like to invite our parishioners to gather together and walk together in the parade. We will wave flags and carry a banner introducing Father Michael Horvath, and his husband Charles Calhoun, to the Barnstable Village Community. Please remember to wear your red, white and blue or Saint Mary's apparel. We will provide the flags. Logistical details to follow.

Father Michael's First Weekend Presiding will be July 6 and 7

Meet & Greet Sessions Begin:

Just as we did when Father Scott was arriving, we will be offering Meet & Greet sessions at Saint Mary's and at parishioner's private homes to help everyone welcome Father Michael and Charles in more informal settings. Please be on the lookout for an online sign-up for the Meet & Greet Sessions in a stand alone e-mail next week. Thank you to so many of you who already offered to host sessions in July and August. Click here to see a list of the available sessions.

Volunteering and Outreach

In-reach Volunteer Opportunities

Hosts Needed for Lemonade on the Lawn

We made it! It is time to stop the coffee and switch to Lemonade on The Lawn!

After the 8:00 AM once a month

After the 10:00 AM every Sunday - contact Hub Mathewson for more information and see the sunroom bulletin board to sign-up.

Thank you!

Helping One of Our Own

We are looking for some help. One of our parishioners, Laurel Galvin is currently recovering from major surgery and could use some support with having prepared meals delivered. Laurel is normally the care giver for her husband so meals for 2 would be greatly appreciated. We have set up a Meal Train online. Please click here to sign-up for a meal. Even if you aren't a chef you can still contribute by having food delivered from local restaurants through the Meal Train program. Thank you in advance for your generosity.

2 Beautiful Pups Looking for a Loving Home

Kinnett Ehring's sister passed away unexpectedly and she has left behind two sweet pups who are now in need of a loving home.

At 11 years old, Leah and her brother Andy are finding themselves starting over and are hoping to spend their golden years together in a loving home. Leah and Andy’s story is a touching one. Their mom passed away unexpectedly while they were in boarding, and they are now looking for a new family to give them the love and care they deserve. Their mom adopted them together, and we believe it would be her wish that they stay together in their next home. If you have room in your heart and home for two wonderful companions, Andy and Leah will reward you with endless love and loyalty. They are ready to bring warmth and joy to a new family, continuing their journey together. They bring a calm energy wherever they go and would get along great with other fur siblings that are also chill! If you’re interested in being part of Andy and Leah’s next chapter, fill out an adoption application at rarerescue.org!

Leah looks to be a Papillon mix and weighs 22 lbs

Andy looks to be a Spinone mix and weighs 65 lbs

The Garden Committee is looking for new members!

Your Garden Committee has been hard at work prepping the gardens to look their best this season. We are always in need of more help and warmly welcome any interested new members. We have our next planning meeting on June 3 at 4:00 PM in the Saint James Room. All are welcome! Our next Garden Work Day is June 8 at 9:00 AM.

Seeking Angels for Angels Treasures

Angels' Treasures is seeking volunteers for support in our wonderful little shop. It does not need to be a time consuming commitment . Even a 2 hour shift 2 times a month could be very helpful. There are many ways you can help. We need sorting, pricing, arranging displays, assisting customers, and checkout. Training will be provided. Please contact our Shop Manager, Janis at jumschlag1@gmail.com, 508-362-9519 or stop by the shop anytime between Wednesday and Saturdays from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM if you are interested in becoming an AT Angel.

Thank you!

Angels Treasures is on Facebook!

If you are on facebook please take a peak at our Angels' Treasures Facebook page. We will try to keep the feed fresh with photos and information highlighting the constantly changing inventory. Please check out our Facebook Page Here: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61553985862261

Please LIKE OUR LIKE It, FOLLOW us and SHARE it with friends near and far. We will not be selling items online yet but we will be marketing them to help spread our reach. Thank you for helping us with this mission.

Out-reach Volunteer Opportunities

Amazing Grace Camp - Volunteers Needed

Amazing Grace Camp's mission is to nurture healthy and positive futures for children from Cape Cod and southeastern MA affected by incarceration. They seek to break the cycle of family incarceration by empowering these Amazing Kids for success.

One of the ways they do this, is by providing a camp experience each year. Any child (age 8-11 at the time of camp) affected by a family member’s incarceration, is eligible to participate.

Volunteers - Camp Support Needed:

About The Opportunity: 

Interact with our amazing kids during morning, afternoon, or overnight shifts the week of camp, held at the YMCA's Camp Burgess-Hayward in Sandwich, MA. Minimum of three 6 hour shifts during the week of camp, preferably a shift during all five days of camp, plus a full training session on the Saturday before camp begins. Completion of online training modules will involve 4 to 6 hours which can be spread out over time. Additional training options will be offered, including an evening mentor forum and orientation.

Who we're looking for: 

Mentors are mature, responsible volunteers who provide unconditional love and guidance to children in a residential camp setting. Minimum age of 18 years; ability to communicate well with children (age 7-11) and co-workers. You will provides supportive companionship to the campers and provide supervision of an assigned group of campers, ensuring each child's safe participation in the program's activities. The work requires a significant amount of walking over uneven, hilly ground, stooping, bending, kneeling, standing and some light work and lifting; vocal and written communication, hearing and visual acuity. Application, background (provides 2 references) check and interview process required, along with satisfactory results of CORI and SORI background checks.

For more detailed information on becoming a Camp Mentor please click here.

Calling all local singers and performers!

We are looking for local talent to perform in a concert, to benefit Amazing Grace Camp!

