For Sunday February 9, 2025
Black History Month
Annual Meeting Recap & Impact Report
Thank you to all who attended the annual meeting! After celebrating our patronal feast day with a special visit from St. Paul the Hermit in a combined service, many of us headed over to the parish hall for the Annual Meeting. Approximately 170 folks crammed into the parish hall to say goodbye for the last time, enjoyed a lunch from Aspen Mills, and heard from the Co-Rectors, Sr. Warden, Treasurer, Stewardship Committee Co-Chairs, Strategic Plan Implementation Team, and Parish Hall Refresh Taskforce about the past year and what we can look forward to in 2025. If you want to find out more, please click on the link below to read the Annual Impact Report for 2024 or pick up a copy at the Welcome Table.
The Co-Rectors appointed Alex Christensen as Senior Warden for the next year. Douglas Burton & George Tamer won the St. Paul the Hermit Servant Award for their innovative lighting improvements and their dedication to hospitality on the usher and welcome teams. We give thanks to the staff, vendors, and volunteers who put in so many hours behind the scenes to make the annual meeting a success!
Pray for your Vestry and Co-Rectors as they retreat this Friday-Saturday to prepare for the year ahead!
6 Ts Survey
Our survey tracking system shows that many parishioners started to fill out the survey but just didn’t have a chance to complete it (by typing in their name and email address and clicking the “Done” button at the end). If you had to stop mid-way, please try again. If you started the survey from an email link, you might find that you can pick up where you left off; others would just start anew, reminding yourself that it only takes 13-15 minutes to do at one sitting! Thank you so much for your time — it will make a big difference!
As you heard about at the Annual Meeting we have a new tool to help connect parishioners to their passions and needs in the church and the wider community. Under the parish’s Strategic Plan Objectives One and Four, the 6 Ts Task force has developed a survey for all parishioners that we hope can bring us together to do more and for each other. The “Six Ts” refer to parishioners’ talents, testimony, time, temperament, treasure, and ties (relational networks).
It takes only 13-15 minutes (it’s been timed!) and you can do it easily on your computer, smartphone, or tablet (all connected to WiFi).
Here are the simple instructions to complete the survey:
- Simply click on the banner at the top of this email and you will be able to fill out the survey.
- Almost all the questions just ask you to check the boxes that apply to you, except for those at the end that ask you to fill in your contact information.
- When you reach the end of the survey, be sure to click the “Done” button. If you do, you will receive a confirmation email that you have completed the survey.
- Do NOT click any button asking you to complete another, different survey. It’s probably a marketing survey from Survey Monkey.
- If you run into any issues, there will be a team of folks next to the Welcome Table on Sunday morning at both services to offer assistance.
The 6Ts survey is designed to benefit each parishioner and the church, too. By asking you about your interests, the survey can offer you more opportunities to connect with other like-minded parishioners in spiritual formation, ministry work, volunteer possibilities within the church and the community at large, and even recreational activities. By asking about your skills, the survey can help the Revs and our lay leaders identify ways that you might like to contribute to the church’s vitality and that are suited to your particular strengths and interests.
All of the information collected in the survey will be confidential; it will only be available to the clergy and laity authorized to review that information specific to their duties as employees or supervised volunteers.
Thank you for helping us connect more regularly and more meaningfully with one another!
Blessed Harriet Tubman Table Read
Come meet Harriet Tubman in a read aloud play with Mick Welch and Lou Armentrout. You’ll be a stronger person after you get to know Saint Harriet Tubman, American abolitionist and social activist. Just before the Civil War, she escaped from slavery in Maryland, and then went back, time and time again, to help others escape. As we read this dynamic play together, we live through her daring rescues and watch as her faith grows. Participants of any age get involved because they become the characters. You get a chance to BE a saint—to really get inside a truly holy person.
Join us in the Church Office Lobby (we’re being creative with space while the Parish Hall is refreshed) on SUNDAYS BETWEEN SERVICES for a fun “table read” of the play. It’s super easy and anyone can join.
About the Class Leaders: Mick Welch and Lou Armentrout have been together for fifty years – all spent in the Episcopal Church. Both have been lectors throughout that period. They are life-long educators, and both appreciate beauty where it is – and try to make more of it. Where better to pursue this than at St. Paul’s?!
