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Rev. Dr. Harold Shaffer dies at age 85
It is with deep sorrow we announce the death of the Rev. Dr. Harold F. Shaffer today, January 9, 2012.
A member of St. Christopher’s honorary clergy, Rev. Shaffer, age 85, succumbed in a Virginia hospital, according to his daughter, Mary Ellen Gmoch of Chesapeake, Va. Rev. Shaffer moved to Virginia during the past summer to be closer to his daughter.
Final arrangements are pending.
Please join us in extending our profound sympathies to the family of this beloved member of St. Christopher’s.
Brian
The Rev. Brian W. McGurk
Parishioners visit Rev. Wreh in Liberia
By Steve Keenan
Parishioners Steve and Jackie Keenan, along with Barbara Gibson, spent two weeks
in March visiting the Rev. Prince Wreh
 and
his family in Liberia. Prince, while a graduate student at the Episcopal
Divinity School in Cambridge, spent many Sundays worshiping with us at St.
Christopher’s.
Liberia, a small country on the West African coast, continues to recover
from 15 years of civil war, the group reports. The country’s infrastructure;
public water, electricity, roads, schools, etc. suffered serious damage during
the unrest and are in various stages of rebuilding.
Prince and his wife, Relhetta, share the belief that education is the key to
a prosperous future for all Liberians. The Wrehs, with support from Steve and
Jackie Keenan, founded the Keenan Vocational Institute in 1998 to provide skills
for young adults who missed their education because of the war.
The newest project undertaken by Prince and Relhetta is the construction of
an elementary school in a rural community outside the city of Gbarnga (central
Liberia). With help from St. Christopher’s and the Chatham Rotary Club, the land
has been cleared and cement blocks have been
made and stored on the site.
Steve, Jackie, and Barbara attended the groundbreaking for the school on
March 18. The vision is to have a seven-room school offering classes,
pre-school and K- 6 grades.
Due to the massive amount of rebuilding needed throughout Liberia, the only
near-term hope rural children have to attend school comes from privately funded
community-based schools. This building proposal will
 require
$22,400 to build and furnish the facility. The students’ families will provide
funds to retain teachers trained at the Liberian Teacher Training
Institute.
Prince will continue instructing graduate level courses at Cuttington
University College and minister to his parish at Grace Church. Relhetta will
take on the title of Administrative Director of the Keenan Institute supervising
construction of the elementary school and overseeing the operation of the
vocational school.
The Wreh’s porch afforded opportunity for
much good discussion and planning for the new school and for the continuation of
the Keenan Vocational Institute. Rehletta and her kitchen helpers prepared
delicious Liberian meals cooked over charcoal fires including cinnamon rolls for
breakfast and palm butter “soup”, a Liberian specialty. Sunday, March 13, found
us at Prince’s new church, Grace Church, founded in 1903. This “little white
church on the hill” was most welcoming and treated us to a sumptuous dinner
after the service.
The trip was a wonderful introduction to Liberia for
Barbara
and a meaningful return for the Keenans. It gave us a clearer understanding for
the opportunities for partnership between Prince, Liberia and St. Christopher’s.
Our appreciation for our myriad blessings were magnified through living in this
brave little country, struggling to recover from fifteen devastating years of
war.
We look forward to sharing more of our experiences and pictures with the
parish at a later date.
Soundings
See the
May issue of our newsletter, Soundings,
with stories on our holiday observances and activities. You can also find back issues on the Soundings page.
Church
youth groups now on Facebook!
See what's
happening with all our different youth groups on the St. Christopher's UnCommon
Youth Groups Facebook page! To visit, you must be a member of Facebook. To learn
more, click on the logo. Once logged in, enter "St. Christopher's UnCommon
Youth" in the search box.
Hear the Sunday sermons!
Just as if you
were sitting with the congregation! Visit our Sermons
page to hear podcasts of the latest theological talks given during 10 a.m.
worship services or to listen in on special events.
welcome
 Welcome
to St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church! We are delighted that you are
visiting our parish website. Whether you are a member of our community or simply
“passing through,” we cordially invite you to avail yourselves of our various
programs and ministries.
In this website you will find a
schedule of our worship services and programs. We would be pleased to have you
join our parish family. For we strive to be just that — a family, working
together, sharing our various skills and talents to serve the true head of our
household – our Lord, Jesus Christ!
The Rev.
Brian W. McGurk,
Rector, St. Christopher's Episcopal Church
St.
Christopher's Mission
We welcome all persons to the warmth
and beauty of the Anglican tradition.
We spread the love and grace of God in Christ.
We reach out to serve our communities as a compassionate neighbor. |
