St. Mary Magdalene Episcopal Church
Our Vision: To be a community… Real. Rooted. Relevant.
Our Purpose: To follow Jesus Christ so that we will be His hands and feet in the world.

The Call

November, 2024

Church

A Message from Steve Hirtzel, Vestry Warden

Ecclesiastes 3

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die, a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; a time to kill and a time to heal; a time to break down and a time to build up; a time to weep and a time to laugh…

Many of us remember this verse through the Byrds song from the sixties, “Turn! Turn! Turn!” It really resonates with me right now. November promises to bring opportunities and challenges. As with every November, we see the changing colors of the leaves, as well as the harvest of the crops. This month we’re facing a very important election. As a church, we continue to search for a rector.

Let’s all turn to prayer this month and thank God for the bounties of the crops. Let’s pray for a time of healing after this election, no matter which candidates win. Let’s pray to build each other up. Let’s pray for the right person for St. Mary Magdalene to come forward and the patience to wait if that person doesn’t come soon. Finally, this month, as we enter into our pledge campaign, let’s pray for St. Mary Magdalene, our mission and purpose.

God’s blessings,

Steve

On Sunday, October 13, 2024, your vestry met after church.

Steve has assembled a full schedule of supply priests through October.
Upcoming on-site events include a KC Men’s Chorus performance to benefit SingleMomKC (October 20), the Church Picnic (October 6), Trunk or Treat (October 27) and a weekend Youth event.
Our application for a small grant from the Diocese was approved and we will use it to complete replacement of some windows that are developing condensation between the panes.
Name tags are available in the rack to the left of the door as you face the driveway. Wear yours during the service!
Minutes of the August vestry meeting are at this link.

“Pay off Principal” Makes a Difference!

Last year we were able to contribute $25,000 towards additional principal on our mortgage and this year we received an anonymous donation of $15,000!

Under some reasonable assumptions (depends on the interest rate and term of the new loan) every $10,000 we pay against the mortgage now can reduce our future monthly payments by about $100.

This is an ongoing effort to encourage year-round awareness of stewardship as one way to give from what God has given us. Please take an envelope home so you can add donations to the offertory plate when you’re moved to do so. No amount is too small!

Planned Giving Reminder: Members of our leadership frequently receive material on Planned Giving and sometimes attend educational sessions. We were surprised and blessed when Arni, our former Business Manager, left us her house in her will and the proceeds have provided a nice financial cushion, which is being kept partly in cash and mostly in CDs yielding over 5% annually. This is a relatively small congregation and people don’t update estate documents frequently, but if you are in the process and wish to discuss planned giving, QCDs, donation of appreciated stock or any other non-cash forms of donation, please talk to Dave Pierson, Chair of the Finance Committee, Cyndi Troyer, our Treasurer, or Regina Berens.

Update on our Priest Transition

I want to update you on the progress we are making towards calling a new Rector
to St. Mary Mag.

Since going live on the church’s job-search website, we have received quite a few
applications. The Search Committee has interviewed two candidates, and will
interview another candidate next week.

If the committee determines that an applicant may be a good fit for St. Mary Mag,
they will be forwarded to the Vestry for a second, in-person interview. We will
keep you posted.

Please keep us in your prayers.

Thank you.

In the meantime, you can find our Parish Profile from the front page of our site or at this link.

Karen Hansen
Chair, Search Committee

Eucharistic Visitor Training November 3

On Nov. 3, 2024, directly after our morning worship service, there will be an EV training for anyone that would like to become an EV or to be re-licensed. This is a ministry of the church in which trained volunteers take communion, typically after our morning worship service, to those shut-in or in hospital. This is a special ministry and can be a tremendous blessing to both the person receiving communion, and the ones giving it. Please email Deacon Brock Slabach at slabach@att.net to sign up, or you can let him know at church. If you have questions or need more information on this ministry, please also reach out.

Update on the Bishop Transition

Diocesan Convention will be held at the Cathedral November 8-9. Three of our members- Brock, Cyndi and Tasha- are delegates and will be voting in the election to choose the next Bishop from a slate of four outstanding candidates. There are plans to stream the Convention if they can get the necessary software upgrades at the Cathedral; the link to the Convention Information page is here.

