3aug22

Our new Rector, Father Grant Wiseman will be celebrating the Holy Eucharist at our church. We will have a single service at 9:30 am, bringing together the 8:00 and 10:30 congregations in a joint service of thanksgiving and words of hope for our parish. Following the service, all are welcome to join us for a reception in the Beitha Mendez Parish Hall with an opportunity to meet and greet Father Grant and his wife, Heather.

At this service, the choir will sing With a Voice of Singing by Shaw. Chris Waite, a gifted singer sought after recitalist and tenor soloist will sing The Lord is my Light by Allitsen.

Heather and I are extremely grateful for the warm welcome everyone has given us since we arrived. I am beginning to find a pattern for life here in what is a much larger city than I have been living in for the past 13 years. I look forward to the beginning of school and the return of people who have been up north for the summer. Over the next couple of months I hope to meet most of you and get a chance to discern with you all our goals and dreams for our ministry together. My office hours will be from 8:00 am- 2:00 pm Friday-Monday. I will be greeting students and parents for carline.  I write a new prayer every morning and they can be found on the website www.atwinfather.com and we will shortly add a link that will upload to Facebook. I have been asked several times how I like to be addressed. I answer to Father Grant, Reverend Wiseman, Grant (I was that for 35 years before becoming a priest) and FG (in college I was called Buck but very few people use that anymore). Please use whichever makes you comfortable. Again, I look forward to getting to know all of you better.

Yours in Christ,

Grant+

“This past Sunday we bid farewell to our two priests, Father Sonley Joseph and Father Errol Harvey, who have given tirelessly of their time to meet our pastoral care needs for the previous year. Following a joint service last Sunday, we gathered in the Beitha Mendez Parish Hall for a wonderful brunch co-chaired by Lori McFadden and Lynne Coughlin and lovingly prepared by Lillie Griffin and Sam Adderley, giving us the opportunity to collectively and personally express our gratitude for their service, and to share our wish for their success in the new ministries that await each of them. May God continue to bless and watch over them . . , they will always be part of our family here at St. Mark’s and are welcomed back as many times as they choose to visit”.

Father Joseph is “grateful for the wonderful experience at Saint Mark’s” and has “faith in Saint Mark’s bright future.”  In his comments Father Harvey thanked Saint Mark’s for “a glorious ride, not a roller coaster”… and thanked the parishioners for their “kindness and generosity”. He thanked the lay volunteers, including the acolytes. Please view the collection of photos of the event submitted by Lori McFadden https://saintmarksftl.com/with-gratitude-for-our-interim-priests/ and read the touching letter from Father Joseph at https://saintmarksftl.com/a-farewell-note-from-father-joseph/

As some of our Lower School classrooms are currently being upgraded with new furniture, our school has donated used furniture to two Episcopal School’s located within our diocesan region. The schools that received the furniture were St. Paul’s Day School, located in Delray Beach, and Episcopal Church of the Advent in Palm City. Both schools have expressed their gratitude to Saint Mark’s for the generous donations.

Now that the cases of COVID have thankfully abated, wearing a facial mask is encouraged, but not required. Please respect the space of those who choose to be more cautious.