114th Annual Meeting of Church of Our Saviour Middleborough, MA

114^th Annual Meeting of Church of Our Saviour Middleborough, MA

Church of Our Saviour, Middleborough, Massachusetts

February 1, 2009

The Warrant for the 2008 Annual Meeting 2

Agenda

Holy Eucharist 3-11

Call to Order

Declaration of Quorum, Reading of the Warrant

Welcome

Clerk’s Report of the January 27^th Annual Meeting 13-14

Rector’s Report 14-15

Treasurer’s Report of the Budget 16-18

Reports from the Parish Officers and Organizations

Senior Warden 18-19

Junior Warden 19

Choir Director 19-20

Christian Formation 20-22

Worship Committee 22

St. Margaret’s Altar Guild 23

Acolyte 24

Episcopal Churchwomen 24-25

Men’s Group 26

Nearly New Shoppe 26-27

Outreach Committee 28-29

Communications 29

Parish Historian 30-31

Nominating Committee 31-33

Election of Officers, Vestry Persons and Delegates

Thank You to Outgoing Vestry and Others

Motion to Adjourn

Postcommunion Prayer and Dismissal 12
Warrant for the Annual Meeting of the Parish Church of Our Saviour

A corporation duly organized by law and chartered on October 20, 1894

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Plymouth, ss.

To Jeanne Turnney

Greetings:

In the name of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, you are hereby requested to notify and warn all persons of the Church of Our Saviour in the Parish of Middleborough, qualified to vote in the affairs of said Parish, to meet in the Church of Our Saviour of Middleborough in said County, on Sunday, February 1, 2009 at 9:00 AM, for the purpose of acting on the following articles to wit:

Article I To hear an Annual Report of any officer or committee of said Parish and to act thereon.

Article II To transact such other business as may be done legally at the Annual Meeting of the Parish.

And by these presents, you are hereby further requested to post an attested copy of this

Warrant on the principal door of the Parish Church of Our Saviour, in the Parish of

Middleborough in the County aforesaid, seven days at least before the time of said

meeting.

HEREOF FAIL NOT

Given under my hand in the Town of Middleborough in said County, on the 10^th day of

January in the year of our Lord 2009.

A True Copy

Attest:

Jean Turney The Rev’d David R. Milam

Clerk Rector

Minutes of Church of Our Saviour’s 113^th Annual Meeting for 2007

January 27, 2008

The 113^th annual meeting of the Church of Our Saviour, Middleboro, MA, was called to order in Benshoff Hall by the Rector David R. Milam at 11:30 a.m. The meeting was opened with prayer by Father Dave.

The Clerk declared a quorum of Vestry members present and read The Warrant.

Fr. Dave welcomed parishioners and thanked Julie Siderwicz and Martha Edwards for their help with the Annual Report.

Reports:

Treasurer’s Report: Barry Capistron explained the Budget for year 2008. The Diocese has given permission for the Church to sell the Guild House. The money will be put in a trust and only the interest will be used towards the budget. Donald Atkins informed parishioners that we are in the 2^nd year of a deficit.

Questions were raised about the rental of Benshoff Hall.

Reports from the Parish Officers and Organizations were contained in the Annual Report.

In addition, Matthew Galvin is forming a new committee to raise funds for the church.

Fr. Dave thanked all members of Parish committees. There are three new committees reporting this year. They are Youth Group (COSY) with Nancy Lee and Shelley Alger, and Boy Scouts with David Gunning as the Liaison. Gretchen Umholtz is the new Parish Historian with the help of Cheryl Copeland.

Randy King is in contact with LifeTouch to have a photo directory of parishioners. They will be here for three days in March. There was a discussion about the present directory.

A motion was made by Craig DiGiorgi, seconded by Cheryl Copeland, and approved by the parishioners, after discussion, to accept all reports.

Fr. Dave thanked all outgoing Vestry Members for their service and dedication. They are: Wayne Perkins, Senior Warden, Robert Long, Junior Warden, and members, Linda Kirschner, David Gunning, and Craig DiGiorgi, who will continue as Web Master.

Nominating Committee Report: The new vestry members are as follows:

Randy King, Senior Warden and Convention Delegate

Wally Kling, Junior Warden

Tom Brown, Vestry and Deanery Delegate

Sandi Choate, Vestry

David Ferchen, Vestry

Michael Stagliola, Vestry

Kevin Lynn, Convention Delegate

Gary Lincoln, Alternate Convention Delegate

Joan Thomas, Convention Delegate

The meeting ended at 12:40 p.m. with prayer.

