

HolyComforterMGM
the Episcopal Church of the Holy Comforter
Montgomery, Alabama



The Rev. Rosa Lindahl
December 19, 2024
As the Year Ends
Dearest Holy Comforter Family,
This is our final newsletter for 2024. We will publish the next one early in January. I take this opportunity to look back on the past year. We will spend more time looking ahead when we gather on the last Sunday in January (January 26th) for our Annual Meeting. For now, looking back is important because it tells us a lot about who we are and who we are becoming.
At this time last year, Mary Lois Monroe and Haynes Kelley were still struggling to keep us afloat administratively after Diane's untimely and devastating death in August. Missy and Terri had graciously stepped up to assist in filling the gaps. The good news in the midst of such hardship was that it looked like we would end the year with a modest budget surplus, rather than the large deficit we had budgeted for at the beginning of 2023. The other tidings of great joy was the charming Christmas pageant that graced our second Sunday in Advent. It had been so long since we had had enough children to have one. It. Was. Amazing!
The first weeks of the new year seemed to fly by and before I could blink, it was Easter. During Holy Week we rededicated the Stations of the Cross garden area with new plaques provided by Randy Bryan. Holy Week was the first time that members of All Saints joined us for worship as they explored new possibilities for where to worship after the decision was made to close that parish. I have since heard from several of the people from All Saints who came to be members of our church that they had found meaning and beauty in our
worship and received the kind of hospitality and welcome that defines our parish at our best. As lovely as Holy Week and the early weeks of the Season of Easter had been, once again tragedy struck when Randy Foster died. Just writing this paragraph brings a knot to my throat. I am still overwhelmed with gratitude when I think about how so many people stepped up to ensure that the Rite of Burial and celebration of Randy’s life Was incredibly beautiful and meaningful.
As your Rector I lay awake at night for days after, wondering how in heaven's name we would find the next accompanist/choir director. And then, again, God provided. Kris Sanchack has stepped into that role with all graciousness, a gentle kind spirit, and extraordinary talent. He has been a blessing beyond words. Along with hiring Kris, we also completed the move of the Trinity Memorial Garden earth from All Saints to Holy Comforter this past summer and who can forget the sudden appearance of Manny Roberto! Although he has firmly established himself as the king of his domain in Lowndesboro, there are still mornings when I get to work and am tempted to go check and see how Manny is doing. In his own way, he brought grace and mirth to a parish family that had a lot to grieve and desperately needed to laugh.
Then came autumn with so much heat that it was hard to call it that. After several weeks in the hospital, Mr. Donald Fox, our deeply faithful and kind cleaning staff member was carried home by his Good Shepherd. Again, we scrambled. Again, God provided. The two women who now provide cleaning support have our facilities sparkling. It's easy to take this kind of work for granted but in truth, it is every bit as much a ministry as any of the other work we do here. I am grateful.
I was out for the last few days before our 160th-anniversary celebration. As planning and preparations got underway, I was told in no uncertain terms that I needed to stay out of it and allow the small organizing team that included Terri, Missy, Lyn Frazer, Ann Montgomery and Jan Pope to take care of the event. I will never forget walking down the ramp towards McMaster Hall with my eyes closed on the Sunday over the celebration and then opening them to see this incredible timeline and banner on the back wall of the parish hall. The celebration could not have been better planned and executed. All of us should hold the memory of that day dear because so much love and care was put into making it truly memorable. Again, I am so grateful.
This walk down memory lane is getting long so I'm going to start winding it down. It has been an extraordinary year and it has also been the kind of year that defines a church. Too many goodbyes had to be said but along the way, new seeds of hope, of growth, of possibility have been planted. All the praise, all the gratitude, all the glory goes to a loving God. The Gospel of Luke tells the story of the Annunciation to Mary, that she will give birth to a child who will be Emmanuel, God with us, “because with God, nothing is impossible.” We have lived in 2024 in the light of that promise and we have seen it borne out. Thanks be to God!
With a prayer that all the gifts of peace, joy, and hope will bless you and yours in the days and year ahead, I thank each of you for what you did this year to make it such an amazing time. Rosa+