Welcome to St. Mark’s!
Wishing you and yours a blessed Christmas and a joyous New Year!
"For everything, there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven."
Ecclesiastes 3:1
What time is it in your life? Is it time to be planted, time to root, time to grow? If so, St. Mark's may very well be the place for you. We are a congregation planted in the Springfield community, rooted in the word of God, and growing in love for God and neighbor.
Pastor Triolo’s 12/15/2024 Sermon
Click HERE for Pastor Triolo’s Advent sermon of Sunday, December 15, 2024 in both English and Spanish.
New Community Gateway Operating Hours
The Community Gateway is now closed during the Montessori School operating hours. and it will be open during evenings, weekends, and school holidays. St. Mark’s members may see some more foot traffic during the daytime along our main entrance. If you have a church-related social services event that needs gateway access prior to 6:00 PM, please contact the Church Office, and Maritza will coordinate with the school. (The gateway will be opening early on Tuesdays for Food For Others.)
Food for Others Needs Help on Tuesday Evenings!
Due to members moving away and some others being unable to help distribute food on Tuesday nights, our staff is in need of people to step up and help fill this tremendously satisfying need. The past weeks have had 60-70 people at our church doors needing food … please, can you help? Contact Nan Ackerman or Debbie Brown to volunteer or ask questions.
Quarterly Benevolence: New for
Quarter Four—The Lamb Center and FACETS
From July through December, we will be collecting benevolence donations to be divided equally between The Lamb Center and FACETS. Both of these are local charities. Learn more HERE * …
Want to know our latest financial Update? … find it HERE!
THANK YOU FROM ONE OF OUR BOY SCOUTS …
… from Minh-Vien on his computer refurbishing project—read more about this great project HERE!
The "Watch and Pray" Bunch …
We’re still meeting every Sunday for 10-15 minutes after the English service at 11:00 AM in the Fellowship Hal1 for prayers … won’t you join us?!
Every Tuesday at noon the Lunch Bunch meets in the Lounge for lunch (bring your own) and prayer All are welcome.
St. Mark’s Mission Trip to Red Bird Work Camp
July 2024
Last month, St. Mark’s sent a team to participate in Red Bird Mission Work Camp. Jim Kyger, Harriet Latta, Maureen Murphy, Alice Real, and Mary Crumrine (Alice’s sister) spent July 21 through July 26 in Beverly, Kentucky, working on home improvement projects in the surrounding community. Guided by Red Bird Crew Leaders, Brett and Kevin, they repaired and replaced a bedroom floor and water heater in an elderly couple's trailer home, and they mudded drywall and installed underpinning around an addition to the couple’s nephew's home across the street. The addition will be a new bedroom for several of the nephew's children.
Do you need to change your electronic donation for 2025?
Click HERE to download the form to use to change the amount and/or frequency of your electronic donation to St. Mark's. Download it, print it, fill it in as needed according to the directions, and drop it into our church Treasurer’s box in the church office and the new information will be entered into the Vanco system.
From the Council President’s Desk …
Click HERE to see what’s new from the Council!
Congregation Meeting Recap
The Congregation held our Fall Meeting on Sunday, November 24.
We passed the Operating Budget for 2025, available HERE. The budget makes assumptions about giving, but please rest assured that we do not take anybody’s contributions for granted!
We passed the following resolution:
The Congregation endorses the position that
Safety of the Montessori school children should be given priority. Keeping the gateway closed during Montessori school hours would provide a more secure environment for the Montessori school students.
Council may implement this Congregational priority by authorizing that the gateway be normally closed during school hours until such time as effective alternate measures are in place to protect the Montessori School children throughout the school day.
What does passing this resolution mean? The Community Gateway will be normally locked during Montessori school hours, with operating adjustments made for events such as Food For Others. This will be implemented in the near future when we can prepare signs and other communications to explain to our neighbors that a change will be coming and what the new operating hours will be. Then, when the new schedule is in place, operating hours will be clearly posted. The congregation did not vote for a permanent change regarding the gateway. Other efforts will continue to look at security for the school, but nobody can say at this point how long it would take to fully develop any alternate plans that might meet our needs. As a volunteer organization, such efforts are dependent on people having the time to devote to the task. Thanks to everyone who spoke on the subject of security regarding the school itself and on the other safety/security concerns around the church.
We elected the following members:
Council:
Jim Kyger
Peter Weekly
Maureen Murphy
2025 Synod Assembly Voting Member:
Erik Long
Larry Long
Colleen Struss (alternate)
Thanks to all who have volunteered for elected positions, especially our new Council members in their three-year positions. We did not have anyone volunteer to be elected as Nominating Committee members. If you would like to volunteer to help with that at sometime in 2025, please let one of your council members or Pr. Albert know.