Benefit Concert Held October 27

On October 27 the Kansas City Men’s Chorus held a concert at St. Mary Magdalene to benefit SingleMom KC. We were glad to share our space, which has perfect acoustics for music, to benefit one of our outreach ministries. If you’d like to help, they can always use full-size toiletries, cleaning products and other items from their Amazon wish list, which you can also buy elsewhere and bring to church.

Diocesan Council met in Springfield on October 12. We learned that the consultant working with us on the Bishop transition reported that turnout at the in-person meetings with the candidates was well above what they would have expected for a diocese this size.

Following a cleanup and organizing of centuries of records in the basement of the Diocesan office, we have shipped 32 reels of microfiche (remember microfiche?) to a company that will digitize them. eventually off of this history will be available on the Diocesan web site.

The New Spirit is published every two weeks. Read the latest issue here.

On-Line Training

If you’re involved in any kind of ministry at St. Mary Magdalene (and most of you are!), the Diocese strongly recommends the “Safe Churches, Safe Communities” series of on-line modules. Each can be covered in 15 minutes or less. Everyone- Chalice Ministers, Lay Readers, Acolytes, Vestry members, people with a key to the church, Sunday School teachers, etc.- needs to be educated on risks and risk mitigation to keep God’s people safe.

If you haven’t started these courses, contact Cyndi and she’ll set up an account for you.

Women’s Book Club

The book for the November 4th meeting is The Women by Kristin Hannah. We will be meeting at the home of Karen Hauswald at 14345 Manor Ct, Leawood, KS 66224. The Christmas potluck will be held in December so there is no book selection.

We will be choosing our January & hopefully February books at the November 3rd meeting.

Daughters of the King

Members of our chapter of Daughters of the King helped serve dinner for the second time at Heart-n-Hand in Belton.

Daughters of the King meets the third Sunday of the month in Education Room right after church. If you’re interested, please contact Cyndi Troyer.

November 15

God and Guinness Night at Conroy’s

Please join us for a fun gathering of fellowship, drinks, and food.

Contact Rich Koch 913-707-0148 or koch0520@sbcglobal.net for questions or information.

Walk for the Single Mom KC

The Single Mom KC is one of our outreach partners and several members of our church are actively involved with this faith-based organization, which supports women and their children through a necessities pantry, a free clothing boutique, workshops on healing from trauma and assistance in jobs and training. Their annual fundraising walk was held at Sar-Ko-Par Park on Saturday, October 5. Some of our members put on their walking shoes and joined the walkers!

KC for Refugees Needs Household Items

A few years ago we opened up the basement of the House of Grace to KC for Refugees, an organization that provides support for newly-arrived refugees from war-torn countries. They’re in need of all the basic necessities. Here’s their most recent communication:

We need your help! Our Welcome Closet is nearly out of all supplies! We need lots of help to replenish our storehouse for the refugees arriving weekly to the KC Metro area!

Needed donations include: Towels, blankets, small kitchen appliances (rice cookers, electric tea pots, pressure cookers, etc), dishes, silverware, pots and pans (the bigger the better), diapers, sheets (twin and queen size) and hygiene and cleaning kits, diapers, maxi pads, socks and underwear for children and adults.

Our Amazon wishlist is available for easy donation! All items purchased are delivered to a KC for Refugees volunteer who delivers to our Welcome Closet.

Amazon Wish List Link

Or donations are always welcome in person! All donations should be new, or very gently used with lots of life left in them. They can be dropped off at the lower level of the House of Grace on Thursdays from 9-11am, or brought to church.

Thank you so much for your help! We cannot do this great work without your help and support!!!

Heart-n-Hand Ministries

Heart-N-Hand Ministries, right here in Belton, serves the homeless as well as others just needing a hand up. At their website, www.heartnhand.org, there is always a current list of donated items they are seeking. It is also shown below.

Heart-N-Hand would also appreciate anyone interested in volunteering. For more information, please contact Pamela Buttrum, Food Pantry and Volunteer Coordinator, at 816-322-1133. Her e-mail is foodpantry@heartnhand.org.

