To know Christ, grow in Christ, and share Christ's love.

Rector's Message from September 2006 Monthly Word 

From the Rector:

Celebration of Vocation and Avocation on Labor Day Sunday

On Sunday, September 3, at the 10:30 a.m. service, you are encouraged to bring a token of your work or hobby, something that symbolizes your labor and passion, and offer it on the altar when invited during the liturgy. This will be the fourth consecutive Labor day that we have offered symbols of our labors and many of us have found it to be inspiring.  Worshipers bring diaper bags, computer equipment, resumes (are you looking for a job?), priestly stoles, prayer shawls, business cards, tax forms, weekly planners and many other signs of life and labor. On that day, as well, we remember that many people are underemployed or out of work. We recognize that many of us work in fear of a layoff or downsizing. Our prayers of the people that day will reflect those ongoing concerns with special concern for those displaced from their work by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the past year.

Stewardship Plans

As we begin to make plans for 2006, our efforts turn to pledging and stewardship.  Pledge letters and cards for the 2007 Operating Budget will be sent out to you the week of September 4-8. Fellow priest and rector of St. James, Austin, The Rev. Greg Rickel, will be our preacher at the 10:30 a.m. service on September 10. Greg is a gifted and dynamic preacher and is recognized throughout the Episcopal Church as a serious student of stewardship and the issues we Americans face (or don’t face) in giving to the church and other associations that seek to serve a hurting world. 

St. Matthew’s Day

You will be asked to bring your completed pledge card to church on St. Matthew’s Day, which is Sunday, September 24 at the 10:30 a.m. service.  We will bring the pledge cards to the altar and offer them, and all they mean to our future, on the altar that day.  St. Matthew’s day is, of course, our great festival and you can count on a fantastic day at the church.  We will have a glorious Eucharist, pulling out all the stops in music and ceremony, followed by our customary lunch and celebration for all ages in Huffman Hall.  As always, a special thanks goes out to the Holy Smokers and the Associate Vestry for preparing us for this fun and happy day together.

I Am Excited About Our Future – Possibility of New Construction

It has been over 20 years since new construction has occurred on the campus of St. Matthew’s.  After several years of fundraising, the Day School has now gathered enough funds to launch a plan to build an extension to the Education Building.  This extension will give the Day School space for a significant library with a kiva, a large motor skills and music room, new offices with a separate room for the head of the school, more bathrooms, a rainy day room, a teacher work room, and enough storage space to eliminate the need for temporary buildings near the playground. 

This expansion is not intended as a means to add new classrooms, students or grade levels to the school.  We currently have around 200 students and the Board and Head of School, Pam Littlefield, are clear that our enrollment is perfect for the size of our campus and the demand for our services.  This extension will eliminate the need for the Day School to use Huffman Hall, B-18, B-14 and B-21 for motor skills, music, teacher meetings and other ongoing use of the sanctuary building and Huffman Hall.  Chapel would continue as always where it needs to be, in the sanctuary.

The Vestry has seized this Day School initiative as an opportunity to further our completion of the Campus Master Plan of 1998, which was updated in 2003.  This Master Plan has always assumed that the Education Building would be expanded, the current Youth Building would be eliminated and a new Youth Building would be constructed.  And here develops what I consider a master stroke of how our church and Day School can work together in harmony for the sake of children and youth.  A Day School/Church Joint Committee, chaired by Buildings and Grounds Chairperson Michael McCollum, has proposed that the church and school share the construction of a two story Day School/Youth Center with the bottom story committed to the Day School and the second story committed to the Youth of St. Matthew’s.  This building would be about 8,000 square feet in size, with each floor being around 4,000 square feet.  With around 600 square feet upstairs set aside for storage for the Day School, this will mean that the upstairs facility for the Youth will be between 3,000 – 3,500 square feet, approximately three times the current space available for youth gatherings and activities in the current Youth Building.  I cannot imagine a more concrete expression of long-term commitment to children and youth than this…

How Will We Raise the Money?

In its June meeting, the Vestry authorized Senior Warden Kevin McGillicuddy to work with the Day School Board and David Barrow, Church architect, to prepare plans for a two story building, sharing costs on a 50/50 basis with the Day School.  Prior to any final approval for church fund-raising and construction, the Vestry will hire a fundraising consultant who will be responsible for establishing the feasibility of raising the monies for St. Matthew’s share of new construction.  Very, very tentative and preliminary cost estimates for the two-story building come in around 1.2 - 1.5 million dollars, around $600,000 – $750.000 for the church’s share.  In the months of September and October, you will be hearing from a consultant, by personal contact, letter, or questionnaire, wanting to know your abilities to support a project such as this.  The Vestry will not, of course, approve the project if the feasibility study is not positive and unless it is clear that a Capital Funds campaign will not adversely effect operating pledges in the next few years.  The Diocese of Texas will have the final say, as they are the property owners of record and make these decisions with us.

