The Shepherd’s Voice Our mission is to be more visible, to become more con-nected, and to draw closer, with Christ as our center.

Inside:

Council Highlights

Prayer List

Annual Meeting

Quilting News

Book Club

Christmas Spree

Meditation

SNAGS

Finance Meeting

Worship & Music Meeting

Covenant to Care

Warm Clothing

Community Supper

Living Generously

Shepherd’s Pantry

Clare’s Blog - Lemon

Happy Birthday

Treasurer’s Report

November is different for Christians.

First, we begin the month with All Saints Sunday. A time to give thanks to God for the saints that were and those that are in our lives.

Next, we give thanks for the saints that we are purely by God's cre-ating and sustaining us with Life and Life in Christ.

On the National Holiday of Thanksgiving we Christians recall that the name of the Lord's Supper is properly called The Eucharist - a Greek word that means giving thanks. For us, the followers of Je-sus, thanks-giving is never one day of feasting and family, it is truly rather, a way of life.

I once heard a minister say that what struck him as sad for the atheist, is that they have no one to give thanks for all things to!

Now Thank We All Our God!

LV

PD

November 2017

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Highlights from Your Church Council

October 16, 2017

Attendees: Pastor, Susan Chin, Billie Flaherty, Karen Merrick, David Wang, Cindy Carlson, Walt Bills, Donna Hoffman, Eileen Holleran, Lisa Lilly, Karen Jackson and Trudi Black.

Pastor Report: Pastor reminded council that he will attend the required Bishop’s Convocation for pastors in West Hartford Oct 23-25. Pastor Kurt of St. Peter’s will be available to cover any emergencies. Sunday night worship services have had 9 to 4 in attendance. Those who attend expressed hope that we will keep these services. October 1 was Blessing of Pets and there were 8 dogs and 2 guinea pigs. Pastor thanked Billie for her letter regarding Stewardship.

Worship and Music Committee Report: Walt Bills spoke with performer Peter Griggs and said that he was available to do a concert on January 6th or 7th at 3 p.m. or 4 p.m. Council decided that Sunday, January 7th would be best as it is Epiphany and we can remind everyone of the concert at the church services. His fee is $400 but he is flexible. We will have a free will offering and council agreed it should go to benefit Lutheran Disaster Fund. We will invite the public and advertise in the Monroe Patch, sign outside church and with post-ers. The Mudry family from across the street have offered Good Shepherd their piano which we will accept and use in Gibiser Hall. We will donate or dispose of the old piano.

Hurricane Response: $887 was collected and $1000 from the Emergency Fund will be added to send a to-tal of $1887 to Lutheran Disaster Response.

Banner for Fence: Sue got the flash drive of Sarah’s poster. Karen Merrick will have a large banner made at work to fit on the fence. Fence is 6x8 feet and Karen will make the banner as large as possible to be visible from the street.

Columbarium: Pastor said Bob Carlson had asked what council had decided regarding a columbarium. The topic was discussed sometime in the past (years ago) but the church is on wetlands so that was a concern. Council decided to ask the congregation at the Congregational Meeting in December if they are interested in pursuing a columbarium. If so, Trudi said that Vic Noll’s brother may have insight as he helped establish one in his church.

Next Meeting: Council will meet on November 20th at 7:30 p.m.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to speak with a council member or Pastor Doug:

Walt Bills

Trudi Black

Cindy Carlson

Sue Chin

Billie Flaherty

Donna Hoffman

Eileen Holleran

Brian Immel

Karen Jackson

Lisa Lilly

Karen Merrick

Jessica Thom

Dave Wang

Kyle Immel - Youth

Representative

Members: Nancy Gennette, John Gennette, Mary Ruesch, Clare McElaney, Linda Bespuda, Diane Hensel, Gordon Cleland, Ron Haven, Arlene Juliano, Don Juliano, Miriam Kursawe, Brian Amado, and Sarah Mora.

