Aquia Church Weekly Announcements
ANNOUNCEMENTS FOR WEEK OF FEBRUARY 2, 2025
IN CASE OF INCLEMENT WEATHER
IN CASE OF INCLEMENT WEATHER: 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. If snow/ice prompts us to cancel Sunday worship services, we are usually able to send out notices via e-mail and Facebook. 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 <https://www.facebook.com/AquiaEpiscopalChurch> for electronic broadcasts of Morning Prayer and midweek Bible studies.
YEAR-END FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION STATEMENTS
YEAR-END FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION STATEMENTS are available for pickup at the back of the church. If you find any discrepancies between your records and ours, please contact parish administrator Sue Selz at the church office (sue.selz@aquiachurch.org or 540-659-4007), so that she can make the necessary adjustments.
RECTOR’S DISCRETIONARY FUND
RECTOR’S DISCRETIONARY FUND: Both of our clergy maintain discretionary funds for providing confidential financial assistance to parishioners, transients, and other neighbors in need for utility cut-off notices, temporary housing, food, and other forms of emergency support. These clergy discretionary accounts receive their funding through honoraria and other donations; they are not regularly supported by the budget. After an autumn and early winter season with many requests for support, Father Morris’s fund is precariously low. Perhaps you could offer a tax-deductible contribution to the rector’s discretionary fund (with “RDF” in the memo line of your check or on your envelope) that would make a favorable difference for folks in need.
CAN YOU COUNT?
CAN YOU COUNT? We are recruiting a few dependable parishioners to serve as counters of the financial contributions we receive. This work generally begins soon after the end of the 10:30 worship service on Sundays, with some teams beginning late Sunday morning, and counters serve approximately once every six weeks. The work of counting offerings is not particularly difficult, it takes place in the Fleurries office building, and our treasurer, Chris Arey (treasurer@aquiachurch.org), will gladly explain the duties involved in this important ministry.
SCHEDULING
SCHEDULING: If your ministry group wants to change its standard meeting place or meeting time, please make arrangements with parish administrator Sue Selz BEFORE announcing the change. This way, Sue can check our calendar for availability and potential conflicts, and she can alert others who might be affected your plans (such as our janitorial service, various ministry groups, and outside organizations who meet here). Our parish administrator (sue.selz@aquiachurch.org or 540-659-4007) is the point of contact who coordinates everything between Aquia Church groups and all others who spend time on our campus.
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.). Father Morris continues his new Morning Call series dealing with selected issues in Christian bioethics.
WEDNESDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY
WEDNESDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY: Father Morris continues his new Wednesday evening series on the Book of Exodus; it’s certainly not too late to join in, and on Feb. 5 we will cover Exodus chapters 18-20. This series begins at 7:00 p.m. online at our Facebook page <www.facebook.com/AquiaEpiscopalChurch>. Even if you do not have a Facebook account, you can still access this series simply by clicking on the given occasion. Also, you do not have to watch the broadcasts live; the videos are stored there for your viewing at any subsequent time that is more convenient for you.
THURSDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY
THURSDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY: Father James Rickenbaker continues his new series on the Gospel according to Luke on most Thursday evenings. We hope you can join us in person (starting at 6:00 p.m.); if not, the broadcasts are available online at our Facebook page <www.facebook.com/AquiaEpiscopalChurch>.
ANNUAL PLEDGE CAMPAIGN
ANNUAL PLEDGE CAMPAIGN: As of Jan. 28, we have received 66 pledge cards with a total of $325,732 for God’s mission and ministry here in 2025—plus 30 pledges for the Heritage Endowment Fund with a total of $116,960. If you have not yet turned in your pledge cards with a financial commitment for 2025, then please return it to the church office soon or put it in the offering plate soon. Blank pledge cards are available from the tall table at the back of the historic church or from the church office. We can also provide a small packet of information that explains the importance of pledging. If you have any questions or concerns about pledging, please speak confidentially with Father Morris or with our treasurer, Chris Arey (treasurer@aquiachurch.org).
