  February 26, 2026 Calling All Counselors! Do you feel called to invest in the youth of our diocese in a meaningful and lasting way? Consider joining Camp Canterbury as a volunteer this summer. Mark your calendars for July 13th-17th for Camp Canterbury in Fremont, NE! Counselor applications are now being received and are due by February 28th! Submit your application today at: https://alliance.wufoo.com/forms/z1gb48i71oi4xlg/. Our theme this year is Feast with God, as we recognize the presence of God through the gift of food. I recently received a question regarding hymn selection. A vast majority of the hymns we sing were selected by you, the people of Saint Francis. Most of these were suggested during the hymn sing we held in early 2024; others are from thoughtful and detailed lists provided by individual parishioners. I remain open to and encourage your suggestions in this area: if there is a hymn we haven't sung recently, or one you wish we sang more frequently, please let me know. If you're interested in helping with the week-to-week hymn selection process, please let me know that as well. If there's enough interest, a planning committee can be formed. ~Many Thanks, Rev. Erin+ The theme of Episcopal Relief and Development's 2026 Lenten Meditations is "Holy Habits." They're written by Sister Monica Clare, an Episcopal nun based in New Jersey. For more information, including the meditations, supporting resources and a sign up to receive reminder emails, please visit this link. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   Our own Emma Schaaf will also be performing!!! A Message from Mary Dear Friends – I can hardly believe it is already almost March! So much has already happened this year and there is so much more to come! In January, we held our Annual Meeting and you elected 5 new Vestry members. Steve Trickler, Charlie Kennedy, Dyllan Coop, Jake Collins and Janet Craven joined Mike Schingle as your Vestry. Kathy Shambaugh continues as your Junior Warden and I will continue as Senior Warden. In February, Bishop Barker and Canon Liz visited us and led a terrific Vestry workshop over two days. One unsurprising, yet reaffirming, outcome from the Vestry Retreat was the consistent declaration that St Francis is a warm, inclusive community. It is true that there is a “Spirit of Warmth and Sense of Belonging” here. This is the foundation upon which we will build in 2026 as we focus on Growth and Engagement. As an extension of the Vestry’s focus on this, we will repurpose the Stewardship and Engagement team as our Growth and Engagement team. Currently, Jill Young, Connie Schingle, Judi Widmaier and Jeane Anderson are the members of this team. We will need more hands and hearts to join this team and coordinate our efforts for Growth and Engagement in 2026. If you have a passion for reaching out and inviting others to join our St Francis community and/or engaging our current parish members to be active in our community, I invite you to join the Growth and Engagement team. We meet the first Thursday of each month at 6 pm. Three projects continued from 2025 include an updated Membership Directory, a new bulletin board, and an update of our website. Updated Membership Directories are available from Ann in the office. A new bulletin board that will feature our wonderful ministry volunteers will soon be installed in the Parish Hall. If you have pictures of volunteers, please provide them to Ann. Our website (saintf.org) has been updated! Check it out! If you find anything that needs to be corrected, or if you have suggestions for additions, let me know. I am excited about 2026 and our opportunities to share with our neighbors that Saint Francis is truly a community that shows “A Spirit of Warmth, a Sense of Belonging”. ill you join me? Mary __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________  From the Office—Ann’s Announcements Birthdays: Jack Schaaf March 2 Erin Cawiezel March 3 Demuri Parrish March 4 Jennifer Mills March 5 Barb Becker March 6 To Brighten Your Day:  ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ As we enter the Lenten season, please remember to pause and reflect on daily blessings. These blessings can serve as your reminder that no matter how difficult your day may have been, there is always something to be thankful for. What better way than to share those blessings with others by simply tucking a coin away. All of those blessings can add up quickly. United Thank Offering is a ministry of all the people to celebrate the blessings in our lives. NOTICE the good things that happen each day. GIVE THANKS for your blessings. MAKE an offering for each blessing. Blue boxes will be provided for you to place your bills and coins in during Lent. Each coin and bill transforms lives in the United States and around the world, and your blessings become blessings for others. After Easter, the combined ingathering of donations will be blessed, and the money will be sent to The United Thank Offering. Mission Statement: United Thank Offering (UTO) is a ministry of the Episcopal Church for the mission of the whole church. Through UTO, men, women, and children nurture the habit of giving daily thanks to God. These prayers of thanksgiving start when we recognize and name our many daily blessings. Those who participate in UTO discover that thankfulness leads to generosity. UTO is entrusted to promote thank offerings, to receive the offerings, and to distribute the UTO monies to support mission and ministry throughout the Episcopal Church and Provinces in the developing world. Please pick up your blue box, or use an envelope provided in the bulletin the next time you attend a service. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Members of the Daughters of the King will be available in the Mary Chapel following Sunday services for anyone wishing intercessory prayer.
Prayer Requests Prayer requests need to be received by Tuesday, if you’d like them to be printed in the bulletin. You may call (308) 632-4626 (leave a message) or email. The Forward Day by Day’s for February-April are available in regular and large print. If you’d like either of these mailed to you, please email us or call the church office. Comments are closed.
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Rev. Erin Rath
Archives
March 2026
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