Family & Friends of Members: Susan, friend of Lil Tesoriero; Irene, cousin of Janet Szulga; Bill, friend of Janet Szulga; Shelly, co-worker of Donna Duessel; Gerard, friend of Ellie & Vic Noll & Sam Barate; Claudia, friend of Vic Noll; Ray, friend of Vic Johnson; Jack, relative of Donna Duessel; Eddy, relative of Nina & Ken Furnes; Dorothy, aunt of Susan Chin; Deanna, friend of Miriam Kursawe; Marilyn, friend of Miriam Kursawe; James, friend of Lil Tesoriero; Paul, friend of Lil Tesoriero; John relative of Donna Duessel; Pearl, friend of Janet Szulga; Ed, friend of Vic & Ellie Noll & Sam Barate; Mark, friend of Vic & Ellie Noll & Sam Barate.

Special Prayers for Armed Forces Personnel: Tyler, AJ, Matt, Kenny, Brian.

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

Psalm 147 vs. 3

The Prayer Requests Notebook is on the counter in the narthex. If you would like to add a loved one to the list, simply write the name in the book. If you would like a prayer card sent to your loved one, please include the full name and address. Prayer requests may also be made by email or phone and will be in-cluded in the notebook by the church office. Should a loved one need prayers for longer than three months, simply add their name to the list again. To keep the list current and up to date, only the names recorded in the Prayer Request for Family & Friends Notebook will be listed on the prayer list. If

you have not recorded a loved one’s name, please do so.

Should you be in need of pastoral care, please contact Pastor Doug Ryniewicz by cell phone (860-595-9560—text if you like!) or by his email address (dearynos@gmail.com).

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Annual Congregational Meeting

Please save the date and plan to attend the Annual Congregational Meeting at Good Shepherd on Sunday, December 10, 2017 immediately fol-lowing the 10:30 worship service.

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The next Book Club meeting will be on Tuesday, November 7, 2017 at 1:30 p.m. We will discuss “The Last Runaway” by Tracy Chevalier. Kathy Goulet is delighted to answer any questions you may have about the book club and looks forward to having you join in the discussion.

Quilting News

Please join us on Saturday, November 4th and Saturday, Novem-ber 18th from 9:30 a.m. to noon as we sew, iron, cut and assemble quilts for the needy. Feel free to come and go as you need. If you have questions, please speak with Ellie Noll. No experience is needed just your willing hearts and hands.

The Lutheran Home of Southbury

Annual Christmas Shopping Spree

Thursday, November 9, 2017

The Shopping Spree is for the residents to choose holiday gifts for their loved ones. We need items for men, women and children of all ages. All items must be new. Donated items can be toys, toiletries, jewelry, scarves, knee high stockings, after shave lotions, socks, stationary, greeting cards, blouses, sweaters, shirts and ties. Please return gift items to the box available in the narthex by Tuesday, November 7th. Please help the Guild make this shop-ping spree successful. All receipts go back to the home for the special needs of the residents. Thank you for your help! If you have any questions please speak to Dot Kaiser or Peg Wesche. If you have time and would like to help please let us know.

Also needed for the recreation cart are: glue sticks, foam shapes with peel-off backing, Word Search books, water color paint sets, diabetic socks, maga-zines, and jewelry. These items can be used for bingo and birthday prizes.

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Finance Committee Meeting

The Finance Committee will meet on Monday, November 13, 2017 at 7:00 p.m. If you have an interest in finance we invite you to attend the meeting. If you have any questions, please speak with any member of the committee: Vic Noll, Tim Carlson, Peg Wesche, Roy Remlin, Billie Flaherty.

Sunday Night at Good Shepherd

We welcome anyone to join us for any reason that may be helpful to you on the following Sunday Evening Worship. We celebrate a relaxing and meditative Service of Word and Sacrament. Bring a friend or neighbor! We gather at 5:30 p.m.

November 12

December 3 and 17

Worship & Music Committee Meeting

The Worship & Music Committee will meet on Monday, November 13, 2017 at 7:00 p.m. If you have an interest in worship and/or music we invite you to attend the meeting. If you have any questions, please speak with any member of the committee: Charlie Simon, Vic Johnson, Walt Bills, Larry Black, Dagny Hassinger, Karen Jackson, Donna Duessel.