Respectfully Submitted

Jeanne Turney

Clerk

Rector’s Report

Over the course of 2008 our Gospel readings were centered on The Gospel of Matthew. On Sunday, July 13^th we read 3 parables. The 3^rd and last parable was short and seemed almost insignificant but I believe it says much about what Church of Our Saviour has experienced in terms of joys, challenges, and mission.

“Jesus told them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.’’ Matthew 13:33

That’s it. That is all there is of this parable. This little saying, however, has a great deal to say about Church of Our Saviour.

For those who are not bakers, it was the custom in Christ’s time to pinch a small piece of dough and put it away in a jar. The amount could be as little as a tablespoon or two. There it would grow more yeast spoors and over time would ferment. When it was time to make some more bread, this little pinch of fermented dough would be added to large quantities of flour along with oil and water and as much as 30 or 40 loaves of bread could be made. A large amount of risen, flavorful bread would be served to families and large community gatherings from one little pieces of dough.

Pinching and fermenting can be a messy process. This year COS has been actively involved in assessing our future as a faithful community. We have felt the “pinch” from the decline in attendance to the economic struggles of this year. Both are part of what is happening to churches and countries around the world. Fermentation is an irritating, foaming, decaying process. During this year we have had to deal with the irritation pledge drives, deficit budgets, and operating expenses bring. Change in life and community brings about foaming, bubbling emotions and there is a sense of death and decay of the old traditions and customs. Life in the midst of anxiety is not easy nor is it comfortable. We are very much the “yeast” in the parable. And Jesus’ parable about yeast is as much about hope as it is encouragement.

As we sat in our own little jar called Church of Our Saviour during 2008, several wonderful, yeasty, things have begun to grow. This is the first full year of our renewed Eucharistic Visitors and there is potential for this program to enlarge. Every third Sunday is now Healing Sunday where we pray the Litany for Healing and a Healing Minister is available in the chapel. The Stewardship Committee had an active year of learning and discussion. We saw the community come together around 2 new fund raising events – the Yard Sale and the Golf Tournament. During the summer, a Saturday evening service was added and it continues to have regular attendance. While there has been a decline in regular membership there has also been a growth in new attendees and young families. Several young persons have also visited during office hours to talk about the possibility of attending.

We sometimes feel small and possibly of no real use but the truth is that we are yeast. We have within us the resources to make things grow and expand. God is not looking for mega attendance. God is expecting simple devotion knowing that even though we are small we can produce enough love and care to provide Christ’s saving grace and mercy for families and whole communities.

I hope you read the following reports. Some are cautionary; some are simply factual, and others are optimistic about our future. They all point to a faithful community that has the power to change lives – just like yeast in a bread recipe.

Respectfully Submitted,

The Rev’d David R. Milam+

Treasurers Report on the Budget

		08 Budget	Actual		09 Budget
INCOME
church school		500	1000		1000
plate		3500	4222		3500
Easter/chrst/thanks		3000	2689		2500
pledges		133695	133245		126298
investments		35000	39559		35000
Fair			3200		3400
Golf Tournament			5375		6500
Nearly New			9500		9500
Yard Sale			1521		1500
Guild House			12419		10000
memorial flowers/candles		1500	1980		1800
last yr pledge		1000	375		300
hall rental		1200	1172		1200
grant		0	3244		0
utilities			1852		1500
		194395	221353	(26958)	203998

EXPENSES
SALARIES
rector		29666	29666		29666
housing		3384	33840		33840
supply clergy		1200	1700		2100
travel		1500	1271		1500
continuing ed		600	500		600
sexton		13738	13738		14150
organist		11660	11660		11660
supply organist		200	150		200
secretary		12480	12720		13000
pension		13000	11431		13000
health ins		20000	19972		21000
fica taxes		3120	3242		3300
work comp		950	950		1000
		141954	140840	1114	145016
ADMINISTRATION
umbrella/d&o		2080	2080		2080
copier rental		3588	2500		1884
office supplies		1300	575		700
petty cash		50	50		50
stamps		500	373		400
bulk mail/permit		500	580		500
box rental		200	200		200
computer service		1116	1133		1152
telephone/internet		2400	2262		2400
pledge costs		500	327		500
admin expense		240	500		240
		12474	10580	1894	10106
OUTREACH
assessment		19022	19022		20163
discretionary fund		500	1194		600
diocese bishop		100	100		0
		19622	20316	(694)	20763
WORSHIP
altar flowers		600	1114		700
altar supplies		1200	1328		1000
		1800	2442	(642)	1700

Sabbatical		2400	2400	0	2400

Music
organ maintenance		2000	1463		1600
music		200	75		100
copy write perm		100	100		100
		2300	1638	662	1800

