Below you can find the Vestry News and Review, a monthly message from the Vestry. These are sent out periodically via our newsletter and posted here.
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Vestry News and Review, message from the Vestry Dec. 12, 2024:
A message from Neil Willits, Senior Warden of the Vestry:
In the lead-up to Christmas, Advent gives us the opportunity to ponder gifts, both the gifts we give and the gifts we have received. The fall pledge drive/stewardship campaign of course is a part of this. Speaking on behalf of the church and the Vestry, we are very grateful for the financial support that is shown to St. Martin’s year after year.
But that’s only part of what makes St. Martin’s what it is—what makes it “tick.” The Vestry has been spending time thinking about the vital pieces of the ministry of St. Martin’s, pieces that help define St. Martin’s and yet often go overlooked. For example, most parishioners volunteer to help out in some way (and many help in many ways) to keep the parish running smoothly. Some of these are pretty obvious. Other people volunteer in relatively private ways, such as the folks on the Altar and Flower Guilds, or the people who help our pastoral care efforts.
This past summer, the Vestry decided to recognize groups of volunteers each month that were particularly in our thoughts at the time. One of my goals in writing this is to fill in a gap in our otherwise good intentions by publicly recognizing those volunteers.
The first group the Vestry recognized was the Building and Grounds Committee, the members of which work extensively on the zillion or so maintenance tasks that are constantly popping up. Speaking as a person who has never been called “handy,” I’m amazed at the skills that this small group of parishioners has and at their willingness to step in whenever needed.
The second group we recognized were this year’s stewardship speakers, James Hochbrueckner, Dian Vorters, Francis David, and Jerry Hulbert, who gave us such a compelling picture of the many ways that a connection with St. Martin’s can be felt. I, for one, was deeply moved by their sermonettes, even though I knew them and knew at least part of each of their stories.
This of course barely scratches the surface, so the Vestry is planning on continuing this practice of recognizing volunteers every month in the months to come. That well isn’t going to run dry any time soon. And if you see one of our volunteers at work (particularly the ones who work in private), please thank them for all that they do for St. Martin’s.