Newsletter

Christopher J. Franz, Pastor - E-mail: pastorcjf@comcast.net - Home telephone: 610-394‑6948

it is produced approximately two months prior to the month in which it is published.

above to learn about November events that were not covered in the newsletter.

November 2	All Saint’s Sunday - We remember saints that impact(ed) our lives
November 2	No evening service at St. Mark due to a previously scheduled Delaware Conference program that has been cancelled
November 9	New Covenant’s Men’s Ensemble will lead worship at our 11 am service. Don’t miss an opportunity to hear this special group and their music!
November 13	7 pm - Healing service at Holy Spirit
November 23	Christ the King Sunday, the reminder we need in today’s tough times!

We will give thanks to God in worship for all the blessings we have received on Sunday, November 23, at 6 pm, when we welcome song writer, singer, and musician Nancy Sharff, along with her band, as she leads a contemporary worship experience with a wide repertoire of music. It’s a service you do not want to miss! The service will be followed by our annual congregational Thanksgiving Dinner at 7 pm. Please plan to attend and sign up now. The cost of the dinner, prepaid, is only $8 per adult, $3 per child (through age 12). Details are in the Narthex. However, if you wait until the day of the dinner to pay (or decide to attend that night) and take the risk that food is available for those we could not plan for, the cost will be $10 for adults and $5 for kids.

Sunday, November 16, is an in-service day for our Sunday School Teachers and Substitutes - breakfast will be served. THERE IS NO SUNDAY SCHOOL FOR OUR YOUTH ON THIS DAY.

Our November youth dance will be held on Friday, November 7 from 7 to 10 pm. The dance is for youth in the 4^th to 6^th grades.

All dressed teddy bears and dogs should be returned to St. Mark by Sunday, November 2. We will display them for one week and then return them to the Salvation Army to be given to needy children at Christmas.

Our annual Harvest Home gathering of food for those in need is held in November - from Sunday, November 2 through Sunday, November 30. Please place contributions around the altar thru November 23; on November 30, you may place them in the wheelbarrow. All will be taken to the Clifton Heights Food Pantry. Suggested items to bring are canned goods, paper products, baby food, boxes of cereal - all non-perishable, of course.

Our November Senior Dinner will be held Friday, November 14 at 6 pm. The cost is now $7.00.

On Sunday, November 23, after our 11 am service, we serve our annual Thanksgiving meal for our homeless Brothers and Sisters in Christ at Project Share in Darby. If you would like to help prepare or serve the meal, please contact Kathy Cosentino at 610-259-3871 or smcsdirector@comcast.net.

If you would like to help provide food for one of our Thanksgiving meals, please sign up in the Narthex so that there is no duplication and then take a copy of the shopping list that is next to the sign up sheet. Please place all items in the baskets in the Narthex. The delivery dates for all items are on the sheets.

Our next blood drive will be held on Tuesday, November 18 from 1:30 to 7:30 pm. The drive will be at Holy Spirit Lutheran Church, 2545 Franklin Avenue, Secane, PA.

On Sunday, September 28, a huge group of new members joined St. Mark. Their names will be in our December newsletter. Their names and addresses and pictures are on our Current Events Board.

We will be going to see the Philadelphia Phantoms on Friday, November 21 at 7 pm. Ticket prices are $10 each for kids and $14 for adults. Several discount food packages are available for an additional price. Please see or call Edie Beaupre at 610-626-1384 for more information. Last date to order tickets will be Sunday, November 2.

On Saturday, September 13, a number of our women enjoyed tea and lunch at SpecialTeas Tea Room in Chadds Ford, PA. There are some pictures of the event on our website - www.thewelcomeplace.net.

Did you notice how wonderful our gardens looked this year! They could not have been more attractive and continually receive compliments. But, next year they will be larger as the strip of ground between the parking area and fence has been cleared, mulched and planted with a variety of perennials. In September, Carol, David and Allison Cesari and Mary Ellen Markovcy and Pastor Chris, prepared the area and began the planting. Later Jim, Carol and Steve added more mulch and additional plantings. Furthermore, Carol Cesari has decided to "adopt" this garden for next year. Perhaps there is an area of St. Mark's gardens that you can adopt? Speak with Pastor Chris and lend a hand (or make a donation to the Garden Fund) to support the environment around St. Mark which in recent years has literally become home to flocks of gold finches that feed on our perennials. One day, we hope to have a running fountain installed in the Scattering Garden. Next year, two globe blue spruces will be planted at the foot of the cross. Special thanks to Judy Bell for donating an oak tree that was planted in the woods-like area of our property along with an additional atlas blue cedar.