EDUCATION
materials/supplies		1300	1795		1300
party items & snacks		200	703		500
adult ed		100	0		0
		1750	2498	(748)	1900
PROPERTY EXPENSE
CHURCH
insurance		5500	5500		5500
electricity		1500	2391		2000
heat		15000	12510		15000
water/sewer		350	234		350
normal maintenance		800	2580		800
unplanned maint		0	0		0
		23150	23215	(65)	23650
PARISH HOUSE
insurance		1200	1491		1500
electricity		3000	3309		3200
heat		7000	7072		7000
water/sewer		400	481		450
normal maint		1000	549		1000
unplanned maint		0	1000		0
		12600	13902	(1302)	13150
MAINTENANCE
supplies		1500	1267		1300
yearly contracts		2000	2000		1500
yearly permits		200	200		200
		3700	3467	233	3000


TOTAL		221750	221298	452	223485

	2008 Budget over $55			2009 projected deficit $19487

Senior Warden’s Report

I would first like to thank the Parish for the nomination then subsequent election as Senior Warden. This has been the first year of my first term as Senior Warden. By all accounts it has been very much a learning experience, with both positives and negatives. This year has gone by quite quickly and there were times due to personal and occupational reasons that I was not as involved as I would have liked, in some of the Church’s events and activities. Previously I was the chair of the Communi-

cations Committee, and need to apologize to the members of that committee for distancing myself rather quickly. There was a lot of extra responsibility put of a couple of the members, especially with the photo directory, which came out very nicely.

We have completed yet another year operating with a deficit budget. The members of the Vestry realize that we cannot keep operating this way year after year. We will be faced with many difficult decisions as a result, some of which are very disturbing. There have been a couple of ideas initiated throughout this past year in an effort to alleviate and improve our financial condition, like the Golf Tournament, and the Fall Fair. These are just a scratch on the surface as to what truly needs to be done. I have heard several Parish members’ voice concern about the yearly beg-a-thon for money. My question to them and to the rest of the Parish is how are we supposed to rise above and get through this? The answer is simple. Everyone needs to do a little more. Is there a price on God’s love? His teachings? His word? I do not believe there is. I believe that everyone in this Parish wants to see Church of Our Saviour grow, and continue to spread our Lord’s good word within the Parish and out to the community which surrounds us.

If Christ is in each and every one of us, why do so many turn away or back down when there is conflict? We have seen our town, our state, and our country change over the years, why not our Parish? More voices need to be heard. I am very excited about diversity of our upcoming Vestry Committee. We will have members ranging from cradle Episcopalians, to newly received members of our faith and tradition. I hope for all members of our Parish to be in contact with Vestry, as we are the elected representatives of our Parish family.

In closing, I want to personally promise my continued dedication to this Parish as Senior Warden, and look forward in some way to speak or work with as many of you as possible, as we take on this challenge to keep Church of Our Savior on the path of vitality and vibrancy.

Respectfully Submitted,

Randy J. King, Senior Warden

Junior Warden’s Report

This, my first year as your Junior Warden went by much too fast. Much was accomplished large and small. Many hands made it easy.

The Nearly New Shop received a new custom built bulkhead crafted by members of the Properties Committee. The roof was repaired several times only to leak again.

The Guild House and Parish Hall only needed small repairs. It is our plan to update the heating system and water service to the Guild House in the future when our finances allow.

We have had an ongoing problem in the furnace at the Church. Several leaks occurred due to loosing slate roof shingles and stopped-up gutters. This seems to be a never ending problem that will always need attention. Scheduled for repairs on all ceiling fans, sealing of water damage in the Sacristy, and painting of the whole ceiling.

This is just a portion of what was done this year. Many thanks to all who helped me day, after day. Special thanks to Fr. Dave, Fran, Ron and the Properties Guys.

Respectfully Submitted,

Wally Kling, Junior Warden

Annual Choir Report

The choirs at COS had a busy year in 2008. The Chancel Choir continues to serve tirelessly each 10 am Service from September-June and all midweek services.

This year, in addition to singing for all the usual Holy Week Services, the choir also sang for the Easter Vigil Service Held on Saturday. It was a beautiful service filled with scripture and music. On Easter Sunday the Chancel Choir sang at both the 8 am and 10 am Services, a long standing tradition. After a much deserved break during the Summer months, the Chancel Choir returned in September.

Beginning in September both the Treble Choir and the newly formed Tiny Trebles began rehearsing. The Treble Choir sings on Family Sunday, the first Sunday of each month. They were joined by our Tiny Trebles on Christmas Eve for a rousing rendition of "Go Tell It OnThe Mountain".

