The following directives for Phase II have come from the Bishops of Michigan with additional directives from St. James’ Vestry and the Ministry Support Team. Please remember these directives are put in place for your protection.
The service will be Morning Prayer with no singing July 12 and 19.
Our first Eucharist service will be July 26 (Diocesan directives will be sent out beforehand.)
Masks and social distancing will be mandatory.
Pews unavailable for seating will be roped off.
The parking lot door will be the only entrance and exit.
Households must sit together.
Congregants will dismiss one pew at a time and in an orderly way to ensure social distancing.
There will be no receiving line following a service.
There is no nursery or in-person Sunday school or coffee hour following a service.
Please remember non-contact greetings only and to refrain from shaking hands and hugging.
People are to leave the building rather than mingling in-person
The following decisions will be in place when the doors open to help keep the traffic flow to a minimum.
An usher will be available to assist in social distancing.
The usher will keep an attendance list of attendees for contact tracing.
A hand sanitizer station will be at the back of the church.
Individually wrapped disposable masks will be provided for those that do not have one.
The Sunday offering plate will be at the back of the church to drop your offering in as you enter.
Bulletins will be on the back table for you to keep or dispose of after the service.
The reader scheduled for the Sunday readings will sit in the front pew in front of the lectern on the south end.
The same reader will also read the Prayers of the People.
The kitchen is currently unavailable.
Washrooms have been sanitized but wipes are available in the washrooms to wipe down things before using (if it makes you feel more comfortable). DO NOT FLUSH WIPES.
If there is an outbreak in Chippewa County, St. James might need to reclose. Therefore, please call the church office, (906) 632-2451, before attending to see if the service has been canceled. You can also check the website, or St. James Facebook page: www.facebook.com/stjames533
If at any time your health changes due to COVID-19, please notify Rev. Bob Aldrich, (906) 632-8598. Fr. Bob is our contact person with the Chippewa County Health Department. All calls will be confidential.
If there is anything, we can do to provide virtual worship services or pastoral care, please do not hesitate to let us know. Call the office, (906) 632-2451, and someone will get back to you.
Week 18 of "work from home" has been busy. Our first service was held on Sunday, July 12 with 13 attending. The vestry and team then met on July 13, to discuss what worked and did not work to make everyone feel safe at church. The MST will be discussing ways to help those who are not ready to attend church feel included. The plan for now is Morning Prayer this coming Sunday, July 19 and Holy Eucharist starting on Sunday, July 26. If you do not feel comfortable taking communion, the team will also offer "spriitual communion" during the service. Please remember to wash your hands, social distance six feet apart, and mask up. The main thing to remember is these directives have been put into place for our health and safety.
REMEMBER, NO ONE IS TO ENTER THE BUILDING WITHOUT A MASK. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A MASK, A DISPOSABLE MASK WILL BE GIVEN TO YOU.
The church will continue to be closed to everyone except for the Sunday service. No one is to be in the building any other time. I will continue to work from home and will check the answering machine on regular basis.
Pledges can still be mailed to the church or directly to me, 508 Sheridan Drive, SSMarie, MI 49783. Dave will continue to do a daily check on the building and I will continue to check the answering machine.daily, so feel free to call the church, (906) 632-2451, and leave a message.
If you would like to include any family news in the weekly newsletter, let me know by Friday morning. Pictures are welcome as well. It would be great to keep up on family news.
Hopefully you got a chance to use the "Prayers of the People" and "St. James Prayer List" in your prayers. If you want to add someone to the prayer list, email the church, stjames533@gmail.com or call the church (906) 632-2451 and leave a message. You can find the prayer list and the weekly prayers of the people below.
I am still in the process of changing computer programs for our membership and finances (something our auditors suggested). If you have changed phone numbers or email addresses recently, please email the church, stjames533@gmail.com with the changes. This also includes changes or additions for birthdates, anniversaries, family info. This has been more involved than I expected, but it is slowly getting done.
The diocese sends out emails with links to services and diocesan news. You can sign up for their UPCHAT information by contacting Jane Cisluycis.
Please "Stay Home, Stay Safe."
---Pam
Announcements
To place items in the weekly bulletin, weekly newsletter, or on the website, contact the office by phone or email.
The office will be publishing a new Church Directory in June. If you have changes, please notify the office asap: phone: (906) 632-2451 or email: stjames533@gmail.com
ALL EVENTS ARE CANCELED AT ST. JAMES UNTIL FURTHER DIRECTIVE FROM THE EPISCOPAL MICHIGAN BISHOPS.
Office hours are suspended until further notice. The answering machine is on and will be checked on a daily basis.
Many thanks to those who contribute returnable cans and bottles to our recycling container at the church. Contributions really add up during the year and the proceeds go towards helping area families purchase gifts and food during the holidays. Please remember to remove all caps from bottles and make sure that the bottles you leave are clean and returnable for a deposit refund. Susan Harries would like help taking the cans and bottles back to stores so that they don't pile up near the trash receptacle. If you can help with this project, please contact Susan at (906) 322-1793 as to the procedure to follow to document the number of bottles and amount of money taken in.
To keep Up-To-Date on Happenings around St. James & the Sault, go here and click on the link to sign up for the weekly newsletter. To add news, the office needs it by 11am Friday.
Rainbow Recovery (RR) is canceled until further notice. Call Mike D. (906) 259-0203 with any questions.
The group “One Day At A Time of Alcoholics Anonymous” (ODAAT-AA) is canceled until further notice. Call Mike D. with any question (906) 259-0203.
The “Soo Women's Recovery Group” is canceled until further notice. Call Brenda at (906) 259-2976 for more information.
ST. JAMES’ CHURCH DISCRETIONARY FUND
The Vestry and the Ministry Support Team have been in conversation regarding St. James’ Discretionary Fund.
The Discretionary Fund has always relied on the ECW, weddings, funerals, and donations for its funding. As those are now not as frequent, it was suggested to designate funds collected on the fourth Sunday of each month to be placed in the Discretionary Fund. These funds will be used by our Priests in order to assist others in time of need or crisis.
A collection plate will be placed by the font on the fourth Sunday of the month for donations to help the members of St. James to “Reach Out and Celebrate the Love of Christ.”
“Discretionary Fund” envelopes for loose offering will be next to the collection plate. If you would like to place a check in the Discretionary plate instead of cash, make it out to St. James Church and remember to put “Discretionary Fund” on the memo line.
