From the Rector

Dear Friends,

My note this week is a short one and really more of a challenge and reminder. I was having a conversation with a parishioner who related that she ran into a longtime member who asked her, “What’s going on at Saint Philip’s? I haven’t heard anything from them!”

Now, those reading this, will know there’s quite a bit going on but it seems that, if folks are not on our books as having signed up for the e-newsletter, now called The Bell & Tower, they won’t know much of what’s happening. If we don’t have their phone number, which some folks decline to give when they fill out the membership forms, we also won’t have a way to contact them beyond a mailing.

Fortunately, we do have a mailing going out in a couple of weeks that will have a short calendar of upcoming events as well as a small insert that tells folks how to sign up. But, if you have friends from Saint Philip’s, it might be worth asking them if they get the parish newsletter or if they have been to the website lately. The news section on the website (stphilipstucson.org/bellandtower) has all of the articles that have run in The Bell & Tower in recent weeks, so it’s a great way to get caught up.

Toward the top of the front page of the website (stphilipstucson.org), there’s a box to enter one’s email and subscribe to The Bell & Tower. For the time being there’s also a pop-up box that will come up the first time someone goes to the website that will also give them an opportunity to sign up. We’re going to have to rely on one another to make sure our friends are signed up and plugged in. You may even want to print some copies to give to folks you think may not be signed up so they can see if they’d be interested.

I also wanted to let you know that there’s now a spot on the front page of the website that gives a livestream feed of our daily services at 8:30 and 12:15. When we are not live, the most recent live service will be there and able to be played and prayed. It will also be where you can find live-streamed events like concerts in the future. You won’t need to log into Facebook to search for them — they will be right on the front page.

If you have had trouble getting The Bell & Tower or want to help someone sign up and are having some trouble, please don’t hesitate to contact Canon Mary Trainor (mary.trainor@stphilipstucson.org) who is managing it. As we move into the fall and more events are offered and online we want to make sure folks know how to find that information and to make sure they stay connected to the life and work of the parish in this strange time

Yours in Christ,

Fr Robert