MARCH 2018

Volume 32.3

St. John’s
United Church
of Christ
St. John’s United
Church of Christ is a
diverse community
forming a united This year Lent started on Valentine’s Day and it ends on April Fool’s Day.
congregation, seeking to These days are so appropriate to what the holy walk is all about. We will
grow our faith, share it hear over and over in our readings this Lent of the covenants God makes
with others, and serve with God’s people, while still knowing they will not keep those covenants.
God’s people wherever But God so loves and so wants to be in relationship with all of creation
the need is present. We and humans that over and over God enters covenants of love. God makes
are living God’s love and covenants with Noah and Abraham, with Moses and all of Israel. God
all are invited!!! makes covenants with rainbows and life with law and prophets and even
writes them upon our hearts. Finally, God is incarnated in Jesus that we
An Open and might know God’s love. The love of God is manifest through history and
recorded over and over that we might know God’s love.
Affirming
Congregation God’s love for us is not logical but foolish beyond all measure and the
Resurrection is God’s greatest foolishness. It changes the entire world
503 Stuart Circle making death not the end but the beginning. Truly Easter is a day when
Richmond, Virginia 23220 the world is turned upside down by the love of God. A love that is so
Telephone: exuberant that God changes the rules of life. We so often tame this story
804.358.9291 to the point we lose the great loving foolishness that is the center of our
Rev. Linda Higgins faith.
Pastor
We tame it, I think, because that great of a love calls for a response we do
Email: not want to give. This love calls us to share that love with all. To know that
office@stjohnsrichmond.org we really are stewards of all we have and sharing that in love, is the only
response we can make if we truly take God’s love into ourselves. For we
know that we are one with everyone and all of creation, so to let another
suffer is to let ourselves and the one who created us in this love to suffer.
To allow injustice for another to continue is to allow ourselves to suffer
injustice. God loves us and gives us free will but the child who goes
without food, educational opportunities and hope is the child God loves as
Web Site: well. And the true love of God means having to respond to the needs of
stjohnsrichmond.org the other for that is how we receive the love of God and love God in
return. Yes, this is the season of knowing God’s crazy foolish over the top
love. Through out this news letter you will hear of ways to celebrate,
absorb and respond to God’s great foolish redeeming love.

In Love
Pastor Linda Higgins
Church Council met for the monthly meeting on February 13, 2018.

Discussions:
The Finance Committee reported that 46 pledges have been received for a total of $94,532 for the
2018 Budget. The proposed 2018 budget was $118,000. We are down from 55 pledges for
2017. Year end reports are complete and the Audit Committee can begin their 2017 review. The
CPA recommends that books are reconciled monthly or at least quarterly since we have no one in
the Treasurer role at this time. Council will not seek funding from Endowment to cover deficit at
this time. Rather, the church will use the funds in the bank from Helen Karnap's bequeath. When
the church decides the best way to honor Helen Karnap's memory with something specific and
meaningful, Council will request the full gift amount from Endowment.

Repair work was completed on the boiler in December. Council approved in December up to
$10,000 for the repair work. The total bill was $8,167.60.

A Nominating Committee led by Scott Siefert will recruit council members to be installed in
June. Please see Scott if you are interested in joining Council or have a suggestion of someone
we can ask. We have a lot of fun at every meeting and we know you won't want to miss out.

There has been a call for a Visioning Committee to determine what we want to be when the
building is repaired. We need to figure out as a congregation what we will do with the parking lot
proceeds. We need a building plan and design before we are ready to renovate. We need plans
to put in place to grow and develop programs and outreach which will grow and develop our
congregation.

With the parking lot construction beginning in the summer, a key pad should be added to the
Stuart Circle Entrance. There was discussion about security issues, and placing cameras at the
doors so anyone in the church offices can see who is at the door.

The 175th Anniversary of St. John's first worship service is October 8, 2018. We need to start
planning how we wish to celebrate. Who will we invite? Can we make the German Fest part of
the anniversary celebration? David Craig has offered to lead an Anniversary Committee. Please
see him to offer your help.

A new Lectern Bible will be purchased in the New Revised Standard Version. The pew Bibles are
RSV and will need to be replaced. We will offer the opportunity for members to purchase NRSV
for the pews in honor or in memory of someone and plan to dedicate all the Bibles during the
175th Anniversary celebration.

Electronic Hymn Boards will replace the wooden Hymn Boards.

Coleman Brothers Florist will be providing flowers for Sunday services. A signup sheet for the
year is on the bulletin board outside the Pastor's Study if you wish to purchase flowers for a
Sunday service.
 Church Council Report Continued

The Easter flowers will be a variety of flowers again this year. Order forms will be available to
purchase flowers in honor or memory of loved ones. After the service on Easter, a potluck lunch
will be held in the Fellowship Hall followed by the Easter Parade for anyone who wishes to join.