Christian Meditation Instruction and Practice

Many people in our society are benefiting from practicing forms of meditation that trace their roots to ancient religious traditions of the East such as Hinduism

(yoga, TM) and Buddhism (zen and mindfulness meditation).

Christians may benefit greatly from such practices. However, most are com-pletely unaware of the rich treasure of ancient and distinctly Christian meditation practices that have watered the personal prayer lives of members of the church for many centuries. These practices are proven ways of lowering the resistances

we have to a fuller awareness of God the Loving Trinity in the midst of our daily lives. On a secondary level they may nourish both mental, emotional and physical well being.

Gathering together on one Friday evening of October, November and December we will have a month to prac-tice a prayer form and then "check - in" with a supportive group the next meeting time.

We will meet in the Lounge at 7pm

November 10 and December 8.

Community Supper - December 6, 2017

at Golden Hill Methodist Church,

Golden Hill Street, Bridgeport

Cooks and set up crew needed. We start at 2:30 -3:00 p.m. If you haven't already signed up and would like to help, please put your name on the list in the narthex. We can discuss car pooling if you want to. Any questions, please speak to Peg Wesche or anyone who has attended a supper before. Thank you!

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Covenant to Care Holiday Donations

Green recyclable bags will be in the narthex on October 29 for Covenant to Care Thanksgiving food donations. Bags will be due on November 19. Gift cards from Stop & Shop are requested in lieu of frozen turkeys or turkey breasts.

For Christmas, the little tree with gift tags will be in the narthex in mid-November, and gifts will be due in mid-December. More details to come…

Thank you for your continued involvement in all of Covenant to Care’s outreach pro-grams!

Jane Fieberts

Warm Clothing Needed

The devastation of Puerto Rico by the recent hurri-cane has brought a large number of residents to the Bridgeport area. The Salvation Army is in need of warm clothing for infants to teens. Please check your closets to see if you can donate sweatshirts, coats, gloves, hats, etc. If you have questions, please speak with Trudi Black.

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We need:

Stuffing mix

Gravy

Canned sweet potatoes

Cream of Mushroom soup

Canned vegetables

Canned pumpkin

Cranberry sauce

Canned pie filling

Stewardship 2017 Theme: Live Generously

1 Timothy 6:18-19

“For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might be-come rich.”

Yes, the church is again requesting that you consider your giving prayer-fully, in accordance to your means. It is important to the maintenance and care of our building and, more importantly, our mission to the world around us. We are God’s pocketbook! Still, we must remember that the church building is only a place to meet; we, individually, are the church - for wherever 2 or 3 are gathered together in His name, He is there!

We have been richly blessed by his gifts to us, and it is with grateful hearts and minds that we should respond in a like manner to those around us, blessing others as we have been blessed. This is as our Lord would desire of us. But our gifts must involve all of our talents, not just money, as important as that is. We all have been given abilities far more important to the mission of our Lord. Some are able to make beautiful music, some can balance a checkbook, some enjoy meeting other people, some can make a yard beautiful or maintain a house, some enjoy meetings. These abilities are God’s gifts! We are God’s feet, hands, and purse!

Our Father, we offer ourselves to you. Help us to offer our bodies that our lives may be lived to your glory and honor. Help us to offer minds that we might seek and know the truth of the good news of your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Help us to offer our voices that might witness to your grace and love and mercy. Help us to offer our hearts that we might return in some measure the love which you have so freely given us. Help us to offer our hands that they might be em-ployed to do deeds of kindness for your sake. Help us to offer our feet that we may run but never tire in serving with love our neighbors. Help us to offer our gifts as a genuine response of gratitude and not out of a sense of duty. Help us offer ourselves as living sacrifices; may our lives and deeds be acceptable in your sight, O Lord. Amen.

- Walt Bills

The holidays are coming! The Social Ministry and Community Outreach Committee invites you to contribute items to the Shepherd’s Pantry located in the narthex. The items are delivered to the Monroe Food Pantry once a month. The Pantry also accepts gold Big Y coins which can be put in the basket that has been placed on the Shepherd’s Pantry shelves in the narthex.

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When life gives you serious injury from a lemon..

You are free to call me a hypocrite.

