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Dear Cape May Presbyterians and friends,

In the service this past Sunday, we read the famous Ecclesiastes passage, that begins, “There is a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted.”  In the last little while I have felt strongly that it is time for me and for this congregation to turn a page, to start a new story.  I am called back to my native Ohio for my last chapter of ministry, to be closer to my sister and my nephews and nieces, and to serve two congregations that are in the process of becoming one church, outside of Toledo.  

I have been so blessed to worship and work among you for these last nine years (the above photo was taken in 2017).  I saw you all sail through the union between First Pres Cape May and First Pres Wildwood; I worried and walked and celebrated with you as we came through COVID with creativity and new technology.  We managed many changes in the worship schedule together, and it wasn’t easy, but we found an equilibrium.  We have seen Beach Church spring to life, and Jazz Vespers flourish anew.  Our mission committee has found its footing and is leading the church to make a difference in the community. It isn’t easy to leave you all, or to step down from the bridge of this particular ship.  But I trust that the dedication I’ve seen in you, the committed discipleship, the love you have for one another, and your skill in opening doors, will continue to serve you well as new leaders come your way. 

 Friends, I know this is not news you wanted to hear.  No congregation likes to be without a pastor, even for a limited time.  But I hope you will join me in offering many prayers of gratitude for all our years together and all the cookies and lasagnas, coffee hours and santa suits, school supplies and beach carts, flowers and weeds, songs and hymns, Bible studies and Christmas craziness, cello, banjo, keyboards, drums, bells, and guitars we have shared.  You all have been here for me in so many ways, you have brought so much life into this ministry, and I will be telling those stories until the Ohio congregation grows weary of them. 

One final thought—when Cindy Russell stepped down as clerk (a job I’m convinced she was put on this earth to do) I was not alone in wondering, who in the world could ever fill her shoes?  But then there was Janet—willing, good-humored, super competent, and dedicated—and while of course we missed Cindy at session meetings, we never missed a beat.   In the weeks ahead you may feel my pending absence, as I will feel yours.  But God has a way of filling in the gaps with new life, of finding gifts and gifted people that no one had seen, until the smoke cleared.  My prayer for you all is that you tune your ears to hear the hope that always comes on the winds of change. 

My last Sunday in worship will be October 4^th, and I will do everything I can in the coming weeks to ease the transition.  And the goodbyes will continue, as I add new Cape May memories to the list of those I hope never to lose.  Watch this space.

So proud to be, for a little while longer, your pastor—

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Wondering what’s going on with the Building Fund campaign?  

The good news is that we have already donated almost $8000!  If we keep this pace up, we will definitely achieve our first year’s goal of $33,000 (the campaign year begins and ends in May).  If you have not yet donated, remember that one way to meet our goal would be for every member to give $460 dollars per year for each of three years. That’s a little over a dollar a day!  If you can give more than that $460, please do!  That will get us to our goal faster and make room for folks whose budgets can’t quite make it to that amount.  We hope you are filling up your church banks and also considering your end of year giving.  

As a colorful and hopefully fun reminder, the image you see here will be colored in one-tenth at a time (think horizontal stripes), and displayed in the Narthex, to reflect our progress in reaching the year’s goal, and to remind us what we are raising the funds for. I’ll be asking different people in the congregation to color each new level, in whatever medium they choose. If you have coloring skills, let Pastor Nicole know!  

Finally, we are talking with local businesses and mustering our creativity and doing our research on other ways to raise the necessary funds. If you have a good idea for fundraising, let us know!

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Our summer worship schedule:

• 8:30 on Decatur Street Beach—bring your own seat! We look forward to welcoming a variety of musicians out there this summer.  

• 11 am in the air-conditioned sanctuary, where we have the pleasure of our talented and delightful Jazz Ensemble.  
  
  We look forward to seeing everyone in one place and returning to our cool weather schedule on Oct 4th, World Communion Sunday.  
  See you in the sanctuary at 10 am!
  

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Miss church last week?  The text of recent sermons are available on the church's website, and of course videos of the earlier service are always available on YouTube and Facebook.
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Our Church Staff:
Pastor: Rev. Dr. Nicole Wilkinson
Keyboardist/Jazz Leader: Greg Pordon
Organist: Milla Smith
Office Administrator: Nancy DeSantis