Tuesday, July 8, 2025
The Chapel St. Chronicle
Welcome to the Chapel Street Chronicle, your weekly St. John’s digest.
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Sermon Series
"Do Love"
The Rev. Rob Stevens
How will you go into the world this week and share your light and spread God’s love? Put on your armor of light and… do love?
MUSIC
This week we feature a special guest selection from the Seacoast Queer Choir, which rehearses right here at St. John's each Monday throughout the program year.
Directed by our own Maggie O'Neill, this performance from last month at the Dover Public Library features a beautiful rendition of "The Chain," by Ingrid Michaelson.
The Queer Choir will be performing this coming Sunday, July 13 at the 9:30am outdoor service in the Goodwin Mansion Gardens at Strawbery Banke. We hope to see you there!
MEET BROOKE BASSETT!
Hello St. John’s Community!
It is with great pleasure that I introduce myself to you. My name is Brooke Bassett and I am the new Director of Formation for St. John’s. I have a background in Mental Health Support and Counseling and have been working in public education for the past 20 years as a school counselor for children across grades K-12. I live in Portsmouth with my husband Joe, our daughters Lilly and Violet, and our golden mountain dog, Crew. We have been members of St. John’s Church since 2012. We love to be outdoors, taking advantage of the beautiful landscape that surrounds us, especially swimming in the ocean in the summer. Relationship building and community support drive my faith forward and I am looking forward to continuing to grow in faith alongside the St. John’s community.
I am feeling beyond blessed to have the opportunity to cultivate and nurture the spiritual development of the congregation across all ages. I am excited to begin to design and implement intergenerational programming at St. John’s. I will be working with youth and families on the facilitation of faith formation through youth groups, retreats, youth centered activities and mission and service opportunities as well as encouraging open and honest conversations in regards to faith and hope. I would love to hear from you and look forward to future conversations with you all - please reach out!
Brooke Bassett, Director of Formation
email: brooke@stjohnsnh.org
office phone: 603-368-9170
ST. JOHN'S GARDENS NEED YOUR HELP!
A Thirsty Garden Needs Your Help! Support the St. John's Church Flower Beds!
For many years, the beautiful flower beds in the middle parking lot at St. John's Church have brought joy and color to our grounds. They welcome parishioners, visitors, and passersby, enhancing the beauty of our sacred space.
For all of those years, we have relied on the generosity of a handful of parishioners to hand-water these beds, but many are no longer in a position to commit to do so, putting these plantings at risk during these dry months.
An automated irrigation system will ensure our gardens receive the consistent hydration they need to thrive, reduce water waste, and free up our dedicated volunteers for other important tasks.
We need your help to make this vision a reality!
We are seeking to raise money to cover the costs of installing an efficient irrigation system and subsidizing a portion of the cost of new plantings and flowers that will flourish in our refreshed beds.
Every dollar you contribute will make a difference. Whether it's $25 for a new perennial, $100 towards irrigation piping, or any amount you feel led to give, your generosity will directly impact the beauty and sustainability of our church grounds.
And there's even more good news! We have a matching gift of $5,000! This means your donation will have double the impact. For every dollar you give, up to $5,000, our matching donor will contribute an equal amount, helping us reach our goal even faster.
This project is not just about flowers; it's about stewarding our resources, supporting our volunteers, and creating an even more welcoming environment for our entire community.
Please consider making a gift today. You can donate by writing a check and writing "Garden Fund" in the memo line. You may mail it to us at 100 Chapel St., Portsmouth NH 03801, or by dropping it in the plate on Sunday!
Thank you for your prayerful consideration and generous support.
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