Announcements and News!

      St. Paul's Dale White returns from the annual UMC Bishops' Conference very pleased that the bishops approved a letter pledging to protect God's creation.

      Dale informed St. Paul's members of the success of the project that has been so much a part of his life's work.

       The bishops, in a pastoral letter to be read in churches during Advent state, "Pandemic poverty and disease, environmental degradation and world full of weapons and violence are the wages of our sins against God's creation. But there is hope if we change our ways." 

     To read the pastoral letter on line, and to see more about this important initiative, go to this website's "Web Links to Explore."            (For more on Bishop White go to this website's "C. Dale White." - see table of contents.)

St. Paul's Annual Charge Conference Lively and Informative

The significant number of members who attended St. Paul's Annual Charge Conference found it both stimulating and informative. One highlight was the large "garden" of church activities that was created (thanks in part to the Sunday School children's efforts.) For those who were unable to attend the conference,  copies of the blue covered annual report and budget may be obtained from Pastor Becky or from church secretary Pat Canning when she is next in her office.

---

---

 SOUPS ON - In Newly Painted Kitchen!

          Every Second Tuesday of each Month.

    With winter fast approaching, St. Paul's again provides hot meals  the second Tuesday of each month.

And now this meal is prepared in a newly repaired and repainted kitchen. This improvement to the kitchen, from which approximately 5000 meals are served to the needy each year, results from the contributions of many volunteers from St. Paul's as well as from many parts of the state. And thanks to parishioners of our sister church, Calvary United Methodist Church in Middletown, who donated this refrigerator, the kitchen will be more energy efficient as well.

    For more specific information on Soups On, see  The Steeple elsewhere on this website. 

St. Paul's Stained Glass Windows Revealed

After decades of being hidden by opaque protection, clear lexon now covers St. Paul's front stained glass windows, allowing them  to enhance the entrance once again.  

 Pastor Becky has column in The Newport Daily News' Clergy Corner.    

On Saturday 10 October, 2009, The Newport Daily News published the first column in the weekly Clergy Corner by Pastor Becky joining a number of the other city clergy whose columns appear in this space in each Saturday's newspaper. Plans call for her column to appear at regular intervals throughout the coming year. As these appear they will be found shortly after publication at this website's linked page Pastor Becky's Clergy Corner Essays.

Announcements of the times and dates for Prayer Meetings, Sunday School, various Church Administrative meetings, as well as a number of community events, can be found in the latest copy of  The Steeple, accessible by clicking on the linked name.

Additional announcements and news will be posted here throughout each month when needed. 

The Steeple.
   St. Paul's publishes its newsletter, The Steeple, on a periodic basis. The latest available copy of The Steeple may be found by clicking on the linked name at the beginning of this paragraph. When available, past copies of The Steeple will be retained on this linked site for reference by those who may wish to look up a past event of interest. 

Notes

                                      Community Gardens

The final tally  from the garden this year:

200  vases of flowers have been delivered this summer;
507 lbs of winter squash was harvested last week;
2,017 lbs of vegetables were picked and, with the exception of some of the winter squash, delivered to community food banks, soup kitchens and shelters.

In spite of the cold wet July, the tomato blight in August, and little critters who also enjoyed the produced in the garden (the voles loved the sweet potatoes), it has been this year, in the words of Pastor Becky, "truly God's garden."

The community gardens are located on the grounds of the Calvary Methodist Church on Turner Road in Middletown, Rhode Island. The  gardens are a jointly sponsored initiative of St. Paul's United Methodist Church,  Calvary United Methodist Church and Portsmouth, RI United Methodist Church. Each year, large quantities of vegetables are grown and given free for use in the kitchens of the Martin Luther King center, Lucy's Hearth and other charitable organizations on Aquidneck Island.

Doubled in size in 2009, with a number of raised beds constructed to make it easier for those who find it more difficult to work at ground level, these improvements have ensured that the gardens' fresh produce  continues to be available during the summer months  of each year for all those beneficiaries who have come to appreciate the gardens' output.

All persons are welcome and encouraged to come and help out at the gardens throughout the gardening season from about April through early November!  It is not necessary to be a member of one of the sponsoring churches. Only that you wish to help --and in the process find the enjoyment that comes from gardening and helping others enjoy the efforts of your labor. Should you wish to help, but are not able to get out in the garden, persons are always needed to help distribute the produce to the various receiving organizations. For more information, or an offer to help, send an e-mail to: StPaulNpt@verizon.net

News & Notes. If you have news or notes which you would like to have included in The Steeple, or in the Sunday Worship Service bulletin, and/or this website, send an e-mail to: StPaulNpt@verizon.net or call St Paul's Church Administrative Assistant at (401) 846-0966.

 Photos. If you have photos and snapshots that you would like to see up on this website taken by, or of church members, church events, or any events of interest to the church community, please provide them to us. Send them by e-mail, postal mail,  hand them to Pastor Becky, Admin Assistant Pat Canning, Trustee's Rep. Linda Somes, or just slip them under the door of  the Church Office.   

Suggestions. This updated website for St. Paul's is the result of ideas and suggestions from a number of members of St. Paul's Church. If you have suggestions for how to improve this website, or if you have information or other content that you would like to see included on these St. Paul's United Methodist Church web pages, please send this information in an e-mail to: StPaulNpt@verizon.net,

If you have other ideas  and suggestions for how to use the latest in electronic interlinked media to get information about St. Paul's out to the broadest audience possible please provide your suggestions to us.