Pentecost to the Feast of St. Anna “Father of light, from whom every good gift comes, send your SPIRIT into our lives with the power of a mighty wind, and by the flame of your wisdom open the horizons of our minds.” St. Anna’s Episcopal Church THE ANNAGRAM Pentecost Edition Dates to Remember Summer Camp July 10-21 Summer Camp Final Performance all are invited July 21 @ 6:30 p.m. FEAST DAYS: St. Mary Magdalene July 19 @ 6:00 p.m. Patronal Feast Day—St. Anna July 23 @ 10:30 a.m. St. James the Apostle July 26 @ 6:00 p.m. Each Wednesday 3:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. we host clinic which pro- vides health screening, BP testing, blood sugar testing and general wellness advice and counseling. Starting in late July we will begin hosting our Annual Inquirers Class. Our Bible Study on the New Testament books will begin in September. The Feast of St. Anna July 23, 2017 171 Year of Service to the Commu- nity Come one come all to a great feast and celebration of our community in Christ. The Treasurers by Charlie Gottschalk and Jim McMillan So as promised in the last column (which was riveting, in case you missed it) I’d like to explore some of the structure of St. Anna’s financial accounts. We follow what is considered fund accounting, which is fairly com- mon with not for profit entities. What that means in practice is that whatever funds we collect and expenses that we pay are reflected similar to revenues and ex- penses of a normal company. Jim McMillan Charlie Gottsca- There are some differences both in how fund accounting works and in how we have chosen to implement it here at St. Anna’s. Desig- nated funds are a good example. When the church receives funds, they generally will go to- wards our general fund. However, when funds are collected for a specific purpose, or specifi- cally designated, (like the funds for the Baton Rouge flooding victims), those funds can only be used for that specific purpose. That leads to another point, which is how St. Anna’s has structured its funds. We have a num- ber of different funds, including the General Fund, Anna’s Place, Dodwell Extravaganza, Dod- well House, Capital Improvements and Food Pantry. Each of these funds is set up to specifi- cally cover an aspect of our church’s operations or mission. More importantly, the funds that are in one area (the Capital Improvements fund) can’t just be used to cover General Fund ex- penses. One of the benefits of using a number of different funds is that we have a clear sense of purpose in how those funds should operate and what their expenses should relate to. It also means that we can keep track of and monitor the financial health of the church fairly efficiently, since we can see the operating revenues and expenses of one component of the church at a time. One downside is that it does make it more important to fully fund each program on its own. For in- stance, we can’t use the money in the Capital Improvements account to pay the Entergy bill for the church each month. In the long run, that’s a really good thing because it demands that we act as stewards for all aspects of the church instead of just trying to make sure that we can get by. That’s it for this edition. Next time, I’ll explain a bit more about our budgeting and pledging process. As always, if you have any questions for me or Charlie, or something you’d just like to know more about, please ask. Jim I was blessed being able to spend two days in the parish offices and see the Anna's Place Staff in action. The office is small so you cannot miss hearing and seeing what is going on. Diana, Darryl and Yulene are very busy people. It is very obvious that they are dedicated and committed to Anna's Place Mission. I thank God for our brother and sisters! Peace – Br. Don Dubay Community Development - Anna's Place NOLA by Darryl Durham Anna's Place kids performed in City Park, prior to the Louisiana Philharmonic Concert' for the third straight year on April 25th. This year our woodwind, brass and percussion kids perform a selection of Folk Songs from around the world while our string kids joined with students from Homer Plessy Elementary and Esperanza Elementary Schools for performances of string repertoire. Derrin Parker, a member of the original Anna's Arts for Kids pro- gram (precursor to Anna's Place Darryl Durham NOLA), won 8 awards at her school's 8th grade graduation. Included in her bounty was MOST OUTSTANDING STUDENT and HONOR ROLL STUDENT for being on the honor roll every year since she started school. Congratulations Derrin, we know you're going far! The Third Annual Ms Shirley Memorial Luncheon was held on Saturday, April 29th. Ms. Shirley's daughter Al- thea, and all her siblings and their children honored their mother in a service and luncheon for the children of Anna's Place NOLA. This year we also honored Ms. Shirley's grandson Robert. At the end of the luncheon, the kids and family members released balloons in memory of their loved ones. (see image below) Ms. Derrin Parker By the time you read this Anna's Place Summer Program has begun June 19th. We currently have 51 students enrolled with only 6 slots remaining. This summer's theme will be "Sanctuary" as we explore the Community Development - Anna's Place NOLA - Contd. historical and cultural significance of South and Central America in relationship to the history of the United States. Students enrolled in the Anna's Place NOLA Spring semester ended the semester with a rousing per- formance on May 6. Among the many highlights was a flash mob to Michael Jackson's "Thriller," the introduction of our new "Latin Percussion Ensem- ble" and a beautiful violin trio performance by fac- ulty member Ms. Eva and her two students Gabby Cephus and Tierra Holden. “At this point the Summer Program is not without challenges. But the rewards are significant. We can and are changing lives.” Fr. Bill C’hana and Edana ready for “Thriller.” Did you know? Did you know that Saint Anna’s offers a worship service Monday-Friday? Yes, we do and it starts at noon and ends before 12:30. It is a quiet service and tends more toward the contemplative. The service is either a prayer service or Holy Communion. Come and enjoy a quiet moment in inti- mate worship. Did you know about the “Rectors Discretionary Fund?” These are monies set aside to assist the poor or those in need. With the consent of the Vestry those same funds can be redirected for “emergency” assistance in the budget or to launch new ministries. For instance, the Discretion- ary Fund is underwriting our new Sunday School teachers and some of the food served to the children; we have also underwritten Christian education expenses for those that cannot afford the costs. We have assisted parishioners with scholarships that allow them to attend retreats. It will also help pay for some of our children to attend Christian weekends away. Mostly it helps with rent, utilities, medical expenses and other related costs. Please consider contributing to the Discretionary Fund by designated giving. Did you know that we have a terrific website that normally carries information about what is happening at St. Anna’s as well as a link to the scripture readings for the week? It also has a place to ask for intercessory prayer and a host of other helps for our parish life. Coming soono online Sunday Bulletins, MP3 Sermons, online forms. The site can be found at www.stannanola.org. ! Anna’s Sunday School The standard class is on Summer Vacation BUT Miss Kimberly is continuing a Summer Fun Program for a single combined class. This past year was terrific and we all owe a great deal to to our teachers for doing a terrific job! It would be great if someone would volunteer to help us set up audio visual aids and then do the put away before and after mass time to help Miss Kimberly and her staff. SUMMER FUN! Karel Sloane-Boekbinder is a member of our Sunday School faculty along with Dr. Emily Harville and their respective families are members and participants in our church family. This dynamic duo has created a FANTASTIC cur- riculum. Kimberly joined our Sunday School faculty in January as a stipendiary teacher. Her skills include a lot of community work as well as being a lawyer. She worships on a regular basis in a fellowship on the West Bank and she has a fine young son. Kimberly has a passion for children and for teaching and she has embraced our Episcopal Curriculum. We are so blessed to have her. “Kimmie” along with Nicole (left) and Stephanie (Right) head up the faculty for the older children. They are doing a great job! At the present time we are also soliciting new Sunday School Teachers that can bring expertise and teaching skills to our ever expanding group of kids. A NOTE FROM MISS KAREL: St. Anna's Class A incorporates a wide variety of activities, all with two central goals in mind: Anyone, big or small can be the face of Jesus in the world AND When a person creates, God is moving through their hands.