Great News! We raised $250 for Jubilee Ministries - of which $111 was raised by the children selling cookies they had decorated!

Dollars for Missions

Once a month a special box is in the church for us to donate a dollar each (more if you want) which is designated for a particular Mission. In the past we have given to Dianne Smith in Kenya, Food for the Poor, Esperanza Academy, Anglican/Episcopal Diocese of El Salvador, ERD (Episcopal Relief and Development) and ERD's Gifts for Life.
Currently the Missions Committee is reviewing who to send dollars to. Suggestions are welcome from the parish. Next Dollar Sunday is Sunday April 18.

Equal Exchange Coffee/Tea/Chocolate

Although Market Basket now carries this coffee we sell this in order to raise missions money and give an opportunity for us to support small coffee growers. We have a small markup which goes directly into the Missions budget. Last year it helped fund our trip to New Orleans and gifts to several missions groups as well as matching funds to our annual Gifts for the Poor. Not all our money is collected on Dollar Sundays.

Diocesan Medical Missions Trips

In the near future there will be additional information about medical professionals and the 3 trips planned in the year ahead. The Caribbean, Haiti and Africa are being considered. I am sure this includes Dental workers as well as nurses, specialists and doctors.

Volunteers needed for the Missions Committee

We need at least 2-3 more members. This does not mean you need to go on a trip only that you can help organize and make priorities as we go forward. This is YOUR outreach and you are valued participants. Without you there is no mission's activity or fundraising. I would like to thank everyone who has and is serving on this Committee.
I ask for the parish's continued prayer and support as you go forward.

Ecuador - Update as of 7/06/2010

Here are the contents of Maureen Capillo's 2 emails telling us about here current status and future contact info.
Also, there are 2 ways we can support her individually over the next 3 years. The Missions' Committee has been able to donate $500 up front as well as putting $600 aside for $50 each month for 2010-2011. If you would like to donate to help Maureen's ministry, please check out the following documents. One is for credit card donations; the other one is for check donations. For check donations, make checks payable to: DFMS or The Episcopal Church USA
Mail to this person even if the form indicates otherwise:

Rebecca Sang
The Episcopal Church Center
815 Second Ave.
New York, NY 10017

Thank you to everyone who has made this possible.

Rev Gay.

From Maureen,

#1
As I mentioned in my last large email -- many of you are new to this list. Some of you have signed up to be on this listserv, others of you were added at my discretion. If you are on this list by mistake and do not want to receive my updates, please simply respond to this email and request to be removed.

I am in Toronto, as many of you know, participating in a two week orientation to prepare for my time abroad in Ecuador as an appointed missioner for the Episcopal Church. This work will involve hosting mission trips, building a volunteer program and potentially developing a Spanish Language School for the Diocese of Central Ecuador. The last two weeks has been full of lots of important learning, but one of the most spiritual and powerful experiences was spent in Queen's Park on Saturday evening. It was a free concert that lasted all day and was entitled Global Music: Rock the Casbah and An African Poem. Bassekou Kayate from Mali, Rachid Taha from Algeria, Tony Allen from Nigeria, and Bela Fleck from the United States performed in the evening, under a bright fog and an assortment of fantastically reverent trees, full of life and green beyond measure. The performance started with Bela Fleck on the banjo. He is easily one of the best banjo players in the world and he played three pieces that brought all of the best of my Southern Appalachian and Eastern Kentucky mountain tradition alive. I loved it.

For those that don't know, Bela Fleck helped create a film called "Throw Down Your Heart." He basically went in search for the origins of his beloved instrument - the banjo. On his search I am sure he found many things, among them the African continent and a whole host of musicians from across this grand continent. A trailer of the movie can be seen here: http://www.throwdownyourheart.com/.

Bela Fleck ended the first part of the performance playing the prelude to the first suite of Bach's Unaccompanied Suites for the cell. He walked off stage to a loud cheer. As the cheer subsided, the audience heard, from off stage, the same piece being played by an instrument of the same tone, only with a slightly different pitch. As the music continued, out walked Bassekou, Rachid, and Tony, along with two other musicians. Their black skin shone against the bold golds, reds, and purples of their clothing. As the Bach piece continued each artist began inserting pieces of African rhythm, slightly diverging from the original. This was all done to the backdrop and roar of the crowd.

The transition between these two artists, Bela Fleck and Bassekou, was awe inspiring and magnificently orchestrated. I felt the spirit of the universe shift under my feet and the trees breathe in the elegance of the performance. I was humbled and only hope that my transition into my new role with the Central Diocese of Ecuador can be done with such grace and fortitude.

I have certainly spent the last three months since I accepted this position attempting to live up to the work I will find awaiting me in Quito at the end of July. I have also spent a good amount of time attempting to say goodbye to a city and group of people that have shaped me beyond measure. It has been hard.

