Ministries

Acolytes, Chalice Bearers & Servers: This past year we have had a Crucifer each Sunday to lead the procession in the Church.  When we have had Mass with the Eucharist, a Server and Chalice Bearer have been added. The time commitment means arriving early enough to vest for the service. If you would like to serve God on Sunday mornings in this way or want more information, please call the Church office (315) 265-5754 and ask for Sally Elliott to return your call.

Altar Guild: Altar Guild is a group of dedicated persons caring for vestments and communion vessels in preparation for Eucharist services. During this time without a Rector of our own, we have had the pleasure of meeting and working with several priests visiting Trinity and conducting Eucharist services for us. We’ve also worked with our fellow parishioners and Vestry to prepare Morning Prayer on the Sundays we’ve had no visiting priest, and now are very happy to welcome the Reverend Father Jonathan Beck. We welcome interest in and questions about this service of dedication. Current members include Betsy Travis, Joyce Dangremond, Mary VanLeuven, Sally Elliott and Caroline Maloney. For more information, please call the Church office 315-265-5754 and ask for a member to return your call.

Building & Grounds Committee: The Buildings and Grounds committee for 2022 included Dave Sanford, Ian MacKellar, Laura Gutenmann and Chair, Gavin MacKellar. 2022 was a busy year for Buildings & Grounds at Trinity. Projects big and small have been done or at least started, including new plumbing, driveway improvements, purchase of lawn-care equipment, new roofing, new flooring, and tree removal to name a few. Many more projects are in line for 2023, the most significant being the repair of the Church stonework and masonry, for which a Capital Campaign is currently underway. Please see the Trinity Church Annual Report 2023 for details on Building & Grounds projects (available via email or in the Church office). For more information, please call the Church office 315-265-5754 and ask for a member to return your call.

Church Choir: In the fall of 2022, Trinity Choir started singing regularly again after our Covid-related vacation. On Christmas Eve, for the first time we sat in the choir stalls for the whole service and it was good to be back together in place again; now, happily, we are back to wearing choir robes. We currently rehearse on Sunday mornings at 9:30am from September through May. We are always looking for new members, so please join us. For more information, please call the Church office 315-265-5754 and ask for Becky MacKellar to return your call.

Community Suppers: This is the 25th year that Trinity Church has held Community Suppers on the 4th Thursday of each month, including the summer months. Because of Covid we switched from in-house dining to a take-out format for distributing meals, and also we now partner with the First Presbyterian Church of Potsdam so that we work together to feed our community. Suppers through 2022 continued to be take-out and each church took a turn supervising the meal, with help from the other church. It is our hope that we can eat in-house again at Trinity Church beginning on April 27, 2023. This ministry is great fun, providing good fellowship and a feeling of joy in serving others. Current organizers include Mary VanLeuven, Judi Sanford and Sharon Pickard. If you’d like more information, please call the Church office 315-265-5754 and ask for an organizer to return your call.

Daughters of the King: The Daughters of the Holy Trinity is the local chapter of Daughters of the King at Trinity. The Daughters of the King is a National Order of women within the Episcopal Church who incorporate the rule of prayer and the rule of service. Our order invites all women of the Church who are interested in strengthening their relationship with Christ, growing their prayer lives, and serving the Church and local community. Current members include Nancy Kear, Sally Elliott, Laura Gutenmann, Deborah Chase-Lauther, and Barbara Hardiman. For more information, please call the Church office 315-265-5754 and ask for a member to return your call.

Missions & Outreach Committee: The Missions Committee this year consisted of Joyce Dangremond, Leslie Thorpe, Deborah Chase-Lauther and Chuck Thorpe, Chair. We are in a transitional phase. Our long-time personal connections to Madagascar are no longer in effect, so that part of our ministry is up for re-evaluation in 2023. This past year we concentrated on supporting important causes financially: $500 foreign missions to Episcopal Relief and Development for Ukraine; $250 local missions to Grace House; and $250 local missions to Helping Hands. For more information, please call the Church office 315-265-5754 and ask for a member to return your call.

Stephen Ministry: Stephen Ministry is a worldwide one-on-one lay Christian Care- giving ministry that came to Trinity over 30 years ago. Each Minister has had 50 hours of training in listening skills. We meet weekly with individuals who need an unbiased listener while they deal with life issues including health challenges, illness of a parent or spouse, separation or death of a loved one or other life changes. During Covid we have been able to continue meeting with individuals each week. Current Ministers include Mary VanLeuven, Leslie Thorpe, Joanne Fisher, Joyce Dangremond, Rich VanLeuven, Dave Sanford, Barb Hardiman and Sally Elliott. Conversations with a Stephen Minister are confidential. If you or someone you know would benefit from meeting with a Stephen Minister, or if you’d like more information, please call the Church office 315-265-5754 and ask for a Minister to return your call.