St. Mary's In the Hills Jan/Feb 2013

Happy New Year friends,

I hope your holiday season was surrounded with

loved ones, and that you bid farewell to 2012 and welcome

to 2013 with hearts and minds open to the flow of the Holy

Spirit in your life.

I want to take this time to give you a sense of how I

would like to approach 2013 with you. First let me say that

a large part of my personality and style involves planning

and preparation. I used to be very involved with a martial

arts style called Jeet Kune Do in which my instructors al-

ways said, “Train hard. Fight easy.” I‟ve incorporated that

philosophy into my working life. I believe that if we do the

hard work of planning and preparation ahead of time, when

our go date arrives, it‟s all simply follow-through. If a last-

minute problem arises it‟s far easier to fix it when all else is

in place than it is to wing-it and leave everyone wondering

what‟s happening. My goal in leading parishes is to help

people feel confident in our mission and ministry activities

by letting people know what the plan is ahead of time. I

hope you find this leadership style a good experience for

you.

I‟ve created a planning grid that I‟ve shared with

some of the other leaders in the parish. The grid looks at

all of liturgical year C, which started on December 2, 2012

and ends on November 30, 2013. I‟ve broken it down into

the seasons with details about each of the Sundays. I‟ve

also included holy days and other days with special signifi-

Jan/Feb 2013

Happy New Year The parish Annual

Meeting will be held on Sunday, Jan. 27th fol-lowing the 10:00 ser-vice. Please save this

date and plan to attend this important meeting of our parish. We will review 2012 and vote on the 2013 budget as well as elect the new

Vestry members.

Happy New Year 1

Book Group News 3

Youth Group News 3

Counting 4

Liturgical Year At-A-

Glance

6

Vestry Biographies 7

We’re Making a

Video!

9

Lone Ranger Code 11

2012 Website Stats 12

Inside this issue:

Glad

Tidings

cance, such as Mother‟s Day, Fa-

ther‟s Day, blessings of backpacks

and animals, etc. Our liturgy is dy-

namic and responsive to the world

around us. This is why it‟s im-

portant to include special services

that speak to the events of the world.

There is a meta-narrative of the life

of Christ in each of the three liturgi-

cal years where we learn new things

about our relationship with God in

different ways. This grid will give us

a hard copy look at how that meta-

narrative speaks to the parish, and

what kinds of things we ought to em-

phasize. The grid will evolve as we

move through the year and add spe-

cial events and services that are im-

portant to the life of this community.

Your input is invited and welcomed!

In other articles in this issue

I‟ll give more detail on the seasons, and the plans I have for highlighting im-

portant aspects of our relationship with God in Christ through them. Our tradi-

tions and worship style are so rich and meaningful, and you all are so creative

and engaged, that together with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit we can do

great things for the glory of God. With enough advanced notice, you may find

something new that calls to you that you may want to try. Let the Spirit move

you, sisters and brothers!

I opened this article with the hope for open hearts and minds for the flow

of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit does as she wishes, regardless of the best laid

plans. In my experience, when the Spirit breaks in, it takes those best laid plans

and makes them even better. Here‟s to a great New Year, everybody!

Yours in Christ,

L+

PAGE 2 GLAD TIDINGS Jan/Feb 2013

The Book Group will be meeting

on Tuesday, January 20th at 12:30pm,

to discuss Caleb’s Crossing, by Gerald-

ine Brooks. Inspired by a true story,

this novel tell the story of Caleb, son of

a chieftain, and Bethia, daughter of a

Calvinist minister on Martha‟s Vine-

yard in the 1660s. Ms. Brooks high-

lights this question: “What are the ef-

fects of attempting to Christianize an

already spiritual, established civiliza-

tion?” Caleb becomes a prize in the

contest between old ways and new,

eventually becoming the first Native

American graduate of Harvard College.

Bethia's experiences and Caleb's

makes for a very compelling story.

We will read Same Kind of Dif-

ferent as Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an

International Art Dealer, and the Un-

likely Woman Who Bound Them To-

gether, by Ron Hall, in February. This

is a story about how hate and prejudice

can be overcome by love and grace.

