Author: AdminAssit

The Examiner

The Newsletter of Epiphany Evangelical Lutheran Church

May 2013

You are invited to join us at the
CONGREGATIONAL SPRING BANQUET
HONORING OUR CONFIRMANDS
On May 19, the young people who have spent the last two years in special study for the affirmation of their baptism, will be confirmed.
In celebration of this event a congregational banquet, hosted by the first year class, is being planned to honor them. All are invited to the banquet which will be in the
Price Hall immediately following the 11:00 a.m. service.
Please make your reservation for the banquet by using the reservation sheet in the Commons, or contacting the church office at 282-6066 or churchoffice@epiphanyelca.org by May 12.
The Second Year Confirmation class includes:

Congratulations Graduates!
We extend congratulations and best wishes to all the 2013 graduates. The problem is that often we have lost track of time and do not know who is currently a senior in high school or college, or graduate school. There is now a "Congrats" section on the bulletin board in the Commons area that should help.
If your youth is graduating, please take the time to write their name on the front of a paper graduation hat. These are located in a basket by the coffee station sink. You may put details on the back, if you would like to add something about their future plans. This will allow the entire church family to celebrate this accomplishment with you and your graduate.

**Summer Sunday Worship Times**
8:30 & 10:30 a.m.
(May 26 -September 1 )
Last Day of Sunday School—May 19

Page #

Council Update
Greetings,
Thank you to all, including attendees, who made Pastor Chris and Terry’s farewell such a memorable experience. The tides of joy in honoring their nearly thirty years of loving dedication, service and Christian leadership in our midst helped wash away the tears that mark the ordeal of saying goodbye. We wish them well and are grateful for God’s call to Epiphany long ago.
Now we move forward, standing on the shoulders of those who went before; boldly in the knowledge that the Holy Spirit will help guide us into yet another exciting future. By the time you receive this letter, three candidates for the position of interim senior pastor will have been interviewed, and an appointment by Bishop Mauney may be pending.
According to Epiphany’s constitution, a call committee of six voting members will be appointed by the congregational council in the coming months. This committee will help oversee the task of calling a new senior pastor. One of the first important tasks in this coming interim will be the development of a mission site profile. This profile of our congregation, which will be made with input from the entire congregation, will enable the call committee to do its work.
During the interim time, Pastor Martin will continue to serve as the Associate Pastor and may be considered as a potential candidate for senior pastor. Once the mission site profile is complete, Pastor Martin will be able to make the decision regarding his candidacy. If Pastor Martin and the congregation do not discern that he is to be a candidate for senior pastor, then he will eventually resign his call as Associate Pastor and seek a call elsewhere.
Over the next several months it will be important that we listen to each other and tend to each other’s needs. It will help to be patient and to trust in the process that leads a congregation in the search for a new leader. To help with that, we intend to provide a forum about the transition process under the leadership of Pastor Tom Bosserman in May. More information on that as it becomes available.
I am especially grateful for the abundance of your many talents and the willingness to share them in our work together. Thank you for this and your prayers.
In faith,
Joel McKean, Pres.
Congregational Council

RALEIGH RINGERS CONCERT TEAM
Needed: A few good people to work together on the many details for our hosting of the Raleigh Ringers on Sunday, August 25 for what will certainly be a fabulous concert for the Greater Richmond community. If you are willing to help out, please contact Tatter Hartmann at tatter@hotmail.com. Please specify what sort of assistance you are most interested in providing: advertising, ticket sales, roustabout, dinner preparation or serving.

Page #

Continued Notes from the Choir Loft
Kevin Barger, Director of Music Ministries

LIFE SCHOOL MUSICAL IS HERE!
Come support our young people as they present “Life School Musical” on Sunday, May 5 at 4:00 p.m. in the sanctuary. This is a fun look at some famous characters in the Bible. Our children have worked hard, balancing spring activities in order to prepare this wonderfully fun family show! Come join us!
CHILDREN’S CHOIR REMINDERS
Please note – there are some changes from the originally published schedule. Here is the May schedule.
SINGING SAINTS
May 1 Rehearsal 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.
May 4 Rehearsal 9:00 - noon
May 5 Call Time is 2:30 p.m., performance at 4:00 p.m.
May 8 NO REHEARSAL
May 15 Sundaes on Wednesday AND Rehearsal
May 22 MUSIC OLYMPICS 6:00- 7:30 p.m.
CHERUB CHOIR
May 1 NO REHEARSAL
May 4 Rehearsal 10:30 – 11:30 p.m.; party follows
May 5 Call Time is 3:00 p.m.; performance at 4:00 p.m.
May 15 Sundaes on Wednesday 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.
SUMMER MUSICAL OFFERINGS
As has been our tradition, we will continue to offer opportunities for those interested to share their musical talents as solos, duets, ensembles, etc. during the summer months. Please sign up on the lists provided on the bulletin board outside the music room and be sure to specify which service(s) you are playing. We always look forward to hearing our talents members!
Sundaes on Wednesdays
To celebrate our music ministry together for this year, we invite all music ministry participants and their families to “Sundaes on Wednesday” on May 15, 2013 in the Price Hall from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m. Please come out and enjoy this fellowship and celebration opportunity with your many co-musicians! There is a sign up sheet on the board outside the Music Room. Please sign up by May 12 so we can plan accordingly. There is no cost for this event.

Page #

LADIES’ SPRING LUNCHEON
JUNE 11 – 11 AM
We welcome ALL ladies of Epiphany.
Join us for our annual meeting plus
A special program presented by Nate Huffman
and a card making lesson from Georgianna Hahn
Menu to include your choice of baked ham and cheese, chicken salad or egg salad sandwich on homemade bread, plus cole slaw, chips
and lemon tarts
$8 per person
Make check out to WELCA and give to Leanne Spletzer or place in envelope on Women’s section of bulletin board in Commons.
Reservations due by June 4th.
Indicate your choice of sandwich on check. Your check is your reservation.
HHOPE will be our charity recipient.
You may bring your donations of either canned food items
or cash to the meeting.

Page #

50+ Fellowship & Ministry

Leisure Time
Musical Program
Monday, May 6 at 10:30 am
Join us Monday, May 6 at 10:30 am for a musical presentation. It will surely be a grand ol’ time.
Sign up in the Commons, if you plan to join us for lunch.
Lunch ($5/person): Chicken Salad, Pasta Salad, Fruit Salad, Dessert

Book Discussion
Join us on Monday, May 20 at 10:30 am, as we discuss The Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard. Peggy Roberts will lead our discussion. Afterwards, we will venture to Portico for lunch, which is located at 12506 River Rd . Please let Eddie Westin know if you plan to attend lunch.

May Baptism Birthdays

Page #

Faith Formation News

Spark Sunday School Lessons for May
May 5—Lydia
May 12—Paul & Silas
May 19—The Holy Spirit
(Last Day of Sunday School until the Fall)

Faith Foundations for Families
ATTENTION: 6th Graders and Parents
Make plans to join us Sundays, May 5 at 10:00 am and May 12 in Room 201 at 9:45 am. We will take time to read over and learn the Apostles’ Creed. We look forward to you joining us and joining in the conversation. If you have any questions, please contact Christy Huffman.

THANK YOU!
Thank you everyone for your generous donations to the ELCA Malaria Campaign. Your contributions will help prevent, treat and contain malaria and its spread in African countries.
Check out http://www.elca.org/Our-Faith-In-Action/Responding-to-the-World/ELCA-Malaria-Campaign.aspx to find up-to-date information concerning the campaign’s progress.

Page #

Adult Faith Formation

Sunday School Hour
Lessons from a Simpler Time Join Pastor Bill Van O'Linda in the Fellowship Hall as we continue our journey back to Mayberry. The Andy Griffith Show is a unique television series in that it never goes out of style. As we share episodes from The Andy Griffith Show series we will re-discover how the show is filled with the basic morals and principles taught by the Scriptures. Godparents 4 Tanzania—Clinical Officer Training Join Jessica Utt, board member of Godparents 4 Tanzania, as she shares more about this new endeavor to support training for medical clinical officers in Tanzania. This class will meet beginning at 10:00 am on Sunday, May 5 following the Blessing of the Garden.
Weekly Studies
Living the Good News—Lessons during the Easter Season. Join us Tuesday mornings at 10:30 am or Wednesday evenings at 6:30 pm in the Chapel. We will be studying the lessons for the upcoming Sundays in Easter.
Parent Chat –Join us Wednesday evenings at 6:30 in Room 101, while our children make a joyful noise to the Lord.
Mom’s Bible Study—Join us Thursday mornings at 9:15 am in the Chapel. Childcare is provided.

Vacation Bible School—Bread of Life: Party Time!
Have you registered for Epiphany’s Vacation Bible School, July 22-26, 2013 from 8:45 am – 12 Noon? Sign up on the church website by clicking “Forms.” If you would prefer a paper form, please see Christy Huffman for one.
Children ages 3 through rising 5th grade: Join us as participants.
Youth rising 6th-High School: Serve as volunteers.
Adults: Volunteer to serve with age groups, behind the scenes or in activity sites.
VBS Backdrop Painting Party will be Saturday, June 1 from 9:00 am—3:00 pm. Breakfast and lunch will be provided. Bring your paint clothes and get ready to paint. Let Christy know if you plan to attend.
VBS Volunteer Training will be Sunday, June 2 at 9:30 am in the Chapel or Wednesday, June 5 at 7:00 pm n the Chapel. Please let Christy know which one you will attend.
Decoration Team members wanted! We need volunteers to help create ideas for turning our church building into a place for a party. They will help coordinate the Backdrop Painting Day, as well as shop for supplies needed to decorate the building on Friday, July 19 and Sunday, July 21. Please contact Christy Huffman if you are willing to help out.

Page #

Community Service Ministry

Habitat For Humanity: A group of volunteers from Epiphany will help build a home for a needy family in Hanover County on Saturday, May 18. (Note: Prior construction experience is not required and hands-on training is available.) Volunteers are also needed to provide lunch food items for the group of workers that day. Watch for sign-up sheets posted in the Commons.
LAMB’s Basket: Some of the items the pantry needs on a consistent basis include canned tuna or chicken, pasta and jelly. Volunteers are also needed to help on distribution days or with stocking the shelves. For more details, see the Community Service Ministry bulletin board in the Commons where sign-up sheets are posted.
HHOPE: The HHOPE ministry team is in need of church members who have the time and interest in becoming shoppers at the Central Virginia Food Bank. This would require attending an orientation class at the Food Bank and giving several hours a week on Monday and/or Tuesday afternoons. During these uncertain financial times, it is crucial that we have shoppers at the Food Bank for this important ministry to continue. We ask you to prayerfully consider volunteering. Please consider being a shopper at CVFB. Contact Gretchen Spradlin or Beth Barger for more information. As always, thank you for your continued support. Your donations of time, food, and money are greatly appreciated!
CARITAS: Thank you to all of the many volunteers who helped to make this week a wonderful success. Over 100 people came together to provide meals, sleeping accommodations, showers, clean laundry and a comfortable, safe space for forty homeless women. Thank you!!

CIRCLES MEET
The three Women’s Circles are: Margaret Miller Circle, Clara Sullivan Circle and Heidi Michelsen Circle. These three circles of women are part of the WELCA (Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church) and participate in various missions such as stewardship, growth, community, and action.
The Margaret Miller Circle will meet Tuesday, May 14, 10:00 a.m., at the home of Donna Josephson. The agenda will include a planning meeting for 2013-2014, followed by a covered dish luncheon provided by the attendees. Bring your good ideas for next year's programs, plus a favorite dish. Carpools are advised; directions to Donna's home will be posted on the WELCA bulletin board. Any questions? Please call Carol McKean (804) 562-8475
The Clara Sullivan Circle will meet for brunch on May 8 at 11am at the home of Leanne Spletzer. This will be our planning session for 2013-14 so come prepared with your ideas. Bring your calendar so that you can sign up to host one of our meetings. Please RSVP to Leanne at 804-254-2849 or spletzer@aol.com.
The Heidi Michaelson Circle will be held on May 9 at 6 pm at Tatter Hartmann's home. If you are interested in joining our circle, please call Tatter at 804-741-0276 or email her at tatterh@hotmail.com.
If you would like more information on what the Women’s Circles are all about, call
Leanne Spletzer, 254-2 849 Leader for the Clara Sullivan Circle;
Carol McKean, 562-8475 Leader for the Margaret Miller Circle;
Tatter Hartmann, 741-0276 Leader for the Heidi Michaelsen Circle.

Page #

Nursery School News
It’s Spring (finally)! April has been a fun and exciting month. Many of you may have noticed that over Spring Break and the days following, that our playgrounds were under renovation. We now have a larger playground facing Horsepen Rd. and both playgrounds now have rubber mulch. We also added two small tire towers to our larger playground. The children have loved the additional space and rubber mulch and new climbing features. Our plans over the next few years will hopefully include adding a large piece of playground equipment in the new section facing Horsepen Rd. and replacing some of the older pieces on both playgrounds. We would also like to add some shade canopies to the new section and the smaller playground to make them more comfortable to play on in the heat. If you haven’t already seen them, make sure that you take a look!
April also brought the opening of registration for this year’s summer camp here at ELNS. We are offering two different weeks this year, June 3-7 and August 5-9. Brochures with an attached registration form are available in the church narthex just to the right of the middle doors going into the sanctuary and outside my office in the education wing if you are interested in learning more about our camp and/or registering.
Our summer camp theme in June will be Fit & Fun. Children ages 2-6 are invited to attend this week. We will learn about healthy living habits including eating healthy and exercising. We will have lots of fun outdoor games to play, morning calisthenics with the whole school, and lots of other great activities. In August, our theme will be An “Art”rageous Adventure. Children ages 2-9 are invited to attend this week and ages 10 and up can volunteer and earn community service hours for school. We will feature a famous artist each day, create wonderful works of art to bring home (including some messy outdoor art), and explore different art mediums and methods of creating art. If your child (ages 10 & up) would like to volunteer, please contact me to get a volunteer application packet. The registration deadline for campers is May 3 so be sure to get your registrations in soon!!
The month of May will also bring an end to our school year for 2012-2013. I have thoroughly enjoyed my first year here. It has been a pleasure getting to know the ELNS family as well as the church family. I am looking forward to a relaxing yet productive summer and a great 2013-2014! I will have office hours each Wednesday during the summer from 9 am – 12 pm. If you need to get in touch with me over the summer, please stop by one of those days or send me an email (which I always have access to). I will try to get back to you as soon as possible. Thank you to everyone for being so welcoming and making my first year very enjoyable.
Sincerely,
Jessica Hendricks

Page #

Members in Our Prayers
During illness or recuperation ~
For those serving in the Armed Forces ~
Please continue to keep all those serving our country to keep us safe and free, in your prayers.
For the families and friends of those who died ~
Rest eternal grant them, O Lord; and let light perpetual shine upon them ~

From the Archives…
May 15, 1951 - the Rev. Peter C. Schroeder, retired Army Chaplain, assumed duties as mission developer for a church in western Henrico County - later to be know as Epiphany Evangelical Lutheran Church.

Epiphany Youth Group would like to thank all of the congregation members that supported us through Youth For Hire this spring. We appreciate all of the generous donations and your continued support of our activities. The funds raised will be used by us for Kairos in June, West Virginia Mission Trip in July, Lost & Found in November and our EYG Sunday gatherings!
THANK YOU!

Page #

Thank you to Jim Anderson and Tod Mitchell for all their hard work in updating and renovating the Star Lodge kitchen. It looks beautiful and is much more functional. The craftsmanship is par excellence! Thank you to Rob and Hanne Hamlin for donating the new electric range. It is wonderful to have a kitchen that is easier to use. The youth group, campus ministry, and other congregational groups look forward to preparing meals in it for years to come. –Phillip Martin
Thank you to Betty Ottaway for her help in making the Epiphany Collegians’ dinner in January such a great event. Her gracious hospitality was evident not only in her warm personality, but in all the “extra touches” she brought to the meal to make it memorable—candles and candlesticks, tablecloths, silverware, plates. None of these additions were lost on the thirteen Epiphany college students who were able to attend the meal. Thanks, Betty. –Phillip Martin
To our Epiphany Friends,
How can we ever begin to thank you for all of the prayers, cards, flowers, calls and visits from friends and Pastors.
Needless to say this has been a very stressful and difficult period in our lives and your presence both physically and spiritually has lifted us up in countless ways.
This Church and its many wonderful members/friends have been and continue to be such a precious gift to us.
Thank you for your servant hood.
God’s Peace and Blessings,
John and Wanda Umlauf

CHURCH STAFF
Pastor – The Rev. Phillip W. Martin, Jr.,
Diaconal Minister – Christine V. Huffman
Visitation Pastor – The Rev. Tom Bosserman
Director of Music Ministry – Kevin Barger
Administrative Assistant – Hanne Hamlin
Coordinator of Volunteers – Beth Barger
The Rev. J. Christopher Price, Emeritus

Epiphany Evangelical Lutheran Church
1400 Horsepen Road
Monument Ave. at Horsepen Road
Richmond, VA 23226
Phone: 804-282-6066
Fax: 804-282-6067
www.epiphanyelca.org
Worship Times
Sunday 8:30 & 11:00 a.m.
Wednesday Healing/Holy
Communion 11:00 a.m.
Summer Sunday Worship Schedule
May 26-September 1
8:30 & 10:30 a.m.

a congregation of the ELCA

Non-Profit Org.
U. S. Postage Pd.
Richmond, VA
Permit # 711

Address Service Requested

MINISTERS WANTED
Contact Beth Barger at 746-5756 or thebargers@comcast.net for any of the ministries listed below or for information about additional areas in the life of Epiphany Church.
LAMB’s Basket -- Epiphany sends volunteers each month to the Community Food Pantry at 8419 Oakview Ave, near Staples Mill and Hermitage Roads. Directions are listed below. Contact Beth to volunteer or sign up in the Commons, and call the pantry at 565-8007 for additional information. Inclement weather? Check channel 8 for closings or if Henrico schools are closed, then the LAMB's Basket is closed.
**Please note new location!!!

Epiphany’s dates in May
Wednesday, May 8; 9:30am-1pm
Friday, May 31; 9:30am-1pm

Directions From Epiphany
Take Glenside Dr North, Left on Staples Mill Rd.
Turn Right onto Hermitage Rd.
Left onto Oakview Ave.

EPIPHANY EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH