Grace Notes

Grace Notes

THE NEWSLETTER OF GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH

Dear Members and Friends, A time honored way of viewing Lent is as a pilgrimage. In a real pilgrimage one actually goes somewhere to visit a holy site or a place of significance historically or to ones family. Thinking of Lent as a pilgrimage from Ash Wednesday to Easter allows us to view each service, each devotion or bible study or church related activity as a stop along the way as we make use of time during the weeks of Lent to take us to Jerusalem and the great events of Holy Week and Easter. On Palm Sunday we recreate Jesus entry into Jerusalem and begin our observation of the critical moments in His last week. The bell choir will treat us to special music. Morning Prayer is offered Monday - Friday during Holy Week at 8:30 a.m. and is a meaningful way to walk with Jesus through the events leading up to his arrest and crucifixion. Lent officially comes to a close on Holy Wednesday and is followed by the Tridium or Great Three Days. Our Maundy Thursday morning prayer will be a service of confession and at 7 p.m. we will observe the last supper and conclude with the stripping of the altar. Good Friday morning we will have the Passion according to St. John read and at 7 p.m. Tenebrae will be observed. Following Tenebrae the Stations of the Cross will be available by candlelight in the Fellowship Hall. Our pilgrimage will conclude on Easter morning with services at 6:30 a.m. and 10:15 a.m. The youth will provide breakfast at 7:30 a.m. The bell choir will be at the 10:15 service with special music. The services this time of year are special and help us understand and appreciate what our Lord has done for us. Walk With Me, Pastor David Almleaf

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Altar Flowers April & May

April 6 - Sandra & Bob Jackson April 13 - William Fensken April 20 - Nancy & Lou Blanchard Special Arrangement - Secret Prayer Pal April 27 - Deb & David Seward May 4 - David Gaugler Special Arrangement - Barb Frederick May 11 - Maryland Warner May 18 - Nancy Blanchard May 25 - Clem & Carol Hennessey Special Arrangement - Dorian & Tabetha Angus Altar flowers are $33.00 unless you share a Sunday then they would be $16.50 each vase. If you wish to place a special arrangement in the Sanctuary the cost would be whatever you would like to spend. Nancy Blanchard (762-4234) and Linda Bumpus (725-1927) are the Altar Flower coordinators.

Bread Bakers April & May

April 6 - Cindy Walsh April 13 - Helen Schreivogl April 17 - Peggy Niforos (Maundy Thursday) April 20 - Peggy Niforos (2 Services on Easter) April 27 - Carol Hennessey May 4 - Cindy Walsh May 25 - Linda Morley Please find someone to replace you if you cannot bake bread the Sunday you are scheduled and whenever possible, tell the church secretary so the bulletin can reflect the change. Thank you, Peggy Niforos

Counters for April & May

04/06 - Charlotte Petersen, Darleen Gaugler, Bonnie 04/27 - Nancy Blanchard, Greta Davis, Bonnie 05/04 - Nancy Demarest, Ron & Jackie Hollenbeck 05/11 - Nancy Demarest, Ron & Jackie Hollenbeck 05/18 - Charlotte Petersen, Darleen Gaugler, Bonnie 05/25 - Charlotte Petersen, Darleen Gaugler, Bonnie

Prayers of the Church

Please notify the church office when your prayers have been answered so your prayer concern can be removed from the list that Pastor raises up to God on Sunday morning. Thank you.

(I) - Intinction Sunday (R) - Rail Sunday April 6 (R) - Marion Pellegrino April 13 (R) - Joan Longfritz April 17 (R) - Peg Niforos (Maundy Thursday) April 20 (R) - Nancy Demarest (2 Services-Easter) April 27 (R) - Darleen Gaugler May 4 (R) - Carol Hennessey May 11 (I) - Don Phelps May 18 (I) - Nancy Demarest May 25 (R) - Joan Longfritz Please find someone to replace you if you cannot make the Sunday you are scheduled and whenever possible, tell Bonnie so that the bulletin can reflect the change.

