IN CASE OF INCLEMENT WEATHER

IN CASE OF INCLEMENT WEATHER: When snow/ice prompts us to cancel Sunday worship services, we are usually able to send out notices via e-mail and Facebook. When snow/ice prompts Stafford County Public Schools to close, all in-person activities at Aquia Church that day will close as well; that is particularly true for Aquia’s Pantry and Aquia’s Table, which do not operate when the roads are unsafe with snow/ice. When there are forecasts for snow/ice, we trust parishioners and visitors to exercise caution in trying to attend in-person worship services and other activities, and we encourage you to rely on our Facebook page, which is <https://www.facebook.com/AquiaEpiscopalChurch>, for electronic broadcasts of Morning Prayer and midweek Bible studies.

LENTEN DINNER-AND-DISCUSSION SERIES

LENTEN DINNER-AND-DISCUSSION SERIES: Our annual Lenten dinner-and-discussion series will begin on the first Thursday in Lent (Feb. 19) and run for six Thursday evenings through the end of March, staring at 6:00 p.m. This year’s book is The True Story of the Whole World: Finding Your Place in the Biblical Drama by Michael Goheen and Craig Bartholomew (rev. ed. 2020), which is available for purchase for $10 (payable directly to Jay Morris); you may also purchase the Kindle e-book version on your own. If you want to be involved in this series, please sign up at church, indicating how many people will be coming for the hearty soup-and-salad meal, how many copies of the paperback you need, and how many children in your family will need childcare during the discussion. Join us for dinner, conversation, fellowship, and spiritual growth.

THURSDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY

THURSDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY: For this Thursday, Jan. 29, Father James Rickenbaker’s series on the apostle Paul’s letter to the Philippians will be available only online, starting at 6:00 p.m., at our Facebook page <www.facebook.com/AquiaEpiscopalChurch>. Broadcasts of recent sessions are available there too. This series’s usual format (both in-person and online) will resume on Thursday, Feb. 5.

PANCAKE BREAKFAST

PANCAKE BREAKFAST: The ECW will hold a Shrove-Tuesday-style pancake breakfast on Sunday, Feb. 15, from 8:30 till 10:15 (between the end of the 7:30 service and the start of the 10:30 service). Come one, come all! Be ready for bacon, pancakes, applesauce, and other breakfast sides. Bring your festiveness and eat all the good things!

NEWS FROM ANNUAL MEETING

NEWS FROM ANNUAL MEETING: At our parish’s annual meeting on Jan. 4, four parishioners (Andrew Albers, Sheila Harrell, Carolyn Hendrickson, and Russ Moore) were elected to 3-year terms on the vestry, and parishioner Doug McGinty was elected to a 1-year term. Also, Father Jay Morris announced that a group of supporters has offered up to $250,000 to be used for a matching challenge in an upcoming capital campaign that seeks to build up our endowment fund that would enable capital improvements for our properties that do not already have endowments (i.e., properties other than the historic church and the cemetery). Subsequently, the vestry elected Joe Howard as senior warden, with Brad Hammer continuing as junior warden, Chris Arey continuing as treasurer, and Charlie Bingay continuing as assistant treasurer.

FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION STATEMENTS

FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION STATEMENTS: End-of-year statements for 2025 are available for pickup at church. Any discrepancies between your records and ours should be referred to parish administrator Sue Selz or treasurer Chris Arey for resolution.

NOTES FROM OUR TREASURER: For in-kind donations made during 2025 which have not previously been identified, parishioners are asked to provide the receipts to the office as soon as possible. In the event that in-kind receipts are not received by the church office before end-of-year contribution statements are produced, the Treasurer will provide a separate statement for these in-kind donations.

When seeking reimbursement for an in-kind contribution, please consider holding your request until you reach a threshold of $25.00. This assists the office in reducing paperwork for processing small-dollar-amount transactions.

DONATING THROUGH ZELLE

DONATING THROUGH ZELLE: You may now contribute to Aquia Church with this convenient electronic service. Simply send funds to <treasurer@aquiachurch.org>.

MORNING CALL

MORNING CALL: Morning Call is our Sunday morning forum for adult formation and discussion, held in the great hall (9:30—10:15 a.m.). At Morning Call on this coming Sunday, Father Jay Morris will continue his new series on gratitude.

SUNDAY SCHOOL

SUNDAY SCHOOL: Our regular schedule for Sunday school classes (9:30—10:15 a.m.) has resumed.

YOUTH GROUP

YOUTH GROUP: Our youth group for teens in grades 6-12 will resume their weekly morning meeting during the Sunday school hour (9:30—10:15 a.m.) on this coming Sunday, Feb. 1 in the youth group room, with our next every-other-week evening meeting on Feb. 8 (5:00—6:00 p.m.).

FELLOWSHIP BREAKFAST

FELLOWSHIP BREAKFAST: There are plenty of Sundays awaiting folks to serve as breakfast hosts. If you want to serve as a breakfast host for any Sunday, please use the signup sheet at the back of the church, or contact Sue Selz in the church office (sue.selz@aquiachurch.org or 540-659-4007). Please consider taking a turn in promoting fellowship within our parish through this weekly breakfast. The breakfast can be as simple or elaborate as you wish to provide.

WEDNESDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY

WEDNESDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY: Postponed until further notice.

ALTAR FLOWERS

ALTAR FLOWERS: Those who want to donate flowers in memory of someone or in thanksgiving for someone or something for most any Sunday of the year may contact parish administrator Sue Selz in the church office and select a particular Sunday; the signup sheet is also available at the back of the church. The cost is $50/week. Even if a given Sunday has already been claimed, you may add your name and dedication for that same Sunday. Traditionally, we do not have flower arrangements during Lent or Advent, but most other Sundays during the year remain available.

FROM OUR FOOD MINISTRIES

FROM OUR FOOD MINISTRIES: The long lines of guests coming on Wednesdays for food from Aquia’s Pantry and Aquia’s Table likely reflect the ongoing financial need among so many neighbors around us. This level of outreach is possible because of the generosity of support from faithful volunteers and donations from many different people and groups—from among our parishioners and beyond our church membership. If you can offer some support to these ministries (especially with your time on Tuesday mornings and during the day and early evening on Wednesdays or with financial contributions), your help will be deeply appreciated. Aquia’s Table prepares a maximum total of 400 meals on the first and third Wednesdays of each month, and Aquia’s Pantry distributes groceries to a maximum of 140 households each week. Please note: when Stafford County Public Schools are closed for inclement weather, our food ministries do not operate that day.

AQUIA’S PANTRY EARLY FEBRUARY UPDATE

AQUIA’S PANTRY EARLY FEBRUARY UPDATE: The Pantry was blessed with enough food and volunteers to give groceries to 145 families on Jan. 21. Unfortunately, due to the ice and bitter cold on Jan. 28, we were not able to open on that day. We received several wonderful gifts in late January: 100 pounds of pasta from an anonymous donor, a $2000.00 gift from the Stafford Fraternal Order of Eagles (Wayne D. Clark Aerie 4488), and another new volunteer. We are so grateful to God for these affirming blessings. Our needs this month include boxes of cereal and pasta, and jars of peanut butter. If you have a student who needs school or Scout service hours, they can be earned any Wednesday evening between 5:00 and 7:30 at the Pantry. For further information, please contact Ron Korth, Barb Bingay, or Mary Jane Cole (maryjane@cfsw.biz).

NEWS FROM AQUIA’S TABLE

NEWS FROM AQUIA’S TABLE: Aquia’s Table serves meals on the first and third Wednesdays of each month. There are opportunities for folks to join in the work of this important ministry, whether as a new volunteer or whether returning to involvement—we welcome assistance with food preparation during the day on Wednesdays, with plating the meals on Wednesday evenings, and with baking desserts on your own schedule at home or at church. For more information about how you might support Aquia’s Table, please contact Dina Stanford (jjanddina@comcast.net).

NURSERY AVAILABLE

NURSERY AVAILABLE: Our nursery, located on the lower level of the Christian Formation and Fellowship Building (just across the hallway from the elevator), is available for the 10:30 a.m. worship service, with coverage provided by caring, trained, and experienced staff—plus lots of toys, diapers and wipes, a pack-and-play, and whatever else your child or grandchild might need.

BUSY BAGS

BUSY BAGS: Busy bags are available in the historic church for our youngest members. A child’s Bible, activity pages, drawing paper, and crayons are available in canvas bags when you enter the church. Please take one bag per family and return it after the service ends.

ELECTRONIC BROADCASTS

ELECTRONIC BROADCASTS: We offer broadcasts of Sunday morning worship at 7:30 a.m., Morning Prayer on most weekdays at 8:00 a.m., and our midweek Bible studies as well. These broadcasts are particularly helpful for those who are unable to attend in person due to illness, travel, or work. The broadcasts are available online at our church’s Facebook page <www.facebook.com/AquiaEpiscopalChurch>. Even if you do not have a Facebook account, you can access the broadcasts simply by clicking on the given occasion. Also, you do not have to watch the event live; the videos are stored there for your viewing later on.

If you want to be added to our e-mail distribution list for weekly announcements and special updates or for the monthly Cross Section newsletter, simply notify Sue Selz in the church office (sue.selz@aquiachurch.org or 540-659-4007).