The Parish Life Commission supports activities necessary for the creation of a vibrant and faithful community. These ministries include opportunities for fellowship and fun, as well as chances to assume leadership in worship and pastoral care. Please see the following ministry descriptions to see where you feel called to participate.

Breakfast Crew  |  Cursillo  |  Episcopal Church Women (ECQ)  |  Guild of the Christ Child  |  Oasis
Oasis Dinners  |  Parish Retreat  |  Parish Picnic  |  St. Martha’s Unit  |  Saints Alive  |  Special Events
Suppers for Six  |  Young Adults Ministry

Breakfast Crew

The breakfast crew prepares a hot breakfast each Sunday morning for the parish, with an occasional Continental breakfast also served. The crew works in teams, with each team serving one Sunday per month.

How to get involved:
… Sign up to work on a team. Breakfast is served from 8-10, and crews come early Sunday morning to prepare the food.

Contact: Rick Moore, 879-9742, or Pat Nakamura, 802-7726, nakamura@nqwlaw.com

Cursillo

Cursillo is a movement of the church. Its purpose is to help those in the church understand their individual callings to be Christian Leaders. The Cursillo weekend brings together a diverse group of Episcopalians to share the richness of many modes of worship and to broaden each one’s appreciation for our Church. Lay people conduct the weekend with two or three members of the clergy functioning as spiritual advisors. Cursillo presumes that those who attend are already well grounded in the faith. It often provides new insights into our faith as well as fostering ministry among lay people. There are 5 Cursillo weekends a year and they are all held at Camp McDowell.

How to get involved:
… Attend a Cursillo weekend
… Become a Cursillo leader
… Sponsor a pilgrim

Contact: Hank Poellnitz, 871-3137, henry.poellnitz@elpaso.com

Episcopal Church Women (ECQ) – “First Monday”

Episcopal Church Women is a fellowship and service organization of women of the parish. They meet the first Monday of each month from September-May, with a business meeting at 10:30 a.m., followed by lunch and program at 11:30 a.m. The ministries of this group include Guild of the Christ Child and St. Martha’s Unit.

Contact: Reynolds Harper, 427-6775

Guild of the Christ Child

The Guild of the Christ Child is a support, social, and service group that provides a means of social and spiritual interaction between mothers of young children. The Guild meets the second Monday of each month, September through May. They also get together for an occasional “Mom’s Night Out”, and also to prepare Mercy Meals to stock in the church freezer.

How to get involved:
… Join other moms for fellowship and support once a month
… Help make Mercy Meals at the church

Contact: Andrea Pound, 824-7656, ampound@uab.edu

Oasis

From fall throughout the spring we offer a weekly program on Wednesday nights called Oasis. (add link to Oasis page )This program offers supper, opportunities for fellowship, and Christian formation for the whole family. The evening begins with Children’s choir while the adults have time for fellowship and an opportunity to slow down from the busy pace of the day. Supper is offered, and then programs are available for all ages. The nursery is open for children ages six weeks – three years, the atrium is open for children aged three – 6th grade. Youth in grades 7-12 meet in the youth rooms upstairs for a short devotional and recreation.

How to get involved:
… Help teach a class
… Help in an atrium, with the children’s choir, or with the youth.

Contact: any member of the Clergy

Oasis Dinners

Dinner is served each Wednesday night during the school year as part of the Oasis program. The food is prepared by volunteer cooks and clean-up teams and they serve once every six weeks. Our objective is to serve great meals to 75-125 people, work with volunteers and get to know them, and to Go Green – no throw away dishes, and we recycle everything.

How to get involved:
… Cook once every six weeks (no experience required)
… Help once every six weeks (no experience required)

Contact: Buddy Bland, 879-3414, 999-0631, bland.310@gmail.com

Parish Retreat

Every few years All Saints’ holds a parish-wide retreat at Camp McDowell. This is a great opportunity for all members to come together to talk, laugh, pray, sing and take advantage of all the activities available at Camp McDowell. We also need lots of volunteers both before and during camp, and would welcome your help with the next retreat!

