Dear Friends,

It does seem that I have been in a whirlwind for about two weeks! On the weekend of October 12th Kathy and I visited our son Robbie who is a freshman at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky. It was a lovely visit on a beautiful fall weekend. Robbie seems to be doing well. We hope, of course, that he realizes that Transylvania is an academic institution.

No sooner had we returned to Plymouth than we learned that Kathy's father had died in Ohio. After complex arrangements Kathy's entire family gathered to celebrate the good life of Kathy's father who had been in a nursing home for several long years. The family gathered from Ohio, Kentucky, Massachusetts and Germany. All of Kathy's four sisters, their husbands and fifteen grandchildren were present for the memorial service and gathering. Other family members beyond Kathy's immediate family also made the pilgrimage to Madison, Ohio for the service.

It was a deeply meaningful time we all shared together. The whole three days we spent together were centered on the memorial service at The Central Congregational Church, U.C.C. in Madison, Ohio. The spirit of the service was, of course, solemn, but it was also one of the celebration of the life of a beloved man. There were tears and laughter as we recalled "Sonny's" life of pilgrimage. That same spirit of solemnity and festive thanksgiving dominated all our times together from Kathy's mother, Eleanore, to the youngest grandchild. It was a marvelous few days we also spent together as we remembered the life of a man we all loved and for whom we thanked God in all our doings, as a family and each in her or his own way.

When I talked with our son Jonathan upon our return late Tuesday night, I said to him that it had been a terrific few days. He said that it was a great experience for him personally, but that it was difficult to express to friends that attending his grandfather's memorial service was a wonderful time together as a family. I told him that it is a marvelous tribute to a life well lived to celebrate and to recall in a family setting the gifts of life we have all shared together. There was great love present in our gathering. We hugged, cried, laughed, recalled good times and not so good times. We remembered Sonny in the context of a whole life, its ups and downs, its joys and sorrows, its successes and failures. We were grateful for Sonny's gifts, many and varied to us, and to commend his life unto Almighty God in celebrating the end of an earthly pilgrimage well lived. I told Jon that it's O.K. to relate that he had had a marvelous time in truly celebrating his grandfather's life.

I have had reaffirmed for myself the power and joy of our sacred faith. Praise be to God!

Love,

© The Church of the Pilgrimage in Plymouth, MA Inc., all rights reserved.

Morning Worship 10:00 A.M. Rev. Gary Marks will be preaching.

Greeters: Jean and Hector Patenaude.

The Pulpit Flowers are in loving memory of Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Delano given by Clarence, Jr. and family.

All are invited to join us for Coffee Hour downstairs in Allerton Hall following the worship service. Also, Volunteers are needed to sign up for Coffee Hour. Please look for the sign-up sheet on the coffee hour counter.

Greeters are needed for November 30 and December 7, 14, and 21. Please call the church office to volunteer to greet or look for the sign-up sheet on the coffee hour counter.

The Church of the Pilgrimage Services will be aired on P.A.C.T.V. on Sundays at noon and at 10:00 P.M. We are grateful to Bruce Allen for taping the services and for arranging for them to be aired on a delayed basis of one week.

Office Hours: M-F 8:45 A.M.-3:45 P.M. Thursday's 8:30 A.M.-3:00 P.M.

CHURCH RECORD

Hospitalized: Florence Bradley, Jordan Hospital.

Baptisms:
On October 19, 2003, Justin Timothy Balboni, son of Timothy and Jana (Wengler) Balboni was baptized during the morning service.
On October 19, 2003, Emma Noel Batchelor, daughter of Christopher and Erin Renee (Noel) Batchelor was baptized during a private ceremony following the morning service.

Weddings:
On October 17, 2003, Rev. Marks conducted a wedding service at the Second Congregation Church in Cohasset for Putnam Read Burns, Jr. and Jennifer -Lynn Dranov.

In Memoriam:
On October 17, 2003, Rev. Marks conducted a burial service for Ethan Kenneth Braley, the infant son of Stewart and Teresa Braley.
On October 19, 2003, Rev. Marks conducted a memorial service for Boyd Nelson Mayhew in Madison, Ohio.

THIS WEEK

Sunday, Oct. 26: Daylight Savings Time Ends. "Fall back one hour." Morning Worship 10:00 A.M., Rev. Gary Marks will be preaching; Safe Church Committee Meeting following the service in the Pastor's Study.

Monday, Oct. 27: Rev. Dan's office hours, 10:00-Noon;
Aerobics, 9:00 A.M. in Allerton Hall; Girl Scout Tr. 1128, 6:00 P.M. in Church House.

Tuesday, Oct. 28: Rev. Marks' office hours 9:30 A.M.-11:30 A.M.; Rev. Dan's office hours 10:00 A.M. - Noon; Aerobics, 6:30 P.M. in Allerton Hall; Advisory Board Meeting in the Church House at 7:00 P.M.; The Missions Committee will meet in the Church House at 7:00 P.M.

Wednesday, Oct. 29: Aerobics, 9:00 A.M. in Allerton Hall; Rev. Dan's office hours 9:30 A.M.-11:30 A.M.; Staff Meeting-10:00 A.M; Choir Rehearsal - 7:30 P.M; Tr. 47, 7:00 P.M. in the Church House; Pack 47, 7:00 P.M. in the Church House.

Thursday, Oct. 30: Rev. Dan's office hours Noon-2:00P.M.; G.S. Tr. 1227, 4:00 P.M-5:30 P.M. in the Church House; Aerobics, 6:30 P.M. in Allerton Hall.

Friday, Oct. 31: HAPPY HALLOWEEN. Rev. Marks' office hours, 9:30 A.M.-11:30 A.M.

