Dear Friends,

The early church came together across previously unimaginable social and political boundaries in the name of Jesus for mutual support, encouragement, and to grow in the knowledge and love of God.

Today, we are facing an unprecedented boundary in the restrictions arising from the coronavirus. Even so, we are still a community that believes that no boundary is too big for God. To quote Saint Paul, “I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Because of the love we share in Christ, we are together even when we are apart. As an outward and visible sign of this inward and spiritual grace during this time of social distancing, we will continue to gather—by Zoom—for morning prayer on Sunday at 9 AM and and compline on Tuesday and Thursday at 9 PM. The community of saints has never been closer. It’s only a click away.

May God bless us all with new life and hope this Eastertide!

Benjamin+

Click here for the Sunday Morning Prayer bulletins 2020

Click here to join digital Morning Prayer Sundays at 9 AM

Join us for Compline, the last office of the day, every Tuesday and Thursday at 9pm via Zoom.

One important item to note about attending a Zoom meeting: as of April 4th to increase security Zoom has added a password feature to access meetings from their site. If you click on the link to access the meeting you will not need the password, but if you go to the Zoom website and join a meeting by entering the Meeting ID number, you will be asked to enter a password, which is now listed below.

Join Zoom Meeting
Click here to access the Compline meeting

Meeting ID: 924 746 7996
PW: 814057

One tap mobile
+13126266799,,9247467996# US (Chicago)
+16465588656,,9247467996# US (New York)

Dial by your location
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 558 8656 US (New York)
+1 253 215 8782 US
+1 301 715 8592 US
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose)
Meeting ID: 924 746 7996
Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/adUuzedRwS

The bulletin will be updated before each prayer service, so please check the website for the most updated version. 

Click here to access the bulletin for Compline.

Saturday, May 30th is the next Needful Things Non-Food Pantry Day from 3-6 p.m. The Non Food Pantry was open in March and April as a pre-packaged drive thru event. We had about 40 families each month. Because we are not meeting face to face in the church, it is not easy to bring in donations. We are still in great need of toilet paper donations. Please know that we would be glad to help you to make a drop off as safely as possible. I would also be glad to pick up! If you would like to work with this team, or have any questions about this ministry, please contact Rev. Barb Manzo at 715.271.8902. Thank you for your awesome support.

Beginning this Sunday, April 19th, at 6 p.m. CST, and for each Sunday until we can return to full attendance at our churches, Bishop Jay Lambert will be leading Evening Prayer. This service should last about 20 minutes and is intended to supplement, not replace, your Sunday morning time with your rector or priest in charge. Instead of the Sunday Lectionary readings, he will draw upon the daily office readings. In the Zoom system's video there is a chat button. This will give you the opportunity to ask questions about the Gospel or the sermon. You will need to have a Book of Common Prayer with you to follow the service.

Click Here to Join Zoom Evening Prayer with Bishop Jay

Meeting ID 985 5227 5083

Dial by your location  1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)

Join us for Digital Morning Prayer with Fr. Benjamin on Sunday at 9am via Zoom.

There is a link embedded in the middle of the invitation. To use this link, you have to download the free "Zoom" app to your smartphone, tablet, or computer. If you have that app on your device, all you have to do is click the link on the email and you will automatically connect. (Be sure to allow the app to access your camera and microphone, if requested.

If you don't want to use the app, or are using a device that can't download the app, you can go to the website for Zoom: https://zoom.us On the upper right hand side of your screen, there will be a tab titled "Join a Meeting." Click on that tab and you will be prompted to enter a "Meeting ID or Personal Link Name." The "Meeting ID" can be found toward the bottom of the invitation. I've highlighted it in red to be easier to find. In the case of this meeting, the ID is: 924 746 7996. Just enter those digits without a space or dashes and click enter. From there, you'll be prompted to allow access to your camera/microphone.

If you don't have access to a smartphone/tablet/computer with a camera and microphone and want to join the meeting as a phone call, there is a number listed just above the Meeting ID that you can call. That will connect you to the meeting with audio only. Those numbers are in red in the invitation. For this meeting, the best number is: 1 312 626 6799

Join Zoom Meeting
click here to join the meeting https://zoom.us/j/9247467996

Meeting ID: 924 746 7996
Password: 814057

One tap mobile
+13126266799,,9247467996# US (Chicago)
+16465588656,,9247467996# US (New York)

Dial by your location
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 558 8656 US (New York)
+1 253 215 8782 US
+1 301 715 8592 US
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose)

Meeting ID: 924 746 7996
Password: 814057
Find your local number: click here

Click here to access the bulletin to follow along.

Have you heard the Cathedral carillon bells lately? Starting at NOON on Sundays, approximately fifteen minutes of music of the liturgical season is being played by organist Christine Schaaf on the carillon bells. Music selections include service music - Gloria, Sanctus, Lord’s Prayer, Morning Prayer Canticles - along with hymns, hymn tune variations, and voluntaries for each particular Sunday.

All glory and praise be to God, and may our hearts and spirits be lifted with the weekly music of our Cathedral carillon bells.

Due to the Wisconsin Safe at Home order in place at least until the end of May, this year’s plans for the CCC Annual Pie Social are cancelled. We are very disappointed but look forward to next year, when we can again hold this great event to help support the ECW and charities. Next year we’ll be back at it with excitement, asking everyone to bake pies and attend.

This year we had chosen Feed My People Food Pantry as our charity of choice. In keeping with the pie social using a portion of our profits to donate to a charity, in leu of holding the Annual Pie Social, we invite you to make a donation to FMP. With your donation to Feed My People, we can still support families in the Chippewa Valley. Now more than ever, FMP is supporting many who are in need of food during the Corona Virus Pandemic.

