WELCOME FROM HAYWOOD STREET:
UPDATES:
Registration is now open for the Golf for Awareness.A link to the registration page can be found HERE along with updated information about all our wonderful event sponsors. Thank you all for your support!
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
2. Haywood Street Employment Opportunities
COMPANION CORNER:
1. Sign up to provide a meal for Respite here!
2. Fresh flower pick up help needed Friday and Saturday morning between 8-9.
3. Meal runner help needed Sunday and Wednesday during welcome table hours.
4. Tuesday meal prep will be in 2 shifts moving forward: 8-10 and 10-12.
*Let Hannah know if you’re interested and available to help with any of the above tasks.
5. July 29, come fellowship with and meet some of the Respite staff as we open Haywood St Respite back up to Companions. We look forward to seeing you all and discussing ways to engage with our friends and staff within Respite. We will be having brunch at 11:00am in the Hospitality Room downstairs. Please RSVP to: ali@haywoodstreet.org.
6. Next Companion Orientation: August 2 at 5 pm
A HAYWOOD STREET LETTER FROM: MIKE
Dear Haywood Street Congregation,In the beginning of June, I had the opportunity along with our former Community Resident to take a beloved congregant out to bike the Virginia Creeper bicycle trail. The rhododendron were in bloom, creeks rushing, and bright sun shining through the thick forest canopy. When we reached the ride’s end, we stopped for lunch. I asked our friend, “So, what was your favorite part of the ride?” In between bites from his burger he replied, “Well, basically all of it. All of it.”
This journey that we’ve shared together has been one of my life’s greatest blessings. It has been full of joys and challenges. To spend time here at Haywood Street is to know well the soaring heights of resurrection and the painful depths of crucifixion that continue in a society at odds with the poor. I can wholeheartedly say that each one of you have taught me something about how to be a better follower of Jesus Christ. You’ve supported and encouraged me at each step of our walk together, and I hope that you’ve found support in me as well. Our staff has supported me as I have navigated my first job out of seminary, growing pains and all. I have formed countless friendships that I will lean on for the rest of my life.
If I have learned one thing from this community, it is that God most often calls us to what is uncomfortable, challenging, or even scary. And yet, when we listen to the call of the Holy Spirit, this church has shown us that great things follow. Recently, I have felt this stirring in my own soul. Though at first confusing and in some senses scary, I have discerned that God is calling me to something new. After much reflection, I have decided to enter a new role as Associate Rector at Grace Episcopal Church here in Asheville. This new role will begin in mid-August, and I will remain here at church through the end of July.
I could reflect endlessly with laughter, joy, and no shortage of tears about my time here. It has been a blessing to be entrusted with your pastoral care. The ride has not been without its challenges, but I truly believe that each moment we have spent together has allowed us to learn and grow into something more loving, gracious, and whole. What’s been my favorite part? Well, basically all of it. All of it. Thank you, and may God bless us all.
Peace,
Rev. Mike Reardon