Calling all Clickers and Hookers!
Do you knit or crochet? We cleaned out the closet in the Parish Hall to prepare it for the refresh project and found a LOT of yarn! This is from our former Prayer Shawl Ministry. Many of those members gathered together pre-COVID and knit or crocheted prayer shawls that were blessed and brought to sick parishioners in hospitals and at bedsides. These prayer shawls have been something people still talk about, and if you were blessed to receive one, know they were made in love and with prayer. Many of those faithful prayer shawl knitters and crocheters have passed away since then.
Barbara Villani has been a faithful member and champion of getting this ministry back on track. We know people have various schedules and can’t always come together to knit/crochet. HOWEVER, we would love to ask any of you who know how to knit or crochet (or, as the group called themselves: The Clickers and Hookers!) to take some of the yarn and make a prayer shawl. You can knit or crochet from the comfort of your home, or if you’d like to be connected with others making prayer shawls, we can get a group together. We could really use these prayer shawls when we visit people, and it is an easy way to give back.
If you’d like some yarn, please reach out to revjessie@stpaulsps.org
Want to help make St. Paul’s Campus & Buildings Better?
Have you have had a moment where you were at church and you saw the same lightbulb has been out for weeks and no one has changed it? Or maybe you go to grab a railing to steady yourself and find that it’s really loose and wonder why it hasn’t been fixed? Or perhaps you’ve noticed that your pew rack is missing cards or envelopes or pens and you are reminded that no one can fill them unless someone knows they are empty?
We have a BRAND-NEW tool that anyone can use to help us make sure the campus is safe, stocked, and ready for worship and other campus activities! Welcome to the NEW St. Paul’s Maintenance/Repair Request Form found online. If YOU see something that needs repairing, cleaning, sprucing-up, etc. on St. Paul’s campus, this is THE way to ensure that we know about it. Scan the QR code below OR click on the Building & Grounds Maintenance/Repair Request Form. You will be able to fill out the form in real time, which will allow our sexton to address those issues and/or the Campus Care Committee to address any major campus issues. Help us stay organized and prioritized!
If you see something that needs repairing, cleaning, sprucing-up, etc. St. Paul’s campus, this is THE way to ensure that we know about it. Scan below to reach our Building & Grounds Maintenance/Repair Request Form.
Parish Hall Refresh News!
Modernization and transformation of the Parish Hall into an education center of excellence for spiritual formation and to serve the community, with improved accessibility and equipped for year-round use.
The Refresh Project undertakes modernization and transformation of the Parish Hall in a dozen project areas, specifically designed to create 3 education rooms (the current 12 Step room and 2 old Sunday School rooms), a large video conferencing room (the old choir room/social justice storage room), and improved classroom/meeting space in the Parlor. All of this is in order to support St. Paul’s mission and ministry in spiritual formation and education and service to the community. Enhanced accessibility is a primary goal, together with effectively equipping the space for year-round use.
Read all about the Parish Hall Refresh!""Women’s Group (Sisters in Spirit—SIS) Upcoming Gathering
All women are invited to join a Sisters in Spirit (SIS) Event in the Month of February:
- A visit to the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum in downtown Palm Springs on Saturday, February 15. Cost is $5 for seniors and $10 for adults 18-64. Tickets can be purchased online at tickets.accmuseum.org. The address is 140 N Indian Canyon Dr.
To RSVP this event, please contact Jan Wacker at jwacker2001@yahoo.com.
NOTE: Mark your calendar for a SIS retreat on March 14-15. Details forthcoming.
Choir Rehearsals
We will use the schedule we have been using this past year: Sundays after the 10:30 AM postlude for 30-45 minutes, and Thursdays at 5:45 PM for 45-60 minutes. Singers choose which time is best for them. There is no expectation that you’ll attend both rehearsals, but you are certainly welcome to do so if you choose.
Everyone is welcome! Questions? Please contact Chuck Peery musicdirector@stpaulsps.org
EDSD: A Sanctuary Diocese
Click here to read more about what it means that we are part of a sanctuary diocese.
The Co-Rectors met this week with other interfaith clergy to strategize about how the faith communities in Palm Springs might respond to the threat of deportation for many of our neighbors in the valley. Other concerned parishioners have been reaching out asking how they can be involved. We invite anyone who is interested in this important issue to attend the next Latino Ministry Meeting on Wednesday February 12th after the 6PM Absalom Jones Jazz Mass.