How to get involved:
… Help organize the retreat
… Cook a meal during the retreat
… Oversee games
… Lead a workshop

Contact: any member of the clergy

Parish Picnic

For the last two years All Saints’ has held a parish-wide picnic at Homewood Park immediately following the 11:00 a.m. service. Well attended, this event has something for everyone – food, games, music and the opportunity to visit with other parishioners. As you can imagine, a lot of work goes into planning and carrying out this event, and we love volunteers!

How to get involved:
… Take a leadership role and organize a committee for the event
… Man or woman the grill
… Help make signs advertising the picnic
… Come to the park early to set up tables
… Help by purchasing food for the event
… Help with one of the games

Contact: any member of the Parish Life commission, or a Vestry member

St. Martha’s Unit

St. Martha’s unit is a group of women, mostly retired, who meet monthly for fellowship. We have brief programs, a telephone committee to inform members of any necessary St. Martha’s unit, ECW or other church news, and a fund raising effort in the sale of knives and other kitchen utensils. Raised funds are used to fund memorials and some long range church goals.

How to get involved:
… Join us at our monthly meeting for a brown bag lunch and fellowship
… Help with our annual fundraiser, the Rada knife sale, in November. Members of St. Martha’s vote on where to best use the money at All Saints’. In the past funds raised have been given to the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, the Rector’s Discretionary fund, and Memorials, among others.

Contact: Sally Rasco, 979-0257, werasco@charter.net

Saints Alive

Saints Alive is a seniors/retirees group who meet once a month for fellowship and lunch at local, designated restaurants. From time to time, the group visits a museum, local gardens, wineries, or a symphony matinee and other sites of interest such as a day trip to Mentone or a historical landmark. A highlight of the year for the group is the Lenten Lunch at The Advent, which is planned in advance and reservations made. The main purpose of Saint’s Alive is to bring parish members together for getting to know each other, for support, for discussions of interest and at the same time, discover what each has in common with one another. Saints Alive welcomes anyone in the parish to participate in this ministry at anytime.

How to get involved:
… Come have fun with us!

Contact: Dottie Jurgens, 978-1815, tonyjur@netzero.net

Special Events

This committee is involved with planning and hosting special events for the All Saints’ parish. Some of these occasions include receptions for the Bishop and new confirmands, the Pentecost birthday celebration, and parish celebrations. Special Events committee members plan and provide decorations, flowers and food for these occasions. This is a fun and creative way to serve at All Saints’.

How to get involved:
… Provide food, flowers, or decorations for events
… Help set up for events, and clean up afterwards

Contact: Sally Elwood,908-4387, sallyelwood@gmail.com, Adelaide Booth, 999-2839, abooth4324@aol.com

Suppers for Six

All Saints’ is blessed to have a large and growing number of people in their twenties and thirties, but it can be hard to get to know each other in the rush of Sunday morning. As a way of creating environments for young adults to come together All Saints’ offers Suppers for Six. Suppers for Six are informal supper groups for people in their 20’s and 30’s (give or take a few years!). And as the title suggests there are typically six people to a group. These groups are a fantastic way to get connected with other young adults at All Saints’. Married couples, singles, people with kids and without, whether you’re new to All Saints’ or not so new, you are invited to participate. Each Spring/Summer there is a pot-luck to kick off the new year as we re-form the groups.

How to get involved:
… Join a group!

Contact: Deana Hughes, 879-3849, rustydeana@bellsouth.net, or Amanda Jones, 871-1600, alpjones@hotmail.com

Young Adults Ministry

All Saints’ offers several ways for young adults to connect, both socially and through Christian Formation.

How to get involved:
… Sign up for the Young Adult Ministries email list

Contact: the Reverend Jack Alvey, jalvey@allsaintsbirmingham.org,
769-3180.