Lots of Events Every Week in May

May 1 - The Ingathering of the United Thank Offering. The UTO offering is received in honor of our Lord's many blessings and the answering of Prayer. This is the only offering that is our response to the blessings that God has given us. We have so many blessings. What a joy it is for us to share that with others. The money from your gifts is used with the gifts of Episcopalians around the world as an important outreach locally, nationally and internationally. Please use the enclosed blue envelope for your gift.

May 8 - Mother's Day Breakfast. We begin with a Mother's Day Breakfast for everyone in the parish starting at 9 o'clock in the Parish Hall. The men of Ware Church are cooking! The Sunday School kids will be doing a special craft after breakfast.

May 15 - The Day of Pentecost. Pentecost is the day that the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples. We will celebrate after the 10:30 service with strawberries and ice cream. The red of the strawberries reminds us of Christ's blood shed for us and the white of the ice cream reminds us of the purity of the Holy Spirit.

May 22 - Trinity Sunday & Award Sunday. After the 9:30 Chapel Service, there is a Sunday School scavenger hunt! There are lots of things to find in our search. Even better, there will be lots of prizes, too. At the 10:30 service, awards will be presented to our students and to say "Thank You" to the wonderful volunteer teachers who make our program so successful.

FROM THE RECTOR

Dear Parishioners,

During May we honor the young people of Ware Church with awards for their accomplishments in Sunday School, Junior Choir and Acolytes. We are most appreciative for the work of Karen Ward as our Sunday School Superintendent, Steve Parker for working with the Acolytes and Dee Johnston and Molly Hoffman for leading the Junior Choir.

We also honor Ronda Bowden, Amy Clayton, Chuck Crook, Molly Hoffman, Louisa Jones, Terry Kepner, Allison Parker and Lindsay South for teaching Sunday School.

Many thanks to Judy Fulk-Doyle who hasbeen the Youth Group Advisor this year along with Susan Jenkins and Kate Zullo who assisted. Also thank you to Peter Zullo and Mike Jenkins for going on the Parish Youth Group Ski Trip.

Also many thanks to Ed Long who led the Lenten series on Terrorism and Grace Long who has served as the Mentor to the Education For Ministry class.

The gift of your time and talents makes a big difference in the parish. Thank you!

Faithfully yours,
Peter Worthington

EPISCOPAL CHURCH WOMEN

Book Circle

The ECW's Book Circle will meet Thursday, May 5th at noon in the Parish Hall. The book the group has chosen for May is Light on Snow by Anita Shreve. This novel is about love and memory from the author of many acclaimed novels, including The Weight of Water, The Pilot's Wife and Sea Grass. This gathering is open to all. A light lunch will be provided. Call Tracy Lanum at 693-3591 if you plan to come.

MAY BIRTHDAYS

If you wish for your birthday to appear in the monthly list, please call the Church Office at 693-3821.

MUSIC NOTES

Junior Choir

The Junior Choir will celebrate the end of this choir season on Wednesday, May 25th with their special "WareMart" store. Choir members will use their "Ware Dollars" collected during this semester to purchase fabulous, fun articles and candy. This special night will be one of fun and games and good things to eat. Congratulations to the hard-working and dedicated Junior Choir members for an outstanding year!

Ware Ringers

The Ware Ringers will have a bellpolishing and cleaning evening on Wednesday, May 25th. We will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Parish House kitchen with an informal covered dish supper. Bell polishing and cleaning will follow the supper.

PRAYER CHAIN MEETS MAY 11TH

The Ware Church Prayer Chain gathers for fellowship, prayer and the Holy Eucharist at 10:00 a.m. May 11th in the Chapel. After the Holy Eucharist (which is open to everyone), the Prayer Chain gathers in the Library to pray for friends and church members. To request a prayer, call, Anne Clark at 693-4026, Bruce Forsberg at 776-7734 or Jane Van Leeuwen at 693-3500. In addition to offering prayer for the joys and concerns of the church, the Prayer Chain begins with less formal celebrations of the HolyEucharist with members writing prayers for the group's worship. New members are always welcome to join.

