Bible Study —The Bible Study Group meets every other Tuesday (alternating with the Men’s Group) at 9:00am in the St.  James Room for a lively discussion of scripture.  Currently the group is working its way through the Gospel of Matthew, with plans to next tackle Mark.  Newcomers to the group are welcome at any time, and no prior knowledge is assumed.  Please bring a bible—Kris recommended a NSRV study bible such as the Harper Collins Study Bible, the New International Study Bible, or the New Oxford Annotated Bible.  Contact: Kris Lewis or Connie von Maur

Saint Mary’s Book Group— Saint Mary’s Book Group meets on the third Friday of the month at 1:00pm in the Saint James Room.  Books are chosen by the group and have covered a wide variety of topics and genres, and discussion is always lively.  Contact: Susan Babcock

Men’s Group—The Men’s Group meets every other Tuesday at 7:30am in the Parish Hall for Eucharist, breakfast, and discussion centers on a variety of topics – current events, books and videos on a wide variety of subjects relating to faith and living as Christians in the world—as well as getting to know one another.  The men of Saint Mary’s have been meeting for more than 30 years, and welcome new attendees—those who can come each time and those who drop in from time to time. Contact: the Rev. Kris Lewis

Thursday Breakfast Group—  Thursday Breakfast Group meets each Thursday morning to feed both body and soul.  The group meets at 7:30am for Eucharist in the church, followed by breakfast and conversation in the Parish Hall.  Discussions are wide ranging and may touch on the lectionary readings for the week, current events, or books on a wide variety of subjects relating to faith and the Christian life.  Members of the group take turns providing breakfast, and the group usually adjourns around 9 am. 

This group began as a Lenten study program more than 20 years ago, and is still going strong.  New people are welcome to join—come regularly or drop in when you can.
Contact: Leslyn Thorne    

Episcopal Church Women—ECW stands for “Episcopal Church Women”.  Every woman who is a member of St. Mary’s is also a member of the ECW.  Very often our activities include men and sometimes even rely on men.  We are all inclusive!   Our mission is to extend God’s Kingdom through our prayers, labors and donations to our Church, Charity and Christian Mission. Our officers in 2008 were: Ann Canedy, Chair; Bunny Thompson, Vice Chair and Secretary; Lois Gagnon, Treasurer; Marilyn Cannon, St. Martha’s Guild (collations); Penney Hensley, Missions; Helen Boocook, United Thank Offering; Margaret Mankiewicz, Programs; Sarah Magruder, Church Women United; Carol Smith, publicity and Daffodil Tea Chair, Helen Hinckley, Holly Fair Chair; Robin Greene, Chair of Evening Group and Estelle Trzcinski, Liaison to Evening Group.
The ECW is the backbone and sponsor of four major fundraising activities: Holly FairDaffodil Tea; Fall and Spring Rummage Sales. The ECW uses these funds to provide for our parish families in times of need or opportunity, assist the Vestry with various capital projects and give to our local, national and international community. 

 Evening Women’s Group— The Women’s Evening Group meets that last Monday of each month in the St. James Room.  The group aims to provide a time of relaxation and spiritual replenishment with no demands placed upon attendees.   This is a place of refuge for women to share and grow into a group who enthusiastically encourage deepening prayer in our daily lives. We have delved into such categories as The Gift of the Magi, Prayer around the world, intercessory prayer, Lecto Divina: Psalm 118 and others, Advent Meditations and Rebuilding Broken Dreams: The story of Nehemiah. We continue to invite all women of St. Mary's and their guests to attend for dessert and discussion one evening each month.   Contact: Robin Greene

BEASTS— St. Mary's BEASTS (Be Engaged - Animal Stewardship Through Service) is a group that is dedicated to improving the lives of animals and educating parishioners.

Mission Statement
 We are a group which through God's grace and our own hard work is determined to:
*help Christians recognize that animals are fellow creations of God and to respect and treat them as such
*act concretely in our church community to better the lives of all animals and to include them in our spiritual lives and our liturgies
*answer, to the very best of our ability, God's call to be good stewards in the lives of animals
By doing these things we hope to open minds and hearts to St. Basil's prayer and, "...realize that they live not for us alone, but for themselves and for thee, and that they too love the sweetness of life..."
 Contact:   Amy E. Crocker

Environmental Stewardship—
Our mission:
“As Christ’s body in the world, we are called to act as faithful stewards of the rich resources we receive from God and to engage in a ministry of environmental conservation, preservation, education, and advocacy in the parish, the local community, and the larger world.”