We have some talent in our congregation at St Peter’s, but we would love to expand and add some new voices in our cause! The Amazing Grace Camp is a program started at St Mary’s Episcopal to provide free camperships to kids with one or more parents incarcerated.

It’s a great cause and we hope to make enough money to pay for a campership: ($1000)

Come sing with us! Tentative date: Saturday late in Sept. or in Oct.

For more info call Linda Martin: 508 364 5437.

Housing J1 Students

Have some extra space? J1 students hoping to live and work on the Cape this Summer are in need of safe housing. Click the flier for more information. This is a great way to help young people and expand your own horizons.

Habitat For Humanity - Kayak Raffle – Starts Now! 

The Annual Kayak Raffle is back! Enter for your chance to win this hand crafted, one of a kind, cedar strip kayak. Volunteer John Amirault has been hard at work this winter crafting another beauty. He’s calling this one the Armed Forces Kayak and it’s dedicated to his Kayak Wingman Bill Witmer. Tickets are on sale now at both ReStore locations in Yarmouth and Falmouth and online by clicking HERE. Help us build more affordable homes for local Cape Cod families! 

Community Events

The Unitarian Church of Barnstable InvitesYou to:

Voices of Poetry - The Longest Day

Sunday June 9, 2024 - 2:00 PM

You are warmly invited to an afternoon of Poetry and Music in commemoration of the 80th Anniversary of D Day, Please click the flier to learn more about this event.

June 12 at 5:30 PM Science and Environment Speaker Series

Cape Cod Climate Change Collaborative president Dorothy Savarese, and former State Senator and Cape Air founder Dan Wolf, will be hosting Highfield Hall's annual Science & Environment Speaker Series highlighting the important work being done by the local scientific and environmental community and making their research and information accessible through informed dialogue.

This year’s theme is:

Climate Resiliency: Understanding and Managing the Impact of Climate Change.

Join Dorothy and Dan for insights into their work with agencies across the Cape and a conversation about Coordinating Climate Efforts on Cape Cod? Who’s doing what where? followed by time for Q & A and discussion.

Highfield Hall's Science & Environment Speaker Series is made possible in part through the generous support of the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod, The Falmouth Fund, The Brabson Family Foundation, Cape Cod 5 & Woodwell Climate Research Center.

Register online today today or call 508-495-1878 ext. 2



Cape Coastal Conference - June 18

Collaborating for Solutions: Practical Sessions to Achieve Watershed Plans

Case studies that apply traditional and alternative methods to reduce nitrogen and improve water quality.

The Cape Coastal Conference is back! We are looking forward to welcoming decision-makers, managers, and researchers to learn about and discuss the best available science-based solutions to address coastal challenges that we face in the Cape and Islands region. This year’s conference will focus on action to restore water quality and highlight local case studies that apply and evaluate traditional and alternative methods to reduce nutrients in Cape Cod watersheds. Cooperation is key to managing watersheds spanning town boundaries, thus collaborating on solutions to achieve watershed goals is a major theme threaded throughout the day. Conference attendees and speakers will exchange knowledge around the challenges related to watershed planning through small-group facilitated discussions during a roundtable session. The Coastal Training Program will capture major themes and future action steps from these discussions to distribute to attendees after the conference.

You are invited to be a part of the conversation by joining us at the Emerald Resort & Conference Center on June 18, 2024 for a full day event!

Registration: There is no cost to attend but registration is required.  

Please register by Thursday, June 13, 2024.

An Invitation From Saint Barnabas

Saint Barnabas's Episcopal Church warmly invites the congregations of the Cape & Islands Deanery to view the film "Philadelphia Eleven." This film will be shown at Saint Barnabas's Church in Falmouth on Wednesday, Jun 26th at 7pm. We hope you can have a group join us! Please click here to read more about this event.



Book Signing And Read Aloud

July 27 at 1:00 PM - Barnes and Nobles (2nd Floor), Hyannis

You are invited to join Saint Mary's parishioner, Jean Cibrowski Fahey, PhD for a book signing and read-a-loud of her award winning children's book, I'll Build You A Bookcase. In this charming picture book, children and their caregivers work together to build home libraries and discover the magic and wonder of reading books.

Supporting Our Church

Legacy Giving

1891 Society members help grow our endowment which in turn, supports Saint Mary’s community outreach, contributes to key programs and protect the church from unanticipated adverse financial circumstances. Most importantly, the commitment from members of the 1891 Society, empowers future generations of Saint Mary's parishioners to make visible the extraordinary light that comes from God.

In each monthly newsletter, we plan to hear from current members of the 1891 Society about what becoming a legacy donor to Saint Mary's has meant to them personally.

Recognizing Our 1891 Society Members

A Note from Bill Babcock

For me, it’s all about the gratitude: gratitude for the warmth and welcome my wife and I found when we first started coming to St. Mary’s; gratitude for the vibrant community and many friendships we found in St. Mary’s when we decided to cast our lot with the parish; gratitude for the support and understanding that I received when my wife died back in 2020, one of the Cape’s early victims of Covid; gratitude for the ongoing sustenance and continuing pleasures I have experienced with the people and in the groups of this extraordinary church; and, by no means the least of it, gratitude for the unmatched clerical leadership of Libby, Russ, and Scott through all my time at St. Mary’s.

I do not think of my legacy gift as a way of paying back. The debt is far too large for that. I think of it rather as a way—a small way, to be sure, but still a way—to continue to offer my support to the worship, to the community, and to the outreach of this remarkable parish long after I myself have departed from the scene. And that is well worth the doing.

Please click here to read the Vestry minutes from the April 2024 meeting. Please note that minutes are not published until approved at the subsequent Vestry meeting.