Health Fair Recap …
St. Mark’s held our annual Community Health Fair on Saturday, August 17, hosted by the Life Center. Thanks to all of the St. Mark’s volunteers who helped set up, host the event, and clean up afterwards. A special big Thank You goes out to Pete Morrison for leading the Life Center efforts. Thanks also to Boy Scout Troop 881 and to our DJ, Marvin Flores. This year, we used the parking lot for general information, food and entertainment, and the Fellowship Hall for all of the health screenings. We served 109 families, and we had a total estimated attendance of about 250. All 100 school backpacks were distributed by Second Story and ICNA Relief. All of the eggrolls, fried rIce, pupusas, and frozen treats were distributed, and we had been planning for about 200-300 people. A variety of health and social service providers distributed information to our guests at 15 tables in the main area. Our neighbors also received pediatric dental screenings and health screenings for Hepatitis-B, A1C, Cholesterol, and HIV. The Health Fair included singing performances, grocery gift card raffles, musical entertainment from our DJ, a Lion Dance, and a special presentation by Supervisor Lusk. It was a long day, but we all felt very blessed to be able to hold this event for our neighbors.
A St. Mark’s 70th Anniversary Proclamation from Fairfax County …
At our Community Health Fair last summer, Franconia District Supervisor Lusk presented us with a plaque commemorating 70 years of service by St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Fairfax County! Learn more HERE!
An Update to Scams and Hacks
Unfortunately, someone managed to hack into a system that was used at Synod that contained e-mail addresses and phone numbers. They have used this information to clone addresses, phone numbers, or Facebook accounts of many of our church friends. If you receive an e-mail, text, or Messenger message from any of these friends at church DO NOT RESPOND. Instead, delete the email and you can send them a separate e-mail, text, or message that should get to their true account to ask if they just sent you a communication. If you respond to the initial message that was sent or try to open links, it will go to the hacker.
These people have not actually used the account of our friends—instead, they made a copy of the e-mail that is a ghost to a different account. So, let your friends know that you received a message "from them." To be safe, they will want to change passwords. If you accidentally responded to any of these messages, change your passwords on those accounts as well. These people are phishing for weak accounts so they might be able to get into bank accounts or get more personal information like social security numbers. Make your accounts as secure as possible!
2024 FLOWER DEDICATIONS … Click HERE to learn about how our beautiful altar flowers are created
and click HERE for the form to dedicate flowers or one or more Sundays in 2024!
* * A NEWEST ADDITION TO OUR CHANCEL—”THE TABERNACLE” … Click HERE to learn all about it! * *
See CHOIR PHOTOS OF CHRISTMAS AND EASTER SUNDAY CELEBRATIONS by clicking HERE!!!
Wear Your Nametags
Please remember to wear your nametags to every church service. The nametag "tree" is located in the narthex--pick up your nametag on your way into the sanctuary and return it to the tree when you leave--it helps visitors, new members, and those of us with name recall difficulties. Thank you!
Have you a computer to donate?
Scouts of Troop 881 at Saint Mark’s are starting a computer refurbishment program. They would like to collect old computers, refurbish them, and donate them to low income families in the community. If you have any of the following to donate—laptops and desktops with Windows 7 or higher, any Mac computers, or monitors with power cords (no CRT monitors)—email the troop HERE or call (571) 354-8659 to arrange a time to drop them off at the church.
A Word of Caution!!!
To those of us who have keys to the church—and we all know this is an important responsibility! Please remember to check when leaving to ensure that this and any door you use is properly locked—especially Door #12 to the Fellowship Hall … THANK YOU!
Help for Disaster Relief—Eastern Europe and Ukraine
Looking for ways to help victims of the recent horrific earthquake damage in Eastern Europe and to assist Ukrainian refugees? The stories and images coming from these humanitarian crises are heartbreaking. Click HERE for more information, and you may donate online to assist in their efforts directly at https://community.elca.org/eastern-europe-crisis-response?_ga=2.266466318.1699478920.1646717665-1017767480.1646717665.
Find the latest Council actions and meeting minutes HERE!
* * * * * * * * *
* * * A Special message from LIRS (Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service):
“Our Afghan Allies need your help.“ Click HERE to learn more … * * *
STEWARDSHIP SURVEY … WHAT GIFTS DO YOU BRING TO THE TABLE?
CLICK HERE FOR ENGLISH SURVEY … CLICK HERE FOR SPANISH SURVEY … AND THANK YOU!
* * * * * * * * *
HOLY COMMUNION… from the elements blessed at the Lord’s table at St. Mark’s on a recent Sunday, continues to be available by appoint. Click here to complete a short RSVP to be added to the distribution list and you will be contacted for an appointment.
Our current schedule is as follows:
9:45 AM, English Communion Liturgy
12:15 PM, Spanish Communion Liturgy
Sundays: 11:00 AM COFFEE HOUR —
ZOOM MEETING NUMBER:
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87620354511?pwd=a1RvTXdMRnNqVUs0ell4MEhDbk4rZz09
Password is 5800.
CURRENT NEWS …
Have news to share with the congregation? Send it via email to communications@stmarks-elca.org to be published in the appropriate publication—E-Messenger, This Week, our website, and our Facebook page. Deadline is Tuesday at 5:00 PM, for same-week publishing.
* * * * * *
Calendar Events and Information
Click HERE to go to our monthly calendar—select your view by Agenda, Week, or Month, or Print the current month.
* * * * *