DoveTalesSt. David’s Episcopal Church § Minnetonka, MN § www.stdavidsparish.org § Volume 3 § Issue 1 § 2014

Recently, I had the privilege of spend-ing a couple of hours at the Minne-apolis Institute of Arts’ Sacred exhibit (http://new.artsmia.org/sacred), a dis-play in which curators invite us to ex-plore the meaning of “sacred” and the many ways “sacred” is represented in image, sound and experience across the globe and spanning time.

One display caught my eye and heart more than others: a simple, old, wooden mantelpiece fixed to the wall and holding an array of ordinary objects. A twined string of Christmas tree lights; a little plastic holder con-taining something—maybe hearing aids?; sports memorabilia. Common stuff of life with a hint of nostalgia.

What IS “sacred” anyway?Sacred? Certainly not in the same league as the rendering of Shiva or the ornately decorated bishop’s mi-ter, right?

What IS “sacred” anyway?“On the night he was handed

over to suffering and death, our Lord Jesus Christ took bread; and when he had given thanks to you, he broke it, and gave it to his disciples, and said, “Take, eat; This is my Body, which is given for you…”

Ours is an “incarnational” faith. In-carnate. God in the body. God in flesh. God en-fleshed.

And this means that this glorious, wonderful “fleshy” world of ours is God all over the place.

The challenge is to SEE this pres-ence of God. To WAKE UP to God’s incarnate nature. To live as CON-SCIOUSLY as possible so that we are ALERT to God right here with us. Incarnate.

The ground we stand on is holy. The air we breathe is holy. The people we encounter—ourselves and others—are created in the holy image of God.

Peace to you. May this holy season of Lent be a season of deeply awakening to the presence of God in our midst.

Hello Friends in Christ and Fellow Members of St. David’s,

Not long after our An-nual Meeting, our former Senior Warden Bill Jacobs began transferring to me some of the materials he had collected during his tenure. He started with a binder and eventually he delivered me a large box containing what must be 15 years of files and papers from previous Wardens. I don’t think

that Bill referenced this box much, I won’t either. This box is a look back and in the short twelve months I will have the honor to serve as your Senior Warden I believe that I am called to move forward.

I look forward to work-ing with the people of St. David’s on building our future together.

We have launched a new website and are working on more ways to

let our greater communi-ty know who we are. I am excited to be a part of a community that will turn a visitor into a newcomer, in the warmest and most welcoming manner. I believe that we are called to bring more people to our door. Once inside St. David’s, a visitor or newcomer is truly shown Christ’s hospitality.

Our future is also de-pendent on our financial stability. Your Vestry will

be working, with your help, on trimming our deficit budget. We have a talented community in both fund raising and thoughtful spending. This year I believe we will be called to new and innova-tive paths to ensure our financial future.

Thank you for your trust and I look forward to living into St. David’s future together.

Yours in Christ,Andy Harvala

Senior Warden’s Letter

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The season of Lent is a time when we are all called into deeper self-examination and repentance. For those interested in making a confession, please schedule time with the Rev. Katherine Lewis, klewis@stdavidsparish.org, and refer to the Reconciliation of a Penitent, Book of Common Prayer, pp. 446-452.

Shrove Tuesday: Tuesday, March 46:00 pm Dinner and Celebration

Tuesdays in Lent11:00 am Noonday Prayer,

Library

Ash Wednesday: Wednesday, March 5 12:00 pm Holy Eucharist5:30 pm Children’s Service (Children’s Chapel)7:00 pm Holy Eucharist with choir

Wednesdays in Lent: March 12, 19, 26; April 2, 95:30 pm Stations of the Cross, Church5:45 pm Dinner, Undercroft6:30 pm Project 6,7,8, Youth Room7:000 pm On Being: Economics and Faith; On Money,

Capitalism and Doing Good, Undercroft Audio excerpts and facilitated discussion using Krista Tippett’s award-winning American Public Media radio show, On Being

First Friday Lunches: Fridays March 7 and April 4 12:00 pm Stations of the Cross, Church followed by

reflective discussion over lunch in the Undercroft

Fridays during Lent: March 7, 14, 21, 28; April 4, 11, 1810:00 am Still Prayer with the

Julian Gathering, Oratory

Saturdays during Lent: March 8, 15, 22, 29; April 5, 12, 19 7:30 am Morning Prayer,

All Saints Chapel

Lenten Retreat: The Hidden Treasure: Saturday, March 159:00 am Lenten Retreat, Libary Led by The Rev. Katherine Lewis and Sharon

Garland. Bring your journal if you have one, no need to buy one for the retreat.