We have other Bricks and Mortar Work to Do – Deferred Maintenance

In assessing the need for a Capital Funds Campaign, we are already incurring capital costs as I write.  We have recently installed four new air conditioners to service the sanctuary.  We are replacing the lights in the sanctuary.  We will replace the roof.  We have drainage correction to accomplish.  Huffman Hall needs attention, both in lighting, beautifying and sound system quality.  These are deferred maintenance items that are in no ways covered by our Operating Budget.  We have taken out a Line of Credit from Frost Bank to cover some of these costs and we really do NOT want to have to pay one penny of these costs out of the Operating Budget this year or any future year.  Debt service can cripple a church annual budget and leave us with fewer options in hiring and programs.  Therefore, we would add some of these deferred maintenance items (for certain the air conditioners, sanctuary lighting and roof), which when all finished should add upwards of $250,000 to our Capital Fundraising plan.

Enhancing our Music and a 25 Year Old Electronic Organ

When our current organ was installed, it was a state of the art computerized instrument with excellent speakers and functional console.  The organ is now a drawback for us as it has aged (despite yeoman efforts by our beloved and missed Tom DeWitt and others), beyond the effectiveness we need to offer first-class music on Sunday mornings and at other times when our sanctuary is used as a venue for great concerts.  We are blessed to have Tim Smith, who is one of the finest organists in Central Texas.  Tim and I and others have been discussing the feasibility of installing a first class pipe organ in our sanctuary.  It is possible to purchase used pipe organs from churches that are moving or abandoning a church building.  Organ exchange projects are occurring all over the church because a properly maintained pipe organ can last almost forever – go to Europe or the East Coast and you will see very old pipe organs making sublime music.  The quality of sound provided by a pipe organ is unsurpassable.  Using an organ reclamation plan, we could locate an existing organ, remove it from its current home, ship it, repair it, perform the interior work to our church necessary to house it, install it, tune it and play it at a cost under $200,000.  A new pipe organ would cost well over One Million Dollars.  Therefore, one of the items that we could include in our Capital Fundraiser would be the purchase and installation of a pipe organ.  The goal would be to have the cash in the bank to purchase an organ - when the right one comes available - for it must have the size and number of pipes necessary to fit our sanctuary in order to meet our needs.  Tim Smith has served the Diocese of West Texas as a pipe organ design and installation consultant and he could guide us through this process very well.

Other Ideas?

We could use a portion of funds raised in a Capital Fundraiser to increase our Endowments or to make a major gift for an outreach project.  The Vestry will not conduct a Capital Funds drive without considering a multitude of projects such as the ones mentioned above.  Again, the possibilities at this point look like this:

          *Deferred maintenance items (we will have fundraiser to cover these items even if we do not do any others)

          *Two Story Day School Expansion and Youth Center

          *A pipe organ

          *Endowment or outreach gifts

You will be hearing more and more about these projects as the feasibility study for fundraising kicks into gear.  Also, I remind you that on Sunday morning, September 10 at 9:15 a.m. in Huffman Hall, your Vestry and Wardens will make a presentation touching on this information, 2007 pledges, 2006 operating fund finances, deferred maintenance and other issues.  It is the goal of the Wardens and Vestry not only to keep you informed, but to solicit feedback and ideas for our future together as well.

Brotherhood of St. Andrew’s Sponsors Men’s Fellowship Meeting on September 28

The Brotherhood invite all men and boys of the parish to attend a Fellowship event on Thursday night, September 28, at 6:00 p.m. in Huffman Hall.  The Brotherhood and members of the Holy Smokers will offer a fine meal for $6.00 per person.  After supper, we will be blessed by the presence of Mr. Lance Gunn, a former University of Texas All-Conference safety and NFL veteran who is now in the real estate business in Austin.  Lance is the fifth in a series of speakers that have included Augie Garrido, Lawrence Sampleton, Randy Peschel, and Jerry Sisemore.  Lance will share some of his spiritual journey with us, and I will direct an interview with him on the subject of Leadership: How I Have Been Shaped by Great Leaders.  This is a great opportunity for fathers and sons, both to see a few highlights from his football career and to hear from a young businessman committed to the life of faith and aspiring to be a community leader to give back some the blessings he has received.

Discovery Class

I will be teaching a Discovery Class for adults new to the Episcopal Church or new to St. Matthew's.  Beginning September 17 at 9:15 a.m. in Huffman Hall, this class will be held weekly until Sunday, December 10, when Bishop Dena Harrison will come for confirmation and reception of new members.  This class is designed for you to learn the basics about the Episcopal Church including studies of the Holy Eucharist and Baptism, Prayer, The Holy Scriptures, traditions of the church, how to get involved at St. Matthew's and other topics.  This is the perfect class for those of you who simply want to have better handle on the basics of our faith journeys.  This class is required adult preparation for those who desire to confirmed when the Bishop visits in December.  If you need more information, please contact me at merrill@stmattsaustin.org or call me or Betty Mitchell at 345-8314.

Please Pray For Your Church and For Your Nation

With all the excitement building and the decisions we face together as we attempt to grow our church, I ask for you to pray for your clergy and leaders, that this be a time of renewal and renaissance for our parish.  Pray for one another.  Pray for the children and youth of this parish as they re-enter schools and the challenges they face.  Pray for our Day School as they welcome children and families to this holy place.  Pray for our President and those who serve our country in harm's way, wherever they may be.   God bless you one and all!

Faithfully,  Merrill