St. Luke's Episcopal Church

Offering a unique and fulfilling experience of worship through an Anglo-Catholic mass.

5 Dec. Newsletter

SERVICE – Once again, and as quite appropriate considering the date, our own Fr. Grady will conduct the service on Dec 8. For the rest of the year, we will have a variety of other supply priests, depending on their availability

After the Dec 8 service we will have a special coffee hour event to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Fr. Grady’s ordination. Please join us as we honor this good, kind and Holy priest.

After the Dec 15 service we will have a special coffee hour event to celebrate the 65th anniversary of Canon Lester’s ordination. Please prepare to join us as to honor this good priest who gives so much to St. Luke’s. Remember our Wednesday morning Healing service conducted by Canon Lester @ 10:00 am in the chapel. (James 5:16)

GRILL & CHILL INVITATION- We, the people of St. Luke’s, have been invited to attend a GRILL & CHILL event at Citygate Ministries, 1735 Jackson St., Ft. Myers, this FRIDAY, 6thDecember, 2024, (That’s TOMORROW, folks) between 6:00 and 9. This is especially important as your Vestry is planning St. Luke’s first Grill And Chill in the near future as part of our big Membership Drive and we need as many people as possible to be familiar with Grill & Chill so we can pull it off successfully.

ST, LUKE’S OUTREACH – We are proud to list the following programs where the people of St. Luke’s reach out to the less fortunate in our community to help in their hour of need

FOOD BANK –We are now collecting for distribution by Christmas in cooperation with our partners at All Souls in N. Ft. Myers. Please consider canned cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes or yams, pumpkin, boxes or bags of stuffing, rice mixes, smaller bags of rice, sugar, beans or flour, and don’t forget small pet food.

ANGEL TREE CHARITY - This is an extension of our prison ministry sponsored by prisonfellowship.org to provide wrapped presents for the children of incarcerated parents. Please bring your wrapped present back to St. Luke’s by Dec. 15 for distribution on Dec 21. If you would like to share in the joy of delivering the gifts to the “Caretaker” families, volunteers are welcome. Please contact BARBARA FLYNN (bflynn1073@aol.com) or DONNA WILLIAMS (donnawilliams211@comcast.net).

FRIENDS OF ANNA CHARITY - Once again, as has happened every year at recent Christmastides, we have been asked to help out ANNA’S FRIENDS (Formerly “Guardian ad Litem”) a non-profit group started to help children who have become wards of the 20th District Court which has expanded to help all foster children.

Some of these children, ranging in age from infancy through the teen years, have been removed from their homes with nothing more than the clothes on their backs. Anna’s Friends maintain a “Comfort Closet” to provide the things needed for day-to-day life. This is where we come in. Suggested gift items include clothing (esp. socks, underwear and pajamas), diapers (esp. larger sizes), “onesies” for infants, wipes, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, toothbrushes and paste, toys, books, bed linens or blankets (twin size), or $5 - $10 gift cards for the teens. Gifts should NOTbe wrapped or labelled. Decorated collection boxes have been placed in Haynes-Burgess Hall to collect the gifts. They will be picked up by Anna’s Friends between Christmas and Epiphany. Mark 10: 13 - 16

MUSIC - Advent 2 - Year C - The second Sunday in Advent is "John the Baptist Sunday" in all three liturgical cycles (Years A, B and C). Our scriptures today tell us to turn from sorrow and that God will be sending a messenger to lead the way. The Gospel fulfills that promise with the story of John the Baptist crying in the wilderness, "Prepare the way of the Lord!" Our hymns reflect the promise of salvation, the story of John the Baptist and the cry heard in the wilderness: Comfort, Comfort Ye My People (Hymn 67), On Jordan's Bank the Baptist's Cry (Hymn 76), There's a voice in the Wilderness Crying (Hymn 75) and Hark! A Thrilling Voice is Sounding (Hymn 59). Remember that a hymn is not the music; a hymn is the words and the words of these hymns are powerful. The choir will sing Prepare Thyself, Zion, an arrangement of a movement from Bach's (German, 1685-1750) Christmas Oratorio, and the instrumental voluntaries include Variations on Psalm 42 (Hymn 67 - Comfort, Comfort Ye My People) by David N. Johnson (American, 1922-1987) and a voluntary on Winchester New (Hymn 76 - On Jordan's Bank the Baptist's Cry) by English composer C. S. Lang (1891-1971). Join us as we celebrate and prepare once again for the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ!