To make a donation and to learn more about how Feed My People is serving our community during this great time of need click on this link; once in the site click "donate" to make your donation: https://www.fmpfoodbank.org/

Thank you for your support!

Debbie Christianson & Becky Van Es

Dear Sister and Brother Clergy,
Please share this with your parishioners. No fees are listed, but if there are to be fees the Diocese of Eau Claire can pick them up. This may be an excellent opportunity to help parents give their children something constructive to do during the limited mobility caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Jay

https://www.diofdl.org/news/diocesan-summer-camp-transformed-to-camp-home

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From Bishop Matt:

Dear Members of the Diocese of Fond du Lac,

I have been pleased with the way our congregations have continued to find ways to be the church despite the challenges presented by Covid-19. Clergy and lay leaders have found creative means of leading prayer worship while we are dispersed. Members have found ways of staying connected to one another. Congregations have proven agile in making sure their outreach ministries continue serving those in need. There is no denying the losses. Regular worship has been suspended. Events have been canceled or postponed. Still, God has remained faithful to his church and you have demonstrated a responding faithful resilience. I am confident you will continue to do so as long as this lasts in whatever ways it lasts.

We will also need to demonstrate that same creative faithful resilience with our Diocesan Summer Camp. Our Camp Director, Erin Wolf, and I have been in conversation and decided it would be unwise hold camp in the usual way. This is not an easy decision given how important we know camp is. Many of you know how much I personally love attending camp every year. But given the uncertainty of where things will be with the infection rate, the likelihood of ongoing restriction of some kind, and our own determination not to put our children, youth or staff at risk, this is the decision we need to make.

The good news is that just as our congregations have found creative ways to continue being the church differently, plans are being made to be camp differently. We can still provide opportunities for connecting with friends, learning more about following Jesus as members of the church, and having fun. I will let Erin tell you about those plans.

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​From Camp Director Erin Wolf:

The ever-evolving nature of our current pandemic has led us to make the decision that the Episcopal Diocese of Fond du Lac Summer Camp will not happen at Camp Lakotah this summer. We know this decision will disappoint those who hold camp near and dear to their hearts. Our camping community continues to be held in prayer as we grieve the loss of a beloved opportunity to gather in-person. But there will be camp!

We are immensely blessed to have a volunteer staff who is willing to take this opportunity to connect our community in a transformative way with Camp @ Home. During our scheduled camp dates of June 7-21, we will offer times of online check-ins and provide for at-home camp activities. Camp staff will create videos showing how to do crafts or singing a song (and more) featured on the diocesan YouTube channel, viewable at your convenience. Camp @ Home won’t replicate the experience of gathering in-person, but God is with us wherever and however we come together, even in a digital space that is different from what we are accustomed to.

Above all, though, please pray. Pray for our friends at Camp Lakotah, for our staff, for graduating seniors and all our campers & families. These are difficult times we are living in, and God will continue to see us through!

Thank you all for your patience and prayers as we continue to navigate this uncharted territory. We hope you will consider joining us for the Episcopal Diocese of Fond du Lac Summer Camp through Camp @ Home.

Grace and peace,
Erin Wolf (she/her/hers)
Camp Director

P.S. If conditions allow it, we hope to have an in-person Camp Day gathering at Camp Lakotah later this summer. We’d have time for a variety of camp activities that we all love including worship, games, crafts, and hopefully, gaga ball! More information will be shared as we continue to learn more about what we are able to safely offer camp families.

Q&A (Questions and Answers)
Q: What is Camp @ Home? What does that mean for me and/or my camper(s)?
A: Camp @ Home combines scheduled online gatherings via Zoom for campers & staff and @ home activities for campers. Online time gives opportunity to check-in and hang out; worship using the Daily Office; conversations on a topic in both large & small groups. @ home activities include doing camp activities @ home, like crafts, campfire with s'mores, and singing camp graces at mealtimes.

Q: What if I don’t have materials for activities or a Book of Common Prayer? How can I participate?
A: Register for Camp @ Home at diofdl.org/camp by Memorial Day (May 25) and we’ll send you a camp care package at no cost! It will include items like the online gathering schedule via Zoom, camp graces for mealtimes, printouts for worship, materials for some of the projects, and low- or no-cost camp activities to do at home.

Q: What if I don’t have reliable access to the internet? How can I participate?
A: Register for Camp @ Home at diofdl.org/camp (well, or call us at 920-830-8866 as you may not have internet access) by June 1 and tell us about this need. We will do all we can to get you connected either through another camp family nearby or a local congregation. And if that doesn’t work, you can still join the online times via phone and will still get the care package for @ home activities.

Q: Where do I find the current information on Camp @ Home?
A: Visit the summer camp webpage at diofdl.org/camp. We also send out updates via email and through diocesan social media. If you really need to know now, contact the Camp Director.

Q: What can I do to support camp at this time? How might I help?
A: Let’s count the ways you can help:
Prayers are always welcome!
Staff Camp @ Home by contacting the Camp Director (we could use a few storytellers for Kinder Camp yet).
Make in-kind donations of materials for camp care packages by contacting the Camp Director.
Give to support the camping ministry by visiting diofdl.org/camp.
Tell children and youth about Camp @ Home and have them visit diofdl.org/camp.

Q: How do I contact the Camp Director?
A: To contact Camp Director Erin “Erni” Wolf send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. If you need to talk directly to Erin, call (920) 830-8866 and you can get connected.