RECTOR'S PAGE
TED'S SPACE...July comments and ideas   

OUR SUNDAY FAVORITES When asked what they love about Sundays at St. Boniface people often mention the music, the children, the liturgy, the preaching, the gathering of people at coffee hour and special events. Some especially like the quiet of the early service and Taizé Vespers, or the special choral music. Last year we changed the schedule to allow for more music and events, and while we loved the additional classes and the choir music, and we may have made it easier for families by not changing the hour for church school so often, we have discovered that the 11:15 service in the summer is just not the same without the classic music of the Schola Cantorum which sings from Advent through Easter. With only a few weeks left before school starts this is not the time for a change, but it is a good time for lots of ideas to improve the schedule for the coming year. Please jot down yours and tell one of us: Ted, Andi, Anita, Seth or Barbara. We’ll work hard to make it all work well for you.

VESTRY EXPRESSES CONCERN Your vestry has gone on record expressing its concern about diocesan budget and finances. With a letter to the Finance Committee in May 2009, the Rector speaking against the budget at the October 2009 Convention, and follow up meetings this year with the Bishop and CFO Anne Vickers, the Vestry continues to express concern that the diocesan budget does not seem to reflect the careful cutbacks the economic reality calls for, and which have guided our parish policies since October 2008. At the spring Deanery Convocation we learned of anticipated shortfalls and the financial distress facing more than three dozen congregations. Senior Warden Jim Palermo recently attended a very poorly attended meeting at DaySpring about the budget and finances, and he plans to speak to the issue at the September Deanery Convocation meeting. To learn more you may speak to any vestry member.
A HALF MILLION AND COUNTING  Since we began making grants with our Foundation for Outreach, Saint Boniface has given away about $500,000 to further our mission of service to others in the church, community, and world. The appropriately conservative investments of the Foundation did not go down as far as some funds did in 2008, and because they are stable conservative investments, they don’t recover rapidly, either. The vestry prudently uses a three year rolling average of the growth (or loss) of the investments to determine the grants. This year the Grants committee will have only $3000 to award, and they will carefully consider how to give the greatest help to the most worthy causes. Vestry member Becky Westbrook is the chair of the committee, and would be happy to hear from you. Send her a letter addressed to the parish office, or an email to office@bonifacechurch.org, noting it is for the Grants Committee.
 

 
MUCHAS GRACIAS, or why my passport no longer has all those Nicaragua entry stamps.  Read here for a big thank you for a recent Boniface gift. 
 
TED TEACHES:  IT'S YOUR FUNERAL  Planning to teach a class on end of life issues and the media debate about national insurance and physician advice, I took a break and went for a swim.  First I lay in the sun to rest, and looking up saw the neighborhood vultures in the afternoon thermals and thought "That's not a plan, I'd better get moving..."    As it turns out, about 70% of us have done less planning than that, so read on for more ideas.  After all, IT'S YOUR FUNERAL....
 
 

15-09-2007__66

Someone has to work at the beach!

RECTOR'S BIOGRAPHY
Empowered by Extend, a church software solution from