Check the bulletin board in The Fel-

lowship Hall for more information on

the date.

Please join us in reading these

novels and discussing them in January

and February. The group enjoys meet-

ing in our homes for potluck lunches

and book discussion. Contact Susan

Suter for locations or questions.

Youth Group News

The Book Group News

Last Month the Youth Group celebrated the New Year together. The fes-

tivities started with several of our members volunteering at the Fifth Monday

Meal held at the Methodist Church in Lake Orion. Once the dinner was done the

Youth Group headed back to St. Mary's for an overnight party. The party was

fun as always, we had some movies to watch, some game to play and of course the

traditional ringing of the bell at midnight. Future Plans include a trip to the DIA

in January, Roller-skating in February and another overnight in March during

Holy Week.


Counting by Peggy Wenk How much you pledge to St. Mary‟s operating fund, or to the building

fund, is your private decision. Only a very few people at St. Mary‟s have access

to this information, such as Janis our administrator, who prints out your quar-

terly reports.

The people who volunteer to count the money collected each week do not

know how much you donate to either fund. It is therefore very important, if you

are contributing to something other than your pledge to the operating fund, that

your cash or your checks clearly indicate into which fund the money is to go. Oth-

erwise, all the money is assumed to go towards your pledge for the operating ex-

penses. There are several ways you can indicate where the money is to go:

1) Write out 2 separate checks, put in the same envelop (or 2 separate en-

velopes if you want but it‟s not necessary), and write the name of the fund

on the memo line (e.g.,”$40 pledge” on one check, “$10 building” on the

second check).

2) Write 1 check, and write the names of both funds on the memo line (e.g.,

$40 pledge, $10 building)

3) Put cash in 1 (or 2) envelope(s), and write on the outside how much

money is to go into each fund (e.g., $40 pledge, $10 building). Make cer-

tain your name and/or envelop number is on the envelope. Envelopes with

cash that do not have someone‟s name or envelope number on them are

considered loose cash, and will not be credited to you.

You can do the same with special offerings. For example, you could combine

your pledge with a donation to flowers, and write out one check for, say, $65,

with a note in the memo line: $40 pledge, $25 flowers. Or, write out 2 separate

checks, one for $40 with a note for pledge, and one for $25 with a note for flowers.

It‟s OK to put them in 1 envelope. If using cash, write on the outside of the enve-

lope what funds you want the money to go into, and how much money for each

fund.

We appreciate your support of St. Mary‟s, and want your end-of-year state-

ment to accurately reflect what you have donated. And the counters thank you

for making it clear where the money is to go. It makes counting so much easier,

and faster.


You’re Invited

to celebrate a

Renewal of Ministry and

Welcoming of New Rector at

St. Mary’s In-the-Hills, Lake Orion

Join Bishop Gibbs, The Reverend Laurel

Dahill, and the community of disciples at St.

Mary’s In-the-Hills at 7pm on Wednesday,

January 30, 2013 for an evening of joyful

worship and fellowship.

St. Mary’s In-the-Hills

2512 Joslyn Ct.

Lake Orion, MI 48360

248-391-0633

There‟s a LOT I can tell you about our liturgical year, and it would be like

drinking from a fire hose. There will be plenty of time to expand our understand-

ing as we go along. For now, let me give you little sips of Year C and how we‟ll

look at it. I‟ll use some of the information from the planning grid.

As we move through our year, we‟ll use the various forms of Eucharistic

Prayers in our Book of Common Prayer to further help us expand our under-

standing of Christ‟s gift of himself to us.

The big differences between these prayers can be seen when you read the parts

between “Hosanna in the highest” and where Jesus blesses the bread and wine.

There are other significant differences as well.