Sunday, March 98:00 am Holy Eucharist9:30 am Holy Eucharist with choir10:45 am Adult Forum, Lent, The Rev. Katherine Lewis

How do we enter Lent prayerfully, deliberately, intentionally? God’s invitation awaits.

Sunday, March 228:00 am Holy Eucharist9:30 am Holy Eucharist with choir10:45 am Adult Forum, Food For The Poor, The Rev.

Bruce N. Torrey, Fr. Torrey will share what he has witnessed about Food For The Poor’s mission to care for the destitute as a means of living out the Gospel mandate to love one another.

Sunday, April 68:00 am Holy Eucharist9:30 am Holy Eucharist with choir10:45 am Adult Forum, The Bible and Justice, Rolf

Lowenberg-DeBoer, Missioner for Community Engagement, Episcopal Church in Minnesota

Kenya Dinner: Sunday, April 66:00 pm Join us for a traditional, Kenyan meal to cel-

ebrate our global friendships while we raise money for ministries in Ziwa, Kenya. $10 per person; $5 for children 13 and younger. Thanks to anonymous donors, all monies received go directly to the Mama Ada Foundation to benefit children in need of school scholarships and farmers in need of seeds and fertilizer.

Palm and Passion Sunday: Sunday, April 138:00 am Holy Eucharist9:30 am Holy Eucharist with choir

Maundy Thursday: Thursday, April 177:00 pm Foot washing and Stripping of the Altar

Good Friday: Friday, April 1812:00 pm Children’s Liturgy7:00 pm Tenebrae with Good Friday Collects

The Resurrection of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ–Easter Sunday: Sunday, April 208:00 am Holy Eucharist9:30 am Holy Eucharist with choir10:45 am Easter Egg Hunt

Lent 2014 at St. David’sLiving into God’s Justice: Light in the DarknessA season to reflect personally and corporately on the Biblical call for economic justice

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At St. David’s, we seek to be Christ to one another, celebrating with others the joys of life as well as walking alongside those who are hurting and suffering.

Love and caring abound at St. David’s and many acts of kindness take place quietly, without most of us even knowing about them.

Our Pastoral Care Team is in place to provide a framework for and oversee some of St. David’s pastoral care ministries. Members of the team include: the Rev. Katherine Lewis, Martha Hatcher, Eileen Bezat, Julie Morehouse, Bill Jacobs, Joanne Allan, Norma Walton and Pam Whitmore. We look for others who might be called to this ministry.

Prayer Shawl Ministry Contact: Dianne Ivie 763-657-0935

Transportation— to worship, church events, medical appointmentsContact: Pam Whitmore 612-803-6982

Medical Equipment Loan ProgramContact: Norma Walton 952-930-1242

Food MinistryContact: Kathy Thiessen 952-926-7752

Pastoral VisitorsContact: Norma Walton 952-930-1242

Lake Minnetonka Care CenterContact: The Rev. Katherine Lewis 952-935-3336

Eucharistic VisitorsContact: The Rev. Katherine Lewis 952-935-3336

Prison MinistryContact: Wayne Plocher 763-657-0935

Prayers of the PeopleContact: Beth Harvey or Katherine Lewis 952-935-3336

St. David’sPastoralMinistries

St. David’s Pastoral Care Team helps coordinate rides for parishioners who cannot drive them-selves. If you would like to help provide transpor-tation for parishioners from time to time or, if you have a transportation need, please contact Pam Whitmore at pjfwhit@msn.com or 612-803-6982.