New members are always welcome in all of our choirs at COS. The Chancel Choir rehearses most Wednesdays, Sept. -June at 7:15 pm and is open to members of the parish ages high school-adult. The Treble Choir also rehearses most Wednesdays, Sept.-June at 6:30 pm and is open to all children from K-Grade 8. Our Tiny Trebles usually rehearse once a month for about 15 minutes after the 10 am Service and is open to all children 3 and up. They will sing next at our 10 am Easter Sunday Service.

In addition to our talented singers, the choirs have been joined by many talented musicians from our parish, including Bryan Young, Jeremy Young, Benjamin Young, Laura Stagliola, Rachel Gunning, and Linda Kirschner.

As we begin 2009 let us continue to "Make a Joyful Noise UntoThe Lord"

Beth Anne Young

Director of Music/Organist

Christian Formation

The Church of Our Saviour Christian formation continues to use the lectionary based material from Augsburg Fortress and the Living the Good News. The curriculum from Augsburg Fortress is utilized by the preschool children through grade six. The junior high and high school students use curriculum from Living the Good News. During special seasons such as Christmas and Easter, the students work on special projects and lessons enforcing the life and time of our Saviour, Christ the Lord. The lessons at all levels follow and reinforce our weekly church service. Junior high and high school students actively participate in classroom discussions on a weekly basis.

Nursery care is provided at Christian formation during the 10 am service. Preschool children through grade two attend the 10 am children’s service at the Christian formation chapel in the lower level of the Parish Hall. Students in grade three through high school go to their respective classrooms at 10 am. Students in grades three through six meet in the lower level of the Parish Hall, while the junior high and high school students meet in the Washburn Library. At approximately 10:30 am, a crucifier arrives from the church and leads the students from grades three through high school to the church for the remainder of the service. This allows the students to receive Holy Communion.

On the first Sunday of the month, the Christian formation procedure changes. Nursery care and the preschool class meet as usual in the Parish Hall beginning at 10 am. Kindergarten, grades one and two attend the church service and are then dismissed and led by the crucifer to attend classes at the Parish Hall. Grade three through high school attend the church service in its entirety with no classes.

On December 21^st, the Christian formation students presented “The Birth of Jesus” Christmas pageant at the 10 am church service.

A note of appreciation to Beth Anne Young, Linda Kirschner, the Chancel Choir, congregation and the Christian formation students and staff for all their assistance in making the pageant a success.

Linda Kirschner provides musical accompaniment for the students chapel service and assists with music for our special programs such as the Christmas pageant and closing exercises throughout the year.

A special word of thanks to our substitute teaching staff and parishioners who play an important role in the Christian formation program throughout the year. Without their generous giving of their time and talents, the Christian educational process would not be able to maintain consistency in the classroom which is the foundation for a successful program.

Other events/programs in which the students have participated this year include a Halloween party, making of ornaments for the Christmas fair, Christmas party, decorating bags for Valentine’s Day for senior citizens, Easter egg hunt and closing exercises.

A heartfelt thanks to the Men’s Group for providing cookouts for the opening and closing of the Christian formation program. Through their diligent efforts, the entire parish is able to gather together and celebrate these important yearly events.

Due to the hard work and dedication of our teaching staff, the Christian formation program is able to provide a solid Christian education while incorporating the lessons of Jesus Christ.

The Christian formation staff for the 2008 - 2009 instructional year is as follows:

Chapel Wayne Besegai

Musical Accompaniment Linda Kirschner

Nursery Kelly King, Laura Stagliola, Rita Besegai

Preschool Laurie Rantz

Kindergarten/Grade 1 Glen Reed

Grade 2 Wanda Hayes

Grades 3 & 4 Cindy Charette

Grades 5 & 6 Beth Sylvia

Jr. High/High School Kevin Lynn, Randy King

Respectfully submitted,

Wayne B. Besegai, Superintendent

Worship Committee

The COS Worship Committee consists of 4 members currently:

Fr. Dave, Rector

Beth Anne Young, Director of Music

Bryan Young, Acolyte Parent Advisor

Martha Edwards, Altar Guild Representative

Worship Committee meets quarterly throughout the year to help plan

liturgy and select music for Sunday services. We explore alternative types of liturgy

and brainstorm ideas on how to further enhance our services at COS. This year we instituted the Saturday evening service, and on the recommendation of Vestry it will continue for a full year. We also invited Maginificantboston to come and perform Choral Evensong for us at Church of Our Saviour.

We welcome any ideas and/or feedback with regard to the effectiveness of new forms

of worship we have used thus far. If you have any suggestions for us on how we may better serve you, please talk to any committee member.

Martha Edwards

Altar Guild Representative

St. Margaret’s Altar Guild

It’s hard to believe that the year has already flown by… It seems like just yesterday we were welcoming in 2008!

