Youth Christmas Party December 11, 2011

Attention Youth! This year’s Christmas party will be at the home of Kenny & Terri Townsend. The party starts at 5pm on Sunday, December 11 . Please join us for a night of fellowship, food and fun–no need to bring anything! Contact Terri at terri3@mail.com if you have any questions.

Abby Brown at Mission Conference

St. Nicholas’ own Abby Brown was not in church on Sunday. Why? Because she was representing Chattahoochee Valley Episcopal Ministries at the Everyone, Everywhere Conference in Estes Park, Colorado. Abby has been a very active member of Infusion, a program of CVEM, for the last two years, which has broadened her opportunities in the Episcopal Church and the common mission we all have to serve Christ in the world. St. Nicholas is an active supporter and partner in CVEM, and Abby’s involvement is just one way that we are connected. Abby was chosen to represent CVEM to speak about her work through Infusion. We posted an earlier column about Abby that you can read by clicking here.

You can see Abby make her presentation by clicking on the link below. In the video window, scroll to the video entitled Infusion Workshop EE2011.

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/ee11.htm

Way to go Abby! We are very proud of you!

Colorado Mission Conference

Abby Brown (pictured along with Olivia Cohen and two of their Beallwood students), is a member of St. Nicholas and senior at Harris County High School, along with two other teens members of Infusion, will be presenting at the “Everyone Everywhere 2011″ National Episcopal Conference October 13-16th in Estes Park, Colorado. The conference is designed for individuals, dioceses, congregations, and groups active in the global and domestic mission of the Episcopal Church. Presenting under the focus of “Justice Concerns” Abby will explain the conceptual basis for Infusion and its relevance as a model for engaging youth in social justice concerns. The three teens will be accompanied by Vicky Partin, the lay missioner for CVEM.

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Youth Kickoff September 11, 2011

We are having a Welcome Back Grill Out & Games Challenge on Sunday , September 11th at 5pm for our Youth. The youth member that brings the most friends will win a prize! We have a lot of crazy and exciting games and challenges planned! Are you up for it? Prizes will be given out for the “Last Survivor” standing. So come on out, bring your friends, and don’t miss the fun that will be 2011-2012 St. Nicholas Youth.

We’re Weird, But God Loves Us!

Wanna know how St. Nicholas’ Youth Retreat at Camp Mikell went last weekend? Watch this and find out!

Many thanks to our adults for the weekend Cami Fanning, Chris Lintner, and Terry Lyn Noonan!

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Living Water

This past week, I served as a dean at Junior Camp at Camp Mikell, which is our diocesan camp and conference center up in Toccoa, Georgia. Part of my duties as a priest is to work in the ministries of the the greater diocese and working at camp is one of the ways I really enjoy. Camp was one of the first experiences I had of Christian community and it’s what led me on the spiritual path I’m on today.

A “dean” is someone from the clergy or a Christian educator who plans a program for the kids who are attending camp. At Mikell, deans get the whole morning to spend with the campers. We had a theme of “Living Water” with which to design a 5-day program around. I got to serve with my dear friend the Rev. Mary Demmler, who is the rector of St. Matthias in Toccoa, and who served with me in the past in the Diocese of Georgia.

Camp Mikell is such a special place. The director, the Rev. Ken Struble, has trained an amazing group of young adults to serve as the summer staff. They have the perfect balance of humor, responsibility, and creativity which is necessary to take care of over a hundred kids every week. Junior Camp, which is for 6th and 7th graders, had 110 campers, so we had a huge group to play with all week. During the camp, the campers swim, go on nature hikes, do arts and crafts, play sports, and build community. They get to watch the summer staff perform the “Cherokee Pageant” which is a retelling of Native American folklore that the staff has performed since the camp was started over 50 years ago. (For the second year, I got to play the role of the Raven Mocker, who comes to carry the soul of a fallen warrior to the realm of the dead. It just means I wear a black sheet and screech like a bird.)

Molly and the kids joined me for most of the week, so our kids got to experience camp again, which is always fun to watch. Perhaps the thing they loved the most was eating in the dining hall, where they have some really great food. My new favorite Mikell food is the “seaweed salad” on the salad bar, which had a sesame flavor. Truly, this is not your common camp food.

