Parish Life

Regular Programs

Grades 9-11: These young adults are engaged in a study that is intended to lead them towards Confirmation in the spring/summer of 2007. Their program is built around the Journey to Adulthood (J2A) curriculum. Most weeks, they meet at the church at noontime on Sundays, around a meal.

Adult Forum: Adult Forum meets in our Community Room after the 10:00 a.m. service, from 11:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.

Coffee Hour: Every Sunday following the 10:00 a.m. worship service.

Parish Breakfast: First Sunday of every month prior to the 10:00 a.m. service.  The meals are entirely self-supported by donations from the diners.

Acolytes:  Acolytes assist at services as torchbearers and servers.  This ministry is open to all members from Age 10 through adult.

Altar Guild:  The Altar Guild is a special ministry devoted to the maintenance of the altar and sanctuary and the care of the vestments, linens and vessels used in worship.  The Altar Guild members set up for communion, launder linens, see to the cleaning of frontals and vestments, wash silver, polish brass, vest the altar for each liturgical season, and decorate the church for Christmas and Easter.

Pastoral Care:  The Pastoral Care Team is a small group of people who are committed to provide contact and support to members of the congregation who are no longer able to be present for church-based activities of worship and socialization.  Through visits, cards and phone calls, sometimes providing a meal or a ride, members of the team are a reminder to the individual as well as the larger community of the bonds that each member of Christ Church shares.

Ushers:  Many members of Christ Church serve as ushers at the 8:00 and 10:00 a.m. Sunday services and special holiday services.  They perform a variety of duties, including greeting newcomers and distributing service sheets, selecting and overseeing those who collect the offering and bring up the elements, taking the census, and regulating the flow of the congregation during communion.

Lay Eucharistic Ministers:  Lay ministers bring communion to those unable to attend services due to illness and administer the chalice during the 8:00 and 10:00 a.m. services.  For further information about becoming a Lay Eucharistic Minister please contact Julia Dutton by calling the church office.

Lay Readers:  Lay readers lead monthly services at the Vassar-Warner Retirement Home and also provide readers for our Sunday 8:00 and 10:00 a.m. services.  Joan McGilvray is Coordinator of the Lay Readers.

Lectors:  Lectors assist at the 8:00 and 10:00 a.m. services by reading the first and second lessons from the lectern.

Christ Church Choir:  The Christ Church Choir is united in the joy of singing and dedicated to providing music for the 10:00 a.m. Sunday worship service.  The choir also performs at the Christ Church Concert Series several times each year.

Volunteer Office Receptionists:  The volunteer office receptionists are available to be in the church office whenever the secretary is on vacation or not available.  They also assist in the mailing of the monthly newsletter, other special mailings, and help with the preparation of service bulletins.

George III Charter Society:  This society is open to all parishioners who have named or who wish to name Christ Church as a beneficiary of a posthumous gift.  There is no minimum for membership, and all gifts are gratefully acknowledged.  For further information, contact the parish office.

Committees

Parish Life Team:  The Parish Life Team has oversight of all internal activities for the congregation, including everything from education, to music, to fellowship, to stewardship, to worship.

Community Ministry Team:  Hearing God's call to love our neighbors as ourselves, the Community Ministry Team, with the active participation of the parish, supports and enhances the existing community ministries of Christ Church.  The Committee also engages in a process of evaluation and discernment to shape its local, national and global ministries of the future.

Property Team:  The Property Team is responsible for the maintenance of the church and parish buildings, including renovations to existing structures, restoration of the Christ Church Tower, landscaping, and consultation with architects and other experts.

Vestry:  The Vestry is a group of elected lay people whose function, by Canon Law, is to govern the "temporal" activities of the parish. The vestry consists of twelve members, including two Wardens. The Rector presides over the meetings.