IRIS Update
Because of your incredible generosity last Sunday, we were able to collect $3,200 for Interfaith Refugee & Immigration Service [IRIS]. This money will go directly to assisting asylum seekers who have just arrived in the United States, but whose funding was suddenly cut off as they seek to establish a new life in this country. Thank you for your overwhelming support for the foreigner and the stranger, those whom Jesus has called us to care for as if they were our own family members. As Bishop Budde said in her sermon recently, “Be merciful to the stranger, for you were all once strangers in this land.”
To learn more about IRIS’ Emergency Fund and what this money is going towards, please click here.
March Book Club
The next Book Club meeting will be held March 4, 2025, at 2:00 PM. The meeting will be held in the Music Cottage on the church campus. For March Book Club has selected An American Marriage by Tayari Jones. Newlyweds Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of the American Dream and the New South. They settle into the routine of their life together, but Roy is arrested and sentenced to twelve years for a crime Celestial knows he didn’t commit. Roy’s conviction is suddenly overturned, and he returns to resume their life together. This love story is a profoundly insightful look into the hearts and minds of people who are at once bound and separated by forces beyond their control.
New members are always welcome. For more information, please contact Alan Zimmerman at alanzimmerman@icloud.com
Movie Night Thursday Feb. 20th
“Just Mercy”
This month’s featured film is Just Mercy. It is a film centered around themes of empathy, equity, hope, and resilience. Just Mercy is a story that uplifts marginalized voices who are typically unheard, unacknowledged, or deemed undeserving of mercy in the criminal justice system. The true story follows Harvard Law School graduate Bryan Stevenson’s move to Alabama where he recognizes an urgent need to provide free legal assistance to minorities who have been unfairly sentenced. Join us in the Parish Hall Library, as our Parish Hall will be closed for the refresh project.
Add a Name to the Prayer List at St. Paul
Want to add someone’s name to the prayer list? Please call the Church Office or email our Registrar, Orin Ellingson, at registrar@stpaulsps.org with names. Prayers remain on the list for one month unless otherwise noted.
Altar Flowers
“The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom . . .” Isaiah 35:1-2
Altar flowers, also known as chancel flowers, are a Christian tradition of placing flowers in the chancel of a church to beautify the space and honor loved ones. In the Episcopal Church, altar flowers are often used to celebrate special occasions, such as birthdays, anniversaries, or the birth of a child. They can also be given in memory of a loved one or to honor a person.
If you would like to sponsor altar flowers for a future Sunday to commemorate a special person or event, you’ll find the sign-up book in the Narthex, or you can call the Parish Office at 760.320.7488 to reserve your sponsorship dates(s). A donation of $95 for each altar flower sponsorship (or $65 for narthex flower sponsorships) covers the flower shops fees.
Prayers of the Church
For the Anglican Communion, and for the Archbishop of York, The Most Reverend and Right Honourable Stephen Cottrell, who is the acting Archbishop of Canterbury; pray for The Anglican Church of Australia, The Most Reverend Geoffrey Martyn Smith, Archbishop of Adelaide and Primate of The Anglican Church of Australia.
For the Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee, The Right Reverend Brian Lee Cole, Bishop.
For the Episcopal Diocese of San Diego, The Right Reverend Dr. Susan Brown Snook, Bishop; for all who are discerning a call to holy orders.
For those commended to our prayers: Rick Felton, All Saints’ Episcopal Church in Pasadena, California, and for all who are in harm’s way from the fires in Southern California; for Rex Comer, Jon Swalboski, Emily Akemon, Maggie Salvato, Katie Benevento, Rosemary Kirincic, Elijah, Darren Buesking, Harry Nussbaum, Megan Goehring, Dan De Garmo, Terry Moran, Larry Wilson, Suzanne Zada, Lydia Ealy-Zingg, Bill & Dennis & Margaret Ann, Judith Gaylor, Mel Messenger, Don Hamilton, Patricia Fiedler Horan, Jim Franklin, David Mellish, Teri Whitmer, Jean Newcomer, Linda and Lloyd Frederik, Ray & Cheryl Kelley, Tish & Eliott Kahn, Hap Blaisdell, Terry Fabian, Pat, David Valenzuela, Amelia Grinstead, Chloe Grace Wilson Barton, Marilyn De Silva Currie, Tom Lutgen; pray for all those for whom no prayers have been said.
