2026 Weekly News

Date Posted: June 5, 2026

School Supply Drive for Lula, Myers, and Tadmore Elementary Schools in Hall County

It’s that time of year again! From now until July 26 we will be collecting backpacks stuffed with school supplies for students attending Lula, Myers, and Tadmore Elementary Schools in Hall County. Our goal is to provide at least 75 backpacks for these children!

Please consider helping in any of the following ways:

Beginning this Sunday, June 7, we will have a backpack volunteer available in the parish hall ready to supply you with a backpack and a list of required elementary school supplies. We’re asking for these packs to be filled with the supplies and returned to the church the following Sunday or dropped off at the church office. There will be a volunteer at Grace each Sunday until July 26.

Pick up school supplies and drop them off at church. Items such as paper, spiral notebooks, pencils, colored pencils, pocket folders, large glue sticks, erasers, crayons, facial tissue, wet wipes, and sanitizer may be brought to the parish office or dropped off at church on Sunday.

Contribute a monetary donation by sending a check made payable to Grace Episcopal Church, with “school supplies” noted in the memo line, to the office at 422 Brenau Avenue, Gainesville, GA 30501. You may also place a check in the offering plate on Sundays. Online contributions can be made here.

Facts on childhood poverty in how it impacts a child’s educational outcomes:

• Child poverty begins with adult poverty and creates a vicious generational cycle.  
• Children who experience poverty are more likely to experience food insecurity, poor housing, lower educational attainment and limited access to healthcare.
• In 2023, Hall County’s childhood poverty rate (16.1%) was higher than the U.S. average (13.7%). Source: Data from the County Health Rankings & Roadmaps County Health Rankings.
• According to the United Way, approximately one in four children in the United States cannot afford school supplies, which drives up absenteeism and hinders a child’s academic performance.
• Investing in educational opportunities for disadvantaged children can help break the cycle of poverty.

Community of Hope Q&A

The goal of Community of Hope International (COHI) is to provide training and support to equip its lay chaplains to serve Christ in the Other—safeguarding love wherever we find ourselves. If you are interested in learning more, please stop by the parlor after the 10:45 AM service on June 7. Current members will be happy to answer questions.

Daughters of the King

The Daughters of the King will not meet on June 10.

Charis Circles

You are invited to participate in Charis Circles this summer! Join us at 10:30 AM on June 17 and July 15. Please contact Meg McPeek, Assistant for Formation and Community Life, with any questions.

Sunday Supper

As evenings get longer and the breeze gets warmer, there’s no better way to celebrate than with a Sunday Supper! On Sunday, June 21 we’ll savor the Summer Solstice with an intergenerational activity and dinner together at 6 PM.

Chicken tenders will be provided, please bring a side or dessert. For food planning purposes please sign up on our website by Sunday, June 14.

Sunday Supper

Register for VBS

Kids 4 years old – rising 6th grade are invited to join the Snowball Mountain Challenge at Grace, June 22-26 from 9 AM to 12 PM. With a unique winter games theme filled with snowboards and ski lifts and solid theology at its core, this VBS delivers joy and meaning in equal measure, teaching kids that “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13 NRSV).

Cost is $25 for the first child, $20 each additional child.

VBS at Grace

Save the Date for a Special Fall Retreat

Save the date for a fall retreat with Samantha Krezinski, River Guerguerian, Bobbi Patterson, Michael Heffernan, Emily Leithauser, and more. We will gather on September 25 & 26 to explore key aspects of what it means to be a human being fully alive: nurturing imagination, creativity, and healing. Watch for details.

Website Updates

Visitors to this website may notice some small changes over the next few months as we work to freshen things up, reorganize, and add new pages.

One particular change to highlight is that the Grace@Home and Watch Live & On Demand pages have been combined. The new Livestream page can be found under the Worship tab in the navigation menu at the top of the website.

This page is still where you can watch services, either live or on demand for about 4 weeks following the original stream. Scroll down the page to find links to service bulletins and the link to Compline on Zoom.

We’ve also made it a little easier to get to the new Contributions and Payments portal. You’ll see a direct link to the portal if you hover on the Give tab at the top of the page and there’s also a link in the grey footer at the bottom of the page.

Contact Jennifer Williams with any questions about the Grace Church website.

Dates for Your Calendar

Look ahead to upcoming opportunities for prayer, worship, and community!

• June 7 LOTR Study begins
• June 17 Charis Circles
• June 21 Sunday Supper
• June 22-26 Vacation Bible School
• July 19 Sunday Supper
• August 8 Park Lecture
• September 25 & 26 Fall Retreat

The Glimpses of Grace Podcast

We invite you to explore the podcast on Spotify (or your podcast app of choice) or here on this website!