Author: Alex Abraham

1. Passing of Mr. Varughese Vattapparambil – the grandfather of Mr. Jibi Paul, last Saturday at his home in Perumbavoor, Kerala.  He was 97 years old.  Please keep the bereaved family in your prayers.
2. General Body Meeting – There will be an in-person General Body meeting held on Sunday, October 24th after Holy Qurbana.  All members are kindly requested to attend this meeting. 
3. 2020 & 2021 Graduates – Congratulations to the recent graduates of our parish! They were recognized for their achievements on Sunday and presented with a special gift.

1. NE American Diocese MMVS Virtual Annual Conference – will be held on Sat, Oct 9th at 9am.  Rev. Fr. Thomas Raju of Mavelikkara Diocese will be the main speaker and will present on the theme: “Fragrance of Christ” – 2 Corinthians 2:15.  All MMVS members are requested to attend.

1. Men’s Forum – The first meeting of the Men’s Forum will take place on Sat, Sep 25th at 4:30pm before evening prayer.  All men over the age of 50 are welcome to attend.
2. Combined Monthly Retreat & Prayer Day – The Council of Indian Orthodox Churches of Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island will be conducting its monthly retreat and prayer-day on Sun, Sep 26th at 7pm via Zoom.  Rev. Fr. Dr. C. K. Rajan, Vicar of St. Stephen’s, Franklin Square, will be the main speaker.

1. Men’s Forum -The first meeting of the Men’s Forum will take place on Sat, Sep 25th at 4:30pm, before evening prayer.  All men over the age of 50 are welcome to attend.

1. Passing of Mr. Varughese Thekkakara – husband to Mrs. Mariamma Varughese and father of Mrs. Anija Tom and Dr. Ansu Joy, early Sunday morning. Mr. Thekkakara had been a beloved member of our parish. Please keep the bereaved family in your prayers. LIVE STREAM LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgULJhRHeHY
2. 2020 & 2021 Graduates – Reminder, all students who graduated from high school or college in either 2020 or 2021 are requested to submit their names to the Secretary.
3. 2021 Annual Convention – The Council of Indian Orthodox Churches of Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island will be conducting its 2021 Annual Convention on Sat, Aug 28th and Sun, Aug 29th virtually, starting at 6:30pm. The convention will be inaugurated by H.G. Zachariah Mar Nicholovos and the speakers will be Rev. Fr. Isaac B. Prakash, Vicar of St. Peter’s & St. Paul’s, Houston and Rev. Fr. Jerry John Mathew, Vicar of St. Mary’s, Detroit.

1. General Body Meeting – There will be an in-person General Body meeting on Sunday, August 8th after Holy Qurbana. All members are kindly requested to attend this meeting.

1. Eternal Rest for His Holiness Moran Mar Baselios Marthoma Paulose II – Catholicos of the East and Malankara Metropolitan. Let us keep our departed Bava Thirumeni in our prayers. May the memory of Thirumeni be eternal.
2. Passing of Mr. Sankarathil G. George – the grandfather of Mrs. Tigi Abraham, Saturday in Konni, India. He was 103 years old. The funeral took place Sunday. Please keep the bereaved family in your prayers.
3. Housekeeping Request – Reminder, for those who have forgotten their jackets at church, please be sure to collect them in the next few weeks. The unclaimed coats will eventually be donated.
4. **Virtual Memorial Meeting for His Holiness – The Northeast American Diocese will be hosting a virtual memorial meeting in honor of His Holiness, Sunday, July 18th at 8pm through Zoom, with various special guest speakers.  Meeting ID: 82597747654 & Passcode: 166737
5. **Combined Monthly Retreat & Prayer Day – The Council of Indian Orthodox Churches of Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island will be conducting a condolence meeting for Bava Thirumeni prior to its scheduled monthly retreat and prayer-day, starting at 6:30pm on Sunday, July 18th via Zoom.  Rev. Fr. Gregory Varghese, Vicar of St. Gregorios Orthodox Church, Cherry Lane will be the main speaker for the retreat.  Meeting ID: 9175333566 & Passcode: 817789

1. Parish Perunal – Reminder, we will be celebrating our Parish Perunal with evening prayer on Fri, July 2nd at 6:30pm and Holy Qurbana on Sat, July 3rd at 8am.  All members are kindly requested to make a donation of $100 for the perunal.  Please give your donation to the Treasurer this week.  The form to sign-up for Holy Qurbana on Saturday, has been sent out for those who wish to participate.  Be sure to register as soon as possible, so that there is an accurate headcount for food.
2. Phases of Reopening – As NY lifts restrictions, we will begin to open up the church in phases.  Starting with Holy Qurbana on July 4th, there will no longer be a sign-up process and guests are welcome to attend.  100% capacity will be allowed in the sanctuary and lobby.  However, everyone is still required to wear masks at all times.  We also ask that families still sit together and try to maintain a seat or two distance from each other.  Kaimuth will go back to the normal process.  General absolution will remain in place.  The basement will not be opened for full use yet and there will be no post-church activities.  We will continue to lift restrictions, phase by phase.