Holy Week Schedule - April 13th - 20th

10:15 a.m. - Palm Sunday procession with palms, reading of the passion, special music by the bell choir 3:00 p.m. - Palm Sunday Concert at Foothills UMC 8:30 a.m. - Monday - Friday - Morning Prayer 8:30 a.m. - Maundy Thursday - Service of Confession 7:00 p.m. - Observance of the last supper and stripping of the altar 8:30 a.m. - Good Friday - the Passion according to St. John will be read If you know of anyone in need of daily prayers for the healing of body, mind or soul, please call Bobbi Nigro (725-6781) or Nancy 7:00 p.m. - Tenebrae will be observed followed by Demarest (725-8704). If requesting in person, please submit the Stations of the Cross in Fellowship Hall. name(s) in writing and add your name at the bottom. To further 10:00 a.m. - Saturday, Easter egg hunt at the bandshell assist, please reconnect with that member of the Prayer Chain within 2 weeks to verify the condition of the person(s) receiving 6:30 a.m. - Easter Sunrise Service prayer. All requests are held in confidence unless otherwise des- 7:30 a.m. - Breakfast served by the youth ignated. Thank you. 10:15 a.m. - Easter Service with bell choir

Prayer Chain Ministry

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To the Prayer Ministry, Thank you for providing communion to our ladies and also for the valentines. Your thoughtfulness is very much appreciated. Sincerely, Mary Jane Knapp Correspondence Secretary for The Willing Helpers Home for Women

When my sister passed away on Monday March 24th, I mentioned to Marion Pellegrino that our family was going to use the fellowship hall for a bereavement meal. She said oh, no, we will do the meal for you, and from there she organized a wonderful meal. Thank you Marion, and thank you everyone who eagerly pitched in to help her, whether it was to bring food, bake desserts, set & clean up. The way everyone always is happy to do something like this never ceases to amaze me. Thanks to Pastor for comforting and encouraging me and to Alison Martin for singing Amazing Grace after a full 11 p.m. - 7 a.m. shift in the ER. My family really appreciated the meal and are still talking about how delicious everything was. I feel truly blessed and loved. Bonnie

Have dinner out and support our youth all at the same time!!!! On Wednesday April 9th from 5 - 7 p.m. our youth will be at the Gloversville McDonalds cleaning tables, etc. 20% of the profits go to our youth group for their trip to Detroit in 2015 - so Big Mac here we come!!

Sunday April 20th (7:30 - 8:30 a.m.) Serve Easter Breakfast here at Grace

May 2nd & 3rd - Johnstowns city wide garage sale will take place. Our Youth Group will be setting up tables in the church parking lot. Now is the time to clean out those attics and cellars. Clean usable items are welcomed. Thursday May 1st will be set-up day so you may bring your items to the

DO YOU HAVE RETURNABLE BOTTLES AND CANS that are clogging up space in your home? Do you hate the thought of taking them to the store to return? If so, just bring them to church and leave them in the box next to the side entrance. Someone from the Youth Group will return them to help defray the cost of their trip to Detroit in July 2015. Thanks for supporting them! As a further note, the Youth Group is continuing to collect old and used cell phones. There is a

church anytime the week before. There will also be a bake sale so any baked goods are certainly appreciated.

Saturday June 14th (10 a.m. - 2 p.m.) Car wash at McDonalds

box in the narthex where you can leave them.

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We are very excited about our church family album and are hoping for 100% participation. It is the most important way that we have to meet those of our church family that we have not had the opportunity to meet. Our album is as important to our church family as your family photo album is to you in your home. You will also find the family roster very useful for phone numbers and addresses. Just like your family portrait, our Family Church album will become a very important keepsake in the years to come. The album/directory will be put together by

Lifetouch Directories and Portraits

Photography Dates at our Church Friday May 16th - 2 - 9 p.m. Saturday May 17th - 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Someone will be in the narthex for sign-ups beginning Sunday April 6th. If you are unable to come to church and would like to be in the directory, please call the church office Tuesday -Friday 9am-1pm and well set you up with an appointment. The picture for the directory is of no cost to you, but if you choose to purchase more pictures, bring a food item for the food pantry and you will receive a $5.00 off certificate.