For those who have died: Julee Collins, Charles Martin, Howard Cecil, Lanny Tucker, Barbara Halcom, Tom Tyrrell, Gary Galpin, Glenda Hoiseth, Melody Guice, Harry Fowler, William McLaughlin, Gilbert Ramos, Gisela Zuijdervelt, Dale McGhee Pollack, Juliet Vaughans, Deborah Green. Rest eternal grant to these, your servants, O Lord, and let light perpetual shine upon them. May their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace. Amen.
For those celebrating their anniversary: February 9: John Alex Houlton & Michael Patino.
For those with birthdays: February 9: Rev. Mark Spaulding; February 10: Theodore Decker; February 12: Michael Kingsbury, John Stephens; February 14: Tom Kieley, Michael Nazelrod-Woodward; February 15: Autumn Shih.
Today’s Altar flowers are given to the Glory of God
“The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom . . .” Isaiah 35:1-2
If you would like to sponsor altar flowers for a future Sunday honoring a special person or event, you’ll find the sign-up book in the Narthex, or you can call the Parish Office at 760.320.7488 to reserve your sponsorship date(s).
Send us your Prayer Requests via email — You may request prayers, “For those commended to our prayers” or “For those who have died,” by sending requests to registrar@stpaulsps.org. The weekly print deadline is Wednesday noon.
For next Sunday’s Lectionary readings, go to www.lectionarypage.net and click on February 16, The Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany.
Upcoming Meetings & Events at St Paul’s
- Sunday, February 9 – 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM Services – Epiphany V – The Right Rev. James Theodore Holly – The first African American to be ordained a bishop in the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States.
- Monday, February 10 – 2:00-4:00 PM – Sacred Ground: Part One Class – Library
- Tuesday, February 11 – 3:30-5:00 PM – Masculine Spirituality Class – Library
- Wednesday, February 12 – 6:00 PM – Jazz Mass – The Rev. Absalom Jones (transferred) – The first African American to be ordained as a priest in the Episcopal Church of the United States
- Wednesday, February 12 – 7:00 PM – Latino Ministry meeting – Library
- Thursday, February 13 – 5:45 PM – Choir – In the church
- Saturday, February 15 – 10:00 AM – St. Paul’s Sisters in Spirit – Agua Caliente Museum Trip
- Saturday, February 15 – 11:00 AM – Funeral – Julee Collins
- Sunday, February 16 – 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM Services – Epiphany VI – Sojourner Truth – American Abolitionist
- Sunday, February 16 – 12:15 Pm – Finance Committee – Library
- Monday, February 17 – Office Closed: Presidents Day
- Saturday, February 22 – 11:00 AM – Black History Parade
From The Greens
St. Paul’s longtime former rector, Rev. Green and his family sent a Christmas card wishing St. Paul’s a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Stay Connected
Sunday Service LiveStreaming
We are livestreaming our 10:30 AM Sunday Eucharist every week. You can view the livestream on our Home Page, YouTube Channel, and Facebook Page.
Missed a service? Or want to rewatch a liturgy? All our past services are available to watch either on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/StPaulintheDesert or on our Facebook timeline: https://www.facebook.com/stpaulinthedesert
Join our E-Mail List
You’ll find this invitation on the front page and many pages throughout our website. It’s intended for anyone who wants to receive communications from St. Paul’s via email. This includes The Abundant Life weekly, online newsletter. If you haven’t already, sign up today!
Get “Social” with St. Paul’s!
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The Episcopal Diocese of San Diego’s Info on Reporting Misconduct
Intake Officers:
Ms. Megan Callan, megan@mecallan.com
The Rev. Willy Crespo, frcrespo@gmail.com
Ms. Meredith Hardy, mlh8180@gmail.com
The Episcopal Diocese of San Diego considers the reporting and investigation of misconduct to be of critical importance. Reporting enables the diocese to protect the complainant, the respondent, and the larger community. It also allows the diocese to assist with the spiritual, psychological, and emotional needs of all concerned during and after the report of misconduct. Please visit edsd.org/safe-church-safe-communities/reporting-misconduct/
