Category: Events

Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Training – May 31-June 5, 2022

Flyer & Registration Form

All are welcome! The tuition for Level 1 Formation Part 1 is $400. For those in Orthodox Churches, of all jurisdictions, it is $250. Registration is limited to 12 people.

When: May 31-June 5, 2022
Tuesday following Memorial Day through Sunday
Weekdays and Saturday 8:30am-4:30pm, Sunday 1-6pm
Where: Michael the Archangel Antiochian Orthodox Church
62 Main Street, Cotuit, MA 02635

Course Overview: Formation Courses are the method by which the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is offered to
adults. Each formation course includes preparation in giving the presentations (the lessons) to the children, provides a
solid background in the Montessori educational approach, and instructs in the theological foundation of this work. The
Formation Leader assists the adult catechist in writing an album of lessons, how to prepare the learning environment,
and how to make the experiential materials for the children’s work. The National Certificate of Completion will be issued
to those who successfully complete both parts of the Level 1 training. The fee for this certificate is included in the
registration fee.
Formation Leader: Anne Marie McCollum began her journey with CGS in 2010 when she helped launch one of the first
Orthodox CGS programs. As a homeschooling mother of five she fell in love with the Catechesis as a way to help bring
her children into deeper relationship with the Good Shepherd. In 2014 Anne Marie was recognized as a CGS Level I Formation
Leader by the National Association of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, becoming the second Orthodox formation
leader for CGS. She is trained in all three levels of CGS and currently serves as a Level III catechist at St. Ignatius
Antiochian Orthodox Church in Franklin, TN. When she isn’t teaching, Anne Marie enjoys reading, hiking, camping,
chasing waterfalls, and sharing her love of the outdoors with anyone who will listen! Anne Marie and her husband,
Joshua, reside in middle Tennessee with their three youngest children, one dog, five chickens, and a constantly revolving
stock of sheep, goats, and cattle.

For more information email our course coordinator:
Kh. Yvonne Butts at yborthodox@gmail.com

Save the date – Sunday, February 7, 2021

On Sunday, February 7 (after coffee hour) we will be heading to Main Street in Hyannis to hang handmade scarves for homeless. This year, in addition to the scarves, we will also be placing “care bags” around town that will be filled with items such as tooth paste, socks, etc.

Please join us for this heart-warming outreach endeavor!

Calling All Cookie Bakers 2020

This year, we will be donating 65 Christmas meals to needy families at Faith Family Kitchen. The meal will consist of a ham, a grocery store gift card, and a tin of homemade cookies. Delivery of the meals will be on the morning of Monday, December 21. If you love to bake, have always wanted to bake, or are just willing to share some of your time to make a struggling family’s Christmas a little brighter, please, please, please:

  1. Email Kh. Alyssa (alyssakjendal@yahoo.com) and let her know how many filled cookie tins you will be donating. We need 65!!!
  2. Buy (or reuse) some cookie tins. (Please contact Kh. Alyssa if you are willing to bake but getting tins will be an issue for you.)
  3. Bake! Bake! Bake! (Most of the cookies should be homemade, but you can certainly include some candy or store-bought cookies in each tin.)
  4. Bring your filled cookie tins to the church by Sunday, December 20. (Please contact Kh. Alyssa if you are willing to bake but are unable to get your filled tins to the church.)

We have cookie recipes that need to be tested. If you’re interested in trying something new, please let Soraya know.

THANK YOU! May you and your family be blessed by the time you spend sharing the love of Christ with others!

October Food Drive

This month we will be directing our outreach efforts to collect food for the local food pantry. Families are struggling, and we can help ease their burden by donating additional non-perishable food items. If you would prefer to contribute monetarily, please send a check (made out to St. Michael with October Food Drive in the menu) to Kh. Alyssa:

PO Box 46
Sagamore, MA 02561

Thank you for being a light of Christ to our neighbors in need!

SOYO Fall Bake Sale

SOYO is having a fall bake sale! If you would like to purchase any of the delicious baked goods they will be making, please fill out the order form and email it to kjendalhomeschool@gmail.com by Thursday, October 15. Pickup will be Sunday, October 18, at noon (after Liturgy). We will bring your order out to your vehicle. Please make checks payable to St. Michael SOYO with “Bake Sale” in the memo. The proceeds from this go towards buying candle stands for the new narthex. Thank you for your support!