Congregational Life and Care will provide doughnuts for Palm Sunday and they will host a
picnic lunch on the lawn after church on Pentecost. Details will follow. After church fellowship
has shifted back to Congregational Life and Care.

The Crop Walk Planning Committee met late February.

The Equality Virginia Dinner is April 14 and the ACTS Dinner is April 26. St. John's will have a
table at both events. See Jeff Jacobs if you are interested in attending the Equality Virginia Dinner
and Don Warren if you wish to attend the ACTs Dinner.

Motions voted during the Meeting:

• Approved new members Donique McIntosh and Gary Meir
• Approved using money currently in bank from Helen Karnap's bequeath and will request full
amount of gift from Endowment when we decide the best way to use her gift.
• For IRS requirements, approved the Pastor's housing allowance of $16,920 as noted in the
2018 approved budget.

Email motion voted after the Meeting:

• Approved up to $30,000 for urgent electrical repairs as reflected in the Engineering Study. A
congregational meeting has been called for March 11 to approve this expenditure.

Motions voted on Sunday, February 18:

• Approved up to $2000 to purchase of the electronic hymn boards.
• Approved up to $1000 to purchase security cameras for the main entrances.
 You are called to a
Congregational Meeting
immediately following worship service on
Sunday, March 11, 2018
The motion coming from Trustees and Church
Council is to vote on approving $30,000 for the
electric work noted in the December 2017 Building
Electrical Analysis by Dunlap and Partners. The money
will come from the General Fund.
DON’T FORGET DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME
BEGINS MARCH 11TH, 2018 @ 2 AM.
SPRING FORWARD!
 2018
St. John’s United Church of Christ
503 Stuart Circle
Richmond, Virginia 23220
(804) 358-9291
The Rev. Linda Higgins, Pastor

Palm Sunday, March 25th

This year Holy Week begins on March 25th with the traditional Palm Sunday Parade as we join
with our sister congregations in the Stuart Circle Parish Association. Gather at First English
Lutheran Church (across Stuart Circle from St. John's) at 9:30 am to pick up a palm branch and
open with prayer; then parade with members of all the churches down Monument Avenue
behind the donkey.

Worship at St John's will begin at 11 AM with no education classes before so we can join the
procession. Our 11 Am worship will include the blessing of palms, a celebration of Jesus's entry
into Jerusalem.

Maundy Thursday, March 29th

On March 29th, we will celebrate Maundy Thursday at 7:00 pm with a service that includes both
Holy Communion and Tenebrae Service.

Easter Sunday, April 1, 2018

At 7:00 am we will join the churches of the West End Clergy Association for an Easter Sunrise
Service at Brookland United Methodist Church (2501 Staples Mill Road, Richmond, VA 23230), in
the grove behind the church. Our very own Pastor Linda Higgins will be preaching.

At 11 am we will have a festival service of Communion to celebrate the RESURRECTION,

followed by an Easter Egg Hunt for the children and planting of the pinwheels for National Child
Abuse Prevention Month. We want to be sure that everyone has a wonderful Easter so rather
than coffee hour, we will have a Potluck on Easter.
We are officially into the color purple season – the Season of Lent. Lenten themes in
worship include, repentance, journey, covenant, promise, sacrifice and salvation –
basically the whole life of faith. We hope that you will join us in worship for our Lenten
journey of faith. Because of the coincidence of Ash Wednesday falling on Valentine’s Day,
we opted for a noon day service for the inauguration of Lent and the imposition of ashes.

We most likely will not schedule an Ash Wednesday service at that hour in the future as
we had only three congregants in the service in addition to the six worship participants.
As Pastor Linda pointed out in last Sunday’s sermon, Lent began on Valentine’s Day and
will end on April Fool’s Day. It seems so appropriate; we follow the Lord of Love and we
are “fools for the sake of Christ.” [1Cor. 4:10]

Looking down the road to Easter, we invite you to help us set the scene for our
Resurrection Celebration with flowers given in memory or in honor of your loved ones.
We have four choices this year - lilies, daffodils, tulips and begonias. You will find an
order form in the Messenger and in Sunday bulletins. Please place your order by March
18th.

The Worship and Music Committee has discussed replacing the sanctuary hymn boards
with TV monitors which would be used to display hymn numbers and other worship-
related information and images. We have received one proposal. Your input/feedback/
opinion is desired and congregational approval is advised. For more information, please
speak to Richard Bighinatti.

We encourage you to sign up to host a coffee hour or to read scripture in worship.

Remember you do not have to bake for coffee hour – we have snacks and supplies on
hand. A fresh fruit or veggie would be welcome. The sign-up board is either in the Parlor
or Fellowship Hall.