Transportation to St. David’s

If you have a snowblower you’d like to donate to St. David’s, Please contact the office.

Snowblower Wanted

Summer Content Deadline: Friday, June 2

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By Carol Johnson and Sandy Ward

First of all we want to thank all who volunteered during our February host week and to all of the volun-teers who have supported St. David’s work with Families Moving Forward over the years.

When we first began as a host church for FMF, the families we host-ed were more often than not people who were experiencing temporary financial problems who needed help getting back on their feet. Over the years this has changed as face of poverty has changed. Now our fami-lies are often parents with mental health issues who themselves come from a background of poverty and their children are often diagnosed with behavioral and physical disabili-ties as well.

These challenges have shown us that we need to change the struc-ture of our program in order to continue this ministry. As co-coordi-nators, we are finding we need to be present to the family needs in a way that does not allow us to oversee the details involved in making sure our host week works smoothly. We sought the advice of Rev. Katherine Lewis and determined how we need to restructure.

We need to find four people who would be willing to take responsibil-ity to oversee the following areas: • Set-Up, Take-Down, and Maintain-

ing Supplies.• Soliciting Volunteers for the Week.• Food (planning dinner menus, gro-

cery shopping, and coordinating donations for lunch and breakfast food)

• Evening Childcare.

The Changing Dynamics of our Families Moving Forward Ministry

While these areas could be managed by one person, it would be much better to distribute the work be-tween two people for each area. The commitment would be for two host weeks per year. Our final hosting for 2014 occurs the week of May 4th. We would like to have the positions set prior to that time so we could use the May host week as a training period.

Please contact either Carol Johnson at 612-419-9727 or Sandy Ward at 612-819-3254 to discuss your interest and any questions you may have.

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By Cindy Hillger

Anyone who has helped with Families Moving Forward knows how much work it is. It takes a big team of volunteers to transform St. David’s from a church with offices, classrooms and worship space into a comfortable home for the youngsters and their parents who are looking for permanent hous-ing. And while it may seem obvi-ous what the families receive from our sharing St. David’s with them, sometimes it’s not so apparent what we receive in return.

Let me explain. On Wednesday, February 5th,

our 6,7,8 middle school group was scheduled to cook, clean and play with the youngsters in the FMF group staying at the church. The middle-schoolers have done this many times before; it’s a night they look forward to and they do a great job with all of their assigned tasks. The FMF youngsters under our care on February 5th were a chal-lenging bunch. We had all ages—an

infant, toddlers, elementary school kids even a teen-ager. Like all little ones, they were active, running the halls of the church, playing indoor soccer, bowling and hide-and-seek. Our kids watched and listened at the interactions between the FMF kids and their parents and in many cases, it was very different from what our group sees and experi-ences in their own homes. Short tempers, angry words and loud voices, not just from the adults but also from the children. It was hard to know what to do or how to re-spond especially when the words were directed at those trying to help out: our adult volunteers and our 6,7,8 kids.

The following Wednesday at our regular 6,7,8 meeting we talked about what we witnessed. We tried to imagine what it would be like to be homeless, moving from church to church each week, not having a home, a room or even a bed to call your own. Some of the FMF children have attended mul-

tiple schools so they don’t have a chance to make lasting friendships, others don’t know their siblings, cousins, or in some cases, fathers. When we really looked at the lives of the FMF kids, it became clear why some act out, why some are angry, and why some behave inap-propriately. It also became clear to our kids how blessed they are. They have parents who love them, friends and family who support them and a faith community that is teaching them to love and serve others. As we closed the meeting with our candlelight prayer service, I asked the kids what they wanted to pray about. Their answer? Fam-ily. The kids thanked God for the people in their lives who love them unconditionally, but they also asked God to give the families we’ve served a chance to have a home, a good job or school and the patience, respect and love all God’s children deserve.

Amen to that.

We Give, We Receive.

No experience necessary to join others for Contemplative Prayer Monday mornings from 9:00-9:30. We meet in the Conference Room/Oratory, opening with a reflective

reading, meditating for twenty minutes and then closing with prayer. For more infor-mation, contact the Rev. Katherine Lewis at klewis@stdavidsparish.org.