St. Margaret’s Altar Guild has had another good and very busy year. We have happily gained a few new members this year and that is wonderful news! New members include:

Barry Capistron, Sandi Choate and Robin Holdsworth. This is a wonderful ministry and

although we are small, we are definitely mighty! However, it would be wonderful to have some new faces and we welcome anyone to join us (both female as well as male!). We would love to see our membership grow!!! If you would like to learn more about this ministry or have any suggestions or concerns that we can help with, please contact either Martha or myself and we would be most willing to listen.

This past summer we had the opportunity to have the large communion candlesticks refurbished. Our goal for this summer is to have the candelabras themselves redone. This is a large goal and will take quite a bit of money. We plan to have some fundraisers in the upcoming months to help defray the costs of this project.

Currently, the Altar Guild consists of three teams who work in three week succession. The duties of the Altar Guild are to clean, polish, and set up for midweek and Saturday and Sunday services and assist the Rector in anything that he needs us to help with.

If you would like to have more information on becoming an Altar Guild member or if you could help out in any way with special cleaning or needs of the guild that may come up during the course of the year, please feel free to contact us. We are always happy to have extra help as “many hands make light work”…

We would also like to thank the members of the Parish for their continued support and especially those that have given Altar flowers and Memorial Votive Candles this past year. There are other people behind the scenes (and you know who you are) that help the Altar Guild immensely throughout the year and we want to let you know that we greatly appreciate everything you do.

In closing, please know that we are optimistic about the New Year and we pray that you will all find the peace of God in your hearts as we look with renewed promise for a new year at COS.

Sincerely,

Linda Kirschner

Martha Edwards

Co-Directresses: St. Margaret’s Altar Guild

Acolyte Guild Report

2008 was another successful acolyting year for Church of Our Saviour! In the beginning of the year there were only eight active acolytes but over the course of the year we have grown to a whopping 14 members! That’s one of the largest group of church youth grades 5 –12 that the Church has seen in a long time. The system for acolyte scheduling consists of one main crucifer for each Sunday ten o’clock service and a combination of either two novice or experienced torch bearers. The normal duties of a torch bearer is to light the candles on the altar and special candles during the church seasons. They also get to learn how the crucifer performs their duties on the altar. As acolyte master I would like to thank all the new recruits and extend my gratitude to the returning acolytes. I hope all the acolyte schedules are to everyone’s liking, if there are any concerns feel free to contact me or the acolyte parent, Mr. Bryan Young.

Thank you,

Laura Stagliola

Master Acolyte

Master Acolyte: Laura Stagliola Acolyte Parent: Bryan Young

Rachel Gunning Jeremy Young Benjamin Young

Matt Stagliola Corey Fratus Angela Pendoley

Robert Studley Erica Charette Errol Charette

Elvis Choate Chelsea Holdsworth Tommy Brown

Dylan Holdsworth

Mary Edwards – emergency back up.

Episcopal Church Women’s Report

The Episcopal Church Women (ECW) enjoyed an active year in 2008. One prime example of the ECW's mission of hospitality and invitation is the weekly coffee hour ministry, coordinated by Lisa Buckley, Julie Siderwicz, Gretchen Umholtz, Judy Manton, and Ginny Cahoon. Through their generous coordination, Church of Our Saviour experienced an increase in families volunteering to host the refreshments, inviting many parishioners to come together for fellowship to enjoy their delicious gifts. Thank you to everyone who has participated in this ministry.

A review of the year’s activities follows:

Receptions and Meals Hosted: March 2 – Mothering Sunday Spaghetti Lunch; April 20 - served lunch for Bishop Shaw's Visitation; May 18 - hosted coffee hour for guest speaker Ted Giser

Cooperative Activities with Other Groups or Committees: April – June – assisted with recruiting leadership for 2008 Christmas Faire; May Faire - provided personnel for First Annual Parish Yard Sale; October 19 - Plant Sale, coordinated by Patti Stagliola; October - combined ECW and Men's Group cookout sponsored by Brian and Beth Anne Young; November 14 - assisted with Annual Harvest Faire; November 23 - coordinated with the Altar Guild to make Thanksgiving food baskets for distribution to families in need

Excursions Sponsored: June 16 – End of Year dinner at 44 Union Bar and Grill in Plymouth; October 4 - Women's Retreat at HisLand Retreat Center, topic: Prayer in the Busy Woman's Life.

Janet Nichols Scholarship: Two scholarships were awarded this year to Mary Kate Lee, and Stephen Johnson, both starting their freshman year in college in September.