We are delighted to have some new volunteers on the Altar Guild and we always welcome
new voices in the choir, new faces on the Welcome Teams and new members on the
Worship and Music Committee. If you are interested, please speak to any member of the
Worship and Music Committee which currently is: Beverly Lindsey, Richard Bighinatti,
Johanna Gilbert, Pastor Higgins and Shirley Townsend.
 Adult Education for
March 2018
Sunday Mornings @ 9:45 am
in the Guild Room
Join us as we study the Gospel of Mark. We will meet
Sundays at 9:45 in the pastor’s outer office.
There will be no class on Palm Sunday, so we can
participate in the palm parade with the Stuart Circle
parishes and no class Easter morning.
Please note that there is no Good Friday Service this
year but there is an Easter Sunrise Service.

Easter Pot Luck

We want to be sure that everyone has a wonderful
Easter so rather than coffee hour, we thought it would
be fun to have a pot luck on Easter. I know some will
be running to join family, but some may not have
family around to join them this day. We would like to
make it special, so there will be a sign-up sheet so
folks can say what they are bringing at coffee hour.
The Potluck sign-up sheet will be by the Caritas sign-
up.

It is time for an
Extravagant Welcome for
our CARITAS Guests!!!!
We will be serving as the intake center for
the CARITAS women’s group beginning
Saturday, March 17 and continuing nightly
through May 18. First English will be taking
Monday and Tuesday nights and a group
from the Church of the Good Shepherd will handle the first Monday of each month. We need members
of St. John’s to serve as hosts Wednesday through Sunday nights. There should be at least two people
signed up for each day. Feel free to sign up on a day that is already taken but touch base with those
people to coordinate refreshments.

We will be serving approximately 40 women each night and want to greet them with an Extravagant
Welcome. As they won’t have supper until somewhere between 7:00 and 8:00 p.m. and lunch was
many hours earlier, we would like to serve a “substantial snack” – something sweet (cookies, brownies,
cupcakes, etc.), something savory/salty (chips with salsa or cheese and crackers), and something
healthy (fruit, veggies, etc.).

There will be a list with the sign up sheets of nonperishable items that we will need. All donations can
be placed in the kitchen with a note indicating it is for CARITAS. Look for more information on Sunday
mornings. If you have any questions, please see Don or Elisabeth. Paper sign-up sheets are in the
Parlor.
 "The Fellowship” will meet for lunch on Thursday,
March 8, 2018 at 1:00 pm. They will have lunch at
Kitchen 64 located at 3336 North Blvd. For information,
please contact Lynda Merry at 804-756-0270 or Dorothy
Cooke at 804-675-9269.

We have opportunities available to become a member

of Church Council. This is a great time to serve the
church as we look to develop plans for the future of
our community of faith. Please contact Scott Siefert,
head of the Nomination Committee, if you would like
to be considered or have any questions. You can call
or text him at 804-350-0826 or email him at
sesiefert@gmail.com.

The St. John’s Community Players (“Broadway Miscast”)

would like to thank the cast and those who attended the
Cabaret performances on February 10-11, 2018. We had
two extremely successful performances and are happy to
report a donation of $1650 to the General Fund of the
church. We had guests of 75, plus a cast of 24 in the
fellowship hall each performance. What a blessing to
share a joyful evening with so many people! We would
like to thank Sal Anselmo, Sara Allen, Jeff Jacobs, Ashley
Quick, Mark Souza, Linda Higgins, Dreama Terrill, Scott
Siefert, Jeff Michel, Richard and Betsy Bighinatti, Tony
and Anita Sharpenstein and Bud Higgins for their special help during our dinner performance.

Daylight Savings Time

will begin at 2 am Sunday, March 11th.
This is a reminder to turn your
clocks forward 1 hour.

St. John’s Congregational Life and Care Ministry

will meet on Tuesday, March 13, 2018 at 6 pm.
Please plan to join us. For information you
may contact Scott Siefert @ 804-350-0826.
OGHS is the Lenten Offering of the UCC. This offering
supports disaster and development activities. Our
participation in OGHS shows our commitment to be a
part of God's abundant blessings to our sisters and
brothers in need throughout the world.
For more information, please see Marcie Agee
 What’s Happening in Richmonders
Involved to Strengthen our Community’s
Childhood Trauma Initiative? (RISC)

In 2016, we started hearing stories of

children devastated by the three suicides of
their friends and classmates at James River
HS and Robious MS. We learned that
the rate of suicide attempts for youth in
Chesterfield has doubled over the last 5
years.