The Cross
From Ash Wednesday through Good Friday, there will be a cross in the narthex. You will see a box with a nail and a red ribbon attached to it and some push pins. Through your journey of Lent please feel free to use a push to attach the nail and ribbon to the cross. This represents your sins that Jesus took with him when he was crucified. Come now, let us reason together says the Lord! Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson they shall be like wool. Isaiah 1:18 Submitted by the prayer Ministry, Marion Pellegrino, Anna Butez, Greta Davis and Karen Ryder

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Remember Our Shut-Ins

At Home:
Eleanor Achzet Eileen Spawn Florence Sandner Ruth Seiler Helene Keach

Nathan Littauer Nursing Home:

Donna Mae Batty Ruth Brownell Shirley Snyder

Wells House:
Geraldine Moldt

Willing Helpers:
Lorraine Muller Dona Frey

Pineview Commons:

Prayer Concerns
Marianne Jones Rick Hennessey Grandstaff Family The Marshall Family The Gleeman Family Ron Bell Ella Congdon Kyle Fonda Marion Pellegrino Esther Bienick Eleanor Fallis Ginny Cameron Morgan Sandmier Ray Rulison Crystal Evans Pastor Rees Rohrbacher Karen Ryder Marlene Slingerland Carol Cromer Donna Frederick Ethel Lincoln

All those who have served and for all those who are now serving in the armed forces, especially:
Scott Bumpus Brandon Caldwell Tony Clemente Brad Coody John Ferrara Kevin Funk Zachary Goot Jordan Keeling Denise & Jacob Lockwood Thomas Szumowski And for our enemies

Please pray for NOAH, Fridays Table, the food pantries of Johnstown & Gloversville and for those in need of them. Please pray for those who are out of work and searching for jobs.

