Excerpt from St. Francis and the Sow

to put a hand on its brow

of the flower 

and retell it in words and in touch

it is lovely

until it flowers again from within, of self-blessing

as St. Francis 

put his hand on the creased forehead

of the sow, and told her in words and in touch

blessings of earth on the sow, and the sow

began remembering all down her thick length,

the long, perfect loveliness of sow

--Galway Kinnell

Friends,

This Minute of Appreciation is our community's blessings of light on this core Hospitality team, so that we can begin remembering all down the thick length of time they spent working together in preparation behind the scenes, and the hours of fellowship many of us experienced over the years. The long, perfect loveliness of this Hospitality team.

Many of us discover dormant gifts in our volunteer spaces.  Judy Born discovered her Hospitality gift in her role. I've had people comment to me how natural she seemed, and how joy emanated from her while she glided around the room. The light connects with some of us in our volunteer spaces while in service to others and in movement. It is in these roles where Judy's light shines most brightly.

Debbie Overmyer's passion was the aesthetics of the room. She transformed functional cafeteria tables into works of art. The tables were covered with tablecloths, and adorned with seasonal crafts, craft animals, and nature. Hospitality for her has a sense of joy and duty. The plan had evolved at one time for there to be two potlucks per month, with the other Sundays off but Debbie couldn't resist making sure we had beverage on the non-potluck days, too.

Judy Keairns continued in her role even after the death of her husband and CFM member Greg. Her commitment to showing up never wavered. This speaks to the connection, community, and friendship these volunteer roles create. This brought her into our building where she could openly grieve, and we and her team could care about her.

The season for this core team has ended. This two month transition has made transparent to those beyond the core team all the tasks involved in making fellowship happen month after month, and meeting the goal of two potlucks per month, with beverage service during the off weeks and extracurricular activities. Leadership will learn from the experience of this team and devise and implement processes that broadens the team so that responsibility is shared. Please take a moment in-person, by text, or email, to thank the members of the past core team for their years of service and consider volunteering.   

Blessings of light for the core team that has served us well these years and to new leadership and each member of the new team that keeps fellowship going for years to come.