Join Us Monday Mornings for Contemplative Prayer

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Here’s the run-down of the services we are singing at – SING AT ONE OR ALL!

PALM/PASSION SUNDAYSunday 4/13 @ 9:30am

Raise your palms in celebration of Christ’s coming— and solemnly anticipate His suffering and sacrifice.

GOOD FRIDAYFriday 4/18 @ 7:00pm

We’re doing something new! A beautiful Tenebrae service with candles, readings, and music.

EASTER MORNINGSunday 4/20 @ 9:30am

A jubilant celebration in drama and song! Join us for our annual sing-along of the “Hallelujah Chorus” from Handel’s Messiah!

THE FINE PRINTJoin us on Wednesday nights at 7:15pm for the month of March

and you’ll be prepared to join us in song. NO PRESSURE to join full-time – but a GREAT opportunity for those of you who love to sing,

but can’t find the time for weekly rehearsals.

WE HOPE TO SEE YOU! Please call Minister of Music Meg Redmond (763.473.0151)

if you have any questions, and don’t forget to INVITE YOUR FRIENDS!

This is your exclusive invitation to

Join St. David’s Chapel Choir for Holy Week!

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In true holiday style, David Niles, a member of St. David’s Episco-pal Church, donated the $300 Cub Foods gift certificate he won through the St. David’s Outreach Gala to ICA Food Shelf. The cer-tificate, donated by Cub Foods in Minnetonka, will benefit many ICA clients this holiday season.

After hearing Peg Keenan, ICA Food Shelf Executive Director, speak about the need for support

in the western suburbs served by ICA, David and Huldah Niles decided to give the Cub gift certificate to ICA. “It was really my wife’s idea. We figured we’ve been very blessed and fortunate at this point in our lives and ICA could really use the certificate,” explained Niles.

“This gift speaks to the generosity of the St. David’s community” says Keenan. “For decades, St. David’s,

along with our member congrega-tions, has provided tremendous support for our mission to offer hope and provide assistance to our neighbors in need.”

ICA Food Shelf is a social service agency offering food, financial assistance, job counseling and referrals to families in the western suburbs of Minneapolis. For more, visit www.icafoodshelf.org.

From left to right: Peg Keenan, ICA Executive Director, Brian Kuhnly, Cub Foods Manager, Lamar Popp, St. David’s Outreach Gala Raffle Chair, Huldah, David and Matilda Niles, St. David’s parishioners and donor of Cub gift certificate.

Giving Goes Full Circle

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Reach and Restore is currently in need of: • adult winter boots• adult gloves• boy’s and men’s

clothing• plus sized clothing• walking shoes• refrigerator• washing machineRequests are for clean

used clothing in good shape.

You can put cloth-ing items in the office adjacent to Beth’s, and we will get them to Reach and Restore. If you have a refrigera-tor or washing ma-chine, please contact the Rev. Guy Drake.

Epiphany (Gifts of The Magi) Baby Shower a SuccessSt. David’s parishioners gave a rousing degree of support for the Epiphany baby Shower on January 12. The whole congregation followed our 3 Magi as they led us to the manger where Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus received their gifts. The altar was piled with clothing, blankets, soft toys, and baby essentials. All the gifts were brought to Reach and Restore on Tuesday, January 14. We unpacked

them and put them in boxes for Ronda Oliver. There were scores of onsies and dozens of blankets and we only unbacked a relatively small portion of the gifts. We were struck by the generosity of St. David’s members, as well as the overpowering cuteness of the baby clothes. “Ooooh, look at his one! It has cupcakes on it!”

Mission Opportunity 2014 TeamThe parish baby shower idea came from the Mis-sion Opportunity 2014 team at St. David’s. Bish-op Prior’s Mission Op-portunity 2014 is titled, “Engaging God’s children in our neighborhoods.” We invite everyone at St. David’s to participate in this project. If you have creative ideas, and are interested in helping us learn more about the needs in our neighbor-hood, please contact the Rev. Guy Drake.