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A Note From Susan
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To My Dear Friends in Grace, March 25, 2014: Home sweet home in Kentucky. Glad us Gleemans are settled back in. William and Leah had to stay at Cincinnati Childrens Hospital for 12 days for an antibiotic IV cleanout from 3/12-3/23 due to low pulmonary function tests (PFT's). The challenges are ever present of maintaining the rigorous treatment schedules due to their complications of cystic fibrosis with Leah visiting the hospital more often and has been admitted for several days every month since October. This means a lot of trips back and forth. Our vehicles are wearing thin. But we don't mind driving to such a great facility that has all the specialists in one place. The medical professionals there know children and have been rated the number 1 hospital in our nation for children's cancer, number 2 in pulmonary, and number 3 in gastroenterology. We use the latter 2 departments regularly along with endocrinology, nephrology, and hepatology. Leah has been on and off of their liver transplant list depending on the risks and benefits at different times, but it's looking closer to transplant in the not too distant future. All this makes us parents in a constant state of apprehension and anxiety that only our good Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ can see us through. We are thankful to have had so many wonderful experiences with prayerful Christian people such as yourselves to bring us to the light and truth of His saving grace and we depend on His word through lessons in the Holy Bible to give us all the answers we need in this life. We don't know how people can live without Him. Speaking of which, some of you may know the artist, Lawrence Faust (known as Faust) and his wife Miriam. They were recently both admitted to Nathan Littauer Hospital as it appears Faust has had a stroke and Miriam could not stay by herself as she has significant Alzheimer's Disease. Also some of you may know the Egelston Family in Fonda who have 2 cystic fibrosis children out of 4. Please include them in your prayers. Please know that you too are in our prayers as we learn of sickness or loss of loved ones. We understand that you northerners have had a very cold, snowy winter. We too experienced some atypical wintry weather. Since there is hardly any equipment that will tackle snow and ice along the narrow, steep, curvy roads around here, the schools have closed a total of 24 days due to hazardous driving conditions for the school buses. But spring is now upon us. Although there are remnants of cold weather, the daffodils are almost finished blooming and dandelions are close behind along with lots of bulbs and perennials pushing their way up. Pastures are greening and the sun feels real goooood! Calves are being born everyday and our lambs are running and jumping happily enjoying munching on the grass with their mothers, brothers and sisters. The father is out of the picture as he became aggressive and then became mutton. We will be selling some of the flock. We also turned 2 male hogs into meat and have a mama and her 3 pigs getting fattened up. We share some meat and the freezers are full. We often see deer running across fields, but don't have room for venison at this point. They are pretty to watch. We also enjoy the abundance of birds at the feeder such as finches, woodpeckers, blue jays, bluebirds, starlings and plenty of bright red cardinals (Kentucky's state bird). God's creation is amazing! Steve continues to travel through much territory as he works for Mr.Tarter of Tarter Gates fixing his fencing which is always in need of repair somewhere on his thousands of acres. By the way, we happen to live in the "gate manufacturing capital of the world" so this line of work offers much local employment for many. I continue to substitute teach sporadically remaining flexible due to circumstances beyond my control. Our church family continues to be a blessing as we reach out to one another through the power of prayer. The music is so uplifting and southern gospel hymns really touch the soul. I enjoy getting to learn so many new hymns through my piano accompaniment at the church, at the local nursing home and other gatherings with some musical people we've met. Pot luck suppers are common place and give a venue for fellowship. We wish you and yours all the best for a very Happy Easter and for the renewal of spring! God Bless you all with love from, Susan Gleeman and Family, 606-787-6045, gleeman@windstream.net

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April Birthdays
1George Slingerland Jr. Crystal Mitchell Kneeland Robert VanSlyke Sara Stortecky James McGrattan Vickie Edick Kathleen Van Valkenburgh Lorraine Seiler Ian Chamberlaine Melissa Baker Thomas Bradt Elizabeth Coppernoll Raymond Rulison Tiffany Smith Ruth Seiler Sandy Jackson Karriann Ruggiero Jeremy Bradt Sherry Warner Jamie Bradt Dylan Miller Stephen Craig Helga Fensken Kimberly Hohler Milton Dorn Cody Brown Chris Rohrs Rhyleigh Bills Olivia Vige Nikki Hathaway Grady Shea Robert Warner Raymond Peck Palm Sunday 13 14 15 Haley Claes Donald Wicksell Robert Walters Patrick Paxton William Fensken Heather Ruf Ed Hill Theodore (TJ) Bradt Erica Elzenbeck Karen Williams Toni Hubley Kimberly Baird Betty Younglove Easter Joyce Robbins Mary Alice Gaudens Wendy Hollenbeck Ross Snell Kimmie Sutton Matt Flint Sandra Goderie Tyler Unislawski Justin Unislawski Jaye Evangelista Louis Blanchard Timothy Snell Jr. Casey Van Valkenburgh Christine Petersen Anna Butez Jessica Robbins Barbara Rhodes Bob Gargiulo John Healy

