July 19, 2015

Join Us This Sunday

9:00 am — Holy Communion with Children’s Time — Sanctuary
10:00 am— Refreshments—Heritage Hall
11:00 am — Choral Eucharist — Sanctuary
12:15 pm — Refreshments & Fellowship Hour— Heritage Hall

Guest Pastor This Sunday!
Today we welcome The Rev. Lyle Beckman as St. Mark's guest preacher.   Please welcome our guest preacher to St. Mark's.

St. Mark's New Office and Finance Manager
We're pleased to welcome Audrey Potts to St. Mark's staff as our new Office and Finance Manager. She will be assuming the bookkeeping and finance functions along with human resources, general office management for St. Mark's and general financial and documentation for Martin Luther Tower's Board of Trustees.

Audrey comes to St. Mark's with extensive experience as an office manager including, technical training, human resource work, and general bookkeeping. She will be in the office Mondays through Fridays from 9 AM to 5 PM. You may contact Audrey by email at potts@stmarks-sf.org or by phone at 415-928-7770 x2320

Nominations for Committee to Call a New Associate Pastor
St. Mark's is accepting self-nominations for a call committee to find a new Associate Pastor. Please consider being a member of the committee that will prayerfully consider pastoral candidates presented by the Synod, and make a recommendation to the Congregational Council. Nominees must be a member of St. Mark's. Priority will be given to those who were not on the committee that recommended the call for Pastor Bekah, in order to have fresh perspectives.

Council will review and consider the nominees to select the new call committee during the August 20th council meeting. Nomination forms are available in the narthex, or through e-mail from Andrew Sallach. Nominations will be accepted through August 14 at 4:00 pm, send the completed nomination form to Andrew Sallach at sallach@stmarks-sf.org or leave it at St. Mark's office at 1031 Franklin Street before 4:00 pm August 14.
 
Donate Flowers in 2015
The 2015 Flower donation chart is posted in the hallway across from the church kitchen. St. Mark's members and friends can sign up to donate flowers for the chancel on a Sunday by placing your name on the chart for the Sunday you wish. Your donation can be in memory of a loved one or in honor of a particular occasion. The donation is $50 and can be paid via check in the offering plate. Please note "Flowers" in the memo of the check.

Bakers needed!   
Interested in making communion bread?  This easy recipe is available on the St. Mark's website.  Contact Pr. Elizabeth if you are interested in this ministry.

Interfaith Food Pantry  
Each year, St. Mark's - along with several other churches - rotates on a weekly basis to distribute food to the needy at Old First Presbyterian Church (1751 Sacramento Street near Van Ness Avenue.) We are looking for at least 12 volunteers for each session to help. The remaining dates for 2015 are 
Saturdays, Aug. 8, Sept. 26 and Nov. 7. 
The time commitment is from 7:30am-10:30am. Visit  http://www.stmarks-sf.org/ministries/pantry to sign up or for more information. 

Vacation Bible School Jungle Safari!
Marin Lutheran Church-Children 3 -1/2 years old through 5th grade! The camp will be held at We are excited to offer a fun-filled week of Vacation Bible School to all , August 3rd - 7th from 8:30am to 12:00pm noon. The theme for our 2015 VBS adventure is " (Breakfast is available from 8:30 - 9:00am & the program begins at 9:00am.) Jungle Safari" where each day forms are at Enrollment for each age group will be limited, so enroll early. Registration music, crafts, snacks & story time. the campers will have fun exploring the nature of God through games, www.marinlutheran.org.  The fee for the 5-day is $90 for the 1st child & $80 for each sibling. Please call 415-924-3782 for further info.

Email Updates
We are in the process of updating our newsletter and electronic announcement mailing system.  If you haven't been receiving the newsletter and weekly announcements and would like to please send your current email address to lawrence@stmarks-sf.org.

Summer Knitting and Crocheting Retreats: 
Learn How or Share Your Skills

The knitting and crochet ministry at St. Mark's will have three retreats this Summer. All are welcome, regardless of your level of experience. If you would like to learn how to knit or crochet, experienced teachers will be on hand to get you started. 

At each retreat we will have presentations on different projects created by members of the ministry to serve members of St. Mark's and the broader community:

July 18th - Knitting and Crocheting for the Streets

August 15th - Comfort Knitting and Twiddle Muffs

Each retreat will be in Heritage Hall, from 10 AM to 2 PM. Each participant is encouraged to bring a bagged lunch and a snack to share. Questions should be directed to Knitters@stmarks-sf.org.

These retreats are made possible with the generous support of Thrivent Action Teams.

News from Mt. Cross Lutheran Camp
Registration is now open for summer programs at Mt. Cross! This year's theme, "A Love that Never Ends", centers around discussion of Deuteronomy 6:5 and what it means to love as God loves. Visit the Mt. Cross website to view a list of  exciting programming options for children, youth groups, and families: 

http://www.mtcross.org/#!summer-programs/c3vg 

St. Mark's Endowment Fund Request for Funding Forms Now Available

Dream it! Make it happen! Have an idea for a new ministry? Want to extend our reach doing God's work in San Francisco and around the world? If you can dream it, the Endowment Fund can help to make it happen! The Endowment Committee is delighted to announce that grants up to a total of $3,600 will be given to extend St. Mark's ministries both locally and globally. The 2015 Request for Funding is available on the web at www.stmarks-sf.org/endowment or by emailing endowment@stmarks-sf.org. Copies are also on the table under the window in Heritage Hall. The application deadline is July 19, 2015. Have questions? Need help completing the form? Contact us at endowment@stmarks-sf.org.

Worship Leaders This Sunday
Guest Preacher and Presiding Minister...Rev. Lyle Beckman
Guest Musician...Gary Schilling
Flute...Lin Cerles (9)
Vocalist...Brian Richards (11)
Assisting Ministers...Richard Boyle (9); Ed Chitty, Linda Jackson (11)
Lectors...Suzanne Smith (9); Rachel Letchumanan (11)
Chalice Bearers...Lin Cerles (9); Jacqueline Nader, Viknesh Silvalingam (11)
Acolytes...Mila & Tayte Sall
Ministry of Welcome...Susan, Mila and Tate Sall (9); Debra Varian (11)
Coffee Hour Chairs...Donna Dindia and Chuck Lewis
Next week Coffee Hour Chair...Marie-Jose Baum and Kate Knickerbocker