COFFEE HOUR

A sign-up sheet is on the church porch for summer Coffee Hour hosts and hostesses. Sign up early so that you may choose the Sunday that best fits your schedule. You provide cookies and lemonade and clean up afterward. During the summer. Coffee Hour is held outside near the church porch. One or two people are needed each week. Thank you to all who have volunteered in the past.

GOOD BUYS ABOUND AT YARD SALE

Ware Church's Yard Sale is scheduled for Saturday, June 4th. Come ready to "shop". Proceeds benefit The Family Room of Ware Church. (The Family Room meets Tuesday - Thursday mornings and provides a safe playgroup for children and their parents.)

Items may be brought to the Parish Hall beginning Sunday, May 29th. Please do not bring adult clothing. Volunteers are needed. If you can donate a few hours, please call the church office.

Items Needed:

Household items: pictures, vases, dishes, lamps, decorations, tools, etc. Please make sure all items are complete and have all parts and pieces.
Appliances: in working order with all parts and instructions.
Furniture: items that can be readily moved and are in reasonable repair. If you need assistance to move an item, call the office.
Children's Clothing: clean, untorn, no buttons missing. Hanging items should be on a hanger with a tag indicating the size. Sweaters, shorts, and shirts should be folded and sized.
Children's clothes are always a good seller. Please - no shoes.
Toys and Baby Items: always in demand. Clean, unbroken, complete items only.

VESTRY NEWS

The Vestry will meet Tuesday, May 3rd at 7:00 p.m. in the Parish Library. Vestry packets will be on the church porch on Sunday, May 1st.

FIRST SUNDAY FOOD OFFERING

On the first Sunday of every month Ware Church receives gifts of food and other personal items to restock the shelves at the Salvation Army Food Closet. Itemsalways in demand include canned meat items, tuna fish, peanut butter and paper products. Gifts for the Pantry can be left in the office or taken directly to the Salvation Army. Thank you for your contributions.

YOUTH GROUP STUFF

The Episcopal Youth Committee, which is open to all 7th - 12th graders, will meet Sunday, May 9th at 9:30 a.m. For more information about youth activities or the Youth Group, please call Judy Doyel-Fulkat 693-6135.

JUNE NEWSLETTER DEADLINE - Monday, May 9th

PARISH REGISTER UPDATE

Baptism:

Lindsay Alexandra Smith
daughter of Ken and Averelle Smith
April 3, 2005

OFFICE HOURS:

Closed Monday, May 30, 2005 for Memorial Day

LOST & FOUND

The church office has a collection of items that have been left behind. Examples are a ladies' overcoat, boots, sunglasses, reading glasses and gloves. Please check with the office if you think you have misplaced an item here.

OUR GRADUATES

Dru Jenkins
James Madison University

Alex Miller
Virginia Tech

Meredith Whitley
New York University

Prayer Books for Ware Church

The Episcopal Church has authorized four Prayer Books since its first one in 1789. Others were published in 1892, 1928 and 1976. The 1976 Book was issued as the Proposed Bo ok of Common Prayer and adopted by The General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 1979. Almost thirty years ago the proposed book was purchased and placed in the church and parish house for corporate worship. These books have begun to lose pages in the Daily Morning Prayer service and the Holy Eucharist. The congregation is invited to donate one or more Prayer Books at a cost of $20.00 each. The books will have memorial book plates with space for a loved one's name. Please contact the church office if you wish to make a donation.

WARE EPISCOPAL CHURCH CEMETERY

The earliest recorded internment in the Ware Church Cemetery was in 1723 when the Rev'd James Clack was buried just outside of the east wall of the Church. Mr. Clack arrived in Virginia in 1679 to become Rector of Ware Parish. During his tenure the present church was constructed. The location of his wife, Jane Bolling's burial site is not known.

Since then more than eight hundred people have been buried in the church yard. As a result the cemetery has been expanded several times. In the early days a number of parishioners were buried around the church within the wall. Most people were buried in family cemeteries near their homes. A number of these grave stones were moved to Ware Church between the World Wars and may be found in the APVA section which is northwest of the main doors of the Church. Next, larger cemetery sections were laid out on the outside of the of the south and west church yard. A new section south of the crossover road was opened followed by the Memorial Garden and space around it.

Over the years the Cemetery and Grounds Committee of Ware Church has worked to maintain the country simplicity of a colonial church yard with native plants that accent the patina of the cemetery markers.

Through the efforts of Martha Brown and Monica Blackston, Ware Church has an excellent catalogue of the various lots and the inscriptions on the stones. One only need visit www.warechurch.org and click the history button to access our searchable data base.

To purchase burial rights in the Cemetery, one must be a member of Ware Episcopal Church. Effective June 1, 2005, the fee for grave sites is $800.00. $150.00 is for the burial rights and $650.00 is for perpetual care. All fees are placed in the Ware Church Cemetery Fund whose proceeds are used for the maintenance of the cemetery and grounds.

To make a selection in the cemetery please telephone either the Church Office at 693-3821, Lee Brown at 693-3501 or Hugh Dischinger at 693-2171.

CEMETERY RULES AND REGULATIONS

1. The Vestry of Ware Church shall have control of the Cemetery subject to the advice and recommendations of the Cemetery and Grounds Committee.

2. Members of Ware Church shall have the right to purchase burial rights in the Cemetery.

3. Burial lots which have heretofore been sold or assigned shall continue to belong to the family who acquired said lots. Remaining burial space in the lot may be assigned to a direct ancestor or a direct descendant or their spouses of the registered lot owner.

4. When burial lots are assigned the Treasurer of Ware Episcopal Church shall collect a fee, as set by the Vestry upon recommendation of the Cemetery and Grounds Committee, for the burial rights and endowment. This provision may only be waived by the Vestry in the event of hardship.

5. All coffins shall be buried in vaults or grave liners. Cremated remains shall be buried in a suitable stone, metal or wooden urn. A single grave plot, which measurers 5' by 10', shall contain one adult sized vault. A 5' by10' plot can contain the maximum of two cremation urns. A plot may contain one vault or grave liner and one cremation urn.

6. There shall be no Service of Committal in Ware Church Cemetery without notice to the Rector. The Rector shall preside at the burial of all members of Ware Church. Further, a member of the Christian clergy, subject to the approval of the Rector, shall preside at services for non-church members in the Cemetery.

7. Inscribed grave markers shall be required for every grave site within six months of burial. The Vestry of Ware Church shall have the right to approve or disapprove any inscription which would not be in character with a colonial church cemetery. These markers may be traditional or flush stones. Foot stones and/or lot markers, if used, must be mounted flush to the ground. All markers and stones shall be mounted on concrete bases and properly anchored. Each grave site in the Memorial Garden shall have a bronze marker measuring 10 by 14 inches mounted flush to the ground with proper anchors. These markers shall be ordered through the Church Office. Metal plates or other evidence of source of purchase are not permitted.

8. There shall be no artificial flowers or arrangements of any kind placed in the cemetery at any time. Live flowers, potted plants and floral arrangements may be placed on the grave sites or burial lots at any time, provided however, that the custodians of the Cemetery shall have the right to remove these items when they die or become unattractive. Glass containers shall not be used for floral arrangements. There shall be no grading, planting, landscape work, or improvements of any kind without the written authorization of the Cemetery and Grounds Committee.

9. Visitation in the Cemetery shall only be during the daylight hours. No one, including members of Ware Church, shall trespass in the cemetery after dark.

10. No stones, vaults, or remains shall be removed from the Cemetery or Memorial Garden without written permission of the Vestry of Ware Church or the issuance of a proper court order.

11. The Vestry of Ware Church may reclaim unused burial sites should there no longer be any member of the family who would use said lot. These reclaimed lots will be made available to members of Ware Church. Any funds realized from the remaining lots shall become part of the Cemetery endowment.

12. The Cemetery and Grounds Committee shall keep an updated map with lot assignments at the parish office.

Funeral Home Requirements

1. Prior, to doing any work, grave servicing, stone setting, etc., funeral directors are requested to call the church office to prevent scheduling problems.

2. When opening graves or cremation sites excess earth shall be removed from church property by the funeral director. The burial vault top shall be a minimum of 18 inches below the surface.