Thanksgiving at Heart n Hand

Heart n Hand is conducting their annual Thanksgiving drive to supply Thanksgiving dinners to families in need. There are multiple ways you can help including buying non-perishable items from their list (they provide the turkeys), volunteering to deliver the meals or donating money to buy turkeys. More information here.

Here’s the latest list of items they need most. Donations can be left in the Narthex.

Canned meals like Chili, Ravioli, Spaghetti-O’s, stew (pop top preferred)

Pancake Mix, White rice, Pork & Beans, Crackers

Boxed mashed potatoes, Spaghetti sauce

Baking goods: Flour, Sugar, cooking oil

Peanut Butter, Grape Jelly

Canned chicken, ham, or pork

Canned fruit, Condiments, Powdered milk, Juice, Dressing

Baby wipes, Dish soap, Toilet Paper, Paper towels

Tampons and pads, Kleenex. Household cleaning products

Shampoo and conditioner

Here is a link to items you can order from Amazon. Lunch Box

Help Save Lives with Your Donation!

We collected 23 units of blood at our August 28 drive- a record! (The offer of a $20 gift card to donors may have helped. 🙂 )

We have agreed to host an “interim” drive on Friday, November 29 from 11 AM to 3 PM.

This is the day after Thanksgiving but they always have shortages during holiday periods.

Our next drive after that will be Thursday, January 23.

Single Mom KC, a bible-based support program for single mothers and their children, offers a wide range of support services, including workshops on healing from trauma, financial literacy classes and job-hunting support, needs clothing for women and children and full-size toiletries. They also need other items that you can order from their Amazon wish list or buy them elsewhere and bring them to church.

The Call

We are still looking for another person to create The Call every other month (alternating with Regina). It can be done gradually as you get announcements of events, etc. Many other items are provided by others and you just have to incorporate them with some pretty straightforward “drag-and- drop” software. Please let Regina know if you are interested.

More About Us

St. Mary Magdalene offers in-person Sunday Worship at 10:30 a.m. We are also live streaming the service for those who prefer to join us from home, on our YouTube channel at this link.

If you have a family illness or a personal concern, please contact the church office at 816-331-2222 and leave a voicemail.

We miss you when you cannot participate in church, and we want to know when one of our members can be comforted from a pastoral visit, being added to our prayer list, or by receiving communion at home.

If you have a family illness or a personal concern, please contact the church office at 816-331-2222 and leave a voicemail.

St. Mary Magdalene Episcopal Church | 16808 Holmes Rd., Belton, MO 64012

(816) 331-2222 | http://www.marymag.com

St. Mary Magdalene Episcopal Church
Our Vision: To be a community… Real. Rooted. Relevant.
Our Purpose: To follow Jesus Christ so that we will be His hands and feet in the world.

The Call

October, 2024

Church

A Message from Steve Hirtzel, Vestry Warden

The roller coaster of temperatures continues as I write this. That’s the Midwest for you. I can’t believe it’s been nearly 3 months since Fr. Larry’s retirement. Thanks go out to all of the supply priests and especially Brock as he continues to steady the ship until we call a new priest. In addition to his normal duties, he led us in morning prayer twice as well as preaching one Sunday. Also, much appreciation goes to Regina Berens and Scott Laurent for preaching this month. We’re very fortunate to have them both in our congregation.

The vestry and Search Committee met with Bishop Bruce and Fr. Chas earlier this month to spell out our needs and the qualities we want in a clergy person It was a good discussion and I believe they came away with a better understanding of what is needed at St, Mary Magdalene.

The community garden continues to reap a healthy harvest. Over 150 lbs. of vegetables have been delivered to Heart n Hand. There will be another opportunity to help them coming up. Stay tuned.

Please pray for the Rev. Mary Margaret Saxon. one of our first supply priests after Fr. Larry’s retirement. She had a bad fall last weekend. Fortunately there were no broken bones but she suffered severe inner and outer contusions. She will be laid up for a few weeks but we look forward to seeing her in October.