I spent Memorial Day weekend at the Essex Conference Center sharing in the celebration and ceremony of Jim and Lynette's wedding. They were married across a pond surrounded by nature and beautiful artwork. It was a nice weekend and am proud to consider them both in my circle of friends. It was especially nice to visit with a very pregnant Fran, spend the following Monday with Regina and her family on the beach, as well as meet all of Lynette and Jim's extended family and friends. What an amazing weekend! Thanks for the all the work I am sure it involved. It was worth the effort and a brilliant celebration of your love and commitment! Congratulations.

One of my last nights in Boston was spent with Ora Grodsky, Zoe and Sasha Grodsky, and Jonathan Rosenthal. We spent the evening celebrating the 15 year anniversary of City School (www.thecityschool.org). It was a wonderful night and also terribly hard. The city of Boston lost five or six young black men over Memorial Weekend and many of the youth in the program were deeply troubled by feelings of frustration, mourning, and neglect. What was transforming for me was this organizations response to the violence. A youth worker from South Boston started the evening with a song symbolizing freedom and strength. It was in a language I did not know, against a rhythm and collection of musical instruments that I was not familiar with. It felt deeply spiritual and engaged me on an almost physical level. I was moved. I only hope after my three years in Ecuador that I am able to return to the United States and work for an organization of such integrity and grace.

Leaving Boston a week before my official graduation from my program was more difficult than I imagined. I missed not being with my classmates in the TTC and not seeing my 4th and 6th graders one last time. I have been shaped and modeled by the Teacher Training Course at Shady Hill more than I would have first expected. They helped me grow into a better person and a better teacher. Both Desiree, Hannah and all my classmates will be sorely missed. I will miss planning extensive unit plans only to be told to spend a bit more energy "thinking on my feet." I will miss the continuous and constant challenge to be better and to refine my skill as a listener, leader, and engaged participant in a school community. It feels silly, but I can't really put down on paper all that the program did for me. All I can say is thank you, good luck to all the great and amazing new teachers I spent the year with who are moving into classrooms in the fall (even a hearty good luck to those of you who aren't, or who don't know yet), and keep up the good work. I love you.

In mid-July, I will be embarking on the next stage in my life journey. I am cautious about all that awaits me in Ecuador, and nervous about my ability to respond to the God within me, who has so persistently called me to this work. I hope to be given the opportunity to listen and hear the stories of all those that I will service. I hope that I am able to hear all that they have to say and all that they are unable to articulate. Finally, I hope I am able to build bridges between North Americans and Ecuadorians, bridges that are strong representations of God's love and mutually beneficial for all involved. As I ponder this work, I think frequently of my time I spent in Queen's Park on Saturday evening with Bela Fleck, Bassekou Kayate, Rachid Taha, and Tony Allen. May my work in Ecuador be full of transitions like the one between these two men. May they be deep with meaning and full of power. And may there be strands of similarity and commonality as well as divergence from the classical.

Many of you have asked about how to donate or make a pledge to my work. This information will follow in an email entitled "New Contact Information." Also included in my next email will be my new phone number and address.

Abrazos,
--
Maureen Capillo

#2
I am moving to Ecuador in mid-July for three years. Attached are the forms necessary for supporting my work. Many of you have inquired about this information in the last two months. Others of you on this list are not able or interested in supporting this work at this time. For those of you unable to support my work, disregard the following paragraph and simply save my new contact information in your address books and cell phones.

For those that are interested in supporting my work -- it is easy. If you decide to make a one time donation you should use the Donor's Tax Deductible letter. Send the letter, with my name on the appropriate line and your check to the address at the bottom of the letter. If you would prefer to make a monthly pledge of $10, $25, $50 dollars you should fill out the Funding Credit Card Donation letter -- again, with my name in the appropriate line and your credit card information. All support is tax deductible and sent directly to the national church office of the Episcopal Church. If you wish for your donation to be anonymous, please note this on the letter before mailing. Finally, I would prefer pledges (even of the smallest amount) as this will allow me a budget for the duration of my three year commitment. Thanks for your support!

My address state side (starting June 20th) is:

Maureen Capillo
219 South Broadway
Berea, KY 40403

My brother will collect the mail sent to this address and I will check it once a year.

My address in Quito, Ecuador (starting July 25th):

Maureen Capillo
c/o La Catedral, La Iglesia Episcopal
Av. Real Audiencia N63-47 y Sabanilla.
Quito, Pinchinca, Ecuador 170150

My cell phone will be disconnected on June 25th. I will use Skype for the duration of my time abroad. My Skype number is (859) 756 - 4273. You will be able to leave a voice message if i am unavailable.

My email address will remain the same and in most cases will be the quickest way to get a hold of me.

I look forward to staying in touch.

In God's grace,
--
Maureen Capillo

 

Rev. Gay P. Cox