After a few years of neglect, significant maintenance work has already been done to bring our organ back to its full working order at a cost of about $6,500, with some fairly extensive, recently discovered termite damage yet to go. We are blessed to have such a fine organ and an exceptional organist/choirmaster to lead us in worship.. Let's all do our part to help pay for this work, for the glory of God. Make your check payable to St. Luke's/Friends of the Choir.

ST. LUKE’S CHOIR - - If you are interested in singing with St. Luke’s Choir, January is a good time to join. Weekly rehearsals are held every Thursday at 7:00 pm in the Choir Room beginning January 9th. The Choir reconvenes each Sunday at 9:00 am for a warm-up in preparation for the 10 am Service. ALL ARE WELCOME TO JOIN WITHOUT AUDITION! Come help us make a joyful noise unto our Lord! If you are interested, please contact our Director of Music Ministry, Dr. Ronald Doiron so a music folder may be prepared for you prior to your attendance.

TENORS WANTED! – Our choir needs / wants tenor voices.

FINANCE – As we face the end of the calendar year, thanks to your generosity it looks like we will be able to meet all our obligations. Please, prayerfully, consider how you can help St. Luke’s survive and grow.

Due to recent changes in code requirements (massive hurricane-proof foundations), the cost of the sign, to be placed in front of our church, has increased by $3,000.00. Please help us to meet this expense by giving a one-time gift designated to “Church Sign”. Thank you for your faithful support as we continue to rebuild our parish.

Our Stewardship Drive is currently underway. Stewardship Information Packets have gone out in the mail. Don’t forget to return your card ASAP.

BUILDING – The existing wooden doors in the Sanctuary will be up for sale. If you want them, or know anyone who might, PLEASE contact our Jr. Warden Donna Williams.

When the handsome, new, code-compliant doors are installed, we will need to replace the existing outside lights above the doors which not only do not meet code but are disintegrating with age. Once again, we could use donations for both lights and labor.

We currently have no sexton, janitor or cleaning service, Our vestry has recently gotten a quote for 2 cleanings a month for $440.00/mo. Checking with other churches in town, that would be a bargain BUT we don’t have $440.00/mo at the moment. PLEASE keep this in mind when you respond to our Stewardship drive. Vestry Member Linda Brown has all the details.

THEATRE NIGHT- The Dec 1 trip to Broadway Palms to see “A Christmas Carol” – musical version, was a lot of fun for the 11 theatre goers. If you have a suggestion for our next Theatre night, please contact BARBARA FLYNN.

COFFEE HOUR – We need volunteers to provide “goodies” for the coffee hour, Please sign up on the sheet in Haynes-Burgess Hall. As mentioned above, we will be celebrating Fr. Grady’s ordination anniversary this week. Special “Goodies”, warm fellowship and a chance to recognize his service to St. Luke’s. Be there!

CALENDAR - Dec 6 – Grill & Chill @ Citygate (See above)
Dec. 8 – Celebration of Fr. Grady @ coffee hour
Dec 9 &16, Jan 6,’25 – Serendipity Bible Study- (239) 560-4535, 7 PM – NOTE NO meeting Dec. 23 or 30!
Dec 15 –Celebration of Canon Lester’s Ordination – coffee hour, Lessons & Carols, 4:00 pm
Dec 21 – Distribution of “Angel Tree” Gifts
Dec 24 – Christmas Eve, 7:00 pm service

If you want more, less or different information, tell your vestry.

Contact Us

2635 Cleveland Ave, Fort Myers, Fl
Phone: (239)-334-2479
Office Email

Worship Schedule

Sundays: 10 AM
High Mass

Wednesdays: 10 AM
Unction Mass in Chapel

St. Luke's - 2024