I’d like to end this update with my favorite verse. If you know me at all, you know I’m a worrier. This passage gives me strength. If you, too, have worry and anxiety, I hope it will help you.

Philippians 4: 6-7 “Do not be anxious about anything but in every situation, by prayer and petition and with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

God’s Blessings,

Steve

On Sunday, September 22, your vestry met after church.

Steve has assembled a full schedule of supply priests through October.
Upcoming on-site events include a KC Men’s Chorus performance to benefit SingleMomKC (October 20), the Church Picnic (October 6), Trunk or Treat (October 27) and a weekend Youth event.
Our application for a small grant from the Diocese was approved and we will use it to complete replacement of some windows that are developing condensation between the panes.
Name tags are available in the rack to the left of the door as you face the driveway. Wear yours during the service!
Minutes of the August vestry meeting are at this link.

There was no vestry meeting in July.

“Pay off Principal” Has an Impact!

Last year we were able to contribute $25,000 towards additional principal on our mortgage and this year we received an anonymous donation of $15,000!

Under some reasonable assumptions (depends on the interest rate and term of the new loan) every $10,000 we pay against the mortgage now can reduce out future monthly payments by about $100.

This is an ongoing effort to encourage year-round awareness of stewardship as one way to give from what God has given us. Please take an envelope home so you can add donations to the offertory plate when you’re moved to do so. No amount is too small!

Planned Giving Reminder: Members of our leadership frequently receive material on Planned Giving and sometimes attend educational sessions. We were surprised and blessed when Arni, our former Business Manager, left us her house in her will and the proceeds have provided a nice financial cushion, which is being kept partly in cash and mostly in CDs yielding over 5% annually. This is a relatively small congregation and people don’t update estate documents frequently, but if you are in the process and wish to discuss planned giving, QCDs, donation of appreciated stock or any other non-cash forms of donation, please talk to Dave Pierson, Chair of the Finance Committee, Cyndi Troyer, our Treasurer, or Regina Berens.

Update on our Priest Transition

This is a report of the progress your Search Committee is making towards calling a
new Rector to St. Mary Mag.
I reported a couple weeks ago that we were officially on the church’s job-search
website. Today I’m happy to report that since that time we are beginning to receive
some applications.
The committee will look them over and arrange for a first interview. Our purpose is
to determine whether the applicants are a good fit for St. Mary Mag. We will keep
you posted.

Please keep us in your prayers.

Thank you,
Karen Hansen
Chair, Search Committee

Thank you,
Karen Hansen
Chair, Rector Search Committee

Update on the Bishop Transition

On July 31 the Diocese announced the slate of candidates for the next Bishop of the Diocese of Western Missouri. Full profiles, including video interviews, are at this link .

During the week of September 16, the four finalists arrived in Kansas City (3 with spouses) to meet with people all around the Diocese. They answered many prepared questions and some from the floor at each meeting. Reports on the sessions, including recorded streaming, are at this link.

Check out our New Web Site!

The Diocese has migrated church web sites to a new platform (WordPress). As in the past, this support is paid for from Diocesan funds at no additional cost to us. Zach, our Diocesan Communications Director, created a beta version and I updated it and added items. Please take a look at it and let me know what you think! I’d also welcome help with it; WordPress is widely used so there are many helpful resources on the web.

Remember that the site will be a resource for prospective priests wanting to learn more about us, so it’s important that they really see how vital our community is!

The URL is unchanged; it’s still http://www.marymag.com.

A detailed description of the process, potential time line and the work of the three Committees involved (Search, Transition and Consecration) in the selection of the new Bishop is here.

The New Spirit is published every two weeks. Read the latest issue here.

On-Line Training

If you’re involved in any kind of ministry at St. Mary Magdalene (and most of you are!), the Diocese strongly recommends the “Safe Churches, Safe Communities” series of on-line modules. Each can be covered in 15 minutes or less. Everyone- Chalice Ministers, Lay Readers, Acolytes, Vestry members, people with a key to the church, Sunday School teachers, etc.- needs to be educated on risks and risk mitigation to keep God’s people safe.

If you haven’t started these courses, contact Cyndi and she’ll set up an account for you.