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May Birthdays
1Richard Van Slyke Ed Congdon Garrett Bobowski John Darling Jr. Ada Mrazz Emily Frasier Carisa Miller James Hing Rebecca Pianelli Nicholas Ligon Katherine Van Alstyne Jennifer Wainwright Esther Weaver Robert Spawn Thomas Fraker Jr. Rodney Nielsen Lauryn Pianelli Stacey Morley Heather Wolenik Cheryl Van Alstyne Happy Mothers Day Cynthia Clo Linda Bumpus Phyllis Wright Stephanie Haskin Allison Claire Gregory Allison Claire Gregory Margaret Hastings Erik Johnson Paul Stemmler Sarah Mraz Kathlena Rose Berecka Don Phelps Rebecca Ferry Kristie Sammons Shirley Frederick Audrey Rulison 18 19 20 21 Mary Phelps Barry Schuyler, Sr. Charlene Brothers Carol Preston Carol Paxton Spencer Lord Trisha Bobowski Karl Blanchard Larry Preston Tabetha Angus Betty Harrington James Wallace Charlotte Petersen Jeannine Schwartz Cheryl Walsh Joshua Brown Archie Baird Lawrence Snyder Jennifer Edick Herringshaw Taz Taylor Ronald McClain Michael Russo Dean Spiry Carly Brown Daniel Miller Barbara Cline Bonnie Flint Frederick John Harrington Linda Amberger Monica DiScioscia Carlee Fiorillo Mary Winne Matthew Van Slyke Joshua Harvey Fountain Caitlin Taylor Dingman

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THANK YOU
TO ALL WHO ATTENDED THE Lutheran World Relief -Mission Quilt Workshop March 23rd
Imagine the comfort that comes with a hug when someone is in a time of deepest need. Through a simple combination of fabric and thread, you can reach out to those with some of the greatest needs in the world, not wrapping them in your arms, but wrapping them in the work of your hands through a Lutheran World Relief Quilt. In order to support Lutheran World Reliefs effort to gather 500,000 quilts this year, the Quilt Group that meets Tuesdays at Grace held a LWR Mission Quilt Workshop on March 23 rd. Those who attended helped the group tie 4 quilts and designed 3 more. That brings the total quilts in the process of being completed up to 16 well on the groups way to a goal of 25 (or more) quilts. If you would like to continue to help the cause, consider a monetary donation. There is a need to purchase backing and batting for the quilts. The group will also be sending the quilts to LWR, so shipping is another expense and LWR would like donations to their shipping costs. You can give monetary donations (checks made out to Grace Lutheran Church) to any of the quilt group members from Grace: Audrey Goebel, Sandy Jackson, Sandy Miller, Peggy Niforos, Carolyn Peck, Charlotte Petersen and Helen Schreivogl.

A few of the places the LWR quilts are headed in 2014 Chad Refugees from Sudan and the Central African Republic will receive quilts to keep them warm while they are far from home. Philippines Quilts will go to those who continue to suffer from the devastation of Typhoon Haiyan. Peru Struggling communities will receive Quilts to help reduce financial burden and provide for basic needs. Tanzania Quilts will go to orphanages, homes for the elderly and childrens hospitals to use as bedding, so that these institutions operating on shoe -string budgets can use their resources for other necessities. Thailand For Burmese refugees living in Thailand, living in temporary shelters in camps is the surest way to survive the long and exhausting 60 years of conflict raging in their home country. They provide comfort and much needed protection from the wind and rain. India Quilts will be distributed to hospitals, orphanages, homes for the elderly and infirm and also to community members facing poverty.

ALSO WANTED: Old sheets and Blankets that can be used for backing or filler for the quilts New and Like-New Blankets measuring approximately 60 X 80 for LWR they send these blankets out just like they do the quilts (no electric blankets or afghans please)

Easter Lily Order Form

Deadline: Sunday, April 13, 2014 Approximate cost $20.00 each Name: ________________________________Phone: ___________________________ Amount of Donation: ____________________ Envelope No. ____________________ In memory of: ___________________________________________________________ In honor of: _____________________________________________________________

To the Glory of God ______________________________________________________

I will deliver a plant to a shut-in _____________________________________________
(Shut-ins name)

Due to limited space in the sanctuary to place them, we have ordered 25 lilies so it will be on a first come first served basis. You may bring your own or if you wish to just donate in memory or honor of your loved one and have it published in the Easter bulletin you may do so and your donation will go to the garden fund. Please make you check out to Grace Lutheran Church and return it with this order form. Thank you. If you plan to take your plant, you may do so after the 10:15 a.m. service or during the week following Easter.