Ship of Fools: MW Report on Erin's memorial service

Thread: MW Report on Erin's memorial service Board: Glory / Ship of Fools.

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Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :

Here's the link to the MW report on Erin's memorial service.

In the photo are (left to right) Jedijudy, Daughter Unit, Janine, Mr Janine (hiding behind his wife) and Ye Olde Motherboarde.

Posted by lily pad (# 11456) on :

Well done! And thank you!

Posted by matthew_dixon (# 12278) on :

Well that was something that really had to be done. It was only fitting that Erin had a mystery worshipper at her memorial service. Great to actually therefore be able to give a report of the service... and a report in a format we're all used to at that!

Posted by Deputy Verger (# 15876) on :

Well, that was a tearjerker. Thanks.
[Waterworks]

Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :

Thanks for that - and thanks to you all for representing us all.

Posted by Barnabas62 (# 9110) on :

Much appreciated, thanks.

Posted by Chorister (# 473) on :

Well done - that must have been a difficult MW to write.

Posted by Trudy Scrumptious (# 5647) on :

What a lovely report -- thank you so much for sharing it. It was nice to picture you all singing in multi-part harmony on "How Great Thou Art."

I really like the fact that the church used the little house-fronts from the hardware-store days as their office and classroom spaces (as shown in the picture and described in the report) -- I think it gives their reception area such an interesting look.

Posted by TonyK (# 35) on :

Thanks to all who contributed to and wrote the MW Report and got it online so quickly - a first-rate job!

Posted by Wesley J (# 6075) on :

Thank you. Well done!

Posted by RooK (# 1852) on :

Thank-you for attending Erin's memorial on all our behalf. It gives me some measure of solace that there was a gesture signifying how important Erin was to many of us.

Posted by leo (# 1458) on :

Thanks for doing the report.

I was going to suggest that someone did so but wasn't sure of 'the rules'.

Posted by PeteC (# 10422) on :

Thanks a thousand times for this Amanda and team.

Posted by Lothlorien (# 4927) on :

Thanks to you all for attending for us and for getting the report up so quickly.

Posted by Leaf (# 14169) on :

Thank you very much for this particular Mystery Worshipper report.

My only complaint is with the irritating advertisement that has somehow come to life beside it - the eyebleeding adserver.adtech.de ad with the orange background and big white arrow repeatedly pointing down.

It's annoying enough on its own, but it does not lend a, shall we say, positive feeling to the MW report.

Posted by Mamacita (# 3659) on :

Thank you for the most excellent report and for being there for all of us. I would have loved to have heard Miss Amanda and Motherboard's remarks; so true, how we can love people we haven't met in person. It lifts my spirits to picture you all singing together in harmony at the end of the service.

Posted by Balaam (# 4543) on :

Thank you to all involved for writing this report and getting it up so quickly.

Last week I wan numb. I thought I had got over it, but now I'm crying. How can someone I've never met have such an impact?

Thank you all again.

Posted by starbelly (# 25) on :

I love the idea of you all working the room after the service... trying to find out as much as possible, I know I would have done the same!

And was that pastor Gator? ah, Gatlin...

Posted by Janine (# 3337) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Trudy Scrumptious:
... I really like the fact that the church used the little house-fronts from the hardware-store days as their office and classroom spaces... it gives their reception area such an interesting look.

The doors, windows, etc., were standard sizes, but each display, each housefront, was only as far across as a single room, so the effect was of tiny little houses. I kept expecting hobbits to walk out & join the service.

Posted by QLib (# 43) on :

Thank you. I'm sure writing it was difficult but I hope it was also helpful - reading it was certainly helpful.

Posted by basso (# 4228) on :

Thanks to you all for attending the service, and reporting on it.

Posted by Janine (# 3337) on :

quote:
How would you feel about making this church your regular (where 10 = ecstatic, 0 = terminal)?
4 – The people were so very nice, and we liked the feel of the service. But most of (us) are traditionalists at heart, and prefer a traditional church building with organ and acoustic piano, even though we know that the building is not the church, as they say.

Oi! Speak fer yeseff! [Biased]

If a facility like that, in that kind of still-sturdy condition, on a piece of land that size, in that exact sort of suburban area, with that much potential for multiple uses by the church and in community work -- if a facility like that came up and we could buy it, we'd do it in a snap!