From Monday, November 17 through Wednesday, November 19, Pastor Chris (and Pastor Cheryl) will be attending the Bishop’s Convocation in Lancaster, PA. The theme is “Called To Extraordinary Leadership”.

After the end of the year, the SEPA Synod is expected to move to the Lutheran Seminary Campus in Philadelphia in order to provide a more visible Lutheran center and as an opportunity to expand mission. The new space will be environmentally friendly, provide access to Seminary facilities, including Augsburg Fortress bookstore, be accessible by public transportation and provide office space that is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The cost to be paid for by the Synod is estimated at $1.75 million ($1.5 million in construction costs and $250,000 in moving expenses, furnishings and contingency costs.). There are opportunities to contribute through naming and other opportunities. There is a chart of giving opportunities in the Narthex.

December 5	7-10 pm	Youth Dance
December 12	6 pm	Senior Dinner
December 14	6 pm	Covered dish dinner followed by Christmas pageant

Remember to Vote - On Tuesday, November 4, we have a privilege that many, in other countries, do not have - the privilege to vote. This is an important election - please get out and express your opinion - it counts. Whoever Americans elect will need our prayers!

The apostle Paul, the first great missionary, in his letters to the early church in the first century (the Biblical books commonly known as Romans, Corinthians, etc.) routinely addresses members as "saints." Depending on which translation of the Bible you have, this word may also be translated "holy people" or "God's own people." How do you feel being called a saint or even a holy person?

So often, people think of saints as people who lived a long time ago. Maybe someone who performed a miracle. Certainly someone who was a wonderful example of the Christian faith. Members of Lutheran churches generally do not pray through the saints, preferring to pray directly to Father, Son and Holy Spirit. As I Timothy 2:5 reminds us, there is one Mediator between God and humanity - Jesus Christ. Yet, saints are very much part of our faith tradition. According to Luther, as Jesus’s followers, we are all saints and sinners at the same time.

On Sunday, November 2, we celebrate "All Saints Sunday" at St. Mark. Often people think about and remember loved ones who are no longer with us on this day. That is fine, but maybe this year you might also take time to reflect upon (and somehow recognize or thank) the saints that are a part of your life today. Who are the people that play a role in your faith journey? Who are the people in whom you see the love of Christ through their actions. None of them are perfect people but they are forgiven people and are God's saints. And so are you! May your life reflect who God has declared you to be so that others might see Jesus in you. Not just in church, but at work, at home and in the community.

Be sure to turn your clocks back an hour on Saturday night, November 1. Otherwise, you will be one hour early for Sunday School and church!

During November, we will be collecting canned goods, paper products, baby food, boxes of cereal and other non-perishable items to be given to the Westbrook Park Food Pantry. This is a great way to show God how grateful you are for the wonderful blessings you have received. Bring an item each week and put it around the altar through November 23 and in the wheelbarrow in the Narthex on November 30.

On Sunday, November 2, Christians celebrate All Saints’ Sunday when we remember saints who impact(ed) our lives. Is there someone who was special in your life that you want to remember or honor? To learn more, read the special copy of Pastor Chris’s letter at the end (his letter normally appears only in the adult newsletter but you will enjoy reading this one).

Don't forget this month's youth dance on Friday, November 7, from 7-10 PM. Remember the dance is for kids 4th through 6th grade. Eleventh and twelth grade students can earn money as chaperones!

Don't forget that Sunday School classes will not be held on Sunday, November 16, as the teachers who do such a great job every week, along with all the helpers, will be enjoying a special breakfast as they plan this year's Christmas Pageant.

We all have much to be thankful for. At St. Mark, we are celebrating Thanksgiving with a special Sunday night Worship Service, November 23, at 6 pm. Following worship, we will have a complete turkey dinner. Bring your appetite and enjoy a great meal for only $3 (if you are under 12), as long your parents sign you up and pay in advance. Want to go free? Pastor Chris has five tickets available for the first five kids who ask him in person in church!

Whenever you volunteer at St. Mark in the Coffee Stop or at a Senior Dinner or Feeding the Homeless or at stuff like a Flea Market/Pumpkin Patch/Community Fun Day, don't forget to sign into the Youth Account Book kept at the Coffee Stop. You can earn so much money by serving God at St. Mark that youth retreats won't cost you a penny! For more information, speak with Pastor Chris.

Our Helping Hands group for girls meets, on November 15 (when they will go out to eat) and November 19 (when the older girls will visit a shut-in).