Fundraiser Recipient is Chosen: Community Supported Shelters

The Outreach Ministry Council has been asked by the Vestry to allocate funds raised in 2021 through the Blue Bag Bottles and Cans Recycling Fundraiser to an agency or program that addresses housing for our unhoused neighbors. The Outreach Ministry Council requested input from parishioners and then met on Zoom to discuss the potential organizations to support. We have decided that the money we raise from returning redeemable bottles and cans will go to Community Supported Shelters (CSS).

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On Reopening

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Dear friends in Christ,

We look forward to welcoming you back to worship together in person!

We know that some are past ready and some are not quite ready. I encourage you to have grace for your fellow parishioners as we navigate this time.

Please click “Read More” to read Bingham’s entire letter to the parish on reopening.

An Interview with Carrie

“In some ways Sunday, June 13, will be a typical mid-June Sunday for St. Mary’s. Our Joyful Noise choir will perform their final piece for the ’20-’21 program year. They will sing, virtually, Everybody’s Got a Place in the Choir for the pre-recorded service. Mid-June is usually the time when we wrap up our program year and celebrate the accomplishments of our children and youth ministries. A lot about Sunday, June 13, will not be typical by St. Mary’s standards. The fact that our Joyful Noise choir is performing via video is one obvious difference. Another difference is that on that Sunday we will be saying “Thank You” to Carrie Peil as she steps away from the role of Joyful Noise Choir Director. You may have noticed that I used the term “Thank You” instead of “Goodbye.”’

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Summer Fun Fund - Supporting At-Risk Youth in Lane County

From Christmas stockings to summer activities, the Women of St. Mary’s support children throughout the year. From donations to fundraisers like the ECW table at the St. Mary’s Advent Fair, our funds grow, and we in turn distribute funds to help women and children in the community and beyond.


This year we are increasing our annual giving to Summer Fun Fund to $450. Will you help double that amount, triple that amount, quadruple that amount? Last year an additional $708 was given by parishioners. Children need good summer activities and the need to great. Let’s increase our giving.

Click “Read More” to read the entire article about the Summer Fun Fund.

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Vestry Report for Pentecost Bellringer

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“In this season of anticipation and waiting, we have decided to begin each Vestry meeting with a discussion of a short passage by Thomas Merton. We see this as a way of focusing on our spiritual growth. In March, we reflected on how we cannot explain everything, and how we shouldn’t always try to find answers. Sometimes we must sit with the unknown and with “the abyss of darkness” at our core. In light of the pandemic, Merton’s words reverberate loudly, especially his exhortation to let go of our desire to understand why and to embrace the ways we encounter God in our vast interior selves.”

Click “read more” to read the entire Vestry report.

Refugee Relief Kit Event

Refugee Relief Kit Event


The Refugee Resettlement Coalition of Lane County (RRC), which St. Mary's is a part of, invites all community members to join them Thursday, June 17, between 4 and 7 PM in the First United Methodist Church parking lot, 1376 Olive Street (enter on Charnelton Street). Contribute $20 (cash or check) and stay to assemble a relief kit for a refugee family.

Click the “Read More” button below to read more details.

Happy Pentecost

“The Holy Spirit is about life. In Hebrew, Greek, and Latin the word for spirit and the word for breath are the same. In the ancient story of creation, God breathed life into Adam, God gave him Spirit. Just as breathing is necessary for us to live physically, the Spirit is necessary for us to live spiritually. When the Spirit is mentioned in scripture, it is about giving life, about empowering, about liberating people from death and destruction. Living spiritually is about a life attuned to the life-giving divine action at work in this world. And it is about helping others do the same, allowing for the flourishing of all of humanity and creation.”

Click “Read more” to read Bingham’s entire Pentecost reflection.

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News from the Vestry: A Staffing Update

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Dear Friends in Christ,

Throughout the pandemic, the Vestry has been constantly considering how we adapt right now and to what is coming up next, one eye on the present and one eye on the future. One aspect we have regularly been examining is personnel. During this time, in conjunction with the Personnel Committee, the Vestry has been looking at what staffing has needed to look like and what it needs to look like over the coming months and even years. The future is full of uncertainties, but as we look to this past year and look toward the possibilities moving forward, we know that there are many challenges on the path. It has become clear to the Personnel Committee and the Vestry that additional staffing will be necessary to navigate this next leg in the journey.

Click “Read More” to read the Vestry’s entire announcement.

Easter is Coming

That first Easter morning was not a time of rejoicing for the disciples, but one of total confusion superimposed on the abject terror they had been feeling since Friday, when they had seen Jesus dragged away and ultimately executed. While we’re not faced with quite that level of distress, we’re still in the dark with regard to just how the next few months are going to unfold.

Episcopal Campus Ministry 2020 in Review

I began as interim chaplain in December of 2019. From January to March I worked to get to know the students, the house, and The Student Food Pantry. At the start of the year we had four student residents, Tatiana, Colman, Jepry, and Leslie. On Thursdays I invited local parishioners and Episcopal Campus Ministry (ECM) Board member to prepare meals and share in fellowship with the students and I invited local clergy to celebrate the Eucharist. This was a great way for us to connect with our local Episcopal Churches and to hear from different parishioners and priests about their faith journeys. For the Student Food Pantry, there was lots of hands-on learning and new connections to be made as I took on Chaplain Doug’s role of oversight. And then COVID-19 arrived.

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Final full day of the pilgrimage! Travel day today! We traveled from Paris to London on the Eurostar. Had pizza for lunch (you can take the Americans out of the US, but you can’t take the US out of the Americans!), got settled into our hostel
Sunday in Paris! We woke up to a rainy city, and took the metro to the American Cathedral in Paris, an Episcopal cathedral! We recieved a lovely and warm welcome from them, worshipping with their congregation, and met the Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Mark Ed
Another Youth Pilgrimage Update: Had a very full day today! Pilgrims woke up early to be at the Notre Dame at 8 am for Catholic Mass. We toured the Notre Dame and recieved a pilgrim’s blessing from a priest. Then we went to the Musée Rod
Big travel day! Took the Eurostar through the Chunnel from London to Paris. Settled into our hostel, had crepes for dinner AND dessert, and walked past the Notre Dame — whetting out palettes for our visit tomorrow :) Pilgrims reflected on the

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