Category: News

Announcement from The Parish Council – August 9, 2023

Dear St. Michael Family,

It is with heavy hearts and yet acceptance through the grace given to us by God, that we share with you the news that our beloved Fr. Ben Kjendal has been appointed as the Assistant Pastor (Second Priest) of Holy Cross Antiochian Orthodox Church in Yakima, Washington. Father’s appointment is effective September 1st, in preparation for the retirement of the V. Rev. Fr. Joseph Copeland, on March 1, 2024. At that time, God willing, Fr. Ben will succeed him as Pastor (Proistamenos).

Our community of St. Michael has been blessed and has prospered under Fr. Ben’s stewardship for the past nine years. Fr. Ben, Kh. Alyssa and their family have so positively impacted all of us at St. Michael in all aspects of their ministry. We are grateful for their service to us and we are especially thankful for Father’s abiding love for our community.

We know that although Father and his family will miss us, they are also honored by and excited for this new opportunity and assignment. Please join the Parish Council in community on Sunday, August 20th, 2023, for Orthros, Divine Liturgy, and a cookout following services to celebrate Fr. Ben’s ministry here and wish Father, Kh. Alyssa and the Kjendal Family our best wishes as they depart for Yakima.

May this be blessed! May God grant them many years!

The Parish Council of St. Michael the Archangel Antiochian Orthodox Church

Backpack Blessings 2023

Once again we are collecting NEW school supplies for children living at the Village at Cataumet, a transitional housing shelter. Please see the list of suggested items and bring your donations to church by Sunday, August 20. On Sunday, August 27 we will pack and deliver the filled backpacks to be distributed as needed to the children at the Village at Cataumet.

Thank you for donating time, supplies, and money to help these kids start the school year off on the right foot!!! Please see Kh. Alyssa for details.

We are also collecting (new, clean) 13-gallon trash barrels and small bathroom waste baskets to donate to the Village of Cataumet. Most of us have several trash baskets in our homes that we only think about when we lament having to empty them. For families living at the Village at Cataumet, having a trash receptacle in their room is a luxury. The trash barrels we donate will be much appreciated by the families and be able to be taken with them when they move into their own homes.

The collection will continue through August 27, when they will be delivered with backpacks.

National Bible Bowl & Oratorical Festival

Erika, Mary, and Nicholas Kjendal traveled to the national convention in Phoenix, AZ this past week to compete in the national Bible Bowl against the teams from the seven other dioceses. It was a tough, tight competition. At the end of the second round, two teams were tied for first, and our team was tied with another team for second. After staging a comeback in the second half of the five round competition, our team was tied for first going into the last question! The final scores for the top three teams were the Diocese of Toledo with 96, the Diocese of Worcester (that’s us!) 94, and the Diocese of the East 89. Great job Erika, Mary, and Nicholas for placing SECOND in the NATION!!!

Anders Kjendal also traveled to the national convention in Phoenix, AZ this past week to compete in the national Oratorical Festival against teens from the other seven dioceses and placed SECOND! Great job, Anders!!!

St. Michael the Archangel Orthodox Children’s Library is now open!

Please visit the children’s library just outside the front entrance of the nave and help your children, grandchildren, or godchildren check out a book or two! If you are interested in helping our children’s library grow, we have a wish list of books that we would love to add to our library’s shelves. See Kh. Alyssa with any questions or suggestions of books to add to the wish list!

Borrowing Rules
  1. Please sign out library books before borrowing them.
  2. Please return books in a timely manner so others also have the opportunity to benefit from the material.
  3. When you return library books, place them in the return basket and cross off your name from the sign-out sheet.
  4. Wash and dry your hands before reading library books.
  5. Keep food and drinks away from library books. Do not eat or drink while you are reading library books!
  6. Keep your library books in a safe place, where pets, weather, or young siblings will not be able to damage them.
  7. Enjoy your library books at home, not in the car, on a boat, with a goat, in the rain, on a train, or during Liturgy or other church services!
Wish List:
  • And Then Nicholas Sang: The Story of the Trisagion Hymn by Elizabeth Crispina Johnson
  • A Boy’s Journey to Sainthood: St. Paisios the Athonite by Anna Iakovou
  • Celebrate the Earth by Dorrie Papademetriou
  • The Children’s Bible Reader
  • A Child’s Guide to Confession
  • A Child’s Guide to the Divine Liturgy
  • A Child’s Guide to Prayer
  • From I-Ville to You-Ville by Mersine Vigopoulou
  • The Illustrated Life of the Theotokos for Children by Georgia and Helen Horns
  • The Legend of the Cross by Chrissi Hart
  • Little Lost Nun by Melinda Johnson
  • The Miracle of Saint Nicholas by Gloria Whelan
  • The Miracle of the Red Egg by Elizabeth Crispina Johnson
  • My Holy Queens and Princesses by Eglé-Ekaterine Potamitis
  • My Warrior Saints by Eglé-Ekaterine Potamitis
  • North Star Saint Herman of Alaska by Dorrie Papademetriou
  • Prepare O Bethlehem: The Feast of the Nativity by Niko Chocheli
  • Rejoice, Panagia: Offering to Children the Akathist Hymn by the sisterhood of the Life Giving
  • Spring of the Theotokos Monastery
  • Saint Catherine of Alexandra by Eglé-Ekaterine Potamitis
  • Saint George and the Dragon by Jim Forest
  • Saint Nicholas and the Nine Gold Coins by Jim Forest
  • Saint Paisios of the Holy Mountain: The Heavenly Signalman
  • Saint Sergius: A Beacon in the Wilderness of Radonezh by George and Christian Danias
  • Silent as a Stone: Mother Maria of Paris and the Trash Can Rescue by Jim Forest
  • St. Seraphim’s Beatitudes: Blessings for Our Path to Heaven by priest Daniel Marshall
  • Sweet Song: A Story of Saint Romanos the Melodist by Jane G. Meyer
  • A Taste of Paradise: Stories of Saints and Animals by Katherine Bolger Hyde
  • A Visual Catechism of the Orthodox Church by Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos
  • Books in the Friends of Christ series by Demitrios and Anna Fotopoulos
  • Any children’s book from Saint Paisius Monastery Gift Shop (stpaisiusgiftshop.com)
  • Any children’s books from Saint John the Forerunner Greek Orthodox Monastery Bakery (bakery.stjohnmonastery.org)
  • Any children’s book from The Life Giving Spring Monastery’s Zoe Press (zoepress.us)
  • The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
  • The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
  • The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien

Vacation Church School 2023

Vacation Church School will run this year from July 31 to August 1 from 9:30 AM until noon, and then on Wednesday, August 2 we will have a VCS potluck/picnic/party at 5:00, before Paraklesis. Please return the registration form by Sunday, July 23, and be looking for more exciting details coming soon! Please see Kh. Alyssa if you have any questions, and remember to invite your friends, neighbors, grandchildren, and godchildren!

PLC 2023 Competitions

Our youth did an outstanding job at the diocesan competitions at this year’s PLC! The theme for 2023 has been, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness.” (Genesis 1:26). Our youth participated in the Creative Arts Festival, the Bible Bowl, and the Oratorical Festival. Their hard work and dedication to learning and sharing the faith is inspirational. Here is a recap of the festivals and competitions:

Creative Arts Festival:

There were 50 creative festival entries (112 students) from seven of our twelve Church Schools throughout the region. The judging took place at St. John of Damascus Church and each entry was rated on four criteria: adherence to the theme, craftsmanship, composition and creativity. We had three volunteer judges – a clergy member, a marketing/communications specialist, and a project manager/choir director.

Judging categories were Gold, Silver, and Bronze. The breakdown of awards were 9 Gold,12 Silver, and 29 Bronze.

St. Michael submitted 12 entries that were created by the youth in our Saint Michael Homeschool Community. Six entries received silver awards, 5 entries received bronze, and Benji’s was not given a score because of his age.

Be sure to see these projects on display at the church and ask the children about them!

Bible Bowl:

Our teen team consisting of Erika, Mary, and Nicholas Kjendal, with Alison Irving as an alternate, once again won the regional Bible Bowl competition and will be heading to Phoenix, AZ at the end of July to compete with teams from around the country. Our pre-teen team (Sophia Chatelain, Paul Irving, Max Stewart, and Peter Kjendal) also did a phenomenal job, placing THIRD in the competition against the other teen teams and even a team of adults! Many, many thanks to their coaches, Ned and Kristin Chatelain, and their faithful manager/mascot Sam Chatelain for pouring so much love, time, and enthusiasm into our youth!

Oratorical Festival:

Anders Kjendal won the senior division of the regional Oratorical Festival and will also be traveling to Phoenix to compete with the winning orators from around the country.

Diocesan Scholarship:

Additionally, Erika Kjendal won a diocesan scholarship, awarded to outstanding high school graduates, that was presented to her at the PLC.

Saint Michael has had at least one winning orator every year we have had a competitor. Our Bible Bowl teams have been winning since our debut in 2016. Many people asked, “How do they keep winning? What are you doing?” The answer is not easy to articulate in a sentence or two, but if you come to any of the services at St. Michael throughout the week and notice that there are usually as many, if not more, youth than adults present, the answers to what sets our youth apart begin to be made clear.

Donations for A Baby Center, Hyannis, and ZOE House, OH

Throughout the months of June and July 2023, we will be collecting NEW or VERY GENTLY USED children’s books (appropriate for newborns through age 4) to donate to A Baby Center in Hyannis. Please consider donating Orthodox Christian children’s books and help plant seeds of faith in our community! Please see Kh. Alyssa with any questions.

Also, from now until July 9, 2023, we will be collecting new or gently used and clean items that will be delivered by some of our youth to ZOE House in Ohio. Please see Kh. Alyssa with any questions. Items being collected include:

  • Baby clothes (up to 2T)
  • Diapers (sizes newborn to 6)
  • Blankets
  • Maternity clothes

Easter Meals 2023

Thanks to a great effort by our amazing outreach team, led by Kh Alyssa.

An Easter ham and a $25 grocery store card are being donated to 30 families through Faith Family Kitchen in Hyannis. The need is great but God is greater!

Monetary donations are still being accepted. God bless you and keep you strong as we make our final approach to the Resurrection! Blessed upcoming Holy Week!!!

Teen SOYO Mission Month

Help us raise money for our mission trip to Mexico by partaking in our activities this month!

  • Talent Auction will be running all month! Some of the talents offered are landscaping, prepared meals, babysitting, photography / family portraits, and house cleaning.
  • We will have two raffle baskets, one for lent and one for Pascha, which you be able to buy tickets for during the whole month of March. The Lenten raffle basket ticket will be drawn on April 1. The Pascha raffle basket ticket will be drawn on Pascha night!
  • Postponed – Last but not least, we will be streaming ‘Man of God’ on March 18th after Vespers. Pasta and popcorn will be served! A suggested donation of $15 is much appreciated.

Thank you!