Long Range Planning and Goals: Plans are ongoing updating the Parish Hall kitchen. The Kitchen Shower fundraising activity collected several hundred dollars for this plan. Thank you to everyone who assisted and donated for this goal. And a special thank you to Mike and Patti Stagliola for donating cabinets for the project and to Boy Scout Troop 96 for their generous donation.

Election of Officers for 2008-2009: Co-Presidents – Ruth Milam and Sue Simmons;

Treasurer – Barry Capistron; Chaplain – Judy Manton, Fall Coffee Hour Coordinators – Lisa Buckley and Julie Siderwicz; Kitchen Coordinator - June Perkins.

Thank you to all of the members of the parish who have helped out so much this year with their support and participation. We appreciate each and every one of your contributions and encourage any and all women of the church to join us at our meetings each month.

Respectfully submitted,

Ruth Milam, Co-President

Prayer Chain Report

I would like to thank the people who serve as the links of the prayer chain. We have all evidenced and have heard testimony time and time again of the miraculous healing power of prayer, especially during these hard economic times of emergency. For our nation, it is important for us to be devoted to daily prayer.

If anyone has a special prayer request or would be interested in being a link of the chain, please contact me at (508)947-1476 or the Church Office at (508)947-1900.

Faithfully,

Natalie Atkins

Chairperson

Men’s Group Annual Report

The Men’s Group is made up of a diverse group of parishioners whose common bond seems to be a willingness to help. This help is in the form of cooking and/or serving to assist other church group functions, such as the Annual meeting with the E.C.W.; Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Supper with the youth group, spring and fall cook-outs with the Christian Formation Group and the Christmas Fair.

In the future we hope to reach out and help others around their homes. To help with yard work or similar activities that someone may no longer be capable of doing themselves. We would like to involve the Youth Group in this outreach goal.

We would like to become a more socially involved group. Hopefully we can sponsor activities that would not only interest the members of the group but the whole parish community. Please remember, the Men’s Group is open to all men. Cooking skills not required, just the desire to help.

Thank You,

Mark Edwards

Bob Long

Co-Chairs

Annual Report of the Nearly New Shoppe

The Nearly New Shoppe was not as profitable in 2008 as previous years. The Shoppe is run by a small number of dedicated persons. In addition to providing financial assistance to the Church, we collected donations for our Hunger Fund and use these monies to provide food for families at Thanksgiving and Christmas as well as support to a local food pantry.

We are a community service helping families find new and “nearly new” merchandise at low costs and at the same time provide monies for the consignor. The year 2008 marks our 43^nd year of service to the community. We would like to take this opportunity to extend a special thanks to all who volunteered their time this year at the shoppe.

We are in constant need of volunteers for Thursdays when the shop is open. If you able to help out, please, contact the Co-Chairpersons or the Church Office.

Jeanne Turney, Co-Chairperson

Patricia Stagliola, Co-Chairperson

Robert Taylor, Treasurer

Church of our Savior Youth Group

This year has been very eventful for the youth group. They have gone on trips and helped out the church. They helped out in the kitchen during the annual craft fair, went caroling to nursing homes and to fellow parishioners, and attended a seminar about drunk driving. For fun, the youth has had pizza parties and taken trips to the movies were just some of the many fun things they have been able to do. The Youth group has many things to look forward to this upcoming year and have lots in store to make this coming year a memorable one. Youth Group leaders include Jeremy Young and Rachel Gunning, and Ian Milam is the youth group advisor.

Communication Committee

The purpose of the Communication Committee is to draw attention to the good work and activities of the Church to its members and the greater community. While we are pleased with our ability to promote the church’s activities via radio, newspapers, and radio, we realize that there is always room for improvement.

Members of the committee would greatly like to express our gratitude to Mr. Craig DiGiorgi for continuing to serve as the church’s website administrator. We would also like to thank the members of the subcommittee that worked so diligently to organize and compile the data for photo directory.

We feel that the mission of this committee is imperative for the good of the congregation. Anyone interested in serving on this committee is strongly encouraged to contact a sitting member to express their willingness to serve on the committee.

Sincerely Submitted,

Kevin Lynn

Outreach Committee

The Outreach Committee continues to work toward the realization of its mission as formulated: to serve and support those in need within and outside the parish community. As a committee, we formulated goals and activities for 2008, which we successfully accomplished.

The Shepherd Ministry continues to flourish as we had two very successful “stock the freezer” events. Traditionally, these events take place once in the spring and once in the fall. COS received a donation of a large freezer in November, which will now enable us to store many more meals to be given to those in need.

The Elijah Basket is a visible sign of the committee’s work. The basket can be found at the entrance to the church. It takes in weekly donations of paper goods, food, toiletries and other needed products. The Committee then distributes these to local food banks.