RETIRING OUR MORTGAGE DEBT
RETIRING OUR MORTGAGE DEBT: This year we continue to receive contributions (with “new building” marked on the envelope or on the memo line of your check) toward retiring our mortgage debt on the Christian Formation and Fellowship Building (CFFB).
YOUTH GROUP EVENING MEETINGS
YOUTH GROUP EVENING MEETINGS: Our next evening meeting for teenagers in grades 6-12 will be held on Feb. 9 & 23 (5:00—6:00 p.m.) on our every-other-week rotation. On Feb. 9, we’ll have our own version of that day’s Super Bowl matchup between the Eagles and the Chiefs. In addition, our youth group’s morning meetings take place basically every Sunday morning of the school year (9:30—10:15 a.m.) in the youth group room. For more information, please contact one of the clergy.
FELLOWSHIP BREAKFAST
FELLOWSHIP BREAKFAST: There are plenty of Sundays awaiting folks to serve as breakfast hosts in the new year, starting with Feb. 16 & 23. If you want to serve as a breakfast host for any Sunday in the months ahead, 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.
GUILD OF ALL SOULS
GUILD OF ALL SOULS: Members of the Guild of All Souls are praying for these people associated with Aquia Church who have died in recent months: Anne Rose Bennett, William Dill, Louise Gary, Roy Korth, Robert Tilly, Sandra Bryant, Lauren Meinhardt, Drucilla Gosnell, Nancy White, Gregory Bradford, Mary Karcher, Rose Bourne, and Joy Stevenson. This guild is an Anglican devotional society whose members include parishioner William Johnston; please contact him directly if you have any questions about this ministry.
NEWS FROM AQUIA’S TABLE
NEWS FROM AQUIA’S TABLE: For a variety of reasons, Aquia’s Table is shifting gears in its ministry. Effective this week, Aquia’s Table is now serving meals on the first and third Wednesdays of each month, rather than every week. Also, 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 Tuesdays and 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 Briget Kane (bkwings_n_things@yahoo.com). Our other food ministry, Aquia’s Pantry, will continue its current schedule of distributing groceries every week.
Aquia’s Pantry Mid-January UPDATE
Aquia’s Pantry Mid-January UPDATE: As of Jan. 19, the Pantry has given out 184 sets of groceries: 50 sets on New Years Day, and 135 sets on Jan. 15. We did not open on Jan. 8 because Stafford County Public Schools cancelled classes for snow/ice, and our church campus is closed for all ministries when this occurs. On both days when we were open, our guests received a dozen eggs in addition to the usual bags of bread, desserts, produce, frozen meats, and shelf-stable groceries. The eggs come to us from a grant that we share with Aquia’s Table from SERVE.
More good news this month: the Pantry received 827 pounds of Christmas candy and cookies from Target! As you may recall, a bag of candy is sent home for each child in a family as their parents or grandparents pick up their groceries. This gift from Target will make a lot of children happy. We also have started receiving Day-End Dough-Nations from a second Panera Bread location. One of our volunteers has singlehandedly taken on this weekly pick-up task from the Embrey Mill Panera. For all these wonderful extra donations and for our awesome volunteers who retrieve these donations, we give thanks to God. We are also grateful for the many anonymous gifts that have been quietly left in the great hall.
Our current needs include boxes of cereal, cans of tomato sauce, and jars of peanut butter, as well as brown paper grocery bags and egg cartons. If you have questions, suggestions, or offers to help, please reach out to Ron Korth, Barb Bingay, or Mary Jane Cole (maryjane@cfsw.biz).
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. Also, as part of our ongoing effort for good stewardship at various levels, Aquia’s Table will prepare a maximum total of 400 meals on the first and third Wednesdays of each month, and Aquia’s Pantry will distribute groceries to a maximum of 140 households each week.
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.
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.
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, which is <www.facebook.com/AquiaEpiscopalChurch>. Even if you do not have a Facebook account, you can still 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 at any subsequent time that is more convenient for you.
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).