Liturgical Year-At-A-Glance

Season Theme Color Special Services

Advent Lightly penitential Blue Gaudette Sunday (3rd Sunday)

Christmas Festive, Joyous White Christmas Eve/Day

Epiphany New Life Green Epiphany; Baptism of Our Lord

Lent Penitential, austere Purple Ash Wednesday

Holy Week Christ‟s Passion Purple Palm; Maundy; Good; Holy; Vigil

Easter Victory over Death White/gold Easter; Mother‟s Day

Pentecost Gift of Holy Spirit Green Pentecost; Memorial Day; Father‟s Day;

Independence Day; Blessing of Back-

packs; Labor Day; Blessing of Animals;

Advent Christmas Epiphany Lent Holy Week Easter Season after Pentecost

B A C B D A C & A (it‟s a long season)

Vestry Biographies

Hello! My name is Nancy Gutelius, and here is a brief introduction to those who

would like to know more about me before I run for vestry.

I am a married (20 years this July), mother of two girls, live in Lake Orion, and

work in Clarkston as a portrait photographer. My daughters and I have been

attending St. Mary‟s 10 am service for eleven years. We found St. Mary‟s through

the recommendation of a dear neighbor, and have been grateful ever since.

Although I have assisted in many of St. Mary‟s youth programs, from Sunday

school, Lenten programs, Christmas Plays, Vacation Bible School, and Youth

Group, I tend to refer to my participation as “we”, as my girls were always a part

of these programs. However, my children are growing up and will be going forth

into the world. This development leads me to believe that it is time to move on

and take on different responsibilities within the church. St. Mary‟s has been a

blessing to our family, and I would like to help our church to continue to be such

a beacon for many others – for those who presently attend and those who are yet

to attend. What makes our church so wonderful is the sense of family that there

is – multiple generations attend and all give St. Mary‟s the beautiful depth and

richness that we can all draw upon. I look forward to many more years in service

together with you at St. Mary‟s.


In addition to using these materials in our Sunday worship, I will also of-

fer a workshop where we can look at these prayers in detail and with discussion

for exploration and discovery. When I get that date set, I‟ll let you know (in ad-

vance, of course!). Until then, be attentive and present to the words of our wor-

ship, and pray knowing that God is just as attentive and present to us.

In peace,

L+

Nancy Gutelius

I began attending St. Mary in 2000, when David and I wanted to be married in

the church, David‟s grandparents were long time members and it felt right to be

married in their church. Shortly after we were married, we moved halfway

across the country to Kansas. We began attending St. Mary‟s again in 2002 and

both of our boys, Anthony and Brendan, were baptized here in 2003. We did not

attend regularly but that changed in 2009 when something clicked and St. Mary

began to feel like home. We have attended services regularly since then. Over

the years I have been asked to join a few of the committees. I am currently a

member of the Fellowship and Web Committees and one of the editors of Glad

Tidings, our church newsletter. I was surprised when I was asked to teach Sun-

day School but have embraced this request and learned a lot about myself while

helping teach our youngest members. One of my favorite times of year at St.

Mary‟s is Vacation Bible School which I have helped with the last 3 years, lead-

ing the children in crafts. The joy and learning that happens during this week

amazes me year after year. I look forward to seeing how much the children learn

each year. I feel humbled that I was asked to serve our church and look forward

to see what God had in plan for me.

Lisa McGeen


Doug Shelton I came to St Mary‟s from the Methodist and Southern Baptist traditions with

numerous clergy from those two denominations in my family history. I was

brought up in the Baldwin Ave United Methodist Church in Pontiac. I attended

Pontiac Central High School and the University of Michigan where my primary

fields were Classical Studies and Philosophy. After college, I lived in Galveston,

Texas for some years until Hurricane Alicia brought about my return to this ar-

ea. I have been employed by the US Postal Service at the main mail processing

plant for this area since 1985. Later this month, my employment status will

change to "retired". I served on the recent profile committee for St Mary‟s and am

a member of Integrity. My life partner passed away several years ago and I

spend my time on my numerous hobbies and interests which include genealogy

and gardening.

We’re Making a Video!

I have been a member of St. Mary‟s in the Hills for 20 years. When we moved to

Lake Orion we sought the nearest Episcopal church after having been members

at St. David‟s in Southfield.

Dave and I have been married for 32 years and have 2 grown daughters, Alyssa

and Jessica. We now live in Metamora with our menagerie of pets (1 dog, 1 cat, 1

horse.)