At the same time, we learned that African-

American students with disabilities are suspended from Chesterfield schools 4 times as often as any other
student group. We heard the stories of children with disabilities who react emotionally when they are
upset. They are accused of being aggressive against their teacher and suspended for months!

Both of these tragic and preventable problems facing Chesterfield kids have their root in unaddressed
traumatic experiences – “incidents that cause physical, emotional, or psychological harm and make a child
feel threatened, anxious, or frightened” (Healthline).

Local experts estimate that 5,000-6,000 children in our region have experienced multiple traumatic events.
When adults interacting with these children, including their teachers and school staff, do not know how to
respond appropriately, the problem is only made worse.
In 2017, Chesterfield County Public Schools officials agreed that trauma is a serious problem facing their
students and committed before 900 citizens to implement an evidence-based trauma training for their
teachers and staff.

Instead of using a specific, proven training in schools that need it most, Chesterfield is working with a
handful of schools who have volunteered for training and estimate it will take several years to provide
training in all schools. There is no clear training plan and little evaluation of the training’s results – in-
stead, each school gets different training based on the teachers’ interests.

We believe that Chesterfield kids and teachers deserve a well-designed training that has proven
effective in another community, not an experimental, patchwork approach!

Through months of research, RISC leaders have identified effective training opportunities from Richmond
child welfare agencies, Duke University, and the University of California, which have shown to reduce
suspension rates and disruptive classroom behaviors.

At the 2018 Action on April 30, 2018, we will ask Chesterfield County Public Schools officials to
implement one of the proven trainings RISC has researched in schools that would otherwise be on the
waiting list for years!

Your presence at the Great Nehemiah Action on April 30, 2018, matters so that the
school system sees the community’s expectation for effective tools that will help our
students and teachers overcome trauma and be successful. Please save this date:
Monday, April 30, 7 p.m., St Paul’s Baptist Church, 4247 Creighton Road.
 We pray for members of the St. John’s Family:
Pam Miller in the loss of her mother Joann Logan, Joyce
Stewart (Friend of Dorothy Cook), Judy Brown, Rev. Hank
Harman, Iola Miller, Frieda Walsh, Fritz Will III,
Anna Oxenham, Joe McGregor and Ann E. Osborn.
 Ministry March 4 March 11 March 18 March 25
Team 2 Team 3 Team 3 Team 4

Welcome Team Lynn Snyder Bill Watson Bill Watson Doug Waldrop
Leader

Sound System Will Atkinson Bruce Miller Bruce Miller Jeff Michel

Tellers Beverly Lindsey Rob Osborn Rob Osborn Jeff Jacobs

Helen Bunch Tony Sharpenstein Tony Sharpenstein Scott Siefert

Liturgist Elisabeth Burnette Kate Schaefer Sarah Allen

Facilities Jeff Hetzer Bill Watson Bill Watson Bud Higgins

Altar Guild Erin Burnette Arthur Dewey Johanna Gilbert Dorothy Cook
Georgianne Stinnette Lynda Merry Charlotte Quick Helen Bunch

Fellowship Elisabeth Burnette Don & Beth Stiegler Laura Totty

Hosts

Altar
Flowers

Please find a substitute if

Teller Coordinator:
Bud Higgins
you are unable to perform
804-301-5059 your ministry and contact
your Team Coordinator
AND the office to let them
Fellowship Host Coordinator: know who will be filling in
Kate Schaefer
804-239-2871 for you. Thank you for
making our church
ministries run smoothly!
 M a r c h 2 018
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1 2 3
1:30 pm
Music/Worship
Committee
Meeting
4 5 6 7 8 9 10
9:30 am Choir 1:00 pm
Rehearsal 5:30 pm The Fellowship
9:45 am Adult Ed. Finance Lunch @
11 am Worship Meeting Kitchen 64

11 12 13 14 15 16 17
9:30 am Choir 6:30 pm 6:00 pm
Rehearsal Church Council Congregational
9:45 am Adult Ed. Meeting Life & Care CARITAS
11 am Worship Meeting
Congregational BEGINS
Meeting

18 19 20 21 22 23 24
9:30 am Choir
Rehearsal 6:00 pm
9:45 am Adult Ed. CARITAS CARITAS CARITAS Trustee Meeting CARITAS CARITAS
11 am Worship
CARITAS
25 26 27 28 29 30 31
9:45 am 6:00 pm 7 pm
Palm Parade Coming to the CARITAS CARITAS Maundy CARITAS
11 am Table Meeting @ CARITAS
Thursday
Palm Sunday St. John’s UCC Service
Worship
CARITAS
CARITAS CARITAS

1 Teresa Jolles
3 David Townsend
4 Sonny Darnell
5 Rick Cook
13 Frances Smith Vass
16 Scott Siefert
18 Randy Williams
31 Johanna Gilbert