Greetings and Happy Winter!

When I was a child February used to be one of my favorite months. I felt this way for a few reasons. One, February is the month of love, and as a child that meant candy and valentines! Two, February was my favorite month as it started to get warmer outside. Third, February was my favorite month because it was the shortest month in the year which also meant summer was coming even sooner.

As an adult February is still a pretty special month, I do enjoy the holiday but even more so I enjoy the thought of warmer days, birds returning and nights staying lighter just a bit longer. February, to me, is the month of hope, and hope for new things to come. I often watch the news to find out if we will have an early spring or if will we wait patiently for another six more weeks. Logically we all know that we end up waiting at least six weeks, but it is fun to go along with the groundhog story.

As we move through February with hope and excitement I will remind myself to enjoy the moments. Each moment is so important. I will celebrate love with friends. February will be gone before I know it. Thank you all for sharing the winter with me. Thank you for celebrating love this month with me. I am so grateful and blessed to serve you all. My wish for you is that you all have a wonderful and hopeful month!

Blessed Be, Rev. Angel Dowing

CHURCH NEWS!

Join us for church service and potluck immediately after church on Sunday, February 2nd, Everyone is welcome. Even if you haven’t brought a dish to share there is always enough!

The church constitution and by-laws, along with our rules and regulations have been updated on our website. Also, the home page has been updated. Please go in and have a look!

In an effort to include everyone in the business and administrative parts of the running of our church, we will soon be inviting members to our board meetings via Zoom. We will send you a link through email and hope you can join us.

The Church Board will meet on the second Sunday, February 11th, following the church service.

We are signing people up to join in with our Chili Cook-Off happening on 2/24/24. It is $15 to join the cook-off. It is free If you served our Country or serve as a Civil Servant, Please email or text Rev. Angel to sign up.

As of 10/2023 Healing Light Spiritual Center and its grounds are 100% smoke-free. There will be no smoking of any sort on the property. We apologize for any inconvenience.

There are some committees that we would love our members to sign up for. If you can share even a few hours every month or so we will be forever grateful!

Our food pantry is running a bit low, please keep the pantry in mind when you are cleaning out your cupboards or shopping this month. We appreciate all who can give.

Rev. Angel is available for Hospital, Nursing Home, or in-home visits. Please see, or email Rev. Angel for more information. Thank you.

CHURCH SERVICE SPEAKERS, MEDIUMS, AND FACILITATORS
2/4: Stephanie Cartwright/ Facilitator, Pattie Smith/Speaker, & Medium
2/11: Rev. Angel Downing/Facilitator, Rev.Graham Conley/Speaker & Medium
2/18: Rev. Tara Gilmartin/Facilitator, Brenda Bywater/Speaker & Rev. Alex Gilgan/Medium
2/25: Healing Circle Ellen Bubier

HAPPENING "NOW" AT THE CENTER!

Intro To The Akashic Records With Kristine Murray. This class will be available via Zoom on Thursday, February 1st. from 6:00 pm to 7;30 pm.lo;. Kristine will teach a series of classes focused on accessing your Akashic records. For more information, contact Kristine at Kristineannmurray@gmail.com The suggested donation per class is $20.00.

Oracle Card Class with Rev. Angel Tuesday, February 13th & 27th from 6:00 pm -8:00 pm via Zoom. If you want to be able to read for yourself or others this class is for you! We will be looking at different types of oracle cards and learning how our guides give us information so we can understand the message to give.

Chili Cook-off Saturday, February 24th, from 12 pm-3:30 pm. To join the cook-off it is $15. It is free to anyone who has served our Country or served as a Civil Servant. There will be a D.J., Bake Sale Table, Raffle, Card Readings, local celebrities for judges, and a book signing with Christopher Packard. Please email or text Rev. Angel to sign up or for more information.

Full Moon Drumming Monday, February 26th, 6:00 pm -7:00 pm. Please bring a drum if you have one, we do have a few drums to borrow. Donations accepted.