I am a dietitian and work at Beaumont, Troy, as their Director of Nutrition Ser-

vices. Our department is responsible for the patient and retail food service for the

hospital. My 22 years at Beaumont has challenged me to be an effective and effi-

cient manager. I consider myself to be an organized person (maybe because I

have so many things to keep track of!)

I have served on the Vestry at St. Mary‟s twice in the past. Each time I have

been more impressed with the way everyone works together to achieve common

goals.

I am particularly interested in joining the vestry at this exciting time of transi-

tion for the church. There seems to be even more of a sense of community within

our church family after working together to bring Rev. Laurel to St. Mary‟s. Our

church truly feels like an extended family. Even with some growth over the

years, we‟ve maintained our culture of community and compassion. I would wel-

come the opportunity to play a part of the continued growth as a member of the

vestry.


Ann Kovl

We are always looking for creative ways to reach new members. So, we would

like to make a video to use on the website. We have been tossing around some

ideas in the web committee meetings but we would love to hear from you. If you

have any experience or input that you think would help us with this project

please talk to Dan Tines, Kim Trumbore or Rev. Laurel. You are also welcome to

come to the next web committee meeting on February 7th at 7:00 pm.

My brothers and I were having an email conversation about the Lone Ranger,

about Brace Beemer who was one of the actors who portrayed him on the radio

and who lived in Oxford, and Clayton Moore, who played him on TV. I was look-

ing for information to back up my claim that the radio version originated from

WXYZ in Detroit (which it did). But along the way, I found the moral code that

all Lone Rangers conducted themselves by, as set up the writer of the radio show.

The actors who portrayed the Lone Ranger and Tonto took the creed very seri-

ously, and lived by it as a role model for children when making public appear-

ance. I thought it was a very good code for everyone to live by:

I believe:

· That to have a friend, a man must be one.

· That all men are created equal, and that everyone has within himself

the power to make this a better world.

· That God put the firewood there, but that everyone man must gather

and light it himself.

· In being prepared physically, mentally, and morally to fight when nec-

essary for that which is right.

· That a man should make the most of what equipment he has.

· That „this government of the people, by the people, and for the people‟

shall live always.

· That men should live by the rule of what is best for the greatest num-

ber.

· That sooner or later . . . somewhere . . . somehow . . . we must settle

with the world and make payment for what we have taken.

· That all things change but truth, and that truth alone, lives on forever.

· In my Creator, my country, my fellow man.

For those new to the area (last 40 years), Brace Beemer lived in Oxford, MI, and

died in 1965. The Northeast Oakland Historical Society has a museum on Oxford

with some of his Lone Ranger memorabilia. He and his family lived on W. Drah-

ner Road on a 300 acre farm called Paint Creek Acres. I remember seeing his

horse Silver in the pastures, along with other horses, when I was growing up.

The farm was sold years ago, and there is now a subdivision there, but one of the


Lone Ranger Code by Peggy Wenk

ST. MARY’S IN -THE-HILLS

EPISCOPAL CHURCH 2512 Joslyn Ct.

Lake Orion Mi. 48360 (248) 391-0663

roads, Beemer Ct., between W. Drahner Rd. and Tanview Dr., off Chirco Dr.,

near the Polly Ann Trail, is named in honor of Brace.

My brother John remembers when he worked at Al Hanoute Chevy dealer in

Lake Orion (1970‟s), there were photos of Brace Beemer when he made appear-

ances at the dealership to advertise the dealership. He would show up in the full

Lone Ranger outfit, and leave in the outfit, again, being a role model for the chil-

dren.

2012 Website Stats St. Mary‟s website had 14,000 pageviews in 2012, up over 54% from 2011. We

also had 2,700 unique visitors from over 71 countries and 49 of the 50 states, all

but Montana. We had over a 70% increase in mobile and tablet usage and this

year plan to redesign the site to be more mobile and tablet friendly. We also ran

4 different facebook ads; New Priest, Vacation Bible School, Veterans Day,

Christmas. Our ads where shown 1.8 million times with about 800 clicks. We

usually meet on the first Thursday of month at 7:00. All are welcome to join us.

St. Mary's In the Hills Jan/Feb 2013

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