Donations for ‘A BABY CENTER’ in Hyannis

During the month of September, we will be collecting items to donate to A Baby Center in Hyannis. The mission of A Baby Center is “To serve without judgement the youngest in our community. A Baby Center supplements critical basic needs that ensure the good health and safety of babies in need who live on Cape Cod and the Islands. These services are provided at no cost to clients and without regard for religious preference or lack thereof.”

Items requested are as follows:

• Summer/Fall pj's 
• Children’s Books
• Small toys
• Receiving blankets & toddler blankets
• Wash cloths
• Bibs 
• burp cloths
• Lightweight sweatshirts or jackets
• Baby Bath
• Baby Shampoo
• Baby Lotion 
• Desitin or diaper rash cream
• Pacifiers

Clothing donations must be freshly washed and not have stains.
Clothing donations must also be marked Winter or Summer and sorted by age.
NO STUFFED ANIMALS!
Thank you for supporting some of our most vulnerable neighbors!

Backpack Blessings 2020 Thank You

Thank you to everyone who donated school supplies and money to purchase school supplies for the children at the Village at Cataumet transitional housing shelter! Your generosity enabled us to deliver twenty-two backpacks, bursting at the seams with pencils, pens, erasers, highlighters, crayons, markers, scissors, glue, rulers, binders, folders, notebooks, tissues, hand sanitizer…and sets of masks!!! Additionally, boxes and boxes of breakfast and snack foods were delivered to help keep those children fueled for learning. Thank you for giving these kids the tools they need to succeed in this coming school year!

Backpack Blessings 2020

Thank you for your continued and selfless support of the struggling families at the Village at Cataumet! Because of your generosity, we have been been able to donate over $2,000 worth of food to the shelter over the past four months! Our support is a tremendous blessings to these needy families and is sincerely appreciated. Thank you!

We are shifting our focus from food to school supplies. While the details of “back-to-school” are still uncertain, the kids at the Village at Cataumet are still going to be in need of some basic school supplies. Throughout the month of August, we will be collecting the following items:

  • backpacks
  • notebooks
  • pencils
  • pens
  • pencil sharpeners
  • erasers
  • crayons
  • markers
  • highlighters
  • rulers
  • tissues
  • hand sanitizer
  • cleaning wipes

All items should be NEW and be brought to the church by Sunday, August 30.

If you prefer to make a monetary contribution, please make your check out to “St. Michael the Archangel” with “Backpack Blessings” in the memo and mail it to Kh. Alyssa by Sunday, August 23 at:
P.O. Box 46
Sagamore, MA 02561

Thank you for the love you show to our neighbors in need!!!

Soup Jars for Adoption

There is a wonderful family (the Morris family) Erika Kjendal has connections with through her Orthodox online school that hosted three siblings from an orphanage in Ukraine over the summer. Loving the children, and knowing that the institution they were in leads them on to a life of addiction, prostitution, or suicide, they wanted to take them into their house for good and adopt the three children and their little brother. Unfortunately, though, the process of adoption is very expensive and not everyone has fifty thousand dollars tucked away for such a purpose! To offer some help, although Erika will only be able to create a small dent in the expense, she has put together some soupmixes-in-a-jar. There are four varieties: Italian Barley, Split Pea, Coconut Curry, and Five Bean. All of them are completely Lenten and have clear instructions on the label. (It’s simple; all you need to do is pour the soup mix into a pot with some water and possibly another ingredient.) Each jar is $10 or five jars for $45, and all proceeds go to this family trying to adopt! Please consider buying one (or two or five!). It would be a nice gift to drop off on the doorstep of a lonely neighbor. They make about 4-6 servings each. They are all being displayed at church; but if you are trying not to leave the house, we are offering free delivery for orders of five jars or more, otherwise, the delivery fee is $1 a jar. To buy and/or schedule a delivery please email Erika at kjendalhomeschool@gmail.com. If you would like to offer the Morris family additional support, you can visit their gofundme page here. Thank you for your support; it is appreciated more than you could imagine, and you are helping to make a huge impact on the lives of four amazing children of God.