Guided Meditation: Meet Your Guides with Shamanic Drumming on Thursday, February 29th, 2 pm-3:30 pm. Come with an open mind, comfortable clothing, and a soft blanket or mat. You will be guided on a journey to meet your animal or teacher guides. You will be guided by Rev. Angel and Shamaic Drumming. The cost is $10, please email Rev. Angel to preregister.


THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
A BIG THANK YOU to Janice Nelson Kroesser who continues to bless us from Spirit!
A BIG THANK YOU to Karen Sirois Costigan for Cleaning the Center and Church.
A BIG THANK YOU to Rev. Angel Downing for writing the newsletter and Rev. Janet for editing it.
A BIG THANK YOU to Diane Skolfield for keeping our website up to date.
A BIG THANK YOU to everyone who helps with the activities, classes, and events.
A BIG THANK YOU to Tara Gilmartin for handling the storage rentals.
A BIG THANK YOU Stephanie Cartwright for the donation of the event sign.
A BIG THANK YOU to our church service facilitators, Stephanie Cartwright, Rev. Tara Gilmartin, Rev. Kendra Wescott, Ellen Bubier, and Rev. Angel Downing.
A BIG THANK YOU to those who have contributed money and/or supplies to our church. Most of these folks prefer to remain anonymous but Spirit knows who you are!
A BIG THANK YOU to our members and friends who support us. Without you, there would be no church.
A BIG THANK YOU to our Speakers and Mediums who serve our church throughout the year.
A BIG THANK YOU to our Board of Directors.

TO BE CLEAR, everyone who serves our church, no matter what the capacity, is a blessing to us. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

Ongoing

Gallery Readings, Gallery is on the first Friday of every month from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm. There will be 2-4 mediums available. We strive to give a message to everyone in attendance, however, we can not guarantee this. The cost of the gallery is $10. (Cancelled for November)

Mediumship Development Group, Sunday Afternoons, 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm Everyone is welcome, beginners through advanced. The group begins with a meditation and allows attendees to experience a variety of methods to open the lines of communication with the "Spirit World". Offered by donation, so feel free to join us, even if your pockets may be a little empty one Sunday afternoon, we'd love to have you.

The Pastoral Council will meet quarterly, the next meeting will be in March, on the 1st Sunday right after church in the JNK Library.

Ordination Program: Rev. Dr. Janet Decker offers an Independent Spiritualist Minister Ordination Program. If you have considered being ordained perhaps this is a good time to begin. To learn more about it click the following link: https://intermetu.com/ord-502-independent-spiritualist-ordination-program/

Yoga Classes with Michelle Spencer are available. If interested please call the church. 207-217-2697 or 207-269-2142 (Landline only, no text)

Storage Space Available! We have vehicle, boat, motorcycle, sled, and ATV storage space available for rent. Rent is $35.00 a month for car/truck/small boat rental, and $20.00 a month for motorcycles, sleds, and ATVs. Large boats taking up more than one space are $35.00 per space. We offer seasonal and year-round rentals. Please call, or text, 207-217-2697 or 207-269-2142 (Land line only, no text) to make arrangements. All rentals are on a first-come-first-served basis.

Please bring in pictures of your feathered, furry, finned, or scaly family members to share on the Pet Picture Board.

Food Pantry If members, friends, community, etc. need help feeding and caring for their families, they are more than welcome to pick from the available items. Also, those who are blessed can donate non-perishable foods and personal items

Food Pantry For Pets. If members, friends, community, etc. need some help feeding and caring for their pets, they are more than welcome to pick from the available items. Also, those who are blessed can leave dog and cat food and treats, fish food, lizard kibble, and pet toys...all pet-related items will be welcome.

As we continue to grow our Healing Light Spiritual Center we hope you will consider donating your time and/or monetary help. If you want to donate time please contact any Board member, they are listed at the end of every newsletter. If you would rather contribute monetarily, you can do it by clicking here: https://www.healinglightetna.org/events or you can give donations to one of the pastors. All contributions, whether time or money, are always very gratefully appreciated!

There has been a good response to our FB postings, newsletters, and advertising. The feedback has been favorable and considering we are located in the tiny town of Etna, Maine this is terrific. Our goal is to put Etna and the Healing Light Spiritual Center "on the map", so to speak, but we need your help. If you are on FB we invite you to "Like" our page, Healing Light Spiritualist Church of Etna, ME https://www.facebook.com/Healing-Light-Spiritualist-Church-of-Etna-ME-146077428893201/ Then please SHARE, SHARE, SHARE our events. Share them on your FB page and on any FB group of which you are part. This helps us spread the word!


Reminders

Healing Light Spiritual Center and its grounds are 100% smoke-free. There will be no smoking of any sort on the property. We apologize for any inconvenience.

As much as we like seeing the faces of your furry family members and love the smiles they bring to our faces, as of April 1st only Service Animals, not therapy dogs only Service Animals, will be allowed in the center and at our church services. There is only one exception and that is on our Blessing of the Animals Day. On that day animals will, of course, be allowed in the center if the weather keeps us from holding the event outside. We have adopted this policy for 2 reasons. Many people are afraid of dogs and we do not want people missing out on our church services and events because there may be a dog present. The second reason is that many people have allergies to animals and we don't want anyone to be uncomfortable. We thank you for your understanding.

Please keep in mind we are continuing to make an effort to keep everyone who comes to church and church center events safe. If you are feeling sick, have a fever, have any changes in breathing, any changes in smell or taste, or have a runny nose then please do not come to church. Masks are available for anyone who wants one. There is hand sanitizer on the counter as you enter the building and on the Healing Book table as well as other places throughout the building, we ask that you please use it. The bottom line is, please do not come to church or events if you or someone close to you is feeling unwell. Thank you!

All events are updated regularly on our FB page: https://www.facebook.com/pg/Healing-Light-Spiritualist-Church-of-Etna-ME-146077428893201/events/?ref=page_internal

You can access the minutes for our Board of Directors meetings by clicking this link: https://www.healinglightspiritualistchurch.org/minutes

If you are a member in good standing you can request to see the church's financial statements by sending an email to HealingLightEtna@gmail.com

If you are a member or friend of HLSC we invite you to put your business cards on our business card wall.

The church phone numbers are 207-217-2697 or 207-269-2142 (Landline only, no text). You may still call any of the pastors or board members personally. Their contact phone numbers are listed at the end of the newsletter.

The back row of chairs is designated as Healing chairs for those folks who have difficulty getting up and down or walking up front to sit in a Healing chair.

If you have been coming to our church for a while and would like to become a member you can find out about our "membership requirements" on our website: https://www.healinglightspiritualistchurch.org/ or talk to one of the pastors or board members.

You can send prayer requests and/or "suggestions" from our website. You will find the form on the “Contact Us” page. https://www.healinglightspiritualistchurch.org/

If you would like to serve as a speaker and/or a medium during one of our services please see one of the pastors or email HealingLightEtna@gmail.com. Thank you.

The pastoral council and the church board of directors are open to hearing suggestions that may improve our church service and make it an even more inviting time of peace and healing. Please feel free to approach us or send us an email if you have a suggestion. You can email HealingLightEtna@gmail.com or contact individual board members. Contact information is below. There is also a suggestion box on the counter.

If a friend forwarded you this newsletter and you would like to be on our email list please send an email to HealingLightEtna@gmail.com

Thanks for reading and most of all, thanks for being part of our church, and please do share this newsletter!

Rev. Janet Decker, Rev. Tara Gilmartin, Diane Jackman, Gigi Del Mundo, Terri Kovac, Stephanie Cartwright, and Rev. Angel Downing

Rev. Janet Decker, President
Email: janet.decker9@gmail.com
Ph: 207-404-1845

Rev. Tara Gilmartin, Vice President and Trustee
Email: gilmartin_tara@yahoo.com
Ph: 207-884-4558

Diane Jackman, Secretary
Email: dianejackmanskolfield@gmail.com

Rev. Angel Downing, Acting Treasure and Trustee
Email: downingmom5@gmail.com
Ph:207-951-3121

Terri Kovac, Trustee
Email: katmama40@yahoo.com