So it'd be at least a 9, if I had to be part of a church that met there.

Somewhat less as far as being part of the church, since liturgy-driven churches don't necessarily appeal to me. But the people were 10+ lovely, that's true.

Posted by jedijudy (# 333) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Janine:
Oi! Speak fer yeseff!

Sorry! It's hard to get away from being a very traditional organist, you know!

Thank you all for the very kind words and prayers and comfort.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Miss Amanda, for blending all our thoughts so very well, and for posting the report so quickly (and adding the technical Eccles info!) You are, indeed, Amanda B. Reckondwythe.

It was a very great honor to be part of the group representing the Ship of Fools. It was also a great comfort to be physically present with others who love Erin, too. I wish every one of you could have shared the hugs that we gave each other. Hugs are very good.

Posted by Angel Wrestler (# 13673) on :

Beautiful report. Thank you for being there and reporting back to the rest of us.

I love the picture of the little houses with porches foe reception areas. I'd go to that church just for that! but then mid- to low candle is where I fall - though I adore organ music.

Posted by Lamb Chopped (# 5528) on :

Thank you so very, very much.

Posted by St. Punk the Pious (# 683) on :

I also thank you for this report.

I am pleasantly surprised Erin was fellow member of the Anglican Church in North America.

Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Janine:
It'd be at least a 9, if I had to be part of a church that met there.

Fair is fair. I'll modify the report to include your rating. There are one or two little things I'd like to clarify anyway.

It's basically Jedijudy's report but I edited it to include all of our observations. The editing was done when I arrived back in Phoenix Saturday night around midnight. I wanted to get the finished draft back to Simon before I went to bed.

But Miss Amanda has learned a lesson: Never, never again will she travel without her laptop PC.

Posted by TE Brown (# 11920) on :

Thank you for this - it helps those of us far away to connect somehow with all who knew and loved her in real life.

TEB

Posted by Simon (# 1) on :

Thanks for the feedback on the advertising, Leaf. The report had to go up super-quick as I was away all day, and I failed to notice the ghastly old ads. They were repaired early evening when I got back though.

Thanks again to jedijudy and Miss Amanda for writing and editing the report at speed, after long journeys home. Heroic stuff.

Posted by Lynn MagdalenCollege (# 10651) on :

Wonderful report and I appreciate the explanation of the little buildings - how I would have delighted in those as a child! "Now that I'm seven years old I get to go the peach-colored house!" [Cool]

Thank you for attending (for yourselves but also for all of us) and being so quick to share the experience.

Posted by MrSponge2U (# 3076) on :

Very well-done report! Thank you for those who were able to attend and represent the rest of us shipmates. It is good to know that Erin was a part of such a supportive church, and that she had a rich life on and off the Ship.

Posted by Tubbs (# 440) on :

quote:
Originally posted by St. Punk the Pious:
I also thank you for this report.

I am pleasantly surprised Erin was fellow member of the Anglican Church in North America.

I assumed it was the family church. I don't think Erin ever told anyone which particular church she attended.

Tubbs

Posted by Caty M. (# 11996) on :

Thank you for the report, and for getting it posted so quickly.

Posted by Siegfried (# 29) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Tubbs:

quote:
Originally posted by St. Punk the Pious:
I also thank you for this report.

I am pleasantly surprised Erin was fellow member of the Anglican Church in North America.
I assumed it was the family church. I don't think Erin ever told anyone which particular church she attended.

Tubbs

It's in my head that she was ECUSA--but I can't put my finger on where it was stated. My assumption on reading the report was that it was likely the family church.

Posted by Nunzia (# 4766) on :

Thank you all.

Posted by Rossweisse (# 2349) on :

Erin once told me she was a member of ECUSA, but she could have moved over - or it could, as you say, be her family's church.

MW team, thank you for going on all our behalf, and thank you for the report. It made me feel a little more a part of it.

Posted by lily pad (# 11456) on :

The history of the church leaving TEC and leaving their building is on their website. I'll not tell the ending, it's a twist!

Posted by Pigwidgeon (# 10192) on :

quote:
Originally posted by lily pad:
The history of the church leaving TEC and leaving their building is on their website. I'll not tell the ending, it's a twist!

Can you give a hint of where to find this? There's no "history" page, and I've tried all the tabs!