Like I said, our program was on “Living Water.” We taught the kids about all the places they can see God’s grace in the water that makes up our world. The main project we worked on was giving the small groups video cameras and letting them come up with ways to explain “living water.” Here is the result:

Overall, I came away exhausted and refreshed at the same time. I renewed old friendships and made a lot of new friends. I am always impressed with the work of the staff, and I’m grateful for their openness in letting us into their community. I’ve worked and attended many camps in my life, and without a doubt, Mikell has the best staff I’ve seen.

Pretty much anyone can be a camper at Camp Mikell. Tai went to Mini-Camp with me at the beginning of the summer. Families are invited to Guest Camp at the end of the summer (September 2-5). There are camps for grades 1 and up. They even have outdoor camps! Why wouldn’t you want to send a child, grandchild, or neighbor to camp? If you don’t have one of those, you can always give money to send kids who need financial assistance to camp.

Camp Mikell is one of the treasures of the diocese and is a resource to us at St. Nicholas. We’ll be taking our youth there August 26-28. I would love for our budget to cover sending our Vestry up there on retreat next year. Or, if there was enough interest, we could always organize a parish weekend there. There are lots of ways that we can use this magical place.

Any excuse to eat seaweed salad…

VBS Meeting This Sunday

A brief meeting will be held July 17, 2011 after church just to make sure everything is ready for Crocodile Dock VBS on July 25-29!

Then, on Sunday, July 24, 2011, we will meet right after church to have a decorating party and pizza!! We would like to have some baked goods to go with our pizza.

If you have ideas, suggestions or questions, please call:

Andy Butzon, Dock Director 706-628- 5975 or email me at andy.butzon@gmail.com or contact Sheila Dixon 706-322-9702 or email Sheila.A.Dixon@delta.com.

Deadline for registration is July 20. Please register online at stnicholashamilton.org/signup.

Crocodile Dock VBS Meeting This Sunday!

There will be a very brief meeting right after church this Sunday, June 12, 2011, for anyone involved with our VBS (Vacation Bible School) and all those who would like to be involved. Station Leaders will receive their guides and an overview of VBS plans. Our theme for this year is Crocodile Dock, and it promises to be lots of fun for everyone! The dates for VBS are July 25-29 from 9:00am to noon. Please join us for this meeting in the children’s Sunday School room. See you there! If you have questions, please call Andy Butzon, Dock Director 706-628-5975

Youth Super Bowl Party

All youth are invited to the St. Nick Super Bowl party. Everyone plan to come Sunday February 6th at 6:00 p.m. to Lilly Cain’s home for dinner and the game. A sign up sheet is in the narthex on the bulletin board.

Lilly lives at 39 Bellinger Court, Fortson so we could meet at the church and car pool or go directly to her home. She will give out directions to anyone who needs them. Come and enjoy a night of fellowship and fun!

Contact Lilly at (706) 649-4787 or LillyWC@aol.com if you need directions or if you plan to bring a dish.

Christmas Pageant Rehearsal

All youth and children are invited to participate in our annual Christmas Pageant during our Christmas Eve family service at 5:00pm on Friday, December 24th.

There is a sign-up sheet on the bulletin board in the narthex where children or parents can sign up and request the role they would like to play. We cannot promise certain roles, but would like to know preferences. We need youth volunteers to fill certain roles: pageant narrator, the Angel Gabriel, Mary, and Joseph. Other roles include a star, wise men, shepherds, angels, animals (donkey, sheep, cow, etc.) The church will supply the costumes and props for the pageant.

Michelle Moody will direct the pageant this year and needs adult volunteers to help her. She will hold a rehearsal on Sunday, December 12th right after church. All the pageant actors and volunteers will be treated to a pizza lunch.

Any adults who would like to help are encouraged to join us. We are hopeful that this will be fun and educational for the children. If anyone has questions or suggestions, they may call Michelle Moody at 706-604-5627 or email her at: michellelynnmoody@gmail.com.

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