Divine Services for the Nativity of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
Monday evening, December 24th - Orthros - 6:30pm followed by the Divine Liturgy.
This Sunday's Memorials
Andrianos Kyriakidis - 6 months
George Koulaxes - 1 year
Peter Kontopuls - 5 years
Altar Server Team for Sunday, December 16, 2018
St. John: Captain: Michael Angeles, Luke Billings, Luke Georggin, Theo Huntalas, Konstantino Mellos, Alexios Savvides, John Savvides, Nektarios Sissons
Make Your Vow/Pledge to the Lord and Fulfill it
(Psalm 76:11)
The Stewardship Committee thanks you for signing your 2018 Orthodox Christian stewardship pledge card at the beginning of the 2018 calendar year. Your pledge and dedication helps support the many and varied ministries of St. Spyridon GOC – Home of the Miracle Worker!
With the new 2019 calendar year upon us we take this opportunity to remind and encourage you to make every effort to fulfill your 2018 pledge commitment by the end of the 2018 calendar year.
Fulfilling your 2018 pledge commitment is crucial to the continued success of your parish, which enables your church to continue to enhance the spiritual growth its faithful members entrusted to its care. Therefore, we respectively ask you to make vey effort to fulfill your 2018 pledged amount.
We thank you in advance for doing so.
Saint Spyridon GOC Stewardship Committee:
John T. Kalas: Stewardship Chair Fr. Andrew Scordalakis
Ben De La Riva, Jim Gilpin, Greg Kostas, Bill Navrides, Stephen Thiros and Spero Tzathas
Philoptochos
Please volunteer to deliver Christmas Baskets to our Homebound Parishioners. They can be picked up Sunday, December 16th after the Divine Liturgy in the church lounge. Please see Stella Pappas.
Sunday School Christmas Pageant
Please mark your calendars for the Sunday School Christmas Pageant which will be next Sunday, December 23rd.
Philoptochos and Fellowship
We hope you continue to enjoy the long standing tradition of fellowship throughout the year. Philoptochos is thankful for the continued support from all the families and organizations that offer every week. We kindly ask that you consider offering at least once per year, so think of name days, celebrations, memorials, fundraisers, etc. Offering fellowship should be kept simple (bagels, cream cheese, fruit and cookies) as it is a light snack to enjoy with family and friends following the Divine Liturgy. Therefore, the cost of fellowship should be approximately $100-$150 . You are also more than welcome to share your fellowship hour with another family or friend. Lastly, the donations collected from the coffee hour support our many ministries so please consider this when offering your donation.
To see which dates are available and sign up online visit our SignUp Genius page. To sign up over the phone, by email, or in person, contact Christina Vassosat cmvassos@gmail.com or 619-818-6882. Available dates can also be viewed using the fellowship calendar on the Philoptochos table in the hall. Thank you!
Be The Bee BEETREAT!
Be the Bee Registration is OPEN for March 9, 2019 retreat in San Diego please sign up today
Bookstore
Come browse our Christmas display table in the bookstore for a wonderful selection of children’s books including: The Nativity Story, Icon coloring books, Saint Nicholas, Father Evangelos, and more. Come browse!
St. Spyridon Adult and Youth Choirs
St. Spyridon Adult and Youth Choirs present "A Festive Christmas Flourish!" This Friday evening, December 14th at 7:00 PM in the Cypress Room. Complimentary admission. Opportunity Drawing for a live decorated Christmas tree. Shop by Chance. Dessert reception.
Please see the "Insert and Fliers" Section below for more information.
Attention GOYANS!
Please join us for the GOYA Christmas Party this Saturday, December 15th at the home of William and Dimitri Gilpin (6677 Maycrest Ln San Diego, 92121 858-457-2723), from 5:00 pm to 8:30 pm. We will share a potluck dinner so please keep an eye out for the email with a sign-up sheet. This year we will again be stuffing Christmas stockings for the Philoptochos Angels Christmas dinner.
Philoptochos Angels Christmas Party!
Philoptochos is once again hosting a holiday party for the San Diego Rescue Mission on Monday, December 17th. They will be sharing some great food, a few gifts, lots love and support from our most blessed St. Spyridon community. If you would like to donate a gift card or dessert towards this wonderful event or come and help that evening, please contact Stella Weil at (858)694-0570 or 4weils@sbcglobal.net – she’ll give you all the details. Thank you for your continued support.
Calling All Military Veterans!
One of our parishioners will be hand-stitching a new military service banner for Post-WWII veterans. If you, or a loved one, would like to be included, please submit your full name, branch of service, and phone number or email address to Soula De La Riva at (760) 521-0471 or soula.delariva@cox.net - no later than March 31, 2019.
SAVE THE DATE! - 2019 Annual Epiphany Cross Dive
2019 Annual Epiphany Cross Dive– Sunday, January 6th – join your fellow parishioners at the 41st Annual Epiphany Cross-Dive Luncheon taking place at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina. 2019 Leon Balaban Volunteer of the year honorees are Patricia Kouris and Maria Terris. Please purchase your tickets today (adults $35 and children under twelve $10) as this event sells out EARLY every year. Paid reservations must be received in the Church office no later than Monday December 31st. DIVERS NEEDED: Please contact Bill Navrides 619-992-6775 or bill.navrides@sharp.com to participate (divers MUST be GOYA age and stay for the luncheon) diver confirmations must be made by Wednesday, December 12th.
Please see the "Insert and Fliers" Section below for more information.
ATTENTION ALL ALTAR SERVERS- PLEASE SAVE THE DATE
There will be an Acolytes’ Winter Retreat for all current and incoming Altar Servers on Saturday, February 23, 2019, from 11 am to 1 pm. Father Andrew will discuss Movement of The Holy Liturgy in the Church and lunch will be served in the Hall. Please mark your calendars!
Dance & Choral News
Practice continues! Providing lunch did not prove to be productive with the different food preferences and allergies so we ask that parents please provide something for your children if they are hungry after choir from 1:10-1:30 pm. Youth Choir (3rd-12th grades) - 12:20-1:10 pm; Limani (3rd-5th grades) - 1:30-2:30 p.m. in the Goya Room; Ionians (6th-8th grades) - 2:30-4 p.m. in the Goya Room; Aegeans (9th-12th grades) - 1:30 p.m.-3 p.m. in the Church Hall;We hope to see everyone there!
Decorated Feast Day Icons
Philoptochos invites you and your family to commemorate a special Feast Day by offering a donation towards the cost of a beautifully decorated icon which will be displayed in the church Narthex for all to venerate. This offering, a floral adornment around the blessed icon, is a perfect way to honor both your family member(s) as well as an important day in the life of the Church. Throughout the liturgical year there are many opportunities to select a decorated icon, so please reserve your dates now. A suggested donation of $75 is much appreciated. Please contact Stella Weil at 4weils@sbcglobal.net or (858)694-0570 to reserve your icon/date or if you have any questions. Thank you.
The following Saints and Feast Days will be celebrated during December and January and have icons that can be displayed:
12/12 St. Spyridon the Wonderworker
12/25 The Holy Nativity of the Lord
1/1 St. Basil the Great
1/6 Epiphany/Holy Theophany
1/17 St. Anthony the Great
1/18 Saints Athanasios (and Cyril)
1/20 St. Euthymios
1/25 St. Gregory the Theologian
1/30 The Three Hierarchs
ATTENTION PARENTS OF COLLEGE STUDENTS!
We are happy to report that Philoptochos’ College Connection ministry is in full swing, make sure your children don’t miss out!! Philoptochos will reach out to our college students a couple of times per year to let our students know that we are cheering them on from home. If your son or daughter is attending college, either in San Diego or away, including community college, undergraduate or graduate school, we want to reach out to them with some love from their St. Spyridon Philoptochos family.
Please send your students postal mailing address and email address while they are in college, as well as the name of the school they are attending to Michelle Defelippi at mdefelippi@san.rr.com.
If you have any questions, please contact Michelle at the above email or (858) 695-9772.
Body Basics Parking Spaces
Please be reminded that one of our tenants, Body Basics, has been given permission to use two parking spaces off the alley near Park Blvd. on Sunday mornings. Please be respectful of that agreement and do not park in these two marked spaces on Sunday mornings. Please know that we are working diligently and moving forward to provide more parking for our church members. In the meantime, please pay attention to the signs marking the two spaces for Body Basics and do not block their customers from using those two designated spaces. Thank you.
Your Legacy and Your Church
...to whom much is given; from them much more is required (Luke 12:48).
Please remember to include your Saint Spyridon parish in your estate plan and bequest.
Youth & Young Adults Social Media
Program Description: Connect with the Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministries through social media to stay current with all the most recent news & events. We are all living and working in the mobile age, and the Metropolis Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministries is committed to building its presence on the internet. These sites serve as a unified place to connect our youth, young adults, clergy, youth workers, and parents throughout our very geographically diverse Metropolis. It will also be a place for everyone to share their ideas. Please be sure to check out these sites!
Receive Back 0.5% From “Amazon Smile” Foundation
We are pleased to announce, St. Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church of San Diego now participates in AmazonSmile. AmazonSmile is a website operated by Amazon that lets you enjoy the same wide selection of millions of products, low prices, and convenient shopping features as on Amazon.com. The difference is that when you shop on AmazonSmile, the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price to St. Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church. That’s right, every eligible purchase you or someone else makes at AmazonSmile 0.5% will be donated back to our parish!!!
Register by visiting AmazonSmile (smile.amazon.com) and select “St. Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church” before you make your first purchase (be sure to select St. Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church - San Diego, California). Amazon will remember your selection and each time a purchase is made AmazonSmile will donate 0.5% back to our parish.
For more information about AmazonSmile, go to http://smile.amazon.com/about
We hope you’ll consider this easy way to support your beloved parish. Everyone is eligible to participate so tell your friends and relatives and spread the word about this wonderful program. It takes little effort and with our collective participation and God’s continued blessings, our parish can benefit from this program.
A short video will be available on the parish website demonstrating how to select St. Spyridon GOC as your charity in your Amazon user account.
Live Stream Broadcast
If you know someone who may be in the hospital or home bound or for whatever reason just cannot get to church, don’t forget about the Live Stream Broadcast of our Divine Services. You can watch our Live Broadcast by going to our parish website and clicking on the “Live Broadcast” tab on the top tool bar. Remember, our Live Stream Broadcast is for those who absolutely cannot physically make the divine services of the church and is not a substitute for being present. Also, please be aware that conversations, crying babies, etc. can be heard on the broadcast. We have a wonderful cry room facility, which is located off the Narthex behind the candle stand, and is comfortable and provided for your convenience.
The Live Stream divine services of Saint Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church of San Diego, CA may not be recorded, retransmitted or reproduced without the express written consent of the Parish Council of Saint Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church of San Diego, CA. Thank you for your consideration.
Donations toward the digital ministries of the parish are warmly welcomed. If you would like to help support the ministries of Saint Spyridon please contact the church office. Again, thank you.