Saturday, Nov. 1

 

PLEASE NOTE

As most of you are aware Kathy Mark's father, Boyd Mayhew, passed this life last week. The Markses made a trip to Madison, Ohio for a memorial and burial service. Rev. Marks conducted the service for his father-in-law.

Gary wishes to thank the Rev. Charles Harper for filling in for him on October 19th on very short notice. Chuck and his wife Pat have become members of The Church of the Pilgrimage and live in Plymouth.

Should you wish to express your sympathy at this time of loss to Kathy, you may make a donation to The Memorial Fund of The Church of the Pilgrimage.

We also extend our sympathies to Rosalee Sinn whose mother passed this life last week in Oklahoma. Our prayers are with Rosalee and her family.

Please call the church office if you are aware of persons hospitalized or in need of pastoral care. It is especially important to let the ministers know about out-of-town hospitals. Hospital listings prepared for clergy at the Jordan Hospital, too, have been irregular in availability. It is, therefore, important that the ministers and church office be informed of any hospitalizations. Thank you for your help.

Membership Classes- Rev. Marks is planning another series of classes for those desiring to become members of The Church of the Pilgrimage. IF you are interested in becoming a part of our church family and its ministry, please speak to Rev. Marks or call the church office.

Your four delegates to the Massachusetts Conference of the United Church of Christ - Marna and John Blomberg and Trace and Julie Sears will be giving a brief 30-minute presentation during coffee hour on Sunday, November 9th in Allerton Hall. They will be updating you on the 204th Annual Meeting. This will be an exciting opportunity to learn about what is going on in our conference and to hear about small groups that could be formed in our church using resources from the Annual Meeting workshops. Please mark your calendars and plan to attend! Childcare will be provided.

Stewardship Committee Update: Following May's Annual Meeting, the Stewardship Committee mailed out a 2nd pledge drive letter in an effort to raise funds to balance our 2003/2004 budget. Out of 165 pledging units, we received 69 responses of which 48 units increased their pledges. With their help we raised $11,000. We still have a deficit of close to $17,000. If you haven't done so already, please mail your pledge form to the Church Office, Attention: Collector, or place it in the collection plate as soon as possible.
Yours in Christian Faith and Fellowship, the Stewardship Committee.

Safe Church Committee will have a brief meeting on Sunday, October 26, 2003 immediately following church.

Crop Walk-Sunday, November 2, 2003. Join us for this fun and worthwhile event. Call Rev. Dan if you would like to walk or volunteer on walk day.

Don't forget the Halloween Family Dinner Dance. Come join the fun! Friday, October 24 @ 6 pm. in Allerton Hall.

Harvest Fair Drawing. If you have not already turned in your money and ticket stubs for the Drawing, please see either Marna Blomberg, Judy Mitchell or Tom Mudgett just inside the entrance of the Harvest Fair on Saturday, October 25, prior to the 1:00 p.m. time of the actual drawing. You can also see Marna at the Halloween Dinner Dance on Friday evening and turn in your money and tickets at that time. Thank you.

HARVEST FAIR -OCTOBER 25, 2003, 10:00 A.M.-2:00 P.M.

Remember that The Freedom Ship Armistad will be in Boston Harbor until October 26th. If you are not able to go with a group from our church, maybe you can make a visit on your own.

Women's Guild and The Board of Trustee's are working together to assist in delivering donations to the Food Pantry at the Christ Episcopal Church. You will see two baskets on either side of the lower vestibule with signs directing you to put your donations of dry goods and personal items in these baskets. The items will be delivered on a weekly to the Christ Episcopal Church. This is an ongoing weekly event. Please donate weekly by depositing your donation in one of the two baskets. Thank You!

Thank you from Helen and Ruth Belcher. At the Spring Time & Talent Auction the Youth Fellowship and The Rev. Dan offered a day of yard work. Ruth and I won the bid. The date for delivery of this Talent was October 19. The crew led by Dan included Sara Balboni, Megan Balboni, Nicholas Balboni, Heather Sinn, T.J. Lindquist and his father, Jeff (and truck for dump runs), who arrived along with the rain. For the next few hours our garage underwent a cleaning transformation, the likes of which had not occurred for many years, as the team swept, sorted, discarded and rearranged the contents of the garage. (Some learned how an old reel grass mower worked.) We thank the group for their youthful enthusiasm and energy. We hope there will be a similar item in the 2004 list of Time & Talent offerings, and if so, we recommend it to you for consideration. Thank you, Helen Belcher.

The next meeting of the Pilgrimage Women's Fellowship will be held Monday, November 3rd at 7:00 p.m. in Allerton Hall. We will be creating booklets of Thanksgiving graces for Guild baskets, sharing family stories, and having an optional cleaning of the sanctuary. Those who plan to help clean, please remember to dress in cleaning attire. Don't forget your canned goods!

COMING EVENTS

Nov. 2: Reception of new members during the service of worship.
CROP Walk.

Nov. 3: Rev. Marks will attend a meeting of The American Congregational Association at Andover Newton Theological School.
Adult Evening Bible Study, 7:00 p.m. in the Church House.
Pilgrimage Women's Fellowship, 7:00 p.m. in AH.

Nov. 4: Lunch Bunch Bible Study, Noon in the Church House.

Nov. 9: Mass. Conference Presentation during the Coffee Hour (see notes).

Clerk - Lois Post; Moderator - Steven Triffletti; Treasurer - David Kegel; Collector - Thomas Mudgett;
Asst. Collector - Debbie Chaskes; Music Director - William B Richter;
Secretary - Pam McNicholas; Sexton - Tony Nightingale; World Mission Emphasis - Heifer Project International;
Church Building Telephone - (508) 747-1341.