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Writer's pictureTherin Fenner

Pastor's Letter, January 4, 2023

Updated: Jan 31, 2023

Starting the New Year with Some RAVES.

The flagship newspaper of our northern neighbor has long had a column called “Rant & Rave”—for which readers submit personal experiences of what has recently rankled or wowed them.


I always love reading the “raves”—because they remind me that small acts of generosity and kindness do not go unnoticed. We may not always have the benefit of knowing the full impact of our actions, but we can trust – largely—that they do have an impact. In that spirit, I want to begin 2023 with some raves:

  • RAVE to Elaine, and her trusty assistant, Jim, for all their behind-the-scenes work these last 15 years on chancel beautification and upkeep. As you’ll see inside, Elaine is “retiring” from this role—but her years of devotion have impacted us all and will echo.

  • RAVE to Kathy for the hours upon hours she’s put in at the office—even post-retirement! Her gifts to us include early drafting of the annual budget, paying bills, and reminding us to order Christmas Eve candles—among many, many other services. RAVE also to her co-conspirator, Jenifer, our adept treasurer.

  • RAVE to Frank for working hard on our City of Olympia permit renewal—to secure us another year of Hope Village! And RAVE to his partner-in-service, Carol, for her tireless behind-the-scenes work tending the WPC kitchen!

  • RAVE to Tammy for loaning lanterns when the church power went out--and, along with Tim and Sara, making some Christingles with our children on Christmas Eve!

  • RAVE to Cheryl for sharing her gifts with us for Christmas Eve (along with violinist Lisa Pearson), and for donating (with husband, Grant) our beautiful sanctuary Christmas tree for another year. Another RAVE to our Chancel Choir for their superb Christmas Eve pieces.

  • RAVE to Suzanne Fell for another year of devoted stewardship of the library.

  • RAVE to David Braun for swapping out old office computers with new ones, and for all the behind-the-scenes tech work he undertakes so faithfully.

  • RAVE to Nancy for sharing 25+ nativity sets with us for the Sights & Sounds of Advent event--and even bringing her daughter to set-up and tear-down. RAVE to Ashley and our Fellowship committee for their wonderful oversight of the broader event (and more recent Kings' Cake extravaganza!)

  • RAVE to Christi for handing out bulletins week after week, and making sure our worship candles get lit!

  • RAVE to Lorna and other Giving Tree elves for enabling another successful gift collection (and distribution!).

  • RAVE to Sue , for planning (already!) for the growing season ahead, and leading Tai Chi almost every weekend between now and then.

  • RAVE to each of you who sent me or the office a Christmas card! Thank you for sharing the fruit of your year with me!

And, as always, RAVE to those I’ve forgotten, or whose contributions somehow flew under the radar—but undoubtedly made their mark on this dynamic, beloved community. THANK YOU, each of you, for what you invest of yourselves here. THANK YOU for banding with others on this journey of faith—that none of us are alone on this path.

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