Environmental Stewardship efforts are an ongoing part of life at Saint Mary’s.  We are committed to reducing our carbon footprint in the world as a church by lowering operating expenses for light, heat, and power.   Expenses for paper products will also go down as we successfully substitute using white board instead of making paper copies for meeting agendas, use paperless communication like email, or simply copy on the back of paper headed for the recycling bin.  We use ceramic mugs and plastic glasses at our coffee hour, reducing our need to purchase and discard the hundreds of throw-away cups.   In the gardens, we have begun the transition to organic lawn care and are confident that with careful timing of lawn treatments, we can have a healthy, attractive lawn at no additional cost, while safeguarding surrounding wetlands.  In 2009, we intend to install rain barrels and fund a well, two further cost-saving measures.  The payback period on the well is estimated at 3-4 years.
Contact: Sarah Magruder and Angela Cenzalli 

Garden Task Force— Many parishioners and members of the Garden Committee work enthusiastically seeking to keep up with the challenges presented by this remarkable and sacred space.  Saint Mary’s Garden continues on the path set out by all those who have tended these gardens over the years.  We continue to be grateful for the efforts and love which these men and women have manifested over time.  In addition, crews from the Barnstable County Correctional Program have provided us with able crews on a number of workdays and have been instrumental in our ability to accomplish some of the “heavy lifting” projects.
Contact:  Peggy Anschutz

Evangelism—   Our mission is to proclaim the love of God in Jesus to visitors, potential newcomers and to our congregation and that we will be intentional in our efforts to attract new members to St. Mary’s.   
This committee would like to invite you to join us in this exciting and dynamic ministry.  If you think that you might be interested in serving on the committee or would just like to know more about our work, please talk to any committee member.  We are also very interested in hearing your thoughts, ideas and suggestions on how we might become a more welcoming congregation and more effective in reaching out to seekers in our community.
Contact: Janis Umschlag, Chair

Outreach—
 Our Mission is to follow Christ’s directives:  “For I was hungry and you gave me food.  I was thirsty and you game me something to drink.  I was naked and you gave me clothing.  I was sick and you took care of me.  I was in prison and you visited me.  Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”  Matthew 25:27-40
OUR MAJOR INITIATIVES:
MIRACLE KITCHEN MEALS
NOAH SHELTER SANDWICH DINNERS
CARE FOR FOSTER FAMILIES
DAYS OF HOSPITALITY
 WOMEN’S AND MEN’S OVERNIGHTS
GROCERY GIFT CARDS
SPECIAL DONATIONS AND EVENTS
Contact: Sharon Donegan

Pastoral Care Team and Parish Nurse Ministry—
We coordinate with the Eucharistic Visitors bringing communion to shut-ins, help get transportation for parishioners who need a ride to church, make friendly visits to shut-ins at home, visit people in the hospital, nursing home, rehab center or other facility, and deliver food to parishioners.   Parish Nurse visits to help with a medical issue or to help make an assessment of where to turn for help.  We receive parishioner prayer requests and concerns about others in need.
Our goal is to let every parishioner and their families know about the services we provide and that we can refer your needs to those who can help. We hope and pray that all will feel welcome bringing concerns to our team and we pray that we will continue to serve our parish faithfully in Jesus’ name.
Pastoral Care Contact:  Hilary Greene
Parish Nurse Contacts:   Susan Babcock, RN, FCN and Catherine Morrison, RN, FCN

Stewardship— The stewardship program was initiated in the spring of 2008 with an awareness that the economy would make meeting our goal of matching the performance of the previous year especially difficult.  We believe that all activities within the family of St. Mary’s are interconnected; that involving parish members in activities and events results in increased financial support.

The stewardship committee, consisting of Roger Boocock, Marian Ferguson, Kris Lewis, Harry Irwin, Dave Knauer, Linda Gadkowski, Jud Phelps, Hilary Greene and Steve Smith steered this past year’s effort, with the continued spiritual and practical guidance from Mark Anschutz.

If the economic forecasters are correct, 2009 may be an even more challenging year, but St Mary’s has weathered many an economic storm in times past and will do so again.  We are a family that is close knit and caring about our financial health as well as our spiritual health; and so, despite these difficult times, we have faith that St Mary’s will not only survive but prosper

Contacts:  Roger Boocock and Jud Phelps

Liturgy— Liturgy is integral to our spiritual life at St. Mary’s, as it is to that of most Episcopal churches. The rector takes ultimate responsibility for planning and executing our services. However, the Liturgy Committee gives the clergy advice and counsel on issues relevant to the services and serves as a sounding board for comments, kudos, complaints, and questions from members of the parish. The committee also oversees the recruitment and scheduling of acolytes, Eucharistic ministers, lectors, and ushers.

The Liturgy Committee consists of the rector and associate rector, the wardens, and representatives of the Altar Guild and similar organizations, as well as interested lay members. We invite everyone to attend our meetings, whose times will be posted in the weekly bulletins. We also encourage parishioners to make their views known to us via the Let’s Talk boxes.

Liturgical Guilds

Saint Mary’s Liturgical Guilds comprise the ushers, lectors, Eucharistic ministers, acolytes, and altar guild. Without the participation of parishioners in these groups it would be difficult if not impossible to have the worship experiences we do here.
Eucharistic ministers, lectors, and ushers are needed for all three weekend  services! Would you like to be a part of one or more of these groups? Training and support are provided; camaraderie and friendship are often fringe benefits in addition to playing a vital role in the liturgy.  If you are interested, or just want to find out more about the work of these groups, please contact the church office, Peter Gwynne, chair of the Liturgy Committee, or one of the clergy.
If you can undertake any of these duties please call the church office or Peter Gwynne (508-833-6789).