Posted by lily pad (# 11456) on :

Sorry, I am past middle-age. That's the only excuse I can think of. It was a news story, not on their history.

The link is one that uses parentheses so I am not sure how to put it here. However, it was in The Florida Times on May 20, 2010. Key words in the link are: former home improvement store becomes new home displaced anglican church.

Posted by Horseman Bree (# 5290) on :

Interesting that this particular ACNA congo moved to one of the more non-traditional buildings, despite being dedicated to the Old Way of Doing Things.

Must say, I'd prefer that building to the high-maintenance, poor access shack in my town.

Easy parking and access, good findability on the road, space to do different things inside, adaptability, ease of movement for processionals or going-up-to-Communion, interesting office spaces - hard to beat!

I'd prefer not to have the ACNA baggage, but I'd take the building.

Posted by Lynn MagdalenCollege (# 10651) on :

Pigwidgeon, I didn't find it on their site either but here is an article from May of last year and another brief news update on the original property.

I don't know where Erin stood in the Anglican/ECUSA mess; I think it's worth bearing in mind that relatively few people are entirely pleased with where their church (whether local congregation or national or global organization) stands on every issue. This may well have been her congregation and her discomfort with the messiness of trying to work out her salvation; we follow Jesus but, in practical terms, we often follow others on that road - no one travels alone.

Posted by Lynn MagdalenCollege (# 10651) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Horseman Bree:
Interesting that this particular ACNA congo moved to one of the more non-traditional buildings, despite being dedicated to the Old Way of Doing Things.

See, this is what I don't understand. It's the "Old Way of Doing Things" if a congregation holds to Biblical relationship standards but isn't Christianity entirely about dedication to "the old way" of God's redemption of humans by the blood of Jesus? I've never understood how to pick and choose what's meant to be relevant and what isn't.

Anyway, it looks like the original All Souls property is now occupied by a Bible-centered church; I don't know if the property is rented or sold.

Posted by Pigwidgeon (# 10192) on :

Thanks for the links! (And I'm glad to know that I wasn't going crazy or blind when I couldn't find it on the church's webpage.)

Posted by lily pad (# 11456) on :

I do apologize. [Razz]

Posted by Janine (# 3337) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Angel Wrestler:
... I love the picture of the little houses with porches... I'd go to that church just for that! but then mid- to low candle is where I fall - though I adore organ music.

Members said they'd decorated each "house" for Christmas -- lights, Christmas trees, etc. I bet the kids enjoyed that.

A note re: the sound system:

When you're an a capella worshipper, back home, one thing you really notice when visiting a church is the sound system. How do the materials in the auditorium/sanctuary change/carry sound? Is it a space the people can sing in, and can you hear everyone? Or did some not-very-musical person install so much sound-deadening material all around, that the music (especially voice) is ruined? How's the mix at the board? How are the speakers, where are the speakers? Volume too high or low?

I found the sound perfect at All Souls. The Jedi mentioned the sound going in and out on the priest's microphone -- I barely noticed. The room was laid out well, and the surfaces were a proper mix, so that sound carried and he could've been heard just fine even without the mic.

The keyboard was handled perfectly by the lady in the collar, who also sang. (As usual, those songs played from sheet music meant for "praise band" style worship were pitched too high. It was find a harmony, a lower-octave unison, or quit. Not her fault, though; it's probably too much to ask for her to sight-transpose, eh? [Smile]

)

I did speak with the guy doing the sound (Henry Glover, parish administrator), and the lady, to let them know I appreciated the music.

Posted by basso (# 4228) on :

I'm fairly sure that this church wasn't Erin's. Probably her folks' instead.

One of my few conversations with her on the boards was over her unhappiness with her then ECUSA bishop, who was one of the 'conservative' ones. She said then that she was on the point of leaving. I told her that I hoped she'd stick around because we needed people like her. (We still do!)

But I can't really imagine her moving to an ACNA parish.

Posted by Tubbs (# 440) on :

A belated thank you to everyone who attended the service on our behalf and who worked on the MW report and got it onto the site so quickly. It's much appreciated.

Tubbs

Posted by Hugal (# 2734) on :

Belated from me too. Thanks Miss Amanda for your report, it was nicely balanced and touching.

Posted by Jengie Jon (# 273) on :

Thanks for this.

Jengie

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