I spent two weeks at orientation for Young Adults in Global Mission (YAGM)-- and the message I tried to convey most to volunteers was that they will be vulnerable this year- to embrace this inevitability, and above all to not hesitate to ask for help; whether from their host communities, country coordinators or those of us who send them out; they are part of such a large community that is holding them in prayer and love-- I told them not to for-get this.

But this doesn't apply to me, right? Any vulnerability I've faced in the past doesn't carry forward.. right? I'm an adult, I've moved coasts...right? .....Right??

Fast forward to this morning, as I stood bleeding profusely on a street corner, lost and in need of urgent care. Why is it so hard for me to take my own advice and ask for help? Why do I struggle to tap into this feeling of being held in love in the moments I need it most?

Yesterday in my own orientation for Seminary at Pacific Lutheran we had a session on self-care and were asked to brain storm care we do or can do for ourselves in the coming weeks, months, years. I talked with a partner about my intention to drink hot lemon water every morning- something my aunt, uncles and mom all do. A way of taking care of my body, partaking in ritual that I know my family is also doing, taking time in the morning to do more than jump out of bed and leave for the day.

So this morning, as I prepared my self-care lemon water, I sliced my finger deep with a huge knife. Applying pres-sure I drank my water and went about my morning. But 10 minutes... then 15 minutes then 1/2 an hour later it had-n't stopped bleeding. WebMD told me to call 911. I opted to google the nearest walk-in urgent care- 2 miles away and walk over.

Equipped with a swath of paper towel and keeping my hand elevated I set out.

Finally at the care center, I got in line behind a man speaking to the desk attendant. As he finished, I walked up, and was told I had to get in line. I looked around for a line, seeing none, but an aisle for one, I walked through the aisle as the three secretaries watched and then called me forward. Yeah.

They then told me, as my finger spouted out and I swayed on my feet, that they only took people by appointment and I could find their urgent care center a few miles away, which opened at 10 am. They gave me a pamphlet with an address and list of services though!

I started walking, fighting back angry uncontrollable tears to realize I was seriously bleeding. Like frighteningly so. Something about emotions effecting blood pressure...

Why hadn't I asked for help? Who could I ask now, far from my new home and seriously far from my old one?

So I called the only seminarian whose number I knew and who I knew had a car and told him my situation. "So nice to meet you..."

Not only did they find me at the corner of University and 9th, but they drove me to an urgent care center and waited in the area to make sure I was getting treated. They then went to our orientation folks and explained the situation, checking in and giving me contact info.

Ask for help friends. Accept that you'll be vulnerable. Know that at some point someone will also need you, so why not let yourself live into that need and lean into that fear of vulnerability once in a while? I promise it will continually change you to live from this place, but it isn't easy. It's freaking hard.

At the urgent care a nurse named Luis, (the name of my favorite cousin/brother) helped stop the bleeding, set me with a tourniquet and then eventually a doctor got me set up with surgical glue and bandages.

I'm all good now. I navigated medical care less than a week into living in Berkeley, not two days since my mom headed home and I've been "on my own." After promising everyone no more medical crap- and talking just last night with my bff about how I've hit my quota and hope to be good for a while... when life gives you lemons...

I've got this, but I need to remember, when life gives you serious injury from a lemon... ask.for.help.

- Clare McElaney

The current month’s birthday listing is posted on the bulletin board outside of the Pastor’s office. If your birthday is not listed, please contact the church office and the files will be updated. We do not want to miss anyone’s birthday.

Miriam Kursawe 1-Dec

Christopher Lindsay 2-Dec

Sue Dixon 6-Dec

Glenn Noll 9-Dec

Katie Hensel 12-Dec

Barbara Abraham 13-Dec

Evelyn Crawford 15-Dec

Tyler Hoffmann 16-Dec

Kelly Turner 20-Dec

Kyle Hanley 21-Dec

Nina Furnes 22-Dec

Peggy Uhde 24-Dec

Donna Hoffman 25-Dec

Wayne Hoffmann 27-Dec

Alison Rubin 27-Dec

Karilina Pleva 28-Dec

Karen Jackson 29-Dec

Jimmy Schwarz 29-Dec

Isabella Hanley 31-Dec

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