OFFICIAL: PARISH ASSEMBLY TO BE HELD NOVEMBER 19

As reported in previous issues of the Herald, parishioners of the Annunciation Cathedral are invited to attend the second Parish Assembly for 2003. This Assembly will be held on Wednesday, November 19, beginning at 7 p.m. The agenda will be as follows:

1. Call to Order
2. Opening Prayer
3. Minutes of the May 21, 2003 Parish Assembly
4. Treasurer’s Report
5. Auditor’s Report
6. Stewardship Report
7. Phase II Report
8. Nominating Committee Report
9. Election of Board of Auditors
10. Old Business
11. New Business
12.. Adjournment and Closing Prayer

Please note:

1. The Nominating Committee consists of Anne Mountanos, Pat Destein, Helen Markanton, Maria Georgiou and Annette Chiappari.

2. The Board of Elections, which will prepare the ballots and oversee the Parish Council elections, is comprised of Andrew Vellis, Ted Leventis, and Philip Chiappari.

3. The Parish Council elections will take place on December 14, following the Divine Liturgy.

4. A mandatory seminar for all candidates will take place on Tuesday, November 25.

5. Parishioners who are not nominated by the Nominating Committee but who wish to declare their candidacy may do so by requesting a “petition for candidacy to Parish Council” form from Father Stephen and returning it to him by the time of the November 25 seminar.

6. The Board of Auditors consists of Robert Larson, Cathy Peterson and Maria Ossipoff.

In order to participate in the Assembly, parishioners must be in good standing, in accordance with the provisions of the Uniform Parish Regulations and the Parish By-Laws.

His Eminence Metropolitan Anthony has asked His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios to celebrate the Divine Liturgy at the Cathedral on Sunday, November 23rd, when the Archbishop visits the Cathedral to attend and speak at the IOCC Dinner. This will mark the first time that the Archbishop will be visiting the Cathedral.

Although our chapel is small (it seats about 300), we are asking the older Sunday School children to be in church that Sunday, together with their teachers, to attend the Liturgy and hear His Eminence’s homily. A graduate of Harvard School of Divinity, Archbishop Demetrios has taught at the Holy Cross School of Theology in Brookline, Massa-chusetts, and is a renown scholar of New Testament studies. We look forward to the Archbishop’s visit as one of the highlights of the ecclesiastical year. The Divine Liturgy will begin at 10:30 a.m. (we are asking that our congregants be in church when the Divine Liturgy begins).

IOCC “REMEMBERING HOME” CELEBRATION AT THE CATHEDRAL -NOVEMBER 23rd

The IOCC Event, “Remembering Home,” will take place this year, at the Annunciation Cathedral on Sunday, November 23rd. Recently, you received an invitation/flyer (also enclosed elsewhere in this issue) describing the event. This was accompanied by a cover letter by Father Stephen and Patricia Aleck, host/chair for the event. Of note is that, this year, the speaker will be His Eminence
Archbishop Demetrios, Archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Church of America. Needless to say, we expect the event to be a sell-out and, so, we would encourage you to reserve early, and to avail yourselves of the opportunity to hear His Eminence and support the philanthropic work of the IOCC (International Orthodox Christian Charities). A pan-Orthodox Vespers Service, with clergy of various Orthodox jurisdictions participating, and with our Cathedral Choir singing the responses, will begin at 4 p.m. This will be followed by a Silent Auction and Reception, at 5 p.m. Then, Dinner and program, beginning at 6 p.m. For further information, please call the Cathedral at 415/864-8000.

PHILOPTOCHOS NEWS -- A. Leventis, President

The Ladies Philoptochos Society of the Cathedral started its Fall Season in late September of this year. Many of us were busy all summer with the preparation of food and pastries for the 2003 Food Festival and we were very lucky in that only a few items were leftover from the Festival. We have already utilized the leftover pastries for macaries and other Philoptochos events.

Presently, we have many projects that we are working on; projects of our own and also those in conjunction with the Metropolis Philoptochos. Some of these projects are the Bear Care Program, a program intended for sick children in local hospitals, the Wheel Chair project which is a one-time project, and our annual Christmas Tree Gift Giving project.

In addition, we are hosting the Thanksgiving Luncheon honoring the Seniors on Sunday, November 9, 2003. We are asking for a donation of $10.00 for adults and $5.00 for children, and I am sure you will be pleased with the food we have to offer. This event is for all the parishioners. On Sunday, December 21, 2003 following church services we are planning a Christmas Brunch for all the parishioners. More details will follow in the next Herald. And, of course, we are in the planning stages of our Crab Feed, which will be held Friday, January 23, 2004 at 6:00 p.m. at the Cathedral. This will be the 22nd Annual Crab Feed and we are honored to have the original individuals who started the Crab Feed two decades ago help with the preparations of this 22nd Crab Feed.

With all of the above many of us find time to help with macaries and also visit our senior members who for some reason or other cannot get out. We are looking for new members to join our dynamic group. Please see Susan McLaughlin of our parish and she can assist you in becoming a member in 2004.

"In closing, once an organization loses its spirit of pioneering and rests on its early work, its progress stops" – Thomas J. Watson, IBM Corporation Founder.

