Holy Spirit Episcopal Church

HOME GROUP MINISTRY - GREAT NEWS ! A new group is forming in the Katy area at the home of Ron and Joyce Merrett. The group will be facilitated by Vicki Cravens. Vicki and the Merretts will hold the group on Tuesday evenings, beginning April 6th. Fr. Puckett will be at the first gathering to bless the launching of this new group. Please consider joining this group in Katy. If you are interested in becoming a part of this new Home Group contact Vicki at cravens54@yahoo.com  or Ron and Joyce at ronjoy.katy@yahoo.com More information will be coming soon.

The group at the home of Sue and Bob Felice is still meeting every Wednesday at 7pm. Please know that new participants are always welcome to join either of these groups at anytime. If you would like more information about the Home Group Ministry please contact Bob at 832-338-3388 or Sue at 832-236-4533.

Also, on Sunday, April 18th there will be an organizational meeting to plan for the expansion of the Home Group Ministry at Holy Spirit. This group will meet monthly. If you would like to attend and participate please contact Bob Felice at 832-338-3388.

Finally, on May 23rd, Pentecost Sunday, the Home Group Ministry will host a kick-off. Look for details in the April and May editions of Dove Tales

Our first March luncheon falls on Friday the 12th and finds us at the Good Co. Barbeque 8911 Katy Freeway.
Our second March epicurean adventure happens on Friday the 26th when we will be checking out the menu at the 59 Diner Restaurant 10147 Katy Freeway. Join us for good food and fellowship. Lunch is, as always, 11:15 and guests are welcome.

First of all, thank you to all of the members of the parish for a successful 2009. We entered December with pledges $53,000 under budget, and finished the year within 1.5% of our budgeted amount. As usually follows, January is a typically slow month. Our January pledges were $123,000, which is $28,000 under our budgeted amount. Expenses were $7,000 below budget. We will update you monthly so that you will know where we stand as we all make an effort not to fall too far behind during the course of the year.

Our current mortgage level is approximately $1,040,000 as of this writing, thanks to our very generous $1,000,000 anonymous donation toward reducing our debt levels. In addition, we have $225,000 set aside for the purpose of upgrading our equipment to further add to our efficiency in our utility costs.

Since the beginning of the year, we have received $5,500 in contributions toward our matching Debt Reduction Campaign. This leaves us with $16,300 left to raise, which when combined with the matching donation, we will be able to reduce our debt another $43,600 and reduce our mortgage balance to under $1,000,000. If you wish to take advantage of the opportunity to have your contribution matched please note on your remittance check that it is for the Mortgage Reduction Campaign.

God Bless!
Kim Myer and Ron Richardson
Finance Committee Co-chairs

REQUEST FROM THE ALTAR GUILD… To all those who kindly donate their glass vases to the Altar Guild for use in the Flower Ministry, may we ask you to give them to another deserving cause for the time being, as we have run out of storage for them. We will announce at a later date when can accept them again. Many thanks for your assistance.

PRAYER LIST UPDATES: If you know that someone can be removed from the prayer list because they are doing well, please mark the list and let the church office know they can be removed--names are currently removed when the name is not resubmitted, so that there is room for new requests. Also, if you know of military personnel who are on the list and are no longer on active duty in the Middle East or stateside, we need the space on the prayer list for the people who are currently being called to active duty. Thank you for your help.

Are you considering leaving your job?  Are you struggling to find a new one?  Have you lost a spouse?  Have you had a baby?  Join us for our Lenten Speaker Series, as the newest members of our Diocesan clergy bring fresh wisdom from their own experience to bear on the most trying, stressful struggles of life.  Our sessions begin with a light Lenten supper at 5:30 in the Parish Hall, followed by a presentation at 6:00.

---!!!--- Note Time Change, starts at 5:30 instead of 6:30 ---!!!--- 

February 21, 2010: The Rev'd Carissa Baldwin (St. Stephen's, Houston) - "Christian Discernment: Journeying with God."
February 28, 2010: The Rev'd Bob Goolsby (St. Christopher's, Houston) - "Mission and Service in the Church."
March 7, 2010: The Rev'd James Derkits (St. Mark's, Bellaire)
March 14, 2010: The Rev'd Bert Baetz (St. Mark's, Austin)
March 21, 2010: The Rev'd Kristin Sullivan (Palmer Memorial, Houston)

HOLY SPIRIT YOUTH: EYC (grades 6-12): 12pm - 2pm in the Youth Room.

Summer 2010 Sneak Peak

Mission: Houston, we have a problem, June 13-19: Junior and senior high (youth entering grades 6-12) will be going on an urban mission trip to…downtown Houston !  We will experience Houston like never before by working, sleeping, and playing in the heart of the city.

REGISTER NOW for the Trek to New York City, July 7-13:  A trip for senior high pilgrims to the city that never sleeps!  Connect to God, your church, your friends, and your culture on this summer pilgrimage.  Registration forms available at www.hsechurch.org/youth.

 

e-mail Sarah Taylor, youth@hsechurch.org  for more information.

NOURISH THE BODIES OF OUR YOUTH: as they are nourished in the Word each Sunday afternoon. We are organizing a calendar for parishioners to sign up to provide lunch for our middle and high school youth when they gather every Sunday at Noon. You would need to prepare a meal for about 20 people and deliver it to the Youth Room upstairs (above the gym) on a Sunday afternoon around 12:30 pm. If you would like to support our youth group by providing dinner for them, please let Christy Castillo (CastilloFamily@comcast.net  or 713-462-3347) know what dates will work for you. The dates that we need lunches are:

• March 21, 28; April 11, 18, 28

The lunch can be simple and can be homemade or purchased from a local restaurant. If you are unable to commit to providing a meal, we are also requesting donations of drinks for the youth to have on hand when they are meeting as well as for their lunch. That can be any kind of soda (canned or 2-liter), tea, water, etc.... They are not picky! If you can donate drinks, please take them to the youth room or contact Christy at the email or telephone above. Thank you.

ST. LUKE’S NEEDS VOLUNTEERS: The gift of blood is truly the gift of life. The St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital Auxiliary needs volunteers to assist the St. Luke’s Blood Center on community blood drives. Volunteers are needed seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Volunteers assist prospective donors with donor registration cards and distribution of snacks post donation. For more information about volunteer activities at St. Luke’s, call the hospital’s Auxiliary office at (832) 355-2102 or visit St. Luke’s Web site at http://www.stlukestexas.com/