In February 2008, the “Have a Heart for Seniors” campaign worked to bring valentine greetings to our elderly in the community. The Committee called for in ingathering of items suited for seniors such as toiletries, low sodium foods and smaller portion sized ready-made meals to suite smaller households. The Church School student’s decoration colorful greetings on gift bags, which were then filled with the collected items. Members of the Outreach Committee along with the residents of the Bishop Ruocco House delivered these gift bags to the Middleboro Council on Aging.

On Wednesday, April 30, 2008 Yom Ha-Shoah (Holocaust Memorial Day) a community observance service was held at Beth Jacob Community Center in Plymouth. The service is in cooperation with the Plymouth area Interfaith Clergy Association and the Town of Plymouth’s N Place for Hate Committee. This is an observance commemorating the destruction of European Jewry by the Nazis and giving recognition to the significance of the Holocaust for people of all faiths. Judith Manton representing the aforementioned committee and Episcopal Church of Our Saviour (Middleboro) Outreach Committee, presented a biographical sketch of Holocaust victim Susanne Ledermann provided by the Holocaust Museum of the U.S. The service also called upon the community remember the people of Darfur and to act to save those for whom it is not yet too late.

In November of 2008, the committee held a winter coat drive the Bishop Ruocco House. The response from parishioners was astounding. We were able to donate over 30 winter coats to the Bishop Ruocco House. The committee welcomes ladies’ coat or jackets throughout the entire year as there are always new resident’s coming into this House.

The 2008 Annual Christmas Outreach Project was focused on the Bishop Ruocco House for teenage girls for the second year in a row. Gifts of clothing, toiletries, games and cd players were given to this organization to be distributed to the 16 teenage girls that reside there.

Throughout the 2008 year, the Outreach Committee visited with the residents of the Bishop Ruocco House on several occasions. The girl’s expressed their appreciation by sending thank you notes and coming to Church and performing a musical program for the Parish in January of 2008.

The Committee continues to meet regularly to plan for sustaining these events as well as initiating new ones. We look forward to 2009 and welcome ideas from our Parish.

Through all of these ingathering events, The Parish Church of Our Saviour has shown incredible generosity and love of their family. We, the members of the Committee are proud to serve a Parish so willing to come to the aid of these in need, even in these challenging economic times. We all thank you!

Respectfully submitted,

Julie Siderwicz

Chairperson

Committee Members: Joan Thomas, June Perkins, Judith Manton, Barry Capistron and Vestry Liaison: Lisa Buckley

Stewardship Committee

The Stewardship Committee meets year round. The purpose of this group is to ask, “How can we be faithful keepers of our religious community and house?” Unlike its predecessor years ago, the Stewardship Committee is not responsible for just the pledge drive. It focus’ on the whole life of the community and brings attention to the Vestry and the parish their discoveries, issues, and suggestions.

Last year the Committee successfully applied and received a Congregational Development Grant from the Diocese. With these monies, members of the committee attended the Province I Congregational Development Conference in Weston, MA. There they participated in plenary sessions and workshops, researched possible resources, and had the opportunity to network with members of other parishes throughout the New England states.

During the spring the Committee read Small, Strong Congregations: Creating Strengths and Health for Your Congregation by Kennon Callahan. Along with the book, they participated in an online web-inar conducted by Alice Mann, a congregational development specialist. The web-inar consisted of online discussion with Mrs. Mann simultaneously with 5 other parishes who are the same size and have similar struggles as COS. Late in the spring the Stewardship Committee hosted at COS a one day – face to face – conference with these parishes and Mrs. Mann attending. Members of the committee reported to the Vestry their discoveries and insights and gave the Vestry opportunity to discuss and decide how our mission is affected by what was learned.

In autumn, the Committee began reading Anthony Robinson’s book Transforming Congregational Culture. We are happy to say this has generated some interest having been joined this year by two more participants. As we continue in 2009, we hope to have more participate with us for discussion and suggestions. One project being developed this year is to develop a Planned Giving program. The committee has already done research and has started to pull together resources for parish education and understanding of this crucial issue concerning the future of our parish.

Many thanks go to the 2008 Committee who are Tom Brown, Lisa Buckley, and Bryan Young. Also thanks to our two new participants; Betty Wainwright and Gretchen Umholtz.

Respectfully Submitted,

Stewardship Committee

Parish Historian’s Report

In 2008 (my first full year as Parish Historian) my activities included continuing to become more familiar with the archives, learning more about the activities and methods of other parish historians, learning from members of Church of Our Saviour about people and events in our own parish’s history, adding to the archives documents given to me by parishioners, and writing articles for the Banner.