ORTHODOX SPIRITUALITY RETREAT

This retreat will be held at the St. Nicholas Ranch and Retreat Center, October 31-November 2. It is open to all, women and men, young and old. Principles, Problems and Readings in spiritual direction -- will be the subject of the retreat, which will be directed by the Reverend Dr. John Chryssavgis.

Deacon Chryssavgis studied theology in Athens and at Oxford. He has served as professor of theology at St. Andrew's Theological College in Sydney and at Holy Cross School of Theology in Boston. His most recent publications include Soul Mending: The Art of Spiritual Direction (Holy Cross Press, 2000), In the Heart of the Desert: The Spirituality of the Desert Fathers and Mothers (World Wisdom Books, 2002), and Letters from the Desert: A Selection from Barsanuphius and John (St. Vladimir’s Press, 2003).

The cost of $130 per person, $220 per couple, includes meals. For reservations and additional information, please call the Ranch, at (559) 338-2103 or Fofo Olson, Retreat Coordinator.

GREEK SCHOOL GROWS: WELCOME FIORI AND ISMENE PETRATOU

Greek School began on Wednesday, September 17, with a record number of students. Perhaps one reason is that classes are being held Wednesday rather than on Saturday, as follows: 4-6 p.m. for beginners and intermediate students, (2 classes), 6-8 p.m. for adults (also two classes, beginners and intermediate).

Classes are being taught by Fiori Petratou and Ismene Petratou, both natives of Greece, and residents of Pittsburg, California. They travel to San Francisco for the express purpose of teaching in our afternoon school. They have been very well received by both the children as well as the adults.
Because our classrooms are being leased to the San Francico Waldorf High School, which uses them until 6 p.m., the 4-6 p.m. classes are being held in the conference room as well as in the conference room vestibule. The adult classes are being held in classroom number 3. The classrooms are located on the second level, on the Valencia Street side of the building. Because of our space and other limitations, children must be second grade students, at the very least, in order to participate in Greek School.

The tuition, which helps defray some of the costs of providing teaching staff and materials, is $200 for the first child, and $150 for each of the other children of the same family. The adult tuition is $200 per semester. For further information, please contact Fiori Petratou. You may also call Demetra Armenakis, or the Cathedral at 415 864-8000.

RECENT SERVICES AT THE CATHEDRAL

BAPTISM
Sewit, daughter of Andy Gerhelase Weldezghi and Lula Berule Musgun, was baptized October 19. Her Godmother is Lidia Tekie.

MARRIAGES
The marriage of Constantine Nicholas Kanis and Wendy Ann Coyle was blessed on October 4. Their sponsor is Theodore Preovolos.

The marriage of Nicholas Darcy Rainsford and Ioanna Kastoras was blessed on October 11. Their sponsor is Julie Avramidis.

Na Mas Zisoun! (Long life!)

FUNERALS
Beatrice Lourentzos, who fell asleep in the Lord on October 12, was buried October 15. Next of kin are her sisters, Sophie Mason, Mary Azuros, and Ann Paoletti and her brother, John Pappas.

Mary Gregaru, who fell asleep in the Lord on October 14, was buried October 17. Next of kin are her sister, Anna Chicka and her brother, Gregory Gregaru.

Elie Tzortzatos, who fell asleep in the Lord on October 14, was buried October 20. Next of kin his wife, Wai-Ling Li, his sister, Aspasia, and his children.

Aionia afton i mnimi! May their memory be eternal!

COMMUNITY CHRISTMAS CARD 2003

We are pleased to announce that work is under way to gather names for this year’s Community Christmas Card. Annette Chiappari and Foula Vasilogiorgis will lead this year’s effort, by gathering your names during the coffee hours on Sundays during the month of November and by calling you at home. You may prefer, instead, to send in your names. Please do so by completing the form below and forwarding it to: Community Christmas Card, 245 Valencia Street, San Francisco, CA 94132, together with your donation of $25. This donation will help defray the cost of printing and mailing the cards and will serve as your Christmas gift to the Cathedral. (Of course, if you prefer, you may contribute additional amounts when you receive your Christmas offering envelope and 2004 Church calendar in early December. We thank you for your support of this project. Just think: by sending a modest gift of $25 you will be sending Christmas greetings to all of your fellow-communicants (over 1600 of them!), without all the fuss of stuffing envelopes and writing greetings...we’ll do that for you.

Please make your check of $25 (for each line) payable to: Annunciation Cathedral and mail together with this form to: Community Christmas Card, 245 Valencia St., San Francisco, CA 94103.

THE STEWARDISHIP COMMITTEE PRESENTS DISCO NIGHT AT THE ANNUNCIATION

Endeavoring to foster fellowship, as well as raising funds, the Stewardship Committee is sponsoring something different: in a word, Disco Night at the Annunciation, announces: Get out your polyester suit and platform shoes and join us for an evening of fun and dancing to music from the 70s and 80s.

Please let us know of your attendance:

Please make check payable to: The Annunciation Cathedral and mail together with this form to:
245 Valencia Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
Questions? Call Pat Destein or Mariam Arsinoos (415) 864-8000

Your reservation is secured by our receipt of your reservation form and your check.

November 2003 Herald
Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral.