LENTEN DINNER-AND-DISCUSSION SERIES

LENTEN DINNER-AND-DISCUSSION SERIES: Our annual Lenten dinner-and-discussion series will begin on this Thurdsay, 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.

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.). On this coming Sunday, Feb. 22, Father Jay Morris will begin a new series about the New Testament’s various uses of the Old Testament.

COMMUNION ENRICHMENT CLASS

COMMUNION ENRICHMENT CLASS: Our children’s ministry will offer a communion enrichment class (sometimes called a ‘first communion’ class) on the Sunday mornings in Lent (so starting on this coming Sunday, Feb. 22) from 9:00 till 9:30, immediately before Sunday school begins. This series is available for any youngster, including those who have not been receiving communion but are preparing to start doing so; this program is also available for students who have been involved in such a class before but would benefit from a refresher. This course will explain various aspects of the Eucharist, so that this experience of worship becomes more meaningful. In order to indicate your family’s interest in participating, please contact our director of Christian education, Kim Bamber (christianed@aquiachurch.org).

OPTIONS FOR DONATING ELECTRONICALLY

OPTIONS FOR DONATING ELECTRONICALLY: The use of electronic contributions to Aquia Church is a convenient blessing. For your information, this is how they are handled. Contributions made through Realm are processed by VANCO, a third-party firm. We are assessed a 3% fee for this service, and many of you pay an additional 3% of your donation to cover that fee—thank you for doing so! By contrast, we are charged only a 1% fee for contributions made with Zelle; simply send funds to <treasurer@aquiachurch.org>. As a third option, you may be able to use a bill-pay function provided by your financial institution, wherein the institution sends a paper check to the church, for which normally there is no fee at all. For more details on this third option, please consult your financial institution directly.

YOUTH GROUP

YOUTH GROUP: Our youth group for teens in grades 6-12 will have their weekly morning meeting during the Sunday school hour (9:30—10:15 a.m.) on this coming Sunday in the youth group room, with our next every-other-week evening meeting on this coming Sunday, Feb. 22, when we will watch the movie Inside Out 2 (starting at the usual time of 5:00 p.m. but ending later than usual—around 6:45 p.m.—with refreshments served).

SUNDAY SCHOOL

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

AQUIA’S TABLE GOLF TOURNAMENT 2026

AQUIA’S TABLE GOLF TOURNAMENT 2026: Monday, May 18, at Augustine Golf Club in Stafford. Mark your calendars, practice your driving and putting, and recruit your fellow golfers to join in the fun. Registration and sponsorship information is coming soon!

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.

THURSDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY

THURSDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY will not meet during the season of Lent but will resume in early April.

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.

GUILD OF ALL SOULS

GUILD OF ALL SOULS: The Guild of All Souls is an Anglican devotional society whose members pray for the faithful departed, including the following who have recently been included in their prayers: Dolores Coonan, Judy Morris, Leslie Foster, Tommie Bailey, Jan Burck, Lionel Pillay, Charles Banks, and Noel Prince. For more information on this guild and its ministry, please contat parishioner William Johnston.

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 MID-FEBRUARY UPDATE

AQUIA'S PANTRY MID-FEBRUARY UPDATE: After a brutal week of snow and ice, the Pantry was able to reopen on Feb. 4, distributing groceries to 117 families. This was made possible because of the awesome snow removal efforts of Ron Korth, Bill Hoffman, and Cliff Shaw. They cleared not only the parking lots that we all use, but also the road around the cemetery where our guests line up as they wait to receive their groceries. If not for this extraordinary effort, the line of cars would have extended to Rt. 1, causing a huge traffic jam during rush hour. We are so grateful to God for these hearty volunteers.

The Pantry would greatly appreciate your gifts of peanut butter, plus boxes of cereal and mac-and-cheese. We also have an ongoing opportunity for someone willing to pick up breakfast sandwiches from two nearby Wawas each Wednesday in the early afternoon. If you would like to learn more about how the Pantry works and how you can help, please speak to Barb Bingay, Ron Korth, 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).