Reach and Restore is Currently in Need of These Items

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Reach and Restore founder Ronda Oliver gave an inspiring presentation on the vision and mission of their organization, based in Hopkins. Reach and Restore provides needy families with resources to provide a sense of hope and be a support to get back on their feet. This may include physical needs such as household items, children’s goods, furniture, locating housing or transportation and personal needs such as moral support, friendship, tutoring, counseling, or spiritual guidance. You can see Ron-da’s interview on KARE 11’s “11 Who Care” series, and learn more about Reach and Restore at www.reachandrestore.com.

Epiphany (Gifts of The Magi) Baby Shower a Success

Ronda Oliver at the Adult Forum

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Godly Play ScheduleMarch 9thDaylight Savings Time begins

Mystery of EasterPictures for bulletin

Easter

March 16th Easter 1 and 2 Ornaments for Jesus Tree

March 23rd Easter 3 Pine cone dovesMarch 30th Easter 4 Decorate stones

April 6th Easter 5 ”Healing” hand ornaments

April 13th Palm Sunday Easter 6 and 7

Reinact Palm Sunday

Sing praise songsApril 20th Easter No Class

April 27th Jesus and the Twelve

May 4th Children’s Choir Rehearsal Starts - FMF

Good Shepard World Communion

May 11th Mother’s Day Chldren’s Choir Rehearsal - FMF ends

Synagogue and Upper Room

May 18th Children’s Choir Rehearsal Last Class

Circle of Holy Eucharist

By Sara Kuyper

A recent session in Godly Play reminded me why I volunteer with children here at St. David’s. I had shared the parable of the leaven (Matthew 13:33; Luke 13:20-21). One youth reflected that the 3 mea-sures of flour were the three parts of God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He went on to say that the leaven represents the people. This parable I have heard numerous times in my life, but never has it spoken to me in such a profound way. Another child reflected that heaven is here on earth now. Not every one agreed with this reflection but it led to a great discussion. These two and other reflections made me feel the holy spirit among us. Children are in touch with God in a very real way. Their faith reinvigorates my own. We are called to make the kingdom of heaven here on earth. The young among us see heaven right here to-day! Thanks be to God for the eyes, heart and voice of children.

Reflections on Godly Play

St. David’s Episcopal Church13000 St Davids RoadMinnetonka, MN 55305Office: 952-935-3336Fax: 952-935-3957www.stdavidsparish.org

StaffRectorThe Rev. Katherine Lewis952-935-3336 ext. 11klewis@stdavidsparish.org

DeaconThe Rev. Guy Drake612-590-8502gadrake@comcast.net

Minister of MusicMeg Redmond952-935-3336 ext. 18mredmond@stdavidsparish.org

BookkeeperShea Brendalen952-935-3336 ext. 17sbrendalen@stdavidsparish.org

Parish AdministratorBeth Harvey952-935-3336 ext. 10bharvey@stdavidsparish.org

Facilities ManagerAdam Hovis 952-935-3336

Junior Warden Carol Johnson952-935-5043caroltwokat@gmail.com

David Pearson 952-412-7678 • mary.mann625@gmail.comDean Sather 763-545-3612 • sather.dean@gmail.comNan Drake 952-938-0444 • nan.drake@dalecarnagie.comPaul Pederson 952-931-3098 • downtownpaulyp@gmail.comDiane Curley 763-545-3612 • dsbkncurley@comcast.netTelly Rowbotham 952-912-0776 • trowbotham@msn.comFrances Stevenson 952-933-4649 • franrocks44@gmail.com

TreasurerPaul Smejkal 952-352-0688 • reconnoiterer@comcast.netSecretaryKay Turner 952-935-1076 • kay.turner@hotmail.com

Vestry

Visit our websitewww.stdavidsparish.org

Senior Warden Andy Harvala952-446-9335andyharvala62@gmail.com

Deacon InternCindy Hillger952-649-2704clhillger@yahoo.com

InternGeorgianna Smith612-819-6981astilbeshibas@comcast.net