I have now completed a basic inventory of the contents of our fire-proof filing cabinet, and have taken notes from some of the early vestry records, but have not by any means read all of the contents. My declared intention (in last year’s report) of organizing the archives in accordance with the system employed by former diocesan archivist Mark J. Duffy remains still an intention for the future, as does scanning or photographing some of our most important early records.

On May 3, Cheryl Copeland and I attended the Annual Meeting of the Parish Historians’ Society, whose theme this year was Church Architecture. In lectures and tours we learned about the larger architectural and diocesan mission trends that were the context for the founding and building of Church of Our Saviour in the 1890s. We also had valuable conversations with other archivists and parish historians. The Parish Historians’ Society has been considering offering a workshop on photographic preservation, conservation and display. With Father Dave’s permission I offered Church of Our Saviour as a possible venue, but I do not yet know their final plans.

In the May/June Banner I shared some excerpts from old vestry minutes. In the September/October and November/December editions of the Banner I published a two-part article entitled “The Bishop and the Eagle,” focusing on Bishop Phillips Brooks and the eagle lectern given to our church in his honor in 1893. I am now working on an article on the needlepoint kneelers at the communion rail. Posting these articles and other historical materials on the church’s website is something I hope to do soon.

Would you like to help? Reminiscences, questions, suggestions, old photos, newspaper clippings, minutes or documents from church activities are all very welcome. One really great project for a student looking to do historical research or a community service project (or for any interested adult) would be to use the Middleborough public library’s excellent online index of many decades of the Middleborough Gazette to collect all the available articles about Church of Our Saviour (many of which are also accessible online). Please let me know if you think you might be interested, and keep talking with me about what you know or wonder about this church’s marvelous history!

Respectfully submitted,

Gretchen Umholtz

Parish Historian

Vestry Nominating Committee

On December 7, 2008, the nominating committee met for lively discussion of who should be nominated for the openings on the Vestry and for the position of Clerk. Representatives of all committees were encouraged to attend the meeting. At the meeting, committee members discussed the requisites for the positions and discussed the characteristics of the nominees.

Ms. Julie Siderwicz was nominated to serve as Clerk. It should be noted that the position of Clerk does not have a limit to the number of years. If elected, Ms. Siderwicz will have this position until she resigns.

The following is the 2007 Vestry:

Executive Committee Position Elected

Randy King Senior Warden 2007 (2 years remaining)

Wally Kling Junior Warden 2007 (2 years remaining)

Barry Capistron Treasurer

Jeanne Turney Clerk 2004 (resigned 11/08)

Vestry Elected Serve Through

Matthew Galvin 2006 2008 (term ended)

Kevin Lynn 2006 2008 (term ended)

Suzanne Simmons 2006 2008 (term ended)

Lisa Buckley 2007 2009

Mary Granfield 2007 2009

Nancy Lee 2007 2009

Michael Stagliola 2007 2009 (resigned – to be filled)

Thomas Brown 2008 2010

David Ferchen 2008 2010

Sandra Choate 2008 2010

Slate for Re-Election:

Randy King - Senior Warden (1 year term with one remaining)

Wally Kling – Junior Warden (1 year term with one remaining)

Barry Capistron – Treasurer (unlimited term to be elected yearly)

Deanery and Convention Delegates

Randy King and Kevin Lynn – Convention Delegation

Tom Brown – Deanery Delegate

There are no Alternate Convention Delegates that have stepped forward at this time.

Thank you to the off going members of Vestry; Matt Galvin and Sue Simmons, and thank you to Michael Stagliola for the time he served. To Jeanne Turney, our sincerest appreciation for her dedicated work as Clerk.

For the four openings on Vestry, this committee considered ten highly qualified people. The final slate of nominees for Vestry, as put forward by this committee is as follows:

Ms. Linda “Sim” Bullard – 3 year term

Ms. Ursula Hill – 3 year term

Ms. Betty Wainwright – 3 year term

Mr. Joe Morrissey – 2 year term

As chairman of this committee, I would like to thank the members of this committee for their work. I would I like to thank the church members that were asked to consider being nominated by this committee. We recognize that fact that we ask members of the Vestry to do a good deal of work for the church.

As an outgoing member of the Vestry, I would finally like to thank the members of Vestry, especially those that are leaving this year. Their dedication to the Church of Our Saviour and to the faith was and is inspiring. I believe that having been granted the honor of being elected to, and serving on Vestry, I was given the opportunity to explore my religious beliefs in a manner that I may not have been able to do without such an opportunity.

Sincerely Submitted,

Kevin Lynn

Committee Members: Wayne Besegai , Martha Edwards, Matthew Galvin , Randy King, Rev. David Milam, Ruth Milam, Sue Simmons, and Beth Anne Young

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